Jesus announced that His mission was to "call … sinners to repentance" (Matthew 9:13). Such an experience is a personal change of mind, a turning around to go in the opposite direction. It includes deep heart sorrow for sin, a sense of shame and self-abhorrence for a life of rebellion against one's Creator and Redeemer. As such, it can be a cataclysmic upheaval of soul.
The way repentance works is clearly taught in the Bible. Jesus' call to repent is to all, for "all have sinned" (Romans 3:23). "The knowledge of sin" comes through "the law" (3:20). Thanks to the beneficent work of the Holy Spirit, this wholesome "knowledge" is imparted to "every man" as a "Light" that passes no one by (John 1:9).
This knowledge is imparted by a conviction that there is a standard of perfect righteousness in Christ. The sinner may as yet have never heard the name of Christ, but he knows deep in his heart that he has "sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).
The awareness of a perfect standard embodied in the law and in Christ may be ever so dim to consciousness, but Christ assured His disciples that as the result of His going to His Father "and ye see Me no more," the Holy Spirit would bring to the hearts of men a conviction of "sin, and of righteousness" (John 16: 8-10). This potential for the conviction of sin is as universal as is the capacity for pain built into every human body. It is a signal that something is wrong. Thus the Lord Himself who "so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son" has prepared the way for the preaching of His gospel, which is complementary to this conviction of sin communicated by the Holy Spirit to "every man." When Jesus went forth after His baptism "preaching the gospel of the kingdom," His message was, "Repent ye, and believe the gospel" (Mark 1:14, 15).
Teaching legalism or an adulterated "gospel" short-circuits this work of the Holy Spirit in human hearts, and millions as a consequence are never able to receive the gift of repentance which alone can heal the "hurt" they feel. But Scripture foretells a time when the gospel will be restored and presented in its pristine purity and the earth will be "lightened" with its glory (Rev. 18:1-4). In millions of human lives it will be like restoring a broken electronic connection. The circuit will be complete-the Holy Spirit's conviction of sin will be complemented by the pure gospel, and the current of heaven's forgiveness will flow through the soul, working miracles of grace. This book is a search for that connection.
Man's Responses to God's Conviction of Sin
A wound or injury to the body causes messages of pain to be relayed to the brain. Such pain can be alleviated by several methods of response. We can take a pain-killing drug and forget about the problem. This of course can lead to serious disease and death. But this is like what happens when the sinner rejects the "pain" of the Holy Spirit's merciful conviction of sin. An ability to feel pain in the body is a positive blessing, for it enables one to seek healing. The leper, whose sense of pain is anesthetized by his disease, actually suffers the loss of fingers and limbs because he does not feel destructive dangers to them. It is foolish and fatal to fight the Holy Spirit's conviction of sin. Repentance is the proper response of the human heart to the Holy Spirit's message of reproof or conviction of sin.
This true response to the conviction of sin is like seeking medicine or surgery for the healing of the body. The grateful sinner prays, "Thank You, Lord, for loving me so much as to convict me of my sin. I confess the full truth of the conviction, and acknowledge that sin has sentenced me justly to death. But I thank You that You have provided a Substitute who bears my penalty in my stead, and I am motivated by His love to separate from me the sin that has crucified Him." This was the miracle that occurred in David's heart when he prayed, "I will declare mine iniquity; I will be sorry for my sin" (Psalm 38:18).
Repentance and a New Life
Repentance is thus not only a sorrow for sin, but a genuine abhorrence of it. It is an actual turning away from sin, an awakened hatred of it. The law alone can never impart this phenomenal reaction; it must be combined with grace in order to be effective. "The law worketh wrath" and imparts a terror of judgement, but grace works the kind of repentance that makes "old things" to pass away; "behold, all things are become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). Sin that was once loved is now hated; and God's righteousness is loved.
In this way, repentance is always associated with "remission of sins," that is, sending them away (Luke 24:47). In fact, the New Testament word for "forgiveness" implies a separation from sin, a deliverance from it. Repentance makes it actually impossible to continue in sin. The "love of Christ supplies the new motivation for a phenomenal change in the life (2 Corinthians 5:15, 16).
One finds a joyful sorrow in the experience:
The sadness that is used by God brings a change of heart that leads to salvation-and there is no regret in that! But sadness that is merely human causes death. See what God did with this sadness of yours: how earnest it has made you. … Such indignation, such alarm, such feelings, such devotion. (2 Corinthians 7:10, 11, G.N.B.).
Peter is an example of such repentance. After basely denying his Lord with cursing and swearing, he "went out, and wept bitterly" (Mark 14:71; Luke 22:62). The weeping never ceased, for we are told that there was always afterward a tear glistening in his eyes as he thought of his sin in comparison with his Lord's grace. But they were happy tears, for the pain of contrition is always a rainbow glorified with the sunshine of divine forgiveness. Evan medical scientists are beginning to recognize the wholesome healing therapy in such tears of contrition (see Prevention, August, 1980, pp. 126-130).
Far from being a negative experience of debilitating sorrow, such repentance is the foundation for all true joy. As every credit must have a corresponding debit to balance the books, so the smiles and happiness of life, in order to be meaningful, are founded on the tears of Another upon whom is "the chastisement of our peace" and with whose "stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5). Repentance is not our tears and sorrow balancing the books of life; it is our appreciation of what it cost Him to do it, to bear our griefs and carry our sorrows (verse 4). It is in this sense that our repentance becomes a life-long experience:
The nearer we come to Jesus, and the more clearly we discern the purity of His character, the more clearly shall we see the exceeding sinfulness of sin, and the less shall we feel like exalting ourselves. There will be a continual reaching out of the soul after God, a continual, earnest, heartbreaking confession of sin and humbling of the heart before Him. (Acts of the Apostles, p. 561).
At every advance step in Christian experience our repentance will deepen. It is to those whom the Lord has forgiven, to those whom He acknowledges as His people, that He says, "Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight. (Ezekiel 36:31). (Christ's Object Lessons, pp. 160, 161).
Such repentance is utterly beyond human capacity to invent or initiate. It must come from above. God has exalted Christ to be a "prince and a Saviour for to give repentance to Israel," said Peter (Acts 5:31). And to the Gentiles also He "granted repentance unto life" (Ch. 11:18). The capability for such a change of mind and heart is a priceless treasure from the Holy Spirit, something to covet above all else and to be profoundly thankful for. Even the will to repent is His gift, for without it we are all "dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1).
What Makes Repentance Possible
The Bible links such repentance closely with faith. Paul testified "repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." (Acts 20:21). Repentance is therefore impossible without faith, and vice versa. It is not a cold calculation of options and their consequences, or a selfishly motivated choice to seek an eternal reward, or to flee the pains of hell. Repentance is a heart experience that results from appreciating the goodness of God. It cannot effectively be imposed by fear or terror, or even by hope of immortality. "The goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance" (Romans 2:4).
The ultimate source of this superb gift is the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. As faith is a heart-appreciation of the love of God revealed there, so repentance becomes the only appropriate decision the believing soul can make. It is the believing sinner's choice to follow where faith leads the way as illuminated by the cross. In fact, Peter's call to Israel to "repent, and be baptized every one of you" followed the most graphic sermon on the cross that has ever been preached (Acts 2:36-38). This phenomenal response at Pentecost became the direct fulfillment of Jesus' promise, "I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto Me" (John 12:32).
Genuine repentance with "works meet for repentance" is therefore as rare as I that genuine preaching of the cross which constrains by the love of Christ (cf. Acts 26:20; 2 Corinthians 5:14). Its very essence is powerfully set forth in Isaac Watts' memorable words:
When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss
And pour contempt on all my pride.
Thank God, this experience has not been unrealized. All through past ages, countless believing sinners have received this gift of personal repentance as bestowed by the Holy Spirit. Sleeping in the dust of the earth, they all await the "first resurrection". Theirs has been one phase of repentance.
The Key Factor in the First Resurrection
However, there must be a second coming of Christ, or this "first resurrection" can never take place. Further, without a preparation for His coming on the part of a unique people, He cannot come. Therefore, until He comes, the sleeping saints of all ages are doomed to remain prisoners in their dusty graves. Somehow, the vicious circle must be broken. Repentance is the vital factor. The key to unlock this log-jam of last day events is the heart-preparation of a people for translation without seeing death.
If this is true, it follows that there is a special sense in which Christ calls His people to repentance in these last days when He addresses "the angel" of the seventh church, the Laodiceans, "Be zealous therefore, and repent" (Revelation 3:14, 19).
His use of "therefore" is very significant. It refers to His enumeration of Laodicea's unusual problems of pride and her pathetic poverty. There are special reasons for this call to repent, special problems that will make Laodicea's ultimate response of repentance most unique.
What is Different About Laodicea's Repentance?
These problems do not necessarily mean that Laodicea is worse than the others of the seven churches; she seems as good as they. But such a standard is not sufficient for the immense eschatological opportunity of living in these last days, the time of the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary. This never-before phase of our great High Priest's ministry calls for a never-before kind of response from His people. This becomes another phase of repentance.
In Christ's view, Laodicea's problem is that she is far behind the times in which she lives. Her spiritual condition has become an anachronism. She is "wretched, and miserable, and poor," while living in a time when she should enjoy unprecedented spiritual wealth. If one of us, accustomed to today's benefits of technology, were suddenly to return to living like a king or wealthy lord in the Dark Ages, he would be proper pitied as "wretched … and poor" indeed. He would have no proper plumbing, no electricity, no furnace, no car, no phone, no TV, no medical care. Hardly any reader of this book would willingly return to such a primitive life, even in a medieva1 palace, with chamber-pots, spit-baths, and exposure to the Black Plague. Jesus says that Laodicea is "wretched" because the spiritual wealth of past ages becomes "miserable" in a time when spiritual progress is possible beyond any previous age. While Christ is performing His "final atonement" in the second apartment of the heavenly sanctuary, for us to continue living as though He were still in the first apartment-this is poverty indeed. The setting of the Laodicean message is the Day of Atonement.
Another problem is that the remnant church is also "blind and naked." Although she is living in the time of judgment, she is shamefully unprepared, pitifully ignorant of how she appears before the watching eyes of the world and the universe. The pathos of her true state is beyond words. Is it not the ultimate shame to be naked, and yet be unaware of it? "Thou knowest not," says the True Witness. And even worse than being naked and not knowing it, to imagine that one is "rich and increased with goods"-this borders on actual lunacy. The gap between Laodicea's unique opportunities just before the coming of Christ and her true state has widened so much that her pathetic condition has become the most difficult problem the Lord has ever had to deal with. Laodicea is the laughing stock of hell.
If her condition is unique, surely the repentance Christ calls for from her must also be unique. What kind of repentance could possibly match Laodicea's need?
At the risk of over-simplifying the answer, we could say that Laodicea's repentance today must be appropriate to the ministry of Christ in cleansing the heavenly sanctuary. It must be the kind of repentance that fits the Day of Atonement, because the message to Laodicea is parallel to this cleansing of the sanctuary. To say this in words is easy, and is true enough; how to discover what this means in practical, understandable terms-this is our task.
Repentance and the Cleansing of the Sanctuary
One helpful clue is provided by the Bible doctrine of the "blotting out of sins" which takes place in "the times of refreshing," that is, the cleansing of the sanctuary (see Acts 3:19). Seventh-day Adventists understand the "daily" ministry in the sanctuary to include the forgiveness of sins; but the "yearly" includes the blotting out of sins. This work, which we understand began in 1844, is something that occurs only at the end of time, the conclusion of the 2300 years (see The Great Controversy, pages 421, 422, 483).
But just as no sin can be forgiven without appropriate repentance, likewise no sins can be blotted out without appropriate repentance. It is obvious that in these last days there is something Laodicea "knows not," some deeper level of guilt and sin which has never been discerned nor truly repented of. And Christ calls Laodicea to such a repentance.
It will not suffice for one to say, "Let the heavenly computers do the work- my sins will be blotted out when the time comes without my knowing about it." This may be partly true; but there is no such thing as automatic, computerized blotting out of sins that takes place without our participation and cooperation. It is we who are to repent individually, not the heavenly computers. No sin can be forgiven or blotted out unless we come to see it, confess it, and turn from it. Our deeper level of sin and guilt must be realized if our Saviour's complete ministry for us is to be effected. Nothing short of this can be true repentance in such a time as this.
Hence there lies before Laodicea an experience of repentance that is unique in world history. The Lord calls for it now. All things are being held up for lack of it. Our plane, freighted with the precious cargo of the Loud Cry message to enlighten the earth, has been circling in a holding pattern far too long. There is no time now for more delay, not even to wait until after the "shaking," for then it may be too late.
Ellen G. White had a profound understanding of human nature. She recognized the existence of a deeper level of sinful guilt beneath the surface of our understanding, and how, if we let Him, our great High Priest will bring this to our understanding so that repentance can be complete. The principle is clear:
The work of restoration can never be thorough unless the roots of evil are reached. Again and again the shoots have been clipped, while the root of bitterness has been left to spring up and defile many; but the very depth of the hidden evil must be reached, the moral senses must be judged, and judged again, in the light of the divine presence. (SDA Bible Commentary, Vol. 5, p. 1152).
The Laodicean message must be proclaimed with power; for now it is especially applicable. … Not to see our own deformity is not to see the beauty of Christ's character. When we are fully awake to our own sinfulness, we shall appreciate Christ. … Not to see the marked contrast between Christ and ourselves is not to know ourselves. He who does not abhor himself cannot understand the meaning of redemption. … There are many who do not see themselves in the light of the law of God. They do not loathe selfishness; therefore they are selfish. (Review and Herald, Sept. 25, 1900).
The message to the Laodicean church reveals our condition as a people. … Ministers and church-members are in danger of allowing self to take the throne. … If they would see their defective, distorted characters as they are accurately reflected in the mirror of God's word, they would be so alarmed that they would fall upon their faces before God in contrition of soul, and tear away the rag; of their self-righteousness. (Ibid., Dec. 15, 1904).
The Holy Spirit will reveal faults and defects of character that ought to have been discerned and corrected. … The time is near when the inner life will be fully revealed. All will behold, as if reflected in a mirror, the working of the hidden springs of motive. The Lord would have you now examine your own life, and see how stands your record with Him. (Ibid., Nov. 10, 1896).
If we have defects of character of which we are not aware, He [the Lord] gives us discipline that will bring those defects to our knowledge, that we may overcome them. … Your circumstances have served to bring new defects in your character to your notice; but nothing is revealed but that which was in you. (Ibid., Aug. 6, 1889; all emphasis in above quotations is supplied).
It is only to be expected that the enemy of Christ will put forth the most diabolic and persistent efforts to prevent or delay this full repentance which He calls for. Satan is delighted to see God's people continue proudly in their self-satisfied and lukewarm state, decade after decade. He sneers contemptuously at their spiritual naivete, while they are unknowing of their shame. His purpose is to expose them to the scorn of the world and keep them the objects of Heaven's shame.
The Greatest Sin of All the Ages
Israel's ruin came because they refused in the days of their Messiah to accept His message concerning a deeper level of guilt than they had realized. They were not by nature more evil than any other generation; it was simply theirs to act out to the full the same sinfulness that all the fallen sons and daughters of Adam have by nature. To them the divine Son of God came on a mission of mercy. As our natural "carnal mind is enmity against God" (Romans 8:7), they simply demonstrate" this fact visibly, once for all, in the murder of their divine Visitor. All of us must know that we are by nature no better than they. Those who crucified the Saviour are only holding up a mirror wherein we can see ourselves.
Horatius Bonar learned this in a dream. One night he seemed to be witnessing the crucifixion of Christ. In a frenzy of agony, such as we experience in vivid dreams, he tried to remonstrate with the cruel soldiers who were driving spikes through Christ's hands and feet. He laid his hand on the shoulder of one of them to beg him to stop. When the murderer turned to look at him, Bonar recognized his own face.
The repentance which Christ calls for from Laodicea is that which will go down to the deepest roots of this natural "enmity against God." What is this deeper phase of repentance? It is repenting of sins that we may not have personally committed, but which we would have committed if we had the opportunity. This is appropriate because the books of heaven already record those sins written against our names:
God's law reaches the feelings and motives, as well as the outward acts. It reveals the secrets of the heart, flashing light upon things before buried in darkness. God knows every thought, every purpose, every plan, every motive. The books of heaven record the sins that would have been committed had there been opportunity. (Bible Commentary, Vol. 5, p. 1085)
Everyone of us can ask himself the profound question, what sins would I have committed "had there been opportunity"? Linger for a moment on that word, "opportunity." It has come to others in the form of alluring, overmastering temptations. The tempter sees to it that "opportunity" is available through fiendishly clever circumstances and temptations.
None of us can endure the full consciousness of what we would do if subjected to sufficient pressure, terrorism for example. But our potential sin is recorded in "the books of heaven." Only the full work of the Holy Spirit can bring to us this deeper conviction of sin; but in these last days when sins must be "blotted out" as well as pardoned, this is His blessed work. No buried seed of sin can be translated into God's eternal kingdom.
Therefore, the kind of repentance Christ calls for from His people in these last days is repenting as though what is apparently the sin of others were really our own (which in fact it is). Whatever sins other people are guilty of, they obviously had the "opportunity" of committing them; somehow the temptations were real to them and overmastering. The deeper insight the Holy Spirit brings us in these last days is that we are by nature no better than other sinners are. When Scripture says that "all have sinned", it means, as the New English Bible translates it, "all alike have sinned" (Romans 3:23).
The root of all sin, its common denominator, is of course the crucifixion of Christ, enmity against God. A confession of sin that only scratches the surface can bring only a veneer forgiveness. A terrible record remains upon the books of heaven, even though we are not aware of it-"thou knowest not."
What kind of repentance is Christ calling for in these last days? How deep and thorough must it be? What are the practical aspects of this tremendous disclosure of our true guilt?
Our search must continue.