Would you turn back to Acts chapter
20? Tonight, after service, we're going to wish Mitch and Carla
well for their adventure. And we're not saying goodbye
to them. We're expecting them to be back. But we hope they
have a great time on their adventure. And we're going to meet together
in the back if some of you could set some tables up for that after
the service tonight, and bring a dish, and we'll have a time
of fellowship together. Tonight, I'm speaking from Genesis
chapter 18, upon this subject, is anything too hard for the
Lord? Now I've entitled the message
for this morning, from Acts chapter 20, Are faith and repentance separate? Are faith and repentance separate? Do you repent, then believe? Are faith and repentance separate? Now, the answer to that question
is no. The Lord did not say in Mark
chapter 1 15 repent then believe. He said repent and believe. They are two aspects of the same
act. Repentance and faith Repentance
toward God and faith toward the Lord Jesus Christ. They are two
aspects of the same act. To do the one is to do the other. The evidence of the one is the
other. Repentance and faith. They are the two sides of the
same sheet of paper. They are the two sides of the
same coin. Now, here is the example that
I thought would make this clear. Breathing. Breathing. Think about the breath you just
took right now. What was involved in it? You
inhaled and you exhaled. One act with an inhale and an
exhale. Now, breathing is the act of
life. You don't breathe and start living.
You breathe because you live. Inhaling. I think that represents
faith. You inhale life-giving oxygen. When you exhale, and I can't
remember if you exhale carbon monoxide or deoxide, can somebody
tell me? Which one? Okay, well it's poison
though. And that's what repentance is,
it's getting rid of the poison. When you breathe, you inhale,
that's faith, the life-giving oxygen. You exhale the poison. That's what repentance is. What
about your heart pumping? The evidence of life is breath. The evidence of life is a pulse.
When your heart pumps, two things are taking place. I always hate
using medical illustrations, because I realize probably I'll
say something wrong. If I do, forgive me. But when your heart
pumps, the arteries bring oxygen. And that's one aspect. And then
the veins bring back the blood where the oxygen has been removed
to have more oxygen put in it. But the point is, in the pumping
of the heart, the evidence of life, the pulse, there's two
things taking place. The work of the arteries and
the work of the veins. Light. Light is made of waves and particles,
two things. Waves, that has something to
do with it. Here, once again, somebody's going to say, well,
what do you know about that? Nothing. I realize that. I'm not a physicist. But I know that in life, there
are waves and particles. Particles being part of matter,
yet waves having something to do with motion. Both things are
involved in this one thing of light. Now, in Spiritual life, you have a breath,
you have a pulse. Repentance and faith. They're never separate. And if
I separate them, I confound them. I lose the meaning of them if
I separate them. Well, here's repentance and here's
faith. Repentance and faith always go
together. The evidence of the one is the
other. And in believing, you repent
of anything contrary to believing. The Lord said, repent and believe
the gospel. And in believing, you repent
of everything that's contrary to that. Repentance and faith
always go together. Now it's in hearing the true
character of God, which is what the preaching of the gospel is,
isn't it? It's the true character of God. The cross is a manifestation
of the true character of the living God. When you hear the
gospel, You repent, you change your mind with regard to anything
that's contrary to the gospel. And you believe the gospel. Repentance and faith, they cannot
be separated. Now look in verse 20 of our text. And this is how important this
is. Paul speaks of that when he speaks
of repentance and faith. He says, I kept back nothing
that was profitable to you. Now that word profitable is expedient. That which is necessary. This
is what is necessary for my spiritual life and your spiritual life.
There's no life without this. Paul said, I've kept back nothing. that was expedient or beneficial
or profitable for you. But I have showed you, I've declared
and have taught you publicly and from house to house. And
that's so important. Same message in public, same
message in private. And it's the same message to
everybody, testifying to the Jews and to the Greeks. Same
pill for everybody. Wouldn't it be something if there
was a pill that would cure every ill? There it is. The gospel. And notice Paul said, I'm testifying
this. I'm not just reading back something
I read in a theology book. I'm testifying as an eyewitness. As someone that's experienced
this, someone whom God has taught, I'm testifying both to the Jews
and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our
Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance. A change of mind
is what the word means. Don't miss that. Somebody says,
well, that's simplistic. No, it's just what the word means.
A change of mind. A change of mind. I've heard
preachers talk about that and they've almost ridiculed that.
A change of mind, it's a change. Well, it's a change of mind.
You thought something, you don't think anymore. Your mind has
been changed. It's a change of mind toward
God and it's faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. That is the
whole counsel of God. Repentance toward God and faith
toward our Lord Jesus Christ. That IS the whole counsel of
God. That is what is necessary. That's what cannot be kept back. Now, I've already touched on
this, but repentance and faith are the products of regeneration. When God gives you life, that
is what you do. The evidence of being born again
is repentance and faith. Spiritual life must come before
repentance and faith. You can't believe, you can't
repent unless you have life. Logically, repentance and faith
come after life. Life must come before, but chronologically,
They come at the precise same time. The precise same time. You live, you believe, you repent. A man dead in sins is given life. Now what I thought about was
Lazarus. laying in that grave. You know, one thing that he did
not do, he didn't breathe when he's dead, did he? There wasn't
any pulse. He was dead. And Christ said, Lazarus, come
forth. And he that was dead, you know
what? All of a sudden his lungs began
to heave. And I have no doubt that it was,
well, I can say I have no doubt. I can't see breathing beginning
with an exhale. Breathed in life, the gospel. And he exhaled that which was
contrary to life. His heart began to pump. The blood was brought in the
arteries to the organs, there was life, life from the dead. And he walked out of that tomb. The scripture says bound with
his grave clothes, but he walked out of that tomb. He was given
life. Now repentance and faith are
both called in the scripture gifts. of God. You know what that means? That means you won't repent unless
God gives you the gift. And you won't believe unless
God gives you the gift. They are gifts of God. They're
not exotic. They're not part of the old nature. They're not natural to you. They're gifts of God. Listen
to these scriptures. Then hath God also to the Gentiles
granted repentance unto life. It's a gift. And then that scripture,
I hope we all know by grace are you saved through faith and that
not of yourselves. It's the gift at faith. We usually
talk about grace or faith, both. It's the gift of God. not of works, lest any man should
boast. Now repentance is toward God. That's what he says. Repentance
toward God. Now most people present, most
preachers present repentance as a change in your behavior.
You stop a particular sin. You quit committing that sin.
You've had a change of mind about that sin and there's a change
in your behavior. You're sorry for that sin. You're very sorry. You wish it
hadn't happened. And you give every effort to
not commit that sin anymore. Now, don't misunderstand me. We ought to be sorry over our
sin. Amen. We ought not commit any sin ever
again. This is not talking about an
indifferent attitude about sin. But let me ask you, and I want
you to be honest, you listen to this very carefully. If repentance
is having sufficient sorrow for sin, and not committing that
sin anymore. Ain't nobody in this room ever
repented. That's just the fact. You know, somebody was speaking
of this church. Somebody told me once, and they
said, well, I don't want to join up because there's too much sin
there. Well, I agree. I agree. I'm sure you do, too. But what hypocrisy. I'm not going
to go there. There's too much sin there. Well,
that is wrong. Let me remind you the only reason
to ever not come to a church because the gospel is not preached.
That's the only reason. Now, repentance is not so much,
well, I'm gonna change my, I wanna change my conduct. I don't wanna
sin anymore. I wanna be just like Christ. I wanna be nonjudgmental.
I wanna be mournful over my sin. I wanna be poor. I wanna hunger
and thirst after righteousness. I wanna be meek before God. I
want all those things. But repentance is toward God. My thoughts of him were all wrong. I think of Elisha. Naaman the leper comes to Elisha. Now, this man believed himself
to be a great man who happened to be a leper, and he did not
understand that he was a leper who happened to be a great man. Well, he's directed to come to
Elisha, the prophet, to get his leprosy cleansed and he had his
uniform on and his gold and silver and his servants and he stands
out there at the house of Elisha. You know what Elisha did? He didn't
even bother to go to the door. He sent out a servant, a lowly
nobody with no authority except that he sent him. And he sent
out a servant, and that servant said, you go wash in the Jordan
seven times and you'll be clean. Elisha became angry. He said, behold, I thought. Behold, I thought. Scripture says he was wroth.
And he went away and said, behold, I thought he'll surely come out
to me. He was offended by the fact that
Elisha didn't bother to come out to him. I'm somebody, I'm
a general. As I said, he believed himself
to be a great man who happened to be a leper. And he did not
understand he was nothing more than a leper who just incidentally
happened to be a great man. You know, I love that scripture
reading in Ecclesiastes chapter 12. It reminded me we're all
rushing to death. No matter what we think of ourselves,
we're all rushing to death. And he said, behold, I thought
he'll surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of
the Lord, his God, and strike his hand over the place and recover
the leper. And he went away in a rage, the
scripture said. He was angry and he left. Behold, I thought. Naaman, you thought wrong. It's not like you thought it
was. And that's what repentance is.
It's not. It's not like you thought it
was. I think of what the Lord said
in Psalm 50, thou thoughtest, I was altogether such a one as
yourself. That's what your problem is.
You think I'm like you, God says. I'm not. My thoughts are not
your thoughts. Neither are your ways my ways,
for as the heaven is higher than the earth, so are my thoughts
higher than your thoughts, and my ways above your ways." Now,
let me tell you what repentance is. It's agreement with God. It's agreement with God. When you hear the true
character of God from His Word, you bow. You hear of His sovereignty,
how He controls everything. You bow. That's who He is. You hear of His holiness, His
otherness, His absolute purity, and you bow. You hear of His justice, His
absolute justice, His impartial justice. He is no respecter of
persons. You hear of his independence,
how he has no needs. You bow. You don't argue against. You know, when I think of us,
finding fault with God. That doesn't seem fair for God
to act this way. That doesn't seem, it doesn't
seem fair for God to elect some and pass by others. It doesn't
seem fair for Christ to die for the elect and not die for everybody
else. Why that doesn't seem fair. Oh, so you and I are in some
kind of position where we can sit in judgment on God and declare
what we agree with and what we don't agree with. That ain't
repentance. When you repent, You agree with God. You agree with everything he
says with regard to, he's God. I'm amazed to think of us, and
I'm talking about myself, worms of the dust sitting in judgment
on God. I agree with that, I don't agree with that. Oh, oh, really? He's God, and you're not. God is. Repentance bows. And if I buck
against who he is, I've not repented. Repentance is toward God. It's seeing who he is. Paul read back in the back where
Job said, I've heard of thee with the hearing of the ear,
but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I hate myself and repent
in dust and ashes. Repentance is the result of seeing
who God is. You see who he is, you'll repent.
Isaiah said, in the year that King Uzziah died, I saw also
the Lord. And what happened when he saw
the Lord? He said, I'm a man of unclean lips. And I dwell
in the midst of the people of unclean lips. I'm undone, for
mine eyes have seen the king, the Lord of hosts. When I see him, I tell you what,
I agree with what I see. And if I disagree, if I buck,
I just haven't seen. You see him, you will repent. You know, I used to think, that
if all my ducks were in a row, if I was in the right circumstance,
I could do what I needed to do. And I repented that. I used to sit in judgment on
God. God's not fair for doing this. His law is too strict.
His justice is too strict. It's not right for him to sovereignly
choose some and pass by others. Just judging God. I repent. I repent in dust and in ashes. Now, I didn't used to believe. I believed in the doctrine of
total depravity, but I didn't believe I was totally depraved. I repent. And that the evidence of repentance
toward God is faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. That's the
evidence of repentance. Have you repented? Have I repented? Do you have faith toward our
Lord Jesus Christ? Now, I love the way Paul talks
about our Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance is toward God and
faith is toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, it's not fair to
not consider, who's he talking about when he talks about our?
Who is the our? What's the same our as in our
Father, which art in heaven? It's all of God's elect. It's
the same group that Christ died for. It's the same group who
repent before God. He's our Lord Jesus Christ. Now,
he's everybody's Lord in the sense that he's Lord both of
the dead and the living. Scripture says that, Romans 14.9. You know, I've heard of what
has been called the lordship controversy. That ain't no controversy.
He's everybody's Lord. He's your Lord, whether you know
it or not. Somebody says, I won't have him as Lord. You don't have
a choice. He's Lord. I mean, he is Lord.
Jesus is Lord, but he is most especially Lord. to those who
love Him being their Lord. They've been made willing in
the day of His power. And truly, He is our Lord. He's our Lord. He's the Lord
of creation. We love it that way. He created
the universe. He's the Lord of providence.
Everything that happens in time, He's in control of. And you can't
take that too far. You know, I heard a preacher
say recently, well, he's the cause of good things, he permits
bad things. You know, I don't like that.
Why would you say something like that? That's silly. He's Lord. He's in control of everything.
Well, how can he let bad, quit judging him, he's God. He's Lord. He's our Lord Jesus. He's Lord
and Savior. Thou shalt call His name Jesus,
for He shall save His people from their sins. He's the Christ. He's God's Christ. He's God's
Word. He's God's prophet. He's God's
priest. He's not some man-made priest
trying to represent a sinful man. That's so ridiculous. He's the only priest. He's the
King. He's the King of kings. He's
the Lord of lords. Our repentance is toward our
Lord Jesus Christ. Now, if you would ask me what
my hope of salvation is with my knowledge of the true character
of God and my knowledge of myself in light of the truth, my knowledge
of the true character of God, my only hope is faith toward
our Lord Jesus Christ. My hope of heaven is that Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, kept the law for me. My only hope
is that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, put away my sin. on Calvary's tree, answering
the demands of God's broken law. That is my only hope of salvation. Here's what my hope is. When
he said, it is finished, my salvation was finished. When he had by
himself purged our sins. He sat down. You know the reason
he sat down? His work was finished. Now, if my salvation is dependent
upon my ability to repent or my ability to believe or my holy
living, I have no hope at all. My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest
frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. Faith is the substance of things
hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Now, let me tell you
where lack of assurance comes from. Do you struggle with the
assurance of your salvation? Well, it could be you ought to.
It could be because you're not a believer and you never looked
at Christ in the first place. But it also could be this, there's
been a departure from this and looking for something in yourself
to give you assurance rather than looking to him only. Now
if you look to Him only, you will have assurance. And if you're looking anywhere
else, you're not gonna have assurance. He only is my rock and my salvation. Now I'd like to close by looking
at Romans chapter three. Would you turn with me there? We're gonna have repentance and
faith in this passage of scripture. Here is repentance. Verse 19, now we know that what thing soever the law
saith, it saith to them who are under the law that every mouth
may be stopped. And all the world may become
guilty before God. Now that's repentance. You stop
standing in judgment of God and your mouth is stopped. Guilty as charged. Verse 20, therefore, by the deeds
of the law, there shall no flesh be justified in his sight, For
by the law is the knowledge of sin. Now listen to me real carefully.
If you can look at the law and think, well, I kept that commandment,
you've never seen it. You have no understanding of
the law. By the law is the knowledge of sin. But, verse 21, now the
righteousness of God without the law, is manifested being
witnessed by the law and the prophets. This is what the scriptures
always taught. Even the righteousness of God,
which is by faith of Jesus Christ. Now, don't miss that. It doesn't
say by faith in Jesus Christ. It says by faith of Jesus Christ. Listen, I don't have any confidence
in my faith. I got confidence in his faith. the faith of Jesus Christ. My faith is so fluctuating, not
his. He believed God perfectly, and
I am relying on his faith, not my faithfulness, not my ability
to believe, but his faith. Let's go on reading. This faith of Jesus Christ is
unto all and upon all them that Believe. For there's no difference. There's
no difference between one man and another man. You take the
most moral man alive and the most immoral man alive. And how
much difference are there between the two of them before God? No
difference. No difference. That's God's testimony. Somebody says, I see a lot of
difference. Well, you don't see very clearly. That's the problem.
Neither do I. What we see is what we see, but
it's not what God sees. There's no difference. For all
have sinned and come short of the glory of God being justified
freely by His grace through the redemption that's in Christ Jesus
whom God has set forth to be a propitiation, a sin-removing
sacrifice. Do you understand that Christ's
sacrifice is a sin-removing sacrifice? That it made sin not to be through faith in His blood. Everybody that this sacrifice
was made for, here's what they all have in common, faith in
His blood. Do you have faith in His blood?
Do you believe you need anything else but His blood to make you
perfect before God? Faith in His blood. To declare His righteousness
for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance
of God, to declare, I say at this time, His righteousness
that he might be just, and justifier of him which believeth in Jesus."
Where is boasting then? What can you glory in? What can
you take credit in? It's excluded! By what law of
works? Nay, but by the law of faith.
Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without
the deeds of the law. Is he the God of the Jews only?
Is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also. Seeing
it as one God which should justify the circumcision by faith and
non-circumcision through faith, do we make void the law through
faith? God forbid, yea, we establish the law. The only way you and
I will ever honor the law is by looking to Christ only. Anything
else is dishonoring to the law of God. Or what shall we say
then that Abraham, our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath
found? For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to
glory, but not before God. For what saith the scripture,
Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness.
Now to him that worketh is the reward Not reckoned of grace,
but of debt. God owes it to you. But to him
that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly,
his faith is counted for righteousness. Now here's what repentance is. You work not. You've given up on salvation
by works. It ain't happening for you. You
work not, there's repentance. Here's faith, but believeth on
him that justifieth the ungodly. There is faith. Now this, my
dear friends, is the inhale and the exhale of spiritual life. This is the heart pumping of
spiritual life. Repentance toward God and faith
toward our Lord Jesus Christ. This is the whole counsel of
God. And remember this, as soon as
you try to separate those two things, you've confounded what
both of them mean. They cannot be separated. May the Lord be our teacher.
May every one of us believe and practice to the day we die, repentance
toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Let's pray. Lord, your gospel is both simple and utterly above
us. Lord, we ask in thy son's name
that each one of us might have repentance toward thee and faith
toward thy dear son. Bless this word for Christ's
sake. In his name we pray. Amen.