It's a work done tonight and it's a business with the Lord. 2nd Corinthians chapter number 7 please. 2nd Corinthians chapter number 7. We didn't quite finish our lesson from last week. We were talking about fruits of repentance, fruits of repentance. And we were hearing about John the Baptist, how he was in the wilderness there and he was preaching repentance to the people and baptizing them. And so we were talking about that particular topic. And so we're going to finish that off here today. So repentance is an interchange of the mind. That's what it is. It's an interchange of the mind toward oneself, toward God, and toward others that lead to an outer change of life. Let's say that again so we understand what repentance is. Repentance is an interchange of the mind toward oneself, toward God, and toward others that leads to an outer change of life. Sometimes we have guilt or remorse, but it doesn't lead to a change of behavior. There was a shoplifter. He wrote to a department store. He said, I've become a Christian, and I can't sleep at night because I feel guilty. So here's $100 that I owe you. He signed his name and then added, PS, if I still can't sleep, I'll send you the rest. But when John the Baptist preached on repentance, he spoke about truly changed lives. That's what he was talking about. Truly changed hearts and truly changed attitudes. He wasn't preaching surfacely, if you will. It wasn't a surface preaching. But he called men and women to turn to Christ from their heart. It wasn't a Sunday show. You know, you show up and you just put on the garb and you say yes brother and hi sister and all that stuff and play the game and play the part. No, he wanted a serious change to take place. Half-hearted repentance or only having a desire to alleviate or uncomfortable feelings of guilt is not biblical repentance. You're in 2 Corinthians chapter number seven. Verse number 10, let's read it together. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation, not to be repented of, but the sorrow of the world worketh death. Father in heaven, we thank you so much for your word. Thank you for the opportunity to expound upon this topic that some fear this word or help us not to fear it. Help us to embrace it and understand it. Give me clarity of tongue and mind. Help me be able to preach the word of God this evening in Jesus name we pray. Amen. So in this passage of scripture here, if you look at the context of it, and here in 2 Corinthians 7, Paul was very worried about how the Corinthians would receive a previous letter that he had written. Now, we're not for sure, but it's possibly a letter that he had written that's not recorded in the canon of scripture. And he was concerned whether it would turn them to Jesus or just make them angry. So he's worried about that. You can hear it really in his response here. He's talking about repenting of and regretting, really regretting sending them that letter. But yet he didn't really regret it, he says. And so he was concerned about them. And so Paul first wrote the sorrowful letter that was carried by Titus to them. It was a confrontational letter. It was confrontational. He was hitting them. Remember the Church of Corinth, when you hear that, the Church of Corinth, think of carnal and Corinth carnal. It was a carnal church. It was a worldly church. And so he was writing to this church to correct these problems that were in the church. He didn't enjoy the idea of being so confrontational with the Corinthian Christians, even though they deserved it. They deserved this. That's why he wrote, though I did repent or regret that he had done it. One can be sorry for their sin without repenting from their sin. See, sorrow describes a feeling. I feel sorry. It's a feeling. But repentance describes a change in both the mind and in the life. That's what repentance is. It's a change in the mind. It's a change in the life. That's what it does. One commentator put it this way. He says, sorrow alone accomplishes nothing. Peter was sorry. He denied Christ. And he repented. Judas was sorry. He betrayed Christ. But instead of repenting, he killed himself. See the difference? Now, repentance sounds harsh to many. When we think of that word, we picture that man on the street corner with the sign, repent or burn, or repent of your sins, or die. We think of that. We can picture that. You've seen it before. You've seen it in movies. You've seen someone standing there with the sign. But understand, it is an essential aspect of this thing, of the Christian life. It is essential when we are coming to Christ, this thing of repentance. Repentance was spoken of by the Lord Jesus Christ himself. If you look in Matthew chapter 14 I'm sorry for Matthew 4 Matthew chapter 4 verse Number 17 Bible says from that time Jesus began to preach and to say, what's the next word? Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. You need to have a change of mind. You need to have a change of direction. Repent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Of course, we know John the Baptist also spoke of this thing of repentance in Matthew chapter 3, which is our main text. We'll be in here shortly. Verse number two and saying, repent ye for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Sounds like the Lord Jesus Christ. Doesn't it? So recognize this thing of repentance, biblical, biblical repentance. What is it? Well, it leads us first to salvation as a Christian. Then it keeps our hearts tender to the Lord throughout our lives. We find Peter also talked about repentance in Acts chapter two, verse 38, very famous verse where he's, then Peter said unto them, repent, repent. Of course, it goes on to say, be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. And we'll, won't go into that verse. There's some controversy with that at first, of course, as well. So Paul made the Corinthian Christians feel bad for their sin in second Corinthians chapter seven and verse numbers, and they felt bad. But he did it in a godly way, making them feel bad. It wasn't in an ungodly way. It says in chapter 7, verse number 10, where are we at here? For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation. Godly sorrow. So does this mean we are saved by our repentance? Here's where the controversy comes in. I would say yes, and I would say no. What do you mean, pastor? Well, repentance is a part of it. Because we must have a change of mind. We must have a change. A change has to take place. That's what repentance is. Now, you don't see that phrase, repent of your sin, found in scripture. That's often where people get a little messed up. You don't find that actual phrase, repent of sin. But repentance is necessary. We would call it the twin sister to faith, if you will. If you had a coin, you know, faith would be on one side and repentance would be on the other. Now we come to Jesus in faith, but as a result of that faith, I believe repentance comes. We recognize, you know, that Jesus is our Savior. We've changed our mind the way we think of Jesus. Maybe we saw him just as a good man or a prophet, but now when we get saved, we see him through salvation, we see him as our Savior. That is repentance. You have changed your mind. You may change your mind about your sin, the things that you were doing. 2 Corinthians chapter 7, verse number 11, are you close by there? If you are, let's read verse 11. That word carefulness means diligence. It wrought in you. This is what the sorrowfulness, this is what the repentance did for them. Yea, what clearing of yourselves. Yea, what indignation. Yea, what fear. Yea, what vehement desire. Yea, what zeal. Yea, what revenge or vindication. They've been vindicated in all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter. You see what repentance does for you? It clears you up. It's actually, it makes you feel good when you repent. Because your heart is clear. Your soul is clear. You've let it all out. I've gotten right with God. It clears you up. And that's what verse number 11 is telling us. They were clear in this matter. All of these things show that the sorrow of the Corinthian Christians worked real repentance in them. They had it. What clearing of yourselves. I like that. Oh, when you get that off your chest and give it to the Lord, it feels good when you repent. I got right. I feel good. So confession and repentance are necessary exercises for victorious Christian living. One author put it this way, repentance and faith are not acts performed one time to become a Christian, they are attitudes of the heart toward myself and my sin. Faith is not only the way to get saved, it is the lifeline of the Christian living. Sometimes people who are caught in sin or who are experiencing negative consequences of sin will repent to get comfortable again. So the repentance for them is just, ah, man, I feel bad right now. And so I want to feel comfortable again. And so I'll go through this process. There is a definite difference between people who have a true change of heart regarding sin and those who only have a change of mind regarding their willingness to deal with the consequences of sin. One shows fruits of repentance, while the other shows only a desire for relief. Do you have fruits of repentance here tonight? In 1989, Pete Rose was banned from the game of baseball. Michael knows all about this. He's a baseball fan. Why was he banned? Well, he was betting on games while he was the manager of the Cincinnati Reds. For 15 years, he denied the charges. I didn't do it. In 2004, he finally admitted his guilt in his book, My Prison Without Bars. He wrote a book. He admitted to it. Two years later, Rose began using his website to personally apologize to fans. He said, I'm so sorry. And he said, for only $299 plus shipping and handling, I will send you an autographed baseball that reads, I'm sorry, I bet on baseball. It was $299.99. Well, he was trying to gain some money. and not really dealing with the issue. Many people are willing to look at their sin or mistakes and say, I wish it wouldn't have happened. And Pete Rose, most likely, goes, I wish I would have never got caught. I would have kept on doing it. But John the Baptist wasn't interested in these quasi-apologies. That's not what he was interested in, or token statements. He was insistent on real, open confession to God. And so he preached more than a simple admission of guilt. He preached that we are to agree with God, that he is right, and we are wrong. That's what he wanted. God's right, and we are wrong. So the fruit of repentance is more than just wanting to escape trouble. It is a hunger for restoration with God. God, I want to get right. I'm hungry for that. So as we learned last week, John's message of repentance was compelling to those who had a tender heart to the Lord They would be repulsive to those who were not tender to the Lord. Those who were not tender to the Lord, they would be repulsed by his message. Let's go back to Matthew chapter three. Let's look at some of these folks who were repulsed. Matthew chapter three. Look at verse number seven. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits, meat for repentance. Show your fruit that you want to be here. And think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham to our father for I say unto you that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid into the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down or cut down and cast into the fire. So as you can imagine, the Pharisees and Sadducees weren't thrilled to hear reports of an unconventional preacher that's become popular with the masses. Oh, they didn't like that. These religious folks, they hated the fact that he was becoming popular. They were not happy to hear of John the Baptist. They were definitely not in attendance because they wanted repentance. They were not there, I need to get right with God. That's why I'm here, John. They had no desire for that at all. Likely, they actually hoped to intimidate John. They definitely didn't want to lose their prominence and their influence in Jewish society. But John the Baptist was not easily intimidated. Can you say intimidated? You know, you're with me tonight. Amen. Stay with me. John gave a simple mandate there in verse 7 and verse number 8. If you claim to be right with God, bring forth fruit that proves your repentance. No more lip service. That's what he wanted. I don't want any more lip service. He wanted to get their true intentions. He was concerned with the truth. Notice what he called them there in verse number seven. He said, oh, generation of vipers. He called them snakes. That's not something you commonly call people. You're a snake. You know, if you call somebody that, you're really insulting them. It means that they're not trustworthy. It means that they're deceitful. It means that they're poisonous. You know, when someone's spewing poison, all they go around is cause problems and infect other people. They're poisonous. They're concealing their true intentions, like a snake in the grass. Next thing you know, you got bit. You know, you didn't even see them. They were concealing themselves and their true intentions. Oh, we call them a generation of vipers. So with an earnest concern for the truth, John just said it like it was, amen? Don't you miss people that just say it how it is? Just tell me what you really think about me. I don't like people that don't like you and they pretend like they like you. I hate that. I want someone to just tell me, I don't care for you. Then I know how to deal with it. They don't like me. But someone who's undercover and they're, oh, how you doing? I love you. And all of a sudden, they really hate your guts. There's nothing worse than that. I mean, you know, just be straight out. I don't care for you. We just deal with it the way it is. And so that's how these guys were. They were coming there, acting like they really were interested in repentance and really interested in baptism, but they had no intention to be interested in that. The Pharisees were ritualistic people. They believed in rituals. The Sadducees were materialistic type of people. And so those two things alone are tough to deal with. The Sadducees, they also didn't believe in the resurrection. And so this lack of belief concentrated their focus on material success, these Sadducees. And so we find in the temple, when Jesus drives out these folks in the temple, it was these folks. It was the Sadducees who were there with the money changers and all the stuff that they were doing. It was them making money in the temple. And that's when Jesus drove them out of there. They were ritualistic, materialistic. Both groups were very off, and neither group cared for the truth. They didn't care for the truth. So when John addressed these leaders as vipers, he wasn't calling names. He was referring to their venom-based man religion, because it's poisonous and hurts many people, because they're spewing out these false religion and causing people to go away from the true and only God. But he cared about them enough to tell them the truth. You know, it would have been easier as these guys in their nice robes and their religious garb, and to just be there, John's there preaching, and he'd be like, welcome to our services today. We're so glad you've made the journey here. Thank you for our distinguished guests who've come, and you're welcome, welcome. We're going to give you the best donuts and the best coffee tonight. Would it have been easier just to do that? Not for John. He knows a snake when he sees them. And he called them out for who they were. In our day, we are pressured to show tolerance and acceptance, to say that all religions are the same. You ever feel that? We're all about the same. We're all going to heaven the same way, just a different path. We get pressured that way. But the truth, however, is that all religions are not the same. They're not. and understand any system of belief that denies Jesus Christ is the Son of God is a false religion. I wish I'd get some more amens on that. Because you need to understand, it's a false religion. And anyone that denies Jesus Christ who he is, don't trust in those religions. They're poisonous. 1 John chapter 4, please. 1 John chapter 4. First John chapter 4. Verse number 3. Let's read it together. Ready? Begin. And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God. And this is that spirit of Antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come, and even now already is it in the world. Wow. You're an Antichrist. It's an Antichrist. You know, if you don't confess that Jesus Christ is who he claims to be, Now, if you saw a person handling a poisonous steak, would you be commendable and say, you know what? That's your choice, brother. You want to hold that poisonous steak. I'm tolerant of your belief. That's your right. That's your desire. Wouldn't anyone do that? No, you'd be like, put it down, throw it down, get rid of it. It's poisonous. Kill it. Get the gun. Get the shotgun. You try to warn them that they were in danger. And that's John the Baptist. They're snakes. Get away from them. They're wrong. Oh, he didn't mince any words when he told the Pharisees and Sadducees they were a generation of vipers. Not only did he warn them to flee from the wrath to come, but he also was exposing their poisonous teachings as well. Teachings. I want you to notice he corrected their thoughts. Let's go back to 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians chapter number 7. Notice verse number 9. Now I rejoice Not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance. For ye were made sorry after a godly manner that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. That's a great verse, but let's look at Matthew chapter three. Matthew chapter three. Notice verse number nine. So he's correcting their thoughts. Verse 9, think not to say within yourselves. Notice that. We have Abraham to our father. For I say unto you that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And how also the axe is laid into the root of the trees. Therefore, as every tree which brings not forth good fruit is hewn down or cut and cast into the fire. So John told them straight up that they could take no hope in religious traditions. That's what he was saying there. Verse number nine. You're not going to sit here and rely upon Abraham and try to hold on to that. You can't rely on your religious traditions. And there's no hope in a life that's void of spiritual fruit. He told them if they wanted to get baptized, They had to do more than just have a show. They had to show genuine repentance, a genuine change at the heart level. Millions of people around the world place their eternal security in adherence to religion. Millions of people. They think that they can have their eternal security by being religious. And that goes against scripture. They believe if they can count some rosary beads or give to the poor or pray to their ancestors or even physically torture themselves that they will earn heaven. You understand that's false. You can't. You can't do anything to earn heaven. That will all come up insufficient to gain entrance into heaven. Amen? Ephesians chapter 2 verse 8, 9, for by grace are ye saved through faith, that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. That's how you get there. Not by counting some beads, or giving to the poor, or helping someone stranded on the side of the road, or torturing yourself, or praying to someone that's dead. Not even good works with a reputable religious pedigree are enough to earn you entrance into heaven. Even if you are like the Sadducees and the Pharisees and you look the part, that is not going to get you entrance into heaven either. John the Baptist warned these men they could not claim their Jewish ancestry. In fact, he let them know that without conversion they were as spiritually dead as stones. John chapter 1 verse 12 and 13, but as many as received him. To them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name, which were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of God. It's not enough to be born into a religious family. It's not enough to embrace a religious heritage. We have run across people like that knocking on doors. Well, my grandpa was a Baptist, and so my mama went to church, and my grandma was faithful, but that has nothing to do with you. What have you done? Have you put your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ to save you? It's not about getting a heritage of religion. You can't inherit salvation in that way. You pass down through the family line. It doesn't work that way. It's an individual decision to make. You know, if there was anyone who should know what true repentance was, it should have been the Pharisees and the Sadducees. But instead, they lived an empty, fruitless, religious life. 2 Timothy 3.5 explains this very well, having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof. It says, from such turn away. You know, we can look godly. We can have a form of godliness. We can go to church. We can be faithful to go somewhere or watch TV and watch the televangelists. But that's not going to help you get to heaven. None of that will. He called them to repentance. He called them to bear fruit. And then he challenged them to turn. Notice verse number 11. He says, I indeed baptize you with water and for repentance, but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear. He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire, whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor and gather his weed into the garner, but he will burn up the shaft with unquenchable fire. All those works are burnt up that don't amount to anything. John reminded them that judgment day is coming. It's better to repent now before it is too late. The fruit of repentance that John preached had nothing to do with earning God's forgiveness. Can't earn it, amen. We simply have to trust in him. It was a challenge to agree with God that they could do nothing at all to earn God's favor and then to prove their trust in Christ by shedding the outward works of a dead religion. Shed it, amen. It's a dead religion. Get rid of all that stuff that you got there. And, you know, they appeared very religious. They wore those phylacteries, those little leather pouches, and they contained portions of scripture. And the larger it was was the more elegant you were and the more you knew. And so they'd wear these, look how big my scriptures are, my pouch, you know. And they looked the part, but it was just a dead religion. Acts chapter 26, Acts chapter number 26, please. Notice verse number 20, Acts chapter 26. but showed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coast of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance." Yeah, it's right there. It's not even John talking about it, amen? It's Paul talking about it, and what needs to happen, this thing of repenting. He's talking about turning to God. Notice what it does. That's what repentance does to you. That's why I think it's essential to salvation. It causes you to turn towards God. Your mind is changed. Your outlook is changed. You see Jesus the way you're supposed to, as your Savior. Repentance is important, and I know it's controversial for some. You know, they don't think, oh, repentance, that's not really part of salvation. I believe it is. I believe it is. You have to have repentance. And what that means for you is up to you. Zacchaeus is a great example of someone who was repentant. Repentive. You know, he saw Jesus come in and he got up in that sycamore tree and he wanted to get Jesus' attention. Jesus, here I am. And Jesus said, I'm coming to your house, amen. I'm going to your house today. And Zacchaeus came down from that tree and he made things right and he stopped cheating people and he's doing things right. That was repentance. He had a change, amen. For him, it was to do right. It was to make things right with the people that he had done wrong. But John, in our text, challenged these leaders to prepare the way for the Lord. They had been busy exalting their own image and making themselves look good. John challenged them to turn their hope from themselves to Jesus. That was all John's job, is to point people to Jesus. He says, we conclude here. Tonight, John's entire ministry was wrapped up in preparing people for the coming of the Lord. His message really was not that difficult to understand. It was a message of repentance because he was repairing their hearts for the Savior. Get right. He's here. He was there. He's walking around. Shortly after, he will be baptizing the Lord Jesus Christ. He was there. Like the Pharisees and the Sadducees, religious people are not necessarily saved people. Remember that. Being religious doesn't mean you're saved. And sometimes we feel like, oh, but they're so religious, and they're so faithful, and they appear like they're really solid. It doesn't mean anything. It doesn't mean anything to God if you're religious. It doesn't matter what church you go to. Nice people can go to hell, amen? That's just the way it is. You know, Mormons might be nice people, but their doctrine is false, right? And so we love people, we want people to get saved, and that's why it's our job to go out and to tell people about Jesus personally, corporately, and tell people about the Lord. Because even the religious people, and sometimes they're the hardest people to win to the Lord. The Lutherans, by the way, are hard to win to the Lord because they're stuck in their religiousness. Other religions are hard to win to the Lord. You'll have to work on them for a long, long time. Titus chapter number three, final verse, if you can make your way there, Titus chapter three. Titus chapter number three, we'll look at a couple of verses here. So if you have never put your trust in Jesus alone, the message of repentance is for you. It is a call to turn from your life that you're living, as well as your self-righteousness, and put your trust in Jesus alone. Titus chapter three, verse number five. Read it with me, please. Not by works of righteousness, which we have done, but according to his mercy, he saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost. Verse six, which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ, our Savior. And when you put your trust in Christ, the fruits of repentance will abound in your life when you put your faith and trust in Christ. There will be a change in your heart that will show in your behavior. No doubt about it. I can remember when I got saved in December of 1999, no one told me to do a lot of the changes that I made in my life. I just naturally did them. God was working in my heart. I stopped listening to the Spice Girls and started listening to some godly music and the Backstreet Boys and whatever else junk I was listening to. And I started changing that and changing my behavior and changing the way I talked and changing the places that I go and the things that I did. I went to church, they preached messages, I obeyed the messages and changed my life. It was a sign of repentance. I started growing in the Lord, got baptized, started serving in the church. My heart was already wanting to serve. I was still fighting the flesh, though. I can remember I wanted to serve in the choir and sing in the choir, but there were some requirements, and I just couldn't get past some of those requirements. So pastor had to come over to my house and say, you're either going to do this or you're not. Is it worth it to you? Do you want to serve? Is this what you want to do? And I said, well, I want to do it. And he said, well. Certain things you're going to have to do in order to serve in this ministry. I said, OK, I'm going to do it. That was a struggle. It wasn't easy. I can remember him coming over to my house and explaining the Constitution and the rules for being a choir member. But it was worth it. Amen. I'm so glad I got to sing in one of the most beautiful choirs, First Baptist Church of Long Beach. So if you're already saved, how often do we repent? It's part of salvation, but it's also part of your Christian life as well. There's times when we're going to mess up, and we got to get right, like Peter. We got to repent. If you go days and weeks without recognizing sin in your life and asking the Lord for cleansing and forgiveness, we got a problem with that. We shouldn't go weeks and months or whatever without saying, God, I'm wrong. I did that wrong. I need to get right with you. That's repentance. Turn in from it, not going back to it. If you're not doing that, you're missing an essential part of the Christian life. 1 John 1, verse number 8, if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Just got to ask, amen. He wants to forgive you. When we agree with God regarding our sin and turn to Him for forgiveness, we prepare our hearts for the coming of the Lord. When He comes, man, we'll be ready, amen? And that's what this is all about. Jesus is coming again. And so we need to have our hearts ready. I don't want to be feeling guilty when He comes. Oh man, He caught me doing that. Or, I'm still holding this in my heart? Oh God, I should have done right. You're going to be thinking, I should have done that right. I'm sorry, Jesus. I should have got right with that person. I should have confessed that sin I was harboring in my heart. You don't want to be there. Just take care of it. When the sin comes and God brings it to your heart, and the Holy Spirit convicts you about something, take it to Him. Repent and turn from it. Say, I'm not doing that no more. I don't want to go there any more. Let's pray. Father, we love You so much. Thank You for this opportunity to serve You by teaching and preaching Your Word. I pray, God, You'd help these folks here to navigate this issue of repentance. Help us to get right with You, Lord, if we're harboring anything in our hearts that may be a sin against You. Help us to confess that, get that right. And I pray, God, today, if there's someone here tonight that does not know You as Savior, that perhaps they would reach out and ask someone about salvation. I pray, God, You'd work in that area. For in Jesus' name we pray, amen. Can we just take a few moments of silence