Why the Church Today Should Repent?
Repentance Brings Revival
Repentance brings revival. Why should today’s church repent? The church today should repent because repentance brings revival. This is a personal revival, but also corporate revival as a church and across the land. Repentance brings revival. When revival comes, it causes people to repent. Revival causes sinners to repent. It causes believers to seek God. It causes believers to see their sins and repent. However, repentance can be the doorway for revival to begin. Why? Because God visits those with a humble and contrite spirit.
Isaiah 57:15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.
The contrite and humble ones will draw nigh to God, cleansing their hands and purifying their hearts (James 4:8-10). The contrite person, a humble person, is one who will repent of sins and wrongs as they seek after God. This usher in revival. God dwells with the person with a humble and contrite spirit.
Joel 2:12-28 also shows evidence of how repentance brings revival. God calls the people of Israel to turn to him (Joel 2:12), call a fast, and a solemn assembly (Joel 2:15). He tells the priests to cry out to him on behalf of the people (Joel 2:16-17). God promises to be jealous over the land, bless His people, and then pour out of His Spirit (Joel 2:18-2). He calls Israel to repentance so He can revive them
To Purify the Congregation from Immorality
1 Corinthians 5:7 It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife. 2And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.
Revelation 2:22 Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.
The Apostle Paul heard that there was fornication in the Corinthian church. A man was sleeping with his mother-in-law. Yet Paul corrected the Corinthians for treating the matter lightly. He told them they were puffed up. They did not see the need to clear the church from the matter. When we think of the church today, in the United States and in many places around the world, we see so much uncleanness taking place. But it seems like Christians are dull to it. Many have accepted immorality in the church as the norm. We're not ashamed. We're not mourning. We're not grieving over it.
So much of the church today has all kinds of sins and immorality happening often in the public. And Christians just keep on going the same way. We just keep on doing what we're doing. Corruption spreads; a little leaven leavens the whole lump (1 Corinthians 5:7). Even so, immorality left unchecked, left without repentance, left without being dealt with, will spread. We first start with us in our own lives individually. If you find that you have been in immorality, then repent. Do not just get up and move on. Repent.
Like David, we must be broken before God. “Have mercy upon me or God according to thy lovingkindness, according to the multitude of tender mercies, blot out my transgression and cleanse me thoroughly from my sin (Psalm 51). We've got to be broken before God. We cannot treat sin and immorality lightly. We must repent.
The same in our congregation when we see sin, immorality, we ought to repent on behalf of the congregation. At times we need corporate repentance. What do I mean by that? We must engage in intercessory repentance: standing in repentance for God to purify the church. Daniel was a godly living man. But Daniel confessed his own sins and repented on behalf of the nation (Daniel 9:1-5). He was doing corporate repentance. The church needs to repent of immorality.
To Purge Out False Doctrine
Revelation 2:14-16 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. 15So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. 16Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
There is much false doctrine spreading around the church. There are doctrines stating that believers do not need to confess their sins to God, and other aspects of the hyper-grace teaching. There are churches embracing homosexual leadership within the church, and accepting homosexual relationships. There is much teaching giving license to believers to sin rather than emphasizes that God’s graces empowers us to live holy.
In the church referred in Revelation 2:14-16, God not only calls them to reject false doctrine, but also not to accept those who speak the false doctrine. The church needs to repent of accommodating and giving place to false doctrine.
To Clear a Matter
2 Corinthians 7:8-11 For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season. 9Now 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. 10For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. 11For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.
An area where we often fall short in the body of Christ is that we leave matters unresolved. We leave matters hanging in the air. We don't deal with it. We don't make sure that we are clear before God, clear in our conscience, and clear in the society. Often the society looks at the church and wonders where the church stands, because there's a lack of clarity.
The Corinthian church was found at fault concerning sin in a church. And Paul addresses them again. And it could have been the same matter with the man that slept with his father's wife (1 Corinthians 5). At first, the Corinthians were careless about the matter; they were puffed up and proud in the way they dealt with it. But later on, after Paul gave them instructions and corrected them, they really cleared themselves of the matter.
Paul rejoices that the Corinthian church repented. So what happened to the Corinthian people? They had a godly sorrow, and a godly sorrow caused them to come to a place of repentance. Where is the godly sorrow in the church?
We ought to be people that when we see sin in the church, when we see wrong or we see false doctrines, immorality, and complacency, we ought to have a godly sorrow.
So godly sorry causes a zeal to clear ourselves from the matter that is ungodly. The church today should repent of matters that we need to clear ourselves of.
To Revive from Backsliding
From Leaving First Love Revelation 2:4-7 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
What am I talking about? Now I'm not talking about backsliding and going back to the world or turning away from Jesus Christ. I'm talking about leaving our first love.
Many believers have left their first love. They have left that place of zeal and passion for the things of the Lord. God corrects the Ephesian church because they had left their first love. He commands them to repent and do the first work. To revive from backsliding, it's not only individuals who lose their love for the Lord but also churches. A church can backslide. What I mean by that? The church loses its passion for the Lord, and the vision God gave to that church.
They lose that first love and God calls upon churches like that to repent. Returning to our first love starts with us individually. But perhaps you're a church leader, a pastor, or a worker in the ministry, or you're someone influential in your church or even as a member, you can say something to your pastor, to a leader. You see that the zeal, the passion, the love for God that was there is waning in the church. Begin to do something about it by repenting.
It starts with you repenting for yourself, where you've fallen short, and going back to your first love. Then repent on behalf of your church, that God would reignite that passion, reignite the love and revive them back from their backslidden state, to remember the vision, to remember the passion that the Lord gave, to remember the heart of God for what that church should be doing.
From Unfruitfulness Revelation 3:2-3 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. 3Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
Sometimes the church gets to a place where it seems like it is dying. There's no growth. There is no fruitfulness. When I say growth, I mean both in quality and quantity. Quality meaning that the people are not growing in the teachings of the Lord. It seems like they are dying. Prayer time is gone. The love for the word of God is gone. The passion for the things of God is dying. And not only that, there is little quantitative growth. There is a shortage in the winning of souls. There's no one going out and winning souls. There is no focus on winning the lost for Christ. It is not God's will that the church is unfruitful. There needs to be repentance.
Renew Spiritual Fire
Revelation 3:15-19 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. 16So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. 17Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: 18I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. 19As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
We have material things. We are filled with different resources. We have so much, but that spiritual fire is missing. So many churches are in a lukewarm state because we are compromising with the world. We think like the world and forget that we are the children of God and that the whole world lies in wickedness. Many believers are compromising with the world and satisfied with just having church with little transforming impact.
The lukewarm accepts the current state of society. But the Lord calls us out of a lukewarm state. If we repent, we will see the fire of God.
Why should the church repent? Repentance ushers in a revival.
Based on Joel 2:12-15, God promises that if we turn to him he will bless us. God shows that if we seek after him, then He will be jealous for His land, and He will pour out his Spirit upon us (Joel 2:12-28). He calls us to repentance.
