Repentance is a change in attitude. The person who repents changes his mind and decides to live differently. Salvation happens when a person repents of his sins and turns to God.
Repentance means ” changing direction ” or ” changing thinking “. God helps us to come to true repentance ( 2 Timothy 2:25 ). In the Bible, repentance is:
Recognize sin
To repent, a person must understand that he has sinned. All sin. The person who repents is sad because he understands that sin is wrong ( 2 Corinthians 7: 9-10 ). Therefore, ask God for forgiveness.
See here: what does God say about sin? What is sin?
Change life
Repentance is not just being sad because of sin. Repentance is also deciding to change your life. When someone repents, he decides to abandon sin and live for God. He is not content with sin; he wants to do what is right and to please God ( Romans 2: 6-8 ).
Find out here: what is the meaning of remorse? Is it different from regret?
What are the consequences of repentance?
The main consequence of repentance is a different life. The attitude towards sin changes. Now the person does not want to continue sinning. With Jesus’ help, you can reject sin and choose to do what is right ( James 4: 7-8 ).
The repentant person is ready to accept God’s correction and learn how to live the right way. This does not mean that you will never sin again. But it does mean that you will ask for forgiveness, strive to do better and fight the desire to sin ( 1 John 1: 8-9 ).
Another consequence of repentance is freedom from guilt. When a person repents, God forgives his sins. Now you don’t have to live with the burden of guilt anymore. The repentant person understands that he is no longer under condemnation ( Romans 8: 1-2 ).
See also: how can I know if God has forgiven me?
Over time, repentance has many external consequences. God frees from sin in order to do good works ( Titus 2:14 ). It puts the desire to do good in the heart and helps to put it into practice.
