It is written:
“The kind of sorrow God wants makes people decide to change their lives. This leads them to salvation, and we cannot be sorry for that. But the kind of sorrow the world has will bring death.” (2 Corinthians 7:10)
The word “repent” is a very interesting word. The Greek word implies a change of mind that leads to a change of life, leading a person from sin and to following the Lord. God commands all men everywhere to repent because the Day of Judgment approaches (Acts 17:30-31).
However, the Hebrew word for repent is also fascinating. When we examine the concepts behind the Hebrew idea of repent, we learn something truly noteworthy.
“Repent, return. Destroy the house….This word comes from the word for taken captive. In ancient times a common occurrence when they took you captive was to destroy your home and fields, leaving you nothing left to return to so that you fully committed yourself to your new life. Repentance carries the same concept in reverse, freedom comes when we destroy the house-we would say burning the bridge behind us-leaving each of us nothing in the old kingdom as we completely invest in the new. This word in Hebrew also means to return home. Repentance is returning to the home where we belong….The Hebrew word shoov means to return, to turn about or to repent….If we do not destroy the house, we will always be torn between the two kingdoms. When we destroy the house, we are fully committed to one kingdom. Repentance is not about misery or shame, it is about a full, complete choice where I leave nothing behind….Repentance is not shame or misery, it is to return home to where the real you can thrive, to where you are safe, loved and whole.” (Dr. Frank T. Seeking, Hebrew Word Pictures: How Does The Hebrew Alphabet Reveal Prophetic Truths? 199, 229; no publisher cited)
Why not today burn down the house of sin and begin walking with the Lord? Repent and be baptized into Christ (Acts 2:37-38). Or, if you are a Christian who has not been walking faithfully with Christ, repent and confess your sins to the Lord in prayer (1 John 1:9).
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