How to become a good Christian

Repentance is necessary in becoming a Christian. The Lord said, "repent ye, and believe the gospel" (Mark 1:15), and "that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations" (Luke 24:47). The apostle Peter preached, "Repent ye there fore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out," and the apostle Paul testified to Jews and Greeks "repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ," and "that they should repent and turn to God and do works meet for repentance" (Acts 3:19; 20:21; 26:20).

Repentance is a change of mind, a complete reversal of one's inward attitude towards self, towards sin, to wards God, towards Christ and towards the Gospel. It is to give up one's own mind and opinion and to accept God's mind as revealed in the Gospel. One may think that he is a Christian because he has tried to live a good life, belongs to a church, has been baptized and does religious works. Yet none of these and kindred other things will ever make one a born-again Christian, so there must be a change of mind about all this. One must come to God as a repentant sinner and believe on Christ as his Savior to become a Christian.

A repentant acknowledgement of guilt must come first, and with it a genuine faith in Christ Jesus that finds forgiveness through the value of His blessed sacrifice of Calvary. "The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin" (1 Jn. 1:7). When in simple, honest faith one lays hold of this, then faith is known as the great principle by which the deep things of God are apprehended. When faith is in operation the Spirit of God makes these things living and real to the heart (1 Cor. 2: 10).

If it be so with you, this is true repentance toward God, and true faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. The merit, the grace, the efficacy, the power are in Him. The pardon and peace, the life and blessing, are yours on believing the glad tidings of God about His Son. Till you believe on Him for life and salvation, you have nothing to do with practical love and holiness, incumbent as they are on the Christian. First be settled in faith.

Thus all turns really upon what Christ is to us. Faith in Christ Himself — and that means a welcome given to Him is the beginning of everything to us. Christ is light. To welcome Him is to get the light into our souls. We cannot be in His company without finding out what we are, and learning the only terms upon which we can be with Him; but those terms are surely submitted to, when we so learn them. All really turns upon this, what Christ Himself is to us.

God has put His seal upon the work of Christ, by raising Him from the dead, and now, through His Name, repentance and the remission of sins are preached to you, and these two things go together. Repentance must come first: there could be no remission apart from repentance. But what does repentance mean? Not fear of the consequences of sin, nor even sorrow for the sin itself, though that will surely go with it. Repentance is a complete turn. When God commands all men everywhere to repeat, it is as though He said, “Right about turn!” Unconverted sinner, you have turned your back upon God, and you must admit that that is a serious thing to do; it is, to say the least about it, a most discourteous thing to do. If you were admitted to the presence of His Majesty the King, you would not turn your back upon him, certainly not if he wished to speak to you. God is speaking to you, He is beseeching, entreating, commanding you, and you will not listen. You have turned your back upon Him. I call upon you at this time to “Right about turn,” and hear what God is saying to you.

The mission of the disciples was simple. It was that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. They were, moreover, to be witnesses of the things which they had seen and heard. Before we speak of the power which was necessary for the execution of their mission, we would call attention to its terms. They were to preach repentance and remission of sins in the name of the Risen Christ not, be it observed, remission of sins only, but also repentance, without which remission of sins could not be received. For repentance leads to self-judgment and confession, and thus produces the state of soul in which forgiveness of sins can be received and enjoyed. In like manner the apostle Paul testified both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:21), and likewise he proclaimed at Athens that God now commandeth all men everywhere to repent. It is not that repentance is a condition of forgiveness, for God announces forgiveness to every one who will receive it; but it is, as we have said, that repentance brings the soul into that blessed state in which it is enabled thankfully to receive the divine gift.

Christian. Very well then, I must tell you, I went a few years ago to my native village after a long absence. I remembered there was a man of the name of Frankey, who, when I was a boy, was always talking about repentance. I called to see the (now) old man, upwards of eighty. And after a little conversation about olden times, I said, "Well, Frankey, what is your prospect of eternity?" "Well, my lad," said he, "we must begin in good earnest" (the same as his words forty years ago). "What must we begin to do? said I." "Why," said he, "we must repent deeply, for our sins, and weep over them." "Let us see, Frankey," said I, "how much rent do you pay for your bit of land?" "Forty pund, lad." "You seem rather bad of rheumatics, Frankey?" "Aye, lad, I can't walk across t' floor." "Well, Frankey, how much crying, and tears, would pay your rent?" "Oh lad, I might cry me een up, but crying would ne'er pay forty pund rent." "That is true," said I. "But now, Frankey, if that gentleman who lives at the top of the hill were to pay your rent, and just lift up the door sneck, and say, 'Frankey, it's done, I have paid your rent — I knew you were without strength — I have done it, and here is the receipt:' now, Frankey, what would you do then?" You should have seen how the old face brightened up. "Why, lad," said he, "I should cry for joy, to think he had done such a thing," "Yes, Frankey, and that is true repentance. It is the kindness of God, in the gift of His Son that leads to true repentance. Oh! to think that He has done such a thing! I don't repent to get Him to do it; but because He has done it." Poor old Frankey! there was darkness of long years of false teaching upon him. Never before had he seen that the work of redemption had all been done first. And the belief of this produces repentance.

And best of all it contains God’s offer of free salvation, of the forgiveness of sins, of the gift of eternal life to sinful men through the efficacy of the atoning death of our Lord on the cross of Calvary. But to receive these wondrous blessings there must be on our side “repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21). There is such a thing as being intellectually convinced of the truths of Christianity, and yet knowing nothing of a link by faith with the Lord Jesus Christ as a personal Saviour.

At this point of his discourse, Peter brings in the balm of grace as he says, "Brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers." On the cross Jesus had prayed, "Father, forgive them," and now Peter, following in his Master's steps, is led to proclaim forgiveness. Here is the way of escape he opens, "Repent ye therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out." Do you want your sins blotted out, my friend? Nothing but the blood of Jesus can blot them out. And how can you get this blessing? By repentance, and turning to God, having faith in the name of the Lord Jesus. What is repentance? Repentance is this: I judge myself. What is conversion? Conversion is this: I turn round to the Lord. This is all illustrated in the parable of the prodigal son. He was convicted when he said, "How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger." His conviction was of a double nature, there was goodness in his father's heart, while there was badness in his own. This conviction altered his whole course, and turned him round. "The goodness of God leads thee to repentance," we read (Rom. 2:4). It is His goodness that leads man to repentance, and not man's repentance that leads God to goodness. This conviction ends in his conversion. He was converted when he arose and came to his father. He was confessing his sins when he said, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee." He was repentant when he said, "I am no more worthy to be called thy son."

There is, then, a forgiveness identified with redemption and the abiding value of Christ's blood, so that our sins are none of them imputed to us: God remembers them no more. We have part in this through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, and the door by which we enter is repentance toward God, which faith in the word of Christ always produces. We have our eyes opened, we are turned from darkness to light, from the power of Satan unto God, and we receive remission of our sins and an inheritance among them that are sanctified by faith that is in Jesus. (Acts 26:18.)