The objective of this article is to show that repentance is a key requirement for salvation and to urge pastors and preachers to preach the whole counsel of God, which includes both repentance and faith.

Greek vocabulary

G3340 μετανοέω (metanoeo): to repent, to change one’s mind
G3341 μετάνοια (metanoia): repentance, change of mind
G279 ἀμετανόητος (ametanoētos): unrepentant

New Testament verses

John the Baptist preached repentance.

[Matthew 3:2] Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

[Matthew 3:8] Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.

Jesus preached repentance during His earthly ministry.

[Matthew 4:17] Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

[Mark 1:15] Repent and believe in the gospel.

[Luke 5:32] I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.

[Luke 13:3][Luke 13:5] Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

Jesus warned Christians to repent after His ascension to heaven.

[Revelation 2:5] Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

[Revelation 2:16] Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth.

[Revelation 3:3] Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.

[Revelation 3:19] Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.

The twelve apostles preached repentance.

[Mark 6:12] They went out and proclaimed that people should repent.

Peter preached repentance.

[Acts 2:38] Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

[Acts 3:19] Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out.

[2 Peter 3:9] The Lord is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

Paul preached repentance.

[Acts 17:30] The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.

[Acts 20:20-21] I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

[Acts 26:19-20] I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance.

[Romans 2:4-5] Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

Why do so many pastors and preachers not preach repentance?

Without repentance there is no forgiveness of sin.

[Luke 24:46-47] Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in the name of Christ to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

[Acts 5:31] God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

Repentance leads to salvation.

[Acts 11:18] To the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.

[2 Corinthians 7:10] Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret.

[2 Timothy 2:24-26] And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

Repentance is a foundational element of the Christian faith.

[Hebrews 6:1-2] Let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.

Conclusions

Here is a recap of the main points:

God commands everyone to repent.
Repentance is shown through our deeds.
Jesus and the apostles preached repentance.
Both repentance and faith are required for salvation.
Without repentance there is no forgiveness of sins.
Those who don’t repent remain under God’s wrath and will perish.

Please understand that there is no forgiveness without true, remorseful repentance. Those who refuse to repent are on the broad road to destruction, regardless of what they believe. Faith without repentance is the faith of demons. You may “accept Jesus,” but unless you repent, He will most certainly not accept you.

Many pastors and preachers give altar calls, inviting the people to “accept Jesus” and “get saved,” but they never mention repentance in their preaching! In doing so, they inevitably fill their churches with goats, unconverted sinners with only a form of godliness, who profess to have faith and to know God, but by their deeds they deny Him.

[Titus 1:16] They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.

That’s why these days churches are full of people who live in adultery, who are addicted to porn, who smoke pot and get drunk, who have unforgiveness in their heart, who are greedy, living for themselves, chasing the things of this world, and the list goes on and on. These people come to church every Sunday to hear a feel-good, inspiring sermon, then go home thinking they are saved and sealed and on their way to heaven because they believe in Jesus, when nothing could be further from the truth.

[1 Corinthians 6:9-10] Do you not know that the unrighteous will NOT inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

Why do most pastors refuse to preach repentance and holiness? One reason is that many of them live morally compromised lives themselves. For instance, nearly half of the pastors in America are addicted to porn. Others care too much about money, influence, and popularity. If they preached the whole truth, the goats would leave their church, which is bad for business. Others are just church employees. If they preached the whole truth, they would soon find themselves looking for a new job.

That’s why judgment will start at the house of God, and the pastors and preachers will be the first in line.

[1 Peter 4:17] For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God. and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

[Ezekiel 9:5-6] And to the others he said in my hearing, “Pass through the city after him, and strike. Your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity. Kill old men outright, young men and maidens, little children and women, but touch no one on whom is the mark. And begin at my sanctuary.” So they began with the elders who were before the house.

If you are a pastor or a preacher, be courageous and tell the people to repent, to turn from their sins, and to start seeking God with all their heart. Don’t fear the people more than you fear God.

[Acts 5:29] We must obey God rather than men.

[1 Thessalonians 2:4] We speak not to please man, but to please God.

Don’t water down the gospel message. Preach the whole counsel of God. Warn the people to turn from their wicked ways. If you don’t, God will certainly hold you accountable.

[Ezekiel 3:18] If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.