Since the word “metanoia” simply means “to
change one's mind,” it requires supplemental information, because we don't
know what to change our mind about. Whereas the English word “repent”
definitely means to turn away from sins, the Greek word metanoia
doesn't give us any specifics. The Word of God gives us the needed
supplemental information in our text verse from Mark 1:15b, “repent ye,
and BELIEVE THE GOSPEL.” Hence, repentance is unto the Gospel
itself. The Gospel is what the change of mind is about. The great meaning of
the word metanoia is that is applies to anything and everything that
hinders a person from believing the Gospel. In the case of John 3:20, the
Bible tells us that evil itself hinders men from believing the Gospel. Whatever it is that has been
hindering a sinner from believing the Gospel, the Scriptures command us
to think differently toward God (Acts 20:21) and BELIEVE THE GOSPEL. The
Gospel is what the change of mind is about.
Real grief and
real sorrow is unnecessary for salvation, because Jesus has already paid the
price for our sins with His blood. The English word for “repent” defines it
as “sorrow for sins; turning from your sins.” This is not the
Biblical meaning of the word. God used the word “metanoia,” which means “a
change of mind” or “to think differently.” This has NOTHING to do with
turning away from sinful bad habits or feeling deep sorrow over sins. Many
Baptist churches have been deceived by Satan through use of the modern Bible
revisions, which use the English definition of “repent,” and not metanoia.
For example: The
Voice (VOICE) tells the reader in Mark 1:15 to “change your actions” to be
saved. The Easy-To-Read Version (ERV) tells the reader to “change your life”
to be saved. But our precious King James Bible says to “repent” (and if you
study the meaning of the word, you'll find that it is metanoeo).
“Metanoeo” is the verb form of the noun “metanoia” (they are the same word).
God never commands anyone to change their actions or life to be saved. To do
so is reformation, not repentance. God does all the saving or else you're
not saved!
The Lord teaches that people who love their
sinful lifestyle WON'T come to the light to be saved, to avoid being
reproved for their sins. That is, they don't want to face the realization
that the life they are living is wickedness. They don't want to admit they
are GUILTY! The heathen world doesn't want
to feel guilty for their sins. This is why relentless efforts are being made
by homosexual activist LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered) groups these days to normalize the homosexual lifestyle in the churches, so that
they can live a religious life without being made to feel guilty for their
sins. The sin of drunkenness is now called “a disease.” The sin of abortion
is now called “pro-choice.” The sin of homosexuality is called “an
alternative lifestyle” (it's a deathstyle).
When a man “repents,” he sees himself as an unholy
sinner in the eyes of a holy God, and by faith RECEIVES THE GOSPEL as
payment for his sins. Galatians 3:2, “This only would I learn of you,
Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of
faith?” The apostle Paul said, I just want to know ONE THING: How
did you get saved? How did you become indwelt with the Holy Spirit (capital
“S”)? The correct answer is: BY THE HEARING OF FAITH (i.e., when you hear
the Gospel preached, you believe it and are saved). This is “THE
SIMPLICITY THAT IS IN CHRIST” (2nd Corinthians 11:3).
2nd Corinthians 4:4, “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the
minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel
of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” A man
who commits evil hates the Gospel (he hates the light). Acts 20:21
speaks of “repentance toward God.” Thus, repentance is thinking
differently toward God as compared to whatever has been hindering us from
coming to Jesus Christ to be saved. That is the great meaning of metanoia,
which is changing one's mind unto the Gospel itself.
The very act
of coming to Jesus Christ to be forgiven of one's sins is plain evidence
that repentance is taking place. The man who believes has repented, and the
man who repents has believed. This is why the words “believe” and “believed”
are mentioned in the Gospel Of John 85 times, but the word “repent”
is not mentioned even once.
Repentance and
faith happen AT THE SAME TIME. They are inseparable! All that God requires
to be saved is that a person admit they are a guilty sinner, totally
incapable of saving themselves, and they completely REST in the Gospel of
Jesus Christ. Jesus died
on the cross for our sins, He was buried, and He bodily resurrected from the dead three
days later. This is the Good News according to 1st Corinthians
15:1-4.
Beware Of
Satan's Lordship Salvation Heresy!
False prophets
like John MacArthur, Chip Ingram, Billy Graham and Paul Washer who teach Lordship Salvation,
have changed the plan of salvation in a sinful attempt to force people to
forsake sinful living and follow righteous living. They wrest (wrestle or
manipulate) the Scriptures to their own destruction (2nd Peter 3:16). They
wrestle the Scriptures to make it fit their false teachings. In verse 17 the
apostle Peter calls this wrestling of Scripture, “the error of the wicked.”
2nd Peter 3:17b, “beware lest ye also, being led away with the error
of the wicked.”
According to John 3:20 there is no need to change the
Gospel, because those
who love their sins WON'T COME TO CHRIST to be saved, lest their wicked
deeds should be “reproved” (strongly warned against). I witnessed to a man
years ago who wouldn't get saved, because he knew that the indwelling Holy
Spirit would expect him to live holy if he got saved. You see, you don't
have to change the plan of salvation to force people to live right. I even
told the lost man that he didn't have to forsake his sins to be saved, but
he knew that the Holy Spirit would come to live inside him if he did get
saved, and he absolutely didn't want that. The problem is not false conversions or quick-fix
evangelism in our churches today; but rather, a lack of sound Biblical
preaching against sin in our churches. Few churches properly mentor their
converts, so they as babes in Christ continue in sin (which is the American
culture today).
Dr. John
R. Rice addresses this matter in response to a critic of misbehaving
teenagers in the church.
Our churches
are filled today with religious unsaved people who errantly think they have
a part in their own salvation, because they're trying really hard not to sin
anymore as part of their salvation. The truth is that they have foolishly
added HUMAN EFFORT to the Gospel. This is a false Gospel of grace + works,
which is no longer grace (Romans 11:6). You would be shocked how many
Independent Baptist churches have adopted this satanic plan of salvation.
Evangelist Billy Graham is one of the primary
reasons for heresy in our evangelical churches today, who teaches on his
website that you must COUNT THE COST AND PAY THE PRICE to be saved. Another
popular heretic is Dr. John MacArthur. My
friend,
Jesus' precious BLOOD was the price, which He paid when He sprinkled His
liquid blood on the heavenly Mercy Seat, which was the place (Hebrews
9:12,24;12:24). To hear an awesome MP3 sermon on the subject, please listen
to “THE
PRICE FOR THE CHURCH” (Pastor Jack Hyles).
Some
Excellent Quotes Differentiating Salvation from Discipleship
"There is a vast difference between coming to Jesus for
salvation and coming after Jesus for service. Coming to Christ makes one a
believer, while coming after Christ makes one a disciple. All believers are
not disciples. To become a believer one accepts the invitation of the
Gospel, to be a disciple one obeys the challenge to a life of dedicated
service and separation. Salvation comes through the sacrifice of Christ;
discipleship comes only by sacrifice of self and surrender to His call for
devoted service. Salvation is free, but discipleship involves paying the
price of a separated walk. Salvation can't be lost because it depends upon
God's faithfulness, but discipleship can be lost because it depends upon our
faithfulness." —Dehaan, M.R. Hebrews. Zondervan Publishing House, 1959 (p.
117).
"People are sometimes led to believe that there is saving
value in some public confession of Christ, or profession of a decision.
"With the heart man believeth unto righteousness." This is salvation. "With
the mouth confession is made unto salvation." This is the voice of the
newborn child speaking to and of its father. The only condition on which one
may be saved is to believe." —Chafer, Lewis Sperry. Salvation. Dunham
Publishing Company, 1917 (p. 46).
“Just as you receive the Saviour by
faith and He becomes YOUR Saviour, when you allow Christ to control your life,
He becomes YOUR LORD. There is an increasing number of "evangelicals" today
who are preaching that in order for a man to be saved he must not only receive
Christ as his Saviour, but also must make Him absolute Lord and Master of his
life. This doctrine has been termed
"Lordship salvation" and has absolutely no support from the Word of God. It
is, in fact, another subtle way Satan has invented to get Bible-believing men
to add works to salvation without, perhaps, their realizing it, and to do it
in such a way that it sounds spiritual and good.” —Stanford, Ray. Personal
Handbook of Evangelism. (p. 45-49).
"It is an inexcusable error to confront sinners with problems
that concern the Christian life and call upon them to make promises
regarding them. An unsaved person is never called upon to surrender himself
to God. The saving act is in no instance represented as our 'giving
ourselves to God'; it is, on the contrary, taking His Son as our Savior."
—Ryrie, Charles. Balancing the Christian Life. Moody Press, Inc., 1969 (p.
170).
"This kind of faith is not 'easy believism'. It is not easy to say, 'I can't
save myself, I must recognize that there is something wrong with me, and I
must seek help from someone else.'" —Hook, H. Phillip. "A Biblical Definition
of Saving Faith." Bibliotheca Sacra. April-June, 1964 (p. 133, 138).
"The second approach finds faith in the gospel alone an 'easy
Believism' and seeks to add something to faith in order to accomplish
salvation. To repent is to 'change one's mind,' and to believe is to remove
one's trust from that in which it has rested and place it in Christ."
—Howard, William. "Is Faith Enough to Save?" Bibliotheca Sacra.
January-March, 1942 (p.99).
"Certainly discipleship is a most important aspect of our
relation to Christ, but it belongs to the sphere of Christian life rather
than entrance upon that life... One does not become a disciple in order to
become a Christian, but because he has become a Christian by faith in the
Savior, it is fitting that he embark upon a life of discipleship." —Harrison,
Everett F. "Must Christ be Lord to Be Savior?-No." Eternity, September 1959
(p. 14).
"For the unregenerate man, repentance is the change of mind whereby he turns
from unbelief to faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ." Post, Roger.
"The Meanings of the Words Translated 'Repent' and 'Repentance' in the New
Testament." —Master's Thesis, Wheaton College, June 1972 (p. 80).
"There are those who, in their zeal to get people to turn from their sinful
ways and receive the Lord, almost put repentance on a par with believing...
Repentance, as it relates to Christ, means to change our minds about Him,
who He is and what He's done to provide forgiveness and deliverance from our
sins. When we place faith in Jesus as having taken our place personally on
the cross and borne the penalty due our sins, then we're automatically
repenting, because we couldn't accept Him in this way without having had to
change our minds in some way concerning Him." —Lindsey, Hal. The Liberation
of Planet Earth. Zondervan Publishing House, 1974 (p. 136, 137).
"Eternal life is free. Discipleship is immeasurably hard. The
former is attained by faith alone, the latter by a faith that works... the
former brings with it the righteousness of God so that a man is 'justified
freely by his grace' (Romans 3:24). The latter develops a personal
righteousness, based on good deeds, so that a man was also 'justified by
works' (James 2:24). The former constituted the believer God's workmanship,
the latter fulfilled the wonderful purpose for which he had been created.
The former cost man nothing, the latter could cost him everything, including
life itself." —Hodges, Zane C. The Hungry Inherit. Moody Press, Inc., 1972
(p. 114, 115).
“Repent, as Christ meant it
to be in terms of salvation, means to change your mind from
trusting in what you can do for God to trusting only in what He
can do for you.” —Bowen, Michael P. I Never Knew You. Barbour
Books, 2009 (p. 114).
"Discipleship is frequently equated with salvation and often erroneously
made a condition for becoming a Christian." —Pentecost, J. Dwight. Design
for Discipleship. Zondervan Publishing House, 1971 (p. 11).
"There is no more piously subtle abrogation of the Gospel than to tell a
Sinner that he must not only believe in the Savior, but dedicate himself
to do God's will, crown the Savior Lord of his life, etc., etc. Obviously,
dedication and service are highly desirable, but they are the privilege
and the duty of the saved, never a condition of salvation for the unsaved
(cf. Romans 12:1, 2)." —Unger, Merrill F. God is Waiting to Meet You. Moody
Press, 1975 (p. 117, 118).
Repentance
From Dead Works
Mark 1:15,
“And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand:
repent ye, and believe the gospel.” The Greek word for
“repent” in this Scripture is metanoia and means “a change of mind.”
Notice that repentance concerning salvation is a change of mind and
not a change of lifestyle. Repentance is a change of mind—a change of
mind from I want to do to get to Heaven, to what God says I must do to get
to Heaven.
Hebrews 6:1
speaks of REPENTANCE FROM DEAD WORKS! Hebrews 4:10-11, “For he that is
entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did
from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall
after the same example of unbelief.” Clearly, Biblical repentance
means changing our mind concerning our sins and unbelief that have been
hindering us from coming to Christ to be saved. This is what John 3:20
means. If you acknowledge your SINNERSHIP and realize your utter inability
to save yourself by keeping the law of Moses (aka, Ten Commandments), then
all you need to be saved is to completely REST in the gospel (that is,
Christ's death on the cross for your sins, His burial, and His resurrection
from the dead three days later).
You Are An
Ungodly
Sinner (And So Am I)!
You are a
sinner! Unless you accept Christ's payment for your sins, then you will be
cast into the Lake of Fire to burn for all eternity, paying for your own
sins (Revelation 20:13-15). You MUST receive Christ's payment for your sins
by placing your trust (complete reliance) in Him. You MUST trust Christ
alone, apart from all works, human effort and self-righteousness. If you add
even the slightest bit of human effort to your faith, you have no faith at
all. Anything less than complete trust is unbelief, but even amidst 99%
doubts, a man's complete reliance is Christ is no less than 100% faith!
To help you
understand what I just said, consider the illustration of a chair, which you
are going to stand upon to replace a defective ceiling light bulb. I can say
“I believe, I believe, that this chair will support my weight and hold me
up,” but that is optimism, not faith. Faith would be actually standing upon
the chair, unaided by any help in case I should fall if the chair breaks
apart. Even if I have 99% doubt in the chair's stability, it is nothing less
than 100% faith is I stand completely upon the chair. Likewise, you can have
all the doubts in Christ you may have, and God will still save you if you
simply REST COMPLETELY in Jesus Christ, trusting Him alone apart from all
else.
And don't you
dare think that you must stop sinning, try to stop sinning, desire to stop
sinning, or intent to stop sinning, as a requirement to be saved, or else
you WILL GO TO HELL. All of the things I just mentioned about sin are HUMAN
EFFORT. The PURPOSE of the law of Moses according to Romans 3:19 is simply
to silence every self-righteous mouth (such as the boasting rich young ruler
in Luke 18:18-21 and the boasting religious group in Matthew 7:21-23), and
to show the world that WE ARE ALL GUILTY SINNERS IN GOD'S EYES. This is the
Biblical purpose of God's law; and not to compel us to forsake the world,
make full surrender to Christ, and cease from sinful living. These are
matters of Christian discipleship, and NOT sonship (salvation). Beware of
anyone who corrupts the simplicity of the Gospel.
Lest His
Deeds Should Be Reproved
The word
“reproved” in John 3:20 is the Greek word elegchō and means “to
confute, admonish: - convict, convince, tell a fault, rebuke, reprove.” The
word “confute” means “to prove false or wrong.” The ungodly world do not
want to be told that their sexual immorality, drunkenness and abortions are
sinful and wrong. Thus, they rename the sin of sexual immorality to “sexual
freedom.” The sin of drunkenness is now called “a disease.” The sin of
abortion has been renamed to “freedom of choice.” And the vile sin of
homosexuality is now considered an “alternative lifestyle.” The Bible calls
these acts “sin.”
Again, the
word “confute” means “to prove false or wrong.” Unsaved heathens don't want
to be proven wrong concerning their sins. That's why they won't come to the
light (truth) of the gospel to be saved. No one likes to be told that they
are doing wrong and are sinning against God. Psalms 119:105 calls the Word
of God A LAMP UNTO OUR FEET. The Bible is light. The Bible is the written
Word, and Jesus is the living Word. This is why the world hates the Bible
and Christ. Jesus said in John 7:7 that the world cannot hate Christians;
but rather, it is Jesus Whom they hate, because He testifies against it
through His Word and Holy Spirit that the works thereof are evil.
Homosexuals
don't want to be proven wrong concerning their same-sex perversion.
Abortionists don't want to be proven wrong regarding their mass-murdering of
human life. It was reported in the news in May of 2014 that a silly New York
woman bragged about her abortion, saying that women shouldn't feel guilty
about having an abortion.
Wicked Woman Celebrates Her “Cool” Abortion On YouTube To Treasure “Special
Memory.” Obviously this woman does NOT fear God. Psalms 36:1, “The
transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, that there is no fear of
God before his eyes.” Unrepentant sinners don't want to be proven
false or wrong!
So the man who
repents is the man who turns to Jesus Christ by faith in the gospel to be
forgiven of his sins. Please read,
Repentance And Faith
to understand the inseparable relationship between the two. Repentance is
NOT turning away from sins; but rather, it is turning to Christ because
you've realized that you are a guilty sinner (Romans 3:19). Judas turned
from his sins and went to Hell (Matthew 27:3). Salvation is not reformation,
rehabilitation, education, nor legislation; but rather, regeneration by the
Spirit of God in response to one's faith in the gospel (John 1:12-14; 1st
Peter 1:23).
Genuine
Biblical Repentance Unto Salvation
Ah, but when a soul
experiences genuine repentance unto salvation, there is an awakening to
one's sinfulness, an acknowledgement of one's sinnership in the eyes of God
almighty. Romans 3:19, “Now we know that what things soever the law
saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be
stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.”
The law of God diagnosis man's problem, which has always been SIN.
Notice that in
the phrase “repent ye, and believe the gospel” in Mark 1:15
that the Bible is not saying to repent first and then as a second step to
believe the gospel. Rather, the Bible is saying to believe the gospel as
part of repentance. John 3:20 teaches that the wicked WON'T believe the
gospel because they don't want to be proven wrong concerning their sins.
Whereas when a person repents, that is, changes their mind, now they
are willing to come to Christ because they no longer defend their sins. They
now admit, “Yes God, I am a sinner just like you proclaim in your holy
Word!”
In essence,
all God expects of an individual to be saved is to admit that you are a
woeful sinner hopelessly lost, totally unable to help save yourself even in
the least way; and then you place your complete trust in the wonderful
Savior. That's all God expects of anyone to be saved. This is exactly what
Romans 3:19 teaches, “...that every mouth may be stopped, and all
the world may become guilty before God.” With this basic
Biblical mindset, it ought to become very obvious at this point what's wrong
with the heretical
teachings of John MacArthur, Ray Comfort and Chip Ingram (and many others
who require people to cease from sinful bad habits in order to be saved).
They wrongfully understand this type of behavior (i.e., turning over a new
leaf) to mean repentance. They all propagate a fork-tongued false gospel of
grace + works.
Judas Was A
Follower Of Lordship Salvation
Please
understand that realizing one's guilt of sin in God's eyes is VASTLY
different than ceasing from lifelong sinful bad habits. Judas repented in
Matthew 27:3, but the Greek word (metamellomai, “to care afterwards,
to regret”) is different here than the word “repent” in Mark 1:15 (as
evidenced earlier in this article). Judas felt sorry that he got caught. He
regretted what he did, that is, betraying Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.
Judas even tried to make restitution by returning the silver coins. Judas,
like Cain with his grain offering, and Adam with his fig-leaf religion,
foolishly attempted to clean up his own sin problem. However, behavior
modification is not Biblical repentance. Feeling sorry for one's sins is not
Biblical repentance.
Biblical
repentance is coming to the light because a person has changed their mind,
admitting their guilt of sin, i.e., SINNERSHIP. Thus, by admitting that I am
a sinner, God won't have to REPROVE me (i.e., prove me wrong) concerning sin
as John 3:20 teaches. The world refuses to acknowledge their wickedness, so
God must one day reprove (prove them all wrong) and punish them. My friend,
God sent His only begotten Son into the world to the cross to pay for our
debt of sin with His precious blood. Thank you Jesus!!!
So you see
that the false repentance which Judas experienced is the same false
understanding of repentance which has corrupted our churches these days. To
be saved, a person need only turn by faith to Jesus Christ to be forgiven of
their sins. God's righteousness is
IMPUTED (attributed)
to a person the moment they believe the gospel. Literally, we are saved by
HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, that
is, Christ's righteousness which is by faith alone. No one ever got saved
who didn't realize they were a sinner. But if you turn to Christ in faith,
receiving the gospel (Christ's death, burial and resurrection) as full
payment for your sins, then you are saved immediately, eternally and
irrevocably.
John 3:20
plainly evidences that unrepentant sinners WON'T come to the light to be
saved, LEST THEIR DEEDS SHOULD BE REPROVED (i.e., proven false or
wrong). Thus, the heresy of Lordship Salvation is not necessary.
What happens is that some people get so sick of
shallow Christians who are “SO SAVED AS BY FIRE,” that they change the plan of
salvation to require a person to cease from sins to be saved. That's a false
plan of salvation! Lordship Salvation is the false teaching that a person
must cease from committing a lifestyle of sins to be saved. They say that
admitting you're a sinner and believing on the gospel of Jesus Christ is NOT
enough to be saved. They add the unbiblical requirement that a person must
forsake the literal act of deliberately sinning to be saved.
As
Dr. John
R. Rice (1895-1980) used to say...
“The
change in your heart, sinner, is God's part and you may be sure He will
attend to that. Your part is to simply believe in Him. Whatever else is
necessary in your eternal salvation, the Lord attends to when you trust
in Him, or believe in Him.”
SOURCE:
What Must I DO To Be Saved, by Dr. John R. Rice
Jesus Is
The Savior Of All Men
I love this
truth! Jesus is the Savior of all men, especially of them that believe.
1st Timothy 4:10, “For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because
we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially
of those that believe.” Did you read that? Jesus is the Savior
of ALL MEN. This doesn't mean that all men are saved; but rather, that
everyone's sins have been paid for and the gift of eternal life is freely
offered and available to all mankind. GOD IS SO GOOD!!!
Dr. John
MacArthur teaches that Jesus is NOT the Savior of all men. This doctrinal
heresy (called “Limited Atonement”) was taught and popularized by big-time
heretic John Calvin (1509-1564). Sadly, even Charles Spurgeon was misled on
this one point of Calvinism. The teachings of John Calvin are commonly
referred to as “The Five Points of Calvinism.” In this respect, Spurgeon (a
mighty Baptist preacher) was a one-point Calvinist. We must always remember
that even the greatest men of God are still men. Behind every pulpit is a
human being! In sharp contrast to Spurgeon, John MacArthur is a five-point
Calvinist. The heresy of Lordship Salvation is rooted in Calvinism.
John 3:20
beautifully explains exactly what repentance is, by showing us that a man
who repents comes to the light to be saved, because he has had a change of
mind. Don't anyone dare ever say that Jesus turns someone away who comes to
Him by faith to be forgiven and saved! The Lord Himself made a solemn
PROMISE in John 6:37, “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me;
and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” Ray
Comfort, John MacArthur and Chip Ingram would have us believe that Jesus
REJECTS those who are still holding onto their pet sins. This is
exactly what Ray Comfort teaches in his errant commentary of Matthew
7:22-23 in his popular The Evidence Bible.
Again,
Biblical repentance is the admission that I have a sin problem. This is the
purpose of God's law, that is, to show us that we fail to measure up when
compared against it. Romans 3:23 declares that all men fall short of the
glory of God. None of us measure up to God's perfect holy standards. That's
why we need a Savior, Who is Christ Jesus the Lord! Jesus DOES measure up,
as the acceptable, perfect, sinless, Lamb of God!
Some Bible
students foolishly attempt to use the first part of John 6:37 (“All that the
Father giveth me...”) to teach the Calvinistic heresies of “Unconditional
Election” and “Irresistible Grace,” that is, God chooses a person to
salvation and then forces them against their own will to comply. Such
nonsense goes totally contrary to even the plainest teachings of the
Scripture. God has given a freewill to all men to decide for our selves.
Jesus was simply referring to the Holy Spirit Who reproves “the world of
sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment” (John 16:8), drawing them to
the Savior to be saved. John 6:44, “No man can come to me, except the
Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last
day.” This simply means that it is the Holy Spirit Who convicts men's
hearts of their need to get saved. Every sin of man can be forgiven except
one, the sin of rejecting the gospel in unbelief when the Holy Spirit deals
with your heart.
John 3:20 is an excellent Scripture to
help us understand what it means to “repent” concerning salvation. Jesus
teaches in our text verse from John 3:20 that unsaved people who love their sins WON'T come to
the light to be saved. John 5:40, “And ye will not come to me,
that ye might have life.” Notice that jesus didn't say “Ye cannot come.”
He said, “Ye will not come.” 
