The late George Gallup, Sr. did a nationwide poll and discovered one of the most bewildering paradoxes of his career. He discovered that religious interest is growing at an unprecedented rate, but so is immoral behavior. Gallup's poll revealed: "Little difference between those who go to church and those who don't."[1]

Now what Gallup discovered is what many people, both inside and outside of the church, deep down know in their hearts. There really is little difference between most people who go to church and most people who don't. But the question is: "Why?" Why isn't there more of a difference between the average person who goes to church and the average person who doesn't? Well, I believe I can give the answer in one word—repentance.

Now I know to the average man in the street, the word "repent" is almost a religious joke word. Whenever a cartoonist wants to depict a narrow-minded religious fanatic, he will draw a person holding a sandwich board sign up with the words "Repent, You Sinner, Repent!" But even though the world makes light of this word, Jesus said something about repentance that chills me to my bones, and makes me realize that repentance is no laughing matter, and it is certainly no joke. "I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish." (v.3)

Let me tell you what that statement means. It means the death of Jesus, the blood of Jesus, and the cross of Jesus is absolutely worthless to you if you do not repent. The death of Jesus Christ cannot cure one sin in one sinner, if that sinner refuses to repent. The blood of Jesus Christ cannot cleanse one sin of one sinner if that sinner refuses to repent. The cross of Jesus Christ cannot cancel one sin of one sinner if that sinner refuses to repent.

It doesn't matter what else you do; it doesn't matter how well you do it. Jesus said, "Unless you repent you will all likewise perish." Without repentance you have no hope of going to heaven. You may say, "Wait a minute. I believe in God; I go to church; I'm religious; I try to do good things." Well, it doesn't matter if you don't repent.

You take a $100 bill that's counterfeit, and that $100 bill may get into circulation, and it will do a lot of good. That $100 bill can buy food, it can buy medicine, it can even go to church and be put in the offering plate and help pay the church's bills, and go on to the mission field. But if that $100 bill stays in circulation long enough, eventually it is going to get into the hands of a bank teller, whose expert eyes and sensitive fingers will know it is a counterfeit. When it is discovered it will be destroyed.

I want to tell you the burden of my heart. I am becoming more convinced, the longer I pastor, that we have a lot of counterfeit Christians in the church. Oh, they do a lot of good; they're religious; they may even bring their Bibles to church and drop a dollar in the plate. But when they stand before God, God is going to reveal them for the counterfeit that they were, because they've never repented.

We don't hear preachers preach much about repentance anymore. I pray this morning, as I preach this message, that you will listen as you've never listened before. Because there are some of you here who mean well, and you have good intentions, but as the old saying goes, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions."

Though you are a good person, relatively speaking, perhaps religious, even a church member, you've never repented and you've never been saved. If you don't turn right with the right turn, you will surely spend eternity separated from God. So how should we view this matter called repentance?

I. Appreciate the Fact of Repentance

From one end of the Bible to the other, we read that all people must repent. In fact, the theme of repentance is found 959 times in God's word. It is the call of the Old Testament and it is the command of the New Testament.

The very first sermon that Jesus ever preached was a sermon on repentance. Matt. 4:17 says, "From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.'" The first time Jesus ever sent the disciples out two-by-two to preach on their own, Mark 6:12 says, "So they went out and preached that people should repent."

In the very first sermon preached at Pentecost, after Jesus sent the Holy Spirit, Peter said, "Repent, in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven." (Acts 2:38) Paul stood on Mars Hill and said to a group of pagan unbelievers, "God commands all people everywhere to repent." (Acts. 17:30)

Now if repentance is really that important, then we better understand what repentance is. In order to understand what it is, you have to understand what it is not. I am convinced that repentance is not just a word that is seldom used, it is a word that is often misused and misunderstood. Because even though repentance is composed of several elements, it cannot be equated with any one element.

For example: Repentance involves the conviction of sin, but it is more than just the conviction of sin. Now you cannot repent until you are convicted of your sin. But you can be convicted of your sin and never repent.

I have given invitations for people to come to Jesus Christ, and actually seen grown men and women grip the backs of pews so tightly their knuckles turn white. I've seen the sweat pop out on their brows; I have seen them fidget and shift from one foot to the other; I have even seen them stand and weep with tears coming down their face. But they would not step out and give their heart to Jesus Christ. There was no doubt they were under tremendous conviction, but they did not repent. Repentance involves the conviction of sin, but it is not just the conviction of sin.

Furthermore, repentance involves the confession of sin, but it is more than confession. The Bible is full of people who admitted they had sinned, but they didn't repent. Pharaoh told Moses over and over and over "I have sinned," but he didn't repent. Judas, who betrayed the Lord Jesus, said to the Pharisees, "I have sinned against innocent blood," but he did not repent. In fact, many people confess, not because they want to repent, but simply because they got caught. They are not sorry for what they did. There is no remorse and there is no regret.

There is a story of how King Frederick II, an Eighteenth Century King of Prussia, was visiting a prison in Berlin. He was going from inmate to inmate, and every one of them was trying to prove how they had been unjustly imprisoned. They all proclaimed their innocence, except one.

That one prisoner was sitting quietly in a corner, while all the rest protested their innocence. Seeing him sitting there oblivious to everything else that was going on, the King walked over to him and said, "Son, why are you in here?" He said, "Armed robbery, your Honor," The King said, "Are you guilty?" He said, "Sire, I am guilty, and I deserve to be here." The King then gave an order to the guard and said, "Release this guilty man, I do not want this man corrupting all these other innocent people."

Let me tell you something else about repentance. It involves contrition over sin, but it's more than contrition. You can be sorry for your sin, and still die in your sin. Now if you are truly repentant, you will be sorry. But you can be sorry without being repentant. 2 Cor. 7:9-10 says, "Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produced death."

An alcoholic may be sorry for the way he treated his wife when he was drunk, but if he goes back to the bottle he's not repentant. A husband may be sorry that he's been unfaithful to his wife, and cry buckets of tears, but if he goes back to his mistress he's not repentant. A homosexual may be sorry they're in a homosexual lifestyle, but if they refuse to get out of that lifestyle, they are not repentant. But I remind you again Jesus said, "Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish." So we should understand, in fact, we had better understand what repentance is, and we had better repent.

II. Apply the Force of Repentance

Now what does the word "repent" mean? Well, it's the Greek word metanoia, and it literally means "to change your mind." Whatever else repentance is, it is a change that brings a change. It is indeed a turning right at the right turn. You see, repentance means not only to be broken over your sin, but also to be broken from your sin. It doesn't result just in remorse, which makes you sorry for your sin. It doesn't result just in reformation, where you try to get away from your sin; it results in regeneration where your heart and mind are changed and you become a new creature in the Lord Jesus Christ.

You see, when you repent, you actually go through several stages. First of all, you say to a Holy God, "I am a sinner." Now there are a lot of people who say that. You talk to most people long enough they'll finally admit they are sinners. But then there's a second stage where you say, "I'm not only a sinner, I am sorry for my sin." Quite frankly, there are a lot of people who go to the second stage and admit they're sorry for their sin. But the person on the road to repentance goes on to say, "I want to turn from my sin."

But again, there are a lot of people who say they want to do that, but they never do it. But my friend, the repentant person turns from his sin, and there is a change in his life. Or as the military would put it, there is "an about face."

I was reading the other day about a town in a remote section of Labrador, Canada called Wabush. It is one of the most isolated towns in all of Canada. As a matter of fact, just recently there was a road that was cut through the wilderness to reach it. Now interestingly, it takes six to eight hours on that one solitary road to get to the little town of Wabush. But it only had one road; one road leads in, one road leads out. You are welcome to travel that six to eight hour journey to get into that town. But if you want to leave, there's only one way you can do so; you've got to turn around.

Now every one of us were born in a town called Sin. There's only one way out of that town, and it's on a road built by God Himself. It's called the road of repentance, and in order to take that road you've got to turn your back on the city of sin and turn your face toward God. That total about face is what the Bible calls repentance, and without it there is no way to get away from your sin.

This is where I am absolutely convinced we have many people, more than we care to admit, more than some of you would like to admit, who are church members, but they're not Christians. You look back to when you "supposedly" got saved, let me ask you a simple question.

Are you truly and really different from what you were before you got saved? As a matter of fact, let me ask you this question. Do you know that you are different? Let me go one step further. Can other people see it? You listen to this statement: If your religion has not changed your life on the inside, you had better change your religion.

You know what I have found about a lot of people, and I mean a lot of church members? They want to experience God's forgiveness, but they do not want to repent. I heard about a little boy that was dressed for church in his Sunday best. While his mother was getting dressed he went out to the backyard. A few minutes later he came back into the house covered in mud.

Well, as you could have guessed, his mother was fit to be tied. She had told him not to go into the mud, but he did anyway, and not only would they be late to church, but his best suit of clothes was now ruined.

The little boy looked at his mother and said, "Mom, I'm sorry I got into the mud." She said, "Okay, go jump in the bathtub and change clothes!" The little boy looked at her and said, "No." The mother looked at the little boy and said, "What do you mean, ‘no?'" He said, "Mom, I don't want to be clean, I just want to be forgiven."

I am convinced that is where a lot of church members stopped with Jesus Christ. You think about it. Why is it that most of the members on a church roll never come to church? I'll tell you why—they have never truly repented. Why is it that 50% of church members not only rob God, but give absolutely nothing to His church? I'll tell you why—they have never repented. Why is it that a lot of church members drink the same beer, and tell the same jokes, and live the same life as the average non church member? I'll tell you why—they have never repented.

I tell you there are people in this building who have been whitewashed on the outside but never washed white on the inside. We are all familiar with Eckerd drugstores. Let me tell you about the man behind that name. Several years ago Jack Eckerd gave his life to Jesus Christ. After he had given his heart to the Lord, he walked into one of his 1,500 stores and saw Playboy and Penthouse magazines on the bookshelves. He immediately fired off a memo to every manager of every store and said, "Take these pornographic magazines out of the stores immediately. We are no longer going to sell them."

Well, many of his managers called in and protested and said, "We're making a huge profit selling those magazines." Jack Eckerd said, "We may be, but they're my stores and I want them out, and never in there again." You could walk into an Eckerd drugstore anywhere in the United States and find that the shelves that were once filled with pornography are now totally clean. You say what happened? I'll tell you what happened—Jack Eckerd repented and turned away from his sin.

III. Appropriate the Fruit of Repentance

Now Jesus goes on to tell a parable:

"He also spoke this parable: A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?' But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.'" (vv. 6-9)

Now what does the parable have to do with what Jesus just said about repentance? Well, a truly repentant person will bear the fruit of repentance.

You see, real repentance not only clears a man's head, and cleanses a man's heart, and connects with a man's will; it gets into his feet and into his hands, and it affects the way he lives. Repentance is not just knowing about your sin or weeping over your sin, or even being determined to do something about your sin. It means you turn your back on your sin, and you turn your face toward God.

There was a crowd of Pharisees and Sadducees who came to John the Baptist and asked John the Baptist to baptize them. But John refused. You know what he said to them? "Bear fruits worthy of repentance." (Matt. 3:8)

You see, that is the real test—fruit. That is the test of life. If you have an apple tree in your yard, and you watch that apple tree for a year and that apple tree doesn't bear fruit, I've got news for you—that apple tree is dead. Listen to these words of Jesus: "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them." (Matt. 7:19-20)

When I talk about repentance I'm talking about total repentance, not partial repentance. There are a lot of people who come down the aisle of a church, or make some type of a decision for Christ, but it's only a half-hearted repentance. They are willing to give up some things, but they are not willing to give up everything. I want to tell you something. A half-hearted repentance is nothing more than wholehearted rebellion.

I heard about a shoplifter who wrote to a department store an anonymous letter, and said, "Dear Sir, I have just become a Christian and I can't sleep at night because I feel guilty. So here's $100 that I owe you." He signed only his first name and then put a P.S. at the bottom of the letter that said, "If I still can't sleep I'll send you the rest."

I want you to get honest, honest with God and honest with your own heart. Has there been a time in your life when you actually changed your mind, your heart, your will? Has there been a real change of direction in your life? My friend, repentance alone will not save you, but without repentance you cannot be saved.

Most of us have flown on an airplane at one time or another. When an airplane touches down on landing you know that that huge machine is moving so fast that the only way the pilot can slow it down and bring it to a safe landing is to literally reverse the engines. There's nothing quite like that roar you hear when those jet engines are reversed. You can immediately feel the affect on your body as the plane is literally being taken in effect in a different direction so it can slow down and stop.

Any time you've got something with that much weight behind it, moving with that much speed, it takes a very powerful force to stop it. If the pilot failed to reverse the engines, that plane would go off the runway and it would crash.

We are all born moving as fast as we can down a road that leads to hell, and we're moving with such force that if we do not put the engines of our life in reverse and literally begin to head in a different direction, we will also run off the runway into certain death. My friend, you had better turn right with the right turn or you will certainly perish. Repent and be saved in the name of Jesus Christ.

---