An Exchange of Thoughts
Some of us grew up with some long-held beliefs that have been passed down for many generations. One of those beliefs is Jesus came on the scene with a message of repent for the kingdom of God is at hand. What were you taught about the word repent? I think it is safe to say most of us understood this to mean telling God you were sorry for all your horrible sins and asking Jesus to be your Lord and Savior so you could be saved and not go to hell.
The word repent is a terrible translation for what Jesus actually meant. This word means to pay penance for your mistakes. If we are continuing to instruct others to repent (pay penance) for their sins, we are missing the power of the resurrection, and the gift Jesus is offering to us. Either He paid is all or He didn’t. I believe He did.
Let’s remember Song of Songs, if you ever lose sight of Me just follow in My footsteps. We only want to do what Jesus has done and is doing. He never asked people if they were saved or wanted to be saved. His message was this, “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matthew 4. This word repent should be translated as metanoia, which means change the way you think. Yesterday we talked about offense and how He will challenge our thinking and old beliefs. He will offend your mind to reveal your heart.
This is what I truly love about Yeshua. He never settles for partial freedom for His beloveds. If you have been walking with us in the wilderness for the last four years you can say, I am different than what I was prior to the wilderness. We can see the beauty of change we are experiencing here in our kingdom family. He celebrates with you but He also is calling us to go deeper. He’s inviting us to really challenge how we think about everything.
In every conversation, anything you see on the news or your own opinion we must ask Jesus this question: What do you think about this? We all have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us. If we really want to know. If we really want to become just like Jesus, we will hear Him answer our questions.
When He speaks it does bring transformation. Our part is the response to what He says. Just yesterday I saw something and had an opinion about the circumstance. Immediately, I felt a nearness of Him. I said, Yeshua how do you see this? All of a sudden, I had a compassion towards the situation. He will not settle for partial freedom in your thinking. Will you surrender to His questions and allow it to change the way you think?
