Doesn’t repentance result in peace of mind? (Don’t water down the definition of “repentance.” “Repentance” means to stop sinning.)
From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matthew 4:17 RSV
Trust God and do whats right
It’s hard to argue with that.
Repentance means a change of mind, not behavior. The original word is ‘metanoia’. A person could possibly stop sinning, but that will not save them. They need to change their mind about their need for a Savior. From there, they receive Jesus as their Lord, and by His Spirit they are able to change their behavior, although it is not that change of behavior that saved them.
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If you stop sinning, you prevent a lot of trouble from coming into your life.
True, but you won’t necessarily be saved and end up in the same place as those who sin.
The Lord disciplines us when we sin. It’s for our own good.
Peace of mind involves faith, love, and family
If there are other things to consider, I would like to here them.
Yes, I think if we have unconfessed sin in our lives or we are running from God then it naturally follows that we won’t have peace of mind because we were created to have a relationship with him, and when we break that relationship through sin we will always feel uneasy, anxious, and like we are missing something.
“Our hearts are restless until they find rest in Thee,” as St. Augustine put it.
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Yes. You can take the advice straight from the Word.
“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1
It really is not about us. We could only find worldly peace if we tried. But we do have an advantage. God is our Father. We just need to clear our minds. Think on God and His Word.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
Hope this helps.
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Romans 15:13
Peter
Love means obeying the Lord’s commandments (John 14:15).
My thought of repentance is simply stop going one direction and about-face and go the other direction.
Stop sin and follow Christ.
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I have been struggling with peace as a whole. It has been taught as a “feeling” produced by the Holy Spirit, but I have not felt it for very long or often. Especially as I have increased in witnessing, I have been more viciously attacked with condemnation, doubt, and temptation. Instead of feeling peace it has felt like a war inside my mind. I’ve been missing the point. Today I read Isaiah 53:5 “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. Today as I read this verse, I did not see peace as a feeling but instead as a treaty, a covenant, and a promise. The Bible promises us suffering in this life especially as we are living right, and that it is for our benefit it will grow our faith as we run to God. Regardless of what I feel in the moment Jesus has made peace between us and God the father. We are no longer enemies but heirs.
In the old covenant under the law, it was an eye for an eye tooth for a tooth. God loves both Justice, and Mercy. They are competing ideas. One requires punishment and restitution. The other is freedom from that debt. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” We talk about it in regard to salvation Forgiveness of Sins, and repentance from sins. God forgives our sins, and we are therefore to repent to turn from them. It however still leaves our debt as the offending party against God. Jesus however paid that debt for us completely. He made a way for peace between us and God so that there could be forgiveness, and repentance. John14:27 says “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”.
Look at that verse as a peace treaty as a promise not a feeling when it says Peace. If you are believer there is peace between you and God. Because of that treaty it should give you peace in this life as well. You know where and in whom your hope and trust lie. John 16:33 says “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”. Our hope and trust should be in Christ Jesus. Isaiah 26:3 says, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” The apostle Paul puts it this way 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” If we are looking towards the things that are unseen that sounds like Hope. Romans 5:3-11 says “Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”. I hope this helps today it was like God finally handed me a missing puzzle piece that I have been struggling with for months and months. We serve a risen savior! Have a Happy Easter!
Happy Easter to you too Send, and welcome to the forums. Feel free to stop by the Introductions category and introduce yourself to everyone.
Welcome @Send9mm Thank you for sharing. Hope you stick around.
God bless,
Peter
Repentance does bring peace with Christ, but could we also be talking about the Joy of the Lord? Our love for Christ Him self?
After I became a true Christian I noticed that, where is the Joy of the Lord? It was missing.
I prayed about it and the Lord taught me that our love for Him must be genuine I thought about that.This would be the first and most important commandment. To love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. To love Him more than Wife, Family or life on this world.
So I asked myself, have I proven my love for Jesus through costly obedience? Is my prayer life a duty & obligation, or do I enjoy it? Do I read His Word out of duty or fellowship? Have I chosen Christ’s will even when it conflicted with my desires? Has my love for the Lord cost me anything significant? Does me being in the presence of the Lord make me feel uncomfortable or excited? Is my love for the Lord a sacrificial love?
My answer was no to at least one of those, so was my love for the Lord even genuine? If I rearranged my priorities so my answers were all yes, then I would be on the right track.
Would restructuring my love in this life aimed at making my love for Christ the supreme love above all others. So I prayed and I thought and I prayed and I did restructure the love in my life to make Him Supreme. And nothing happened. No joy of the Lord. Ugh!
Then one day the Lord gave me an unction to do a good thing for a certain person, annnd, I didn’t want to. It will cost me money that I can’t afford to go all the way with that particular good deed. I’m on SS so everything I do is budgeted! Doing an out-of-budget chunk of money to help another looked beyond reach for me. But then I thought, what brought me here? Oh yes, sacrificial love. I do want to obey the Lord so I must do this thing even if it costs me.
So I did it and helped the person. Besides, the Lord’s Word says for us to not worry about what we will eat drink or wear for He knows our needs before we ask. It cost me more than I was comfortable with but I felt a certain satisfaction in obeying the Lord even when it cost me. And at that moment I realized that, I was full of the Joy of the Lord. I knew I had done right by obeying.
So I suppose we can call that Radical Obedience? It worked for me and will for you too Brother.
Surrender to Christ.