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A Recap from Sunday’s Sermon

Preaching Text: Matthew 3:1-12

John the Baptist began his public preaching ministry with the call to “repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The word “repent” literally means to change your mind. Jesus also began his public ministry with those same words. Likewise, Peter, Paul and John made repentance a significant feature of their teaching.

The season of Advent not only makes us mindful of Christ’s imminent return, it causes us to take inventory of our lives. All people need repentance on some level. 

The gospel message makes repentance appealing.

John the Baptist’s ministry gave numerous reasons for embracing the regular habit of repentance.   Today’s text could be grouped as the good, the bad and the ugly.

The Good, ie: positive motivators for repentance:

(v.2) God’s kingdom is now available to anyone through repentance.
(v. 3 & 11) The Lord is coming.
(v.10) It is possible to bear fruit that will abide.
(v.11) The Holy Spirit is available to carry us along.

The Bad, ie: negative motivators:

(v.2) Repentance is a universal need.
(v.6) All are sinners.
(v.7) God’s wrath is coming against all sin.
(v.11) Everyone’s work will be tested by fire.
(v.12) For the unrepentant, the fire will be unquenchable.

The Ugly, ie: really negative motivators:

(v. 7) The religious leaders looked holy, but were far from God. They had religious behavior, but unrepentant hearts. Their fruit was bad because their whole tree was bad. It is possible to have external religiosity that is motivated by a rotten core.

Through repentance, we can receive God’s gift of new life, making us new inside. In time, the fruit of our lives will be good. This is possible through Jesus.
  

Taking it home: Discuss how repentance (changing your mind) is different than remorse or confession.