Question:
1) Is repentance necessary for salvation?
My understanding is that it is “to change one's mind.”
The Book of Acts seems to especially focus on repentance in regards to salvation (Acts 2:38; 3:19; 11:18; 17:30; 20:21; 26:20).
I am asking this question because we always say that faith and faith alone in Jesus Christ will save us and nothing else.
Can repentance and faith be understood as “two sides of the same coin.”?
2) Even though faith is a free gift, when we preach to people should we tell them to "count the cost" of being a disciple and talk about the narrow road vs the wide road? or should we just tell them to believe and then they can go to heaven?
Answer:
1) Repentance is defined like you said, as “changing one's mind”, about sin. I will try to explain why salvation does not make sense without repentance, and maybe along the way explain how repentance is different from just feeling sorry for some bad things you do.
The notion that faith alone saves us is something we commonly hear. Eph 2:8 says we're saved not by our works so that no one can boast, but rather by grace. So why repentance?
Well, the Bible makes clear that repentance is of critical importance, and is a mark of our faith. There's no such thing as “faith by itself” that is not coupled with a change of action and attitude toward sin. Read these verses to see how repentance is related to salvation: Acts 3:19, 11:18, 20:21. John the Baptist says this in Luke 3:8-14:
“You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The axe is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
Though people came to him claiming to have a relationship with God (through God's covenant with Abraham), they were filled with trembling at John's words. John goes on to tell them specifically what they ought to do to repent:
“The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same.” … “Don't collect any more than you are required to.”
It is important to know that these are not works. It's not penance as though we can make it up to God with our actions. Because back to Eph 2:8, it really is faith in Jesus that saves us, and not sorrow or guilt. But our attitude and our actions tell it all. Our faith is an open book before God, which he judges by our attitude and actions. And when we sin, we need to loathe our sin (and sinful attitudes) the way God does, and come to him humbly.
“We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, 'I know him,' but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” - 1 John 2:3-6
Ultimately, salvation is not just a free ticket to heaven and eternal life. In fact, abundant eternal life is something that starts the moment you come to faith in Jesus Christ! Fortunately, God is not only concerned with our final destination; he cares about changing us now on this journey. You can not separate the two, just like you can't separate repentance and salvation.
2) Jesus himself uses the harsh language of counting the cost in Luke 14:25-33.
“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.' In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”
God's Word tells us that the journey of a Christian is not easy. For several reasons, people find this truth hard to take. Today, it's not uncommon to hear preachers and churches that glorify the Christian life, and make it sound like it is only pleasant. However, like the message of Paul and Peter in their day, the Gospel of the Bible was not received well most of the time. Preaching the Gospel results in persecution (Matt 5:11), rejection (Luke 4:14-30), and maybe even our martyr (Acts 7).
But what's the big deal about watering down the message a bit to make it more appealing? Is suffering part of the central message anyways?
Emphatically I say, yes. Living out the Bible is like swimming upstream in the prevailing culture of our world, and will certainly result in great suffering for God. The Gospel never promises a healthy life, a popular life, or a money-rich life. It does not say repentance and obedience are easy. Likewise, we need to honor the truth in our message, and in our witness. It's not wrong to show non-Christians that our lives are not easy or picture-perfect as Christians. We don't need to put on a fake face to be an effective witness.
I want us to remember the familiar Great Commission, where Jesus says:
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Notice that we are to make “disciples”. Contrast this to “converts.” Disciples in Jesus' language are people who have counted the cost and decided to follow. Second, notice that Jesus says “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded.” That means we do not only emphasize the things that are easy to say, and eliminate the not-so-pleasant parts. We present God's word as it is.
For further learning, look into what John Piper says about the prosperity Gospel. Though 'prosperity Gospel' usually refers to the popular deception that all God-trusting Christians will get rich in this life, a Christian life without suffering is found on the same principles: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLRue4nwJaA.
[Answered by Mark Cheng, Agape Counselor]
