Churches often forgo the topic of repentance in lieu of more popular topics, such as love and peace. But repentance is the singularly vital topic in the church. Without repentance, there is no love, peace, sanctification, glorification, or any other aspects of Christianity, because we would still be objects of wrath.
It is only through repentance, that Christians are completely forgiven – no longer at enmity with God and able therefore to call God, “Abba, Father.”
How do we know we are forgiven by repentance of sins? The Scripture says so. What is written is what God says (v.4) so we know that there is no discrepancy between God’s Word and what God says. What was written in the Book is everlasting, just like God. In these verses, Luke quotes from the Book of Isaiah, which was written hundreds of years before by the namesake prophet and shows that what was written is valid and effective by showing the fulfilment of the prophecy. Because God’s Word will remain forever (Mt 24:34-35), we can be sure that if Scriptures says that we’ll be forgiven by repentance, then repentance is indeed the only way of receiving forgiveness. Unlike emotions, the Word is not susceptible to change, and, therefore is the final authority in the matter of truth, including repentance. The authority of Scripture is seen in the way God works in history through promises and prophecies.
In fact, there are more than 400 prophecies in the Bible that have already been fulfilled by the first coming of our Messiah Jesus. These are not coincidences – his prophecies are fulfilled because God is the Author of all History. One can even state that the prophecies that are written in the Scriptures are prophesied by God himself. Take Isaiah 40, when it reads that there is “a voice of one calling, ‘In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord.’” Whose voice is it? It is that of John the Baptist. He was a herald, a front-runner that went before Jesus. He was preparing the way before the King’s arrival, warning people to prepare themselves before His coming. What is the way of the King? It is the Highway of Holiness (Is 35:8).
What is repentance?
It begins with an understanding of our own depraved hearts. Verse 5 depicts the condition of our hearts before repentance, like ravines needing to be filled. According to the 1828 Webster’s Dictionary, a ravine is “a long deep hollow worn by a stream or torrent of water; hence, any long deep hollow or pass through mountains.” Our hearts can only be filled with the satisfaction of salvation, carried out through repentance. Before repentance, our hearts are desperately sick and deceitful (Jer 17:9), totally depraved. Total depravity, according to William G.T. Shedd, is the “entire absence of holiness, not the highest intensity of sin.” We are spiritually dead, with ravines that need to be filled.
True repentance, then, is not just about emotional response – remorse, guilt – but about the heart change that occurs by reflecting on our ideas, our choices, and actions against God’s standards. In repentance, we are forgiven, freed from sin, found without debt, and experiencing the mercy and grace of God. Our hearts must be filled with the Holy Spirit. We must be filled with the Holy Spirit in all circumstances, even through persecutions. This is not possible naturally, but supernaturally; we are completely healed when our ravines are filled with the Spirit. Only God satisfies the thirsty soul, filling it with that which is good (Ps 107:9). We are instructed to “Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand” (Mt 4:17). Share with others how you have been forgiven through repentance. If you repent, you will be saved, you will be satisfied, and your spiritual ravine will be filled.
BIBLE COMMUNITY CHURCH 
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