True Repentance
Will Lead to Salvation

while back ago, I had heard a very disturbing statistic. The statistic was that 50% of all newborn Christians were dropping out of their walks with the Lord within the very first year after they had just been saved.

Getting saved and being truly born again by accepting Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior has to be the greatest experience any person can have this side of heaven, because with the gift of eternal salvation comes forgiveness of all of our sins and entrance into heaven when we die and cross over. We also receive the Holy Spirit, who will come and live on the inside of us in our human spirits at the moment of our salvation with the Lord.

There thus can be no question that with all of these benefits and blessings, that the gift of eternal salvation through Jesus Christ has to be the greatest experience any of us can have down here on this earth. So if that is really the case – then how can you logically explain such a disturbing statistic? How can this many newborns be dropping out of this most incredible experience within the first year or two after initially getting saved?

Were they ever really saved in the first place? If so, have they just lost their salvation? Obviously only God the Father will know all of the answers for each one of these newborns who have dropped out of their walks with Him in such a quick period of time. But this statistic is telling us that there might be something wrong with some of these salvation experiences. A 50% dropout rate is simply too high of a number for something that is so powerful to be so easily discarded.

I believe one of the main reasons these salvation experiences may not be sticking is due to something that is occurring in the actual salvation experience itself. The following Scripture verses I will list below are giving us a major clue as to what that something may be.

If you look very closely at the wording of the Scripture verses I will list below, and then examine some of the ways in which some of these newborns are being saved – you will quickly discover that there may be a missing ingredient in some of their salvation experiences. As a result of this one missing ingredient, some of these people are either not truly getting saved in the first place or if they are, they are quickly falling away from it in a very short period of time as a result of missing this one key ingredient.

This one, key, missing ingredient may be the word “repentance.” Repentance means that you have a full realization of what a sinner you truly are, that you are willing to accept that Jesus’ death on the cross will save you from your sins, and that you will then be willing to make every effort to turn from those sins and start living a new life in the Lord.

I think some of these so called salvation experiences are people getting too caught up in the moment at their churches with some of their friends, and they are going up for the altar calls with no idea of what they are really doing.

There is no true repentance, sorrow, or realization of their sinful states. As a result, they quickly fall out of it after a year or two because they did not have full realization as to why they needed to get saved in the first place.

I believe that what really happens in a true conversion experience is that the Holy Spirit will move in on that person and give them full realization and conviction of what sinners they really are – and that only Jesus and His death on the cross will save them from their sins. If you have full realization and full understanding of that when you go up to get saved – then there is no way you can possibly throw this experience away a year or two later after the initial excitement of the experience wears off.

Now here are some key verses from Scripture that will tell us that a true repentance from the heart is one of the main ingredients that is really needed for a true salvation experience to occur with the Lord.

1. True Repentance Will Lead to Salvation

This first verse will hit the nail right on the head. Here it is:

“For godly sorrow produces repentance to salvation … (2 Corinthians 7:10)  

Notice two things. The word “repentance” is linked to the word “salvation” – “repentance to salvation.” In other words, you cannot get truly saved in the Lord unless you are first willing to repent.

To repent means that you are willing to turn from the sins you have been living in. It means to have a change of heart and a change of mind. However, you cannot be willing to turn from the sins you have been living in unless you have full realization that these are sins in the first place and that you are a sinner in need of a Savior!

If you think some of your sins are not really sins – then you will see no need to receive any forgiveness for your sins through Jesus and His death on the cross. This is why the above verse is directly linking the word “repentance” to the word “salvation.”

Then notice that this verse starts out with the words “For godly sorrow.” This godly sorrow will be what will actually cause this repentance to occur in the first place. You will start to experience a godly sorrow once the Holy Spirit moves in on you to start the conviction process and illuminate your mind of your sinful state and nature.

This is why the word “godly” precedes the word “sorrow.” This sorrow will be coming direct from God the Father through the Holy Spirit to you so as to help make you realize that you are truly a sinner in need of a Savior! When that really happens, you will be feeling a sorrow, and for some, a very deep and intense sorrow once you fully realize the depth to which we are all sinners and that we are all in need of God’s grace and mercy to save us.

When this godly sorrow starts to come in on you, it will eventually lead you to being able to admit that you are a sinner, and that you will then need to turn from the sinful life that you have been living in order to be able to receive God’s grace and mercy through His Son and His death on the cross. For some, all of this can literally occur in a matter of minutes, and they thus can get saved very quickly in a church service or through another Christian who may be witnessing to them.

However, for some others, this experience may take a bit longer. Some people will literally wrestle with God for years before they finally break and are willing to get saved. In either case, some kind of repentance has to be experienced for the person to really have a true conversion experience with the Lord.

2. God Commands All to Repent to Be Able to Receive Eternal Salvation Through Jesus

In these next 4 verses, God and Jesus are literally “commanding” that all repent before they can actually be saved and converted. Here they are:

1. “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent. ” (Acts 17:30)
    
2. “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.” (Acts 3:19)
    
3. “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. ” (Luke 13:5)
    
4. “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance. ” (Mark 2:17)

The first verse is now telling us that God is commanding everyone to repent. The second verse is once more tying in the word “repent” with the word “converted.” The third verse is telling us that God is not giving us any other options. Either we be willing to repent – or we will perish!

Also notice that the words “repent” or “repentance” is used in every one of the above verses – which is once again implying that this is a condition that must be present when someone is getting saved and converted.

3. The Goodness of God Will Lead to Repentance

The very first verse mentioned above tells us that a “godly sorrow” will help produce the actual repentance that is needed to lead us into being able to get saved with the Lord. This next verse then goes one step further and tells us that the “goodness of God” will actually lead to this repentance. Here it is:

“… the goodness of God leads you to repentance.” (Romans 2:4)  

On one end, God is causing a godly sorrow to set in on us so we can see what sinners we really are. However, at the same time that He is producing this sorrow to help show us what sinners we really are, He is also showing us His goodness. He is showing us that there is a way of escape out of our sinful states and natures – and that way of escape is through the Blood that His Son Jesus has personally shed on the cross for each one of us.

Once a person really realizes how good, loving, and merciful God and Jesus really are in making a way for them to be able to be rescued out of this predicament – they are then more than willing to accept Jesus and what His death on the cross means for them. That is why this verse specifically states that it is the “goodness of God” that will lead one to actually want to repent and then accept Jesus as his personal Lord and Savior.

Again, when you combine the godly sorrow that God will produce to help start the conviction and repentance process to occur within each individual, and then top it off with the revelation that it is the goodness of God that will actually save them – there is simply no way one can walk away from such a powerful encounter with the Lord within the first year or two after they had initially been saved.

This fact is telling me that some of these people may not be going through a proper repentance and conviction process with the Holy Spirit, and thus their salvation experiences may be a bit suspect.

All of the above Scripture verses are tying in the word “repentance” with getting saved and converted. I believe God is giving all of us a major clue in the way that He has all of these Scripture verses worded in that a repentant heart is really needed before one can really get saved through the Blood of His Son Jesus.

I really have to wonder if this lack of a repentant heart may be one of the missing ingredients in some of these people’s salvation experiences, and this is why they are so easily able to walk away from it after the first year or two after initially getting saved.

Just interesting food for thought.

-Mike

Related posts:

1. Bible Basics Bible Basics he articles in this section will be dealing with all of the basic fundamentals of the Christian faith, covering everything from the basics of our eternal salvation through...

Comments

1. Kevin says:

   November 14, 2011 at 9:43 am

   Everything that was read by me on these articles are of true help. Especially the ones on the end of the world and God’s wrath on those who have not known God’s grace. About the article on true repentence. I was saved just last week and it was good for one day and it just left me as soon as hit me.
2. Eve says:

   November 20, 2011 at 3:33 pm

   I am a victim of those that were saved who were called at the end of the service to accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior in order to be saved without knowing the word salvation means in a deeper understanding. I came from a catholic background and so the Bible is never taught to us deeply in the first place. All I know is that I am saved and I am a born again Christian. And so I am one of those that walk away by not following through on what was given to me. It was only by reading all the things you have written in your web sites that everything started to be clear to me like it became an enlightening experience I would say in my walk with the Lord. It seems all of a sudden the missing pieces in my mind came to me in one place like a jigsaw puzzle. I have so many, many questions that were left unanswered but were answered in your website. You are really a God sent from heaven and as a result your Mansion is waiting for you in heaven. I thank you for all the stuff I learned and I am still learning from this site. It is really a blessing in my life that no wealth on earth can compare it.
3. WAYNE HILLIARD says:

   December 20, 2011 at 5:58 am

   THE REASON THAT SO MANY PEOPLE ARE DROPPING OUT IS BECAUSE THEY WERE NEVER CHILDREN OF GOD IN THE FIRST PLACE ,,,THERE ARE ONLY TWO KINDS OF PEOPLE WALKING THIS EARTH,THE CHILDREN OF GOD AND THE CHILDREN OF satan THE CHILDREN OF GOD BEING FEW AND THE CHILD OF satan BEING MULTITUDES,,THERE IS NO PURGATORY !!!! ..
4. WAYNE HILLIARD says:

   December 20, 2011 at 6:24 am

   LETS TALK ABOUT JESUS CHRIST AND THE CROSS FOR A MOMENT,NOW AS YOU KNOW EVERY ONE LOOKS UP TO THE CROSS THEN WHY IS EVIL FLOURISHING .BECAUSE THE CROSS IS A SNAKE IN DISGUISE .
5. Casey McDonald says:

   January 26, 2012 at 6:45 pm

   I want to ask the moderators to please remove my previouse post and leave this one there were a lot of mistakes left behind by the spell check for some reason or other. Yes, I corrected the mistakes and it makes for a better read and understanding. Sorry about that and would appreciate your help with this matter. Thanks and God Bless
   “BECAUSE THE CROSS IS A SNAKE IN DISGUISE.”

   Wayne, I know everyone has their own right to believe what they please but, I beg to differ from what you are saying in this statement.
   In order to Repent it had to be through the shed blood of Jesus Christ that allowed all of us the privilege. Yes, He shed blood when the Soldiers whipped Him with cat of 9 tails but. the Scripture plainly tells us it was His Blood He shed upon the Cross that saves us but, also He had to be made mockery and in open shame and by Him being Crucified on the Cross was the only means by which that could be accomplished.

   http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l18/Shawn0424/Jesus_On_Cross.jpg Click on this Link and it will take you to a Picture that shows just His upper torso while on the Cross it comes as close to showing the humiliation, shame and agony while He was on the Cross. I do not believe anyone who asks Jesus to come into their lives cannot help but to picture in their minds the price that Jesus Christ had to pay while He was on that Cross. By looking upon Him on the Cross you see just how much God LOVED YOU and SENT His Only Begotten Son so that You and I could have Life and have it more Abundantly.

   So you see or at least I hope you see how important the Cross is/was to our Salvation. This Brother has spelled it out very plainly why people have missed the mark it all has to do with COMPLETE REPENTANCE that is the reason for all these individuals not being led to real conversion. That word is also being misunderstood they are not being completely converted because of their lack of REPENTANCE. Not their spending too much time at the Cross, we all need to spend more time at the Foot of The Cross in order for all of us to get a real picture of what Jesus Christ had to endure. Thank You God for opening my heart up to the ingredients for my Salvation for I was on a road to complete annihilation of my soul because of the lack of KNOWLEDGE, UNDERSTANDING and REPENTANCE. It is the responsibility of those whom are teaching the Word to the lost who are not doing it thoroughly enough to point the way to the Cross. My Brother it all begins at the Cross and it ends at the Cross.

   I hope I have not caused anybody to misunderstand or misguided from what I posted. God Bless! I will be Praying for whom ever may post on this site that are seeking answers for life and understanding.
6. Casey McDonald says:

   January 31, 2012 at 1:31 am

   Michael Bradley,
   I have a question to ask of you. I am a practicing Christian which I have found out just over this last year with help from my Pastor. I agree here with you so much so that this article is one I would like to post onto my Blog in it’s entirity if at all possible. I am working out my Salvation with The Lord throught the Power of The Holy Spirit. I thought I was saved back in 1977 was Baptized and I felt after that experiance, it was like nothing I have ever felt before in my life, but one thing was missing, I had not repented of my sin that has had me bound ever since my Childhood.

   It has cost me my marriage of 36 years, I have since had a little boy my wife had a little girl before we met and I have since adopted her also. By the way, my little boy was born when I was 56 years old after being told back in early 1980′s I was sterile and could not have any Children. Well as you can see I can have Children but, not going farther than what we now have. He is 6 years old now and the girl is 11 I love my Children and my wife more than anything on earth.

   This post has helped me to answer many questions I had over the last 9 years toward my Salvation that if I were saved then why have I sinned against God and his commandments so many times over and over? I found my answer through much fighting, wrestling, fasting and Praying with God and to God through the Holy Spirit to open my eyes that I may see what I needed to do to correct my huge problem. By reading Hebrews 6:1-14 and 1 John 1st ,2nd and 3rd chapters has allowed me to see where I stood with the Lord.

   I am glad God lead me to my Pastor who has helped me tremendously over this period of time. I am asking if I could may I use this article including your Copyright of Michael Bradley and the info below?

   Scripture taken from New King James Version.
   Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
   Used by permission. All rights reserved.
   Copyright © 2005-2011 by Michael Bradley.

   I feel through my Blog with other material along with my testamony could and will help reach many more for Christ before it is to late. There are thousands more like myself had what I call a fill good Baptizing and thought I was Saved Salvation and there is no such thing. You see I was an Ordained Music Minister for 11 years then my former wife and got divorced and that ended that. I thought I was saved enough that all I had to do was confess my sins and make them public and that was that. I found out in a very short while that was not so. I found out the hard way I was not saved and I am going Sunday Morning I hope to make it public with my testamony of my life with hopes that the Church will understand what I am going through with all this heavy weight on my shoulders can and will be lifted finaly after all those years of struggeling to make it through each day living a lie. With my Pastors help I will make it he works with me 1 day a week and checks up on me to make sure I am still on the road to recovery. I am constantly in the Word and Praying. God is so wonderful and merciful and very pateint with me. Thank you for your help if it can be worked out. If not I understand and I will be Praying continuly.

   God Bless
   Casey McDonald
7. Sara Lenau says:

   February 17, 2012 at 8:57 pm

   This was a really great article. Thank you for sharing it with us.
   May all the praise go to God for this great article.
   This is something that I have added to my favorites.
8. Karen Farrington says:

   April 8, 2012 at 6:05 pm

   I want to thank you for taking the time to publish this article that helped so many people including me, I just want to say that the name of the heavenly Father is Yahweh and the name of his son is Yahshua, remember he said that his son is coming in his name thus YAH-WEH the father and YAH-SHUA his son,it is so amazing how he preserved his name in a single word and that word is the same in every language, HALLELUYAH, Hallel-Praise LU-You YAH-Yahweh, satan was trying to keep that from the world but now it is out, another thing Yahshua did not die on a cross he died on a tree, with his hands pointing upward to heaven, the bible said cursed is anyone who hang on a tree, Galatians 3 vs:13 and Deuteronomy, 21.vs:23 thats is why the scriptures said the vail was rent from the top to the bottom when Yahshua died.