In the Old Testament the word, niham, translated “metanoeo” in the Greek, becomes “repent” in English. It typically describes an action by God (e.g. God repented or relented and did not destroy his disobedient children). New Testament usage of metanoeo or variations of it refers to actions by humankind. The first part, “meta,” is a prefix meaning change. The second part “noeo,” describes how one perceives and responds to reality; what they see. Consequently, the compound word describes change and worldview. It means: ’to think differently after’ or to “perceive afterwards.” In repenting, a person literally changes direction. He or she turns around and adopts a new worldview. They stop following the patterns of the world and strive to be like Jesus. True repentance is observable. Jesus said you can tell if a person has truly repented by watching what they do, if they, “Produce fruit in keeping with repentance” ( Matthew 3:8 | NIV). Observable actions demonstrate transformation. We are no longer who we were and it shows. 

Repentance is simply turning from the world’s darkness and toward the light of Jesus. If you are a visual learner, here is a simple example to assist in understanding it that I adapted from the metanoia.org website. Imagine you are standing in a circle of people in a dark room, facing away from the center. There is a light source in the middle of the circle. Everyone is facing it but you. You can’t see anyone else. All you can see is your indistinct shadow on the wall. But, if you turn around, you can see the light and the faces of the others in the circle. Compared to your shadow, you see them clearly. Jesus is the light. We can only really see him and others by turning away from the darkness and toward him. The Holy Spirit gives us 2020 spiritual vision. It means thinking differently about everything and everyone. We become more observant and acutely aware of what we say, feel and do, especially as it relates to others. True Jesus-followers measure themselves only against Christ’s words and actions.

The first beatitude is foundational to coming to God through Jesus. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3 | NIV). Jesus is concerned with the spiritual condition of those who follow him; specifically that they recognize how spiritually poor they really are. It is only when they realize their spiritual tank is empty that they are ready to have it filled by the Holy Spirit. The infilling of the Holy Spirit must be preceded by an awareness they are separated from God and become overwhelmed by a conviction that something within them must change. But that compels them to realize they can’t do it without help.

The second beatitude describes the proper response and reward for genuine repentance. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4 | NIV). In his book Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones viewed Christ’s reference to mourning from an individual, sinner’s perspective. “Those who are going to be converted and wish to be truly happy and blessed are those who first of all mourn. Conviction is an essential preliminary to true conversion.” He further asserted that the Christian mourns for his or her sins and the sins of others, along with the damage sin introduced into the world.  True repentance carries with it godly sorrow and the manifestation of that sorrow is the mourning for which Jesus promises comfort. “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death” (2 Corinthians 7:10 | NIV).

Repentance and belief are inextricably linked. Repentance is not feeling bad or guilty because you got caught doing something that God doesn’t like. It is a recognition that you are eternally separated from God. Belief is necessary for God to dispense his grace by forgiving your sins. Belief exercised by faith saves us. “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1 | NIV). Jesus said, “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark 1:15 | NIV) The heart of the good news of the gospel is, even though you cannot restore your relationship with God, Jesus has already done it for you.“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 | NIV). We are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9) | NIV). 

What does it mean to be born again? The word theologians use for “born again” is regeneration. It describes renewal, restoration or regrowth and occurs in both the natural and spiritual worlds. Cells in the bodies of living things regularly die and are replaced through the process biologists call regeneration. Death gives way to new life. Jesus said a spiritual rebirth was necessary to enter the Kingdom of God. Just as we had no say in our natural birth, we have no control over our rebirth. “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:44 | NIV). Regeneration results from placing faith in Jesus as both lord and savior in response to the Holy Spirit’s prompting. It means dying to self to live for Christ. Theologically speaking, regeneration or rebirth justifies the believer in God’s sight. It saves him from sin’s penalty. The proof of regeneration is receipt of the Holy Spirit. And the proof of the Holy Spirit is striving to be like Jesus by living a life that glorifies God.

We are all born into a natural, sinful world. In the natural world we make our own choices and follow the course we decide. Some people believe that life is short and all that matters is “looking out for number one.” Such people are godless and self-seeking. But most of us, on the other hand, try to be good people who do mostly good things. And while that works pretty well, there is something inside us that longs for a connection to something greater than ourselves. There is always a sense there is more. Nothing we try or buy seems to satisfy. The gospel message demonstrates we can never be good enough for God on our own. It also makes us aware of how we can satisfy that longing by ultimately making that connection and gaining a restored relationship with God. A relationship with God is only possible through regeneration. 

The gospel is the door that allows us to move from being a natural being inhabiting a material world to one who sees the world from a radically different spiritual perspective. “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned”(1Corinthians 2:14 | NIV). No matter what happens around us, we have confidence that everything is going to work out exactly as God intends. We no longer have to worry about tomorrow. Knowing God has our backs allows us to put others before ourselves. What God wants, we want. “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2 | NIV). No, it isn’t looking through “rose-colored glasses.” Everything around us likely remains the same. We are totally different. Our priorities and concerns are no longer self-defined. We are, indeed, a new creation. “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20 | ESV). We have been born again!  

If you are wondering how you can be born again you are in good company. Nicodemus, a Pharisee and member of the Jewish ruling council secretly visited Jesus one night. He didn’t ask the question directly, but apparently Jesus inferred that to be the reason for his visit. “Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again’” (John 3:3 | NIV). This was the first time “born again” appeared in Scripture. Nicodemus stated the obvious regarding the physical impossibility of an adult being naturally reborn. Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (John 3:5-6 | NIV). After Christ’s resurrection and ascension, the apostle Peter put flesh on those bones. He was asked a similar question after he preached his first sermon. His response, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38 | NIV).

Regeneration is only the beginning of a walk of faith. It only places our feet on the pathway of sanctification–striving to be like Jesus. Through the Spirit’s leading, Christ’s disciples are empowered to live lives that honor God by emulating Jesus as they expand God’s kingdom on earth. It is common for people to say that they “made a profession of faith,” “accepted Jesus,” or “gave their life to Jesus.” All of those phrases essentially mean the same thing as regeneration or born again. But that is only if the person went beyond simply accepting Jesus as a fact of history and considering him to be a great teacher and role model. It even means more than them believing he died on the cross for their sins and those of everyone else in the world. It must also mean that they have turned away from sinful behavior and with their whole heart are trusting in Jesus as both their personal savior and lord. Accepting him as savior is easier than making him lord over every aspect of their life. But, unless that happens, they have been still born, not reborn.

Redemption and ransom are synonyms. The words are typically used to describe paying a price to release someone from slavery, bondage or captivity. It is the currency of atonement. In the New Testament the word redemption is used metaphorically to represent God’s gracious deliverance from the bondage of sin by an act of divine power reflecting both his justice and love. Redemption is the means by which humankind is saved from death row, specifically by payment of a ransom. It is a metaphor for what Jesus did on the cross. He “did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mathew 20:28 | NIV). He paid a ransom with his life to redeem or release us from Satan’s bondage of sin. Let the redeemed of the LORD tell their story– those he redeemed from the hand of the foe . . .” (Psalm 107:2 | NIV).

The word first appears in the Book of Exodus. Israel had been in bondage in Egypt for 430 years before Moses led them to freedom. It was the final plague that caused Pharaoh to allow them to leave. His heart was hardened until God killed the firstborn male human and animal in every home that did not have sacrificial lamb’s blood on the doorpost. (Exodus 12) God’s people had essentially moved from harsh Egyptian bondage into his loving bondage. As the price for freedom he required them to redeem their firstborn sons with a lamb. (Exodus 13:13) The life of a lamb was exchanged for the life of the firstborn male child. Redemption in Christianity reflects that historical practice. Jesus is the “Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world”(Revelation 13: 8 | NIV). In the Old Testament, it was a father who was required to redeem a firstborn son. An animal sacrifice was the quid pro quo; one life for another. The gospel message is a reminder that people must be redeemed from bondage. What is different is the one paying the ransom changed when Jesus took on human form.

There is no money or animal involved in the New Testament redemption transaction. Yet it still involves freeing people from slavery. God, the father, is paying the price to free sinners from bondage and he uses his firstborn son to do it. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people” (1 Timothy 2:5-6 | NIV). Like those freed from Egypt, sinners who have received God’s emancipation become his slaves. “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life” (Romans 6:22 | NIV) The only way to really comprehend redemption is through the metaphor of slavey. We are born into sin slavery and the only way for us to be free is for a ransom to be paid. “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin” (John 8:34 | NIV). When we place our absolute trust in Jesus for our salvation, we are set free, yet we remain in slavery. “You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness” (Romans 6:18 | NIV). And it is that righteousness that reconciles us to a righteous God and guarantees the reward of the righteous. Once free, we do well to heed the apostle Paul’s warning, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1 | NIV).