Whatever Happened to Repentance?

Rembrandt van Rijn: The Return of the Prodigal Son, public domain.




Joel Kontinen

How long has it been since you heard a sermon on repentance?

Repentance is not a very popular concept nowadays. It is probably one of the tree words many preachers tend to avoid. The other two are sin and hell, which obviously are not politically correct terms either.

When Jesus began His earthly ministry He preached on the necessity of repentance: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel,” Mark 1:15 records Him preaching.

And when He was about to leave this world, He instructed the disciples: “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24: 46–47).

This is exactly what the early disciples did. Peter and John proclaimed: “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19), and Paul had a similar message. On trial before King Agrippa, he said: “I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance" (Acts 26:19–20).

What, actually, is repentance? The Greek word metanoia refers to a change of mind and sorrow for one’s sin. It is not primarily an emotional reaction, although emotions may be involved, but a decision of the will. One makes a decision to discard that which one knows is wrong and then discards it. Or if one finds one is going in the wrong direction, one turns round and chooses the right way.

I would suggest that there are two reasons why preaching on the necessity of repentance is not popular in our day. The first one is Darwinian evolution that basically rejects a literal Fall and the second is humanistic psychology that draws on Darwinism and rejects original sin. These two ideologies permeate every level in society and their impact is also felt in the church, even though Christians might not always realise it.

However, the Bible tells us that God has not changed, and history tells us that man has not changed, so there should be no valid reasons for avoiding one of the most essential concepts of Christian preaching.

The gospel has to do with changing lives. As Paul put it in Romans 1:16: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.”

Even today, preachers should proclaim “the whole counsel of God” since it is the only formula for changing lives.


Scripture verses from the New King James Version (NkJV)

Faith That Moves Mountains

Faith can move mountains.




Joel Kontinen

“Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.” (Mark 11:23).

Faith is one of the key words of the Gospels. It can achieve incredible things. Time and again, Jesus taught about the significance of believing, of having faith.

"Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted,” (Matthew 15:28), He told a Canaanite woman who believed He could and was willing to heal her very sick daughter.

Jesus also praised the great faith of a Roman centurion (Matthew 8:10), who saw Him as the One who had authority over sickness, even at a distance.

In contrast, Jesus often rebuked those who failed to believe. “Men of little faith,” He would say to the disciples once and again when they doubted Him.

It was not just any kind of faith that Jesus meant, but faith in Him. The Letter to the Hebrews gives us a brief definition of faith:

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1, NIV).

Faith is essential:

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Heb. 11:6).

Faith in the Bible as God’s self-revelation made modern science possible. The pioneers of science, for instance Robert Hooke, Sir Isaac Newton and Louis Pasteur, believed that a rational Creator had created a rational universe that obeys natural laws that could be studied.

Some Christians have succeeded in exercising the kind of faith that is not deferred by seemingly impossible hurdles. British evangelist Smith Wigglesworth (1859–1947), who is known as the Apostle of Faith, fits nicely into this category. God used him to touch and heal countless lives all over the world.

Heresy Hunters, Sign Seekers and Rational Readers – The Need for Balance in Our Christian Walk

We should keep our eyes on Jesus and God’s Word. Image courtesy of Andreas Wahra, Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).




Joel Kontinen


Christians are by definition followers of Christ. Or at least we should be. In practice, we tend to form small cliques and often think we have all the answers while the other groups are still groping around if not in the dark, then at least in semi-darkness.

We might distinguish between three major groups in evangelical Christianity: (1) heresy hunters, (2) sign seekers and (3) rational readers. It seems that the borders of these groups do not necessarily follow denominational boundaries.

Heresy hunters strongly believe that they are living in the end times and that the Anti-Christ might appear at any moment. Historically, the earliest members of this group were teachers of the Jewish law who claimed Jesus was possessed by Beelzebub, the prince of demons.

It is certainly true that some preachers have marketed highly questionable doctrines, such as the “Jesus died spiritually” teaching that has no biblical basis whatsoever. The late Kenneth Hagin and his followers also taught that we are little gods. Moreover, some weird manifestations at the fringes of the Pentecostal-Charismatic Movement might suggest that the heresy hunters are definitely needed.

However, here we need discernment. Otherwise we might see heresy where there isn’t any. For instance, some say that speaking in tongues definitely ended in the first century A.D. when the New Testament canon became complete. The argument is based on a single verse in 1 Corinthians 13: “Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.”

Did you notice the time element? I didn’t.

I would say that the same applies to divine healing.

“Slain in the Spirit” or falling down in response to prayer or the laying on of hands is a controversial phenomenon. It occurred in some early revivals but it is also manifested in Hinduism, so we cannot really pass the final judgement in this issue.

Sign seekers are those who believe in a powerful end time revival. They firmly believe that every supernatural thing, no matter how weird it might sound, comes from God. The problem is that uncontrollable laughter, jerking and twitching also occur in Hinduism and new age settings.

Now, heresy hunters will claim that all bizarre manifestations are sure signs that they are of demoniac origin. Another possible explanation would be that they are psychological reactions to expectations in a highly emotional setting.

David Wilkerson, for instance, has said that he does not believe that weird “Toronto Blessing” type noises are manifestations sent by God’s Holy Spirit.

A big problem with the sign seeker approach is that it emphasises glory without the cross. At worst, it results in a bloodless gospel with positive thinking and self-improvement replacing the need for repentance.

We should also remember that Jesus warned of running after signs: “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign!” He told the Pharisees and teachers of the law and then promised them just one sign – His resurrection.

However, on at least three occasions Jesus instructed the disciples to heal the sick and the early church followed this commission literally, with amazing results for the spread of the gospel.

The members of the third group, rational readers, focus on the intellectual aspect of the Bible. They are the Sadducees of our time. The Sadducees did not believe in the supernatural. Unlike the German scholars of the 18th and 19th centuries, the rational readers do profess to believe in the supernatural, but in their quest for harmony between modern science and the Bible they often use naturalistic explanations in their interpretation of the Old Testament. Bernard Ramm was an early advocate of this tendency. Noah’s Flood, he said, was local, and Joshua’s long day was not so long after all.

A major problem with rational readers is that they tend to overestimate the explanatory power of modern science and underestimate the power of the great Creator God, who in the New Testament turned water into wine in an instant and restored Lazarus to life in no time at all.

Another problem is that Christianity loses its life-changing dynamic aspect when its inherent power is explained away. We should, after all, be doers of the Word.

Is there a solution to the problems the Church is facing? I believe there is: a return a Christianity that focuses on and lifts up Jesus Christ and gives Him all the glory for His work as Creator and Redeemer and uses discernment to keep the faith pure from intrusions, regardless of whether they come from western rationalism or eastern mysticism.

Don’t Give Up! – Just Walk Another Half a Mile

The view from the hilltop that we almost missed.





Joel Kontinen

While on a short vacation on the Greek Ionian island of Kephalonia a few years ago, my wife and I often took long walks in the evenings. It usually was much more comfortable to walk when the hot Mediterranean sun was not overhead, scorching us.

We wanted to see some rare historical sights. One evening, as it was getting dark, we had to turn back before reaching the ruins of an ancient temple. Little did we know that our destination was under half a mile away.

A few days later we walked up a steep hill in the opposite direction to see some other ruins. The road had more U-turns than anything else. Once again, we had to turn back before reaching our destination. And this time it was just around the corner.

We were eventually able to see both sights.

Back in Finland, we continued our walks. One evening we decided to find out where a narrow winding road led. However, as it was getting dark, we had to turn back.

A few weeks later we set out earlier. This time we were able to make it. We discovered that on the previous try we had turned back under half a mile from our destination.

So, the same thing happened thrice: three times on three different occasions we had turned back just before reaching our destination.

I believe that God used this experience to teach us something about perseverance, a topic that the Bible has much to say about. Jesus spoke of the need to persevere in prayer – not to give up but to keep on asking and praying until we get an answer.

Once, when Jesus was teaching about prayer,

“He said to them, ‘Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs. ” (Luke 11: 5-8)

On another occasion the Lord tested the faith of a Gentile lady whose daughter was seriously sick:

“From there He arose and went to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And He entered a house and wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hidden. For a woman whose young daughter had an unclean spirit heard about Him, and she came and fell at His feet. The woman was a Greek, a Syro-Phoenician by birth, and she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter. But Jesus said to her, ‘Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.’ And she answered and said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children’s crumbs.’ Then He said to her, ‘For this saying go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter.’ And when she had come to her house, she found the demon gone out, and her daughter lying on the bed.” (Mark 7:24-30)

I believe that sometimes the Lord challenges us to walk another half a mile until we reach our destination, get what we ask, putting our trust entirely in Him. We should not forget that He is more than willing to help us.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

What Makes Christianity Special?

Marco Palmezzano: Crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth (ca. 1490), public domain.



Joel Kontinen


We seem to have a universal need for searching for answers to life’s ultimate questions.

Christianity gives us answers to the big issues humanity is facing, such as why there is so much suffering in the world and what is man’s ultimate destiny.

It shows why we differ from all other living beings. Created in God’s image, we are “fearfully and wonderfully made,” as Psalm 139:14 puts it. Our bodies are full of amazing molecular machines that display our Creator’s handiwork and cannot be explained away by evolution.

Other religions and humanistic ideologies fail to give us satisfactory answers.

Christianity also differs from all other religions that we know of in another very pertinent way.

Non-Christian religions focus on what we should do to please God. This often involves various kinds of rituals, such as sacrifices, observing holy days and perhaps fasting.

In contrast, Christianity has to do with trust. We trust that God has already done everything that is necessary for our salvation.

Salvation is necessary because we are all tainted with the sin nature that we inherited from our earliest ancestors. Their disobedience brought death and suffering into the world.

This shows why there is so much bloodshed and suffering in the world. Only the Judeo-Christian worldview can explain why things all too often go awry.

All we need to do is to believe that Jesus Christ came to earth to atone for our sins. He was willing to die on a wooden cross for our sake.

After seeing what God had done, the jailer at Philippi asked the apostles Paul and Silas what he should do. They replied: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).

But God has more in store for us. We are not meant to be armchair believers but true disciples who want to share the good news of salvation to a world that desperately needs hope.

Scripture quotations from the New King James Version (NKJV).

Five Conspiracy Theories That Attempt to Undermine Christianity

The tomb is still empty. Image courtesy of Phillip Benshmuel, Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).



Joel Kontinen

Conspiracy theories attract a lot of attention. Many people are suspicious of the official version of what is happening in our time, and they might believe that they are not being told the whole truth.

This might not be a big surprise, as the 20th century saw a huge rise in the use of Orwellian language. For instance, we learnt of many self-styled people's democracies that were anything but democracies and certainly not governed by the people but were in effect Marxist-Leninist oligarchies that used words in a sense that was diametrically opposite of what we might have expected.

And politics is not the only sphere in which words don’t always mean what we would assume.

But conspiracy theories are not recent inventions. The earliest theories saw daylight at least two thousand years ago, if not earlier. The first Christians already had to grapple with views that sought to undermine their faith in their Redeemer.

The following five conspiracy theories are basically very old but we still encounter them, especially on Internet forums:

#1 Christ did not rise from the dead

Almost from the beginning of His ministry, detractors claimed that Jesus was not what He claimed to be. They questioned His credentials and refused to believe in Him. This culminated in His death and resurrection that they doubted, claiming instead that His disciples had stolen the body.

This rumour probably had a long life, as the Apostle Paul had to address it in his first letter to the Corinthians that he penned some two decades after the resurrection, pointing out that many eyewitnesses to the risen Christ were still alive.

#2 Jesus predicted the coming of the Islamic prophet Muhammed

Teaching His disciples in John 14 and 16, Jesus prophesied the coming of the Counsellor, by which He meant the Holy Spirit. The Greek word is paracleitos, but some Muslim scholars suggest it is a corruption of periplutos, or ‘the one worthy of praise,’ whom they assume to be the prophet Muhammed.

We should keep in mind that the earliest New Testament manuscripts are over 500 years older than the Qur’an and without exception all of them use the word paracleitos. There is no way this could be understood as referring to Muhammed.

#3 Christianity borrowed major concepts such as the Trinity from other religions

This is a favourite of Bible-sceptics, but it is based on a lack of knowledge. While the Bible clearly says that God is one, it also says that He sent His Son to redeem mankind from its sin. Moreover, the New Testament calls Jesus Lord (Kyrios), the word only used of God in early Christianity, and even God (in John 20:28, for instance).

The Holy Spirit is presented as a person, not an impersonal force, as some groups might believe.

#4 The Emperor Constantine put the New Testament together

There is no truth behind this claim. The early church leaders had very strict criteria for choosing books into the New Testament. For instance, they had to be written by the apostles or by people close to them and be factually correct and theologically sound. The church councils merely confirmed the books that already bore the hallmarks of Scripture.

#5 Jesus was not born of a virgin

Some sceptics would once again see the influence of Middle Eastern religions in the concept of the virgin birth, but the idea can already be found in the Protevangelium in Genesis 3:15, which names the seed of the woman (and not of a man, as we might have thought). Isaiah 7:14, written 700 years before Christ, mentions that a virgin shall give birth to a son. While the Hebrew word almah can also refer to a young woman, it does not nullify the Gospels’ accounts of Jesus’ virgin birth.

The Importance of Grace and Love in Speaking the Truth

Image courtesy of Dan Lietha, Answers in Genesis.

Joel Kontinen

The Bible speaks a lot about the truth. It also speaks about something that we might all too easily forget or dismiss. It is a thing called love.

As the Apostle Paul writes in 1st Corinthians 13: “f I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing…now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

Without faith we cannot approach God. And without love we are nothing.

Another important thing to remember is grace without which we could not be saved. The Apostle John writes: “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Scripture verses from the NIV.

“God Was Never on a Cross as the Spirit Cannot Be Killed”, Sceptic Claims

The cross is a source of hope.

Joel Kontinen

Norma Holt is an Australian author who believes that at an early stage, Christianity became corrupted and that Emperor Constantine established the Roman Catholic Church in AD 325.

In a recent article, she claims:

“God was never on a cross and everyone who ever lived is now back in their bodies because of reincarnation. That is why there is massive overpopulation. This was promised in Daniel 12:13 and elsewhere in the Old Testament. The Spirit is separating its people from the idols and false gods and there is a great falling away from traditional religions as it happens.”

Ms. Holt asserts that a spirit (that she always writes with a capital S) disclosed the conspiracy led by Constantine in the early church. She sees her mission as urging people to return to real Christianity.

I’m a bit sceptical about this “spirit”.

Holt believes that Christianity is not as unique as the followers of Christ assume but has actually borrowed many of its elements from pre-Christian religions and ideologies.

How credible is this? Not credible at all. It reminds me of fact-free Darwinian storytelling. Christ’s empty tomb caused sceptics to invent a conspiracy theory, and since then sceptics have come up with a number of stories that attempt to explain why Jesus could not have risen from the dead.

There was no time for legends to be concocted since the Apostle Paul wrote his first letters within 20 years after the resurrection. All the evidence suggests strongly that the gospels were eyewitness accounts of the events in Jesus’ life.

Early historians tend to agree.

What about the claim that a spirit cannot be killed? Jesus was both God and man. As a human being, He could and did die, but as God He was immortal. Ms. Holt has ignored this very pertinent distinction.

Source:

Holt, Norma. 2014. God Was Never on a Cross As The Spirit Cannot Be Killed. Ezine articles.