Calling for a Response

January 26

(Acts 2:38 NIV) "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.” 

(Matthew 3:1-6 NIV) "In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea {2} and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." {3} This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'" {4} John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. {5} People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. {6} Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River."

(Acts 26:20 NIV) "First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds."

The gospel always calls for a response. When Peter preached the gospel, people asked what they could do. He said, “Repent and be baptized.” Those who came to hear John the Baptist were called to repent and be baptized. Paul’s preaching called for repentance and a response in keeping with repentance. Jesus called people to repent and to follow Him. Repentance demands a change of heart and a change of direction. Baptism is the genuine response of a repentant heart. It’s not something that saves people -- it’s something that saved people do. It’s an act of obedience for those who declare Jesus both Lord and Christ, and who ask Him to wash away their sin. Peter promised that if the people responded to God, God would respond to them and send them the Holy Spirit. The gospel always calls for a response -- and if you respond to God, He will respond to you. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day