The Auburn Beacon
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works
and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)

A Website dedicated to the Restoration of New Testament Christianity
 

Home | About Us | Directions | Bulletins | Sermons & Audio | Cross Of Christ Studies | Classes | Student and Parent Resource Page Dangers Facing the "Non-Traditional"


Click Here for the Latest Edition of the Auburn Beacon


Sign up for our Email Newsletter
Type Your email address here
Email Newsletter icon, E-mail Newsletter icon, Email List icon, E-mail List icon

The Beacon is sent weekly


Hear Buddy Payne 
Speak in Auburn, Alabama


All Joy and Peace in Believing 
PowerPoint
Audio

One Thing I Do 
PowerPoint
Audio

We Must Broaden Our Vision
PowerPoint
Audio

Our God He is Alive
(Evidences from DNA)

PowerPoint
Audio

Keeping Our Balance
PowerPoint
Audio



The Final Stages of Israel's Apostasy

Adult Bible Class in Progress - Sunday Morning 9:30 - Auditorium Class
Click For Outlines and Audio
 


Planning to Visit Us?

What to Expect
Current Class Information


Thoughts To Ponder


You will need
the following viewers
to view many of the
files on this site.

 

Click here to
download
Adobe Acrobat Reader

Click here to
download
Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer


 

University church of Christ

 

Assembly Times

 Sunday

   Bible Classes (9:30)

   AM Worship (10:20)

   PM Worship (6:00 pm)

 Wednesday

   Bible Classes
(7:00 PM)

 

Location

449 North Gay Street

Auburn, AL 36830
Click Here for Specific Directions

 

Evangelist

Larry Rouse
1174 Terrace Acres Drive
Auburn, AL 36830

Cell:    (334) 734-2133
Home:
(334) 209-9165

Contact Us

 University
church of Christ

449 North Gay Street

Auburn, AL 36830

 

Or directly e-mail us at:
LarryRouse@aubeacon.com

 

Does Repentance Precede Faith?

by Hiram Hutto

 

A person does not need to have listened to very much preaching - whether on the radio, television, or other places - to know that there are preachers who are telling people, "All you have to do to be saved is 'believe in Jesus'; 'accept Him as your personal Savior’."

Some preachers have even been willing to affirm in public debate that a person is saved from his sins at the point of faith. Naturally this brings up quite a few complications, not the least of which is: If all a person has to do to be saved is to believe, he does not have to repent, or if he is saved at the point of faith he is saved before and without repentance. Not many are willing to say that God will save a sinner whether he repents or not, or God will save the impenitent. After all, it is "Repent or perish" according to 2 Pet. 3:9, and God does "command all men everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30).

Neither Reasonable nor Scriptural

In an effort to justify this obviously unscriptural position, (saved at the point of' faith)--preachers (have resorted to the argument that repentance precedes faith, So, after a sinner repents he believes, and then can he saved at the point of faith!

The idea that repentance precedes faith is not only contrary to scripture but it is also contrary to reason. After all, how could a sinner repent of having sinned against God, when he doesn’t even believe there is a God? Then, too, since sin is the transgression of God's law (1 Jn. 3:4), before a person would repent of having transgressed God's law, he would have to believe that there was a God and that He had a law. He certainly would not repent if he did not believe in God, much less that He had a law that he had violated.

Repentance before faith is also contrary to scripture. Sometimes it is asserted that every time faith and repentance are mentioned together in the Bible, repentance always is mentioned first; repentance always precedes faith. This is just not true. It is true that many times faith and repentance are mentioned together, and sometimes repentance is mentioned first, but not always.

For example, consider Acts 2. Peter had preached about the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. He concluded his sermon by saying, "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ" (2:36). To "know assuredly" is to have the strongest kind of faith. After all, faith is the "assurance of things hoped for" (Heb. 11:1 ASV). Having told them first to have this strong assurance (faith), he, then tells them, "Repent and be baptized..." (Acts 2:35). Here we see faith preceding repentance. The claim that repentance always is mentioned prior to faith in the scriptures is not a true claim.

Even if this were a true claim that repentance is always mentioned prior to faith, it does not necessarily mean that it precedes it in fact. For example, we often say, "Put on your shoes and socks." We certainly do not mean that the shoes go on first and then the socks, do we?

Then, too, consider what Peter told the Jews in Acts 5:30, "The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree." Does this mean that the Jews first "slew" Christ, and then after they had slain him, they later "hanged him on a tree"? Certainly not. But the "slaying" is mentioned before the "hanging", but it certainly does not mean that it occurred in that order. And so it is with faith and repentance. Just because repentance may sometimes be mentioned before faith, it certainly does not mean that they occur in that order.

Passages Where Repentance is Mentioned before Faith

In at least four passages (Matt. 21:32; Mk. 1:15; Acts 20: 21 ; Heb. 6:1) repentance is mentioned first:

"And ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterwards, that ye might believe him" (Matt. 21:32).

"The time is fulfilled, arid the kingdom of God is at hand; repent ye, and believe the gospel" (Mk. 1:15).

"Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ"" (Acts 20:21).

"Not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God" (Heb. 6:1).

While it is true that the word repentance is mentioned in these before the word faith, please notice that in not one of these passages is it repentance and faith toward the same person or thing.

Look at Acts 20:21. It is repentance toward God and faith toward Jesus Christ. In Heb. 6:1, it is repentance from dead works and faith toward God. It also needs to be remembered that in this latter passage as well as Matt. 21:32 and Mk. 1:15, the address is made to people who were Jews; people who already believed in God. He certainly was not telling them to begin to believe in God. When the Bible tells us that "Abraham believed in the Lord" (Gen. 15:6), it certainly does not mean that he then believed in God for the very first time. Before we could conclude that repentance does in fact precede faith, scripture would have to be given that would show that one must repent toward Jesus Christ and then believe in Christ. And also show that that is the way it must be. But such a passage has not been given, nor can it be shown that the sequence must come that way.

The effort to get repentance before faith is an unscriptural effort. Not only because it reverses the proper order, but also because it is usually done to try to refute the Bible's teaching that a penitent believer is saved after he is baptized scripturally and not before. Jesus said, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved" (Mk. 16:16). Let's not only believe that, let it also be properly acted upon.

     

 Other Articles by Hiram Hutto
Is the Faithful Saint Continually Cleansed by the Blood of Christ?
What Saith the Authorities?
Differences in Bible Miracles and Modern Miracles

 

 

Should the Lord's Supper be taken like a meal? May women speak during the Lord's Supper as they would at a common meal at a table?
Click Here to Read and Hear More About this Question

 

 Would you like others to read this article?

                    Please share!

 

 


Student Sunday Night Home Study and Singing

 

 

Our God He Is Alive! (Evidences From DNA by Buddy Payne)
PowerPoint
Audio of Lesson
 

Making God Real to Us by Joshua Carter - Nov. 27, 2011
Outline
Audio of Lesson
Audio of Singing

The College Christian by Harold Carswell - Nov. 6, 2011
Outline
Audio of Lesson (Part 1)
Audio of Lesson (Part 2)
Audio of Singing

My Struggle as a College Student by Kyle Gibson- Oct. 23, 2011
Audio of Lesson
Audio of Singing

When Evolutionist Tell the Truth by David Tant
Outline
PowerPoint
Audio of Lesson
Audio of Singing
 

For Additional Information and Past Audio and Outlines Click Here


Click Here to Hear:

A Friendly Discussion on Mormonism

Held at the University church of Christ -
February 17, 2011


 

Monthly Bible Study in Lagrange
at the Eastside church of Christ in LaGrange, Georgia

Overcoming the Present Apostasy by Larry Rouse

 

Saturday October 9, 2010


9:30 AM
- How do We View the Bible?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

 

Saturday December 11, 2010

9:30 AM - How Do We View the World?

Outline
PowerPoint

 

 


University church of Christ

 

Assembly Times

 Sunday

   Bible Classes (9:30)

   AM Worship (10:20)

   PM Worship (6:00 pm)

 Wednesday

   Bible Classes
(7:00 PM)

 

Location

449 North Gay Street

Auburn, AL 36830

Click Here for Specific Directions



 

Overcoming the Present Apostasy

Sermon Series by Larry Rouse

Piscataway, NJ Nov 20-22, 2009

 

 

Friday Night 7:30

Lesson1 - How Do We View the Bible?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

Saturday Night 7:30

Lesson 2 - How do we View the World?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

Sunday Morning 9:15
Lesson 3 - How do we View God's Order for Leadership?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

Sunday Morning 10:00
Lesson 4 - How Do We View the Local Church?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

Sunday Morning 11:00
Lesson 5 - How Do We View God's Instruction on Fellowship

Outline
Audio

For Additional Information, Audio and Outlines Click Here

 


Recent Bulletins:

The Auburn Beacon - Dec 26, 2010 Edition

The Auburn Beacon - Dec 19, 2010 Edition

The Auburn Beacon - Dec 12, 2010 Edition

The Auburn Beacon - Dec 5, 2010 Edition

The Auburn Beacon - Nov 28, 2010 Edition


Your
Questions Please
!

Do you have a Bible question that you have hesitated to ask?

E-Mail us now at:
larryrouse@aubeacon.com

Visit our question page to submit your question and to read other's questions with Bible answers!

[click here]
 

Our Adult Bible Classes

You may obtain both the current outlines and the audio of past Bible classes from our assemblies.

[click here]

 

     

Email Newsletter icon, E-mail Newsletter icon, Email List icon, E-mail List icon Sign up for our Email Newsletter

The Beacon is sent weekly

 
 
 

 

  © 2012 - University church of Christ - All rights reserved!