Repent and Believe

22/1/2021

A Reflection on the Gospel for January 24th, 2021:
Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Mark
1.14-20

After John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.”

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea — for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Come follow me and I will make you fishers of people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him.

As Jesus went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

Pause. Pray.

And then read more...

In the Gospel reading for the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jesus shares the Good News in Galilee and calls His first disciples: Simon, Andrew, James, and John. These four men each respond immediately to Christ’s call to become “fishers of men”, leaving their source of livelihood, their families, and everything familiar to them to follow Him.

My first response to their bold abandonment is awe and wonder, and then a tinge of fear takes over as I realize that, somehow, I am also called to respond to Jesus in this way. If I am not careful, I can get stuck and dwell on the question, “What will discipleship cost me?”. When I do this, I fail to see the beautiful gift Christ freely offers — a relationship of life-giving love, joy, and restoration. It is free, in the sense that I cannot earn it, and although the self-denial and accompaniment (all the way to the Cross) demands everything, somehow, He promises I will lose nothing.


I know this in my heart, I understand this by faith, but it is so, so hard to live out. Yet, Jesus already offers the first few steps on the journey of discipleship: “repent and believe”.


Repentance, or metanoia in the original Greek, literally means “a change of mind”; it consists of two movements of the heart: away from sin, and towards God. After this 180 degree turn, our heart is properly oriented and can receive the gift of faith. To believe, pisteuō in Greek, means “to entrust”, and so now the act we are invited to, is a giving of our heart to God.


When I listen and receive those three words, “repent and believe”, what I initially perceived as a daunting task becomes simple and possible — as the Holy Spirit makes Himself available to help and regularly remind me of God’s goodness and mercy. With three small but courageous steps, each of us can respond to Christ in the small and big moments in our lives where He calls us to turn away from sin, turn towards Him, and entrust our hearts to Him. Building a habit of this will help us in the gradual transformation God is accomplishing in us on our way to holiness.

Kendra L.

4 Comments

Lori

22/1/2021 08:37:09 am

Thank you, Kendra, for opening up these verses to provide so much clarity. It has been a theme in my prayers and interactions this week, to repent, believe, and entrust. I am a grasper. I cling, I am willful. I am untrusting. But He reminds me in beautiful ways, like through your words today, that He can be trusted, and my path to freedom lies in these three steps.

Alana

22/1/2021 08:52:40 am

Thank you Kendra! Beautiful! Thanks in particular for the reminder that “He promises I will lose nothing.” The noise of the world often makes me forget that! Lord, help me to repent, believe, and entrust more fully! Amen! 😊🙏🏻💕xo

Laura

22/1/2021 11:06:04 am

For myself, I found that rather than fear, my response to the call has been, "Okay, and now what?" and "Is this really it?" Haha.

Because the way it's described in gospel is so dramatic! They literally drop everything and they follow him with abandonment! But that's just not been my reality. Which has led to periods of doubt where I question whether I'm actually doing what I'm supposed to be doing.

To that, your beautiful explanation of the word "believe" may be the answer: rather than trying to direct all my actions, I'm coming to understand His silence as the freedom needed to choose Him whole-heartedly, and so now, though there is still at times a smidgeon of fear of "am I doing what I'm supposed to be doing?", I recognize the opportunity for gratitude and to act with love He is giving me, allowing me to continually pray, "Thank you for this moment; help me to give it back to you." (or, from your reflections, perhaps it can be best described as giving my heart to God, or simply, believing).

Kendra, thank you for your reflection, it is definitely food for thought as I consider the words "repent and believe."

Lisa Matheson

23/1/2021 07:54:41 am

I always used to think that following Jesus meant giving up so much. A life without fun or joy...a life of rules and shackles. But this is simply not true! As you said:
“ although the self-denial and accompaniment (all the way to the Cross) demands everything, somehow, He promises I will lose nothing.”
Ugh! My heart bursts when I read this. He promises I will lose nothing. In fact, He offers me:
“ a relationship of life-giving love, joy, and restoration”
Whoo hoo! Praise God!