Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand!
So often this is
heard from the pulpit and our minds instantly go to those living in sin. It is those people who our Lord is speaking
about, we think. It is those lost in a
world of excess, sexual deviancy and chemically enhanced experiences.
Similarly we hear
the man wearing a sign and ringing a bell standing on the street corner yelling
out the same message. Often time the man
looks like he is wearing sack cloths and ashes.
He is placed in movies and derived as a joke, or used as ironic imagery
of the catastrophe that is about to take place in the story.
Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand!
Why the dismissal of
such a profound command? Is it because
of a lack of clarity of the message? Is
it merely a suggestion, a guide or helpful truism? Surely the message for the non-believer, as a
believer it is more of a historical saying, right?
The message does not
lend itself to confusion. It is simple,
straightforward, and to all. In fact the
message is the first record words of the last prophet, John the Baptist. According to the gospel of Matthew (3:1-3)
"In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of
Judea, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The gospel goes on to support this message by
saying, "For this is he who was spoken if by the prophet Isaiah when he
said, The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight."
The message is for
the preparation of the coming of the Lord.
The first words of John the
Baptist, who's prophetic ministry is validated by none other than the great
prophet Isaiah. A clear and concise
message with a simple command, repent.
But why are we told to repent?
Because the kingdom of God is coming.
The Lord himself is coming, who can stand in his presence? Even the great prophet Isaiah (Is 6) was not
worthy to speak before him. His lips had
to be cleansed with a burning coal from the altar before the throne of God
before he was able to speak the message of Lord to Israel. The message of repentance is one of dire
necessity to survive in the presence of the Lord. The message of repentance is a message of
life.
Surely, this message
is for sinners though, right? Look who
was the crowd that John was speaking to, devout Jews, not the sinners. He spoke his message to those from Jerusalem and
all Judea including the Pharisees and Sadducees, the religious elite of the
day. Surely they are not to be
considered sinners or unclean. Rather,
like Isaiah said so did they, "Woe is me!
For I am lost; for I am an man of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen
the King, the Lord of host!" The
message is for the faithful, they know that before the Lord they are
unclean. When they heard the message
they repented and confessed their sins
The gravity of these
words is not only found in the message of John the Baptist. This is also the first recorded sermon for
Jesus. (Mt 4:17) "From that time
Jesus began to preach, saying, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at
hand.'" The message is so important
that the Lord first sent his messenger John to tell us to repent for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand. Then our
Lord himself comes and tells us the same.
These simple words
should shake us to our core. This Lenten
season we should heed their call and avail ourselves of the numerous
opportunities that the church provides us to prepare for the coming of the
Lord. We should examine our conscious,
meditate on the holy mysteries, walk of
the stations of the cross, confess our sins for the purpose of reconciliation. Quite simply, we should repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand.
