60 悔改——基督徒剧烈的改变Repentance- A Christian changes radically

《简明神学》Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs，巴刻（J. I. Packer）著/張麟至译，更新传道会，2007年。

https://yibaniba.blogspot.com/2020/01/blog-post_98.html
http://www.geocities.ws/gary_bee_za/packer/repentance.htm

63 成圣——基督徒在恩典中成长

Sanctification - The Christian grows in grace

劝勉他们应当悔改归向神，行事与悔改的心相称。（徒26:20）

在新约圣经中，[悔改]一字的意思是指一个人改变了他的心思，以致他所有的看法、价值观、目标、道路都改变了。他整个的生活变得不一样了。这种改变是剧烈的——包括内在的的和外在的，思想和判断、意志和情感、行为和生活方式、动机和目的，皆牵涉在内。悔改意味着开始过一个新的生活。

呼召人悔改，是施洗约翰（太3:2）、耶稣（太4:17）、十二使徒（可6:12）、彼得在五旬节那天（徒2:38）、保罗对外邦人（徒17:30；26:20），和得荣的基督对亚洲七教会中的五个教会（启2:5,16,22；3:3,19）所传讲之多篇信息中，最首要也是最基本的呼声。悔改也是耶稣所摘录要传到普世之福音的一部分（路24:47）。新约圣经所提的悔改也回应了旧约先知以色列人的一部分（路24:47）。新约圣经所提的悔改也回应了旧约先知向以色列人不断发出的呼声，要求他们回转到所偏离的神面前（如，耶23:22；25:4-5；亚1:3-6）。悔改永远能带人走上罪得赦免、重享恩泽的道路；不悔改则引人步向灭亡（如，路13:1-8）。

悔改是信心的果子，而信心又是重生的果子。但是在实际的生活中，悔改与信心是不可分的，它是人转向基督，称祂为主与救主的消极面（信心则为积极面）。认为人可以不经悔改就得着得救的信心，而且人可以一面拥抱基督作救主，一面却又拒绝祂作我们生命之主的这类想法，都是自取毁灭的妄想。真实的信心所承认的基督，正如祂真实所是的——祂是我们的神所指定的王、所赐下的祭司；真正信靠耶稣为救主，就要将这种信靠表明在顺服祂为主上。如果拒绝这样的信仰，就是想籍着一种未曾悔改的信心，来寻求称义；然而这种信心并不是信心。

论及悔改，《西敏特信仰告白》XV.2这样说：

一个罪人看到并觉悟到，他的罪不仅是危险的，也是误会及可憎的，是背乎神的圣洁本性和公义的律法。既知神在基督里施怜悯给忏悔的人，他就为自己的罪忧伤，恨恶罪恶，甚至转离一切的恶归向神，又立志竭力与神同行，遵守神的一切诫命。

上面的叙述点明，不完全的悔改是不足的，这种不完全的悔改有时又叫做不彻底的忏悔（attrition），即懊悔、自责，因为害怕刑罚而生的最终忧伤，但却不想、或不肯下决心离弃罪恶。真实的悔改是完全的悔悟（contrition），诗篇五十一篇里的大卫可以为楷模，那是在心中切切地立志不在犯罪，并且立志今后的生活要能表现出他的悔改是完全的、真实的（路3:8；徒26:20）。对任何一种罪行的悔改，都意味着从此要反其道而行，以活出最能与此罪背道而驰的德行。

REPENTANCE

A CHRISTIAN CHANGES RADICALLY

.... I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds. ACTS 26:20

The New Testament word for repentance means changing one’s mind so that one’s views, values, goals, and ways are changed and one’s whole life is lived differently. The change is radical, both inwardly and outwardly; mind and judgment, will and affections, behavior and life-style, motives and purposes, are all involved. Repenting means starting to live a new life.

The call to repent was the first and fundamental summons in the preaching of John the Baptist (Matt. 3:2), Jesus (Matt. 4:17), the Twelve (Mark 6:12), Peter at Pentecost (Acts 2:38), Paul to the Gentiles (Acts 17:30; 26:20), and the glorified Christ to five of the seven churches in Asia (Rev. 2:5, 16, 22; 3:3, 19). It was part of Jesus’ summary of the gospel that was to be taken to the world (Luke 24:47). It corresponds to the constant summons of the Old Testament prophets to Israel to return to the God from whom they had strayed (e.g., Jer. 23:22; 25:4-5; Zech. 1:3-6). Repentance is always set forth as the path to remission of sins and restoration to God’s favor, impenitence as the road to ruin (e.g., Luke 13:1-8).

Repentance is a fruit of faith, which is itself a fruit of regeneration. But in actual life, repentance is inseparable from faith, being the negative aspect (faith is the positive aspect) of turning to Christ as Lord and Savior. The idea that there can be saving faith without repentance, and that one can be justified by embracing Christ as Savior while refusing him as Lord, is a destructive delusion. True faith acknowledges Christ as what he truly is, our God-appointed king as well as our God-given priest, and true trust in him as Savior will express itself in submission to him as Lord also. To refuse this is to seek justification through an impenitent faith, which is no faith.

In repentance, says the Westminster Confession, a sinner, out of the sight and sense not only of the danger, but also the filthiness and odiousness of his sins, as contrary to the holy nature, and righteous law of God; and upon the apprehension of his mercy in Christ to such as are penitent; so grieves for, and hates his sins, as to turn from them all unto God, purposing and endeavoring to walk with him in all ways of his commandments. (XV.2)

This statement highlights the fact that incomplete repentance, sometimes called “attrition” (remorse, self-reproach, and sorrow for sin generated by fear of punishment, without any wish or resolve to forsake sinning) is insufficient. True repentance is “contrition,” as modeled by David in Psalm 51, having at its heart a serious purpose of sinning no more but of living henceforth a life that will show one’s repentance to be full and real (Luke 3:8; Acts 26:20). Repenting of any vice means going in the opposite direction, to practice the virtues most directly opposed to it.