Jesus was talking to His disciples and a crowd of thousands!   (Luke 12:1)

(NASB) Luke 13:1-5 “NOW ON the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.
2 And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate?
3 ‘I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
4 ‘Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem?
5 ‘I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

What is the stark reality which Jesus stated to the people in that crowd of thousands?
Unless they (as individuals) repented, they also would die (be lost eternally).
No matter your background; or where you live…each person needs to repent!
In order to live eternally in the majestic presence of the living God of the Bible, repentance is required!

John the Baptist’s message to the people was “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:2)
Jesus, after He was baptized by John in the Jordan River, after He was in the wilderness and tested by Satan for forty days and nights, then He too said, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  (Matthew 4:17)

The Stark Reality…Jesus said to Repent!

  Repentance is a reoccurring theme throughout the Old Testament and the New.
(NIV) 2 Chronicles 7:14 “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

God’s people are called by His name.  God’s people are told to humble themselves, yield themselves to the living God.  God’s people are to pray to Him.  God’s people are to seek His face and turn from their wicked ways.  Then, and only then, the living God will hear from heaven.  Then, and only then, will He forgive their sin.  Then, and only then, will He heal their land…their nation.

Followers of Christ, we are to yield to God’s way of living and of worshiping Him.
We are to yield to God; we are to pray to God.  When was the last time you did that?

When you pray, do you seek His face, or do you casually throw out His name into the air above you and hope you are heard?
When you pray, do you recognize your need to repent?  In what area(s) do you need to ask the Righteous God to forgive you?

Followers of Christ, our repentance (or lack of repentance) affects the nation in which we live today!  It also affects our eternity…today!

Do we need to repent?  Yes, we do.  We need to turn to God for forgiveness and we need to turn away from our sins, for they are wicked. 

A Stark Reality…Repent!

And the blessing of being forgiven?…Peace, Love, Joy abound.

We no longer need to carry those burdens of sin around any longer…

we are freed when we repent!