![]() The Metanoia that Jesus proclaimed at the beginning of His ministry, Paul experienced. As soon as he did, he was on his face, and there was no turning back. It was this deep-seated transformation that he preached. On the road to Damascus, Paul was fundamentally transformed. But they have not had the great Metanoia of the soul that is the opening of the eyes to who Jesus really is. There are many who believe they have faith because they have assented to a set of facts and have tried to deal with their sin. When that Great Truth is experienced, seen, known through Metanoia, then the result is Faith. Metanoia, that “coming to your senses,” brings about the revelation, the experience of that Great Truth. What would be the natural result of “metanoia”? It would be the highest form of faith-faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Savior, not only from sin, but for the new life He promises. Now I will set my affections on things above, not on things of this earth. Their “sorrow was turned into joy,” as He had predicted. When Jesus rose from the dead, the disciples’ metanoia entered upon a new stage. Through His death, resurrection, and ascension He accomplished the ultimate work of this New Covenant. ![]() Through His words and His works, He demonstrated His worthiness to be the Herald of this New Kingdom. He is the Proclaimer of the Way that Moses could see only in shadow. He is the Answer to all the Law and the Prophets. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Beginning and Ending of this New Era. But He was always teaching, always leading “those with ears to hear” to the truth proclaimed by His “Metanoia.” He spoke sometimes in dark statements, sometimes in plain language. For some, who had ears to hear, the Truth sank in like water on thirsty ground. Listen and receive in the deepest places of yourself.” The Metanoia Jesus Offeredįor three years, our Lord Jesus made good on His proclamation/command of “metanoia.” He did new things-miracles the likes of which hadn’t been seen in Israel since the days of Elijah. It is as if our Lord said to His listeners, “I have come to completely change your world. Take upon you a New Mind, and Believe the Glad Tidings.” (p 60) It is clearly an important word, heralding as it did the Kingdom of God. “Metanoia! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” ![]() Metanoia, Walden points out, was the first cry of John the Baptist (Matthew 3:2) and the first cry of Jesus is translated as, “Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!”īut since we’re exploring the word metanoia here, I’m going to use that word instead.Ĭan we approach the Scriptures afresh? Can we look at them asking the Holy Spirit to clear away any meaning that is not from Him and show us what they really mean? It’s one more thing that contributes to confusion about the gospel. This does not at all convey the Great Meaning of Metanoia, the Greek word that has been translated “repentance” in almost every English version of the Bible. Walden lamented the replacement of metanoia with a word that conveyed the Roman Catholic notion of penitence-that is, if you’re sorry enough, if you confess enough, if you weep enough, if you do such and such things to prove yourself, then your penitence (repentance) is received and you can go on your way. It expanded some things I was thinking when I first wrote about repentance years ago as “coming to your senses.” I’ll be quoting from his book here. Recently I was directed to the old book The Great Meaning of Metanoia, by Treadwell Walden. What does the “change of mind” mean? And why would I agree with some great thinkers that repentance is not an acceptable translation?Īnd why do I believe this truth is vitally important for all of us? An Old Book And A Fresh Way Of Thinking The original Greek word got translated “penitence” or “repentance,” which some would argue wasn’t as far off from “penance” as it needed to be. ![]() Unfortunately, at least in English versions, the Latin Vulgate has exerted far more influence than it should have. Rather, he found, it meant “change your mind.” Did they really call for their hearers to do acts of self-mortification, contrition, confession to a priest, and other acts involved in trying to achieve absolution for sin?īut Luther found that the meaning of the original Greek word metanoia didn’t involve doing any acts of piety. He saw that John that Baptist and Jesus called out to their hearers, “Do penance! For the Kingdom of heaven is at hand!” Long ago Martin Luther read the Latin translation of the Greek New Testament called the Vulgate. ![]()
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