Christians going to Hell - 2. Thee Repentance That Leads to Salvation

  If you read Heaven Is So Real! you must read this book.

Christians Going to Hell is related to Heaven Is So Real! I had the book written so that people would repent before My Second Coming. This is a book that I am pleased with, a book that is very important to Me.

—The Voice  heard by Choo Thomas while praying

Contents

Preface  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ix

Foreword  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xiii

1.   Do Not Go to Hell!

2.   The Repentance That Leads to Salvation

3.   Faith More Precious Than Gold

4.   Faith and Obedience 

5.   Rebirth I 

6.   Rebirth II 

7.   There Is No Such Thing As Shameful Salvation! 

8   The Kingdom That Only the Victorious Can Enter

9   Je-e-sus!

10   Up to Seventy Times Seven

11   Saint Chunhyang

Chapter 2. Thee Repentance That Leads to Salvation

Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.

—2 Corinthians 7:10

What must we do to be saved? In answer to this ques-tion, most people reply, “Only by faith!” However, this is not a complete answer. That is because the Bible tells us that for salvation, we need faith and repentance.

—Mark 1:15

Let those who love the Lord hate evil.

—Psalm 97:10 

Hate evil.

—Amos 5:15

Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.

—Romans 12:9

   It is absolutely necessary for us to loathe sin (see Prov-erbs 8:13), which God so hates. (See Proverbs 6:16–19.) Charles Finney said, “Repentance in its meaning always contains hatred for sin.”12 Thomas Watson assumed that “a genuine convert is the one who loathes sin,” and asserted emphatically the importance of hatred for sin in repen- tance as follows:

        It is more important to loathe sin than to avoid it. Like the person throwing away gold vessels and treasures out into the sea in the midst of a storm, a person can leave sin purely out of fear . . . but without loathing sin, one cannot truly love Christ and long for heaven. . . . Loving sin is more evil than committing sin. A good man may fall into sin out of ignorance, but there is no hope for a person who takes pleasure in sinning. What makes a pig enjoy wallowing in the mud? When a person loves sin, it shows that the person’s will is with sin; thus the more will resides with sin, the greater the sin is. If a person sins deliberately, there is no sacrifice that can cleanse it away [see Hebrews 10:26].

  One time, while attending the Family Mission School sponsored by YWAM (Youth With a Mission), I heard a preacher say, “Only those who loathe sin have the power to overcome sin . . . The moment I loathe sin do I have the power to overcome it. That is when I finally prevail over sin.” Hating sin is one of the core elements of repentance. Therefore, we must loathe sin.

  The problem is that people love to sin. Except for a minority of faithful Christians, the whole world loves to sin. People suffer from more than one particular sin.

  You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.

—James 4:4 

  Scripture says that before repentance, everyone is in an adulterous friendship with the world. (See Romans 3:23.) Sin is people’s close friend and their alluring mistress. Since they are in love with sin, whenever they are away from sin, they long for it and cannot stand to be without it. Eventually, they meet sin again.

  However, there is one hope. Second Samuel 13:15 states, “Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her.” In the same way, we can end up hating sin seven times more than we had loved it. This is possible through the grace of God. Therefore, ask the Holy Spirit to help you through prayer.

The Confession of Sin

Many people confuse repentance with confession. Confes- sion is not the same as repentance. It is only one part of repentance.

He who conceals his sins does not prosper.

—Proverbs 28:13

Only acknowledge your guilt . . .

—Jeremiah 3:13

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins.

—1 John 1:9

  Likewise, the Bible commands us to confess our sins. However, not all confessions of sin bring forth forgiveness. In Scripture, the wicked people like Pharaoh, Balaam, King Saul, and Judas Iscariot all confessed their sins, but they did not receive forgiveness. Therefore, we must confess genu- inely, which means we must pay attention to three factors:

1. Individual sins must be confessed separately.

  Many people acknowledge themselves to be sinners, but their confession of sin is general. That is, they confess, “Lord, I have sinned,” but they do not confess each individual sin. On the other hand, like the patient who tells his doctor all the individual symptoms of his illness, a true confessor must confess his sin in detail to the doctor of his soul, the Christ. If a person has ten wounds, all of these wounds must be treated. Even if the wounds are the same type but in different places, they must be treated individually. In the same manner, each type of sin must be confessed separately, and each number of sins must be confessed separately. This is what Charles Finney wrote regarding confession:

        Look back at your past. Be sure to recall each indi- vidual sin you have committed. I am not saying that you must glance at your past, agree that your life has been filled with sin, and make a holistic confession of your sins all summed up. That is not the right way. You must deal with your individual sins one at a time. As you deal with specific sins, it is a good idea to write down each of them with a paper and pencil as it comes to your mind. Be sure to examine your sins like a merchant examining his inventory. As you remember additional sins, include them on your paper. You must never confess your sins all together because you have committed your sins one by one.

  Before the throne of God are the book of life and the book of conducts. In the book of conducts, all the sins we have committed with our mouths and our actions in our lifetimes are recorded without missing even one. God gives according to our deeds.

But I will rebuke you and accuse you to your face.

—Psalm 50:21 

Likewise, God deals with our sin individually. Therefore, our confession must be made individually.

2. Confession must be made with a pure heart.

  Confessing my sins with a sin cherished in my heart (see Psalm 66:18)—in other words, with sinful desire conceived in my heart (see James 1:15)—is offensive to God. There- fore, prior to confessing my sin, I must abort the sin in my heart. I must confess with a strong determination never to sin again.

  Many people confess with their mouths, but their words do not agree with what they have confessed in their hearts. Like a thief who is forced to confess his crime upon being caught but still loves to steal, false repenters may confess their sins but still cherish their sins in their hearts. As an example, St. Augustine said that before he repented, he would confess his sin and ask God for the power to overcome his sin. However, his heart deep inside would whisper, “No, not yet, Lord.”15 This is not the right attitude. In order to repent, one must not have any remaining regrets toward sin. Ezra 10:10–12 shows a great model of confession:

        Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have been unfaithful; you have married foreign women, adding to Israel’s guilt. Now make confession to the Lord, the God of your fathers, and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples around you and from your foreign wives.” The whole assembly responded with a loud voice: “You are right! We must do as you say.”

Likewise, true confession is made with a strong, decisive will to cut off sin.

3. Confession must be made to God and people.

  Sins committed against God can be confessed to God alone, but if a sin has been committed against other people, the confession must be made to God and to those people, because you have wronged both God and people. Surpris- ingly, many people wrongly believe that they need only to confess to God.

  Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

—Matthew 5:23–24 

  Listen to what the scripture is saying. How can such reconciliation occur without confessing one’s sin to the other person?

  So watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.

—Luke 17:3–4 

This scripture also says the same thing. If we do not need to confess our sins to those we have wronged, Jesus would not have said these words.

Charles Finney said:

        If you have sinned against someone and that person lives close to you, you must go and confess your sin to him. If the person lives too far away for you to go, write a letter to him at once without deferring. Be sure to resolve it right away. Do not postpone it. The more you defer, the more difficult it will be for you. If you sinned against God, confess to God; if you sinned against a person, confess to the person.

  Do not take confession lightly. Whether you have sinned against God or a person, if you have not confessed your sin, you are living in that sin even if you do not repeat it. It means that you are still in that sin. Therefore, you must confess your sins.

  On the other hand, after we have confessed our sin, we must receive the forgiveness of God by faith. Many people confess their sins to God, but not many believe that their sins have been forgiven. It is the work of the Holy Spirit that convicts us of sin (see John 16:8), but it is the work of Satan that accuses and evokes feelings of condemnation. (See Revelation 12:10.) Some people have been convicted of their sins, but they live with continuous feelings of guilt and despair, believing that they cannot escape from them. Such thoughts and feelings are not from God. They are from Satan. People who, after having confessed their sins, cannot find assurance of forgiveness have a misunderstanding about the “basis of forgiveness.”

  Let me ask you a question. When God forgives our sins, does He forgive us based on His mercy or His righteousness? Many people will probably answer “mercy,” but that is wrong.

  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteous- ness.

—1 John 1:9

  Of course, God is a God of mercy and love, but if God could have forgiven our sins simply with His mercy, Jesus would not have hung on the cross. Jesus, as the Righteous One, died on the cross for the unrighteous. (See 1 Peter 3:18.) As a result of His work on the cross, the forgiveness is not a matter of mercy, but a matter of justice. Jesus paid the penalty of our sins on the cross. Therefore, by simply appealing to God’s justice, not to His mercy, we can be forgiven.

  Since Jesus Christ took up the cross for us, God has no choice but to forgive us morally and legally. Based on this fact, we can request God’s forgiveness and receive it by faith. Therefore, having the assurance of God’s forgiveness of our sins is not a presumption.

The Compensation for Sin

  Whoever damages other people’s property must compen- sate for it conscientiously.

  If a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it, he must pay back five head of cattle for the ox and four sheep for the sheep. If a thief is caught breaking in and is struck so that he dies, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed; but if it happens after sunrise, he is guilty of bloodshed. A thief must certainly make restitution, but if he has nothing, he must be sold to pay for his theft. If the stolen animal is found alive in his posses-sion—whether ox or donkey or sheep—he must pay back double.

—Exodus 22:1–4

  As the scripture declares, if a thief slaughters or sells the stolen animal, he must pay back five head of cattle for the ox and four sheep for the sheep. That is because such a thief’s action reveals his premeditated evil intention. If the thief is not capable of paying back, he must become a slave to make restitution. However, if the thief had kept the animal undam- aged, he must compensate for it double. When David became enraged after hearing Nathan’s story and said the man must pay for the lamb four times over (2 Samuel 12:6), he was basing his judgment on the scripture.

        The Lord said to Moses: “If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the Lord by deceiving his neighbor about something entrusted to him or left in his care or stolen, or if he cheats him, or if he finds lost property and lies about it, or if he swears falsely, or if he commits any such sin that people may do—when he thus sins and becomes guilty, he must return what he has stolen or taken by extor-tion, or what was entrusted to him, or the lost property he found, or whatever it was he swore falsely about. He must make restitution in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day he presents his guilt offering. And as a penalty he must bring to the priest, that is, to the Lord, his guilt offering, a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. In this way the priest will make atonement for him before the Lord, and he will be forgiven for any of these things he did that made him guilty.”

—Leviticus 6:1–7 

  The important words are “give it all” (v. 5), signifying that a restitution or penalty was made before the guilt offering. Only when the restitution was made to the person, the guilt offering was presented to God. This is a truth that must be applied auto- matically to all Christians. The sin offering of Himself, which Jesus Christ presented to God on behalf of people, is never a substitute for restitutions that we must make when we sin.

  That person . . . must confess the sin he has committed. He must make full restitution for his wrong, add one fifth to it and give it all to the person he has wronged.

—Numbers 5:7 

  Therefore, confession of sin is not everything. There must always be restitution. Do not believe that this only applies to people in the Old Testament. In Luke 19:8–9, Zacchaeus told Jesus, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” At that point, Jesus did not explain to him that he did not have to follow the conven- tion of the Old Testament times, but instead, He said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.” Therefore, compensation for damage must be made. Now, let me answer some questions that you might have regarding the issue of compensation.

  First, what happens when the victim to whom you want to make restitution has died? In that case, you must compen- sate to the victim’s family.

  What if the victim does not have any family or relatives, or if the victim is alive but you do not know his whereabouts? In that case, you must give a guilt offering to God.

        The Lord said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites: ‘When a man or woman wrongs another in any way and so is unfaithful to the Lord, that person is guilty and must confess the sin he has committed. He must make full restitution for his wrong, add one fifth to it and give it all to the person he has wronged. But if that person has no close relative to whom restitution can be made for the wrong, the restitution belongs to the Lord and must be given to the priest, along with the ram with which atonement is made for him.’”

—Numbers 5:5–8 

  Lastly, what happens if you want to make restitution but you cannot afford it? In that case, you must compensate as much as you can, and then faithfully promise to pay the rest as soon as you are able. Then God will forgive your sin.

Turning From All Sin

  One Sunday, while John Bunyan, author of The Pilgrim’s Progress, was exercising on the grass, a question suddenly crossed his mind. Will you go to hell with your sin? Or will you go to heaven with your sin thrown away? This ques- tion troubled him to death, but eventually, he determined to throw away his sin.17 As you see in John Bunyan’s case, repentance is the determination to throw away your sins. Ezekiel 18:30–32 is a good example that shows the charac- teristics of repentance.

        Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sover- eign Lord. Repent and live!

—Ezekiel 18:30–32

  In this passage, we learn two important lessons on repen- tance.

1. First, repentance is turning away from sin.

  He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.

—Proverbs 28:13

  Let the wicked forsake his way and evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

—Isaiah 55:7

  Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our father.” I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

—Matthew 3:8–10

  First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.

—Acts 26:20

  Many people wrongly believe that they will be forgiven when they only confess their sins, but that is a misconcep- tion. Anyone who does not turn away from sin will not be forgiven.

Charles Spurgeon said:

One should not expect his king to forgive him as long as he is acting in a treasonous way. In the same way, we should not imagine that the Judge of this world will wipe away our sin when we refuse to turn away from it.

Also, Joseph Alleine said:

        As their foundation of hope, many people rely on the fact that Christ has died for sinners. But the fact needs to be emphasized that Christ did not die for the stub-born ones who do not repent and continue to live in sin . . . To believe that Christ will save you when you are holding on to sin is to make Christ a sinner. It is to lower God’s dignity more than what all the wicked people and demons in hell have done and can do. Still, do you hold on to that presumptuous hope?

Finally, this is what Charles Finney said:

        The individual who truly repents, not only sees sin to be detestable and vile and worthy of abhorrence, but he really abhors it, and hates it in his heart . . . when he truly repents, he most heartily abhors and renounces it. 

Therefore, we must turn away from sin.

2. Next, repentance is turning away from all sins.

  Thomas Watson said, “There is no postponing or compro- mising with sin when it comes to true repentance.”21 If we ask, “God, what sin must I turn away from?” Then God will definitely reply, “From all sins!” 

The true convert abhors sin on account of its hateful nature, because it dishonors God, and therefore he desires to repent of it.22

—Charles Finney

If you reserve in one sin, God will not accept you. All your sins must die. Otherwise, you must die.23

—Joseph Alleine

If one sin has dominion of us we are not the Lord’s free men. A man who is held by only one chain is still a captive. There is no going to heaven with one sin ruling within us, for of the saints it is said, “Sin shall not have dominion over you.”24

—Charles Spurgeon

  Therefore, do not think, I will be okay since I have given up all sins except this little one. That is not wisdom. Instead, think, I cannot risk destruction now after having given up all sins because of this little sin, and throw away your last sin.

  On the other hand, some people feel despair after hearing sermons on repentance. They ask, how can such repentance be possible? For these people, let me make one comment. The repentance that the Bible requires consists of turning away from all sins. That does not mean we will never sin again. As an example, this is what Charles Finney said:

        These (1 John 5:1, 4, 18) and similar passages expressly teach the persevering nature of true religion, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit: in other words, they teach that the truly regenerate cannot sin, in the sense at least of living in anything like habitual sin. They teach, that with all truly regenerate souls, holiness is at least the rule, and sin only the exception; that instead of its being true, that the regenerate souls live a great majority of their days subsequent to regeneration in sin, it is true that they so seldom sin, that in strong language it may be said in truth, they do not sin. This language so strongly and expressly teaches that perse- verance is an unfailing attribute of Christian character, that but for the fact that other passages constrain us to understand these passages as strong language used in a qualified sense, we should naturally understand them as affirming that no truly regenerate soul does at any time sin. But since it is a sound rule of interpreting the language of an author, that he is, if possible, to be made consistent with himself; and since John, in other passages in this same epistle and elsewhere, represents that Christians, or truly regenerate persons, do some- times sin; and since this is frequently taught in the Bible, we must understand these passages just quoted as only affirming a general and not a universal truth; that is, that truly regenerate persons do not sin anything like habitually, but that holiness is the rule with them, and sin only the exception.

  Repentance is not the completion of faith but the starting point of it. To explain it theologically, repentance is not sancti- fication. Therefore, I believe the words of Joseph Alleine most appropriately explain what the repentant person is like.

        God will not smile on that soul that smiles on sin, nor have any peace with him that is at peace with his enemy. Other enemies you must forgive, and love, and pray for; but for these spiritual enemies, all your affec-tions, and all your prayers must be engaged against them; yea, you must admit no parley.

  Now let me lead you to the conclusion. There is a pastor named Yong-Kyu Park in South Korea. He is a pastor of First Sung Nam Church, a Presbyterian mega-church that he planted, which now has forty-five thousand members. He also established Song Lim Middle and High School and became the youngest headmaster and member of the board of trustees in the nation. Additionally, he wrote fifty-seven books besides the one made into a movie titled Guide Me, O My Great Redeemer.

  However, when Pastor Park became hospitalized due to God’s punishment, God showed him the vision of heaven and hell. The size of hell was so huge that he was quite surprised and asked an angel, “Dear angel, what is the population of hell?” It is hard to believe, but the angel told him, “The ratio of people entering hell and heaven is one thousand to one.” Upon hearing that, he asked, “Dear angel, what kinds of people are in hell?” What the angel said is very important.

        There are two kinds of people in hell. One kind is those who did not believe in Jesus. Those who did not believe in Jesus come to hell 100 percent. The other kind is the people who went to church but died without repenting.

In the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man said:

        “No, father Abraham,” he said, “but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.” He said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”

—Luke 16:30–31

In addition, the apostle Peter testified in 2 Peter 3:8–9:

        But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

  Therefore, to go to heaven we must definitely repent from all sins.

  Finally, remember this one thing. Thomas Aquinas, the famous theologian in the thirteenth century, said, “God who forgives the penitents never made a promise that he would give them a tomorrow to repent.”

  There is an illustration that dramatically shows this truth. The famous evangelist D. L. Moody was preaching on the topic of repentance during the evening service at a church in Chicago. He ended the sermon with the words, “Well the time has gone up, so I cannot preach anymore this evening. Please come back to the meeting next Sunday.” A few days later, a great fire broke out over the entire Chicago area, killing many people, including those who had attended Moody’s meeting. It caused Moody to regret greatly as he sighed, “Why didn’t I tell the people to repent that day, instead of telling them to return the next Sunday evening!”29 As this illustration shows, nobody knows when a person will die.  

  Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.

—Proverbs 27:1

  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

—James 4:14 

  Thomas Watson said, “Is there a guarantee that we will live one more day? We are marching quickly out of the world, disappearing from the stage. Our lives are but a little frag- ment of a candle that will soon burn out, or a wildflower that withers more quickly than grass. [See Psalm 103:15.] The life of human beings is not more than a flying shadow.”30 Nobody knows when a person will die. Therefore, please repent before it is too late.