Mark 1:15 - Repentance and Living Like Jesus.

Mark 1:15 - Repentance and Living Like Jesus.

Mark 1:15 (NIV) "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of 
God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"  

Mark 1:15 (ICB) Jesus said, "The right time has come. The 
kingdom of God is near. Change your hearts and lives and believe the 
Good News!"  

These first words spoken by Jesus in Mark give the core of his 
teaching: that the long-awaited Messiah has come to break the power of sin 
and begin God's personal reign on earth. [Life Application SB] 

The word "repent" means "to change one's mind" and assumes a 
consequent change in one's behavior. The word "believe" means to "trust" or 
"rely upon." [New Bible Companion] 

Repent, and believe are both acts of faith. [Nelson SB]

This verse provides a summary of Jesus' gospel message and gives 
us one of the most important expressions of the gospel in the New 
Testament. The first half details what God has done for us: He has 
fulfilled the time and brought near the kingdom of God. The second half 
details what we must do to participate: repent and believe. (Life 
Application Commentary) 

Becoming a follower of Christ means turning away from our 
self-centeredness and "self" control and turning our lives over to Christ's 
direction and control. As mentioned in v. 4, repentance has two sides -- 
turning away from sin and believing in the good news. (Life Application 
Commentary) 

  Repentance is one of the most positive of all words. John the 
Baptist centered his preaching on repentance (Mt 3:2, Mk 1:4, Lu 3:3). 
Jesus also preached repentance, commanding His disciples to do 
likewise (Mk 1:14-15; Lu 24:47). The angel predicted that the Messiah 
would save His people from their sins (Mt 1:21). The requirement for 
this salvation would be repentance. 
  To repent means to stop going one direction, to turn around 
completely, and to go the opposite way. Repentance involves a dramatic and 
decisive change of course. God urges us to repent when the path we are 
taking leads to destruction. Repentance will save us from disastrous 
consequences! What a wonderful word! How comforting that the Creator loves us 
enough to warn us of impending danger! 
  Our problem is that we think of repentance as something 
negative. When we recognize our sin, we prefer to "rededicate" our lives 
to God. We may even tell others we have resolved to be more 
faithful to God than we were before we failed Him. Yet the Bible does not 
speak of rededicating oneself. It speaks of repentance! Repentance 
indicates a decisive change, not merely a wishful resolution. We have not 
repented if we continue in our sin! 
  Repentance involves a radical change of heart and mind in 
which we agree with God's evaluation of our sin and then take specific 
action to align ourselves with His will. A desire to change is not 
repentance. Repentance is always an active response to God's word. The 
evidence of repentance is not words of resolve, but a changed life. 
[Experiencing God Day by Day by Henry and Richard Blackaby re Mark 1;14, 15] 

Where did Jesus get His power? He depended on the Holy Spirit 
(v. 12) and prayer (v. 35). He did not allow the demands of the work 
to rob Him of the time He needed to renew His strength. If the holy 
Son of God needed to pray, how much more do you need to pray! In the 
Lord's service, you cannot "run on empty." (See Isa. 40:28-31.) 
[Chapter by Chapter Bible Commentary by Warren Wiersbe re Mark 1] 

Jesus never insists on obedience, but when we truly see Him - we 
will instantly obey Him. Then He is easily Lord of our life, and we 
live in adoration of Him from morning till night. [In His Time; My 
Utmost For His Highest re Joh.13:13]