January 3, 2008 - Acts 3:19

“’Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.’” Acts 3:19.
Peter is encouraging his listeners to take the positive step of turning from their sinful way of life to being refreshed by a life of following Jesus. These listeners had gathered together when there was a stir outside the main entrance to the Temple, and they wanted to see what was going on. God had just healed a man who had been crippled since birth, and Peter used the opportunity of the healing to speak about the goodness of God in the person of Jesus, the Nazarene.
It is encouraging to me to see repentance portrayed in such a positive light. Many times when I hear messages involving repentance, there seems to be a negativity expressed with an emphasis on what we have to give up or “sacrifice.” This one verse from Peter’s message states that our sins ‘may be wiped out’ and that we will have ‘times of refreshing’, which both sound so positive to me. It is not about giving up anything. Instead, it is about getting rid of my sin that holds me back and bogs me down, and be refreshed by God in His times of refreshing. Wow, does that ever sound good!
It seems to me that the people in this audience must have wondered on some level about this ‘turn to God’ comment, since each of them was most likely on their way to prayer at the Temple. Hadn’t they already turned to God, since they were on their way to prayer? Yet, if they are anything like us, it doesn’t matter how often they come for prayer, there is always a need to have our sin wiped clean, allowing us to enter into a new or renewed time of refreshing.
Questions to consider: How is repentance a positive thing in our lives? Is there anything that you need to repent of? Do you need to experience a time of refreshing in the Lord?
Prayer: God, help me to continue to see my need for repenting. Please give me eyes to see those things in my life and in my world that need changing, and give me the courage and wisdom to know how to make those changes. Amen.