 If you have to keep repenting, it's because you never did repent. A question that comes up often is how many times do I have to keep repenting? Do I have to keep repenting? I repent, then I mess up. I repent, then I mess up. I keep repenting because I keep messing up. But is that biblical? Well, there's a little bit of nuance to it, but the actual answer is you only repent once. However, if you take it to mean that repent means to stop doing something, which there is a basis for saying that as well. Well, then you would repent of that, but that's really not what the Bible is asking us to do. So before I get into that, I want to look at what the word repent is the different times or the ways it is used in the Bible. And if we happen to go to, let's say, the Old Testament, because this is not necessarily a New Testament word or concept, but this word repent, there's a couple of different words that are used. One of the words used for repent is the Hebrew word Nakham. Now this is, Job says in 42, 60, he says, therefore I retracted and I repent in dust and ashes. And the word here Nakham means to simply kind of change your mind, be sorry for oneself, which is the idea that we get as well. But there's another word in the Hebrew that also is used for the word repent that we see in English. And if we go to Psalm 712, you see this word here, repent. This particular word is, if a man does not repent, he will sharpen his sword. Now the word that's used here is the word shub. If you see that the word shub means to return, to do again, to turn around. And so we've got two words that in the English is used to repent. However, when we think about repent now, sometimes those two words are also kind of in play. There's only one word that's used in the Greek for repent. And that is the word, this word, methanoya. However, there's an interesting passage that I want you guys to look at. In Acts, you see this term again, you see Acts 2, 20, I'm sorry, Acts 26, 20 where he says, but this is Paul speaking, he says, so Agrippa, I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision, but kept declaring both to those in Damascus first, and also at Jerusalem, and then throughout all the region of Judea, and even to the Gentiles, that they should look what's said here, that they should repent and turn. However, repent and turn are God performing good deeds. The issue is, and this is also inappropriate or inappropriate to repent in. Well, that's kind of strange to repent and turn. Well, if repent means to turn, well then why would you turn and turn? We're going to answer that in a second, but now going back to this passage, Acts 26, 20, that is actually picked up on something that was said in Ezekiel 18, because it says in Ezekiel 18, 30, therefore I will judge you O house of Israel, each according to his conduct declares the Lord God, repent and turn away from all your transgressions. Now what's interesting here is both of those words for turn are used, or repent and turn are both from the word shoe. So why would you use turn and turn? Well, because in one sense, he's speaking of what happens internally. Turn away with your mind, with your heart, that will also lead to turning away from your actions. That's what Paul is getting at here in Acts 26, 20. He said that they should repent and turn, repent and turn this metanoia, and then this word for for turn. This is the word that literally means to turn back. So that people should internally with their heart, with their mind, and then if the Hebrew of the word Lev or Cardi, they both refer to not just the organ, but the heart, the mind, the just in most part of a person's being that that part should be turned. So when we say we repent, and I make this statement that you only repent one time, that is a changing of the heart and mind to where you have turned your mind away from how it used to view sin. So that causes you to only do so one time. Now what you're going to have to turn away from over the course of time, and there are going to be times when you're going to succumb to sin, that is the turning away that the second part of the repent and turn that we need to do. That part, if you want to say we need to keep doing that, well, that's fine. We'll never, as long as we are drawing breath on this earth, we will never get to the point where we never have to stop a particular sin. We are going to sin, hopefully, not as much as we move forward. But here's the issue, and this is how you know if you have truly repented. Because remember, Paul has an issue as well. For me to pause this show, I want to also bring up what Peter says in Acts 238. Peter said that they repent in each one of you being baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins or forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the Holy Spirit. So there needs to be this repent. But Paul, I'm sorry, but Peter is not speaking of turn away from your actions, turn away from the wrong doing. He says this inward turning, that needs to take place. And in doing so, this coincides with being baptized in the Holy Spirit and receiving the Holy Spirit. So you have to do that first. Well, we can speak about what causes that at some other point in time. But this repentance part, this deals with the inward part. How do I know? It's not necessarily the stopping of the sin that means that you repent. No, Paul has this struggle. He says in Acts, I'm sorry, in Romans 7, 18, he says, for I know that nothing good dwells in me. That is in my flesh. For the willing is present in me, but the doing good is not. For the good that I want to do, I do not do. But I practice the very evil that I don't want to do. So what is Paul doing? Paul is voicing this struggle that I keep doing as he's using use the word. He's the word practice. So I keep practicing the things that I don't want to do, these bad things. As he may even say, these evil things. He keeps practicing those things. What does that mean that Paul has not repented? That Paul is unrepentant? No, it's not what that means. Because the key to this is what Paul says in this very same set of passages. He says, for I know that nothing good dwells in me, in my flesh. He says, for the willing, this is important, this willing, this felling, or fello, this is, or fello, this is to the desire. So the desire is present in me. I want to not sin. I want to do well. Where does that come from? And he even brings up again. He says, for the good that I want to do, this is in the Greek word hafello, the good that I want or I desire, poyo, to do. The good that I want to do, by the way, he says, I want to do this good thing, but I don't actually do it all the time. So it indicates to us that Paul has a repentant heart. Paul, obviously Paul has a repentant heart, but Paul is repentant based on what? His will, his desire. That's what needs to repent one time and one time only. If that's done, then you're going to start seeing the actual or the practicality of it showing up. You're going to see people not actually doing some of the things they want to stop doing. Now, if you look at that as far as repentance, know what that actually is, is it's more of the fruit of repentance. It's a turn part that's brought up in Acts 26. Repent inwardly and then turn away from those sins. And so Paul is voicing the struggle with the turning away that we all have to do with. But in truth, when it comes to repenting, you only, in terms of this metanoia, this changing of the heart and mind, you do it one time. When you do sin though, and this is an indication of knowing that you probably have repented, is when you do sin, the things that goes against God that you don't, that bothers you, is that it bothers you. It grieves you. A truly repentant person is bothered by the fact that they still at times do these particular sins. And so to repent, it's a one time thing. It is going to be followed up by actual turning away from deeds. How soon to what degree, it varies from person to person. But the most important thing at first that you must do, the foremost thing is repent inwardly. That is a one time event. And so I say, which is why I say, if you repent once, there won't be a second time. Amen.