Thanks for that link.I took the time to read it, and now I see how dangerous this hypergrace movement is!
Besides quoting part of a verse out of context (Romans 2:4b), quoting Watchman Nee, a heretic; and using false or twisted definitions for repentance (copied off an internet site with mistakes), the author has completely lost sight of the gospel.
What did Jesus come to save us from?
"But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” Matt 1:20-21
Jesus did not come to the earth, minister to people and die on the cross just so people could "change their minds."
In fact, I am going to do a bit more study on repentance, and post it later. Because it is a total lie, according to Bauer (BAGD) that metanoia or metanoeo means "change of mind." That is never a use for repentance in the Bible. (Although it is translated that way in some early Christian llterature it is never used that way in the Bible.)
And certainly, there is a point concerning repentance meaning "turning about" but, in fact, it is more often "turning away."
The entire narrative of the Bible, from the Fall in Genesis 3, through to the coming of Jesus, is deliverance from sin! And yes, when we turn away from sin, we also turn to Christ. But that link totally misses this, and in fact repeatedly condemns "preachers" who somehow mix grace and law, But if we do not understand law, then what motive do we have to repent? I do believe God gives us the grace through faith to repent. But if we don't repent, and side step repentance, have we really received the grace of God, and are we truly saved?
This website misses the point of grace. It misses the fact that God had grace in the Old Testament, because he is the same God, yesterday, today and forever! And God did establish the law for a reason - to help his people live better - to give them boundaries and rules which the capricious gods of the surrounding cultures never had. (Instead these gods never told people how to live, or what they did wrong - but just keep the sacrifices coming!)
Further, the link in that article to Bible Hub shows Bible hub is in fact slightly wrong, which makes a HUGE difference in understanding the meaning of the word. In fact, in BAGD, the Lexicon that scholars use, the passages where "metanoia"is found in the Bible do not start after "change of mind." In fact, there is not one Bible passage found after that definition. Instead, the references start after the definition:
"repentance, turning about, conversion; as in turning away."
So is Bible Hub at the root of some of this bad theology for slipping up where it put the definitions with respect to the Bible versus early church literature? And, does this mean that some of these early church writers were influenced by gnostics, who were only concerned with the mind, and not the body? (Just asking rhetorically right now!)
Anyway, I will try and do a separate post on this. I want people to understand what an untruth it is that repentance only means "turn to God," when in fact, the historical and Biblical meaning in the Greek is "to turn away from sin."
