Repentance, Works, and the Gospel of Grace

Romans 11:6 states:

"And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work."

The concern is that if repentance is defined as sorrow over sin, cessation of sin, and beginning to do something else, then to demand repentance as part of the gospel response introduces works and contradicts grace.

The key is to distinguish:

• the meaning of "repent" as used in Scripture, and
• the role that repentance plays (or does not play) in the gospel of the grace of God.

The Meaning of Repent in Scripture

As noted earlier, the common evangelical move is to say that "repent" simply means "change your mind." That is largely driven by an attempt to protect grace. However, when we observe usage, "repent" consistently carries more than cognitive adjustment.

Consider Matthew 3:1–2:

"In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

John’s audience already possessed a robust expectation of the kingdom. They knew from Daniel and other prophets that the kingdom was coming. There is no indication that they denied the kingdom’s reality or timing in such a way as to require a mere change of opinion. Rather, John confronts them as a sinful nation needing moral and covenantal correction. His call is for them to turn from sin and align their conduct with the law in preparation for the kingdom.

The same is true for Jesus in Matthew 4:17:

"From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

This is not a summons to adopt a new theoretical view about the existence of the kingdom; it is a demand for behavior fitting that coming rule.

Throughout the Synoptic Gospels and early Acts, calls to repentance address Israel’s conduct and covenant infidelity, not a mere intellectual adjustment. So using the biblical pattern, repentance involves turning from sin, not just thinking differently.

Repentance and the Gospel of Grace

Romans 11:6 rightly insists that grace and works are mutually exclusive as bases for obtaining salvation. If we make repentance, defined as sorrow and turning from sin, a condition for receiving justification, we indeed introduce works, because such repentance is an action and a moral exertion.

Therefore, to protect the integrity of the gospel of grace, we must not make repentance, in that behavioral sense, a requirement for justification. Instead:

• The gospel of grace calls for faith in the Lord Jesus Christ: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." Acts 16:31
• Faith may include a change of mind about Christ, about sin, and about one’s own inability; but that does not redefine "repent" into mere mental adjustment.
• Repentance as turning from sin belongs in the kingdom call to Israel and in Christian sanctification, not in the terms of our justification in this dispensation.

So, how does this answer the charge that defining repentance as turning from sin violates Romans 11:6? The answer is:

• I affirm that repentance, as biblically used, is indeed sorrow and turning from sin.
• Because of Romans 11:6, I do not include repentance in that sense as part of the gospel of grace. The gospel is received by faith alone, not by repentance-plus-faith.
• When the New Testament uses the language of repentance in connection with the kingdom program, it is not defining the terms of salvation in the present grace dispensation; it is addressing Israel under a different administration.

Rightly Dividing to Avoid Confusion

The crucial move is to rightly divide the word of truth. If we fail to distinguish:

• Israel under the kingdom offer (where repentance and works are integral to the covenantal expectation), and
• the body of Christ under the dispensation of grace (where salvation is by grace through faith apart from works),

we either:

• redefine repentance into something that does not match its usage, or
• smuggle works into the gospel and undermine grace.

By maintaining both the true meaning of repentance and the distinctiveness of the grace gospel, we uphold Romans 11:6 without having to flatten or redefine biblical terms.

Thus, I am not violating Romans 11:6, because I am not teaching that one must repent (in the behavioral sense) in order to be saved under the gospel of grace. One must believe. Repentance as sorrow and turning from sin belongs either to a different dispensational setting or to the believer’s subsequent pursuit of holiness, not to the condition of justification.

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