Unfortunately, the problem has been brought about by unscriptural practices of many in our movement, followed by knee-jerk reactions and writings combating the wrongs. For example, there is an area church that has claimed to have over 1500 saved in each of the last four years. In each year they have baptized over 400. Meanwhile, their Wednesday night attendance hovers at 150. If that is New Testament Evangelism, then after the 120 prayed on the day of Pentecost they had to have 12000 saved in order to baptize 3000, and when they met to pray the next service their attendance was probably 117. NO! I believe their attendance was at least 3120.
The knee-jerk reaction to these obviously unbiblical practices, unfortunately is just as unbiblical, and probably even more dangerous. Usually their main attack centers on the word "repentance". Surely, the other crowd must be leaving out repentance in their preaching. This translates into the teaching that a person must at least "be willing to turn from their sinful practices" in order to get saved. Then their main proof texts come from verses which use the word "repent," including verses written specifically to saved people.
As you read these papers you find that these men of God, in a rush to combat one heresy, end up teaching another as they demonstrate a complete disregard for the first law of biblical hermeneutics -- context. Context ultimately determines the EXACT meaning of every word. To quote verses using the word repentance that are clearly directed to the saved, and apply that meaning to the verses dealing with the lost will lead to false doctrine.
We also need to study the context of the word when used to the lost. Peter used the word "repent" in Acts 2:38 and Acts 3:19. Context tells us he was preaching to Jewish audiences, and his message is plain. They had rejected Jesus of Nazareth as being the Christ, and they were to repent of that rejection. When he spoke to the Gentile Cornelius in Acts 10, Peter did not even use the word repent, but simply stated "whosoever believeth on him shall receive remission of sins." I believe if we could ask Peter why he changed his message, he would answer that he did not change it at all. To repent of a wrong belief about Christ is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
To read some of the papers on repentance you would have to believe that the Gospel of John is incomplete or just plain wrong. Can a person be saved by the message of John 3:16 or not? The Holy Spirit tells us why the book was written in John 20:30,31, "And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name."
Dr. Mike Allison
Pastor, Madison Baptist Church, Madison Alabama
BroAllison@c-a-n.net