Job 42:1-6

Job was ready to challenge the Almighty and did not hold back with his questions. God, in turn, did not hold back with his answers. He told Job, “You were not present at creation; you cannot control my creation, nor can you overpower two of the great creatures I made.” God then asked, “Who are you to question me when you cannot comprehend the mind of the Creator, control the ways of the Creator, or conquer what I created?” When confronted by God, Job reacted in two ways: first, he was humbled, and then he repented.

Job 42:5-6
I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; ⁶ therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.

Repentance is a vital theological truth and an essential practice for every believer. It serves as both the starting line and the runner’s pace in the Christian life. The first step of repentance occurs when we place our trust in Christ, known as initial repentance, which marks the beginning of our Christian journey. The second aspect of repentance is ongoing. It represents a continuous process in the believer’s life that fosters growth. Today, let’s focus on initial repentance. Next time, we’ll explore ongoing repentance. Understanding the full meaning of repentance is crucial, as it must be part of our discipline for spiritual growth. Let’s start with a definition.

The word “repent” in Job 42:6 is the Hebrew term niham, which means “to change one’s mind.” However, this does not refer to a change “about individual plans, intentions, or beliefs, but rather a change in the whole personality from a sinful course of action to God.”^[1] In essence, to repent signifies a radical change in thinking and direction.

In the New Testament, the Greek word for repent is metanoeo, which means “a change of mind or purpose.” This term emphasizes action. We may recognize the need to alter our thinking and direction but often fail to take steps toward that change. The Greek word directs us to put change into motion. To be clear, repenting does not involve changing our diet or exercise routine. It initiates, as mentioned earlier, “a change in the whole personality from a sinful course of action to God.” And that is where the Christian life begins.

In our faith journey, initial repentance starts with the realization that we are separated from God because of our sins. We acknowledge that we cannot bridge this separation through our good works. We understand that Jesus came to do for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves. Because Jesus is both fully God and fully man, he paid the penalty for our sins. He was sinless and voluntarily died as our substitute. Trusting in Jesus as the One who paid for our sins signifies our initial repentance. This transforms our minds and actions, shifting from trusting in ourselves to trusting in Jesus. When we do this, Paul says we become a new creation; “…the old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Cor. 5:17). J. I. Packer states, “Repenting means starting to live a new life.”[2]

One of the great stories of initial repentance in the New Testament is found in Luke 5. Under the Roman government, Israel was taxed into poverty. The Romans recruited Jews to collect the taxes. These tax collectors often overcharged and pocketed the surplus. The Jewish people viewed tax collectors as traitors of the worst sort.

Levi was a tax collector, a wealthy man with a significant position. Jesus met Levi right where he was—in the tax booth. Jesus said, “‘Follow me.’ And leaving everything, he rose and followed him” (Luke 5:27-28). By grace through faith, Levi was spiritually transformed. Theologian Wayne Grudem says it like this:

Conversion is a single action of turning from sin in repentance and turning to Christ in faith. A person who genuinely turns to Christ for salvation must at the same time release the sin to which he or she has been clinging and turn away from the sin in order to turn to Christ.[3]

Initial repentance is a part of Job’s story that is not recorded. However, we know there was a time when God told Job, “Follow me.” Job would not have known about Jesus, so how could he have been saved? The apostle Paul addresses that question in Romans 4. Paul explains that Abraham, who we consider to be a contemporary of Job, “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness” (Rom. 4:3 NIV). Neither Abraham nor Job could have worked their way to God by keeping the law because the law would not be given for another four hundred years! Did Job know about Jesus? No. But by grace through faith, he trusted God to forgive him and bring him into a personal relationship. In God’s plan, Job’s new life was based on the future work of Jesus. Paul made it clear that whether you lived in Old Testament times or after Jesus came, the means of salvation is no different: by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.[4] (We’ll consider this further when we study the book of Romans).

When we read that Job was “blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil” (Job 1:1), this does not describe Job’s good works that earned him a relationship with God. Rather, Job 1:1 reflects the result of God’s work in Job’s life. Because Job trusted in God by grace through faith, he was empowered to fear God and live obediently before him.

Ann sat in a church service and stared at the crucifix. Beneath it were the words Jesus spoke from the cross: “It is finished.” God had been working in Ann’s heart, opening her mind to understand that she could add nothing to her relationship with him. Jesus had accomplished all the work for her. On that day, Ann realized two things. First, she was finished trying to earn her way to God. Second, Jesus had completed all the work for her on the cross. That day marked her initial repentance. She left behind her old way of thinking and living and entered a new walk with Jesus. The old had passed away; the new had come.

My prayer is that you, like Ann, have left behind the old ways and embraced a new life with Jesus.

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD
Read Job 42:1-6. Focus on the steps of initial repentance.

Talking to God
Thank God for opening your eyes and heart to trust in Jesus alone, by grace alone, through faith alone.

Have Questions?
Be sure to send your questions to our team. We are happy to assist you as you explore God’s Word. Submit your question below, and we’ll reply soon. And if you don’t know where you stand with Jesus, we would love to have that conversation with you.

^[1] Paul Helm, “Repentance,” in Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1988), 1836–1837.

[2] J. I. Packer, Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs (Tyndale House Publishers, 1993), 162.

[3] Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Zondervan, 1994), 713.

[4] https://www.gotquestions.org/Old-Testament-salvation.html