DAY
5

A CHANGED MIND

MARK 1:9-15

“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”

MARK 1:15, NIV

REPENT AND BELIEVE are often considered the first words of the gospel because, according to Mark, Jesus began his public preaching ministry with them. The second word inspires us; we long to be filled with mountain-moving faith. But repentance? That’s more intimidating. We know the connotations. It has been thundered from high pulpits and shouted from street platforms for centuries, resonating with shame-filled hearts and offending the proud. Repentance is a true command; Jesus and Scripture would not emphasize it if it were not. But the command comes with such baggage that we have to wonder if centuries of voices have translated it well.

Hebraic tradition emphasized the behavioral side of repentance, and Greek thought emphasized a renewed understanding, though both originate inside of us and have outward consequences. But regardless of how we dissect repentance, we can be certain God means it comprehensively. It has to go deep. And there’s only one way for that to happen—not through disciplining our outward selves, but by learning a radically different way to see.

Lent is not a time to beat yourself up. It’s a time to immerse yourself in a new way of seeing. That’s the kind of repentance that aligns with God’s purposes for you and that ultimately produces lasting change. When you see with new eyes, you don’t have to train yourself to do the right things. Your inward transformation shapes your outward expression.

So what does Jesus want us to see? The astonishingly good news that his Kingdom is near—accessible, recognizable, and available for us to experience. That’s the focus of his preaching and the reason he tells us to repent. In order to know and experience him, we have to be able to see extraordinary Kingdom realities. But jaded minds are skeptical of such good news; we have to repent to embrace it.

We live in a world that is in a state of disorganization, deterioration, and decay. But the Kingdom, which begins as imperceptibly as a mustard seed, will overcome the world. This Kingdom flourishes. It’s full of life. It grows. A mind steeped in the world and its disappointments will miss Kingdom truth. It believes without really trusting and hopes without really expecting. The repentance for which Jesus calls changes that weary perspective and replaces it with the vision to see the truth: an unfolding promise of goodness and glory. The Kingdom really has come near. Turn your perspective away from old ways of seeing and embrace the new. Then walk in the vision you’ve been given.

PRAYER

Lord, during this Lenten season, divorce me from my dependence on what I see. Give me eyes to see the glory of your Kingdom each day, and teach me to walk in it. Amen.

REFLECTION

In practical terms, what is the difference between a changed mind and changed behavior? How are they related? Is it possible to have one without the other? Why or why not?

DAY 5

DAY
5