Repent...

 For the kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

These are the first words of instruction that our Lord speaks to us in the Gospel of St. Matthew today (Mat 4:12-17).  Prior to this, He speaks to the Forerunner (Let it be so for now, for thus is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness), and He speaks to Satan in the desert the three rebukes for the three temptations.

But these words today are now different.  They are directed at all people—for all time.

Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

For those being taught how to communicate in the forum of public speaking, the first axiom taught is, ‘Lead with the message you are attempting to communicate.”  In other words, start with strength and set the direction.

These nine simple words from the lips of the Word are the greatest example of this.  If we as faithful followers of our Lord begin our efforts, our struggles, with the focus being on repentance, all of the other virtues will fall into place.

What are the other virtues?

FAITH: How can one fully embrace faith in God, faith in Christ, faith in the Trinity without being repentant?  God, Who IS love and Who loves all of us, both the evil and the good, shows that we cannot approach Him without sharing in that love.  And how can we love when we do not repent?  How can we separate our sins from our interactions with our fellow man?

HOPE:  Hope is that virtue that calls us to hold out for that which is good.  We expect it from God.  We have hope in others for good.  We even expect ourselves to turn from evil toward good.  But that’s the definition of repentance.  Without repentance, there is no hope!

HUMILITY  When we repent, we place ourselves into that position which we pray in each of our “Prayers before communion,” where we declare ourselves to be one of all sinners, but we declare ourselves as the first among sinners.  If I see myself as less sinful than ANY other, then I lack true humility.  And the only way to change this condition is—by repenting, proving myself to be first among sinners.

We could continue through the list of virtues, but we’d come to the same conclusion in each case—the virtues are acquired by submitting to this first of our Lord’s instructions to us.

REPENT

But Jesus continues with the words that follow.

For the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

The Greek word used for “at hand” is engizo.  It carries the meaning that the subject being pointed to is near, NOT at some distance.  Jesus is saying that we don’t need to look to the sky to imagine heaven in the distance.  Heaven is here, in amongst us, around us.

At the Feast of Nativity, we sang with great joy, “GOD IS WITH US!”  If He is with us, and He is in heaven, then where are we to find heaven, if not truly also here, with us?

The Lord makes it clear that God does not despise the broken and contrite heart (Ps 51:17).  This is the offering, the ‘sacrifice’ He asks us to bring to Him—our Repentance!