“And you will open their eyes to their true condition, so that they may turn from darkness to the Light and from the power of Satan to the power of God. By placing their faith in me they will receive the total forgiveness of sins and be made holy, taking hold of the inheritance that I give to my children!’” (Acts 26:18)
Jesus tells Paul he will be a witness of Him, and through this Jesus will rescue him from persecution so that where He sends him the above is what will happen for those who choose to repent.
This isn’t done by mere words alone, there is something people must see accompany the words, and that is the character and lifestyle of Jesus. “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” (1 John 2:6)
Above we also see the call of people to repent, and notice it says “by placing their faith in”, so let’s look at the word faith. The Word of God says in Hebrews 11:6, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.” And here is some good news, in Romans 12:3 we can see “… God has dealt every man the measure of faith” So not only did Jesus not give us a spirit of fear, but He gave us the exact thing we need to combat it, faith!
The Greek word for faith is “pistis” and comes from the root word “peitho” which means to be fully persuaded. Just like Abraham is Romans 4:21 “and being fully persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able to perform. And God counted him righteous because of his faith.” It also means to trust in and be committed to. Proverbs 3:5-6 says “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” We also see in Psalm 37:5, “Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.”
“God rejoices when we manifest a faith that holds him to his Word”- Smith Wigglesworth
The word believe in Greek is “pisteuō”, by looking at this can you guess what its root word is? It is “pistis” the Greek word for faith! These words are connected, and carry much more weight than how many today see them today. Real faith and believing always bring a corresponding action with it (James 2:14-26)
“For it was in Damascus that I first declared the truth. And then I went to Jerusalem and throughout our nation, and even to other nations, telling people everywhere that they must repent and turn to God and demonstrate it with a changed life.” (Acts 26:20)
“You must prove your repentance by a changed life.” (Matthew 3:8)
Not this:
“These people honor me only with their words, for their hearts are so very distant from me. They pretend to worship me, but their worship is nothing more than the empty traditions of men.” (Matthew 15:8-9)