Repentance unto life is an evangelical grace, the doctrine whereof is to be preached by every minister of the Gospel, as well as that of faith in Christ.
Faith is a gift of grace (Ephesians 2:8); so is repentance (Acts 11:18, Zechariah 12:10). Both are preceded in the spiritual life of the nascent believer by regeneration, as was demonstrated in our discussion of chapter X. The natural man cannot of his own power or initiative repent or believe (Romans 8:5-8, 1 Corinthians 2:14). Instead, they are gifts given by God. But we must be clear that God does not repent and believe for us. Repentance and faith are assertions of the new nature in Christ, man's response to God's work within him. These cannot be separated. They are also continuous features of the Christian life.
The Confession terms repentance an "evangelical grace" because it has to do with the evangel, or gospel of salvation. This repentance is to be preached by every minister along with faith (Mark 1:14-15).
Some may object that we have argued the natural man cannot obey God's command to repent and believe so he is relieved of the responsibility so to do; one cannot be held accountable for that which it is impossible for one to do, or so goes the reasoning. Yet this is simply not the case. Recall how we demonstrated that the fault for the natural man's inability to obey God's righteous commands lies with himself. His inability to obey caused by his own disobedience does not obviate his responsibility to obey.
Tomorrow: Repentance characterized.
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