Repent and Adorn Yourself

The first key message John the Baptist preached was repentance, proclaiming that the Lord was coming. When he saw Jesus, he testified that God had come, declaring Him to be God’s Lamb and God’s Son. Reference scriptures are Matthew 3:1–2, Luke 3:3–6, and John 1:29–34. After John the Baptist was arrested and imprisoned, the first gospel Jesus preached was also repentance, saying that through repentance one would receive the Kingdom of Heaven. The Kingdom of Heaven was Jesus Himself. Reference scriptures are Matthew 4:17 and Mark 1:14–15.

Jesus consistently taught people to cleanse and adorn themselves. Only then can one receive God. Even when a guest comes to your home, the first thing you do is clean thoroughly and change your clothes, then prepare something to serve them. How much more should this be done when standing before God. We must repent and adorn ourselves completely. Only then can we fully receive God and the Holy Spirit.

Throw Away Sin

No matter how pleasant a sound a dog makes, it is still only a dog’s sound. In the same way, a person who has not repented continually produces the sounds of sin. If you do not repent of sin, it remains with you and harms you. Therefore, you must repent. You know your own sins. You must repent before others discover them. You must move forward, even doing things you dislike, for the sake of a greater purpose.

God and the Holy Spirit are perfectly pure and shine like the sun. Only when you become one with God and the Holy Spirit can sin be completely removed. Sin is like excrement and rotten food. It is tied to Satan. When you repent, Satan departs. Excrement and trash are produced as a result of living for personal gain. Therefore, they must be thrown away. Even if discarding them is painful and unpleasant, it must be done. Only then will your body, your life, and what you have gained become clean, shine, and bring joy. This is a time for individuals, nations, and the world to discard what must be discarded and to cleanse completely. It is a time of repentance and judgment.

Just as food that is eaten and digested becomes flesh and bone, people gain through their actions. But just as digestion produces waste, repentance is also required. If waste is not removed when the time comes, it becomes unbearable. Life can continue only when it is discarded. The same applies to the byproducts of what has been gained and used. What must be thrown away must be thrown away. Only then will your body, your life, and what you have gained shine and bring satisfaction.

This is such a time for individuals, nations, and the world. Only by discarding trash and waste can one escape the judgment that is approaching. If they are not removed, even what you have gained will become corrupted. God brings judgment at such times. If you eat and drink, you must wash the dishes. Only then can you eat again.

You Yourself Must Repent

God cleanses what belongs to Him, just as summer rains and floods wash away what lies in plains and valleys. However, the things in your room and the dirt on your body must be cleaned by you. Repentance is the same. Each person must repent for what they themselves have done. Everyone must remove their own impurities. Only when you repent fully and adorn yourself completely will your spirit, body, and all that belongs to you shine like refined gold, become beautiful, and hold true value. Only when you are clean will you be able to discern what is not good.

At first, even work that must be done for a purpose feels difficult and undesirable. Yet the more you do it, the more willing you become. This applies to all areas of life. When waking early to pray, it feels difficult at first because you are deeply asleep. But once you awaken, your heart and thoughts change, and you desire to pray. The same is true of prayer, evangelism, and all meaningful work. At first, you may resist, especially when the work is difficult. But once you begin, the more you do what must be done, the more willing you become. Whatever it is, if you begin without fear, you will be able to do it.