From "Radical Repentance" (Heavenward Bound, September 2026)
What does it mean to repent?
This issue of HB is devoted to John’s answers to that question, challenging our notion of repentance by examining whether we have borne fruit in keeping with it.
“Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” 13 And he said to them, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” (Luke 3.12-13 ESV)
The tax collectors and soldiers weren’t told to quit their jobs. They were told to repent!
The tax collectors were told to do only as they were authorized to do. The tendency for tax collectors in scripture was to abuse their office and collect more than they were authorized to do. This is in part why tax collectors and sinners are often mentioned in the same breath: They were synonymous with each other (cf. Matt. 9.11)
But let’s think more about John’s statement in v.12: “Collect no more than you are authorized to do”.
This specific deed in keeping with repentance was to practice submission to authority, in this case the authority given the tax collectors by the Roman government to collect taxes. While it may have been accepted practice for the Roman authorities to overlook “overages” which would line the pockets of the tax collectors, this did not go unnoticed by the Lord, nor by His messenger, John. Furthermore, such behavior exhibited a failure to love one’s neighbor as themselves.
You might remember how Zacchaeus, in his statement of repentance in Luke 19.8, specifically pledged to give half his goods to the poor (again, a godly use of his extra) as well as restoring fourfold to anyone he had defrauded. Zacchaeus does this unprompted by Jesus, clearly indicating that he knew such behavior was unwelcome among those who drew near to Him.
But returning to the subject of repentance, it is important to recognize that those who would repent and turn to God are required to practice submission to every form and level of authority.
This is done in a number of different contexts. As Christians we are called to submit to whatever government is in charge (Rom. 13.1-7), to our employers (Eph. 6.5-8), to the authority roles within our families (Eph. 5.22; 6.1) and those who oversee us as elders in the Lord’s church (Heb. 13.17). Of course all such submissions are done in keeping with our highest aim, which is to submit to God (1 Pet. 5.6; Heb. 12.9).
Repentance is marked by a respect for God’s authority. James 4.7 puts it plainly:
“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
Kyle Sanders
Kyle has been preaching since 2016 in Chiefland, Florida and Clinton, Mississippi before coming to work with the Jamestown church of Christ in 2021. Before preaching, he spent several years as a high school mathematics teacher in Indiana, Kentucky, and Florida. Kyle is a teacher at heart and brings his love of studying and interacting with students into his preaching and teaching efforts. He and his wife, a native Hoosier, have been blessed with five children, two dogs, a full house and zero leftovers.