"God...now commandeth all men everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30). This command is from God; and it
has come to you. "Repentance" means changing one's mind. Sad to say, all men are sinners and are going
the way that leads to destruction. God in His great love is commanding all men to turn right about turn
and go towards Him, and He is willing to accept them. "...him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast
out" (John 6:37). ",..except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3).

1. Have you repented of all your sins? Perhaps you have heard the voice of God and have decided to
repent. But have you repented of all your sins? "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend
in one point, he is guilty of all. For he that said, do not commit adultery, said also, do not kill. Now if
thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law" (James2: 10, 11).
You may be willing to leave 99 sins; but there may be one sin of which you have no mind to repent; then
it is as if you have not repented at all. If you truly repent, you must flee from every sin.

2. Have you realized the sinfulness of sin? Adam and Eve only ate one fruit, disobeyed God only once,
and they were sent away from the Garden of Eden. Their sin may appear small to man, but it was very
serious before God. You might think that only to kill is a sin, but God says,"...Whosoever shall say, Thou
fool, shall be in danger of hell fire"(Matt.5: 22), or you might think that only adultery is serious, but God
says, "...whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his
heart" (Matt.5:28). When God really opens your eyes you will realize how serious and abominable' all
your sins are. "Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and
shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations" (Ezek.36: 31).
Then you will cry out, "0 wretched man that I am!" (Rom.7: 24). Read also -Psa.38: 3-5; Psa.51: 3,4;
Isa.59:2.

3. Are you really sorry for your sins? In Luke 18: 13 we read of a man who was sorry for his sins. This
man came to the Temple. but stood afar off. In this way he confessed that because of his sins he was
unworthy to approach the presence of God. Do you realize how unworthy you are to come before the
holy God? Secondly, he would not lift up his eyes unto heaven. He acknowledged that he was guilty
before God, and worthy to be punished. He hung down his head like a guilty criminal. Have you ever
acknowledged that because of your sins you deserve to be cast into the lake of fire? "The wicked shall be
turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God" (Psa.9: 17). Thirdly, this man smote upon his breast.
Had anyone died in his house? No. but he was full of sorrow for his own sins. You have shed many tears
because of pain, sorrow or disappointment. But have you shed one tear before God, being sorry for your
sins? Fourthly, he prayed saying, God be merciful to mea sinner". He came believing that he would
receive mercy from God. "For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all
them that call upon thee" (Psa.86: 5). Have you called upon the Lord and obtained His mercy?

4. Have you brought forth the fruits of repentance? It is possible that you have repented, and God knows
all about it. But should not men also have the evidence of it? The Lord Jesus said, "...by their fruits ye
shall know them" (Matt.7:20). When you see mangoes on a tree, then you know it is a mango tree. So
also when people see the fruits of repentance in you they will know that you have repented. Have you
made peace with all your enemies? Have you asked forgiveness from all whom you have offended? Have
you returned the articles you have stolen? Have you decided to pay back all your debts, even though you
have to make much sacrifice in order to do so? Have you given up your bad habits? Are you controlling
your tongue and temper in the fear of God? Are you praying for your enemies without retaliating evil for
evil?

5. Do you realise that you were born in sin? "And think not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham
to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham"
(Matt.3: 9). You cannot say you are different from other people because you are born in a godly family.
"...for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Rom.3: 22,23).
Even David says, "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me" (Psa.51: 5).
"Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then may ye also do good, that are
accustomed to do evil" (Jer .13:23). We are all born with a sinful nature. By birth we are a generation of
vipers (Matt.3:7). We have committed such abominable sins that the Lord had to say to us all, "Ye are of
your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do" (John 8:44).

This was our terrible condition! But thank God, it is not so now. When we repented of our sins, He freely
forgave us, cleansed us from all our sins, and has made our bodies the temple of the Holy Spirit.
Notwithstanding you have to remember that when you were born to your mother you were born in sin;
this body of yours is a "body of sin" (Rom.6:6), and a "body of death" (Rom.7:24); this body will be left
in the grave and can never go to heaven (1 Cor.15:42-44)

YE ARE MY WITNESSES -14
BAKHT SINGH

We can prove God's faithfulness, even in small things. There is no need to be anxious, troubled or
worried when things go wrong. God may permit in our lives many painful situations to give us strong
faith. He is our living God. He is all-powerful for every situation. He wants to prove that He is interested
even in small things. Do not depend upon sleeping pills, but trust in God's Word. He will give you sound
sleep. Most of you do not get proper sleep, because you are worried too much. Do not blame others for
lack of sleep. It is your own worries and anxieties and unbelief, which keep you awake. Whenever
someone says anything against you, you do not get sleep. If by chance you lose something, you cannot
sleep. Perhaps you lose your umbrella in the bus; even though it is an old one you cannot sleep for two or
three days. When you do not get sleep you should go upon your knees.

We read that the angel told Peter to bind on his sandals (Acts 12:8). They were not new shoes or English
shoes. They must have been old or even torn ones. We do not know how old they were. Some people
change their chappals every month, because they wear out soon. Some change for the sake of fashion.
But this man of God did not follow the modern fashion. His were old-fashioned shoes. My father was an
old fashioned man. He used to wear old-fashioned shoes and long shirts. One day he came to see me in
the hostel and brought nice things for me. He was sitting beside me on the cot. One of my schoolmates
saw my father, called me out and asked me who that man was, with old-fashioned shoes, and shirt. I was
so ashamed and told him that he was from my village. I took his money, food and other things but was
ashamed to say that he was my father. The man of God, Peter, was not ashamed.

We see here how the Lord takes interest even in small matters like old shoes. The Lord knew that in his
excitement Peter would leave his shoes behind. This has happened many a time to many of us. One day a
man came to see me. After a while, he wished everyone good bye and left. But he came again after a few
minutes. I wondered why he had returned. He had forgotten his chappals. God knew that Peter was just
an ordinary man, though he was filled with the Holy Spirit. We do not become supernatural when we are
born again. We remain ordinary human beings. We all have common weaknesses and failures as human
beings. Thank God for He is our sufficiency for all our needs.
See how God of grace is interested even in small things like Peter's shoes. You think of big things but
God is interested in small things too. That is why God's Word says, our tears are numbered (Psa.56:8).
Our hairs are also numbered (Matt. 10:30). Sometimes when we comb our hair, they fall. You do not
know how many have fallen. Nor does your wife or husband, your children or parents know. But God
knows. So also, He knows the number of our tears. Every tear we shed in sorrow, in trials and in
difficulties, He knows, and He knows how to keep it. He puts our tears in a bottle. He does so to remind
us and to show us that He knows what we 90 through and makes provision for every need.

He makes provision for our comfort, strength and sorrow. God will not allow anyone to take away even
our old chappals. The Lord has looked after my old chappals all through the past years. Many lose their
chappals in the train. Even though they put them under their head, clever thieves take them away. I have
travelled for many years but never lost my chappals in the train. But strange to say, I have lost them in
the meetings. I have always prayed while travelling, asking the Lord to look after even my small things.

Once I got into a very crowded train. I wanted to have a shave badly. I could not 90 out lest I should lose
my place. So I prayed saying, "Lord, will you please send me a barber?" I kept my head outside the
window and a barber came. He shaved me, I paid the money, and the train started immediately. I knew if
I had shouted for a barber, my voice would not reach him. But the Lord shouted for me. He brought the
barber right on the spot. You may say, it was a chance, but to me it is God's provision. Learn to pray for
every small thing. Scripture says in Phil.4: 6, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and
supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God". This should be our daily
experience. Some children learn everything by heart and get very good marks. After three weeks all that
they have learned by heart is forgotten. That is how many learn Scripture verses by heart and soon forget
them.