The Prayerof Repentance is at Acts 2.
38 of the New Testament.
It forms part of Peter's address to the crowd on the day of Pentecost.
Pentecost is an important day in the church calendar, fifty days after the Jewish passover and seven weeks after Easter, it is featured in Acts as the day on which the Holy Spirit visited the apostles and Peter gave his first sermon to the church.
If you ever want to know what church is about, Peter's speech in Acts 2 is a good place to start.
The Prayer of Repentance itself is just one part of the address, but in a few lines sums up the task, the gift and the promise given to every Christian disciple from that day forward.
The task - "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven.
" This is minimum requirement for entry into the club of Christianity.
Repentance is another way of saying, "I recognise my sinful nature and ask for change".
Baptism is seen by most as a physical submerging in real water, by some as contact with just a few drops of holy water, and by others as an allegorical immersion into the spiritual water of Christ's teaching.
There is also debate, among Baptists in particular, as to the suitable age of a person being baptised.
But the idea is the same in all cases, that we let Christian doctrine engulf us.
If we do this in the name of Jesus, then our sins are forgiven.
Our sinful nature is washed away.
Just like having a bath to get clean.
The gift - "And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit".
It is an interesting thing to see the Holy Spirit called a gift, something good that is voluntarily given, and which can be refused.
When you are offered a gift, it is disrespectful to refuse it.
But neither is it obligatory.
However, to qualify for the promise, the third part of the prayer, it is a key requirement.
The promise - "The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off".
When Hebrews talked about "the promise" they would think of God´s promise to Abraham, that he would be the heir of the world through righteousness that comes from faith.
(Rom 4.
13).
Peter is here saying that the promise, through Jesus´s actions, has been extended to all mankind.
In these few lines we have the key concepts of Christianity.
If we can manage nothing else, yet we manage to confess this prayer, then we are on our way to the spiritual kingdom.
Your walk to faith is hotting up!