Repent. Jesus’ first words in the Gospel of Mark are clear: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel,” (Mark 1:15). What does it mean to repent? Repentance means a change of mind. This change is to acknowledge that you are sinful and to make a conscious choice to turn away from sin and turn to God (1 Thessalonians 1:9). Unless one repents, he will perish (Luke 13:3, 5). A repentant person rejects his/her disobedient and ungodly ways and seeks, from the heart, the Lord’s way of living (Acts 26:20).
Believe. Again, Jesus says, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” What does it mean to believe? It means (1) that you trust in Jesus’ work on the cross as the only way you can be saved (Romans 3:21-26). It also means (2) that you acknowledge the truth of the Gospel and truth about God—for example, you must believe that He exists (Hebrews 11:6), that He is One God in Three Persons (Matthew 28:19; Ephesians 4:4-6), and that His Son is the only way of salvation (John 14:6). True beliefs always affect a person’s life…
Follow Jesus. Belief in the Gospel leads to following Jesus (John 3:36). Later in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus tells us what it means to follow Him. He says, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me,” (Mark 8:34). To be a Christian is to follow Jesus by loving Him and thus living in full obedience to Him (John 14:15). True Christians will deny their own way and their selfish desires (Galatians 5:24), choosing instead to obey Jesus Christ as their Lord (Romans 6:17-18). Though no one is without sin, a true believer will recognize and confess his/her sins, receiving God’s forgiveness (1 John 1:9).