Forming Faith Blog

A Change of Mind (Luke 13)

Posted on March 4 2025 by Gregory Rawn

We wander (walk, or run) away from God. This is just reality—our paths are not God’s path. These paths are not physical; they are mental. Here in Luke 13, Jesus calls us to change our minds (literally).

A blue U-turn sign on a roadway. Repentance is about a change of mind, a life u-turn.
Heading to Jerusalem

In the reading on Ash Wednesday (Luke 9:51-62), we heard that Jesus “set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51). That is the context of all the lectionary readings from now through Palm Sunday and continuing to the cross on Good Friday. Last week, we heard about a lawyer, a merciful Samaritan, and a conflict between two of Jesus’ disciples (Martha and Mary). Now we really get into some Lenten themes: suffering and repentance.

Suffering

So, it is on his journey to Jerusalem that some people told Jesus about a horrifying event: The Roman governor of the region had ordered the murder of multiple Galileans while they were making a sacrifice in the temple. To add an extra layer of extreme sacrilege to the crime, the blood of these murder victims was mixed in with the blood of the sacrifice they had been making. Not only did those who were murdered suffer, but all whom this sacrilege affected.

Jesus’ response suggests a question not recorded by Luke: Was this suffering a punishment for these Galileans’ sins? Did they get what they deserved? This sounds heartless to us, but it came from a logical place. It gave some comfort to think that bad things happened to some people because they were bad. Comfort and control. If suffering is a result of punishment, then to avoid suffering, all you have to do is to avoid doing bad stuff. After all, the Bible is filled with stories of people suffering under God’s wrath. However, Jesus’ unqualified answer is, “No.” Or, rather, a “No, but.”

Repent!

Jesus’ response is a non sequitur—or at least a foreshortening of a logical train of thought. It is almost as if his response is, “Their deaths are not from their sin. But, as long as we are on the subject of sin, everyone needs to repent so they don’t die.” Jesus even pulls in another example of grisly death, people caught in a collapsing tower. This warrants the same answer, “No, but repent!”

Metanoia: Change of Mind

The Greek word used for repentance is metanoia. This concept is not the same as feeling guilty or apologizing, though those might accompany repentance. The term means to turn around mentally, to change your mind. When we repent, we stop going down our own path and instead start walking on God’s path: the path that Jesus is taking toward Jerusalem, the cross, and (eventually) the resurrection.

From Here to There

Metanoia—as I understand it—is not just about one action or even one habit. It is about your whole self, your whole life. But it’s all well and good to talk about changing your mind and walking a new path, but what does this mean in real life?

Thoughts and Actions

I am not a psychologist, but this holistic view of repentance reminds me of cognitive behavioral therapy. In the model of CBT (as I understand it), psychological problems originate in part as harmful thought patterns that lead to negative behaviors. The behaviors can become habitual and influence or reinforce those harmful thought patterns. The goal of this therapy is to change one’s mind, not just in coming to a different opinion, but literally. That sounds like metanoia. In CBT, how is this accomplished? By changing our behavior. Not all at once, but by catching yourself in the negative thoughts or behaviors and interrupting them. Change is accomplished one thought, one action at a time.

Sin and Repentance

What does this have to do with repentance? One overly simplistic way to define sin (the nature, not the individual actions) is as negative thought processes. The structure of our minds has been warped in a way that is not God’s way. Therefore, we behave in a way that is not God’s way. Our way of thinking and behaving is ultimately harmful to ourselves and others. Our way is the way of death, while God’s way is the way of life. Just as someone cannot will themselves out of depression, anxiety, or other disorders of the mind, we cannot just will ourselves into God’s way of thinking. Change—repentance—is accomplished one thought, one action at a time. We can call these actions faith practices.    

Metanoia and Forgiveness

Talk of sin and repentance often involves forgiveness. The default thought pattern is:

  • Sin -> Repentance -> God’s forgiveness

This leads to the conclusion that to receive God’s forgiveness you must first repent. Repentance is, by definition, something we do. So, predicating God’s forgiveness on something we do makes my Protestant senses twitch. The gospel—God’s unconditional, undeserved love (including forgiveness)—cannot be based on anything we do. So, we have to break the sequence in two:

  • Sin -> Turning our backs on God -> Repentance (turning back to God) -> Renewed relationship
  • Sin -> God’s forgiveness -> Reconciliation

God’s love underlies everything. It does not depend on our state of mind or the actions it leads us to. God’s love is unconditional. But God’s love means that God is not content to let us suffer in our harmful thoughts and behaviors. We have turned away from God—damaging our relationship with God—but God has never turned away from us. God’s relationship with us is undamaged. God does not need us to repent. We do. The Holy Spirit aids us in this journey as we daily work of repentance to change our minds.

Blessings,

Gregory Rawn (Publisher)

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