Repentance, Forgiveness, Restoration

There is a consistent pattern laid out in Scripture.Repent and be forgiven, then the Lord will restore you.What has happened to western Christianity that we do not hear the first message Jesus preached...."repent for the kingdom of God is at hand!"Repentance has become a dirty word in many circles because it sounds "judgy" or it is not "seeker friendly" or it is blatantly ignored.God is treated like a magic genie granting wishes to all those who pray...but we have forgotten you can "pray amiss" (James 4:3). We have forgotten that Jesus never stopped preaching repentance, his mercy so often overshadows his first message.