 and you tell the Lord that you're sorry about the fact you're a sinner, that's repentance, and you want Jesus to come into your heart and give to you the payment he paid for you on that cross. Because, see, God's a God of perfect righteousness. He hates sin and can't let sin go unpunished. So either we had to pay for our sins by dying lost for eternity and paying for them, or we could receive the payment Jesus paid in our place. God loved us so much he allowed Jesus to pay the penalty in our place in full