Hello all! It's been a while, but God has been good. I have been inspired to discuss some important topics.
I'm attempting to research The Message by Eugene Peterson (The Bible in Contemporary Language). I know I'm a few years behind, but I have yet to research The Message for myself and see if it is really a trustworthy translation of Scripture or if it's something a little more sinister. My friends, mentors, and fellow brothers and sisters in Christ are all torn on this issue, so I feel it's important to discuss.
It's become clear to me that The Message is becoming a standard part of the Christian experience. Many churches and Bible studies quote The Message and call it God's Word. The effective marketing around The Message aims it toward young adults and "the average person", presumably one who is not familiar with Christian lingo. This means that this version has permeated popular culture. The Message is not going away any time soon.
Despite Eugene Peterson's personal statement that The Message should be considered a "reading Bible" and not a "study Bible", people seem to be treating this version as THE Bible, and claiming that those who don't trust it are at best close-minded and at worst legalistic.
Now, I've seen great teachers argue over the slightest word change in the more standard Bible versions. It seems that those who have studied the ancient text know the subtleties of the language and the danger a misrepresentation could pose. Most of the Bible versions I have read have an entire committee of scholars, pastors, and editors that have spent endless hours pouring over every individual word of the text so that these discrepancies do not occur. These scholars have a reverence about their work; they are accountable for their translation. They seem to believe that there is no difference between a "reading Bible" and a "study Bible". God's Word is life or death and is not to be taken lightly.
So the most nagging question in my mind is, why does Eugene Peterson claim to have the education and skills to translate the entire Bible on his own, and dramatically different from everyone else? But the most important question is: can believers and unbelievers alike take from The Message and know the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior?
There are three main arguments I can see about The Message, and they are mutually exclusive. If one is true, the others cannot be true simultaneously:
1) The Message is a trustworthy and divinely-appointed translation of Scripture. The paraphrases do not take away from essential doctrine.
2) The Message is at best a human book inspired by Scripture. Its purpose is to lead people to Truth, and encourage them to read the real Bible.
3) The Message is a deceptive version of Scripture that is infesting our youth and our churches. It will eventually be accepted as a standard Biblical version, and doctrine will be based on it because it is accepted as a Bible by publishers and pastors alike.
I intent to research these questions and arguments to the best of my ability. I imagine I will learn a lot about other versions of the Bible along the way. During my initial stages of research, I have seen some pretty severe claims against The Message. What disappoints me is that most of the propaganda against The Message appears to be wildly biased and some claims against the character of Eugene Peterson are unsubstantiated. The propaganda I've seen so far supporting The Message is based on Peterson's accurate translation of the ancient text, quotes from popular and trusted Christian superstars supporting this version, and some very clever marketing.
At this point in time, I do not fall into any of these 3 camps above. I am researching, and I pray that my quest will be untainted by bias. I have no agenda; I simply seek truth. I hope that what I find can help others as well.
If you have questions or arguments as well, please do not hesitate to leave a comment or email me at thegodfiles@gmail.com.
Showing posts with label Commentary on the church. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Commentary on the church. Show all posts
Friday, June 22, 2012
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Attitude Toward Sin: Flippant or Inevitable?
I can't tell you how many times I hear a speaker attest to the wonderful things God has done in his or her life. The speaker is very passionate, gets emotional when discussing previous sinful state, and joyfully announces the victory found in Christ. The audience feels a great sense of hope and encouragement from this talk, especially when it concludes with a crescendo of passion such as "God saved me from my life of sin so that I may live a life in freedom and serve Him! Praise God!" There is an appropriately animated response of Praise God indeed. But then -- as if this is an obligatory and mandatory addendum to the speaker's testimony, he or she will say (lest they are thought of as arrogant) -- "I'm still imperfect, that's a given -- I mean, we're all still sinners" to which the audience will reply with applause and hearty head bobs. Yet, I bury my head in sadness. Why do we prize sinfulness and assume it is a necessary part of the Christian life? What should the Christian attitude be toward sin?
You might be thinking, "What's the big deal? What the speaker said is absolutely true!" The reason I get so upset when people have this flippant attitude toward sin is because it's 1) confusing to unbelievers 2) misleading to believers and 3) blasphemous to God (therefore not true). I don't mean to offend those who have ascribed to this belief all their lives, so bear with me as I explain. Again, this is a good time for me to say that if you have any issues with my analysis, please feel free to email me or talk to me.
The modern Christian church teaches that sin is inevitable and it is likely a daily part of the Christian walk. Lately confession of sin has been mistaken for humility; saying that you are not a sinner is akin to saying you believe in works-based salvation (i.e. others find you blasphemous and proud and will quote 1 John 1:8 at you). No, they will say, the proper thing to do in the church is to admit that you sin, confess your sins, and try not to do it again (but you inevitably will – because you’re a sinner). The problem with this flippant attitude, upon closer examination, is that it is unbiblical and wildly hypocritical. There, I said it. Please don’t wag your finger at me and tell me I’m not saved. I am no proponent of the works-based salvation. I simply believe that Christ is serious when He says “Go and sin no more” (John 8:11). Don’t think this is possible? Think this was just something to aspire to? Please continue reading.
Somebody once compared this flippant church attitude to a vegetarian who still eats meat. "I only eat meat when I can't resist it, or when it's more convenient. I'm still a vegetarian, don't get me wrong." But how does this practice look to outsiders? Instead of unbelievers thinking it's great that Christians are not holy rollers, they get disgusted that church-goers call unbelievers out on their sin, deny them marriage rights, and speak out against evil, and yet these so-called Christians still commit the same acts! What's the difference, a few spoken words of commitment? Romans 2:21-24 “you, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that one shall not steal, do you steal? 22You who say that one should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23You who boast in the Law, through your breaking the Law, do you dishonor God? 24For "THE NAME OF GOD IS BLASPHEMED AMONG THE GENTILES BECAUSE OF YOU," just as it is written.”
It's damaging to both the unbeliever and believer to have a flippant "oh we can't beat it" attitude about sin. It's a very negative and unbiblical view. Jesus is all about freedom! Galatians 5:1 “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” He came to set us free from the bondage of slavery so that we would know the fresh air of righteousness and live to serve Him. Some of the first words of His public ministry were Isaiah 61:1-3 (as seen in Luke 4:18-19 below).
18"THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME,
BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR.
HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES,
AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND,
TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED,
19TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD."
To say that Christians are free from sin yet still live in it does not make any sense. Think about that statement for a second. How are you set free if you are still enslaved to sin?! It's absurd! It's the biggest lie of Satan. Jesus tells us we cannot serve two masters as shown in Matthew 6:24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other You cannot serve God and wealth.” John reiterates it in 1 John 3: 6-9 “No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. 7Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; 8the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. 9No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.”
It is NOT inevitable for Christians to sin! What flesh we had that hindered us is now crucified and removed; there is nothing barring us from following Jesus with all of our hearts, minds, souls, and strength!
Galatians 5:19-24
19Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,20idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,21envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.24Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
I've seen a popular quote from Blaise Pascal: "There are two kinds of men: the righteous, who believe themselves sinners; & sinners who believe themselves righteous." Yet the Bible says, "Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous." (1 John 3:7) A truly righteous man knows he is righteous. The Bible states it plainly. Pascal's intention was probably influenced by a bit of Truth. It's true that the only way Christians are righteous is because they've accepted Christ (therefore admitting they were unrighteous), allowed Him to purify them, and then walk in righteousness with the Holy Spirit's leading. You cannot be righteous by your own works. Those who have not accepted Christ, who believe they need no redemption, are the unrighteous who believe they are righteous. This is what is meant by 1 John 1:5-9 “This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
When you read this passage in context, it is a gospel message, but I frequently hear 1 John 1:8 used to say “see? Christians still sin!” In order to be redeemed, you have to be redeemed of something. All have sinned (Romans 3:23) but those who accept Christ are purified and do not keep on sinning. To say otherwise is to say you walk in light and yet you walk in darkness as shown in 1 John above. 1 John 2:3-6 “By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4The one who says, "I have come to know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected By this we know that we are in Him: 6the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.”
I am so very passionate about this topic because I believe the current teachings and attitudes about sin are straight from Satan himself. It's a disturbing thought, that the blind are leading the blind. My friends, do not serve Satan, do not even say you serve him. Make your testimony "I have been redeemed and freed from sin" and keep it at that! God gives you a way out of every temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13) and He fights the battles for us. For goodness' sake, Jesus has already won! Live in victory and freedom, please do not allow Satan to ensnare any part of your heart. If you are a child of God, you are free. You are no longer enslaved to sin. It is not inevitable! That is the real gospel message! Praise God for His unending grace, His promise of life and freedom, and His sacrifice on the cross that makes all of this possible.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
The Importance of Forgiveness: Part 2 -- does God forgive future sins?
One of my previous blogs discussed the definition of forgiveness and some Bible passages on the subject. I titled it "The Importance of Forgiveness" and I recommend you read that first before you read this one, which will discuss what to do in situations where a person refuses to repent even when they should. You can find it here http://thegodfiles-hewhohasears.blogspot.com/2009/07/importance-of-forgiveness.html at that link or search for the July 4 post. Many thanks to my readers who suggested that I discuss this thought-provoking and sometimes controversial topic. I must introduce a difficult theological subject in order to write about how God wants us to treat those who do not repent. If God overlooks and forgives future sins, as so many believe, then Christians would be required to do the same thing to their fellow believers, meaning many Biblical passages will be rendered obsolete and my argument faulty. So I must debunk the illogical argument before presenting my views on this subject. I am well aware that my views are unpopular and very different from modern Christianity, so I hope you will continue reading despite your initial reservations. If you wish to argue why my beliefs are incorrect or unBiblical, I urge you to do so in the comment area or by e-mailing me at thegodfiles@gmail.com.
Let me first define true repentance: the act of changing a behavior (or sin) as a result of remorse or contrition for that behavior (or sin). Notice how I made the most important part of that sentence "the act of changing". In today's version of Christianity repentance is merely a form of false remorse, where the sinner feels slightly guilty for his or her behavior and continues to do it even though they know it is wrong. That is not true repentance. If you truly repent for your behavior you will change it. Imagine this scenario: a robber is in the middle of cleaning out a bank vault and you come along to stop his heist. "I'm terribly sorry, I know it's a horrible thing to do," the robber says, "please forgive me. I'd say that I won't do it again, but I know I will, so please forgive me for that too." Then he turns around and continues to rob the vault while you watch in horror at his blatant hypocrisy. This scenario seems absurd, but it is a sad representation of modern Christianity's views on redemption.
Tell me, if God forgives you for your future sins, what is the point of asking for forgiveness? Why would God tell you that you are freed from sin and demand you to live in holiness if He really means that you will be sinning for the rest of your life? Are you telling me that any professing believer who commits adultery and rapes children without repenting of it will go to Heaven because at one point in their life they said the prayer that was supposed to give them salvation? If you say no to that, then why not? If God truly forgives a person for all past, present, and future sins, then an unrepentant murderer, rapist, and adulterer will go to Heaven. Some would protest to this by saying, "but a Christian would not do those things!" All I have to say to that, is EXACTLY. Neither would a Christian steal, lie, cheat, get drunk, or sin in any other way. God's Word is absolute, and He says this:
1 Corinthians 6:9-10
Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
Galatians 5:19-21
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
1 John 3:5-6
And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
Some will say to this, "Christians are covered by God's grace, so they don't count when the Bible says 'those who practice this will not go to Heaven'". I will just blink open-mouthed at the absurdity of that statement. There is no contradiction in God's Word. Those who practice these things (sins) will not inherit the kingdom of God, and those who are of God do not practice sin. Therefore, those who are of God do not sin and inherit the kingdom. Do you really think God is going to take an unrepentant child molester into Heaven? What makes you think He'll take a liar? Even Revelation makes the distinction between those who follow God's commandments and those who still sin: Revelation 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
His grace empowers us to overcome all sin and Jesus says He will cleanse us of it completely. We don't have to do anything but obey Jesus, for He fights the battles for us and He rids us of sin! I am not suggesting that a person can lose salvation, what I am suggesting is that Christians are not given liberty to sin when God so clearly instructs otherwise. I believe that those who do not turn from their sinful ways never truly repented, and are therefore not saved. To say that those who merely recite the "sinner's prayer" and never change their lives are going to Heaven is a complete lie. Hebrews 10:26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. (Go to this link to understand my views on sin http://thegodfiles-hewhohasears.blogspot.com/2009/06/problem-of-sin.html. I believe it is only ever a conscious decision made in rebellion; I do not consider sin to be an accident or mere lack of knowledge. It is willful and deliberate defiance of God's Known Law.)
I hope I have not lost you in a grand theological debate. I assure you that my unpopular views on sin and salvation have everything to do with the discussion of unrepentant sinners. You see, if God truly forgives believers for future sins, then the Bible is painstakingly contradictory. It would mean that you and I would be required to "overlook" (as God presumably does) the many sinful actions of our fellow believers. But as I do not believe those who sin ever truly repented, I can continue my commentary in the next blog.
Let me first define true repentance: the act of changing a behavior (or sin) as a result of remorse or contrition for that behavior (or sin). Notice how I made the most important part of that sentence "the act of changing". In today's version of Christianity repentance is merely a form of false remorse, where the sinner feels slightly guilty for his or her behavior and continues to do it even though they know it is wrong. That is not true repentance. If you truly repent for your behavior you will change it. Imagine this scenario: a robber is in the middle of cleaning out a bank vault and you come along to stop his heist. "I'm terribly sorry, I know it's a horrible thing to do," the robber says, "please forgive me. I'd say that I won't do it again, but I know I will, so please forgive me for that too." Then he turns around and continues to rob the vault while you watch in horror at his blatant hypocrisy. This scenario seems absurd, but it is a sad representation of modern Christianity's views on redemption.
Tell me, if God forgives you for your future sins, what is the point of asking for forgiveness? Why would God tell you that you are freed from sin and demand you to live in holiness if He really means that you will be sinning for the rest of your life? Are you telling me that any professing believer who commits adultery and rapes children without repenting of it will go to Heaven because at one point in their life they said the prayer that was supposed to give them salvation? If you say no to that, then why not? If God truly forgives a person for all past, present, and future sins, then an unrepentant murderer, rapist, and adulterer will go to Heaven. Some would protest to this by saying, "but a Christian would not do those things!" All I have to say to that, is EXACTLY. Neither would a Christian steal, lie, cheat, get drunk, or sin in any other way. God's Word is absolute, and He says this:
1 Corinthians 6:9-10
Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
Galatians 5:19-21
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
1 John 3:5-6
And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.
Some will say to this, "Christians are covered by God's grace, so they don't count when the Bible says 'those who practice this will not go to Heaven'". I will just blink open-mouthed at the absurdity of that statement. There is no contradiction in God's Word. Those who practice these things (sins) will not inherit the kingdom of God, and those who are of God do not practice sin. Therefore, those who are of God do not sin and inherit the kingdom. Do you really think God is going to take an unrepentant child molester into Heaven? What makes you think He'll take a liar? Even Revelation makes the distinction between those who follow God's commandments and those who still sin: Revelation 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
His grace empowers us to overcome all sin and Jesus says He will cleanse us of it completely. We don't have to do anything but obey Jesus, for He fights the battles for us and He rids us of sin! I am not suggesting that a person can lose salvation, what I am suggesting is that Christians are not given liberty to sin when God so clearly instructs otherwise. I believe that those who do not turn from their sinful ways never truly repented, and are therefore not saved. To say that those who merely recite the "sinner's prayer" and never change their lives are going to Heaven is a complete lie. Hebrews 10:26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. (Go to this link to understand my views on sin http://thegodfiles-hewhohasears.blogspot.com/2009/06/problem-of-sin.html. I believe it is only ever a conscious decision made in rebellion; I do not consider sin to be an accident or mere lack of knowledge. It is willful and deliberate defiance of God's Known Law.)
I hope I have not lost you in a grand theological debate. I assure you that my unpopular views on sin and salvation have everything to do with the discussion of unrepentant sinners. You see, if God truly forgives believers for future sins, then the Bible is painstakingly contradictory. It would mean that you and I would be required to "overlook" (as God presumably does) the many sinful actions of our fellow believers. But as I do not believe those who sin ever truly repented, I can continue my commentary in the next blog.
Friday, June 26, 2009
The Problem of Sin
The Lord has laid this heavy on my heart to illustrate to you the problem of sin.
Here is an extreme example: imagine a robber points at your head with a gun and says he'll let you live if you recant your faith in Christ. What is more important to you, choosing Christ and everlasting life or choosing a faithless life on earth? I assume many of you would be horrified and outraged at the thought of someone suggesting you to recant your faith in Christ. I doubt any of you would think, "Well, if I recant Christ now, He'll always take me back when I ask for forgiveness before I go to bed." or even "If I deny Christ now and live, then I can save more people for God's glory -- I won't be of any use up in Heaven anyway."
How absolutely absurd! The thought of such betrayal sickens me, and hopefully you.
But isn't that what Satan does on a small scale every day? Doesn't he point the threat of sin at your head and say "I'll satisfy your temptations if you disobey Christ"? Aren't you making a choice between sin and God every time (assuming as I do that sin is a willful disobedience against God's known Law, or the refusal to do what you know to be right)? If you choose to sin against God, it is normally accompanied with a twinge of guilt and an excuse such as "I can always ask for forgiveness" or "there's no point in looking weird -- no one will listen to me if I follow God on this one. Wouldn't He rather I bring souls to Him?" or worse yet, "the temptation is too great to bear."
You know what I say to this? How absolutely absurd. The modern Christian mindset is sickening. Many of us have been brought up to believe that sin is normal, and we try as we like, we will never be rid of it. Some are even encouraged to find disobedience necessary because it proves how very reliant we are on Christ, and portrays His grace. It is not some secret within Christianity that we, as children of a Holy God, are supposed to despise sin and love righteousness. Yet why is the modern message, "Don't judge me; I'm a sinner too!" The modern message promotes that Christians are no holier than the typical sinner in an attempt to neutralize their self-imposed inadequacy. Ironically, most non-Christians are turned off by the fact that the church preaches overcoming sin and then turns around and commits fraud or adultery. All of the failures of the modern church further prove to non-Christians that God is not worth following, because He can't even control His own people.
God is not weak! God does not say "I don't mind if you sin because I will just overlook it", or "it's okay if you sin because I can't completely cleanse you anyway". On the contrary, God commands us to be holy, to commit ourselves to Him and trust that He will perfect us in obedience, so that we may live our lives as holy and blameless children, walking in the righteousness of Him who makes us pure. We do not hide behind Christ and hope God overlooks our sin; we allow Christ to take a sledgehammer to our sin! Christ will not take a sledgehammer to it until you fully commit it to Him. There is no "return policy" on sin. You can't just say, "okay God, I will get rid of this sin for now, but I can't promise anything for later." You either commit it to God or you don't. You either genuinely repent of your sin, or you are just saying words in vain. God is not fooled by hypocrisy, and He does not accept evil. Christians cannot be both darkness and light; we cannot serve both God and sin. It is a horrible injustice and blasphemy to God's name to suggest that we are allowed to sin against Him.
Jeremiah 7:8-11
8 “Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot profit. 9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and walk after other gods whom you do not know, 10 and then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered to do all these abominations’? 11 Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of thieves in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” says the LORD.
1 John 3:4-10
4 Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. 5 And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. 6 Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. 7 Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. 8 He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 9 10 In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
Hebrews 10:26-27
26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.
James 3:10-12
10 Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? 12 Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh
Romans 6:15-18
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin instruments of righteousness to God. leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
Just as surely as God hates sin, He keeps His promises. Jesus does not leave us to deal with Satan all by ourselves; on the contrary, the power to defeat sin is made in Christ alone. By recognizing our complete reliance on Jesus to make us pure, we are empowered to withstand temptation and choose God over sin every time. The only time it is ever hard to choose Jesus over Satan is if you love Satan more than God.
1 Corinthians 10:13
13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
James 4:7-8
7Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
John 14:21
21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
1 John 2:3-6
3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
Romans 6:5-7
5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.
Romans 6:11-14
11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
If you consider sin to be unacceptable, but unavoidable, I urge you to study the above passages. God's Word says we are freed from sin when we accept and obey Him. It says that we are either slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness. There is none of this "you're still holy if you sin" or even "Christians aren't holy" that the modern church is spewing. There is a way out for every temptation, there is a choice to be made every time between sin and God. Which will you choose when the gun is pointed at your head? Do you love God enough to allow Him to completely free you from sin, or do you love your sin so much you cannot imagine a life without it?
The gun will always be pointing, so choose wisely.
Here is an extreme example: imagine a robber points at your head with a gun and says he'll let you live if you recant your faith in Christ. What is more important to you, choosing Christ and everlasting life or choosing a faithless life on earth? I assume many of you would be horrified and outraged at the thought of someone suggesting you to recant your faith in Christ. I doubt any of you would think, "Well, if I recant Christ now, He'll always take me back when I ask for forgiveness before I go to bed." or even "If I deny Christ now and live, then I can save more people for God's glory -- I won't be of any use up in Heaven anyway."
How absolutely absurd! The thought of such betrayal sickens me, and hopefully you.
But isn't that what Satan does on a small scale every day? Doesn't he point the threat of sin at your head and say "I'll satisfy your temptations if you disobey Christ"? Aren't you making a choice between sin and God every time (assuming as I do that sin is a willful disobedience against God's known Law, or the refusal to do what you know to be right)? If you choose to sin against God, it is normally accompanied with a twinge of guilt and an excuse such as "I can always ask for forgiveness" or "there's no point in looking weird -- no one will listen to me if I follow God on this one. Wouldn't He rather I bring souls to Him?" or worse yet, "the temptation is too great to bear."
You know what I say to this? How absolutely absurd. The modern Christian mindset is sickening. Many of us have been brought up to believe that sin is normal, and we try as we like, we will never be rid of it. Some are even encouraged to find disobedience necessary because it proves how very reliant we are on Christ, and portrays His grace. It is not some secret within Christianity that we, as children of a Holy God, are supposed to despise sin and love righteousness. Yet why is the modern message, "Don't judge me; I'm a sinner too!" The modern message promotes that Christians are no holier than the typical sinner in an attempt to neutralize their self-imposed inadequacy. Ironically, most non-Christians are turned off by the fact that the church preaches overcoming sin and then turns around and commits fraud or adultery. All of the failures of the modern church further prove to non-Christians that God is not worth following, because He can't even control His own people.
God is not weak! God does not say "I don't mind if you sin because I will just overlook it", or "it's okay if you sin because I can't completely cleanse you anyway". On the contrary, God commands us to be holy, to commit ourselves to Him and trust that He will perfect us in obedience, so that we may live our lives as holy and blameless children, walking in the righteousness of Him who makes us pure. We do not hide behind Christ and hope God overlooks our sin; we allow Christ to take a sledgehammer to our sin! Christ will not take a sledgehammer to it until you fully commit it to Him. There is no "return policy" on sin. You can't just say, "okay God, I will get rid of this sin for now, but I can't promise anything for later." You either commit it to God or you don't. You either genuinely repent of your sin, or you are just saying words in vain. God is not fooled by hypocrisy, and He does not accept evil. Christians cannot be both darkness and light; we cannot serve both God and sin. It is a horrible injustice and blasphemy to God's name to suggest that we are allowed to sin against Him.
Jeremiah 7:8-11
8 “Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot profit. 9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and walk after other gods whom you do not know, 10 and then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered to do all these abominations’? 11 Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of thieves in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” says the LORD.
1 John 3:4-10
4 Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. 5 And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. 6 Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. 7 Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. 8 He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 9 10 In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
Hebrews 10:26-27
26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.
James 3:10-12
10 Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? 12 Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh
Romans 6:15-18
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin instruments of righteousness to God. leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
Just as surely as God hates sin, He keeps His promises. Jesus does not leave us to deal with Satan all by ourselves; on the contrary, the power to defeat sin is made in Christ alone. By recognizing our complete reliance on Jesus to make us pure, we are empowered to withstand temptation and choose God over sin every time. The only time it is ever hard to choose Jesus over Satan is if you love Satan more than God.
1 Corinthians 10:13
13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
James 4:7-8
7Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
John 14:21
21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
1 John 2:3-6
3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
Romans 6:5-7
5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.
Romans 6:11-14
11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
If you consider sin to be unacceptable, but unavoidable, I urge you to study the above passages. God's Word says we are freed from sin when we accept and obey Him. It says that we are either slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness. There is none of this "you're still holy if you sin" or even "Christians aren't holy" that the modern church is spewing. There is a way out for every temptation, there is a choice to be made every time between sin and God. Which will you choose when the gun is pointed at your head? Do you love God enough to allow Him to completely free you from sin, or do you love your sin so much you cannot imagine a life without it?
The gun will always be pointing, so choose wisely.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Seduction of the church
Seduction of the church
People of the church give cheer
For Christ's redeeming grace is near
Lift your hands and say the words
Your soul will soar among the birds
No matter how bad the deed
Christ's blood will cover all your needs
If you ever sin again
No fear -- just read Romans Seven
Just make sure to ignore Six
No need to think Paul contradicts.
By the way, don't read First John
He didn't mean "your sin is gone"
He knows you are far too weak;
There's no such thing as "gone" in Greek.
God just says we can be free
He really can't change you and me
I mean, it's absurd to think
Our God can cleanse us in a wink
Sinful beings cannot be fixed
The blood of Jesus does the trick
What do you mean "holy stuff"?
How dare you say God's not enough!
Our sinfulness proves our cause
Christians, holy?! We break no law
well, I mean -- we're sinners too,
but Christ says we're as good as new!
God can't expect holiness
we're ill-equipped for sin's mischief
The whole point of Calvary
was to forgive eternally.
Hmph, you think Christians obey
and carry through with all they say?
How naive! Are you judging me?
Just read God's Word and you will see:
Surely God would let us know
If sinlessness were possible.
People of the church give cheer
For Christ's redeeming grace is near
Lift your hands and say the words
Your soul will soar among the birds
No matter how bad the deed
Christ's blood will cover all your needs
If you ever sin again
No fear -- just read Romans Seven
Just make sure to ignore Six
No need to think Paul contradicts.
By the way, don't read First John
He didn't mean "your sin is gone"
He knows you are far too weak;
There's no such thing as "gone" in Greek.
God just says we can be free
He really can't change you and me
I mean, it's absurd to think
Our God can cleanse us in a wink
Sinful beings cannot be fixed
The blood of Jesus does the trick
What do you mean "holy stuff"?
How dare you say God's not enough!
Our sinfulness proves our cause
Christians, holy?! We break no law
well, I mean -- we're sinners too,
but Christ says we're as good as new!
God can't expect holiness
we're ill-equipped for sin's mischief
The whole point of Calvary
was to forgive eternally.
Hmph, you think Christians obey
and carry through with all they say?
How naive! Are you judging me?
Just read God's Word and you will see:
Surely God would let us know
If sinlessness were possible.
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