#SoulHealingTime
Luke 5:31-32
31 Jesus answered and said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick do. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
Isaiah 53:3
But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
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Problem in the Church: 1 John 1:8
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"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."
Does it mean a Christian, a new creature in Christ, is by definition a sinner? Does it mean a saved person always sins and never stops sinning willfully (in agreement with the devil and in disagreement with God)? Salvation in Jesus Christ is salvation from sin. It's coming out of bondage to sin and being set free indeed to serve God in righteousness (John 8:36; Romans 6:18).
Challenge yourself today to think upon Jesus' great work of salvation that He shed his blood for. He came into the world to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).
If you call being set free from bondage to sin "sinless perfection" as some do, and won't let go of an understanding of 1 John 1:8 that encourages you to go on sinning, this post is for you. You don't want to argue against Jesus' work or deny that He has the power to break the yoke of sin over someone's life. If you speak of struggling with sin with the understanding that "we all struggle with sin" and "we will always be struggling with sin," you are believing lies that keep you defeated (on the losing side of the struggle) and bound in sin. Jesus said to believers, “If you remain in my word, you are truly my disciples. And you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (John 8:31-32). You do not want to turn the grace of God into a lie and miss the Good News of salvation from sin (Matthew 1:21; Acts 3:26; Titus 2:11-14).
What believers believe about who Jesus is and about sin will determine whether they get saved/set free from sin indeed or whether they will die in their sins as unbelievers (John 8:24; Matthew 7:21-23).
Matthew 16:15
He (Jesus) said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
We who have purposed to follow Jesus and have Bibles, let's take Jesus' warning at heart to be careful to not be deceived by anyone coming in his name (Matthew 24:4-5). And may we choose how we want to be standing when He returns to judge the world in righteousness (Acts 17:31) and let's be standing that way now:
Revelation 22:11
He that is unrighteous, let him be unrighteous still: and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
And this:
1 John 2:3-6
3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in Him: 6 whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.
See also:
How Do We Know That We Love God?
Struggle with sin and double-mindedness
Problem in the Church: Romans 7
Problem in the Church: Isaiah 64:6
Addressing the 1 John 1:8 Stronghold
Total Dedication To God
Versus
The Sinless Perfection Straw Man Argument
powerful article sir, I must admit the intensity you focused on the subject shows the passion for sharing the gospel tom the lost keep it up
ReplyDeleteHow are you doing, sir? I thank you for the comment. To God be the praise. I pray this post helps somebody. My apologies for responding so late. Your comment had escaped my attention. God bless you and keep you!
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