Sincere Question

[LucieLoo12]

Why do we always think of "judging" when we talk about the word of God? Can we talk about God in His fullness? Or should we just talk about things that sound "nice".

We can control what we meditate on. Paul said he brings his body under subjection. We have control over what we do. The bible even tells us what to think on. Thats why we need the Spirit of God....to help us to mortify the deeds and works of our flesh. The bible says to cast down wicked imaginations!!

We wont ever be like Christ??? Thats not biblical. I can show you multiple scriptures where we are ordained to be formed into the image of Christ.

You say we will always break His guidelines?? So God made rules knowing we couldn't keep them?? If we are walking in transgression against the word of God, that is our personal failure, but we can't set that standard that low for every Christian. They are Chrisitans that are walking upright before God and living His commandments. If you are struggling with transgression, dont say "we"....dont speak generally.The bible says God can keep us from falling, it didnt say we have to live a life of falling....

It seems that there is an assumption that one can go about their lives with out sin.
We can sin and not even know.
How about our thoughts? I know people aren't just walking around never having a sinful thought.
There's no way to track these things either. No apps for your phone or ipad... nothing.
Only Christ can make this decision... why do we keep debating this?
Obviously we should be like Christ but we will never be Him. We can follow His guidelines but regardless of who we are, they will still be broken.
Can we rest in His sovereignty in the CF now and leave the judgement to Christ?

 

[Laela]

I just re-read your post...can you explain this further?

I think we all have to fear being overtaken by sin, as Scripture says to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. It's not about putting someone else in hell, it's about staying out of there our own selves.

 

[auparavant]

It's been said that G-d has a special mercy on those with drug addictions. You can't be all there and do drugs to that state. He knows. We trust in His mercy.

 

[sunnysmyler]

Who of us here do not sin......not one of us!!!

Through the Holy Spirit we are able to at times overcome sin, yet to be without blame is a promise to come.....what we are experiencing now is a foretaste of what we will have in full measure when we are transformed fully into beings who will always obey, when He writes it on our hearts and puts it in our minds!

(Hebrews 10:19) "This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day, [fn] says the LORD: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds (this hasn't happend yet, key word "On That Day")



(Ezekiel 36: 25-27)

v.25 "Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols

v.26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.

When we have the new heart that God gives us, we will then ALWAYS obey until then we only have it in a small measure because of sin.

v.27 And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.

This is why we have the hope and the promises of what Christ did on that tree!
John 14: 27 I am leaving you with a gift--peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't be troubled or afraid

When do we get to have peace??? Yes we struggle, you think God didn't know that, of course he did that's why we have Jesus. Its not about giving a pass to sin, but you have to be very careful when you are "Judging v/s discerning" someone elses sins.

Remember God knew that we would judge that's why he said in
Luke 6:42 How can you think of saying, 'Friend, [fn] let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,' when you can't see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend's eye.

 

[SummerSolstice]

Well if my emotions and feelings are leading me to not want to do and justify sin, well Glory!

8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

I agree with the scripture! But did you read my entire post? I said God will show us our error and what we need to need work on, and be delievered from, but what I am saying is that we do not have to STAY in sin..We are to be conformed to the image of Christ.

I browsed through the posts... I can't read long posts right now at work but I will be sure to do so later...
I just thought we already talked about this in that other thread...
I agree we don't HAVE to stay in sin... that thought is a cop-out... but at the same time I think everyone will still sin, no matter how hard they try not to we are still sinners.
I will read more carefully this afternoon Alicialynn86

 

[aribell]

I just re-read your post...can you explain this further?

When I said that we ought to fear being overtaken by sin I meant that we should fear the eventual consequences of giving ourselves over to sin, surrendering to its dominance over us.

I keep encountering people who, when confronted with their sin, say something like, well everyone has their vice, no one is perfect. But there's a difference between not being perfect and fighting hard against it, and not being perfect and just saying "oh well" to the sin we know is there. Especially given the reality of demons, I don't think sin is static. We are either treading the devil underfoot, or he is trampling us underfoot.

I am not sinless and thank God for His daily mercy; but I do fear what would be my ultimate end were I to one day stop confessing and repenting, to stop asking for both His forgiveness and strength to change. If that happened I would still be able to talk about Jesus because once I followed Him...but I would be like a phantom, only a shadow or memory of the spiritual life that once filled me.

 

[JudithO]

I hear what you say.. I agree with some... "You" can control what you do to some extent, but certainly not all as others have pointed out above.

We are all striving to be like Christ... but NO MAN is ever going to be sinless... Impossible by virtue of being human... In that sense, it is not possible to be exactly like Christ... but we will continue to strive to live according to his ways.

I find your views somewhat extreme... and this is not against you directly, but your expectations of what a true christian should be like are somewhat unrealistic.. With our humanity comes sin, mistakes, victories and defeats... Receiving Christ doesn't mean will always automatically have the power to choose good over evil (or even be aware that what you chose was evil when you thought it was good).... And are 100% immune to the devil.... I know I thought like that for a long time, and when I fell off the trail, it was almost impossible for me to get back on...

Simply acknowledging that you are human and a sinner by default helps you forgive yourself and others, and pick yourself back up however many times you fall because you will fall.

Many Christians that have an all or nothing attitude towards Christianity

1. Remain down after they fall because they cannot forgive themselves and let and Christ back it...

2. Turn off other non-Christians from coming to Christ because their views are practically impossible to live up to.

Please do not take this as a post against you... because we are all here to help each other. I say this just in general.

I'm just saying to you that while I agree with somethings that you are saying (cos they are true based on scripture)... living as a Christian is not so cut throat, and black and white as you make it seem. I really really hope and pray that you do not find anything I said offensive or negative towards you... please don't cos I don't want to start anything.

Why do we always think of "judging" when we talk about the word of God? Can we talk about God in His fullness? Or should we just talk about things that sound "nice".

We can control what we meditate on. Paul said he brings his body under subjection. We have control over what we do. The bible even tells us what to think on. Thats why we need the Spirit of God....to help us to mortify the deeds and works of our flesh. The bible says to cast down wicked imaginations!!

We wont ever be like Christ??? Thats not biblical. I can show you multiple scriptures where we are ordained to be formed into the image of Christ.

You say we will always break His guidelines?? So God made rules knowing we couldn't keep them?? If we are walking in transgression against the word of God, that is our personal failure, but we can't set that standard that low for every Christian. They are Chrisitans that are walking upright before God and living His commandments. If you are struggling with transgression, dont say "we"....dont speak generally.The bible says God can keep us from falling, it didnt say we have to live a life of falling....

 

[SummerSolstice]

It's been said that G-d has a special mercy on those with drug addictions. You can't be all there and do drugs to that state. He knows. We trust in His mercy.

His grace is here for all of us. He knows how evil the world is and everyone's fight against it... If we are not equipped with all of the tools it is easy to fall prey to the tricks of Satan. This does NOT erase our salvation... if it did, how would any of us have a testimony?

 

[LucieLoo12]

@judy4all

By no means at all, do I find your post attacking. I don't mind at all discussing.

But when you look at scripture after scripture that shows the believer that you can live a life with out sin, and then I keep hearing we all have to sin..I just find it....well.....perplexing.

This isn't mine words, but its the word of God. We say all the time how Jesus is sooo powerful and mighty and there isn't nothing to hard for Him. So this same powerful Jesus isn't able to free you from smoking, cursing, anger, lust, lying..sin....??? The bible says Christ came to us as an example of how we should live. Am I saying that a Christian is infalliable and can't make a mistake or fall? Of course not. But what I am saying is that sin is choice. If a Christian does fall or stumble, its not because the Spirit of God couldn't help them, its because they choose to commit to sin. God told the Children of Israel, "This day I set before you life and death, you choose". So yes, sin is a choice. I don't have to commit sin to live. The devil can't twist my arm and make me do anything, Jesus told me he has given me ALL power of the enemy. My flesh may want to do things but it can't make me do anything either,thats why the bible says I must mortify the deeds of my flesh, and when I am in the flesh I can't please God.

So to say that I will always struggle with sin....no . That God against the word of God.


Romans 6
Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

9Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.
10For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.
11Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
12Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
13Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
14For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
15What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
16Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? 17But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.


I think people are just misunderstanding me. All day long I get tempted to sin....whether it be to respond in the wrong manner, get an attitude, whatever....BUT I have a choice to whether I yield to that temptation. Just because I am tempted doesn't mean I sinned. Jesus was tempted. The devil will tempt us and will continue to tempt us. Thats his job. But to say I HAVE TO yeild to it.... No ma'am. I have power and dominion over sin. I have the Spirit of God that constrains me. Can I say I am perfect in every area? Nope. As God shows me what to work on and mortify, I do. I do not make excuses for sin .I striving with everything I have to get to the place of holiness. I get it right. I repent, not just say God forgive me and do it over and over over again...but I turn away from the things God doesn't like.

People may say I'm extreme, but thats fine too. On the last day, I would rather have more than enough than not enough

Let me just end this post with the last scripture...


1 Peter 4:18
And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?



So if we all are sinners, where will we be ? Why is the ungodly and sinners catergorized together, but yet seperately from the righteous???


ETA:The bible says the wages of sin is death, so if we all sinning then..............

I hear what you say.. I agree with some... "You" can control what you do to some extent, but certainly not all as others have pointed out above.

We are all striving to be like Christ... but NO MAN is ever going to be sinless... Impossible by virtue of being human... In that sense, it is not possible to be exactly like Christ... but we will continue to strive to live according to his ways.

I find your views somewhat extreme... and this is not against you directly, but your expectations of what a true christian should be like are somewhat unrealistic.. With our humanity comes sin, mistakes, victories and defeats... Receiving Christ doesn't mean will always automatically have the power to choose good over evil (or even be aware that what you chose was evil when you thought it was good).... And are 100% immune to the devil.... I know I thought like that for a long time, and when I fell off the trail, it was almost impossible for me to get back on...

Simply acknowledging that you are human and a sinner by default helps you forgive yourself and others, and pick yourself back up however many times you fall because you will fall.

Many Christians that have an all or nothing attitude towards Christianity

1. Remain down after they fall because they cannot forgive themselves and let and Christ back it...

2. Turn off other non-Christians from coming to Christ because their views are practically impossible to live up to.

Please do not take this as a post against you... because we are all here to help each other. I say this just in general.

I'm just saying to you that while I agree with somethings that you are saying (cos they are true based on scripture)... living as a Christian is not so cut throat, and black and white as you make it seem. I really really hope and pray that you do not find anything I said offensive or negative towards you... please don't cos I don't want to start anything.

 

[Poohbear]

Yet, none of us are Holy and we never will be.

Not true. The devil is a lie.

 

[JudithO]

The wages of sin IS death..... but Christ has paid that price already... If Christ didn't die... we would have all been subject to that death.... That's why before Christ came... there was the law of Moses that people had to abide to... After Christ came and died, he took all our sins and paid the price - death (that's why he went to hell)... and we are no longer subject to the penalty and consequence of sin (even though we are still human and our flesh is sinful by nature).. Please read Romans Chapters 1 - 8... this is where I base my explanation on.

God's blessings.

 

[auparavant]

Back to the psychological component of being a human being because we are many dimensional, not flat. G-d considers the entire package of the human being and we do ourselves a ETA:disservice when we ignore the psychological makeup of the human person. It's all involved in addictive behaviors of many kinds. There is a line crossed in many addictive personalities where they are not able to control nor recognize "sin" regarding that behavior. That's why a grave sin requires full knowledge and consent. We don't have to sin but given the nature of fallen man, we do know that we will sin. If our will is in line with G-d's, then we bring our natural selves under submission to Him and reform our lives and actions. If we fall, it's grace that brings us back into a right relationship with G-d. But we all sin..everyone.

 

[Laela]

Thanks for explaining... I tend to disagree. We ought not be in a place where we fear being being overtaken by sin. That nullifies the freedom in Christ, in which there is no condemnation, even from ourselves ..to be subjected to guilt and shame. We are either living in fear or in Love. If we cannot live in this freedom, it means we are trying to live a sinless life of our own will and it would be difficult to forgive ourselves should we fail. Condemnation is not conviction.

Ever get convicted by the Holy Spirit of something you ever did/say/thought? That means, the offense had already taken place and you didn't even know it! We get convicted by the Holy Spirit when we did/say/thought something we even didn't realize offended God. He is our Guide. Correcting ourselves by submitting to the Holy Spirit is what is critical. It's a daily renewal process....so long as we are on planet earth.

When I said that we ought to fear being overtaken by sin I meant that we should fear the eventual consequences of giving ourselves over to sin, surrendering to its dominance over us.

I keep encountering people who, when confronted with their sin, say something like, well everyone has their vice, no one is perfect. But there's a difference between not being perfect and fighting hard against it, and not being perfect and just saying "oh well" to the sin we know is there. Especially given the reality of demons, I don't think sin is static. We are either treading the devil underfoot, or he is trampling us underfoot.

I am not sinless and thank God for His daily mercy; but I do fear what would be my ultimate end were I to one day stop confessing and repenting, to stop asking for both His forgiveness and strength to change. If that happened I would still be able to talk about Jesus because once I followed Him...but I would be like a phantom, only a shadow or memory of the spiritual life that once filled me.

 

[Laela]

It could be misunderstandings, yes...

But I will say this... anything extreme is not something to be proud of. God is a God of balance. Jesus expressed Righteous indignation, which is not a sin. He didn't go to those whose unbeliefs got Him to marveling, yet He was kind, gentle and loving. At times He spoke firm, at other times He spoke tender, always being in tuned with the spirit of the persons he related to. He always exhibited the Fruit of the Spirit. One thing Jesus was not was extreme.

What I am saying concerning sin is... so long as we are in this corruptible body, there will be flaws, mistakes are likely...not that we CHOOSE to make mistakes or CHOOSE to sin. You are certainly misunderstanding me. I agree the wages of sin is death. But there is also the Blood of Jesus, God's Grace and Mercy and we must rely on Him and not our own will to be blameless in His Eyes. That is not an excuse to sin, it's reality.

The Word of God, the incorruptible seed, is there for us to consume and He becomes a part of us, to keep the flesh in check. That is why we are to walk in the Spirit of God and not in the flesh. No one here, definitely not me...said we HAVE to sin. That requires premeditation. What I'm taking about is acknowledging that we live a fleshly body in which incorruptible Seed is planted. We still must die and shed this body, even though it is the Temple of the Holy Spirit. I hope I'm more clear.

@j
I think people are just misunderstanding me. All day long I get tempted to sin....whether it be to respond in the wrong manner, get an attitude, whatever....BUT I have a choice to whether I yield to that temptation. Just because I am tempted doesn't mean I sinned. Jesus was tempted. The devil will tempt us and will continue to tempt us. Thats his job. But to say I HAVE TO yeild to it.... No ma'am. I have power and dominion over sin. I have the Spirit of God that constrains me. Can I say I am perfect in every area? Nope. As God shows me what to work on and mortify, I do. I do not make excuses for sin .I striving with everything I have to get to the place of holiness. I get it right. I repent, not just say God forgive me and do it over and over over again...but I turn away from the things God doesn't like.

People may say I'm extreme, but thats fine too. On the last day, I would rather have more than enough than not enough

Let me just end this post with the last scripture...


[URL="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1 Peter+4:18&version=KJV"]1 Peter 4:18
And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?



So if we all are sinners, where will we be ? Why is the ungodly and sinners catergorized together, but yet seperately from the righteous???


ETA:The bible says the wages of sin is death, so if we all sinning then..............

 

[loolalooh]

Edited: re-reading it.

 

[loolalooh]

Okay, after reading some of the posts, this seems to have transformed into a debate about whether we can or cannot stop sinning. My question is does the answer matter? My answer, be it "yes" or "no", will not get me into heaven. Isn't it more important that we all strive, via God's grace, not to give into sin (The book of Romans)? That we know that God affords us an escape from temptation (1 Corinthians)? That by Christ, the power of sin is broken (Romans)? That is something we all agree on, I hope. That is something we should be pushing, imo.

 

[Poohbear]

Okay, after reading some of the posts, this seems to be a debate about whether we can or cannot stop sinning. My question is does the answer matter? My answer, be it "yes" or "no", will not get me into heaven. Isn't it more important that we all strive, via God's grace, not to give into sin (The book of Romans)? That we know that God affords us an escape from temptation (1 Corinthians)? That by Christ, the power of sin is broken (Romans)? That is something we all agree on, I hope. That is something we should be pushing, imo.

loolalooh

This is the key: We cannot rely on our physical goodness to get to Heaven. We must rely on God's grace and Jesus' sacrifice on the cross for the punishment of our sins of ignorance. We will only suffer earthly consequences from physical sins which ultimately will end in the death of our physical bodies, not our souls. Whenever we do feel like physical sin is going to put us in Hell, we risk our spiritual salvation because we are trying to rely on ourselves to save us instead of Jesus Christ.

 

[SummerSolstice]

If we are to claim that we don't sin, then we have nowhere to improve. How about our temples?
How about the Christians who are over eaters but then they want to point fingers at cheaters and homosexuals?
I saw someone said that everyone has their vice... That is reality!
Even if you get tempted and you don't yield to the temptation... since it is temptation I am certain that even for a nanosecond "the flesh" debates it. If not, it wouldn't be a temptation.
There was sin in that nanosecond. If there was no sin then there would be no temptation.
It is hard to explain myself lol.

 

[LucieLoo12]

I am not saying I am extreme. What I am saying if other people think I am extreme I am fine with that. I dont have anything to prove to anyone on this site. I personally think its always more I could do with my devotion, deeper depths and higher expections to meet. I never feel like I have arrived or I am fine where I am. I was saying that I would rather be overly careful about my walk with, than be lukewarm with it.

It could be misunderstandings, yes...

But I will say this... anything extreme is not something to be proud of. God is a God of balance. Jesus expressed Righteous indignation, which is not a sin. He didn't go to those whose unbeliefs got Him to marveling, yet He was kind, gentle and loving. At times He spoke firm, at other times He spoke tender, always being in tuned with the spirit of the persons he related to. He always exhibited the Fruit of the Spirit. One thing Jesus was not was extreme.

What I am saying concerning sin is... so long as we are in this corruptible body, there will be flaws, mistakes are likely...not that we CHOOSE to make mistakes or CHOOSE to sin. You are certainly misunderstanding me. I agree the wages of sin is death. But there is also the Blood of Jesus, God's Grace and Mercy and we must rely on Him and not our own will to be blameless in His Eyes. That is not an excuse to sin, it's reality.

The Word of God, the incorruptible seed, is there for us to consume and He becomes a part of us, to keep the flesh in check. That is why we are to walk in the Spirit of God and not in the flesh. No one here, definitely not me...said we HAVE to sin. That requires premeditation. What I'm taking about is acknowledging that we live a fleshly body in which incorruptible Seed is planted. We still must die and shed this body, even though it is the Temple of the Holy Spirit. I hope I'm more clear.

 

[LucieLoo12]

Couldnt have said it better

Okay, after reading some of the posts, this seems to have transformed into a debate about whether we can or cannot stop sinning. My question is does the answer matter? My answer, be it "yes" or "no", will not get me into heaven. Isn't it more important that we all strive, via God's grace, not to give into sin (The book of Romans)? That we know that God affords us an escape from temptation (1 Corinthians)? That by Christ, the power of sin is broken (Romans)? That is something we all agree on, I hope. That is something we should be pushing, imo.

 

[Poohbear]

Alicialynn86 - I do not think you are extreme. I understand what you are saying in regards to sin.

 

[LucieLoo12]

I kinda dont understand your post...sorry


But there is ALWAYS rooms to improve. As a Christian God is always showing you what areas you need to grow up in, whether it be naturally or spiritually. No sin is greater than the other. The liar is just as bad as the child molester.Maybe not in the eyes of society, but in the eyes of God sin is sin.

If we are to claim that we don't sin, then we have nowhere to improve. How about our temples?
How about the Christians who are over eaters but then they want to point fingers at cheaters and homosexuals?
I saw someone said that everyone has their vice... That is reality!
Even if you get tempted and you don't yield to the temptation... since it is temptation I am certain that even for a nanosecond "the flesh" debates it. If not, it wouldn't be a temptation.
There was sin in that nanosecond. If there was no sin then there would be no temptation.
It is hard to explain myself lol.

 

[LucieLoo12]

Thanks! I know the "sin" topic can be touchy.Sometimes people think I am saying, As a Christian you wont ever sin...or you or infallible to sin. But what I am saying is sin is choice...we don't have to commit it.If people want to commit sin, well thats them, but I don't like when people bring in scripture justifying sin.

@Alicialynn86 - I do not think you are extreme. I understand what you are saying in regards to sin.

 

[aribell]

I think we may have come across this point in another thread. I don't think that what I said was anything more than the fear of God. Sometimes people don't like to hear people say that they have the fear of the Lord, and yet we are told over and over that the fear of the Lord is a good and right thing to have.

I was careful to say fearing the consequences of giving ourselves over to sin. I did not say fearing that one day we might accidentally fall into sin. The fear of the Lord will lead one to think on the consequences of living a life of sin and living a life that displeases Him. We can choose to sin; and generally, continually choosing to sin involves putting the idea of God's holiness out of one's mind, at least for a while.

I don't feel condemnation. But there are too many exhortations in Scripture warning believers to hold fast in zeal and perseverance and watchfulness. To recognize actual danger is not to operate in one's own strength. The danger is real, not a result of spiritual anxiety. God gives all strength, but He still asks 100% of us. Hebrews 2:1,2; 1 Peter 5:8; Galatians 6:7; 2 Peter 2:20; Hebrews 10:26...are a handful of verses that come to mind. I think that whatever I said, the apostles said all the more.

Perhaps I'd put it this way. God's grace is all sufficient, but when we mess up it's not because God's grace wasn't sufficient, it was because we did not abide in Him. When we abide in Him, all is well. When we do not, all is not well and we do not have the strength to overcome sin. But abiding in Him is not automatic for believers. To abide in Him perfectly is what we grow in daily. But because it is possible to not abide in Him, we are exhorted to be fervent in seeking Him lest we not abide in Him and cease to have victory over the flesh.

Thanks for explaining... I tend to disagree. We ought not be in a place where we fear being being overtaken by sin. That nullifies the freedom in Christ, in which there is no condemnation, even from ourselves ..to be subjected to guilt and shame. We are either living in fear or in Love. If we cannot live in this freedom, it means we are trying to live a sinless life of our own will and it would be difficult to forgive ourselves should we fail. Condemnation is not conviction.

Ever get convicted by the Holy Spirit of something you ever did/say/thought? That means, the offense had already taken place and you didn't even know it! We get convicted by the Holy Spirit when we did/say/thought something we even didn't realize offended God. He is our Guide. Correcting ourselves by submitting to the Holy Spirit is what is critical. It's a daily renewal process....so long as we are on planet earth.

 

[sidney]

My Aunt called me when she heard about Witney Houston's death and it had a profound effect on her. One because she is a new believer and has backslidden into sin. And two is because she is around Witney Houston's age. For her, it was a time of reflection about her own sin. She's still here, Houston's death was something to reflect on to give her the will to deal with her own sin. We are all still here as it has been pointed out in this thread. There are scriptures of those who have fallen into sin, King Solomon, countless Kings in 2 Chronicles. As it has been stated, the wages of sin is death. Death is a time of reflection. Death from cocaine use is not God's will. I think the important thing is to recognize that there is an enemy out there who is roaring around like a lion seeking to destroy whom he will. He want's to steal, kill, and destroy! We are not powerless against sin, we have weapons. We must not forget that there are forces that want to keep us under. God is full of mercy and full of love, but also full of justice. We can't separate any of his qualities. He want's us free, and free indeed! He does not want us in bondage to sin. He want's us to stay watchful and prayerful, and to be overcomers!

@Laela, I love the 1 John 1 scripture. Yes, we are all sinners. Not one of us is without sin, but verse 9 says, if we confess our sins he is faithful to cleanse of ALL unrighteousness. Pursuing righteousness takes a lifetime. God is constantly at work in each of us, exposing the filth. When we recognize our mess, we have to repent, change it through the spirits power and move on. It's in the believers interest to stay on their face until God delivers him from His or Her sin. But the struggles we dealt with yesterday should not be a snare for us today. If they are, we need to put our weapons on! We have the power to overcome sin! We are not defeated! As someone mentioned, we have the power to trample demons through his name, not succumb to him. We have dominion. We have to recognize our abilities through the power of they holy spirit. We go to glory to glory. We should be moving in a positive direction, accelerating, not decelerating and not staying in the same place.

No one is perfect, but he says, "Be ye perfect." No one is holy, but he says "Be ye holy." Why would he say this, if this is not true? He gave us the admonition to be constantly perfecting ourselves. Daily crucifying the flesh. I don't want to be the same person I was last year, I want to be transformed. The only way that can happen, is if I stay in the presence of the one that can transform. I don't want to be unforgiving, selfish, complaining, unmerciful, doing the same things I was doing a year ago and never encountering that transforming power to be converted into his image...I want to truly be transformed, not in bondage of sin. That's the only way I can go from "glory to glory" have have to get in his presence so his glory can rise upon me (Isaiah 60:1). We all have sinned, but we have to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12). When God exposes my mess, and believe me he does,(and often!). Because I can't come into his presence and think he isn't going to change me. I told this before, but the first time I ever heard God speak, he told me to get rid of my idols! God is a loving God, and because he is loving he wants us set free from bondage. He wants us walking like a righteous man (or woman lol). We have to actively pursue this thing. The word says, resist the devil and he will flee! Resist him. I was just about to post a thread on this, will post it now. Hopefully it will be shorter than this post. *prays for the gift of brevity*

 

[Laela]

sidney, there was a reason why I'd posted 1 John in its full context. The entire chapter teaches on the requirement to walk a holy walk, while cautioning against self-righteousness. A believer's best days is mixed with "sin", so yes it is a LIFETIME of abiding in Christ. We are overcomers and no sin has no power in the life of a Believer. I am not espousing at all that sin has power in a believer's life.

My position in the first place was about consciousness. A righteousness-conscious mind is free from the consciousness of sin. THAT IS ALL I AM SAYING. If you or Alicialynn still do not understand, then I ask that we just agree to disagree. I'm not angry but clearly there is too much effort on my part to try to explain. I have no interest in being right.

@Laela, I love the 1 John 1 scripture. Yes, we are all sinners. Not one of us is without sin, but verse 9 says, if we confess our sins he is faithful to cleanse of ALL unrighteousness. Pursuing righteousness takes a lifetime. God is constantly at work in each of us, exposing the filth. When we recognize our mess, we have to repent, change it through the spirits power and move on. It's in the believers interest to stay on their face until God delivers him from His or Her sin. But the struggles we dealt with yesterday should not be a snare for us today. If they are, we need to put our weapons on! We have the power to overcome sin! We are not defeated! As someone mentioned, we have the power to trample demons through his name, not succumb to him. We have dominion. We have to recognize our abilities through the power of they holy spirit. We go to glory to glory. We should be moving in a positive direction, accelerating, not decelerating and not staying in the same place.

That is a false accusation, and I forgive you for saying that.

Thanks! I know the "sin" topic can be touchy.Sometimes people think I am saying, As a Christian you wont ever sin...or you or infallible to sin. But what I am saying is sin is choice...we don't have to commit it.If people want to commit sin, well thats them, but I don't like when people bring in scripture justifying sin.

 

[sidney]

Thanks @Laela, I understand. I know you were just trying to let everyone know that none of us were without sin, and that is very important. And you want to make sure that everyone knows that the righteousness must not be our own. Thanks for clarifying. I just wanted to add that going from glory to glory part. I was trying to expound on what you were saying to emphasize that we are eventually overcome, in case someone thought that we get stuck based on the scripture that we are without sin. I apologize if it came out the wrong way.

ETA: I was not trying to oppose what you were saying, I was trying to "piggy-back" and expound on it. Sorry if it came off as something different.

 

[Shimmie]

sidney, there was a reason why I'd posted 1 John in its full context.

The entire chapter teaches on the requirement to walk a holy walk, while cautioning against self-righteousness.

A believer's best days is mixed with "sin", so yes it is a LIFETIME of abiding in Christ. We are overcomers and no sin has no power in the life of a Believer. I am not espousing at all that sin has power in a believer's life.

My position in the first place was about consciousness. A righteousness-conscious mind is free from the consciousness of sin. THAT IS ALL I AM SAYING.
If you or Alicialynn still do not understand, then I ask that we just agree to disagree. I'm not angry but clearly there is too much effort on my part to try to explain. I have no interest in being right.

Completely on point...

I haven't been able to read the most recent posts, however this one stood out to me.

 

[auparavant]

I understood some of you to mean to walk up that hill constantly and if fallen, get back up. I also understood you to mean that we should not have anxiety over attempting to be perfect. To me, seeking Him doesn't mean overzealous examination to the point of either self-righteousness or making comparisons to others' lives. I think you, like me, are saying that it's the desire of abiding in Him that constitutes seeking Him and that it is a process. I don't have undue anxiety over sin. I used to, but I gave that up quite a bit ago. If I sin, I sin. I know where to go and I eventually know how to listen. I also come to understand the consequences but I also experience the graces. I live this life daily, moment-by-moment, and choose not to be afraid of being human. I try and not commit mortal sins (diff. in a sexless life) as those are most avoidable. As for venial sins, those are the ones people tend to nitpick in themselves and in others when they avoid the plank to view the splinter. It's a process, you will sin. He wrote the gospel EXACTLY how it was meant to be written and He allowed it to be interpreted generally exactly the way He meant it to be. Anxiety is never good and lukewarmness is bad, we all know. But there is a difference between temporary failures and a life's choice on not caring. It might be a fine line, but there are opposite sides of that. No, I'm not advocating not seeking Him deeply. But having anxiety over that and looking at everybody else's lives is actually keeping anybody from introspection and healing. It's a blind shield.

 

[LucieLoo12]

Laela

Ummmm , that statement was a general statement about when I have the convo about sin with people period, I wasn't just referring to LHCF,so its not a false accusation, so no need to forgive anything. Please dont assume that the statement was about you because it wasn't

That is a false accusation, and I forgive you for saying that.