Steven, please explain this - When we accept Jesus as our Savior, God forgives all our sins: past, present, and future. Forgiveness comes as a total package; God does not forgive us partially but wholly. The believer in Christ can say, “My future sins are forgiven” for these reasons: • When Jesus died, all of today’s sins were yet future. Jesus did not die only for the sins of people who lived before Him. He died for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2), including the sins of those who lived after Him. Let God be true and every man a liar. Ah, Stephen, I never took issue with anything you said, my friend. In fact, I agree with every word of the scriptures you quoted above. If you backtrack a few verses to Romans 7, you'll see the Apostle Paul describing the frustration he experienced in trying the tame his unruly fleshly nature. We Christians all go through this. The things we want to do, we don't. And the things we don't want to do, we do. That episode Jesus had with the women who was caught in adultery perfectly illustrates the power of the gift of no condemnation (Rom 8:1). After shaming her accusers (who had a valid case according to the law), causing them to leave, He asked her: Where are your accusers? Has no man accused you? When she said no, he said neither do I condemn you: now go and sin no more. That's the key! We have all sinned and we are all being offered this gift of no condemnation. It is this very gift of grace that changes our hearts. Romans 2:4 says: "...the goodness of God leads to repentance". The heroes of the Bibles were all sinners: Abraham was a liar, Moses was a murderer and David was an adulterer and a murderer. You are right when you say that walking by the Spirit is the way to overcome the lust of the flesh. That means an intimate relationship with the Spirit of Christ, who always points us to Jesus and the cross. It requires absolute surrender. We have no strength of our own to do this. This is the process we are talking about... getting to that point of total surrender. Trust me, it does not happen overnight. Many of us (me included) were incorrectly taught that we have to try our best to keep the Ten Commandments. We cannot! Been there, done that! Not even the best of us can come close. Only through intimacy with God, with help from the Comforter, can we we even begin to embark on that journey. The devil does his best to steer us away from the Truth, tries to condemn us and make us feel we are not working hard enough. There was a time that I would get up at four in the morning, every day, for years, to read and study to try to please God. I was trying to earn what Jesus had already accomplished for me. Thankfully our God is gentle and loving and kind and patient with us. It's clear to me that you are sincere and you have a strong desire to please Him. We can talk about this as much as you like -- it's my favorite subject. It literally changed my life. Of course we don't give ourselves over to sin. That's just stupid, because it gives the enemy an entry point into our lives to steal, kill and destroy. The key here is that when we realize that we are completely forgiven and totally safe in God's love, our desire to sin starts to evaporate. I can give you many examples of this in my life. I commend you, Stephen, for your beautiful passion for God and His Word. We are all learning as we go along the road if life. Keep going! Stephen: And yes, if a real believer falls into sin, he/she can repent and come back to God. But, if that person remains in his/her known sin(s), continuing to commit them, then that person is lost and will go to hell if he/she dies in that sin(s). My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. Jn 10 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Eph 2 And these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. Ro 8 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory. Eph 1 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. Jn 3 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. 1 Cor 12 Jesus answered and said to him, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. Jn 3 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit. Titus 3 Having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Col 2 Here at Rita Now we believe: ~ SALVATION IN CHRIST ALONE ~ We believe that while we were yet sinners Christ Jesus (Yeshua HaMasiach) died for us; paying the penalty for our sin and guilt and signing the pardon of all who by grace through faith believe on Him and place their faith in Him, thereby becoming the only way of reconciliation with God. We believe this pardon is not deserved, cannot be earned by good works or deeds, and is not available by any other name. It is the free gift of God by Christ Jesus alone. (John 3:16-18; Romans 5:8; Eph. 2:8-9) ~ SECURITY OF THE BELIEVER ~ If we can live without sinning then there is no reason for Jesus' sacrifice.
We believe that all of mankind has sinned and come short of God’s standard, and faces eternal separation from God because of sin. (Romans 3:23)
We believe in the eternal security of every true believer who is sealed by the Holy Spirit under the terms of the New Covenant. We believe Jesus is the true Vine in which we abide and the Author and Perfecter of our faith, who will complete the good work begun in us. (1 Thessalonians 5:24; 2 Thessalonians 3:3; Hebrews 7:25; Hebrews 12:2; Romans 8:1-2; Romans 8:31-39; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Eph. 1:13-14; Eph. 2:8-9; Philippians 1:6; Jude 24; John 6:39; John 10:28; John 17:6-12; 1 Peter 1:3-4)
