Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Through Christ's atonement on the cross, the past, present and future sins of true believers are forgiven. From that point forward, our goal is to grow in relationship with the living God.
1) The 'Law' was not given to show us what we must do to 'get right with God and enter heaven.' Breaking the Commandments/law is evidence of our sin nature (to us!) and affirms we cannot overcome sin in our own power. The difference between sinners and forgiven sinners is Jesus Christ and Spiritual re-birth in the indwelling Holy Spirit.
2). Habitual sin in a professing 'believer in Christ' is (likely) evidence that the individual has not truly believed and trusted in the sufficiency of Jesus Christ, but is instead depending on their own goodness and performance. As with any non-believer, they must still turn to Jesus Christ in repentance and depend on Him for their Salvation and Spiritual life. ​
3). A believer who commits 'acts' of sin, must still; confess and repent of their sin and turn to Christ for forgiveness. Subsequent efforts to depend on Christ's power and to avoid repeating the same act/s of sin (over and over), are evidence that an individual's repentance is genuine. Ignoring this, will damage a believer's Spiritual maturity and personal relationship with God.
4). An ongoing burden of 'guilt' (not conviction), is a tool of the enemy, who proclaims, "See, your behavior shows you are not truly a (good) Christian!" No loving parent burdens their own children with that; nor is God the source of that thinking in us.
5). 'Acts' of penance alone are meaningless. Acts of penance, in addition to a repentant heart, are unnecessary, unless WE believe they are necessary, in which case, they become (for us), evidence of our ongoing relationship with God. (Note: Jesus did not obey God, in order to 'become' God's Son, but, because He is God's Son!).
I have noticed that when we sin, it separates us from God. This is understandable, but after we repent from whatever sin we have committed how can we restore this relationship and closeness to God again that we once had before? Sometimes I struggle with recovering well after sinning, especially with condemnation, etc. I don't want to despise God's discipline by allowing myself to feel hopeless. I think it's good I fear the Lord and I thank God for that greatly and I never want to feel comfortable with sin, but sometimes I allow that fear to become more than it should be by feeling condemned.
Rom 6:13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.
Rom 6:14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.
Rom 6:15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!
I have a question for you, Mike. In know that in Catholicism, when a person goes to confession, he is generally given a specific number of prayers or recitations to say each day (e.g., Our Father, Hail, Mary) in order to be absolved of the sin they have confessed. In confession, is there any discussion of recompense (i.e., cleaning up the glass and perhaps replacing it) or is that just something that a person is supposed to take care of as he is guided to by his conscience?
Good question.
Absolution is given right there in the confessional. We are also given a penance to do after we leave the confessional. The penance is generally not a condition for absolution, but is rather a pious act we are to perform in order to demonstrate true contrition, and to in some way "make up for" the damage we have caused by our sin. The penance can be the recitation of a prayer/prayers, or it can be something else - a good deed to perform, depending on the nature of the sin we have confessed. For example; if one confesses to having stolen something, an appropriate penance may be to pay back what was stolen. The penance is generally given as something to be done as soon as possible and is usually completed in the church immediately following confession. It's not usually something to be done repeatedly day after day; though it could be if the sin was very serious.
"Fools mock at reparation, but among the upright there is favor." Proverbs 14:9
Don't get mad at me - I'm just sharing the word.
I agree. Of course, if we do nothing, then we are not truly repenting and turning from evil ways. Repenting does come with repairing what has gone wrong
To me, repentance involves (1) a recognition of one's sin, (2) a feeling of sincere remorse, (3) confession of that sin -- either to God or to the person you sinned against, or both, depending upon the situation, (4) reparation for the sin, to the extent possible and (5) resolving to do better in the future. I believe that once we have done these things, we should be able to trust that the relationship has, in fact, been restored. If we still carry around the burden of our guilt, then we are in effect, telling Jesus that we don't trust in His ability to make us whole again. And when you stop to think about it, that's an even greater sin than the one we committed in the first place. We have to believe that He has repaired the relationship, and remember to thank Him for doing so. Then we have to move on, as He would want us to do. That's a demonstration of our faith in Him.
Amen. This certainly has helped fixed up my perspective quite a bit.
To me, repentance involves (1) a recognition of one's sin, (2) a feeling of sincere remorse, (3) confession of that sin -- either to God or to the person you sinned against, or both, depending upon the situation, (4) reparation for the sin, to the extent possible and (5) resolving to do better in the future. I believe that once we have done these things, we should be able to trust that the relationship has, in fact, been restored. If we still carry around the burden of our guilt, then we are in effect, telling Jesus that we don't trust in His ability to make us whole again. And when you stop to think about it, that's an even greater sin than the one we committed in the first place. We have to believe that He has repaired the relationship, and remember to thank Him for doing so. Then we have to move on, as He would want us to do. That's a demonstration of our faith in Him.
This is good
- and very much in line with the Catholic point of view too, if I may say
Absolution is given right there in the confessional. We are also given a penance to do after we leave the confessional. The penance is generally not a condition for absolution, but is rather a pious act we are to perform in order to demonstrate true contrition, and to in some way "make up for" the damage we have caused by our sin. The penance can be the recitation of a prayer/prayers, or it can be something else - a good deed to perform, depending on the nature of the sin we have confessed. For example; if one confesses to having stolen something, an appropriate penance may be to pay back what was stolen. The penance is generally given as something to be done as soon as possible and is usually completed in the church immediately following confession. It's not usually something to be done repeatedly day after day; though it could be if the sin was very serious.
If you pray openly and honestly before God, he forgets the sin / offense (that's what's written). So, first - acknowledge what's written and don't keep hanging onto it, and secondly - act different in the future to reduce the likelihood of it happening again. It's forward/future-directed, not looking behind you, like the Lot's wife situation. Moping around in doubt is a loser's approach, so be a winner instead.
I am slowly finding out that it's much more than this.
When we sin, we are trying to meet a need our own way... just like Adam and Eve.
God wants us to trust Him with EVERYTHING... even when it doesn't make sense or we have to wait on Him. In the end waiting on Him is better for us, and He wants to bless us. But when we take matters into our own hands, we end up short changing ourselves - and at times we harm ourselves and others.
Last edited by DRob4JC; 11-15-2021 at 01:34 PM..
Reason: grammar
Through Christ's atonement on the cross, the past, present and future sins of true believers are forgiven.
This ideology of being true believers is beyond the pale, as there is nothing special about you, or other Christians.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
