When we read the Bible, we need to look at the context in which each
book was written. If we don’t do that, it’s easy to misinterpret what a
particular book or chapter is really saying. When that happens, we can
easily come to wrong conclusions, which can then cause a lot of
misunderstanding about the work of Christ on our behalf.
One example of this is that many people believe that although their sins
have been forgiven prior to salvation, after salvation it is up to them to
obtain forgiveness and stay in fellowship through their confession. Others
believe that all their sins have been forgiven at the cross; however, they
cannot experience forgiveness and fellowship unless they confess each
time they sin. The verse both parties use to defend their belief is I John
1:9. Let’s read the first chapter of 1 John, and keep in mind two
important questions: “Who was John’s audience?” and “What was he
trying to accomplish in this letter?”
The audience was a confused church in Asia made up of lost and
saved people, just like the congregations of today. The saved are built
up in their faith, and the lost have the opportunity to see their need for
salvation and come to faith in Jesus Christ. The pastor there asked
John to write a letter to help clear up some major doctrinal heresy
called “Gnosticism.” Gnosticism comes from the Greek word
“gnosis”, which means knowledge. The Gnostics were a group of
people who believed they possessed superior spiritual knowledge.
They believed that all flesh is evil and that only spirit is good. They
also believed that because sin had to do with our flesh, there really
wasn’t any sin – sin was just an Illusion. (That’s similar to doctrines
taught today through such groups such as Christian scientists and
other new age churches.) The church in Ephesus was filled with
people who didn’t believe Christ came in the flesh, due to them
thinking all flesh is evil, so they concluded that Jesus was just an
illusion or myth that people held and sin was not real.
NOW, THINK ABOUT THIS, if Jesus did not come in the flesh,
what happens to the gospel message? If he did not die physically, we
are still under the condemnation of sin and death, if he was not raised
physically, we are still spiritually dead, separated from the life of God.
So, to deny that Jesus came in the flesh is to deny the Gospel.
John was addressing this issue in his first letter. Notice how he
begins:
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard,
which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and
our hands have touched – this we proclaim concerning the
Word of Life ” (I John 1:1). In other words, John is
establishing that he was an eyewitness to the fact that Jesus
truly did come in the flesh. He did this to convince the
Gnostics that Jesus was not an illusion.
“We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you
also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with
the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ” (verse 3). This
verse says two things. First, John repeats the fact that he,
the rest of the apostles and other people saw Christ in the
flesh. He wanted the Gnostics to realize that there were
many people who could testify to the reality of Christ.
Second, he is saying that there are some people in the
audience who were not in fellowship with Christ.
John’s message in verse 5 is very clear: God is light and in
Him there is no darkness. We are either in the light (saved)
or in darkness (lost). Scriptures are full of this comparison
between light (saved) vs. darkness (lost). John writes: “This
message we have heard from Him and declare to you:
God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all “(verse 5).
Then he writes: “If we claim to have fellowship with Him
yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth”
(verse 6). In other words, if someone says he has fellowship
with Christ, but is walking in darkness (lost), he is lying
and not practicing the truth. The Gnostics claimed to be in
fellowship with Christ (saved), and yet were actually living
a lie and therefore weren’t practicing the truth.
“If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have
fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His
Son, purifies us from all sin” (verse 7). In other words, if
we walk in the light (are saved) we have fellowship with
one another and the blood of Christ cleanses us from all sin.
To put it another way, once we are saved, we are
permanently in fellowship with Him because the blood of
Jesus continually cleanses us from all sin. Therefore, we
aren’t forgiven because we confess our sins. We are
forgiven because of what Christ did for us on the cross.
“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and
the truth is not in us” (verse 8). John is now addressing the
belief the Gnostics had regarding sin, because they didn’t
believe it was real and therefore believed they had no sin.
John is identifying with sinners when he says “if we claim
to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not
in us. Because they claimed to be without sin, then they
were only deceiving themselves and the truth (Jesus) was
not in them.
However, verse 9 says that “If we confess our sins, He is
faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us
from all unrighteousness.” In other words, John
identifying with them, gives to those unbelievers an
invitation to come into the true fellowship in Verse 9: if we
confess our sins, he is faithful and just to what? forgive our
sins and cleanse us from how much unrighteousness? All
unrighteousness. You may say that refers to a Christian
and if a Christian confesses his sins, then he's forgiven.
OK..How much is he going to be forgiven of? What does it
say? ALL! In the Greek language, the words “forgive” and
“cleanse” mean past actions that have results today and will
continue to have results in the future. Also the word “ all ”
used in these verses means all.
“If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a
liar and His word has no place in our lives” (verse 10).
Basically, this verse is a repeat of verse 8. John is
identifying with sinners when he says “if we” To put it
simply, it means that the Gnostics can’t claim to be without
sin and yet be saved. John is saying that because the
Gnostics claimed they had no sin, they were actually
calling God a liar and therefore didn’t know the truth.
The purpose of the first chapter of 1 John was
to compare the truth of God to the error of
gnosticism.
John was addressing the Gnostics, who were
deceived by their own teaching. He wanted the
Gnostics to understand that what they believed
conflicted with what God said. He was not, however,
addressing believers. Now watch as he changes and
talks to the believers in verse 1 of chapter 2. "Now,
my little children, these little things I write unto
you."
Do you see a transition there? Sure. "That ye sin not,
if any man sin we have an advocate with the father,
Jesus Christ, the righteous one." Does it say that
we little children need to confess? Does it say that
there? It just says, now pointing to us little children,
we have an advocate. Do you see the difference? So,
that you don't stack up two sins in a row every time
you sin it's under the blood, just as fast as it happens.
Now look at verse 12 of chapter 2. I write unto you
little children because your sins-what? What's the key
word there? I write unto you little children because
your sins ARE forgiven because you confess them? Is
that what it says? What does it say?
"For his namesake"... just because of who
Jesus is and what he did.
John is not preaching a doctrine of human confession but a doctrine
of divine forgiveness.
Two types of forgiveness??
It has been my experience that forgiveness has been divided
into two types to make a place for 1John1:9 in the
believer’s life. The terms most often used to define the
different types of forgiveness are "judicial" and "parental"
I have also heard some use "positional" and "experiential"
John Macarthur is one of the most vocal teachers on this
position. In his book The freedom and power of
forgiveness, he writes that;
That divine forgiveness has two aspects. One is the
judicial forgiveness God grants as a judge. The other is a
parental forgiveness God grants us as our father. He is
grieved when his children sin and has displeasure over
our sin.. So forgiveness that Christians are supposed to
seek in their daily lives is not pardon from an angry judge
but, but mercy from a grieved Father. This is the
forgiveness Jesus taught us to pray in the Lord’s prayer.
Judicial forgiveness deals with the penalty of our sins.
Parental forgiveness deals with sin's consequences.
Judicial forgiveness frees us from the condemnation of an
aggrieved, omnipotent judge. Parental forgiveness sets
things right with a grieving and displeased but loving
father. Judicial gives us an unshakable standing before
the throne of divine judgment. Parental forgiveness deals
with the state of our sanctification at any given moment
and is dispensed from a throne of divine grace. As a judge
God is eager to forgive sinners; but as a father he is
equally eager to keep on forgiving and cleansing his
children from defilement of their sin.
No wonder why so many are confused about forgiveness.
The Bible doesn't teach two different types of forgiveness.
The forgiveness 1 John1:9 speaks of is no different than the
forgiveness in the rest of the bible. If you are in Christ, you
are a forgiven person. I ask you to read 1 John 1 and then
show me where in that passage it tells you that confession
nullifies God's fatherly displeasure over sin, or "sets things
right with a grieving and displeased but loving
father"
The conclusions Macarthur and others draw do not
come from the biblical text. He and others are trying to
make the passage say something that is just not there.
Think About this!!!
With this mentality of "in and out of fellowship",
what is it that breaks your fellowship with God?
If your sins caused you to be out of
fellowship with God, what then keeps you in fellowship with God?
How much of your life can you live
without sinning?
So, how much of your life would you be in fellowship with God?
Do you know of any place in the Bible that discusses being in and out of
fellowship?
According to 1 Corinthians 1:8-9, who has called you into
fellowship and who is able to keep you in fellowship?
“God, who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our
Lord, is faithful ” (1 Corinthians 1:9).
A person who is lost is not in fellowship with God. There is no bouncing
back and forth. You are either in fellowship with God (saved, walking in the
light) or you are not in fellowship with God (lost, walking in darkness).
Scripture also doesn’t teach the idea of “keeping short accounts” Such
popular teaching makes confession a mindless cure-all, a “bar of soap” we
use daily to clean up our flesh. Macarthur's current view on forgiveness has
merely placed God's forgiveness on the level of ours toward each other. For
example, people will say, "Now, if my child goes out and does something
wrong, he needs to come to me and ask forgiveness.
In other words, rather than elevating our thoughts to God's form of
forgiveness, we pull God down to our way of thinking about forgiveness.
Incidentally, all of these theories are at odds with the overwhelming
evidence of the New Testament that our sins have been forgiven, past,
present, and future and there is no more sacrifice for sins.
“Then He adds: ‘Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.’ And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice
for sin.” (Hebrews 10:17-18)
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace (Eph. 1:7)
“For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh,
but made alive in the spirit” (1 Peter 3:18)
Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice
for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
Hebrews 10:11,12,14
When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away,
nailing it to the cross. Colossians 2:13,14
“I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake”
(1 John 2:12).
“You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin” (1 John 3:5).
“So Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who
eagerly await Him” (Hebrews 9:28).
What must be done in order to receive forgiveness
of sins according to Hebrews 9:22? “In fact, the law
requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and
without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness
What then are you asking God to do? Is Christ going to come back and die again according to
these verse?
What have we been given as a result of Christ’s death
according to the following verse? 2 Corinthians 5:21 “God
made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we
might become the righteousness of God.”
Where is righteousness found?
Are you in Him?
Do we make ourselves righteous or does God provide
righteousness according to Romans 5:17? “For if by the
transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, how
much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of
the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One,
Jesus Christ.”
Those who say that the result of their sin is falling
out of fellowship with God are watering down the
truth that the wages of sin is death. They're also
watering down the gift of God, which is life, the
resurrected life of Jesus.
The Bible says the punishment for sin is death,
not being out of fellowship. In the same way, His
gift of grace is not being in fellowship, it's Life
eternal. The assumption of those who promote
this "in and out of fellowship" teaching of 1 John
1:9 is that their confession brings about
forgiveness.
We initiate to God through confession, and He responds to us with forgiveness. But, remember, from God's point of view there is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood. He did that once for all at the cross. He initiated, we responded.
Old & New
Jesus said the following: [Matt 6:12 And forgive
us our debts, as we forgive our debtors] and in
another place [Mark 11:25 “And whenever you
stand praying, if you have anything against
anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven
may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if
you do not forgive, neither will your Father in
heaven forgive your trespasses”].
This implies that God’s willingness and ability to forgive us is directly related to our ability to forgive others, which means that if we refuse to
forgive others, God won’t forgive us either. And of course we know that nobody can go to heaven without having their sins forgiven… Take a moment
and think about this scenario: It entails that if there is even a single bit of unforgiveness in our hearts, even if it’s unintentional, it can keep a person on the rollercoaster of in and
out of fellowship or for some people condemn them to hell.
Question: When did the New Covenant begin? When did it
go into effect? Does what we commonly call the "New
Testament" begin with Matthew Chapter 1, Verse 1? Does
that mean that right off the bat, after we're done with the
last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, and begin with
Matthew, we're now completely in "New Covenant"
territory in everything we read from that point on?
Hebrews 9:16-17 reminds us of the fact that “In the case of a
will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, because
a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect
while the one who made it is living” My conclusion, after
reading this and the rest of that chapter, is that the New
Covenant began with the death of Jesus. The shedding of
the Blood of Jesus, and His death, marked the beginning of
the New Covenant. Therefore, much of what is written in
Matthew through John refers to a time period that was
before the New Covenant.
God pointed to Jesus Christ as the centerpiece of human
history. However, where we point to his birth, God looks
at the cross of Jesus Christ as the dividing line of human
history. Why? Because Jesus’ death changed the basis of
God’s dealing with man. This gives new meaning to our
terminology, BC and AD. BC from God’s vantage point
means “Before the Cross,” and as I heard jokingly used,
AD means, “After De Cross.”
How He dealt with mankind before the cross is different
from how He deals with you and me today. Before the cross (even when Jesus walked the earth), the house of Israel lived
under a different set of rules than what we now have. This was called the Old Covenant and it mainly stated that God’s faithfulness and His blessings were dependent on Israel’s
ability to obey all the rules. If they failed (to forgive, to obey, to sacrifice, etc.) they would not be forgiven either and be
punished for their transgressions. Jesus also lived under this Covenant, which in essence consisted of the laws that were given to Moses and the Israelites. [Gal 4:4 But when the
fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law]. Jesus knew He still had to
follow this old set of rules, so that He could later offer Himself as the perfect sacrifice for all transgressions and free mankind from its demands: [Rom 10:4 For Christ is the end of the law
for righteousness to everyone who believes]. Why then is Jesus placing conditions on forgiveness when the New
Testament epistles do not? Again, it goes back to identifying the cross as the dividing line of human
history. Jesus is addressing a Jewish audience that is still “under law” (Gal. 4:4), and the new covenant is not in effect yet since Jesus has not died yet (Heb. 9:16–17).
Jesus is intentionally showing them the futility in saying
“Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matt. 6:12). We certainly need better
forgiveness than the kind we’ve been doling out to others! We see Jesus burying his Jewish contemporaries under impossible demands as he tells them to pluck out their eyes, cut off their hands, sell everything they own, and be perfect like God. This is no different! Much of
Jesus’s ministry was designed to show people how hopeless they were apart from the new covenant. Then
and only then would they see their need for the Counselor (John 16:7) and the intimate relationship with
himself that he so often spoke of:
I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in
me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me
you can do nothing.
So in summary while He was alive (before the cross) He lived under the law and he used the law to bury us so that we would see our need and true
spiritual condition apart from him. Can anyone
measure up to the righteous requirements
of the Law? Absolutely not! When we look into the Law, we see ourselves for who we really are – sinners by nature. As hard as we may try, it is impossible for us to live
up to the Law. So under the Law, we stand condemned, guilty as charged.
In Romans 3:19, 20, we see this purpose spelled out
for us: “Now we know that whatever the law says, it
says to those who are under the law, so that every
mouth may be silenced and the whole world held
accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared
righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather,
through the law we become conscious of sin.”
This is where I believe it's very important to "rightly divide the word of
truth." All of what Jesus said was truth. But in what context? Just like all
of God's word is always truth, we have to understand the context in order
to understand the proper application. In short I'll just say that these words
of Jesus were spoken before the Cross, to the Jews who were under the
Old Covenant. They do not pertain to Christianity (in our co-resurrected
lives with Christ), and in fact they go against New Covenant life. Old
Covenant principles (such as "if you do this, God will bless you," and "if
you do that, God will punish you") were always against us and contrary to
us! “having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that
was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.” (Col 2:14). But now, with the post-Cross
resurrected life of Christ, we have a new reality - a New Covenant reality
- with teachings that say we are already forgiven of all sins, not based
upon what we do or don't do, but rather upon the Blood of Jesus!
We're now encouraged and exhorted to forgive others,
not commanded to forgive others with the threat of not
being forgiven if we don't.
Why are we encouraged to forgive others? Because God has already
forgiven us completely. Since we've been the recipients of such wonderful
mercy and grace, let's turn around and show the same to others. The
Lord’s Prayer was meant to encourage Jewish believers to look forward to
the forgiveness and freedom that would be given in the new covenant.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 31 “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.
32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my
covenant, though I was a husband to[ them,”declares the LORD. 33 “This is the
covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will
put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. “For I will forgive their wickedness and
will remember their sins no more.”
Heb. 10:1 says “The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming--not the realities themselves.”
That day is here so we no longer have to beg God to
give us what he’s already freely given. All we have to
do is believe it, accept it and then begin to live as
though it’s true. We can now stop worrying about
whether or not we're forgiven, based upon whether or
not we've forgiven others. Instead, we can fully
experience and enjoy the fullness of God's grace and
mercy, and our redemption and forgiveness that's not
based at all upon what we do, but that's based solely
upon the finished work of Jesus!
What do we do when we sin?
Then what do we do when we do sin? Ignore it and say “I’m under
grace, so it does not make any difference if I sin?” True biblical
confession is a natural response of our faith to God's truth. True
confession not only agrees with God concerning sin, but also with
the truth that we are forgiven, not that we will be forgiven. Then it
goes a step further and agrees with God concerning the proper
attitudes and actions that need to be taken, in order to "work out
what has been worked in."
You see true confession focuses our mind not on our failures, but
back to the finished work of Christ, which leads to a thankful heart.
When we learn to agree with God concerning forgiveness, our
minds begin to see the totality of grace that God has for us in
Christ Jesus. Understanding God's grace is what changes the way
we live. It enables us to see people, circumstances, and things
through His eyes and respond out of a heart of love, not only for
God, but for people around us. Consider the words of the Apostle
Paul to Titus, whom he called "my true son in our common faith."
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to
all men. It teaches us to say No to ungodliness and
worldly passions, and to live self controlled, upright and
godly lives in this present age. Titus 2:11-12
According to this passage, what teaches us to say no to ungodliness?
Grace. This may surprise you. You may be thinking that if you teach
too much about Grace, you are going to encourage people to sin.
You will have A license to sin. We don't need a license to sin! It
doesn't work that way.
We will never be able to say no to ungodliness through
self-effort or obedience to the law. If we try we are going to fail.
Our flesh isn't strong enough to overcome the power of sin. Paul
dealt with this argument 2,000 years ago. He responded, “By no
means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any
longer? ”(Romans 6:2).
He continues to tell us that “we should no longer be slaves
to sin – because anyone who has died has been freed from
sin. . . In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but
alive to God in Christ Jesus. . . For sin shall not be your
master, because you are not under law, but under grace.” (Romans 6:6,7,11,14).
Grace doesn't encourage sin in the Christian. Would Jesus,
who is full of grace and truth, encourage us to sin? Grace
teaches us that we are no longer slaves to sin. We
don't have to respond or give in to the temptations
of the flesh, the world or the devil. The law always
deal with outward behavior and actions, not the
heart. Grace deals with the heart, where
everything starts. You change a person's heart and
the actions will follow suit. Grace is about freedom,
not bondage.
So what is the remedy when we do something
wrong? Again, we can go back to the scriptures and see Paul
addressing this issue in the book of Ephesians. In that assembly of
believers, a christian had been found stealing-one of the old
testament's "Big Ten" commandments. Paul's counsel to the guilty
sinner was to "steal no longer, but to go to work doing something
useful with your hands, that you may have something to share
with those in need." Ephesians 4:28
If this Ephesian offender would have live today, we would
have faulted the Apostle Paul for not saying "hey your out
of fellowship buddy. You need to get that black mark off
your record." But instead Paul simply said to stop stealing
and go to work. He didn't tell him to confess the sin to
God to get forgiveness because he was already forgiven.
He didn't need to confess to get back into fellowship with
God. Paul knew the offender was a believer and in God's
fellowship due to God's faithfulness.(1Cor. 1:9) “God, who
has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus
Christ our Lord, is faithful ”
What this person needed was his mind renewed with truth.
He had believed a lie of Satan, who tempted him to steal. If
God said he would supply all our needs according to His
riches in glory, does it make sense to steal from a neighbor?
If God owns the cattle on a thousand hills, can we trust
Him to meet our needs? The Bible tells us “to be made new in the attitude of your
minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in
true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:23,24).
Concerning lying, for instance, we are told “to put off
falsehood and speak truthfully to our neighbor, for we are all
members of one body” (verse 25).
Or, concerning stealing, Ephesians 4:28 says that “he who
has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work with his
own hands, that he may have something to share with those in
need.” In other words, stop lying and start telling the truth.
Quit stealing and go to work so you can share with others.
These are not laws we are to keep. Because we are children
of God, it does nott make sense for us to continue lying or
stealing.
How does Paul respond? Did he respond in
condemnation? No! He reasoned with them and
brought them back to truth. Paul also gives
directives concerning anger, unwholesome talk,
bitterness, rage and slander. In all of these, he
reasons with us in love, saying, that, as children of
God, this is inconsistent with who we are in Christ.
It is like the caterpillar and butterfly. Initially, a caterpillar is
a hairy, ugly, earth bound creature. You can try to change the
caterpillar by dressing it up, making it smell nice, or even educating
it at Worm University, but it is still a caterpillar. For the caterpillar
to change, it must go through the process of metamorphosis. When
it does, the caterpillar weaves a cocoon and is totally immersed in it.
Within the cocoon the process of metamorphosis takes place.
Finally, a brand new creature emerges called a butterfly. No longer
ground bound, the butterfly can now soar through the sky. In the
same way, you and I came into this world as sinners, separated from
the life of Christ. In this condition , we too, try to look good, smell
good, and educate ourselves to act good, but underneath we are still
sinners and dead spiritually. Then, through what the bible calls new
birth, we are made new. We pass from death to life and emerge as
brand new creatures with Christ living in us. We have been made
new so that we can walk in the newness of life.
Now we may not always act like new creatures in Christ.
Sometimes we forget we are butterflies and go back to doing worm
things, like crawling around with our worm buddies. But God in his
grace and mercy doesn't condemn us. He reminds us of who we are
in Christ. It is as if He holds up a heavenly mirror and says,
"Bob, look up here."
"O.K. Lord"
"What do you see?"
"I see a butterfly, Lord."
"Then why are you crawling around with the worms?"
"I don't know Lord, it does not make much sense, does it?"
And the Lord says, "I did not make you into a new creature so that you
could crawl around like a worm. I made you into a new creature so that you
could fly with the butterflies. Get up and fly Bob."
God reasons with us in all areas of life. He doesn't condemn,
because there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ
Jesus." He does not punish us for our sins, because all the
punishment was placed on Christ. There are natural repercussions
from sin, but God keeps on renewing our minds with truth. When
we agree with God concerning the truth and respond in faith, we
will experience the abundant life he promised.
So if you, as a child of God have been stealing, losing your temper,
Gossiping, or committing any other sin,
God’s message to you is "Stop It!" You have a new
master, and you are no longer a slave to sin, but a friend
of God. You are his child. Stealing, getting angry,
gossiping or whatever, is inconsistent with who you are.
You are a butterfly---New---recreated by God to fly, not
to crawl around with the worms anymore.
Christians get confused about confession because they
allow their feelings to dictate their theology. In other
words, they don't feel forgiven, so they want something
to do that will change the way they feel. They prefer to
walk by feelings rather than walk by faith in Truth.
1John1:9 is a marvelous salvation passage we
have mistakenly applied to the believer, calling it
the "Christian bar of soap" by which we can keep
ourselves clean.
These are just a few verses that tell us what to do when we do sin.
Not one verse says we must confess our sins before we can go on
with life. The motivation, instead, is found in Ephesians 4:32, which
says we are to “be kind and compassionate to one another,
forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
The only reason we can ever love, forgive and accept others
is because Christ has first loved, forgiven and accepted us.
My hope is that confronted with the finality of the cross you
come to a point where you say, "Lord, I'm going to trust your
Word that when you say I'm forever forgiven, then I'm
forever forgiven and rest in that great truth with a heart of
thanksgiving!!
In Christ, you do not get
forgiven, you are a
forgiven person! .
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