Difficult Questions Answered

Let’s be honest, sometimes telling the truth is not an easy thing to do. What makes it even more difficult is we live in a society that believes, in many situations, lies are justifiable. “Little white lies” are often viewed as a necessary way to preserve the peace in our relationships. However, the Bible is quite clear. Lying is a sin (Leviticus 19:11). And in Proverbs 6:16-19, God’s condemnation of lying doesn’t contain any exemptions for the sake of “relational peace,” “being nice” or avoiding the proverbial “doghouse.” So…are we expected to practice brutal honesty?

I believe Paul offers us the best advice. He encourages us to “speak the truth in love”(Ephesians 4:15). Often times it isn’t what we say but how we say it that causes friction. Proverbs 15:1-2 tells us a “gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable, but the mouth of fools spouts folly.” Notice the “answer” is neutral. The outcome is influenced by the presentation (gentle versus harsh). The key is to make sure our speech (our content, tone, pitch, volume, word choice) is gracious (Colossians 4:6). Perhaps we would do well to re-read First Corinthians 13.

“Speaking the truth in love” means that sometimes we are going to say things the listener would rather not hear. But it also means we’ll do it in a way that isn’t demeaning, demoralizing or destructive. Proverbs 27:6 says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” Trust is essential for a healthy relationship. The best relationships are built on truth…not “little white lies.” So…my speaking the “truth in love” response to the question about her hair, I would say, “I think I liked your former hair style better.”

If we are talking about one hour in a pew, a week or month, then maybe. Do we include ALL sins, whether by omission or commission? Or just the Ten Commandments? Are we talking about a normal life expectancy? If so I would have to answer by saying this. If someone told me “since I’ve accepted Jesus Christ, and repented of my sins, I have not, nor will I ever sin again.” I would have to take the escape clause, and leave any judgment of any individual’s heart to our Father, the cardio knower. Some folks have tremendous testimonies to be admired but none walk perfectly. I believe we have already seen the only perfect man and that was in our Lord Jesus Christ. A Christian may stop sinning for a time, but a life time?

I know all things are possible through God’s grace, but having said that, we all have natural tendencies that act as a head wind buffeting us as we run our own individual race.

I believe we maintain our salvation by being alert and conscious of our sinful nature and when needed repentant of our transgressions. The scriptures are full of examples of Gods willingness to forgive the sins of both the righteous and unrighteous. As Christians we have the perfect example in Jesus Christ, and while we strive to be like Him we fall short.

As for the question at hand “Is it possible for a Christian to completely quit sinning? I would say no, as I understand both scriptures and life. Just look around church…no one is there because they’re perfect, but we’re trying to get there.

Note: I have to confess this question was more challenging than I had expected it to be, it made for a great study given all the variables of any one given life. So with that said. I recommend 1st John Chapter 1 to start yours.

In the final analysis, there really is only one eternally soul damning sin, blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, a shorthand way of saying refusal to repent and confess sin.  The only sin that the Lord cannot cover is the one that the sinner refuses to surrender unto Him through repentance and confession.

However, as to the enumerated individual sins, certainly the one everyone, Christians and unsaved alike, most often commit is violating the First Commandment, “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.”  Anything and anyone that takes precedence over obedience to Christ is a god before Him.  That includes the obvious items:  wealth, power and sex, but also the less obvious:  self-esteem, family, fame, avoiding loss and suffering and spurning self-sacrifice that are not sins of themselves but become sin when placed before God.  In reality, every other sin is merely a variant manifestation of this sin.

The reason this sin persists is because it is the core sin of Satan, Adam and Eve, each of whom wanted to be like God.  Each of us is constantly saying to God, “my will not Thine be done,” the opposite of Christ’s prayer in Gethsemane.  Whether we admit it or not, the unholy trinity, Me, Myself and I, constantly seeks to regain sovereignty over the Christian’s soul.  Sanctification is truly nothing more than the “New Adam” that the Holy Spirit created in each Christian daily waging war against the “Old Adam” sin nature.

Firstly, let’s define salvation; being saved or rescued.  Salvation is the initial step in the sanctification process.  Sanctification is the lifelong cleansing experience and process that each Christian goes through upon being saved.  Romans 10:9 tells us to confess with our mouths and believe in our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead and that makes us saved.   If I follow these steps, I’m saved.  To me, that’s the essence of truly knowing one is saved.  God makes no mistakes.   Our salvation is totally in the Will of God and by His own decision.  And when He receives us, salvation is a done deal!  How do I know He’s received me?  Because He said He would if I would confess and believe.  Therefore, I trust Him at His word and that gives me blessed assurance of my own safety and well-being.   Ephesians 2:8 says it is by grace that we are saved; not by works that we may be able to brag about it.  God saved us, we made the decision to give up to Him.  Now He will keep us unto the day of redemption.  Good people aren’t necessarily Godly people.  Just because you have a feeling of guilt doesn’t mean that you have confessed and are committed to Christ; but it can be a clear sign that your conscience is on the way.

The Bible is clear; there is a Hell. Yet, many Christians struggle with this reality because it seems unfair to them that every lost sinner must go to Hell for eternity regardless of the degree of their sin. Many Christians are helped to greater confidence in this Biblical doctrine when they learn that there are, in fact, degrees of punishment in Hell.

How do we know that this is true? We know because the God of the Bible is “a just God” (Is. 45:21). He rewards and punishes every man justly and fairly- “Every transgression and disobedience receive[s] a just recompense of reward (Heb. 2:2).” The reaping will be according to the sowing- “Whatever a man sows that he will also reap (Gal. 6:7).” Jesus was clear; some people will receive “greater condemnation” (Mark 12:40). The level of punishment in Hell is partly determined by the seriousness of an individual’s sins- “Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater sin (John 19:11).” The severity of our judgment will also be partly determined by the amount of Gospel light we had while here on earth. In Matt. 11:20-24, Jesus made it clear that it would be “more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment” than for Bethsaida and Chorazin because the latter cities had more Gospel revelation and yet still rejected Christ. Again, this is clearly seen in Jesus’ teaching in Luke 12:47 where some are “beaten with many stripes” and others are “beaten with few stripes.”

Be strengthened in your faith, Christian! Every person who goes to Hell will receive exactly the punishment they deserve.

If I could be saved and then by some act lose my salvation:

It would mean that I have no assurance. I could never be certain of salvation.

It would mean that I have no forgiveness. The Bible clearly teaches that Christ died for my sins. If I can lose my salvation, it must mean that there are some sins in my life for which He has not died. Clearly, no one is forgiven!

It would mean that I am not saved by faith alone. The Bible proves over and over that salvation is by faith alone, apart from any human works. Ephesians 2:8-9 say, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works so no one could boast.” To imply that salvation is maintained by good works is to add works to salvation and then it cannot be by faith alone. Good works are not the root of salvation, they are the fruit of salvation.

It would mean that God’s power is limited. John 10:28 says, “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.” If we could lose our salvation, then God is not strong enough to keep us saved! Believers do not hold on to God. In Jesus, He holds on to them.

It would mean that our focus is not on Christ. As long as I worry about whether I can lose my salvation or not, my focus is on me and my behavior and not on Christ and His redemptive finished work on the cross.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus made a frightening assertion: “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14-15 NLT)

Does this mean God’s forgiveness is conditional? Certainly not, because the New Testament makes it clear God in Christ has already forgiven us. But what it does mean is that if we harbor unforgiveness in our hearts, we will never fully experience God’s forgiveness. I like to compare it to a drain pipe that is clogged with impediments. Only when they are removed can water flow freely. In the same way, our lives are stopped up with all kinds of “stuff” that is a result of other persons’ poor choices. We can never fully receive God’s blessings, including His forgiveness, until we make room. The way in which this happens is by forgiving others.

Further motivation for forgiving others is found in Jesus’ parable of the unmerciful servant recorded in Matthew 18. Even though the king forgave this man’s enormous debt, he steadfastly refused to forgive the paltry debt owed him by a fellow servant. When the king found out what happened, he had the unforgiving servant thrown in prison and tortured. The message is clear: any sins committed against us pale in comparison to the sins we’ve committed against God. Since He has freely forgiven us, we are compelled to go and do likewise.

So the question is not, “If I don’t forgive others, will God forgive me?” Instead, we must consider, “If I’ve received God’s forgiveness, why in the world wouldn’t I want to forgive others?” The answer is obvious and forces us to take the Apostle Paul’s words to heart: “Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” (Colossians 3:13b NLT)

Is God real? How do we know He really exists?    People have always asked this question, not just children or teenagers, but even adults.  In the Bible even Moses asked the question to God, “Who are you? What do I tell people when they ask, “who are you God?”  The answer he got was, “Tell them  “I AM THAT I AM !”   [EXODUS 3:14].  So even today this question is still asked.  Besides what the Bible tells us and the historical evidence shows, there is one thought I would like to share with you, to give you something to think about.  First, know we must come to God by faith, [Hebrews 11:6, “For he that comes to God must believe that He is.”]   So let’s look at some very simple things created by God that we can see and KNOW that He is real. Each day we see the sun, the stars in the sky, the moon, this earth and all the beauty He created. But let’s look at something we cannot see.  How many people have ever seen the wind?  We see the results of the wind, but have never actually seen the wind !   We  believe in the wind because we see the trees blowing, the flag waving, the bird being pushed through the air,  all by the wind that is there, but cannot be seen.   We can also know that we have not seen God, but just as the wind is real, He is real also. We want to see before we believe, but Jesus tells us “Blessed are those that have not seen but yet believe.” (John 20:29). The next time you look and see the trees moving from the wind, remember you cannot see the wind, but yet you believe. God is just as real as the wind.  By faith you can believe in God and know He is REAL !!!

The question your friends are asking is a common one, but one that results from not reading the Bible completely. First, God is not a God of hatred. God does hate sin, and ultimately God does send His wrath upon sin and those who choose to continue in sin. The wrath of God is a consequence of His holiness.

Holiness is the only part of the character of God that is thrice repeated in worship in heaven. “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.”

• Out of God`s holiness, His wrath falls upon those that reject the one and only way God has provided for people to have sin forgiven and be holy also.
• This provision was made by Christ´s substitutionary death on the cross and His resurrection.
• It is accepted by putting one´s faith in Christ and trusting Him as Lord and Savior.

Both Old and New Testaments declare both the wrath and love of God.

WRATH:

Ezekiel 18:4 … The soul who sins shall die.

Matthew 5:29 If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

LOVE:

Deuteronomy 23:5 … the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Only those who reject the provision of God´s love in Christ need fear His wrath