Shame is when you have a self-pity party after you've done something bad to someone instead of caring about that person's heart. If you make your negative behavior more about how good of a person you think you are, about your growth or lack of it, or about how much you sin you have utterly missed love. The very concept of having sin & sinning causes you to look at yourself more than you look at those your actions affect. That is why sin consciousness (counting your sins, counting other people's sins, labeling actions as sins) is a terrible thing. It makes you beat yourself up, beat others up, & believe that God wants to beat everybody up.
Sin consciousness is living by the knowledge of good & evil. If you live that way you beat yourself up with guilt, shame, hatred, & fear for what you think is wrong. You abuse others verbally, you dehumanize them & maybe even demonize them because you think they are "wrong" & anything that is "wrong" is evil regardless of how small or unimpactful it is. You believe God does the same thing. You, whether you'd admit it aloud or not, believe God wants you to hate yourself & hate others for doing wrong & believing wrong things. Here's a Good News Flash for you! God doesn't count anyone's sins on this entire planet, He doesn't charge a single one of us with sin. He does however, like a loving father with his child sitting on his lap, count every hair on our heads.
Yes there are still harmful things out there, of course it is still possible to be wrong about things & do wrong things. Go to Jesus, the tree of life, to know what to believe & do. Most of the correction that people offer is based either in pride or in fear. If you're angry at a person you're correcting in pride. If you're angry at what is harming the person, hoping to free them from it you're correcting in love. Just because someone is wrong doesn't mean now is the right time to correct them. Ask God what to do. Better yet start off by asking God if you are wrong.
Father's want their children to know how to live life, to be safe, successful, & satisfied. Look through the lens of life, the spiritual lens of Jesus. You can be wrong about what is wrong & even wrong about what is right. Throw out your piece of paper that lists everything that is good & bad. Ask your Father to teach you the truth about life. We love playing genius & idiot at the same time. Playing the genius who needs to teach everyone else how to live then playing the self-pitying idiot when we screw up. Throw away all of your labels for yourself & others & just BE a son or a daughter. Trust that your Father is awesome. Not the religiously scary awesome that has been shoved down our throats, or get real, willingly chugged by ourselves. No, I'm talking true awesomeness. Trust that your Father is awesome at being YOUR Father.
Showing posts with label sin consciousness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sin consciousness. Show all posts
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Friday, February 1, 2013
Even More Reasons why 1 John 1:9 is Not for Christians
#1
1 John 1:9 says, "if we confess our sins.. God cleanses us of all unrighteousness." A Christian's spirit is righteous forever. It has already been "cleansed of all unrighteousness." It has no unrighteousness in it that needs to be cleansed. If it did God would have unrighteousness in Him because we are one Spirit with God. Therefore this can only be speaking to non-Christians who still have unrighteousness in their spirit.
But perhaps you'd say, "Well it is talking about Him cleansing our flesh of all unrighteousness." If that were the case all of our bad habits, lusts, & fleshly tendencies would be completely cleansed from our minds & bodies, instantly renewing our minds 100%. Pretty obvious that that isn't what happens.
#2
Hebrews 10 tells us that a perfect sacrifice, which is what Jesus was, only has to cleanse you once. If confession of sin to be cleansed is repeatedly necessary that would mean Jesus was not a perfect sacrifice & we would need further sacrifices for our sins. If you are a Christian that thinks you must confess your sins to God this one is something to really think about.
#3
Hebrews 10 also says that once you know you are cleansed you are no longer conscious of sins. Therefore the "confessing sins to be cleansed of all unrighteousness" can only be a one time event at salvation because that cleansing, according to Hebrews, is supposed to make you no longer quantify sins or identify things as sins thus leaving you with nothing possible to confess.
Related Posts
Why Christians Don't Need to Confess Sins
1 John 1:9 says, "if we confess our sins.. God cleanses us of all unrighteousness." A Christian's spirit is righteous forever. It has already been "cleansed of all unrighteousness." It has no unrighteousness in it that needs to be cleansed. If it did God would have unrighteousness in Him because we are one Spirit with God. Therefore this can only be speaking to non-Christians who still have unrighteousness in their spirit.
But perhaps you'd say, "Well it is talking about Him cleansing our flesh of all unrighteousness." If that were the case all of our bad habits, lusts, & fleshly tendencies would be completely cleansed from our minds & bodies, instantly renewing our minds 100%. Pretty obvious that that isn't what happens.
#2
Hebrews 10 tells us that a perfect sacrifice, which is what Jesus was, only has to cleanse you once. If confession of sin to be cleansed is repeatedly necessary that would mean Jesus was not a perfect sacrifice & we would need further sacrifices for our sins. If you are a Christian that thinks you must confess your sins to God this one is something to really think about.
#3
Hebrews 10 also says that once you know you are cleansed you are no longer conscious of sins. Therefore the "confessing sins to be cleansed of all unrighteousness" can only be a one time event at salvation because that cleansing, according to Hebrews, is supposed to make you no longer quantify sins or identify things as sins thus leaving you with nothing possible to confess.
Related Posts
Why Christians Don't Need to Confess Sins
Real Talk: God is Just, Calling a sin a sin
People say "Yes God is love, but God is also just." I don't see how just is separate from love. Just & righteous are the same word in the Greek. Justice isn't arbitrary, it is based on worth & love. That is why no one demands justice if someone carelessly runs over an ant in their driveway but would if someone ran over their child instead. There is nothing in scripture that says you have to "balance God's attributes." His love is not separate from His justness, His holiness, or even His wrath. There is no such thing as "God is love but.." If you put a but after God is love you need to check to see if you really believe He is love.
The New Testament never once says God hates a human being & it never once says God hates sin. It also never tells us to "call a sin a sin." Jesus died for the world because He loves the world, He loves everybody. He took the sins of the world away by the sacrifice of Himself.
Going around & slapping the label of sin on people's actions is Satanic. Satan is the accuser. You are going around like Satan & being an accuser. An accuser is by definition, "someone who charges another with a shortcoming, error, or wrongdoing; someone who ascribes guilt or blame." Charging someone with sin condemns them. There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus & there are no sins laying on a Christian because Jesus has taken them all off. If you're going to be a friend then be a friend. You can love someone to help them out of harmful behaviors without having to lay guilt on them, that is the only way God does it Himself.
When God judges you as righteous forever Satan stands up & says "Objection!" then goes about listing things you've done wrong. God cannot be swayed about His judgment of you but you can believe His judgment was too merciful or "only positional," that He doesn't see you as righteous from His heart or treat you as righteous in your daily life.
Likewise when God says in 2 Corinthians 5:19, "I no longer count the world's sins against them," we stand up & say "Objection!" then go about listing the things we think of as sin that other people do. God doesn't receive accusations against those who He loves & He loves the whole world whether you believe it or not. When you don't believe God loves the world, when you believe He constantly wants to judge & destroy people because of their actions or beliefs, you don't even believe John 3:16. If you don't even believe John 3:16 then when you open your mouth using the words "God" or "sin" what you say isn't going to cause good things to happen.
Related Posts
Why so few Believe John 3:16
The Good News of Justice
The New Testament never once says God hates a human being & it never once says God hates sin. It also never tells us to "call a sin a sin." Jesus died for the world because He loves the world, He loves everybody. He took the sins of the world away by the sacrifice of Himself.
Going around & slapping the label of sin on people's actions is Satanic. Satan is the accuser. You are going around like Satan & being an accuser. An accuser is by definition, "someone who charges another with a shortcoming, error, or wrongdoing; someone who ascribes guilt or blame." Charging someone with sin condemns them. There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus & there are no sins laying on a Christian because Jesus has taken them all off. If you're going to be a friend then be a friend. You can love someone to help them out of harmful behaviors without having to lay guilt on them, that is the only way God does it Himself.
When God judges you as righteous forever Satan stands up & says "Objection!" then goes about listing things you've done wrong. God cannot be swayed about His judgment of you but you can believe His judgment was too merciful or "only positional," that He doesn't see you as righteous from His heart or treat you as righteous in your daily life.
Likewise when God says in 2 Corinthians 5:19, "I no longer count the world's sins against them," we stand up & say "Objection!" then go about listing the things we think of as sin that other people do. God doesn't receive accusations against those who He loves & He loves the whole world whether you believe it or not. When you don't believe God loves the world, when you believe He constantly wants to judge & destroy people because of their actions or beliefs, you don't even believe John 3:16. If you don't even believe John 3:16 then when you open your mouth using the words "God" or "sin" what you say isn't going to cause good things to happen.
Related Posts
Why so few Believe John 3:16
The Good News of Justice
Monday, January 28, 2013
What if The Story of 'The Woman Caught in Adultery' Never Happened? Examining John 7:53-8:11
Most translations today say that John 7:53-8:11 is almost certainly not a part of the original gospel of John but represents a later addition to the text. While there are specifics that may have never happened the primary truths in this story are still present elsewhere in scripture.
"Everyone went to his home. But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people were coming to Him; and He sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?” They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court. Straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.”
Jesus Still Didn't Condemn
In John 4:18 Jesus knew the woman at the well's heart and revealed that she was an adulterer. He did not take the woman at the well and have her stoned as the law says to do. Jesus didn't carry out any of the punishments of the law.
Jesus said in John 3:17, "God sent his Son into the world not to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him." In John 12:47 Jesus says, "I did not come to condemn the world, but to save it." So Jesus could have done this or something like this. It certainly was in His character & mission to do so.
Jesus & Stoning
We can still know how Jesus felt about stoning without this story. Jesus said the second greatest law was to "love your neighbor as yourself." If you were caught in sin that was punishable by death you would want to be forgiven. You would not want to have stones picked up by others to kill you. If you love your neighbor as yourself you wouldn't pick up stones to kill Him. You would instead say, "Lord have mercy on us all!" So Jesus ranking love your neighbor as yourself at the top of the law lets us know what Jesus thought about people carrying out the punishments of the law. Again there is no instance where Jesus carried out or approved of one of the law's curses/punishments being inflicted upon someone.
Go & sin no more.
In John 5 Jesus heals a man. Later in 5:14 Jesus encounters him in the temple & says to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you." Unlike the woman caught in adultery no specific sin was made mention of for this man. Jesus gave the man a reason to sin no more, to keep a worse ailment from coming upon him. Jesus had not yet drained sin of its power so Satan was able to bring sickness to people because of their sin. We know he could do this because he was able to in Job 2:7. Satan "steals, kills, & destroys" because sin gives him an opportunity to do so. So Jesus told this man this so he would stay well.
This was one of the purposes of the law also. Before Christ provided His life & His Spirit from the resurrection obedience to the law was a way to protect yourself from Satan's power. In Leviticus 18:5 God says, "Keep my decrees and laws, for the man who obeys them will live by them." Literally "live by them," as in, if you refuse to keep them you are in greater danger of Satan ending your life because as Hebrews 2:14 says "Satan holds the power of death."
Today people can be spiritually born of God which makes them one with God in Spirit. So 1 John 5:18 says, "the evil one cannot touch someone who is born of God." Jesus would not tell a Christian to "sin no more" today because Satan is powerless to use sin against a Christian (though he can still deceive you). Note that this is the only time Jesus told someone to "sin no more." And it wasn't for "heaven's sake" it was for health's sake.
Mankind is no longer under the law thus God does not relate to us based on sin or lack of sin. Christians need not be conscious of sin because Jesus has cleansed them. Romans 6:14 says, "sin has no power over you." Now that God offers His Spirit & His Life to save & protect mankind sin is exclusively a relational issue between humans. Of course Jesus doesn't want you to go around hurting yourself & others. Jesus keeps us safe & His love walks us out of the problems our flesh has without ever charging us with sin or having to command us to "sin no more."
God offers us freedom from sin consciousness because the very concept of sin is self-centered. Labeling your actions as sin & keeping a tally of your sins makes you focus on yourself & your faults rather than empathizing or reconciling with those you have done harm to. If you don't believe this is true I guarantee you haven't tried living without counting sins against yourself. You don't have to be sin conscious to be love conscious. Jesus never told anyone else, including His disciples to "sin no more." And He certainly didn't tell them to pass that on as an essential effort for all Christians to continually make. It is for freedom from sin that Christ set us free from sin. If I was a prisoner of war & was set free but still focused my mind on my time as a prisoner I would not be free in my mind. Your Spirit & identity has been made free from sin already. Free your mind from the consciousness of sin & you'll experience the victory over sin that you've always dreamed of.
"Everyone went to his home. But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people were coming to Him; and He sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?” They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court. Straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.”
Jesus Still Didn't Condemn
In John 4:18 Jesus knew the woman at the well's heart and revealed that she was an adulterer. He did not take the woman at the well and have her stoned as the law says to do. Jesus didn't carry out any of the punishments of the law.
Jesus said in John 3:17, "God sent his Son into the world not to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him." In John 12:47 Jesus says, "I did not come to condemn the world, but to save it." So Jesus could have done this or something like this. It certainly was in His character & mission to do so.
Jesus & Stoning
We can still know how Jesus felt about stoning without this story. Jesus said the second greatest law was to "love your neighbor as yourself." If you were caught in sin that was punishable by death you would want to be forgiven. You would not want to have stones picked up by others to kill you. If you love your neighbor as yourself you wouldn't pick up stones to kill Him. You would instead say, "Lord have mercy on us all!" So Jesus ranking love your neighbor as yourself at the top of the law lets us know what Jesus thought about people carrying out the punishments of the law. Again there is no instance where Jesus carried out or approved of one of the law's curses/punishments being inflicted upon someone.
Go & sin no more.
In John 5 Jesus heals a man. Later in 5:14 Jesus encounters him in the temple & says to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you." Unlike the woman caught in adultery no specific sin was made mention of for this man. Jesus gave the man a reason to sin no more, to keep a worse ailment from coming upon him. Jesus had not yet drained sin of its power so Satan was able to bring sickness to people because of their sin. We know he could do this because he was able to in Job 2:7. Satan "steals, kills, & destroys" because sin gives him an opportunity to do so. So Jesus told this man this so he would stay well.
This was one of the purposes of the law also. Before Christ provided His life & His Spirit from the resurrection obedience to the law was a way to protect yourself from Satan's power. In Leviticus 18:5 God says, "Keep my decrees and laws, for the man who obeys them will live by them." Literally "live by them," as in, if you refuse to keep them you are in greater danger of Satan ending your life because as Hebrews 2:14 says "Satan holds the power of death."
Today people can be spiritually born of God which makes them one with God in Spirit. So 1 John 5:18 says, "the evil one cannot touch someone who is born of God." Jesus would not tell a Christian to "sin no more" today because Satan is powerless to use sin against a Christian (though he can still deceive you). Note that this is the only time Jesus told someone to "sin no more." And it wasn't for "heaven's sake" it was for health's sake.
Mankind is no longer under the law thus God does not relate to us based on sin or lack of sin. Christians need not be conscious of sin because Jesus has cleansed them. Romans 6:14 says, "sin has no power over you." Now that God offers His Spirit & His Life to save & protect mankind sin is exclusively a relational issue between humans. Of course Jesus doesn't want you to go around hurting yourself & others. Jesus keeps us safe & His love walks us out of the problems our flesh has without ever charging us with sin or having to command us to "sin no more."
God offers us freedom from sin consciousness because the very concept of sin is self-centered. Labeling your actions as sin & keeping a tally of your sins makes you focus on yourself & your faults rather than empathizing or reconciling with those you have done harm to. If you don't believe this is true I guarantee you haven't tried living without counting sins against yourself. You don't have to be sin conscious to be love conscious. Jesus never told anyone else, including His disciples to "sin no more." And He certainly didn't tell them to pass that on as an essential effort for all Christians to continually make. It is for freedom from sin that Christ set us free from sin. If I was a prisoner of war & was set free but still focused my mind on my time as a prisoner I would not be free in my mind. Your Spirit & identity has been made free from sin already. Free your mind from the consciousness of sin & you'll experience the victory over sin that you've always dreamed of.
Monday, January 14, 2013
Forcing Hate
1 Corinthians 13:5 says, "Love does not take into account a wrong." So it is impossible to love the sinner & hate the sin. If you hate their sin you've stopped loving them because you're keeping account of their wrongs to hate on. God's attitude toward sin is love's attitude. 2 Corinthians 5:19 says God doesn't hold any one's sins against them. God didn't ignore sin, He condemned sin in His flesh on the cross.
God will never make me feel shame or guilt for my actions. God will reveal truth to me & He still loves me so He will help me stop my harmful behaviors. There is no hate involved, just love.
I'm not saying it is wrong to have a distaste for evil. My beef is that "hate the sin" is phrased as a command. The idea behind the quote is that when someone does something "sinful" I am obligated to hate their sin, as if I am not allowed to love a sinner without hating their sin. All I remember Jesus doing was loving the sinner & confronting those who burden others.
God has never painfully shown me the truth unless that truth caused me to feel pain for another person because He revealed a piece of their heart to me. I honestly can't think of a time God even called me out for doing wrong. What happens in my life is God turns my mind naturally & immediately back to Him in most cases where I do something wrong. Not even in a, "Oh boy I'm thankful you forgave me" but more like I just forget about what happened (unless I need to reconcile with someone) & go on walking in the joy & peace of the spirit within moments of doing the wrong. That is the freedom of His love. I used to be burdened for days over screwing up now I am free & joyful in who God is even a moment after screwing up without even trying. He causes my focus to default on Him.
The context of John 16:8 says Jesus convicts those who don't trust in Him of sin. It says He convicts the people who trust Him of righteousness (a play on words that means he declares them "guilty" of not being guilty). "Convict" is a direct synonym of the word "condemn." Convict means "to declare guilty." Condemnation is a "pronouncement of guilt." Romans 8:1 says there is NO condemnation in Christ. God will not charge His child with guilt. (Accuse & convict are synonyms too). In the secular world "convict" is used to describe someone being found guilty in court & sentenced to imprisonment. So I wouldn't use that word because I feel it gives the wrong message to Christians & non-Christians alike.
God does refute us (sometimes translated as rebuke) which means He leads us out of false beliefs we have (such as "this isn't hurting anyone"). Hebrews 12 says that sort of thing can make us "sorrowful or irritated" but "afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." Personally I haven't felt sorrowful or irritated over God refuting me because the truth is so much better than the falsehood I believed.
People shouldn't have to strive to hate sin. If you do you do, if you don't you don't. To force yourself to hate some one's actions actually makes you less loving toward that person. The way I've heard the "love the sinner, hate the sin" quote used most often is to basically say, "You can be friends with a 'sinner' but you have to let them know that you don't condone what they do & that you hate their sin." It almost comes across as "You're not allowed to love a sinner unless you also hate their sin, if you don't hate their sin you're a bad Christian & susceptible to becoming like them."
The quote isn't even from scripture. 2 Corinthians 5:16 says, "Do not regard anyone according to the flesh." While I can hate evil & try to protect those I love from it that doesn't mean I should deliberately hate some one's actions as the quote suggests. That is a terrible idea that makes it harder to love people. Ask yourself, How can I forgive someone while hating their sin?
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Consciousness of Sins is Self-centered
God no longer charges us with sins (2 Corinthians 5:19). The sacrifice of Christ has purified us for all time & our consciousness of sin can now disappear if we know we have been cleansed (Hebrews 10:1-2). God does not count your sins & neither should you. He has forgotten them forever, they have left His consciousness (Hebrews 8:12,10:17). He has taken our sin away. It is best for us to follow His example and no longer ascribe the condemning label "sin" to our actions.
Regardless of how it is identified, if you do something to harm someone they still experience loss or pain. Counting sin is self-centered. When you count your own sin you make everything you do that harms others more about you than about them. Love is not self-centered & that is what God tells us to live by in His new covenant. We aren't to live by fault finding introspection but by self giving love & affection. Counting sin makes you focus mainly on your feelings, morality, & performance; often even to the exclusion of those you are harming. "Love does no harm to a neighbor" (Romans 13:10). You can be love conscious without being sin conscious, obviously Jesus was because He had no sin.
It is impossible to avoid guilt & shame when you are conscious of sins. Shame means disgrace, dishonor, & "a turning in upon oneself." God will never put you to shame. He will never lead you to self-pity. The only way it is ok to "count sin" is to count the ways you have harmed another person in order to apologize to them & make amends. This is what James 5:16 refers to when it says "confess your sins to one another."
Someone who is love conscious doesn’t deny the pain he has caused others, he owns up to it. That is why Romans 6:11 says we are to "consider ourselves dead to sin BUT alive to God in Christ Jesus." Christ has freed us from sin consciousness thus we are dead to sin. But Christ has also made us alive to God thus we are free to be love conscious.
Defining Your Experience using Romans 6:11
"As a man thinks in His heart, so is he" (Proverbs 23:7). "CONSIDER (regard, deem, judge, view, reckon, take, believe, see) yourself dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus."
What people "consider" themselves to be changes how they experience God's love though it does not change God's love for them nor how He considers them. I believe the experience of most, if not all people can be defined by switching the variables in Romans 6:11. In reality all Non-Christians are dead to God & all Christians are dead to sin but alive to God whether they experience it or not. Please note "Alive to sin" also refers to "sin conscious," & "dead to sin" also refers to "no sin consciousness." Remember I am listing people's perceptions of themselves below. There are only two realities for mankind, 1. Sin & no God, 2. God & no sin.
Non-Christians
Sin consciousness is good if one has sin. It makes them aware of a problem so they can look for or receive the solution. Sin consciousness for a Christian however is like a healthy man receiving cancer treatment. For no reason he is destroyed by the chemo & radiation treatments (feelings of guilt & condemnation, devaluing himself based on his behavior). There is no cancer to remove so the treatment does 100% harm. Likewise Christ irrevocably took away the sins of Christians thus guilt serves no purpose & only destroys.
Related Posts
Catching Up in Perfection
Regardless of how it is identified, if you do something to harm someone they still experience loss or pain. Counting sin is self-centered. When you count your own sin you make everything you do that harms others more about you than about them. Love is not self-centered & that is what God tells us to live by in His new covenant. We aren't to live by fault finding introspection but by self giving love & affection. Counting sin makes you focus mainly on your feelings, morality, & performance; often even to the exclusion of those you are harming. "Love does no harm to a neighbor" (Romans 13:10). You can be love conscious without being sin conscious, obviously Jesus was because He had no sin.
It is impossible to avoid guilt & shame when you are conscious of sins. Shame means disgrace, dishonor, & "a turning in upon oneself." God will never put you to shame. He will never lead you to self-pity. The only way it is ok to "count sin" is to count the ways you have harmed another person in order to apologize to them & make amends. This is what James 5:16 refers to when it says "confess your sins to one another."
Someone who is love conscious doesn’t deny the pain he has caused others, he owns up to it. That is why Romans 6:11 says we are to "consider ourselves dead to sin BUT alive to God in Christ Jesus." Christ has freed us from sin consciousness thus we are dead to sin. But Christ has also made us alive to God thus we are free to be love conscious.
Defining Your Experience using Romans 6:11
"As a man thinks in His heart, so is he" (Proverbs 23:7). "CONSIDER (regard, deem, judge, view, reckon, take, believe, see) yourself dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus."
What people "consider" themselves to be changes how they experience God's love though it does not change God's love for them nor how He considers them. I believe the experience of most, if not all people can be defined by switching the variables in Romans 6:11. In reality all Non-Christians are dead to God & all Christians are dead to sin but alive to God whether they experience it or not. Please note "Alive to sin" also refers to "sin conscious," & "dead to sin" also refers to "no sin consciousness." Remember I am listing people's perceptions of themselves below. There are only two realities for mankind, 1. Sin & no God, 2. God & no sin.
Non-Christians
- Alive to sin
- This is the condition of a lost person who is aware of his negative actions in some way but has never paid attention to the gospel.
- Alive to sin & Dead to God
- These are those who know they do harmful things & have heard the gospel but reject it. These people may openly scoff at God or mock Him.
- Alive to sin but Dead to God
- Typically this is the condition of a lost person who is aware of his sinful state/actions but has not trusted Jesus. These are those "convicted" by the Holy Spirit of their disbelief in Christ. They are more concerned about their eternal status with God than they are with individual actions. They are usually on their way to trusting Christ for salvation.
- Dead to Sin
- These are those who have had their "conscience seared." They are remorseless & utterly self-centered.
- Dead to sin & Alive to God
- This is a rare type of person who believes that sin has never existed & that they can know God apart from Christ having come in the flesh. They are the people refuted in 1 John 1 & mentioned in 1 John 2:26
- Alive to God & Alive to sin
- These are "false converts," those who participate in a religion but have never met God. Some of these people are Pharisee types, they consider themselves alive to sin simply to boast in their self-righteous overcoming of it through rule keeping.
- Dead to sin & Dead to God
- Amazingly no one sees themselves this way. Those who see themselves dead to God always tie it to sin/behavior. The universal undergirding of salvation is exposed here. You cannot see yourself as separated from God without sin/behavior being the cause of it thus the need for a savior is revealed.
- Alive to God but Alive to sin
- Most genuine Christians live here. They have at least some relationship with God but their aliveness to sin causes them to constantly put the breaks on that relationship. What they consider sin makes them feel less loved & even forsaken (through "broken fellowship") by God. This type of life is like being stuck in traffic. You make a little progress then stop, a little progress then stop. When things seem to be progressing nicely you feel the hope of finally taking off at full speed just to end up slowing & stopping again soon after. This group is the best example of why a sin consciousness is dangerous for Christians. They can taste God's love but they are starving & can never eat & drink of His fullness as long as they are alive to sin. Sin consciousness is the primary opposing force to experiencing the love of God in a relationship with God. These people experience lots of shame & guilt. They live by unintentionally self-centered performance based morality. They experience sporadic freedom, joy, & peace based on how much they think they do or do not sin.
- Alive to sin & Dead to God
- This mindset includes Christians who think they have "lost their salvation" through actions they consider sinful. Some so called "backslidden" Christians may also see themselves this way. Those who feel cast off, on the shelf, or who are "running from God" also have this mindset. Those who think confession or repentance is tied to forgiveness from God may also find themselves here.
- Dead to sin & alive to sin at the same time.
- These people have a custom list of sins. They are dead to many of their own sins but very much alive to others. They are the condemning self-righteous types. While they can be Christians they pay little attention to the actual Spirit of God.
- Dead to sin & alive to God
- These people have freedom from sin but focus more on that freedom than they do on God Himself. They are a rare type of people today. They are the kind religious people fear will abuse their freedom but they are still experiencing God's love far more than the religious. In the first century there were many people like this which is why people are told to "not use their freedom to indulge in the flesh" (Galatians 5:13). This is a great place to be but it is still second best. Despite their behavior these people are often drawing closer & closer to God because they know that their negative behavior does not prevent it.
- Dead to sin but alive to God
- These people, the rarest of all, have no sin consciousness. Instead they have a love consciousness, they are conscientious to love. Their focus isn't on freedom from sin but aliveness to God. They are looking to love because of how well they have been loved by God. These are the most satisfied people in the world & they love better than anyone else.
Sin consciousness is good if one has sin. It makes them aware of a problem so they can look for or receive the solution. Sin consciousness for a Christian however is like a healthy man receiving cancer treatment. For no reason he is destroyed by the chemo & radiation treatments (feelings of guilt & condemnation, devaluing himself based on his behavior). There is no cancer to remove so the treatment does 100% harm. Likewise Christ irrevocably took away the sins of Christians thus guilt serves no purpose & only destroys.
We died with Christ. Christ, being raised from the dead, dies no more. For the death that He died, he died to sin one time. Remember this, you have likewise died to sin one time. You are permanently freed from sin & you do not need to "die" again. Now we live with Him in spirit & one day face to face. Death has no power over Christ. The life he lives, He lives to God. Remember this, you are alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. You have an unbreakable bond because you are now one spirit with Him. (Romans 6:8-11, Paraphrase)
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Catching Up in Perfection
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Catching Up in Perfection
"The former way of doing things, a system of commandments that were weak & useless, was set aside because the law never made anything perfect. God has brought in a better hope, through which we draw near to God" (Hebrews 7:18-19).
"The sacrifice of Christ makes those who draw near to God perfect" (Hebrews 10:1).
"By one offering Jesus has perfected forever those who are made holy" (Hebrews 10:14).
"The spirits of righteous men have been made perfect" (Hebrews 12:22-23).
Another accurate translation of the word "perfect" is "complete." The word "saved" can be translated as "made whole." Thus when you are saved you are complete, you are made whole, you are perfect forever. "The Lord's work is perfect" (Deuteronomy 32:4). You are His work (Ephesians 2:10).
"The blood of Christ can purify our consciousness of dead works so we can worship the living God" (Hebrews 9:14).
"God is able to make His worshipers perfect in their consciousness" (Hebrews 9:9).
"The sacrifice of Christ has purified us one time for all time thus our consciousness of sin & feelings of guilt can disappear forever" (Hebrews 10:2).
"Our evil consciences have been removed by the sprinkling of Christ’s blood. We are clean. Let us draw near to Him with true hearts that are fully confident by trusting in Him" (Hebrews 10:22).
"A clear conscience depends on our knowledge of God’s grace & love for us, not on our own fleshly wisdom. It brings pure motives and godly sincerity to all of our behavior" (2 Corinthians 1:12).
"Your beauty is perfect because of My splendor which I bestowed on you,” declares the Lord God (Ezekiel 16:14).
These are Jesus' words to the parts of His body which is His bride, the Assembly, "You are so beautiful, my beloved, so perfect in every part." (Song of Songs 4:7)
"The sacrifice of Christ makes those who draw near to God perfect" (Hebrews 10:1).
The Law made nothing perfect but Christ does!
"By one offering Jesus has perfected forever those who are made holy" (Hebrews 10:14).
"The spirits of righteous men have been made perfect" (Hebrews 12:22-23).
Another accurate translation of the word "perfect" is "complete." The word "saved" can be translated as "made whole." Thus when you are saved you are complete, you are made whole, you are perfect forever. "The Lord's work is perfect" (Deuteronomy 32:4). You are His work (Ephesians 2:10).
"The blood of Christ can purify our consciousness of dead works so we can worship the living God" (Hebrews 9:14).
"God is able to make His worshipers perfect in their consciousness" (Hebrews 9:9).
"The sacrifice of Christ has purified us one time for all time thus our consciousness of sin & feelings of guilt can disappear forever" (Hebrews 10:2).
"Our evil consciences have been removed by the sprinkling of Christ’s blood. We are clean. Let us draw near to Him with true hearts that are fully confident by trusting in Him" (Hebrews 10:22).
"A clear conscience depends on our knowledge of God’s grace & love for us, not on our own fleshly wisdom. It brings pure motives and godly sincerity to all of our behavior" (2 Corinthians 1:12).
"Your beauty is perfect because of My splendor which I bestowed on you,” declares the Lord God (Ezekiel 16:14).
These are Jesus' words to the parts of His body which is His bride, the Assembly, "You are so beautiful, my beloved, so perfect in every part." (Song of Songs 4:7)
Here is a song I made in 2007 with the same title as this post.
Monday, September 24, 2012
Reality Because of Christ: Sin
Jesus has taken our sins away as far as east is from west.. (Psalm 103:12, John 1:29, 1 John 3:5)
God is no longer charging people with sin.. (2 Corinthians 5:19-20)
Jesus Christ is the end of the law to everyone who trusts Him & where there is no law sin is not charged.. (Romans 5:13, 10:4)
Blessed is the man whom the Lord will by no means charge with sin.. (Romans 4:8)
No one who is born of God sins.. (1 John 5:18)
Everyone who has been born of God cannot sin & is not able to sin... (1 John 3:6,9)
The sacrifice of Christ has purified us for all time & our consciousness of sin can now disappear if we know we have been cleansed.. (Hebrews 10:1-2)
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
How to be a slave to sin
People talk about grace being "a license to sin" but those who put themselves under law "give a license to sin" to allow it to dominate them. They are saying to sin, "please make me constantly aware of you, I need to focus on you, I need to feel every bit of guilt and shame I can religiously conceive a reason to have."
"Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey?" (Romans 6:16).
Almost every Christian offers his or herself as a bondslave to sin, not by actions but by mindset. They are freed by Christ but they choose to go back to sin and focus on it ad infinitum. If you ever sit around thinking, "I have sinned" or "Is this a sin or is that a sin?" you are sin conscious thus you don't believe Christ cleansed you. Sin consciousness makes you a slave to sin. Christ took sin away on the cross & He credits no one with sin. I am sick of seeing people make excuses to make their entire life about whether they sin or not. You have almost no idea how much God loves you. It is literally beyond all you can ask for or imagine.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
The Victory of Jesus Has Brought Liberation from Sin
Whether or not we sin isn't the primary issue of life. We are free from sin (Romans 6:6-7,18,22, 8:2).
If I am freed from a country that once enslaved me I could..
1. Stay there and try to fight against the people who imprisoned me.
2. Go enjoy my freedom elsewhere.
I don't have to fight to maintain freedom, Christ freed me.
Hebrews 10:1-2 says that when we know we are cleansed, we lose consciousness of sins, meaning we no longer have to count sins against ourselves.
"The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves. The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship. If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshipers would have been purified once for all time, and their feelings of guilt and consciousness of sin would have disappeared." (Hebrews 10:1-2)
I've been perfectly cleansed for all time because of the perfect sacrifice of Christ. God's value of me as His child is not based on my behavior. God does not charge His children with sin (2 Corinthians 5:19-20; 1 John 3:5-6,9; 1 John 5:18). Because He loves me I want to love others & do good.
Romans 6:8-14 says to "Consider yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus." God does not intend for us to focus on or strive to "be good." God intends for us to focus on Him and His goodness.
A liberator's victory brings freedom. Jesus is our savior, our liberator. "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" (2 Corinthians 3:17). Our victory doesn't come from trying to obtain or abstain it only comes from trusting in the victory Christ has already won, what He has already obtained for us. "The victory that overcomes the world is made evident through our faith, our trust in Christ's victory" (1 John 5:4).
If I am freed from a country that once enslaved me I could..
1. Stay there and try to fight against the people who imprisoned me.
2. Go enjoy my freedom elsewhere.
I don't have to fight to maintain freedom, Christ freed me.
Hebrews 10:1-2 says that when we know we are cleansed, we lose consciousness of sins, meaning we no longer have to count sins against ourselves.
"The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves. The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship. If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshipers would have been purified once for all time, and their feelings of guilt and consciousness of sin would have disappeared." (Hebrews 10:1-2)
I've been perfectly cleansed for all time because of the perfect sacrifice of Christ. God's value of me as His child is not based on my behavior. God does not charge His children with sin (2 Corinthians 5:19-20; 1 John 3:5-6,9; 1 John 5:18). Because He loves me I want to love others & do good.
Romans 6:8-14 says to "Consider yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus." God does not intend for us to focus on or strive to "be good." God intends for us to focus on Him and His goodness.
A liberator's victory brings freedom. Jesus is our savior, our liberator. "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" (2 Corinthians 3:17). Our victory doesn't come from trying to obtain or abstain it only comes from trusting in the victory Christ has already won, what He has already obtained for us. "The victory that overcomes the world is made evident through our faith, our trust in Christ's victory" (1 John 5:4).
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