WHAT IT MEANS TO BELIEVE

Scriptureplz · May 21, 2016

What was it that separated man from God? Sin. What did God send the "Messiah" (Jesus) to do? Remove the sin of the world (1 John 2:2).

The disciples "believed" Jesus was the foretold Messiah (Savior of the world) so Jesus considered them "clean" (forgiven, reconciled, saved). When we "believe" (John 3:16) on Jesus Christ, we believe He was the Messiah sent by God to "reconcile" the world to Himself (2 Corinthians 5:19) as a propitiation all sin, believer and unbeliever alike, ALL the sin of the world was paid for by Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:19[SUP] - [/SUP]To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

Matthew 12:31[SUP] - [/SUP]Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.

1 John 2:2[SUP] - [/SUP]And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

The only sin that separates man from God is "unbelief".

John 16:8-9[SUP] - [/SUP]And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:Of sin, because they believe not on me;

John 3:18[SUP] - [/SUP]He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

When we believe (trust, rely on, depend on) Jesus Christ as our Savior, we have reconciled ourselves to God through the person of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20-21) and are *made* righteous by faith.

Romans 5:1 - Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

Romans 5:19[SUP] - [/SUP]For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

Repentance toward salvation is not about you trying to *make yourself righteous* by "turning from sin", because the bible says "by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified" (Romans 3:20, Galatians 2:16). If you are trying to *make yourself righteous* by the works of the law the bible says you have made the same mistake as Israel did! No, "repent" means to "change your mind" of the thought that you can make yourself righteous, and subject yourself by faith in Him to His righteousness!

Romans 10:1-4 - Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.

Romans 3:21-26[SUP] - [/SUP]But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

HeRoseFromTheDead · May 21, 2016

Scriptureplz said:

Repentance is not about trying to make one's self righteous. It is commanded by GOD. Both Jesus and John came proclaiming repentance from sin into remission of sin. Equating repentance with, or trying to turn repentance into, works of law is gross darkness.

p_rehbein · May 21, 2016

The first Sermon Jesus preached!

Matthew 4:13) And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim:
14 .) That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
15 .) The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;
16 .) The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
17 .) From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

mailmandan · May 21, 2016

Amen! To believe in Christ "unto salvation" is to believe/entrust our spiritual well being to Christ; have faith/reliance upon Christ for salvation. Unfortunately, many religious folks simply believe "mental assent" in the existence and historical facts about Christ but their trust and reliance is in their works for salvation.

Grace777x70 · May 21, 2016

It looks like after John's preaching ( and John was the last of the Old Testament prophets ) ..Jesus said to "repent" ( change your mind - change the way you are thinking ) first , then believe the gospel.

Mark 1:14-15 (NASB)
[SUP]14 [/SUP] Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God,

[SUP]15 [/SUP] and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."

Scriptureplz · May 21, 2016

HeRoseFromTheDead said:

Until you understand the correct definition of "repentance" (as it applies to salvation), you will never understand the gospel. I know you have been made aware of the biblical use of the term but you choose to continue to use it in a way it has never been used in scripture.

I as well as many others have shown you scripture that clearly shows that it is not by our righteousness, but His that we are saved. Turn from all the sin you want but until you believe the truth you're lost!

Rightly Handling the Word Repentance

mailmandan · May 21, 2016

The Greek word for "repent" is "metanoia" (noun) and "matanoeo" (verb) you see as defined in the Strongs #3340, 3341: to think differently or afterwards, reconsider. After thought, change of mind. Repentance basically means a "change of mind" and the context must determine what is involved in this "change of mind." Where salvation is in view, repentance actually precedes saving faith in Christ and is not a totally separate act from faith. It is actually the same coin with two sides. Repentance is on one side, what you change your mind about and faith in Christ is on the positive side, the new direction of this change of mind.

Matthew 21:32 - For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.

Mark 1:15 - Repent and believe the gospel.

Acts 20:21 - solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Bible also tells us that true repentance will result in a change of actions. Acts 26:20 declares, "I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds. This is the fruit of repentance (Matthew 3:8), not the essence of repentance (change of mind). I have heard certain people say, "If you want to be saved, repent of your sins, turn from your sins." If turning from your sins means to "stop" sinning, then people can only be saved if they stop sinning. And it is unlikely that anyone will ever be saved, since we don't know anyone who has ever "completely" stopped sinning.

Grace777x70 · May 21, 2016

mailmandan said:

Amen....there are people that have lot's of bible "facts" in their heads but they don't "know" the Lord. They continually miss His heart because they don't really know Him. Lot's of people know "facts" about Abraham Lincoln but his wife really "knew" him.

Grace777x70 · May 21, 2016

Scriptureplz said:

Amen...religion has unfortunately hijacked some biblical words and put their own meaning into the real Greek word as it would have been used back when the scriptures were being spoken to the people.

Repentance is actually a Latin word that has mangled the true meaning and truth of the Greek word " metanoia " - to change your mind and way of thinking.

Sometimes when we hear something else being said about the meaning of a word then what we have been religiously taught - it offends our minds and we can go into "defend the truth" mode but in reality we are just defending the man-made tradition.

For those that like to watch videos..here is a good one that explains all that out - it'll bless you and the scriptures will become clearer and the awesome work of our Lord will be evident and liberating.

[video=vimeo;112172173]https://vimeo.com/112172173[/video]

p_rehbein · May 21, 2016

Originally Posted by p_rehbein

Why is “repentenc” necessary prior to water baptism.

IF we understand that water baptism is a symbolic act giving "witness" to a spiritual rebirth, then we can understand the need for "repentance." Our spiritual rebirth into Jesus can not be seen/witnessed by the naked eye, thus Jesus commanded that we be water baptized, and, in this way, we profess to the Church and the World that we have become His disciples. The forgiveness of sin HAS ALREADY occurred.......Water baptism IS NOT unto salvation. It IS a "witness" OF our salvation to the Church, and to the World. So why would Jesus want us to do this? Let Him tell us Himself:

Matthew 10:32) Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
33 .) But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

Luke 12:8) Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God:
9 .) But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God.

Ok, what about repentance............

The first word Jesus preached in public was “repent”………..

Matthew 4:17) From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Look at what is said in Acts 4:16) Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. 17 .) For as much then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God? 18 .) When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

And again in Acts 20:20) And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house, 21 .) Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

So, in Acts 2:38, when Peter said: “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” He was well in line with the teaching of Jesus…….This is not a new concept/teaching…….consider:

Proverbs 28:13)He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whosoconfesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

John taught this as well……consider:

1[SUP]st[/SUP] John 1:6) If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
7 .) But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 8 .) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 .) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Again, consider what Luke wrote……….Luke 15:10) Likewise, I sa y unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth. And in the 13[SUP]th[/SUP] Chapter, Luke records this…..from verse 3) I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

And Peter taught in Acts 3:19) Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

You can decide for yourselves IF we should "repent" of our sins..........as for me and my house we will with a sincere and contrite heart repent of our sins and pray that God will be faithful to forgive us of our sins.....

AND we will be water baptized because Jesus said we were to be.......and to PROCLAIM to the Church and the World that we are His disciples.

God bless you each and every one.

HeRoseFromTheDead · May 21, 2016

Scriptureplz said:

Repentance is pretty simple. Christianity 101. I don't need a hyper grace devotee to tell me what the new understanding.revelation of repentance is.

John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins. Mark 1:4-5

Repentance is acknowledging, I'm not righteous. That's the very first step into righteousness.

Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now you say, ‘We see,’ therefore your sin remains. John 9:41

JustWhoIAm · May 21, 2016

I cannot in truth, according to scripture and the times, say that actions do not matter in regards to salvation. I will be more than happy to give a very serious example (keep in mind that God does not change, we're just ignorant to his voice as humans sometimes):

Revelation 3:1-6 -

“Write this letter to the angel of the church in Sardis. This is the message from the one who has the sevenfold Spirit of God and the seven stars:“I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God. Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. Repent and turn to me again. If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief.

“Yet there are some in the church in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes with evil. They will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. All who are victorious will be clothed in white. I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and his angels that they are mine.

“Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches."

Grace777x70 · May 21, 2016

Here is a great grace based teaching on Sardis in Revelation. If obscure scriptures seem to contradict the abundance of clear scriptures then we are interpreting that scripture wrong. The Holy Spirit will reveal these things to us.

There will always be tares in with the real wheat in every church just as Jesus said. He loves them too and has things to say to them as well as to the believers in all 7 churches.

I like to use this website as it tackles some of these obscure scriptures and it has a question section at the bottom and in some cases I learn more from reading them.

https://escapetoreality.org/2010/04/11/incomplete-deeds-the-zombie-church-of-sardis-rev-31-6/

Scriptureplz · May 21, 2016

JustWhoIAm said:

Since I have given you scripture showing the only sin that separates you and God is unbelief, how is it you are going to "turn from sin" to be saved since He has already removed your sin by the sacrifice of His Son? If you read what God says instead of what people comment on here, the Holy Spirit will guide you into truth. Keep listening to man and you'll never see the truth. God to the scripture references in my OP and read them letting the Spirit speak to you. Our sin debt was paid 2,000 years ago. What separates man from God is not sin that has already been paid for, but that which was not paid for. UNBELIEF

HeRoseFromTheDead · May 21, 2016

Scriptureplz said:

This article does bring up a good point that points out error in both catholic and (some) protestant doctrine. The English word repentance comes from the Latin word that means expressing sorrow instead of the Greek word meaning to change the mind. So in this sense, repentance has been changed into a work (something I know nothing about).

The problem here, though, is the redefinition of repentance by hyper grace devotees to mean, not acknowledgement of sin, but acknowledgement of one's righteousness, which makes it the exact opposite of godly repentance.

Grace777x70 · May 21, 2016

We need to receive ( and it helps to believe it first ) the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness that is in Christ when we believe in all that He has already done for us in His finished work.
Romans 5:17 (NASB)
[SUP]17 [/SUP] For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.

Scriptureplz · May 21, 2016

HeRoseFromTheDead said:

As used in Mark 1:15 - "And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel."

μετανοέω
metanoeō
met-an-o-eh'-o
From G3326 and G3539; to think differently or afterwards, that is, reconsider (morally to feel compunction): - repent.

"reconsider, think differently and believe the gospel".

Yeah I would say "think differently" works fine here! But you choose to stay confused, and to confuse others while being confused. Why not research this? It could determine your eternal destiny.

PurerInHeart · May 21, 2016

Salvation comes through Jesus Christ, but we have to go get it. He says, "Come onto Me and I will give.." He says, "Seek Ye FIRST the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, THEN all these things shall be added onto you. Jesus died to give the whole world a chance to come to Him and so be saved.

Its like this... Say for example you got a coupon in the mail for a free burger at McDonald's, and you call them up and say, "I have my coupon, where's my burger?" And they say, "you have to come in and redeem your coupon in order to get your free burger." They are not going to bring it to you, you have to go get it.

Do you know why there is a snake on the medical symbol? It comes from an Old Testament scenario that represented Christ. The people sinned and were bit by these snakes as punishment. But a snake statue representing Christ was put up, and all who came and looked upon the snake were healed. It did not come to them, they had to go to it.

Wide is the road that leads to destruction, and most enter through it. Narrow is the road that leads to life, and few find it. It is up to the individual to go find salvation- it does not come to you, you must go to it. Jesus died that the whole world would have the opportunity to be saved, but the whole world will not choose to be saved- only those who DO the will of the Father.

The bible says not to be deceived, murders, homosexual offenders, etc will not enter the kingdom of God, but that that is what SOME of you WERE, but you have made yourself clean in the blood of the Lamb. Only those who wash their robes and make them white will enter heaven. As Ananias said to Paul, "What are you waiting for? Arise, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on the name of the Lord." We must DO in order to receive.

JustWhoIAm · May 21, 2016

Grace777x70 said:

So what you're saying is that just because a website twists deeds to mean faith alone (What? Deeds means deeds and faith means faith. It means what it says directly, clearly, there's no hidden truth there! Quite a jump in logic...) that it's an excuse to go outside of the bounds of how God intended things to work?

The millstone is better for people like that.

PurerInHeart · May 21, 2016

I was too late to add this pic

WHAT IT MEANS TO BELIEVE

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