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E
you should at least post the whole passage..
[SUP]2 [/SUP]Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. [SUP]3 [/SUP]And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.[h=3]Sin and the Child of God[/h][SUP]4 [/SUP]Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. [SUP]5 [/SUP]And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. [SUP]6 [/SUP]Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.
[SUP]7 [/SUP]Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. [SUP]8 [/SUP]He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. [SUP]9 [/SUP]Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
1. We will be like God (sinless) when we see him
2. Since we will be this way, We have a hope. and whoever has a hope purifies himself (but will still be not like jesus until we are with him face to face)
3. Whoever practices sin, has never seen god or known him, he is of his father the devil
4. Whoever is born of God does not practice sin, because he has been born of God and can not practice sin.
YOU DO NOT CUT PASSAGES APART AND FORM YOUR OWN BELIEF SYSTEM, You are a MASTE OF THIS Thats why it is so easy to see right through your doctrines.
[SUP]2 [/SUP]Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. [SUP]3 [/SUP]And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.[h=3]Sin and the Child of God[/h][SUP]4 [/SUP]Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. [SUP]5 [/SUP]And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. [SUP]6 [/SUP]Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.
[SUP]7 [/SUP]Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. [SUP]8 [/SUP]He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. [SUP]9 [/SUP]Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
1. We will be like God (sinless) when we see him
2. Since we will be this way, We have a hope. and whoever has a hope purifies himself (but will still be not like jesus until we are with him face to face)
3. Whoever practices sin, has never seen god or known him, he is of his father the devil
4. Whoever is born of God does not practice sin, because he has been born of God and can not practice sin.
YOU DO NOT CUT PASSAGES APART AND FORM YOUR OWN BELIEF SYSTEM, You are a MASTE OF THIS Thats why it is so easy to see right through your doctrines.
A
The only way we can purify ourselves is to remember there's nothing we can do to purify ourselves. The outward man has been crucified. That dead man will never be pure and never enter the Kingdom of God because the Kingdom of God IS WITHIN YOU!
Our flesh will never submit to God, no matter how hard you try to make yourself pure. The Word tells us its impossible. But not with God. This is a spiritual life, not a flesh one.
God has made us pure by giving us the free gift of His Son in us. It's a REALITY that Jesus dwells in you. It's not wishful thinking or conjuring up faith. He literally LIVES in you and makes you alive WITH HIM!
Only Jesus Christ is pure and makes us pure by uniting us with Himself. You can't do anything to add to that except believe and walk in faith, not by sight or emotion or wishful thinking. You can't even HOPE Jesus will make you pure because you already ARE pure. Jesus IS our Hope. That HOPE reigns in you.
Why do you think they call it the GOOD NEWS?
Our flesh will never submit to God, no matter how hard you try to make yourself pure. The Word tells us its impossible. But not with God. This is a spiritual life, not a flesh one.
God has made us pure by giving us the free gift of His Son in us. It's a REALITY that Jesus dwells in you. It's not wishful thinking or conjuring up faith. He literally LIVES in you and makes you alive WITH HIM!
Only Jesus Christ is pure and makes us pure by uniting us with Himself. You can't do anything to add to that except believe and walk in faith, not by sight or emotion or wishful thinking. You can't even HOPE Jesus will make you pure because you already ARE pure. Jesus IS our Hope. That HOPE reigns in you.
Why do you think they call it the GOOD NEWS?
A
Romans 7:5 Paul writes: Thanks be to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I serve the law of God, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
There's nothing we can do to change our flesh. It is sold to sin. God doesn't relate to us in the flesh. We now live, move & have our being in God SPIRITUALLY! Even if we obey all the religious laws, our flesh cannot inherit anything spiritual, it'll never enter the Spiritual Kingdom of God.
If we're still trying to maintain holiness in our outward man, we have not yet understood the great thing God has done by placing His Son in us and is now this very moment making us more & more into the image of His Son Jesus Christ.
You can only purify yourself by getting rid of your old self. In other words, don't believe your logic or your own understanding anymore. Trust the Lord with all your heart & mind that He is reigning in you.
There's nothing we can do to change our flesh. It is sold to sin. God doesn't relate to us in the flesh. We now live, move & have our being in God SPIRITUALLY! Even if we obey all the religious laws, our flesh cannot inherit anything spiritual, it'll never enter the Spiritual Kingdom of God.
If we're still trying to maintain holiness in our outward man, we have not yet understood the great thing God has done by placing His Son in us and is now this very moment making us more & more into the image of His Son Jesus Christ.
You can only purify yourself by getting rid of your old self. In other words, don't believe your logic or your own understanding anymore. Trust the Lord with all your heart & mind that He is reigning in you.
E
Romans 7:5 Paul writes: Thanks be to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I serve the law of God, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
There's nothing we can do to change our flesh. It is sold to sin. God doesn't relate to us in the flesh. We now live, move & have our being in God SPIRITUALLY! Even if we obey all the religious laws, our flesh cannot inherit anything spiritual, it'll never enter the Spiritual Kingdom of God.
If we're still trying to maintain holiness in our outward man, we have not yet understood the great thing God has done by placing His Son in us and is now this very moment making us more & more into the image of His Son Jesus Christ.
You can only purify yourself by getting rid of your old self. In other words, don't believe your logic or your own understanding anymore. Trust the Lord with all your heart & mind that He is reigning in you.
There's nothing we can do to change our flesh. It is sold to sin. God doesn't relate to us in the flesh. We now live, move & have our being in God SPIRITUALLY! Even if we obey all the religious laws, our flesh cannot inherit anything spiritual, it'll never enter the Spiritual Kingdom of God.
If we're still trying to maintain holiness in our outward man, we have not yet understood the great thing God has done by placing His Son in us and is now this very moment making us more & more into the image of His Son Jesus Christ.
You can only purify yourself by getting rid of your old self. In other words, don't believe your logic or your own understanding anymore. Trust the Lord with all your heart & mind that He is reigning in you.
The proud God will humble..
P
Pilgrim’s Progress – Part 6: The Legalist
December 18, 2009 in Legalism, Pilgrims Progress, Sanctification
“I know what I desire to obtain, stated Christian. What I desire is ease – to be eased of my heavy burden. . . Worldly began his advice: why, in that village over there, the one named Morality, there dwells a gentleman whose name is Legality. He’s a very judicious man with a good name, an individual who has skill to help people remove their shoulders burdens like yours.”
“Sir, which is the way to this honest man’s house? Worldly responded, do you see that high hill over there?. . . You must go by that hill, and the first house you come to is his, advised Worldly. So, turning out of the way he was going, Christian went towards Mr. Legality’s house for help. But when he reached the hill it seemed so high, and the side of the hill that was next to the pathway had such a great overhang, that Christian was afraid to venture farther lest the hill should fall on his head.”
“Therefore, continued Evangelist, Mr. Worldly Wiseman is an alien, and Mr. Legality is a cheat. . . Believe me, there’s nothing in all this noise you’ve heard from this foolish man except a plan to cheat you of your salvation by turning you away from the Path in which I set you.”
Galatians 3:3-14English Standard Version (ESV)
3 Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by[a] the flesh? 4 Did you suffer[b] so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? 5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith—6 just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?
7 Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. 8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify[c] the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Legalism Defined
Legalism is defined as system of rules and regulations for achieving salvation or spiritual growth. The favorite phrase of a legalist is “You are saved by grace through faith but…” The bible is clear in repudiating legalism. Jesus hated it. Legalism is the enemy of the gospel. Paul says in Galatians 1:3 that legalism is “a different gospel – which is no gospel at all.”
Since the subject of legalism is very vast in nature, I would like to delve into just one area: how legalism affects our Christian walk and our sanctification.
Sanctification and Legalism
It has been well said that justification is the deliverance from the penalty from sin, sanctification is the deliverance from the power of sin, and glorification is the deliverance from the presence of sin. These three ‘phases’ of salvation are succinctly described in Phil 1:6 – he who began a good work in you — will carry it on to completion — until the day of Christ Jesus.
Sanctification is a life-long refining process. It is painful, and at the same time joyful. It is humbling, and at the same time rewarding. There are ups and downs, highs and lows. It consists of daily putting on Christ and dying to ourselves. Sanctification is a walk of faith, relying on the grace of God to strengthen us in our weaknesses. When we fall, we get back up by the grace of God and learn from our failures. There is a deep desire within our spirit to become like Christ, and we are engaged in a daily battle against our flesh through prayer, worship, and studying His word.
Legalism comes creeping in our heart trying to pervert our love for Christ into a merit-based system. Prayer, worship, and studying His word become things on a list that we check off daily in order to earn favor from God. Legalism leads to self-righteousness and self-worship. We must keep our hearts guarded against legalism and rely on His grace daily because we know how sinful we are.
Legalism and the Battle Against Sin
When the burden of sin becomes too heavy, we look for man-centered steps that can help us get rid of the sin and the guilt associated with it. It isn’t natural for us to approach God with our sins, instead we try to find a 10-step program to rectify the problem by our own willpower and then we go to God. A 10-step program gives false clarity and hope, and it only leads to more failure.Colossians 2:23 says that “such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.”
Legalism focuses on the outer performance rather than our inner motives. Legalism deals with the flesh rather than the heart. A legalist seeks to live a double life, portraying a clean outer image while indulging in the desires of the flesh within. As the heart overflows with carnality, it leads to sinful actions in our private lives. Every time we think we have gotten away with something, our sins become even more vicious in nature. Eventually, our clean outer image shatters into pieces and we will be exposed for who we really are.
Scripture commands us to “live in the Spirit.” Living in the Spirit means living in complete submission to the guidance of the Holy Spirit who lives within us. He is our counselor and He convicts us of our sins. He is the refiner of our souls. Living in the Spirit means living a transparent life. We wouldn’t shun other people from seeing our true selves because we know we are standing only by the grace of God. Living in the Spirit means living in freedom. We are no longer bound by the demands of the law; rather we are walking by faith in the Him who became the fulfillment of the law.
ref https://lifeofachristian.wordpress.com/2009/12/18/pilgrims-progress-part-6-the-legalist/
December 18, 2009 in Legalism, Pilgrims Progress, Sanctification
“I know what I desire to obtain, stated Christian. What I desire is ease – to be eased of my heavy burden. . . Worldly began his advice: why, in that village over there, the one named Morality, there dwells a gentleman whose name is Legality. He’s a very judicious man with a good name, an individual who has skill to help people remove their shoulders burdens like yours.”
“Sir, which is the way to this honest man’s house? Worldly responded, do you see that high hill over there?. . . You must go by that hill, and the first house you come to is his, advised Worldly. So, turning out of the way he was going, Christian went towards Mr. Legality’s house for help. But when he reached the hill it seemed so high, and the side of the hill that was next to the pathway had such a great overhang, that Christian was afraid to venture farther lest the hill should fall on his head.”
“Therefore, continued Evangelist, Mr. Worldly Wiseman is an alien, and Mr. Legality is a cheat. . . Believe me, there’s nothing in all this noise you’ve heard from this foolish man except a plan to cheat you of your salvation by turning you away from the Path in which I set you.”
Galatians 3:3-14English Standard Version (ESV)
3 Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by[a] the flesh? 4 Did you suffer[b] so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? 5 Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith—6 just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?
7 Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. 8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify[c] the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
Legalism Defined
Legalism is defined as system of rules and regulations for achieving salvation or spiritual growth. The favorite phrase of a legalist is “You are saved by grace through faith but…” The bible is clear in repudiating legalism. Jesus hated it. Legalism is the enemy of the gospel. Paul says in Galatians 1:3 that legalism is “a different gospel – which is no gospel at all.”
Since the subject of legalism is very vast in nature, I would like to delve into just one area: how legalism affects our Christian walk and our sanctification.
Sanctification and Legalism
It has been well said that justification is the deliverance from the penalty from sin, sanctification is the deliverance from the power of sin, and glorification is the deliverance from the presence of sin. These three ‘phases’ of salvation are succinctly described in Phil 1:6 – he who began a good work in you — will carry it on to completion — until the day of Christ Jesus.
Sanctification is a life-long refining process. It is painful, and at the same time joyful. It is humbling, and at the same time rewarding. There are ups and downs, highs and lows. It consists of daily putting on Christ and dying to ourselves. Sanctification is a walk of faith, relying on the grace of God to strengthen us in our weaknesses. When we fall, we get back up by the grace of God and learn from our failures. There is a deep desire within our spirit to become like Christ, and we are engaged in a daily battle against our flesh through prayer, worship, and studying His word.
Legalism comes creeping in our heart trying to pervert our love for Christ into a merit-based system. Prayer, worship, and studying His word become things on a list that we check off daily in order to earn favor from God. Legalism leads to self-righteousness and self-worship. We must keep our hearts guarded against legalism and rely on His grace daily because we know how sinful we are.
Legalism and the Battle Against Sin
When the burden of sin becomes too heavy, we look for man-centered steps that can help us get rid of the sin and the guilt associated with it. It isn’t natural for us to approach God with our sins, instead we try to find a 10-step program to rectify the problem by our own willpower and then we go to God. A 10-step program gives false clarity and hope, and it only leads to more failure.Colossians 2:23 says that “such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.”
Legalism focuses on the outer performance rather than our inner motives. Legalism deals with the flesh rather than the heart. A legalist seeks to live a double life, portraying a clean outer image while indulging in the desires of the flesh within. As the heart overflows with carnality, it leads to sinful actions in our private lives. Every time we think we have gotten away with something, our sins become even more vicious in nature. Eventually, our clean outer image shatters into pieces and we will be exposed for who we really are.
Scripture commands us to “live in the Spirit.” Living in the Spirit means living in complete submission to the guidance of the Holy Spirit who lives within us. He is our counselor and He convicts us of our sins. He is the refiner of our souls. Living in the Spirit means living a transparent life. We wouldn’t shun other people from seeing our true selves because we know we are standing only by the grace of God. Living in the Spirit means living in freedom. We are no longer bound by the demands of the law; rather we are walking by faith in the Him who became the fulfillment of the law.
ref https://lifeofachristian.wordpress.com/2009/12/18/pilgrims-progress-part-6-the-legalist/
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A
I understand it may sound ridiculous, brother but the grace of Jesus Christ IS foolishness to our flesh. It doesn't seem logical that believing what God has done in Jesus has made me pure eternally. It sounds impossible because my flesh will never understand. It's impossible to understand with our logical, carnal mind.
But with my spiritual mind (faith) I can begin to see the Lord God in reality. I can believe that He has entered my heart and is conforming me according to His perfect will & purpose in making me into the image of His Son Jesus. I can believe that Jesus believes God the Father and that the faith of Jesus Christ is in me.
I can begin to ignore my own logic, to cast my own efforts aside and commit my life to His keeping. He says that if I commit (give to Him) my life, everything I do, to Him, He will establish (build a foundation in) my mind. He will give us His thoughts. If I have just a tiny bit of faith, a grain of mustard seed of trust, it's enough to have my eyes opened and receive the mind of Christ. I will know the Truth (Jesus Christ) and be set free (of my flesh self).
But with my spiritual mind (faith) I can begin to see the Lord God in reality. I can believe that He has entered my heart and is conforming me according to His perfect will & purpose in making me into the image of His Son Jesus. I can believe that Jesus believes God the Father and that the faith of Jesus Christ is in me.
I can begin to ignore my own logic, to cast my own efforts aside and commit my life to His keeping. He says that if I commit (give to Him) my life, everything I do, to Him, He will establish (build a foundation in) my mind. He will give us His thoughts. If I have just a tiny bit of faith, a grain of mustard seed of trust, it's enough to have my eyes opened and receive the mind of Christ. I will know the Truth (Jesus Christ) and be set free (of my flesh self).