Does God Sever Fellowship With Us When We Sin?

[Budman]

I've heard this repeated time and again. While we won't lose salvation when we sin, God will, however, break fellowship with us until we "repent" and stop sinning.

My question is this: How many times a day does God cease fellowship with us? Since we sin many times a day (if you're honest, you know this is true) does that mean we have fellowship, lose it, have it back, lose it again, get it back, all day long etc., ad nauseam?

And please don't bring up the old "pattern" of sin thing. As we indeed sin every day, day after day, week after week, etc. we all have such a pattern.

Do any believe we lose fellowship with God when we sin?

If so, why?

 

[Blain]

No not even in the slightest. There were times where I was having a whole lot of trouble with one particular sin so much so that I felt like a hopeless disgusting sinner lower than the dirt that even the worms eat, I felt filthy and was grieving in my own doings and yet even then as I talked with him as I always do I felt his love for me as I poured out my heart to him. What I saw and what he saw were the complete opposite and he encouraged me in my poor state and gave me strength through my storm all because I was talking with him.

He will never leave us or forsake even in our most darkest hours of sin

 

[Marcelo]

I feel God gives me a "time out" when I sin.

 

[Budman]

I feel God gives me a "time out" when I sin.

Care to elaborate?

 

[wanderer6059]

I've heard this repeated time and again. While we won't lose salvation when we sin, God will, however, break fellowship with us until we "repent" and stop sinning.

My question is this: How many times a day does God cease fellowship with us? Since we sin many times a day (if you're honest, you know this is true) does that mean we have fellowship, lose it, have it back, lose it again, get it back, all day long etc., ad nauseam?

And please don't bring up the old "pattern" of sin thing. As we indeed sin every day, day after day, week after week, etc. we all have such a pattern.

Do any believe we lose fellowship with God when we sin?

If so, why?

no, our fellowship is based on what Christ did and the righteousness we have in Him, we will always have that righteousness.

 

[Marcelo]

Care to elaborate?

I feel distanced from God when I sin.

 

[MattforJesus]

I've heard this repeated time and again. While we won't lose salvation when we sin, God will, however, break fellowship with us until we "repent" and stop sinning.

My question is this: How many times a day does God cease fellowship with us? Since we sin many times a day (if you're honest, you know this is true) does that mean we have fellowship, lose it, have it back, lose it again, get it back, all day long etc., ad nauseam?

And please don't bring up the old "pattern" of sin thing. As we indeed sin every day, day after day, week after week, etc. we all have such a pattern.

Do any believe we lose fellowship with God when we sin?

If so, why?

Isa 59:1 Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
Isa 59:2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

2Ti 2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Jas 5:19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;
Jas 5:20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

Rom 11:20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
Rom 11:21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.
Rom 11:22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.

Heb 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
Heb 3:13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

Gal 6:6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.
Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Gal 6:8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
Gal 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Rev 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
Rev 2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

Rev 3:2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.
Rev 3:3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

It appears that sins does affect our relationship with God, and a person could lose out on salvation, because they would not allow the Spirit to lead them, but wanted to enjoy some things of the flesh, and worldliness.

People need to keep their flesh out of the interpretation of scriptures.

2Ti 3:4 lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
2Ti 3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
2Ti 3:6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
2Ti 3:7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

They do not allow the Spirit to lead them for they want to enjoy some things of the flesh, and worldliness, and hold unto sin and believe they are right with God.

Too much of that going on.Separate yourself from the world and do not be a part of them.

 

[UnderGrace]

Yes I feel the same but that is my guilt and shame that I have focused on and not who I am in Christ,

These are emotions not reality, fellowship is spiritual not emotional.

I feel distanced from God when I sin.

 

[wanderer6059]

I feel distanced from God when I sin.

thats more from turning from God though, not from Him distancing Himself. its more so that when we sin we turn our backs to Him, we are still in His presence, still with Him. what repentance is, is simply turning back to Him.

 

[wanderer6059]

Isa 59:1 Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:
Isa 59:2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

2Ti 2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

Jas 5:19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;
Jas 5:20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

Rom 11:20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:
Rom 11:21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.
Rom 11:22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.

Heb 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
Heb 3:13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

Gal 6:6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.
Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Gal 6:8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
Gal 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Rev 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
Rev 2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

Rev 3:2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.
Rev 3:3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

It appears that sins does affect our relationship with God, and a person could lose out on salvation, because they would not allow the Spirit to lead them, but wanted to enjoy some things of the flesh, and worldliness.

People need to keep their flesh out of the interpretation of scriptures.

2Ti 3:4 lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
2Ti 3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
2Ti 3:6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
2Ti 3:7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

They do not allow the Spirit to lead them for they want to enjoy some things of the flesh, and worldliness, and hold unto sin and believe they are right with God.

Too much of that going on.Separate yourself from the world and do not be a part of them.

no one besides Christ is perfect brother, thats why we have 1 John 1:9

 

[Marcelo]

Marcelo said: "I feel distanced from God when I sin".

Yes I feel the same but that is my guilt and shame that I have focused on and not who I am in Christ,

These are emotions not reality, fellowship is spiritual not emotional.

But if you ignore these emotions and continue sinning where are you gonna end up?

 

[UnderGrace]

The answer is in your will, we should not be driven by our emotions, that is like when Peter was looking down at the water and was fraught with anxiety.

The more you look at sin and emotions the more you will drown, need to focus on Christ within you, you are a partaker of His divine nature. How powerful!!

Remember what Paul stated,[SUP]
8 [/SUP]Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Phil 4:8

Jesus is all these things and more.

Marcelo said: "I feel distanced from God when I sin".



But if you ignore these emotions and continue sinning where are you gonna end up?

 

[maxwel]

We often confuse everyday colloquial language with precise biblical language.

This is happening in several others threads simultaneously right now... it's a very common problem.



Generally, when we say "we break fellowship with God", or "God breaks fellowship with us", we aren't trying to use precise biblical language to describe a precise doctrinal event... we're merely trying to describe, in common language, some kind of change in our personal walk with God.

I don't use this particular phrase much, because it's so incredibly confusing if we view it doctrinally.
This is probably why the OP is bringing it up.

But as a general principle, we DO use words and phrases differently in common everyday speech than we would use when doing precise doctrinal exegesis.

And so we probably need to do two things:
1. Make some allowance for "broader" and "looser" uses of language for common, everyday use.
2. Still recognize there is a difference between "common use" and "precise biblical use", and be able to understand and define them both.

What's going on in this thread is an exercise of point #2.
That's important.
But when we're all done, lets be sure to consider point #1 as well.

 

[socalpoppy]

[SUP]6 [/SUP]So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. [SUP]7 [/SUP]Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves. [SUP]8 [/SUP]They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. [SUP]9 [/SUP]But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” [SUP]10 [/SUP]He said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.” [SUP]11 [/SUP]He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”
[FONT=&quot] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. (1989). (Ge 3:6–11). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.[/FONT]

I always find it interesting that Adam and Eve change, hiding from God, but God doesn't change. He still walks in the garden expecting to interact with Adam and Eve.

 

[Marcelo]

.... we should not be driven by our emotions,

I totally agree with you that we should not be driven by our emotions. Some Christians say things like: "Oh, God made me feel (in my heart) that it's about time I move to a new and better home". This can be totally deceiving.

But if a Christian cheats the tax system and then feels guilty, this guilt is not a deceiving emotion -- rather, it's very useful because it can bring the person back on the right track with the Lord.

 

[UnderGrace]

Yes, as long as one lets go of the guilt, the sin has been dealt with at the cross.

Knowledge and accepting of forgiveness is what we need to be free from sin, I always loved it when my kids told me things because they loved me and were persuaded I loved them and would forgive them, not because they felt guilty.

I totally agree with you that we should not be driven by our emotions. Some Christians say things like: "Oh, God made me feel (in my heart) that it's about time I move to a new and better home". This can be totally deceiving.

But if a Christian cheats the tax system and then feels guilty, this guilt is not a deceiving emotion -- rather, it's very useful because it can bring the person back on the right track with the Lord.

 

[socalpoppy]

5 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. [SUP]2 [/SUP]For in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling— [SUP]3 [/SUP]if indeed, when we have taken it off we will not be found naked. [SUP]4 [/SUP]For while we are still in this tent, we groan under our burden, because we wish not to be unclothed but to be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. (1989). (2 Co 5). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.


[FONT=&quot]I've thought that their being naked was a result of knowing evil and needing to cover their vulnerability to evil. I only recently read this passage after thinking about them knowing they were naked, and it piqued my [/FONT]interest, too. "Longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling..." Was this the original state? "... so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life" Does mortality equal our current state when we are naked? Do we wear clothes because we want to be back into that original state?

 

[socalpoppy]

It appears that sins does affect our relationship with God, and a person could lose out on salvation, because they would not allow the Spirit to lead them, but wanted to enjoy some things of the flesh, and worldliness.

I don't see the Spirit in the above verses, but I think I am close to understanding what you say. Could you give me a couple of verses that tie sin to not following the Spirt? Galatians, right?

 

[reneweddaybyday]

God does not turn from us. I believe we turn from Him.


We get distracted and leave Him. However, when we turn back to Him, He is always there and welcomes us with open arms.


This is what leads me to believe that He does not turn from us.

 

[plainguy]

We often confuse everyday colloquial language with precise biblical language.

What's a collqil .. colquil .. that language thingy ?