The Blahs, Blues and the Pits Continued

 

to everything.  The word, the problem, of course, is sin.  Sin is disobedience and the promises and blessings from God are conditioned on obedience.  “Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it may go well with thee, and thy children after thee for ever, when thou doest that which is good and right in the sight of the Lord thy God, (Deut. 12:28).  This promise as the highlighted portion shows, reaches down to you and I, however, only if we are obedient.  Not only do God’s promises hinge on obedience/ disobedience, but also this issue is so important that our eternal destiny hinges on it!  “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 (Matt. 7:21).  Also Hebrews 12:14 teaches, “Without holiness no man shall see the Lord.” (No disobedience.)

 

A WRONG CONCEPT OF SIN

A wrong concept of sin, a concept contrary to what the Bible actually teaches has seemingly gained wide acceptance today.  Through Satan’s influence the majority of preachers have only stressed one aspect of God, that of His love and mercy.  This has created the impression that God’s great love will somehow overlook disobedience (sin).  Dear one, this is just not so.  God is also a God of justice, and justice demands a penalty for lawbreakers. (See Isaiah 13:11, II Thess. 1:6-10, II Peter 2:9, Rev. 21:8 etc.).   The concept that sin is bad yet allowable is deceptive.  The seriousness of sin is not just the deed itself but in whom is offended.  As an illustration, assaulting the President opposed to assaulting an ordinary citizen would be a more serious offence because of the dignity of his office.  There is no greater dignitary than God.  Sin is an offence against God.    Likewise, ignoring a subpoena from the Supreme Court is more serious than an overdue library notice.   God’s laws are supreme and we cannot ignore them without reaping severe consequences.  Can you not see that sin is more than just bad?  It is an “exceeding sinful evil” (Rom. 7:13).  Adam and Eve (merely?) ate a piece of forbidden fruit.  This one sin caused spiritual death as sin always separates one’s soul from God. (Isa.59:2)  Their posterity (you and I) inherited a sinful nature (Rom. 5:12) which is why “all have sinned” (Rom. 3:23).  Satan has succeeded in convincing many preachers (and those who like it so) to condemn sin in sinners but allow it (in a modified degree) in Christians.  This error is so deeply ingrained and so widely taught and accepted that I feel compelled to urge you to put forth an effort to finish reading this with an open mind.  I believe every honest heart can be convinced of the truth of this matter through the forthcoming scriptures.

 

BIBLE DEFINITION OF SIN

Satan does his best to cloud up the issue of sin.  He will try to claim some things are sin that are not, and try to excuse things that are sin.  A brief definition of sin is found in I John 3:4, “sin is a transgression of the law”.  Since we are living under the New Covenant this would be the “law of Christ” (Gal. 6:2).  We will all be judged by Christ’s words, His teachings. (See John 12:48.)  Then James 4:17 informs us, “to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not to him it is sin.”   Therefore according to the Bible, sin is doing what we know is wrong (morally) or refusing to do what we know is right.  A mistake is not sin, nor is temptation unless we yield to it.  But whether we are a religious person or not, the issue is still sin.  This is where one really needs to be honest with their self.  Our good points are not the issue to determine our standing with God.   The issue is any thing(s) we are guilty of.   The problem that needs to be uncovered, acknowledged, and dealt with is sin.  Any sin in our life is the problem that has to be dealt with first.

 

THE MIRACLE CURE FOR SIN

The only cure for sin is the blood of Christ.  “In whom [Christ] we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins,” (Col. 1:14).  Therefore deliverance from sin (salvation) is through faith in His blood.  “Whom God hath set forth [Jesus] to be a propitiation [atonement, appeasement, satisfying God] through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past through the forbearance of God,” (Romans 3:25).

 

NOT JUST “ACCEPTING CHRIST”

Now to truly have faith in His blood for salvation from sin requires more than just saying “I accept” or “I believe”.  There must be not only an acknowledgement of sin but a godly sorrow (II Cor. 7:10) that is deep enough for us to be willing to quit sinning.  We must forsake all paths of sin (Prov. 28:13, Isa. 55:7).  Otherwise our prayer will not be heard (Psm. 66:18) and we will only have a profession, like sad to say, so many others do today.  Dear one, solving our sin problem through salvation is a humbling experience and a real crisis in our life.   One reason is, we have an enemy that will oppose us in our mind.  The night I got saved I had thoughts of “was there really anything to this getting saved business,” “could I live it,” “what would others say,” and the mercy of God by faith that He would hear my prayer for forgiveness and enable me to live for Him. 

 

AN EARNEST DESIRE NEEDED

We have to “press into the kingdom” (Luke 16:16) and “the violent take it by force” [earnestness] (Matt. 11:12).  It takes an earnestness to be willing to forsake our old lifestyle and a desire to serve Him “in holiness and righteousness …all the days of our life” (Luke 1:74-75).  When this is done it can be said of us like it was said of the Christians in Rome, “But God be thanked that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness,” (Rom. 6: 17-18).  Yes friend, contrary to popular opinion that Christians still sin, the Bible declares in I John 3:6-9, “Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not; … He that committeth sin is of the devil; … Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin.”  Jesus told a woman (John 8:11) and a man (John 5:14) to “go and sin no more”.  This is only possible for those who are truly born again. 

 

TRUE SALVATION A MIRACLE

Getting Bible salvation is a real miracle right out of heaven; just getting religious is not.   When we repent the Bible way and get our sins washed away in the blood of Christ, (Rev. 1:5) we are justified and reconciled to God.  This is when we receive peace, peace with God.   “Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,” (Rom. 5:1).  Then, as a true child of God we can unlock by faith the rich treasure house of the Lord and enjoy His love as never before.  His will for His children is “that thou mayest prosper and be in health as thou soul prospereth,” (III John 2).  So that scripture covers our finances, our health, as well as our soul.  Anything our faith can take in can now be ours.  “If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it,” (John 14:14).   Precious heart, God has good things in store for you.   He has been trying to reach you all along.  Won’t you consider yielding to Him?  If you are one of the many with just an empty profession, why not seek Him for a real experience?   He will fill that emptiness in your soul, and give you purpose and direction in your life.  He can calm your fears, clear up doubts and spiritual confusion, give you grace for difficult situations, help you with your finances, and heal your body if that is your need.  I will mention here that His instruction for those who are sick, if possible, is to “call for the elders of the church” (James 5:14-15).  The “elders” and “church” must be those standing for biblical truth.   My counsel is that you seek out a true congregation of the church of God.  I found out that submitting to a God called pastor and sitting under straight Bible preaching keeps me straight with God.  This preaching also covers those true old fashion values for a happy home life, raising children, how to be a good companion, the proper role of each family member etc.   Also there is practical instruction on temperance, Bible modesty, proper courtship, work ethics, finances, citizenship and about everything that has to do with everyday living.

 

ANOTHER MIRACLE

At the true church of God you will also learn of another miracle God has for you called “sanctification”.  This is a second work of grace that cleanses one of the inherited carnal nature and supplies additional power to live holy in a consistent way.  For lack of space we cannot explain that here so please read the booklet “Power For Living Righteously Book I,” by Bill Roberts.

Gospel Truth and Publications P.O. Box 142, Jackson Center, OH 45334.