Ephesians 2:8 "8 For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.…"
The day I trusted Christ I began to have a conscience about sin, before there were any actions, the actions came later as I grew in the Lord. The sin began to fall off, fairly quickly as God revealed them to me.
I would go to the bar as before but feel terrible about it, then perhaps one more time when friends asked me, but experienced the same displeasure and repulsion until I made the choice to stop. I wasn't saved through absence of sin, I was saved and then the sin began to fall off.
There are those who never went to the bars, but their sin had more to do with arrogance and superiority for not going to the bar. Interesting isn't it, the very sin they are so proud for not doing is equivalent to the prideful attitude that leads someone else into the bar. There is such a thing as being prideful about being humble.
Pride about not sinning remains in the camp with those who sin. Everyone must humble themselves, admitting their sinfulness to become born again, no exceptions.
The sinful one who does not got to bars but has wicked pride is in the same condition as the one who visits unsavory places.
Luke 18:9-14
"9 And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt:
10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
11 The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
12 I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’
13 But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’
14 I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”"
I actually had one man many years ago tell me that his sins were not as bad as the sins of others, as though that made him superior. As far as I know he never repented of that, today he maintains a stance of superiority and arrogance.
Over the years I have seen the love and humility of born again believers who lived very sinful lives before their transformation. Those who are least loving and humble are the ones who never were broken over their sin, in their minds they never did anything big and terrible, so they are exempt from judgment based on their "clean living."
Sadly, there are those who think their clean living is going to get them into heaven, they believe they deserve it. It is that very prideful stance that will send them to hell.
Matthew 7:21-23
"21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"
If anyone thinks they are good in their own power, by their own deeds, need to repent of their arrogance, trust Christ and ask to be cleansed or they too will end up in the lake of fire with the drunks they condemn. Or even more sadly, they will end up in hell while the forgiven drunk, having been cleansed will be with the Lord because he trusted Christ.
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