Justified by Faith Forgiven by Repentance

When we accept the ways of the world to be practical we are demonstrating lack of faith in Christ. Christ gave us what we need to obey Him and it will not look anything like what the world teaches.

James 2:14-26
Faith and Works
14 What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?
17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.
18 But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.”
19 You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.
20 But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?
22 You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected;
23 and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God.
24 You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.
25 In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?
26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead."

I do not believe it is a leap to add to this passage the verses in which forgiveness is shown as the result of confession of sin. Those who lack faith adopt for themselves the ideas of pagans to feel good about themselves. Had they been deeply invested in God's word they would feel the need to fit in with the ideas of the culture that are counter to Christ's commands.

We do not always understand the ways of Christ, we don't have to, all we have to do is obey them.

1 John 1:9 tells us there is no forgiveness or cleansing without repentance, confession is an expression of that change of mind.

Do we believe God or do we want to be "seen" as a good person by men.

The False Teachings of Paganism

Many people who attend church believe that one does not have to repent to be in heaven. They get this silly idea from those who are teaching that repentance and confession are not necessary to reconcile a relationship. The false things that are taught about human relationships are also translated to one's view of God.

God taught the proper formula for reconciling a relationship through His requirement for the unsaved to repent (change their mind) and confess what they are, a sinner in need of forgiveness and cleansing.

God did not tell us to do differently from what He does.

Colossians 3:13 – "Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive."

Did we notice the words "as the Lord has forgiven you." God will not forgive those who do not repent. He will not forgive a sin if the sinner will not confess to be cleansed.

1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

"IF WE CONFESS our sins" This is a key phrase that most Christians leave out today.

There is a reason God requires this, those who will not confess do not want God's help in cleansing, their pride looms larger than any desire to be changed. They do not want to change, forgiving them does nothing for them or for you.

We are not bitter toward anyone even those who will not confess. It is not bitterness that prevents the forgiveness from being extended, it is stubbornness on the part of the one who refuses to admit their sin.

See how the devil has twisted this doctrine so that most people think forgiveness is automatic and instantaneous even without the conviction of sin. This promotes enabling causing the offender to sink deeper into the mire of entitlement and hate.

The devil knew what he was doing when he taught an entire generation of people to forgive without repentance. Sin has grown, no one asks forgiveness and very few people ever change or grow in holiness.

My guess based on living for 67 years of life, is that most people don't even confront bad behavior anymore, they just let it all roll off and watch the offender sink into the quick sand of evil deeper and deeper without any help.

Yes, I said help. As believers we desire for people to be helped to understand their lost state. Even believers need continual instruction and correction as they move through this evil world being influenced by the false doctrines and the educators of our age who are new age proponents in every respect.

Pay closer attention to what the pagans love and this will tell you their evil and misguided doctrines. Self love and forgiveness no matter, what are the doctrines of the pagans. If these things have infiltrated your church they need to be corrected and extricated.

1 Corinthians 5:12-13 "…12 What business of mine is it to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? 13 God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.”

God said confess to be forgiven this is our model and our marching orders, anything else is false doctrine.

Human Traditions or God's Word You Must Choose

If your traditions whether it be family or church do not line up with the Bible then the traditions are to be abandoned.

Signs of the Rapture

Do You Love the Lord's Appearing

Do You Love the Lord's Appearing!!!! If you do have this hope you have a crown waiting for you!

2 Timothy 4:8
"8 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing."
If you are not looking for Him you may not be born again.

Forgiveness without Repentance is Dead Forgiveness

Just as faith without works is dead so is forgiveness without repentance. 

1 John 1:8-10 "…8If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar, and His word is not in us.…"

Extending forgiveness is for the purpose of reconciling a relationship. A relationship cannot be reconciled until the offender is sorrowful over their sin.

Relationships can only be developed and maintained through mutual concern for one another. 

Those who are not concerned about how they treat another person cannot be considered a friend.

You will find nothing in the word of God that describes a relationship being restored without the offending party admitting their harm toward another human being. 

Those who harm others without a conscience for their deeds are not our friends nor can they be until they repent. This is the standard God gave for mankind to be reconciled to Him. The same standard He expects for us to be reconciled to Him He has given for human relationship between one another. 

We are never to do harm to those who have harmed us, but that does not mean those who have harmed us will have a relationship with us in the midst of their unrepentance.  God says that we are to do good to those who persecute us but this does not translate into a relationship with us. 

Luke 6:27 "27 But to those of you who will listen, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you."

Choosing to treat someone with the respect who failed to treat us with respect is required in God's economy. After all, we cannot expect a wicked person who refuses to confess their sin to know what respect looks like, we are the believers who model the respect to the hateful one that they did not model to us. 

Keep in mind that those who are not repentant, those who do not even believe they have done anything wrong in treating you disrespectfully will not be able to treat us any other way except what is behind their belief. That is, they believe they are right and that we deserve contempt. They have developed a habit in the way they treat their victims.  These people must be kept at arms length, they bring chaos and misery to any relationship.

Romans 16:17-18 "17  Now I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who create divisions and obstacles that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Turn away from them. 18 For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.…"

There are those who act disrespectfully on a regular basis and come back later to pretend it never happened hoping to just resume where they left off in sharing happiness. This is not repentance, it does not help to change their behavior nor does it instill trust in the one they have harmed. God's formula is realization of a wrong committed and confession extended to the one who was offended, then there is a beginning for a new relationship that will operate along a different vein.  

Relationships are not built on everyone just smiling and pretending, they are built on addressing problems and resolving them. 

It is unwise to even go to a person who believes their wicked deeds are justified, to tell them their offense.  These self righteous and mean spirited types will only use and abuse your attempts at reconciliation.  We are to leave these people alone in their wickedness while praying for their salvation. 

It has been my experience that a letter sent or a phone call to arrogant and unrepentant types only cause them to remain silent or to rage in anger.   The silence is a demonstration of their lack of respect for you by ignoring your concerns, a dismissiveness that shows their total lack of concern for the relationship. The rage is an attempt to intimidate the victim into silence, the hope is that the victim will slink away feeling guilty they attempted to discuss a wrong. 

We have all met narcissists, some of us have entire family structures in which the family have fed off of one another in tacky and despicable gossip and lies to maintain their stance of superiority. These people will not stop how they operate, they are habitually this way, yes I said it is a habit they cannot break until God shows them their sin and they choose to repent. 

Never feel false guilt about leaving the company of those who refuse to stop their evil and disrespectful actions. These are narcissists, some never change and other might possibly change if God has reached them and they have repented to confess. Their mind has been changed to feel sorrowful over how they treat others and they are so deeply convicted that they express their sin openly.

Remember you have not reconciled a bad relationship or changed the heart of a narcissist by "just letting it go", and continuing with them. You have merely been one more person who has enabled them to grow deeper into their sin, further hardening their heart. 

Isaiah 26:10 "10Though grace is shown to the wicked man, he does not learn righteousness. In the land of righteousness he acts unjustly and fails to see the majesty of the LORD. '

Never allow others to coerce you into allowing a deceiver and a narcissist to continue without consequence, it only ruins them and it will ruin you. You will either begin to act like the narcissist to avoid conflict or you will engage in arguments to attempt to stop them, either thing is not going to help the narcissist and it will probably change you for the worse. 

1 Corinthians 15:33-34 "33Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good character.” 34Sober up as you ought, and stop sinning; for some of you are ignorant of God. I say this to your shame.…'

Remaining in friendship with a wicked man is not the higher ground, it is the lower ground. Who we choose for our friends is vitally important to our spiritual health. 

Are You Anticipating the Rapture?

Living in the Days of Noah