Confession of sin must happen before forgiveness can be extended. They are a set as in two sides of the same coin, one cannot have one without the other.
The reason so many Christians are confused about this matter of forgiveness is because psychology teaches that we forgive so we feel better ourselves. This is not Biblical. Forgiveness extended because someone confessed their sin and wishes to be forgiven reconciles a broken relationship.
A relationship in which there has been extended forgiveness but the offender is not sorry, remains broken.
We do have a benefit when we forgive genuinely and that is a reconciled relationship and a blessing from heaven, but we do not forgive without the confession of sin merely to feel good about ourselves.
There is no blessing from heaven for forgiving superficially without a restored relationship.
Luke 17:3-4 "3 Watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 Even if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times returns to say, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”…"
Notice the "returns to say, 'I repent," it's not hard but is so often ignored.
When we forgive man's way there is no accountability, no justice and no change of attitude or behavior.
Jeremiah 6:13-15 "…13“For from the least of them to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; from prophet to priest, all practice deceit. 14 They dress the wound of My people with very little care, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace at all. 15 Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse,” says the LORD.…"
When a culture gets to the point that the offender is coddled and forgiven without confession of sin we have lost the culture and justice has been perverted.
We are now living in times when people want more than anything to "feel" good all the time without "being" good. They want to be admired and accepted even while they are defiant against God.
The people of today refuse to listen to the truth, rage at those who speak the truth, and plot revenge on righteous people to make themselves feel better about their sin. In order to remain in sin to enjoy it the sinner must devalue and diminish the truth and those who speak God's Word.
Isaiah 30:10
They say to the seers, "Stop seeing visions!" and to the prophets, "Do not prophesy to us the truth! Speak to us pleasant words; prophesy illusions.
Welcome to the Second Timothy Three end times mentality. We must stay close to God, reject evil and stay true to the principles of the Bible if we are to remain unaffected by the world in which we live.
Expect rejection, mocking, misunderstandings that lead to family exclusion, even in the body of Christ. We need not become sad or depressed when we encounter this when we know who is behind it, that is the devil, and that it is directed at God not us.
Tuesday, November 30, 2021
Sunday, November 28, 2021
Saturday, November 27, 2021
Friday, November 26, 2021
Don't Let Your Name Be Blotted Out, Trust Christ Now
God wished that all would be saved so everyone's name was written in the book of life from the foundation of the world. Names are only blotted out when someone refuses Jesus Christ. This is why we don't see any Scripture that says, "your names are added to the book" and you don't see any Scripture that says names that were blotted out were added back.
When Christ changes us into a new creation we are a completely different person and our names will never be blotted out.
Luke 10:20
"Nevertheless, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
Psalm 67:27-28 "…27 Add iniquity to their iniquity; let them not share in Your righteousness. 28 May they be blotted out of the Book of Life and not listed with the righteous."
Revelation 3:5
"Like them, he who overcomes will be dressed in white. And I will never blot out his name from the Book of Life, but I will confess his name before My Father and His angels."
Hebrews 6:5-6 "…4 For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.
Those who have been in church all their lives, having tasted the good fruit but did not eat it, are the pretenders. They knew the gospel, walked with those who were born again but were never born again themselves.
These were the Judas of the world who have been with believers but have no interest in being changed into a new creation by Christ. These people are even used of the devil to disrupt the gathering of believers through false doctrine and contention. Sadly the number in this group is far more than those who have authentically trusted in Christ and have been changed by Him. They come in speaking the right things some of the time to confuse people.
Hebrews 10:29
"29 How much more severe punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?"
We are living in an apostate age in which many people think all they have to do is "say" they are Christian and everyone else should just believe them.
God makes it clear that we are to test the spirits of people to see if they walk with God. Judas was proven to be a pretender, Christ said he was a "devil", meaning he was controlled by the devil and yet the other apostles didn't know it.
When Christ said "one of you is a devil," they asked Him, "is it I, Lord." Judas looked just like them, he was even the treasurer of the group, and yet he was controlled and motivated by the devil. The apostles didn't know who the devil was even though they spent much time with him.
We live in an age when the Holy Spirit lives in us, we can know what He knows.
John 16:13-14 "13 However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come. 14 He will glorify Me by taking from what is Mine and disclosing it to you.…"
God told us we can know who the pretenders are by their fruit.
Galatians 5:22-23
"22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."
Matthew 7:16-18 "…16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.…"
Those who love the Lord and have been changed by Him will live a lifestyle of goodness. When they mess up it is out of weakness not hate. They hate that they have displeased God and desire to make it right through confession and forgiveness.
1 John 1:9
"9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
One who is a pretender is not sorry for their hate and rudeness, they justify it and even demonstrate pride that allows them to blame others for their own sin.
Those who have been born again no longer think the way they thought before Christ changed them. They hate the evil in the world and have empathy for those who need to be saved from their sin and hell.
If there is no desire to see souls saved there probably isn't salvation in the heart of the one who claims to be a Christian.
Those who have confessed their sinfulness desiring to be changed by Christ want very much for others to experience the same blessing. We know the amazing peace, purpose, and inheritance we have when we have trusted Christ and we want everyone we know to have the same thing, so we pray for them. We cannot hate someone for whom we are praying.
May the Lord bless those who have been cleansed by the knowledge of the love Christ has for them. May those who have not yet trusted Christ, may the Lord bring many things into their lives that will help them see their need for Him.
There is nothing more important than a person's salvation, eternity is far longer than this short life on earth.
Thursday, November 25, 2021
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