Brothers and Sisters the debate on Ray Comfort is an important one, I have been questioning his methods and beliefs. I have used his material myself and have become confused about where he really stands. There seems to be strong debate as to whether or not he is preaching a form of salvation by works. From his own comments I see that it may be true. I removed it because of the controversy over it. I would ask that no one come here to argue with me on this, but rather go to prayer, testing the spirits through the Word while praying.
Ray Comfort said this, "“Merely being sorry for your sins, or confessing them to God won't help you. You must turn from sin (repent).”
Even if we are sorry for sin, and even if we turn from them, this is not what saves us, it is believing on the Lord Jesus Christ that brings salvation. Believing alone!
God clearly said the only way to heaven was to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. No act of any kind is required. When we believe on Him, then He begins His work in us. He seals us with the Holy Spirit and changes us into a new creation. It is all His work on the cross as the unmerited favor toward us, allowing His blood shed for sin accounted to our debt that saves. We owed a debt for sin that we could not pay, but that Christ paid on our behalf, then we become born again. "UNMERITED FAVOR." We did not earn it or pay for it. We did not do anything to gain it.
Acts 16:31 "And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."
Romans 10:9 "that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;"
Turning from sin is a response to the saving grace of Christ. There are those who think if we don't preach turning from sin to be saved, we are helping people to be content to stay in sin after salvation.
The problem with this thinking is that it leaves out the working of the Holy Spirit when we believe, depending on a person's will to stop sinning to get and maintain salvation.
The Holy Spirit, changes our heart, when we become born again, we no longer want to sin, when we fall due to our fleshly weakness we are ashamed and desire to be cleansed from that sin to be restored to fellowship with God. Not restored to salvation, that never goes away, but our fellowship with God can be damaged until we confess our sin.
Ephesians 1:13-14 "13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory."
When we are sealed we become God's possession, we are positionally seated in the heavenlies with Christ. Of course our bodies or spirits are not there yet, but we are counted as being there for eternity.
Ephesians 2
1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,
2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.
3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,
5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),
6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them."
1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Romans 7:15 "For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate."
These passages were written to born again believers.
We do not have to make sure someone knows not to sin after salvation, the Holy Spirit in them will inform them, rebuke them, and discipline them. The Lord will bring other believers to correct and admonish them, but we know from the Word that they will not remain in sin, if they do without conscience about it and even defending it, then they were never born again, they were never changed into a new creation by Christ.
Hebrews 12:6 "FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES."
No need to add to God's word to keep believers from loving sin, we can preach God's word, and remain confident that the Holy Spirit will bring conviction to the heart of the believer.
The very least that should happen in this debate about Ray comfort, is to challenge him on what he says, to clarify. To merely accept him because we think he is doing a good work, is not acceptable, when God commanded us to "test all things."
1 Thessalonians 5:22 "But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good;"
"Repentance" is not a "turning away from sin" as Ray Comfort says, but rather a "change of mind."
The thief on the cross never had an opportunity to "turn from sin", but he did have a change of mind toward Christ and because of that , Christ promised him that he would be in heaven that very day with Christ.
Luke 23:39-43
"39 One of the criminals who were hanged there was [l]hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the [m]Christ? Save Yourself and us!” 40 But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41 And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving [n]what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come [o]in Your kingdom!” 43 And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”
