Non-believers are of the opinion that Christians are hypocritical. This daily devotion looks at three areas to determine if we are acting against God’s wishes and what acting in His Will looks like.
Nuggets
- Christians still continue to sin after conversion.
- Eternal life only comes through salvation.
- We have to keep God’s laws and commandments His way.
I had an interesting conversation recently. Basically, I was told all that was wrong with Christians.
Unfortunately, I didn’t change his mind. He didn’t change mine, either.
Christians Are Sinners
“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (I Jn. 1: 8 ESV)
Christians still continue to sin after conversion.
Sin corrupts this world. It wasn’t meant to be this way, but this is the way that is.
When God created us, He made us in His image. That meant we did not have a sinful natured.
But then Adam and Eve chose to disobey God. They let sin into the world.
Yes, sin only came into being after Adam and Eve deliberately chose to do what God told them not to do.
When they sinned, mankind’s nature became sinfull. This affects all of us. We are made in Adam’s image now as well as God’s image.
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God devised the Plan of Salvation to fix that. He will forgive ours sins if we sincerely ask Him to of do.
Unfortunately, we don’t stop sinning when we ask Jesus to be our Savior and Redeemer.
Look what John says. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves …” (I Jn. 1: 8 ESV).
John was talking to the Church. What he said was in present tense. That means we continue to sin after conversion.
Christians for many years have been accused of being hypocrites when they feel they no longer sin. That is impossible. We all still have our sinful nature within us.
This nature should be at war with our spiritual nature. We are told to go and sin no more.
Jesus did not tell people that they could continue to sin. When the adulterous woman was brought to Jesus, when He asked who condemned her, He said, “‘No one, sir,’ she said. ‘Then neither do I condemn you,’ Jesus declared. ‘Go now and leave your life of sin’” (Jn. 8: 11 NIV).
“… leave your life of sin’” (Jn. 8: 11 NIV). Don’t continue to sin.
Christians Think They Are the Only Ones Who Will Go to Heaven
“And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.” (I Jn.. 5: 11-13 ESV)
Eternal life only comes through salvation.
When people talk about going to heaven, they are talking about gaining eternal life. Let’s look at some verses.
- “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6: 23 ESV).
- “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (Jn. 17: 3 ESV).
- “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” (Jn. 3: 36 ESV).
Gaining salvation through belief in Jesus is the only way we gain eternal life.
Yes, Jesus came to save. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him” (Jn. 3: 17 ESV).
But we can’t stop there. “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (Jn. 3: 18 ESV).
If we do not believe in Jesus as our Savior and Redeemer, we are already condemned to a life in hell.
Christians Should Follow God’s Laws
“If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love” (Jn. 15: 10 ESV)
We have to keep God’s laws and commandments His way.
God doesn’t allow us to rewrite His Scriptures. That means we cannot rewrite His laws and commandments.
Jesus did not come to earth to do away with God’s moral laws. “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Mt. 5: 17 ESV).
We are frequently told that we need to “… ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ …” (Mk. 12: 31 ESV). But then we are told that tolerating the sin of others should be a part of the definition of love.
We are not told to tolerate sin. We are told to abhor sin (Rom. 12: 9).
Abhor. Hate.
Does that sound like tolerate? No.
How Do We Apply This?
The bottom line is we should follow God’s laws and commandments. His way.
We can’t compromise with the worldview. We have to stand firm.
Where we spend eternity depends on whether we can not not.
Father God. You loved us enough to devise the Plan of Salvation so that our relationships with You may be restored. Forgive us when we continue to sin. Help us to grow to be more like You. Amen.
What do you think?
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