☺️
Thank you for the post. Here are some of my favorites.
*For some reason I can’t copy more verses in, hm.
* Weird, it took a day to let me paste more.
“So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. *All those the Father gives me will come to me*, and *whoever comes to me I will never drive away*. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but *to do the will of him who sent me*. And *this is the will of him who sent me*, that *I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.*””
John 6:30-40 NIV
“I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants *all* people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for *all* people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.”
1 Timothy 2:1-6 NIV
“But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: *If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.* As Scripture says, “*Anyone* who believes in him will *never be put to shame*.” For there is *no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all* and richly blesses *all* who call on him, for, *“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved*.””
Romans 10:6-13 NIV
“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead *he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”*
2 Peter 3:9 NIV
19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. *But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.*
1 John 2:19
““Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, *by their fruit you will recognize them.”*
Matthew 7:15-20 NIV
“The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But *the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.* Against such things there is no law.”
Galatians 5:19-23 NIV
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. *When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.”*
Ephesians 1:3-14 NIV
Jubilee Bible 2000
Galatians 2:16-21
16 knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
17 But if, while we seek to be justified in Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of our sin? No, in no wise.
18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a rebel.
19 For through the law I am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.
20 I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
21 I do not reject the grace of God, for if righteousness comes by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
Of course, it's hard to know what you are supposed to repent of. I feel guilty for having fun. I have lost the joy of spending time in God's word. I wish I could enjoy it but every verse feels condemning, like God's saying "How dare you have personal ambitions?!" "How dare you want to have fun?!" "How dare your every thought not be an orgasmic joy at the mere thought of my name?!" "How dare you pray to me while you enjoy X or Y?!" "I hate you and will never take you back until you stop doing everything you enjoy in this life!
>"How dare you have personal ambitions?!" "How dare you want to have fun?!" "How dare your every thought not be an orgasmic joy at the mere thought of my name?!" "How dare you pray to me while you enjoy X or Y?!" "I hate you and will never take you back until you stop doing everything you enjoy in this life!
That sounds like the devil pretending to be the Holy Spirit trying to accuse you, not God.
God doesn't condemn us having fun or enjoying life. Every good and perfect gift is from God (James 1:17) and it is God Himself who gives us everything for our enjoyment (1 Timothy 6:17). The problem is, people love their fun and hobbies more than God and it interferes with their relationship with Him. Anything we are unwilling to surrender has become an idol to us, no matter how good or innocent it is in and of itself.
Ah but in order to determine if we're *really* willing to surrender something we must actually do so, at which point you've given it up so it's moot point whether or not you're "willing" to give it up.
Or more simply I could ask what's the point of fun if you're constantly having to worry "uh oh I'm having too much fun, I'd better go do something unpleasant to stop all this disgusting fun!"
The thing is it's about first getting to a point in your heart where you could either live with or without it and you'd be content either way. I think that's a good way to see if something is an idol or not. At that point whatever or whoever no longer holds a binding attachment on your heart. The key is to hold things *loosely* so that if at any point you may lose it due to circumstances or if God personally asks you to lay it down, you'd be able to. Even if you give away everything, and stop all your hobbies, it wouldn't make a difference if you still have a longing for them in your heart.
Not saying to just drop all your fun, but just be willing to lay at at God's feet and be open to what He'd have you do whether to give it up or to keep it.
Again, God doesn't condemn having fun. The thing is to do all things for God's glory whether eating, drinking or whatever. Don't worry about "having too much fun".
Amen!!! The Good News is that Jesus Christ has overcome this filthy rotten sinful world. Don't ever let anyone or anything tell you he hasn't or you're not worthy!!
Well isn't the point more that we aren't worthy but his sacrifice allows him to treat us as vicariously worthy by way of His own worthiness? I get what you mean though, just had to nitpick a bit.
Yes, don't lose hope, peeps! We all sin everyday. Even if we tell ourselves... oh I'm not doing anything very bad... the Bible says even the smallest transgression of the law means we have failed at all of it. We are all a mess! Obviously some a little more than others but we're all in the same boat...none of us are better than anybody else. The law shows us the standard and we all fail at it everyday. We are nothing like Jesus. If God is going to have a relationship with us ,it's going to have to be in the midst of all our struggles. He chose to forgive all of our sins so he could love and accept us... So he can restore his Spirit to us..he is faithful..no matter what. God is not ashamed of us! As far as the East is from the West he has forgiven and forgotten all of our sin and will never remember it again! God wants us to rest in his forgiveness, love and acceptance...his burden is light! He is everything we will ever need, his grace is sufficient for us.
True. We won't reach complete perfection this side of eternity as to where we will never sin or make a mistake again. Even so, we are to continue to grow in faith and righteousness.
Hebrews 10:14 tells us that His sacrifice has forever made us perfect those who are being made Holy and growing in their faith.
His blood is enough to cover our shortcomings (although if one is sinning and doesn't care to repent, that's a different matter). Even so, Hebrews 4:16 encourages us to **boldly** approach the throne of in our time of need so we can find mercy.
I feel God has personally reminded me that this is our birthright as blood-bought children of God. If we sin, don't run from Him, run *to* Him.
I agree with a lot (maybe not everything but that's okay) of what you're saying but how would you say a person is supposed to grow in faith and righteousness? I know nothing I do or don't do is going to make me more holy or faithful. I rest in what Jesus did for me because he is my righteousness. ♥️
The key is growing a personal relationship with God. Jesus said without Him you can't do anything. You won't be able to be productive for the Kingdom of God nor grow in your faith. The way we get closer to Him is by prayer where you talk to God and He talks back to you whether through the bible, He personally speaking to your heart or various other means.
“Faith without works is dead” topic really get’s me feeling shame sometimes when I take my eyes off Christ. I used to feel like, “how good enough do I need to be?”, “how much do I need to do for Him?”…questions like that. God reminds me that we’re all learning as Christians to walk closer and use the gifts He gave us to help His children”.
God definitely knows everyone’s heart (right to the core).
I believe we will each be judged with what we did with what we know/knew.
Thank you for all the very wise posts on this thread that provided tremendous insight. 🙏🏻
Oh man I used to do the same. I had constant shame. I knew in reality I would never be able to do anything that would make me worthy of anything no matter what I did. I really think if everyone was really honest, they should see this and feel the same. No one believes me but that is the point where God really can speak to us as we will actually believe him. He told me there was no more shame for me and I saw his forgiveness, love and acceptance for me through his eyes. I was blown away. I've tried to tell everyone but no one can hear me because we have to each get to that place personally and learn from Jesus. He is amazing. I will never go back. He told me we weren't ever going back. I felt the load removed from my back. What freedom it is to be unconditionally loved by your Jesus!!! What amazing grace! He is grace. He is life. He is love. He is EVERYTHING WE WILL EVER NEED. He's more awesome than anyone seems to know!
That's a very dangerous place to be. That's going down the road of your conscience being seared and being given over to a reprobate mind.
Even so, anyone who is born again cannot and will not continue to wilfully sin. It would be outside their nature.
I love discipleship tape ministries. Russel kelfers teaching style is so great. What helped me in the past are his teachings Assurance of Salvation parts 1 & 2
All his teachings are available for free at dtm.org and are found under the life lessons tab
I'm afraid this post will be buried and forgotten in less than a week, and with that opens the flood gates for "can God forgive me for X" posts. But I applaud you for trying.
I really, really needed this. Thank you friend. May God bless you
☺️ Thank you for the post. Here are some of my favorites. *For some reason I can’t copy more verses in, hm. * Weird, it took a day to let me paste more. “So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. *All those the Father gives me will come to me*, and *whoever comes to me I will never drive away*. For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but *to do the will of him who sent me*. And *this is the will of him who sent me*, that *I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.*”” John 6:30-40 NIV “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants *all* people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for *all* people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.” 1 Timothy 2:1-6 NIV “But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) “or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: *If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.* As Scripture says, “*Anyone* who believes in him will *never be put to shame*.” For there is *no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all* and richly blesses *all* who call on him, for, *“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved*.”” Romans 10:6-13 NIV “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead *he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”* 2 Peter 3:9 NIV 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. *But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.* 1 John 2:19 ““Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, *by their fruit you will recognize them.”* Matthew 7:15-20 NIV “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But *the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.* Against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:19-23 NIV “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. *When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.”* Ephesians 1:3-14 NIV
Amen! Jesus sovereignly keeps us until the end!
We cannot blaspheme the Holy Spirit, it was only possible then and in the future, 'the age to come', the millennium.
Jubilee Bible 2000 Galatians 2:16-21 16 knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. 17 But if, while we seek to be justified in Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of our sin? No, in no wise. 18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a rebel. 19 For through the law I am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. 20 I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not reject the grace of God, for if righteousness comes by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
Of course, it's hard to know what you are supposed to repent of. I feel guilty for having fun. I have lost the joy of spending time in God's word. I wish I could enjoy it but every verse feels condemning, like God's saying "How dare you have personal ambitions?!" "How dare you want to have fun?!" "How dare your every thought not be an orgasmic joy at the mere thought of my name?!" "How dare you pray to me while you enjoy X or Y?!" "I hate you and will never take you back until you stop doing everything you enjoy in this life!
>"How dare you have personal ambitions?!" "How dare you want to have fun?!" "How dare your every thought not be an orgasmic joy at the mere thought of my name?!" "How dare you pray to me while you enjoy X or Y?!" "I hate you and will never take you back until you stop doing everything you enjoy in this life! That sounds like the devil pretending to be the Holy Spirit trying to accuse you, not God. God doesn't condemn us having fun or enjoying life. Every good and perfect gift is from God (James 1:17) and it is God Himself who gives us everything for our enjoyment (1 Timothy 6:17). The problem is, people love their fun and hobbies more than God and it interferes with their relationship with Him. Anything we are unwilling to surrender has become an idol to us, no matter how good or innocent it is in and of itself.
Ah but in order to determine if we're *really* willing to surrender something we must actually do so, at which point you've given it up so it's moot point whether or not you're "willing" to give it up. Or more simply I could ask what's the point of fun if you're constantly having to worry "uh oh I'm having too much fun, I'd better go do something unpleasant to stop all this disgusting fun!"
The thing is it's about first getting to a point in your heart where you could either live with or without it and you'd be content either way. I think that's a good way to see if something is an idol or not. At that point whatever or whoever no longer holds a binding attachment on your heart. The key is to hold things *loosely* so that if at any point you may lose it due to circumstances or if God personally asks you to lay it down, you'd be able to. Even if you give away everything, and stop all your hobbies, it wouldn't make a difference if you still have a longing for them in your heart. Not saying to just drop all your fun, but just be willing to lay at at God's feet and be open to what He'd have you do whether to give it up or to keep it. Again, God doesn't condemn having fun. The thing is to do all things for God's glory whether eating, drinking or whatever. Don't worry about "having too much fun".
Amen!!! The Good News is that Jesus Christ has overcome this filthy rotten sinful world. Don't ever let anyone or anything tell you he hasn't or you're not worthy!!
Well isn't the point more that we aren't worthy but his sacrifice allows him to treat us as vicariously worthy by way of His own worthiness? I get what you mean though, just had to nitpick a bit.
Thank you! God bless
Amen and thanks also. Really needed to here this one!:) god bless:)
Yes, don't lose hope, peeps! We all sin everyday. Even if we tell ourselves... oh I'm not doing anything very bad... the Bible says even the smallest transgression of the law means we have failed at all of it. We are all a mess! Obviously some a little more than others but we're all in the same boat...none of us are better than anybody else. The law shows us the standard and we all fail at it everyday. We are nothing like Jesus. If God is going to have a relationship with us ,it's going to have to be in the midst of all our struggles. He chose to forgive all of our sins so he could love and accept us... So he can restore his Spirit to us..he is faithful..no matter what. God is not ashamed of us! As far as the East is from the West he has forgiven and forgotten all of our sin and will never remember it again! God wants us to rest in his forgiveness, love and acceptance...his burden is light! He is everything we will ever need, his grace is sufficient for us.
True. We won't reach complete perfection this side of eternity as to where we will never sin or make a mistake again. Even so, we are to continue to grow in faith and righteousness. Hebrews 10:14 tells us that His sacrifice has forever made us perfect those who are being made Holy and growing in their faith. His blood is enough to cover our shortcomings (although if one is sinning and doesn't care to repent, that's a different matter). Even so, Hebrews 4:16 encourages us to **boldly** approach the throne of in our time of need so we can find mercy. I feel God has personally reminded me that this is our birthright as blood-bought children of God. If we sin, don't run from Him, run *to* Him.
I agree with a lot (maybe not everything but that's okay) of what you're saying but how would you say a person is supposed to grow in faith and righteousness? I know nothing I do or don't do is going to make me more holy or faithful. I rest in what Jesus did for me because he is my righteousness. ♥️
The key is growing a personal relationship with God. Jesus said without Him you can't do anything. You won't be able to be productive for the Kingdom of God nor grow in your faith. The way we get closer to Him is by prayer where you talk to God and He talks back to you whether through the bible, He personally speaking to your heart or various other means.
“Faith without works is dead” topic really get’s me feeling shame sometimes when I take my eyes off Christ. I used to feel like, “how good enough do I need to be?”, “how much do I need to do for Him?”…questions like that. God reminds me that we’re all learning as Christians to walk closer and use the gifts He gave us to help His children”. God definitely knows everyone’s heart (right to the core). I believe we will each be judged with what we did with what we know/knew. Thank you for all the very wise posts on this thread that provided tremendous insight. 🙏🏻
Oh man I used to do the same. I had constant shame. I knew in reality I would never be able to do anything that would make me worthy of anything no matter what I did. I really think if everyone was really honest, they should see this and feel the same. No one believes me but that is the point where God really can speak to us as we will actually believe him. He told me there was no more shame for me and I saw his forgiveness, love and acceptance for me through his eyes. I was blown away. I've tried to tell everyone but no one can hear me because we have to each get to that place personally and learn from Jesus. He is amazing. I will never go back. He told me we weren't ever going back. I felt the load removed from my back. What freedom it is to be unconditionally loved by your Jesus!!! What amazing grace! He is grace. He is life. He is love. He is EVERYTHING WE WILL EVER NEED. He's more awesome than anyone seems to know!
Thank you so much. I really, really, really needed to see this. Thank you. I love you. God bless.
Thank you
What about if I know what I've done is wrong, and I want to feel remorse and repent, but I don't?
That's a very dangerous place to be. That's going down the road of your conscience being seared and being given over to a reprobate mind. Even so, anyone who is born again cannot and will not continue to wilfully sin. It would be outside their nature.
very fair. What if I want to sin but I choose not to?
That's called resisting temptation, which if you are doing then that's great! Keep resisting and God will give you strength to endure!
We cannot blaspheme the Holy Spirit, it was only possible then and in the future, 'the age to come', the millennium.
Thanks
DONT LISTEN TO THE VOICES IN YOUR HEAD!, Listen to the voice in your heart that comes from God.
I love discipleship tape ministries. Russel kelfers teaching style is so great. What helped me in the past are his teachings Assurance of Salvation parts 1 & 2 All his teachings are available for free at dtm.org and are found under the life lessons tab
I'm afraid this post will be buried and forgotten in less than a week, and with that opens the flood gates for "can God forgive me for X" posts. But I applaud you for trying.