The Unpardonable Sin - Are You Guilty?

Most of this study is taken from a previous study I posted not long ago on losing salvation located here. I brushed it up a little and am re-posting it here so you don't have to read the really long version to get this same information.

The 1 sin that if you commit buys you a one-way ticket on the fast train to hell

I've heard many sermons, theories, and beliefs regarding the one unpardonable sin – commonly referred to as the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. The unpardonable sin is discussed in all three of the synoptic gospels. Matthew 12:31-32 says, “Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” This is something a lot of people feel like they have done. Some background to this is as follows: Jesus was essentially using miracles to claim He is using the powers of the Messiah. He is healing people and casting out demons, and the Pharisees were accusing Jesus of using the Satanic powers to heal people and perform other miracles. Blasphemy of the holy spirit is properly defined by attributing to Satan what is accomplished by the power of God.  Blasphemy means to speak evil against. Oftentimes, people read this and they think, “I’m afraid I did that.”  Note that Jesus didn't tell these Pharisees who accused Him of using the powers of the devil that they actually committed the unpardonable sin.  Jesus simply said they were close to it. It is important to also note that John’s gospel doesn't mention the unpardonable sin, Jude never mentioned it, James never mentions it, Paul never mentions it, and Peter never mentions it. So, I believe that if you actually were living there in the time of Jesus and credited the works of Jesus to the devil; you were close to committing this unpardonable sin. If you lived after Jesus, it would be pretty hard to accuse Him.  I believe that is why other writers in the New Testament never mention this. Don't you think that if there was one sin that you could commit that would cause you to lose your salvation, that Paul, Peter, Jude, or John would have mentioned this to us? As important as this topic is, I believe it is not something they would have just skipped over. When they were writing their books, Jesus already was risen. Unless you were a Pharisee facing off with Jesus while He was proclaiming Himself to be the Messiah, I don’t really believe you have anything to worry about. The only sin that is unforgivable and will surely send you to hell is the sin of rejecting Jesus Christ for the rest of your life. If you confess your sins, He is faithful to forgive you and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.

Salvation in a nutshell defined

Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”  So, we are saved by grace (God’s unmerited favor), and that not of yourselves (nothing you did yourself, everything that Jesus did for us on the cross of Calvary), it is a gift of God, not of works (Not from my good works or lack of sin), lest anyone should boast (so nobody can claim they saved themselves). A very important concept to grasp here is this: If our works do not save us, then they cannot preserve our salvation either.

There are many people who teach a works type of salvation. If works are required to save us, then we are all in trouble. We are all sinners. There are also those who teach only certain types of sin can cause you to lose your salvation. I don't know about anyone else, but when I hear preachers teach that this sin or that sin can cause you to lose your salvation, immediately, I think, “OH NO!! I have done that!” Let’s get something straight here. No matter who you are, you are never PERFECTLY adhering to or following the will of God for your life. Only Jesus was able to do that! Certainly I would not want to discourage anyone from trying their best to follow the perfect will of God for your life, but let us be completely honest about who we are and our temporal nature. 

To believe that we can lose our salvation based on some sin we commit is to completely over estimate our own level of righteousness on our best day. 

We are all sinners, saved by grace. We are not burdened by obtaining our own salvation.  1 John 1:8 says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” If anyone thinks that on their best day, they are not a sinner, they have fooled themselves! Don’t kid yourself, we are all sinners – the saved and the unsaved alike. John boldly calls us a liar if we claim we are not sinners. Some faiths claim that some sins can cause you to lose your salvation while others simply require a visit to the priest or something similar. To esteem one sin higher than another can be dangerous. I would argue that some sins God hates more than others (such as pride), yet any sin causes us to be in need of a savior. We are all sinners – Again, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. The only thing that determines whether or not I am saved is my faith in Jesus, that through His unmerited favor, He has freely forgiven me of all my sins – past, present, and future. I’m saved by grace, not by living a sinless life. I’m not advocating that it’s safe to freely sin. I am saying we all sin regardless of whether or not we are saved. 1 Thessalonians 4:7 says, “For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness.”  Romans 6:1-2 says, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” So, obviously, God does not want to give us a license to sin and be disobedient. We respond in love and obedience to the gospel of grace.

5 Points Of Calvinism

We can differ in how we understand the scriptures.  Scripture debates demand humility because regardless of what we believe, we are deriving our beliefs from the scriptures. Sometimes, the scripture does a good job of arguing two views that oppose each other. My advice is to never discount or explain away a scripture to fit your theology. There have been those who have asked me in the past whether or not I am a Calvinist. I prefer not to consider myself any kind of “ist.” I believe Calvinism is a perversion of the Gospel in many regards. Then they ask, are you an Arminian. I am not an Arminian either. What am I then you might ask? Well, I will tell you, I am saved by grace, through faith, in Jesus Christ - and that not of myself, it is the free gift of God. I don’t claim to have all the answers, and I don’t think the Bible supports the interpretations of either view completely (Calvinism/Arminianism). I will tackle Calvinism here and explain the problems I have with it. I could literally spend a week straight writing on this topic, but I am going to keep it short and sweet. Those of you who are used to my writing know that I always back everything I do up with as much scripture as I can find on the topic. However, I don’t use any scripture in this response. I encourage everyone to search out the scriptures and find your own answers for your theology! I exhort you to be careful in defining your theology. Leave room for God to be bigger than your present understanding of Him. I have learned to do this over the years because my view on many things has changed repeatedly! Don’t sacrifice scriptures to argue your viewpoints. If scripture argues two different points, then concede scripture says both. Scripture should humble us all. As soon as you think you understand it all, God finds a way to show you that you don’t understand everything. Nobody has it all figured out!

Tulip is an acronym to describe the 5 points of Calvinism.

Total depravity – This means that man is totally unable to do anything to save himself. 100% Agree

Unconditional election – God chose you before the foundations of the world. If God chose me and I had no legitimate choice in the matter, it would seem to make it meaningless. My accepting God would seem to be meaningless to me. I believe God sovereignly chose me, but for me to put limits or qualifications on that goes beyond what scriptures teach, in my opinion. The Bible doesn't explain foreknowledge. We don’t know if foreknowledge is specifically referring to God knowing we would choose Him, or whether he chose us for any other reason. I think for us to claim we know what God was thinking goes beyond our pay grade. But, the Bible says God chose me. For who He foreknew, he also predestined. And so, I believe the Bible – but I don’t claim to know exactly what it means. It might be wiser to say God chose us for reasons known only to himself. So, unconditional election goes beyond what scripture says to some degree.

Limited Atonement – Unlimited atonement would be Universalism, which the Bible clearly does NOT teach. The Bible mentions many things to the contrary of unlimited atonement. Everyone except Universalists limit the atonement in some way. If you don’t have faith in Jesus being your atonement for sin, then you don’t have atonement. Calvinists say it only works for the elect, Arminians would say it only works for people who accept Jesus. The Universalists clearly have a wrong idea about atonement. The details quickly get muddied up between the Calvinists and the Arminians believing basically the same thing with the exception being that Calvinists claim those who accept Jesus are the elect. I agree with limited atonement, but don’t wish to worry about whether or not it describes the elect only. Based on scripture, I can safely conclude that Jesus died for the sins of the world and if you receive him, he will never turn you away. I don’t think it much matters whether you take the Arminian view of limited atonement or the Calvinist view.

Irresistible Grace - There a lots of instances in the scripture of people resisting God’s grace. God’s offer for atonement would mean nothing if you couldn't resist it. However, I wouldn't limit the power of God to say he couldn't allow things in my life to happen in such a way as to draw me to him. But, I believe in free will, therefore, no matter what, I still have a choice. I believe God does actually allow things to happen to many of us that are intended to draw us to Himself. But, I have seen others reject this drawing, and in the process witnessed their hearts grow very hard and cold towards God.  God has given everyone free choice, all the way back to Adam and Eve. I think we can resist God’s grace.

Perseverance of the saints – This means that someone who truly has salvation cannot lose their salvation – ever. 100% agree. Many in the church are divided by this one topic of discussion, which I discuss in great detail here.

I agree with about 3 points of Calvinism. I agree with total depravity, and perseverance of the saints completely 100%, but I have issues with the way the Calvinists describe unconditional election and limited atonement because I believe the Bible teaches both Arminian views as well as Calvinist views on both topics and I don't explain away scriptures to fit my theological viewpoints. Nevertheless, I agree with limited atonement and unconditional election because I believe the Bible teaches them. I just don't go along with the way Calvinists define points 2 & 3. I totally disagree with irresistible grace.

I know what I believe based on years of studying the scriptures and I would encourage others to seek their answers from the scriptures as well. It's about God, so it is important to know why we believe what we believe. Don't take my word or anyone else's word on theological issues. Psalm 118:8 says, "It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man." 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 2:7 says, "Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything." So, with those verses, I exhort everyone to seek out the scriptures for yourself and let the Holy Spirit be your guide!

I used to be a person who would argue many of these Calvinistic points, but more and more, I am becoming someone who is humbled enough to realize that it is somewhat prideful and outside my pay grade to claim truths that the Bible doesn't clearly explain are right and theorize that others are wrong. The nice thing is, that all the important things in the Bible are very clearly explained, such as salvation. I believe I should focus my thoughts, comments, and attention on those things more so than the controversial things. However, I bring all this up because it is good to know what we believe on anything having to do with the word of God.

Can We Lose Or Leave Our Salvation?

A tough question

Can we lose our Salvation? This is a controversial topic that brings about division within the church. It is a very important topic because the likely consequences that come from drawing the wrong conclusion to such a paramount question can be eternal.

Uncompromising positions that cause dissension

First, let me start by saying, that in my life, I have weighed both sides of this theological argument. People on either side are so convinced and uncompromising in their position, despite the fact that there are plenty of scriptures to the contrary regardless of which position a person holds. It’s a real hot-button topic among Christians. I know people who have left a church over this one topic. If you believe that a person can lose their salvation, you have to concede that there are many verses that teach just the opposite. Likewise, if you believe that salvation cannot be lost, there are a plethora of verses that would seem to indicate otherwise. We have to be cautious that we don't explain away verses just to make them fit within our theological viewpoint.  I am going to dive in-depth here in a moment and cover some of the scriptures for both sides of the argument. I don’t think anyone can know for sure. I lean much more towards the eternal security side, but I cannot disregard any of the scriptures. I believe all the scriptures with my whole heart. Some things, I just do not understand because the Bible has not made them clear enough and I believe that that is for a reason.  I challenge all my Christian friends to take a few minutes and read my study and respond with your thoughts. I want to know others perspective on this sensitive and oftentimes divisive topic.

There are many beliefs with regard to salvation, some of which I will debunk in this study.  Calvinists generally believe that you cannot lose your salvation. Not all Calvinists, but most.  I don't consider myself Calvinist, because I could never agree with all 5 points. Calvinism is itself, a perversion of the gospel in some regards. The Armenians hold the opposing view, which is that you can lose your salvation, and many of them believe you can lose your salvation every time you sin.  Other groups believe that it depends upon what type of sin you commit as to whether or not you lose your salvation. I would point out that regardless of which position a person holds, they generally all can agree on this: all that matters is that you’re saved before you die.

The weightier question for all of us should be do we have it?  Whether or not we have it is clearly more important. Nevertheless, I’m going to dive head first into scripture and see what it says about losing or leaving our salvation.  First, I will cover many of the popular scriptures that appear to teach that one can’t lose their salvation. They are verses I love, and I think many people love regardless of which position they hold on the topic.

Salvation defined

Before I begin to dive into this legendary divisive mystery, I want to briefly discuss Ephesians 2:8-9 so we know what salvation is. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”  So, we are saved by grace (God’s unmerited favor), and that not of yourselves (nothing you did yourself, everything that Jesus did for us on the cross of Calvary), it is a gift of God, not of works (Not from my good works or lack of sin), lest anyone should boast (so nobody can claim they saved themselves). A very important concept to grasp here is this: If our works do not save us, then they cannot preserve our salvation either.

Allow me to travel off on a brief tangent here. There are many people who teach a works type of salvation. If works are required to save us, then we are all in trouble. We are all sinners. There are also those who teach only certain types of sin can cause you to lose your salvation. When you hear preachers teach that this sin or that sin can cause you to lose your salvation, immediately, I think, “OH NO!! I have done that!” Let’s get something straight here. No matter who you are, you are never adhering to or following the perfect will of God for your life. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” IF we confess our sins, he is faithful to forgive us of ALL our sins. This doesn't specify some sins. Christians struggle with sins. All of us! Romans 3:23 tells us that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. “All” would include Christians!  How many sins would it take for someone to lose their salvation? This idea that we can lose our salvation based on sinning is not scriptural. The same grace that saves me, is also available for everyone else. Something I need to remember on occasion with regard to grace being for all of us. We are only innocent because we have faith in Jesus taking all of our sins upon Himself.

The Unpardonable Sin

I've heard many sermons, theories, and beliefs regarding the one unpardonable sin – commonly referred to as the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. The unpardonable sin is discussed in all three of the synoptic gospels. Matthew 12:31-32 says, “Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” This is something a lot of people feel like they have done. Some background to this is as follows: Jesus is healing people, and the Pharisees were accusing Jesus of using the Satanic powers to heal people and perform other miracles. Blasphemy means to speak evil against. Oftentimes, people read this and they think, “I’m afraid I did that.”  Note that Jesus didn't tell these Pharisees who accused Him of using the powers of the devil that they actually committed the unpardonable sin.  Jesus simply said they were close to it. It is important to also note that John’s gospel doesn't mention the unpardonable sin, Jude never mentioned it, James never mentions it, Paul never mentions it, Peter never mentions it, and nobody else ever mentioned it. So, I believe that if you actually were living there in the time of Jesus and credited the works of Jesus to the devil; you were close to committing this unpardonable sin. If you lived after Jesus, it would be pretty hard to accuse him.  I believe that is why other writers in the New Testament never mention this. Unless you were a Pharisee facing off with Jesus while He was proclaiming Himself to be the Messiah, I don’t really believe you have anything to worry about. The only sin that will send you to hell is the sin of rejecting Jesus Christ for the rest of your life. Again, if you confess your sins, He is faithful to forgive you and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.

To believe that we can lose our salvation based on some sin we commit is to completely over estimate our own level of righteousness on our best day. We are all sinners, saved by grace. We are not burdened by obtaining our own salvation.  1 John 1:8 says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” If anyone thinks that on their best day, they are not a sinner, they have fooled themselves! Don’t kid yourself, we are all sinners – the saved and the unsaved alike. John basically boldly calls us a liar if we claim we are not sinners. That’s one of the reasons why it is wrong to say, you’re going to hell for that sin. To esteem one sin higher than another can be dangerous. I would argue that some sins God hates more than others, yet any sin causes us to be in need of a savior. We are all sinners – Again, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. The only thing that determines whether or not I am saved is my faith in Jesus, that through His unmerited favor, He has freely forgiven me of all my sins – past, present, and future. I’m saved by grace, not by living a sinless life. I’m not advocating that it’s safe to freely sin. I am saying we all sin regardless of whether or not we are saved. 1 Thessalonians 4:7 says, “For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness.”  Romans 6:1-2 says, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” So, obviously, God does not want to give us a license to sin and be disobedient. We respond in love and obedience to the gospel of grace. OK, that’s the end of my tangent!

Are you one of His sheep?

Picking back up where I left off before my tangent, In John chapter 10, we start up with some of my favorite verses in the entire Bible. John 10:26-30 says, “But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.”   It’s a great assurance to know that my salvation is God holding on to me, not me holding on to God. Jesus is God, and God is essentially proclaiming here that nobody can take me from Him.  But, I will point out here, that we have free will. We can choose God, or we can choose other gods. But does that mean we can choose God at one point in our lives, and then later choose something besides God? I don’t think so – not if you truly know Jesus. I will discuss whether or not we can choose to leave God in a minute. Notice here, that Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”  So, the real question we have here is - Am I one of His sheep?

No sin, no power, not even death can separate us from the love of God!

Romans 8:37-39 read, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  What great verses here, where Paul boldly declares that nothing created has the power to separate us from the love of Jesus. I am a creation of God, and everything on this earth, including the earth is not capable of separating me from the love that God has for me. There is nothing I can do to lose God’s love.  There is no sin, there is no power, and not even death can separate me from the love of God.  What a comforting scriptural truth!

We can know that we have eternal life

1 John 5:10 says, “He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.”  So here, John gives us the very reason why he wrote this particular book.  John said, we can know we are saved. Our salvation is not something that God intended for us to be in the dark on. We can know for certain that we are either saved, or we are not. Eternal life for us can start right now and last forever. You either have eternal life or you don’t.

If they were ever really of us, they would not have left us!

Finally, 1 John 2:19 says, “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 they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.”  So, those who argue on the side of eternal security use this verse, and rightfully so. Basically, what John is saying here is that they appeared to be like us, but appearances are deceiving because if they had truly been like us, they could never actually change. So, while we have free will, it is clear by these verses that we won't use that free will to leave our salvation behind if we ever truly had salvation to begin with. Many who claim that they are Christians, simply put, are not! Matthew’s gospel in chapter 7:21-23 says, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name? And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!”  These are somewhat scary verses. People can actually deceive themselves into thinking they are saved. I will talk about this in a little more depth at the end of this study, but let me reiterate that everyone can know whether or not they are saved! If you are concerned about whether or not you are saved, it is a very good indication to me that you actually are saved. That concern is the Holy Spirit inside you convicting you. If you have that kind of conviction, I believe it is a very good sign.

Open and shut case?

So, from these verses, it is very clear to me that I can’t lose my salvation.  So you might be thinking, this is an open and shut case. Based on these verses, we know what salvation is, we know that sin cannot cause us to lose our salvation, that nothing created can separate us from the love of God, and that if I’m saved, there is no power or anything else that can pluck me out of the Father’s hand. Obviously, there is no way we can lose our salvation based on these verses. But these verses contain only one part of the truth. I think it is wrong when have two seemingly conflicting truths, to pick one, and explain the other one away. We will now dive head-first into the opposing argument using scripture.

Another truth

Now we get to the verses those who believe in eternal salvation have to wrestle with, explain away, and really pretend aren't there. This is another truth.  All scripture is inspired by God.  Hebrews 6:4-6 says this: “For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.”  So, to encapsulate these verses in a condensed manner, it basically says that Christians who say they no longer believe in Jesus cannot return to repentance. Now, I know many reading this will disagree with my brief interpretation, so let me break it down further.  Do these verses sound like they are describing a Christian to you? These verses are speaking of someone who was enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come. Doesn't that sound like a Christian? What other type of person could be a partaker of the Holy Spirit? In preparing my study on this topic, I found literally dozens of webpages, books, and articles explaining away this verse. Some of them go so far as to claim that you can have all these things and still not be a Christian. I'll let you decide. The most disturbing part of this scripture reference is that it declares quite clearly that if you lose your salvation, you can never get it back. I think it is dangerous to just explain away a verse like this when so many lives are on the line. So, I think we err on the side of caution, rather than just explain verses like these away so they fit within our interpretation of scripture or our theology.

Dangerous to explain a verse away to make it fit with our theological viewpoints

I don’t claim that I know exactly what the verse means or how it works together with other scriptures, but I think it is foolish to make excuses for God and I think it is even more dangerous to explain it away.  In looking at opposing viewpoints to this verse, many claimed that this portion of scripture was only talking to the Jews. I think that is asinine. How we can pick some verses out and say that they were only talking to this group of people and they don’t apply to me and then take other verses in the book of Hebrews as though they were written to apply to me.  These verses don’t sound like something I can just throw away. There are many verses in the Bible that I don’t understand, but I believe them all. For example, I don’t believe in a works based salvation, as I previously stated. I believe we are saved by grace, through faith, in Jesus Christ. Saved from what? SAVED FROM MY SINS! Yet, Jesus said in Matthew 6:15, “But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”  Some might say, how can you be saved from your sins by grace alone when Jesus Himself said you have to forgive others to be forgiven. I say, good question. I don’t know the answer to everything. I just believe what the Bible teaches. If it teaches two different truths, I believe them both. So, I believe Jesus when he said I have to forgive others their trespasses so that mine will also be forgiven and I believe that I am saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. I believe both because the Bible teaches them both. The verse in Matthew is one that many also try to explain away to fit their theology. That is playing with fire (pardon the reference!) when your very salvation is on the line, in my opinion.

Peter weighs in - A cause for concern

I think Hebrews 6:4-6 is the strongest verse for those who believe you can lose your salvation, so I cover it first. 2 Peter 2:19-22 says, “While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage. For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb:  A dog returns to his own vomit, and,  a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire.”  So, if they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, that to me, sounds a lot like a Christian. Those who argue that one can lose their salvation claim this is a Christian who became entangled and overcome with sin, that it would have been far better had they never known the truth about Righteousness to begin with. However, I don’t see how anyone can clearly say that these verses are describing a Christian. In fact, they are actually describing false teachers. But can a false teacher also be a Christian?  Peter may only be saying that some of these guys knew the Lord, but went back to the world, and it would have been better for them had they never knew God.  I draw a line in the sand of difference between knowing God and having a relationship with God.  I don’t know if these guys actually had a real relationship with God. But I’m not going to explain it away by guessing that they didn't have a relationship with God because nobody knows for sure. To me, there is a strong argument that they were Christians because what kind of person is freed from the bondage of sin, but then returns to it? I don’t know if Peter is referring to a Christian here or not, but he might be. Anyone who claims they do know, in my opinion, is doing nothing more than guessing. However, I will say it is possible that Peter is not referring to someone who was necessarily saved; rather they may have only had a knowledge of God. But that’s just my gut, or a guess I suppose you can call it! In either case, I could be wrong and there are strong arguments on both sides claiming that to be the case. So, in any case, I think it is a cause for concern.

Peter says some difficult things!

The Bible says these things. Peter, in particular says some things that are difficult for me. 1 Peter 3:21 basically says that baptism saves us. But, that’s not true. We’re saved by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ as Ephesians tells us. I think there are a lot of things in all our wisdom we try to make sense of, but can’t do so any other way, except to explain it away. I know that salvation has nothing to do with being baptized. I don’t want to change the subject and I know what peter is referring to is not salvation, but rather an appeal to God for good conscience (peter is actually referring to what baptism represents – connecting baptism with belief).  But to many his words are not all that clear. There is debate about it and a lot of people have divided over the whole baptism issue. I know anyone of my friends who believes as I do (that you can’t lose your salvation) doesn't like what I am saying here. I feel ya, I don't like it either to be perfectly honest. But we have to deal with it because the Bible says these things. And we have to deal with it honestly.

Demas deserts Paul

Finally, with regard to the scripture some use to make an argument that the Bible discusses people leaving their salvation - being saved and then choosing to leave their salvation behind. This is found in 2 Timothy 4:10-11, which says, "for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica—Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry."  Now, here scripture tells us that he left Paul (forsaken here literally means deserted) because he loved the things of the world more than the things of God. Many scholars believe that Demas actually fled for fear of his life because Christians were constantly being killed. Either way, the scripture does not say that Demas was indeed saved prior to leaving the side of Paul. I don't think it is very conclusive at all with regard to Demas being a Christian. But, it is equally difficult to say he wasn't a Christian. That is something we just don't know. 1 John 2:15-16 says, "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world." So, if Demas loved the world, then he never had the love of the Father in him to begin with and it becomes increasingly questionable as to whether or not Demas was really ever saved. Demas was only mentioned 3 times in the entire bible and it is reaching at best to definitively claim he was a Christian based off the scriptures about him. At any rate, we know he deserted Paul when Paul really needed him. The scriptures are inspired and being that scripture does not identify Demas as a Christian is significant in my view. So, I respect others views, but I completely disagree with this assertion as being conclusive evidence that one can leave their salvation.

What I personally believe about salvation

I believe that scripture as a whole leans more towards the teaching and belief that one cannot lose their salvation. But, nobody knows for sure. Some think they do, but they are guessing at best, albeit educated guesses, it is still a guess. I consider it a guess, because you cannot disregard a scripture to bolster your view. Also, I am not going to hold such a strong view as to say that those who believe you can lose your salvation are wrong when there is evidence to the contrary. After all, Hebrews 6:4-6 is tough to explain away. But, I believe that I just don’t fully understand the verse in Hebrews. Even though I don’t fully understand it, I believe every word it says. In other words, I don’t know how Hebrews 6:4-6 fits in with the rest of scripture, but it is there and I believe all scripture is inspired by God. I’m not God’s lawyer.  But, I will say that the Bible clearly teaches in many other places that we cannot lose our salvation if we really ever had it to begin with. I think it is important when we come across a scripture that we don’t particularly like or understand to compare it to the rest of scripture to help us glean meaning from it. Back to 1 John 2:19, I believe if you walk away from it, you never had it to begin with, and you need it!  There is a saying about love that comes to mind, “If you love someone let them go. If they stay away then they were never yours to begin with.”  And I think that is so true in relationship of any kind, including with God. If someone leaves the Lord and never comes back, then they never belonged to the Lord to begin with.

What we do know for sure!

Here is what we do know. In John 3:36, we read that, “"He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”  We know for sure what it takes to be saved. We have to believe in Jesus. Sorry for being so redundant, but we are saved through grace, by faith in Jesus Christ.  So if we believe in Jesus, that He is God, we are saved. This is so easy, even a caveman can get it (I like Geico insurance TV commercials!).


We can all know whether or not we are saved. That is the most important thing to take away from this. If you put your trust in Jesus, you are saved. Recently a girl asked me, if she accepted Jesus on her death bed, would God accept that. My answer was a question to her. Why would anyone want to live life without the certainty that when they died they were saved? Who would want to go through life not knowing if they had their salvation? Nothing is more important. Some people think they have it, and actually don’t. But we can know for sure whether or not we have it. If you truly believe in Jesus as your savior, you truly know for sure because the scriptures tell us as I have pointed out above that faith in Jesus is all that is required to save us. Many people I have asked about their salvation will say, “Well I hope so,” or “I’ll find out when I die!”  There are a lot of indications to let you know whether or not you are saved. If someone asked you how you know that you are saved, and you reply, “Because I have faith in Jesus Christ and I completely trust Him with my whole heart,” then I would agree with that person without any hesitation.  Now, let me say this also – If you think you’re saved because you raised your hand at a Billy Graham or a Greg Laurie gathering 15 years ago, but you have had no change in the way you live your life, I can’t make you feel confident in your salvation because the Bible doesn't give that person much confidence in their salvation.  If you are putting your faith in the fact that you were baptized when you were 9 years old, or because your parents had you dedicated as a baby, that’s not good.

If you want to be saved, my response is that you probably already are. People who are concerned about their salvation are usually concerned because the Holy Spirit is convicting them.  I know that I am saved personally, because I read my Bible and I try to do it – doing it is having faith in Jesus Christ, trusting Him with everything I have, and living my life the way He commands me to. I do it all. Not perfectly, of course! I don’t believe we need works, but I do the works because I want to out of love. I want to because I love Jesus and I want to glorify Him with my life.  Jesus said, if you love me, keep my commandments!  I put my trust in Him, so I am not worried about it at all! If you do the same thing, you also don’t need to worry about it.

Sum Up The Entire Bible In One Word

The one word that sums up the Bible is, “LOVE!” What is the most important law in the Bible? Jesus tells us that there is one thing that we need to know above all other things the Bible teaches concerning the law. That is to love. It is as plain, pure, and simple as love.

Jesus sums it all up for us

A lawyer came and asked Jesus what is the most important commandment in Matthew 22:36. In verses 37-40, Jesus answered them,“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ‘This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. ‘All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Background to the story

Pharisees

Now, let me give a little background on this.  All of this commenced with the Pharisees. Pharisees were the most religious people in the Jewish community. Concerning the Mosaic Law, nobody followed it more closely than the Pharisees did. These Pharisees believed that they were better than other people because they were strict and disciplined followers of the law. They took pride that they did all the right things. Jesus comes along, and the Pharisees get upset with Him because Jesus didn't obey the same set of rules the Pharisees did. You see, the Pharisees developed their own set of rules, regulations, procedures, and traditions.  Pharisees wanted to keep themselves as far away from other people as they could for fear that they might become defiled from touching, dining, or being in the company of others such as the gentiles. They were religious weirdos.  Since their attempts at attacking Jesus always backfired, they decided to convince a Herodian to come and question Jesus.

Herodians

Herodians were of a political party in the day belonging to King Herod. Herodians believed engaging in politics was doing the work of God and so their allegiance was to Rome. In the time of Jesus, there was a lot of controversy over the fact that some claimed we should worship God, and others who claimed we should supremely worship the Emperor.  So the Pharisees thought it would be a great way to trap Jesus by having a Herodian come to question Jesus asking the question of who should we pay our taxes to – Ceasar or God? If Jesus said, "yeah, you should pay your taxes," then people would have claimed Him to be a Herodian rather than a king. People were claiming Jesus to be a King in a sense, and so to sound like a Herodian would have destroyed his reputation.  This is what the Pharisees anticipated and hoped would be the outcome from having this Herodian question Jesus. But, if Jesus said, “You don’t need to pay your taxes,” He would be in big trouble with Rome. So, this Herodian thought he set the perfect trap for Jesus. They were certain this question was the perfect trapping question with no good answer. But Jesus asked for a coin of their money.  Jesus asked them whose image was on the coin, and they replied that it was Caesar. So Jesus told them to give to Caesar what was Caesar’s and to God what was God’s (Matthew 22:21). This was a brilliant answer. Give to the government what belongs to the government, but then everything else belongs to God.

Sadducees

Next up, the Sadducees entered the ring to attack and trap Jesus. The Sadducees were sad you see. Their God is kind of like the Deists God. They didn't believe in heaven or miracles, etc. They were the liberals of the day. They were enemies of the Pharisees and Herodians, but, it is interesting that they all came together to mount an attack on Jesus. That was a cause that united them. So, here come the Sadducees. Again, the Sadducees pose a question regarding marriage. Basically, they were asking if a woman ended up marrying more than one man in her life, who she would end up being married to in Heaven.  Jesus again answered them telling them they didn't know the scriptures. We are going to be like the angels. Everyone is going to be close to everyone. He basically told them their idea was ridiculous and they did not know or understand the things of God. So, the Pharisees have struck out many times in their attempts to outwit Jesus and turn away His followers. They had a Herodian attempt, and he struck out. Then they partnered with their enemies (the Sadducees) and they also failed to trap Jesus.

The Lawyer 

Now, they bring a lawyer in to the picture. This is where we pick up in Matthew 22:36, which says, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” So this lawyer was more like a scholar of the law. They were rigid traditionalists. The lawyers – also called, "scribes" wanted to just get back to what the bible said. They didn't go along with all the man-made traditions the Pharisees adopted. Scribes were not influenced by anyone, any Rabbi, or any idea of the day. They strictly based their traditions and ideas of God on the Bible. So the scribe asked Jesus what was the most important law. Now, whenever you interpret the Bible, you have to be very cautious that you do not err.  Especially if you are someone multitudes are following such as those following our Lord, Jesus. The question this Scribe posed to Jesus was intended to get him to interpret the Bible incorrectly. This was another attempt to trip Jesus up. There was a great debate back in this time as to what was the greatest commandment. Many claimed it was circumcision or some other such law.

The Most Holy

The idea was, the Scribes, like the Pharisees, wanted to be the most Holy by following the law. The Pharisees had so many loopholes in the law that they were in their own eyes very holy people. It’s the same thing with the Scribes, without all the loopholes. They felt like if they followed the law to the T, they were the most holy. There are churches today that do similar things with legalism or baptism. They’ll say the most important thing is to be baptized or whatever. Circumcision was a big thing back then. Others said it was one of the 10 commandments. The Scribes were hoping to trap Jesus here by turning away some of His followers. Certainly, some of Jesus followers would have felt like having no other gods or idols before God would be more important than circumcision, and others would believe you had to be circumcised to even come into a relationship with God.

Jesus Stunned Them With A Convicting Truth

Jesus stunned all of them yet again with his answer in Matthew 22:37-40, which reads, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ‘This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. ‘All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”  So, Jesus proclaims here that all the laws in the Bible are related to these two commandments. Jesus is actually quoting 2 verses in the Old Testament here as well.  This was such a profound and convicting answer that Jesus gave them. All of the Pharisees, Herodians, Sadducees, and Scribes were trying to do the things they thought they should do. But Jesus tells them all that they are missing the bigger picture. Everything does not hinge on how well we obey the law, but rather how well we love God and others. If we love God and others, we will naturally follow the law. The idea of having a relationship with God was foreign to these people. Religion has never been able to produce a relationship with God.

Saved by Grace, Through Faith in Jesus Christ!

Thankfully, we have grace! Because of God’s grace, we can enter into a relationship with Him. Grace simply means unmerited favor.  God gives us His favor even though we could never earn it.  If we were dependent upon the law to have a relationship with Jesus, we would all fall short. Romans 3:23 tells us that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Religion and legalism produces failure, resentment, and hate for God. Grace produces love for God. None of these religious types are going to argue with the response Jesus game them. Who would say, “No, love is not important?”  Nobody of course!  So, really, the entire Bible is about loving God. Everything in the Bible teaches us who God is and how to love Him.

How Then Do We Love Him?

So, if the Bible is all about loving God, we must stop and ask ourselves, how are we supposed to love Him? How do you love God with all your heart, soul, and mind? I think of this in human terms because I am a human and the physical things of this world are all I know. So, myself, I think about a wife. When you decide to marry someone, you are essentially saying that you want to spend all your time with this person for the rest of your life. You want to know them more; you want to do things for them and experience everything with them. Love is a connection, affection, and an attachment. God wants us to love Him as deeply as we can.  The Bible was written in part to help us connect with God so that we can love God more deeply.  We love God by spending time getting to know Him. Our thoughts, everything within us, we put God into everything we are.  What God wants us to know the most is that He loves us. We love him because He first loved us. He loves us no matter what. We have been washed by the blood of Jesus and we are perfect to Him. He wants us to love him back because that shows that we understand how much God loves us.

Loving "Others"

Jesus identified with others. Not only does God want us to love him, He wants us to love others. I think it is much easier to love a perfect God than an imperfect neighbor. In Matthew 5:44, Jesus goes so far as to say that we have to also love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. So, God is easy to love, but why does He want me to love my neighbors? Well, I think probably everyone knows the obvious answer. Jesus laid his life down for others because Jesus loved everyone. Have you ever had two friends that hated each other? You couldn't get together with both of those friends at the same time and do anything together. You couldn't have experiences together, laughter together, joy together, tears together, or anything together. Many of us have family members that won’t talk to each other or that openly declare their hatred for one another. If you’re the person stuck between two friends or family members that hate each other, you suffer. Jesus died for every living person because He loves everyone. We are all his family. He wants us to treat each other with love and respect. It makes perfect sense. We are all connected with each other because Jesus died for all of us. John 3:16 – perhaps one of the most known verses in the entire world - For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son! God so loved us all he gave His only Son! That’s amazing love. God loves us unconditionally. He loves everyone so much that he doesn't condemn us, He forgives us. When we sin, God is not repulsed by us for sinning. God hates sin, but loves the sinner.  In John 3:17, Jesus said, “I didn't come in to the world to condemn the world; I came to save the world.”  In Romans 8:1, Paul said, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those in Jesus Christ.”  No matter what we do, His response is still, “I LOVE YOU!”

Conclusion

Jesus didn't care if you were a prostitute, a thief, or anything else. He loved everyone. I wonder if we don’t see as great a work today in the lives of sinners because too often we find ourselves acting more like Herodians, Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes. We need to be mindful that we are acting like Jesus. Jesus loved everyone. 1 John 4:8 says, “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.”  God is love, and we need to model our hearts after the heart of Jesus, which is clearly in one single word, “LOVE.”  From Genesis to Revelation, we learn things that help us love God and others. Our Lord, Jesus, said that it is the most important thing and that all of the law is summed up in love.

Winning the Battle - Losing the War

Division may take away from the gospel

Do you ever feel like regardless of how many battles you win, you still lose the war?  I have been thinking about how many subjects/topics divide us as God's children. The vast topics of discussion that divide us are excessive. It is really depressing that we don’t find more things we can unite on. Contention oftentimes brings unnecessary strife between us. In a recent heated discussion on an important social/political topic, I found myself at odds with many whom I love. I have been reflecting on this all week. Have I lost the art of disagreeing in love with respect for others viewpoints? Even the church is divided on many things. That’s why we have denominations such as Baptists and Presbyterians. Not in all cases, but in most cases all the various denominations, or as I prefer to call them,” divisions,” basically agree on the important aspects of salvation, but disagree on minor theological points.

What unites us

Ephesians 2:8 basically sums up what much of the church can unite around. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.”  Are we not a family?  Something the Lord has reminded me of this week is that it is not my job to convince anyone of anything. Conversely, it is the Holy Spirit's job to win hearts. It is also not my job to forcibly convince others of what position they should take on issues, how they should act, or what makes them a good witness. It's not wrong to address topics in a spirit of love and correction, but the spirit of rebellion stirs like a mighty wind in the hearts of those who sense you are shoving your convictions down their throats. Let the Holy Spirit stir their hearts. Paul refers to this process as “the renewing of mind” and in Romans 12 refers to the pressure of the world to conform us into its image, whereas we should, in fact, be “transformed through the renewing of the mind” (Romans 12:2). This process does not only liberate us, but it changes us from the inside out. 1st Peter 3:15-16 says, "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander."

 It is far better, in my humble opinion, to not waste much time, energy, and strength dividing over things that don’t have anything to do with the gospel. There are many ways people attack the gospel. Some attack it by attacking the Bible’s legitimacy or accuracy, some attack the gospel with their bad theology specifically related to salvation, and others attack the gospel through many other methods. The point is, abortion or gun control rights have nothing to do with salvation or the gospel message. There are far too many things we can divide on, and not enough things for us to unite on.  That is partially why it is imperative to consider whether or not something is worth dividing over. We can still have our opinions about gun control, taxes, or our theology. We can share them with others. It is right to speak out for things you feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit on. If you feel led to speak about social/political issues, then you should. But we must be cautious that speak out in love with respect towards opposing opinions. We want to be a light in a dark world. We can win the battle, but ultimately if someone loses their soul because we misrepresent the gospel, we lose the war. If our goal is to glorify God in our representation of Him, we ought to take great care and discipline our tongue and actions so that we represent in love. And when I say (we), I mostly mean (I).

Majoring in the minors

There is a very common expression in Christian circles used to (pardon the expression) shut the mouths of those who would dare speak out against evil, “majoring in the minors.”  Jesus accused the Pharisees of majoring in the minors in Matthew 23:24, which reads, “You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.”  The gnat being the smaller issues such as things not pertaining to salvation, and the camel being weightier issues such as those pertaining to the gospel.  I believe and I will continue to talk about and press people on anything that can take away from or add to the gospel. But, I think it is very important to not allow one’s self to be overly caught up in the minors (social/political issues, theological differences, parts of the mosaic law, etc.). Once more, I am not condemning speaking out on sinful actions or social topics of interest in today's culture, but I am declaring that we should always have the cross in mind when doing so. I rigorously defend against those who attack Jesus deity,  those who attack the Bible making any number of ludicrous claims that it is untrue, flawed, not God’s word, etc., and against those who add to or take away from the gospel in their theology. An attack on Jesus, the Bible, or anything else that relates to our salvation is something worth fighting for. I don’t want anyone to be turned off to the saving gospel message due to a lie or false belief in anything related to our salvation. Nothing in life is more important than our salvation. God is the God of the impossible. We don’t need to convince others whether or not social/political issues are right or wrong. Once the Lord is able to procure salvation for someone, He who can do the impossible, can change anyone’s heart on any topic.

Sowing discord

Those who sow discord are harming the cause, rather than fighting for it. The Lord hates those who sow discord. Yes, I said, “hates.” The Lord loves things and hates things just as we do. He hates to be misrepresented and he hates those who bring about strife amongst us. Proverbs 19:5 says, “A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall not escape.”  Proverbs 6:19 speaks in reference to the 6 things God hates and the 7 things which are an abomination to him. The verse reads, “A false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.”   I think some of our intentions are honorable when we misrepresent the Lord. I think sometimes we sow discord among our brothers and sisters unintentionally.  I know that I have on occasion. I, myself, need to be more mindful of these things. I do not want to sow discord or misrepresent the God I love and want to share with others.

Conclusion

I am not concluding that we ignore the minor topics.  For myself, I realize that I make too big of a deal out of things that are not the most important things to worry about or defend. The bible teaches us many things. None of us do everything the Bible teaches us. The guidelines we follow as Christians might not be the best guidelines for everyone else. Romans 14:4 says, “Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” This is not a post saying it is wrong to judge others, I cover that topic here. However, we are to judge people and behaviors righteously. This means in the spirit of correction and in love with respect. Would you allow your child to climb on the rail at Niagara Falls?  Or would you judge that situation to be unsafe and potentially deadly for your child? Wouldn't you lovingly teach your child that something is unsafe if their life depended on it? It is that same spirit of correction we need to have when we discuss minor social/political topics or major topics where someone's salvation is literally at stake. John 7:24 says, "Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."

Jesus said the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and soul. He further stated that the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbors. In Matthew 5:44, Jesus tells us, ""But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you," Praying for someone is an act of love. 1 Peter 3:9 says, "Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing." Loving those who insult you is how Jesus deals with people. I'm sure we all remember, when Jesus was on the cross, He called out to His Father and said, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do."  That, my friends, is true love. That is how we ought to respond to avoid causing discord among others. I like the NLT version of 1 Corinthians 13:7, which says, "Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance."

The point is, we all answer to God in the end for all our own actions. We (you and I) all stand or fall before the Lord on judgment day. He is our master, and we will either stand or fall before Him. I don’t want to have to answer for turning anyone away from the gospel due to holding such a strong opinion on a topic not related to one’s salvation. In all things we do, our motivation should be to bring glory to God. Ask yourself before you do or say anything if it will bring glory to God. If you cannot answer yes, then do not say or do it. If you can answer yes, that you can be sure that you are doing it in love with respect in the spirit of correction properly representing the Lord, Jesus Christ. 

What is Biblical Faith?

Impossible to please God without it

Hebrews 11:6 tells us that it is impossible to please God without faith. That’s a pretty bold statement, but I take it for what it says. To please God, I have to trust Him and have complete confidence in Him. His promises are my assurances. His promises are the evidence – the things unseen. Does anyone else ever lack faith sometimes when it comes to wondering if God hears you? I have on occasion. I have to admit feelings of alarm and uncertainty when it comes to the Lord providing for me. This is nothing more than a lack of faith. The Lord has been speaking to me about this lately. The Lord allows things to happen in my life to further his work in my life. Lately, faith has been something the Lord has been teaching me. 

My test

Climaxing from a little over 1 year off resulting from a serious injury, it is just about time to go back to work. Washington Labor and Industries is about to close the door on my case and stop paying me monthly for work time loss. I can’t go back to work in my previous field of work because of a condition that arose from the on-the-job injury, which will be a permanent life-long condition. So, I have to try to find work in a field that supports my family. I literally need to be retrained in another field, but the State refuses to do so because they are broke and have made silly excuses denying me that benefit. The cost for retraining to enter the field I want to go in is more than I have after taking almost 14 months off from work. The situation is gloomy in appearance, but we all know appearances can be deceiving. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says that we walk by faith, not sight!! I can’t physically see the way out. This sets up a perfect condition for me to exercise my faith, and please God at the same time. The Lord often times puts us in difficult situations to perfect a work in our lives. Romans 8:28 says that all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purposes. One of my favorite promises in the Bible! 

Promises

I know the Lord has always faithfully taken care of me financially. I have the assurance that he will continue to also. Jesus promised me He would take care of me. Matthew chapter 6, He says, “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” There are many other great promises in the Bible that assure me that the Lord will take care of me. But, they require some FAITH! What is real faith? What does it look like? Since faith is a biblical doctrine, one must consult the scripture to answer the question. My best description of what REAL BIBLICAL FAITH IS AS FOLLOWS: The promises in the Bible are the unseen evidences, which we can have the assurance of knowing that God will follow through on. God cannot lie. So His promises are a great assurance to those who believe in them. 

The Bible Is The Only Authority On Faith!

Faith is one of those doctrines in the bible that is so confusing to many people. Hebrews Chapter 11 is considered the faith chapter. It is very encouraging for Christians to read this chapter. I highly recommend it on a regular basis for everyone. For every doctrine of God, there are endless ideas that people conjure up about it. The Bible explains what God says and thinks about His doctrines. If a doctrine comes from and belongs to God, we ought to examine what HE says about it. You should never be concerned with the opinions of people. It is so important to understand what faith really is because we know that without it, it is impossible to please God. Faith isn’t some silly picture on Facebook with some clever quote. Almost everyone believes that faith involves feelings. But physical feelings merely come from the human senses and have nothing whatsoever to do with what God promises—or faith! I exhort you, friends, discover and rediscover FAITH!

Observation about FEELINGS

Observation: too many people are ruled by their feelings. I feel this way or that makes me feel sad or I don’t feel that’s right. Hear it often! Feelings are good because God gave them to us, but anything can be used against you, including your feelings. Being ruled by your feelings can cause great distress, sadness, bitterness, and anger. I haven’t mastered my feelings by any stretch of my imagination, but I have learned that living in fear, bitterness, sadness, and anger is a self-induced life-dominating hell we put ourselves in. The bible says, “fear not” and “be not afraid” so many times because God knows we are fearful people dominated by our feelings.

Judge not lest ye be judged

To judge or not to judge - that is the question

I think many Christians do not know where the line is when it comes to using discernment or even judging others or their actions. Right now, we are in a time of “political correctness” where TOLERANCE is forced on all of society. There are many outside the church who use the weak defense accusing us of judging others anytime we say something is immoral or wrong as the bible tells us to. We are supposed to discern between right and wrong. For Christians, there are things we are supposed to judge and things we are not. Every non-Christian I discuss controversial topics with and even some Christians are quick to bring up Matthew 7:1 which states, “Judge not lest ye be judged.” People that have never even cracked open the bible will quote this to you, not knowing what it really means. They don't even know where to find the verse in the Bible. Usually that verse is used like a stop sign to immediately halt any discussion about the rightness or wrongness of a persons behavior. This misunderstood verse is shouted out in heated conversations, "Don't you judge me!!" 

So let me get this right, according to that logic, it is wrong for me to say that it's wrong to commit murder, lie to your mom, or cheat on a test at school?  Oh no, you say, "that stuff is OK, You just can't say abortion or gay marriage is wrong because that's judgmental." This bible verse in Matthew 7 does not mean that we should not judge behavior as sin; it is nothing more than a caution to make sure that we are willing to be judged by the same standard of judgment we judge others with. So, if I say it is wrong to steal, I am accountable and will be judged by God for stealing. Matthew 7:1 is actually giving us an education on how we are supposed to judge righteously.  It isn't teaching us that we are not supposed to judge others. Don't be afraid the next time someone tries to cork your mouth shut throwing a verse around that they don't even understand. Be an educated Christian, not a neutralized Christian! The bible talks about judging and discernment in many places and to draw a conclusion to a biblical doctrine, one must read all the bible verses on the topic. It is equally important to properly study the context of the verse you are interpreting. For example, Matthew 7:1, perhaps the most misunderstood verse in the bible, is easily understood when you read the entire context of the verse. Pharisaic judging is the problem Jesus was addressing. Pharisees were attacking and accusing Him of being inadequate. Jesus was not the king they were expecting. So, Jesus warned them in Matthew 7:1 against hypocritical judging. It is very important to understand that we are not to judge other people condemningly, but we are to judge people and their behavior.  Let’s apply this to a controversial topic to see how it works. If I said, “you’re going to hell because you are gay.” That would be condemning and judging in a biblically prohibited manner. If I said, “being gay is an immoral lifestyle,” I am not being judgmental in a condemning manner at all, and thus I fall within the lines of what is biblically mandated of all Christians. That is, to judge righteously. 

First, make sure you are right with the Lord 

So, verses 1 and 2 of Matthew chapter 7 teach us that we with what measure we judge others, we will be judged with the same measure. Now, verses 3, 4, and 5 says, “And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”  From verses 3-5, Jesus explains that before we go telling other people what is wrong in their lives, make sure you have thoroughly examined your own life and that you are not just as guilty as them of the same sin. But it is important to notice here that Jesus didn’t say, take the log out of your own eye and ignore the speck in your brother’s eye. No, he said first get yourself spiritually right with God, then help others do the same. I believe it is very important here that we judge others with the right heart. Condemning is the wrong heart. We need to judge in the spirit of correcting others as a form of helping them because you love them. It is not something you do in anger or revenge.

Basic Conclusion

Oftentimes, we are blinded by our own sins. We can’t even recognize the sin in our lives and we need a brother or sister in the Lord to come along side of us and lovingly correct us.  An example of this would be overhearing a sister at church talking negatively about someone else behind their back. You may be the right person to speak up and remind that sister that the Bible teaches us we shouldn’t gossip. It is not judging that person in a condemning manner to teach them or remind them what scripture says.  In the same manner, it is not wrong to remind people what the Bible teaches about things such as a homosexual lifestyle when discussing social/political topics such as same-sex marriages laws. It would be wrong to tell someone they are a terrible person and going to hell for voting for same-sex marriage. It is not wrong to say abortion is immoral.  It is wrong to tell a woman who has an abortion that she is evil and terrible for having an abortion. We don’t punish people with our words when we judge, or we do so condemningly.  

For those whom are interested in a more advanced topical study

Krino – separate, choose, select, the act of condemning and decreeing. This word Krino is the word used in Mt 7:1 judge not lest ye be judged and is also used other places in the NT. This means it is God alone who condemns other people. We are not to condemn others. This does not mean that we do not judge their behavior. It is wrong to lie. If I said, “You’re a liar and you are going to hell for your lies…that is casting condemnation upon someone in the way the bible warns us not to. If I said that lying is wrong and that is something we should not do as Christians, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with that! The bible is explicitly clear that judging others is reserved for the one and only righteous God. That does not mean it is wrong for me to say that fornication, foolish talking, or any other sins in the bible are wrong behavior because the doctrine in the bible is very clear on these topics. Over and over in the bible we are taught what is right and wrong and how to make judgments about what is right and what is wrong. 

Romans 14 is one of my favorite chapters in the bible and contains verses that I used on my parents as a teenager when I disagreed with something they told me I couldn't do because it was wrong. Romans 14 says, “Accept Christians who are weak in faith, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. For instance, one person believes it is all right to eat anything. But another believer who has a sensitive conscience will eat only vegetables. Those who think it is all right to eat anything must not look down on those who won’t. And those who won’t eat certain foods must not condemn those who do, for God has accepted them. Who are you to condemn God’s servants? They are responsible to the Lord, so let Him tell them whether they are right or wrong. The Lord’s power will help them do as they should.” This is in reference to how we are required to treat other Christians. So, it does  not apply to the general population, rather to the Christian population. I used this when my parents told me that I shouldn't listen to a certain type of music, watch rated R movies, or something else along those lines as a teenage boy.

So then, what is the Christian supposed to do when it comes to judging, discerning, proving things, etc? We are to be watchful, wise, cautious and intelligent about things. These are the things that we are to discern. Discernment is not an option. It is biblically mandated and necessary. 1 Thessalonians 5:21 "Prove all things; hold to the things found to be good. We are commanded to examine things and to hold to what has passed the test." How many things? ALL THINGS! Philippians 1:9-10 says, “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ.” 1Timothy 4 says, “Now the Spirit speaks expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.” So the key here is that we are to be watchful and attentive so that we will recognize the ones who spread false doctrines of the devil to attack Christians. Matthew 7:15 “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.” So apparently, God wants Christians to be on high alert, which means we first need to make a judgment about all things whether they are right/wrong or good/evil. 

1Timothy 1:3-4 "As I asked you to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia, that you might charge some that they teach no other doctrine, Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which only cause endless questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.” This means that if we detect doctrinal errors, we should tell the person not to live their lives according to that bad doctrine. If it is in contrast to scriptures, it is a bad doctrine. Many hot topics today face society that are doctrines in contrast to the teachings of the bible. We are to be watchful and help other Christians when they have a poor understanding of God’s doctrine on the subject by telling them lovingly.

1 John 2:4-6 says, “If someone says, “I belong to God,” but doesn't obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and does not live in the truth. But those who obey God’s word really do love him. That is the way to know whether or not we live in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Christ did.” HMMMMM…SOUNDS PRETTY JUDGMENTAL TO ME! 

Final Conclusion

Christians are supposed to judge many things; this only means that we are free to evaluate, correct, and restore.  WE ARE NOT TO CONDEMN! 1 John 2:22-23 says, “And who is the great liar? The one who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Such people are antichrists, for they have denied the Father and the Son. Anyone who denies the Son doesn't have the Father either. But anyone who confesses the Son has the Father also." The apostle John here tells us that we need to watch out for the liars. The point of judging is to correct and restore, not condemn. God hates all sin, not just liars, homosexuality, divorce, sex outside of marriage, unrighteous anger, hatred or malice…BUT ALL SIN! As Christians, we are called to love God first, and our neighbor second. Love is not hate. Judging is not hate. Judging is biblical as I have pointed out. Judging is actually very loving when it is not condemning.

Again, judging should not be condemning unless you are God almighty!  We must be careful we don’t condemn with our words. Condemning with our words can be as easy as telling someone they are a bad person because of ______ whatever sin you are discussing. Righteous judging can be as easy as lovingly reminding someone of what the scripture declares about a certain sin a brother or sister is involved in.  Righteous judgment is done in the spirit of bringing glory to God as opposed to putting someone down for their mistakes.

Ephesians 5:3-7 says, “But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them.” God expects His people to be a light in a dark world. In order to be a light, you must make judgments about what is morally right and morally wrong so that you may live your life accordingly and disciple others to live their lives in a manner that brings glory to God. So, again, we are supposed to judge, but we are not allowed to condemn! Condemnation is reserved for God alone. Hope this helps others as it has helped me to know the biblical boundaries of making judgments! Blessings!

Sin is disgusting

Ever wonder why in the Old Testament a worship service consisted of the disgusting blood sacrifices shedding the blood of sacrificial animals? God intended it to be repulsive to us because sin is repulsive to God - God hates all sin. We don’t need to sacrifice ram and sprinkle the blood on the altar and a little on the ears of Aaron and his sons. We don’t have to run out and offer a sin offering because our father provided his own sacrifice for our sins. Just like God provided a sacrifice with Abraham and his son Isaac. Jesus became the final and ultimate sacrifice unto the Lord for all of our sins! It’s a finished work. If we confess our sins, He is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us!  Paul tells us that there is no longer condemnation for those who are in Christ. Before you were washed by accepting the free gift of God, your sin was disgusting to God. After you accepted Jesus, your sins past, present, and future are all forgiven and covered by the blood of the Lamb. Amen!

Biblical Love

What does loving someone biblically look like? True love is much more than caring, giving, hugs, kisses, sex, etc. 1 Corinthians 13:3 says, "And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing." So being generous and feeding the poor doesn't make a person a loving person. Some do charitable acts just to feel good about them self. That is not biblical love. 

Types of love

There are three types of love. 1. Eros, which is a romantic type of love. 2. Phileo love, which is a friendship type of love. 3. Agape love, which is a sacrificial love. Over 250 times in the New Testament, the type of love the Holy Spirit uses to define love is agape love. Agape love seems almost foreign to us in our culture. When we think of love, we often times think romantically, full of feeling, not doing. Agape love is a giving and self-sacrificial love to "others." 

Qualities of biblical love

I Corinthians 13:4-8 tells us some more biblical characteristics of love, "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.

"My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth" (1 John 3:18). I start with being honest with people because this is often times one of the most difficult aspects of biblically loving someone. Sometimes telling a person the truth is the most loving thing you can do and one of the most difficult things you can do.

So, in verses 4-8 we learn that true love is also patient and long-suffering  Long-suffering love is the ability to allow ourselves to be inconvenienced or taken advantage of by a person over and over again. Love is showing kindness to people without conditions. Love is not a resentful longing aroused by someone else's possessions, qualities, or luck. Love is not proud, boastful, or think that his or her own self is better than others and act in such elitist ways. Love does not get nasty and rude to those who say or do some kind of wrong towards you. Love does not seek to build itself up, rather it seeks to build others. Love is not incited, made angry, incensed – This is what it means when it says love is not provoked. Love does not think evil against others. Love does not like immoral or unfair behavior, but loves and shares the truth with others. Love lasts forever and bears all things regardless of what someone else has done in harm to you. True love is an unconditional, never-ending, sacrificial, meek, love that we can only truly get from the Lord, Jesus. 

Test

One way to know whether or not someone truly loves the Lord, is to watch them and see whether or not they display these characteristics of love. The bible teaches us how to judge whether or not someone is a true Christian because it teaches that you will know them by their fruits. ONE of these fruits or characteristics is loving people biblically. Jesus taught us that the greatest commandment of all is to love the Lord your God and the second is to love your neighbors. Any sincere Christian will display these characteristics of biblical love. 1 Corinthians 13:13 says, "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."