Who is a Christian? And what do we Confess?

February 26, 2009

Chi Rho-image from merry-christmas.comWho is a Christian?

Since the earliest days of the Christian church, Christians have sought to define the boundaries of the Christian faith. St. Paul in his New Testament writings had numerous warnings to Christians to avoid error in doctrine and practice, and to shun false teachers.

In this vein we have attempted to summarize key elements of the Christian faith in the article on our site entitled Cults, Heresies, and Heterodoxies.

Further, we here suggest a new confession and recommitment statement for review by our readers. We are confident that it will generate discussion! We suggest that you read the article Cults, Heresies, and Heterodoxies as well as the statement below before commenting. The list of Bible verses at the end of the statement would be good to look up as well!

Confession and Recommitment

I believe in one God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

  • I believe in God the Father Almighty—maker of heaven and earth, perfectly holy, omniscient of even our secret sins, whose justice being so perfect that He cannot overlook our sins, whose wrath is poured out like fire against rebellion, yet is slow to anger and abounding in love.
  • I believe in Jesus Christ—the only son of God, being of one divine substance with the Father, very God of very God. He is the image of the invisible God, being before all things, and in whom all things hold together. Yet, Jesus—being also truly human—was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried to receive the punishment for the sins of the whole world. On the third day he bodily rose from the dead as prophesied in the Scriptures and confirmed by over 500 witnesses and many other infallible proofs. This is the gospel to which we hold fast by which men are saved from God’s condemnation unto eternal life. Jesus is the light of the world and is the sole mediator between God and men. There is no other name under heaven by which one may be saved.
  • I believe in the Holy Spirit—who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who is the eternal Spirit of God that hovered over the waters at creation, and who teaches and guides us today. It is through the work of the Holy Spirit that God convicts us, renews us, regenerates us, empowers us, and saves us. Along with the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit is worshipped and glorified.

Through my conscience and the law comes the knowledge of sin, and I confess that I have indeed sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. I have broken the Ten Commandments in thought, word, and deed; I have failed to love God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength—and failed to love my neighbor as myself. I have left undone, unsaid, and unthought those things which I ought—being too often in a state of denial of my failings before God. I am thus guilty and deserving of God’s temporal and eternal punishment—my guilt separating me from God. Yet through Christ’s sinless life and his sacrificial death on the cross I thankfully rejoice that by faith into God’s grace, God has reconciled me to Him. While yet being a sinner, God loved me enough to provide a perfect substitute in Jesus. Christ, being a ransom for all, by his wounds I have been healed and God’s judgment satisfied. Being in Christ I am a new creation. I repent of my sins and accept the gift of eternal life offered to whoever receives and believes in Christ. By God’s grace—through a living faith—I put my trust in Christ as my Savior and Master. I acknowledge that Christ is the only way to reconcile to God the Father. I embrace the church universal and consider all to be my Christian brothers and sisters who

  1. believe that Jesus is the eternal Son of God, confessing Him as their personal Savior (and by necessity accept the total truthfulness and supreme authority of the Bible),
  2. repent of their sins (thus acknowledging and forsaking their sins), and
  3. trust in Jesus as Lord, seeking to conform their lives to the will of God (as best they understand God’s will and their duty).

 As mysterious as these things may seem to the worldly man, I confess that they are objectively and historically true. In light of these truths, I

  • surrender my life to serving God and my fellow man,
  • commit to searching the Scriptures upon which I rely for truth,
  • commit to proclaiming biblical truth to those around me,
  • commit to being salt and light to my community,
  • commit to taking every thought captive to Christ,
  • commit to preparing myself to give an answer for the hope that I have, and
  • commit to making disciples of all nations.

The earth and everything in it belongs to God. May I not concede to Satan and his humanist partners any area of life—including the family, science, history, ethics, philosophy, education, the arts, economics, law, or government—relying on the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God.

Dear God, your statutes are forever right; give me understanding that I may live. Create in me a pure heart and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.

Notes: taken from The Apostles’ Creed, The Nicene Creed, also Genesis 1:2, Leviticus 17:11, Numbers 14:18, Joshua 2:11, Psalm 24:1, 51:1-12, 90:7-8, Psalm 119, Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, Isaiah 59:2, Micah 7:19, Nahum 1, Matthew 5, Matthew 6:9-10, Matthew 26:28, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 12:29-31, Luke 13:3, John 1:1-18, John 3:1-20, John 8:12, John 14:26, John 16:1-15, John 19:30, Acts 1:1-8, Acts 4:12, Acts 17:11, Romans 1, Romans 3, Romans 5:1, 2, 5, 10, 19, Romans 8:9-11, 26, Romans 13:1-4, Romans 15:6, 1 Corinthians 15:1-28, 2 Corinthians 4:2, 2 Corinthians 5:17-21, 2 Corinthians 10:5, Galatians 5:18, 22, 23, Ephesians 2:1-10, Ephesians 3:16, Ephesians 6:10-18, Colossians 1:15-23, 2 Thessalonians 2:13, 1 Timothy 2:1-7, 2 Timothy 3:16, Titus 3:4-7, Hebrews 1:1-4, Hebrews 2:13, Hebrews 7:23-26, Hebrews 9:13-14,22,27, James 2, 1 Peter 2:24, 1 Peter 3:15, 1 Peter 2:24, 1 John 1, 1 John 5:5-13, and other biblical texts.

This Creedal Confession and Recommitment is meant to retain the flavor of the historic creeds and confessions while clarifying with today’s English. It elevates the Bible and draws specifically on the language of Scripture itself. Of note in this statement is its pronouncement of the unique Christian teaching on sin and need for a savior, offers an apologetic so that all will understand that the Christian faith is not mere blind faith, and it encourages a deeper understanding of what it means to live a Christian life. It seeks to remind us of our duties as Christians while refuting legalism and its opposite—antinomianism or cheap grace. It seeks to address and clarify common confusion as to just what the gospel actually is. The document avoids details of doctrines for which there is disagreement even among conservatives. And it seeks to promote Christian unity, thus fully embracing the broader Christian community as required by Scripture, while refuting error of cultic sects or other non-biblical groups.

Do you recognize the symbol at the beginning of the article? It is the Chi-Rho (pronounced "KEE-roe"), one of the symbols used by the early Christians. It is formed by superimposing the first two letters of the word "Christ" in Greek, chi (X) and rho (P). 

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Perry Donaldson
Posts: 6
Comment
Is clothed with power separate fom new birth
Reply #7 on : Sun June 14, 2009, 18:41:26
I heard a trustworthy theologion say that
disciples were saved in John when Jesus after his resurrection,he breathed on them and said recieve the Holy Spirit but told them to tarry at pentecost to be clothe with power so they could have power to witness
Is this true?
cmeek01
Posts: 1
Comment
salvation by faith
Reply #6 on : Fri May 01, 2009, 05:47:07
To the poster below: We are saved by grace through a living faith in Jesus (as opposed to a dead faith or a "said" faith) per James 2. Please see our Christian Cram Course at
http://www.faithfacts.org/bible-101/christian-cram-course.
---Faith Facts
A Christian
Posts: 6
Comment
Re:
Reply #5 on : Tue March 24, 2009, 12:42:54
Dear brethren, I commend you on your work in apologetics. However, on your pages dealing with salvation it is unclear whether you say a person must forsake sins in order to be saved? What about John 3:16, Romans 11:6, and Acts 16:31?

"Do I Have to Give Up My Sins to be Saved?

"And they went out, and preached that men should repent." —Mark 6:12

The answer is No! You do NOT have to stop sinning to be saved. No one can stop sinning (Romans 3:23)! No one can live above sin—no one (Isaiah 64:6). Jesus Christ came into this world to save sinners. You do NOT have to give up anything to be saved except your UNBELIEF. However, you DO need to realize your sinful condition and "confess" (or admit) to God that you are a sinner, deserving of hell. This is Biblical repentance, i.e., "a change of mind."

To be saved, a sinner simply needs to become "guilty" before God (Romans 3:19). Repentance is NOT forsaking one's actual sins, for that would be self-righteousness? Repentance is acknowledging that I am guilty of violating God's holy Law, and that I deserve to be punished in Hellfire for my own sins. Thus, realizing one's need for a Saviour. This is exactly what Galatians 3:24 teaches, "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith."

A person who is convicted about their sin won't have the joyous attitude that they can continue living in sin and still go to Heaven. I would greatly doubt the salvation of anyone who rejoices that they can continue living in sin. This is one of the favorite arguments of Lordship Salvationists. The truth is that God holds believers accountable for their words and actions (Romans 14:12; 1st Peter 4:17; 2nd Corinthians 5:10).

Repentance is a turn of mind. When you turn to Christ for forgiveness, you have just turned your back on sin.


What is Biblical Repentance?

Repentance is a turn-around of mind! Whereas we were heading towards hell-fire and destruction, we realized our sinful condition and turned to the loving Saviour Who shed His precious blood for our many sins (1st Peter 1:18,19). Repentance is a change of heart. Before we were saved, sin was magnified in our life while Jesus was diminished. Now that we've been born-again, Christ is magnified and sin is diminished. As we grow in the Lord, this trend should continue to where Jesus becomes everything to us, and sin nothing.

Notice from the picture above that for a person to turn to Christ in Heaven is to turn one's back on sin and hell. Does a believer have to repent to be saved? Absolutely! But it's a repentance of the heart (a turn-around of our heart) concerning Jesus Christ and our sins. Whereas before we did not believe on Christ, now we do! Whereas before we lived in sin with no conviction, now we are convicted for our sins. It is uncommon that new believers simply clean up their act right away; it takes time for the Holy Spirit to work in one's heart. It's a lifetime process of growing. We grow with the milk of God's Word (1st Peter 2:2).

We are all woeful sinners (Romans 3:10,23). To be saved, a person MUST realize their sinful condition. It is NOT enough simply to commit your life to God or decide to turn over a new leaf. This is self-righteousness and a false gospel. To be saved, you must confess to God (not to men) that you are a wicked sinner in need of forgiveness, and then believe on Jesus Christ to forgive you (Acts 10:43).


What a Wonderful Saviour!

Do you need to give up your sins to be saved? No; but you must acknowledge them for what they are, wicked sins. You see friend, most people refuse to acknowledged their sinful condition. I've heard a young woman say that since Adam and Eve were naked in Eden that pornography must be acceptable with God. She is woefully wrong. Some people justify immoral sex on the basis that God made the body beautiful. This is wrong thinking. Others seek to justify smoking cigarettes on the basis that it grows from God's earth, so it must be acceptable. This is of course absurd. Poison Ivy also grows naturally, should we rub it all over our bodies? Many people attempt to rationalize their sins; but God's Law never changes. Pornography is of the Devil. Substance abuse is sinful. Adultery is sinful. The Bible (Law of God) condemns our sins and we have no excuses.

"Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin." —Romans 3:20

Do you have to give up your sins to be saved? No, just your unbelief. I get upset when people teach "Lordship salvation." What is that? Lordship salvation is the false doctrine that you must make Christ the "Lord" of your life to be saved, that you must repent and depart from sin. That is impossible! There is no such thing as a believer who does not commit sin. We are all woeful sinners. If I have to give up a certain amount of sin to be saved, then how much do I have to give up? Just because a person accepts Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour does not mean they are above sin. As a matter of fact, getting saved is just the start of a lifelong process. Try as hard as you may, you are going to walk in the flesh at times and sin. I have often said, "Christians at best are people, and people at best are sinners." We can walk in the Spirit at any given time; but the fact is that we're not always going to do so because we are sinners.


A License to Sin?

No one has God's Permission to sin. If you want to be Biblical, a believer does in fact have a license to sin. No sin that a believer commits can ever jeopardize one's Eternal Security. To teach otherwise is to negate the gift of God and teach a false gospel of self-righteousness. Salvation is the gift of God, based upon Christ's imputed righteousness to our account; and not any good of our own. We are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8,9). Salvation is receiving; not giving.

Believers who choose to live in sin will be "chastised" by God (Hebrews 12:8). For anyone to be able to live in sin without conviction from God's Holy Spirit means they are not saved, i.e., a "bastard" as Hebrews 12:8 states... "But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons." Certainly, many believers do choose to live in sin; but they are miserable and know that God does not approve. Every believer in Jesus Christ will give account to God for the good and bad done on earth (Romans 14:12; 2nd Corinthians 5:10).

Although the genuine believer does in fact has a "license to sin" if they so choose; they certainly do NOT have God's permission to sin and will be judged at The Judgment Seat of Christ (2nd Corinthians 5:10) accordingly. Many believers will receive no rewards at this judgment and will be ashamed and overwhelmed with tears (1st Corinthians 3:15; 5:5).

Nevertheless, say what you will, no believer will ever stand trial at The Great White Throne of Judgment for sins committed in this lifetime (Revelation 20:11-15). This is "why" there will be 2 separate and distinct judgments: one for the SAVED, and one for the UNSAVED.


The Biggest Problem in Winning Someone to the Lord

The hardest part about getting people saved is getting them lost! Most people are relying upon their own self-righteousness for Heaven, which is what most so-called "churches" teach nowadays. The Bible plainly states: "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us..." (Titus 3:5). I haven't met too many people, although I've met some, who say they do know they're going to Hell and don't care. Most people want to go to Heaven to live in happiness forever. Sadly, and tragically, most people have been lied to by some priest or sinister minister into believing that good works are a part of saving faith, which is a false gospel.


The Best of Christians are Still Sinners

A lot of religious people have a problem with the idea that a person can be born-again and yet still commit horrible sins. I am not condoning sin at all; I am simply saying that even the best of Christians are still sinners.

King David was a Christian who killed a man to cover up his sin of adultery with the man's wife. It took one year for David to repent. Peter was one of the Apostles; yet denied Christ, cursed Jesus' holy name and quit the ministry. Moses murdered a man. Sometimes Christians do horrible things. This does not mean they're not truly saved.

I knew of a minister with a wicked hot-temper who poured bleach over his wife's head while she sat crippled in a wheelchair. It's hard to believe that a Christian could do such a thing, but it happened. It's wrong and I'm not condoning sin; I'm simply saying that believers are still sinners. You need to be very careful about deciding who's saved or not based on what you see (1st Samuel 16:7). I've known decent believers from my past who later committed some really horrible sins. Though sad and tragic, it does not mean that they're not saved. It does mean they got away from walking with God on a daily basis.

Please don't misunderstand me, I'm not trying to go light on sin here. We should try to live above sin.

"Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." —2nd Timothy 2:19

God wants His children to live righteous; but living right is not a prerequisite for salvation. You do NOT have to give up anything to be saved except your unbelief! Put your faith in the Lord friend to forgive your sins and you will be saved. Jesus will help you to straighten out your life. Give God your heart and he'll comb the kinks out of your head.

Never let anyone tell you that you must depart from sin to be saved, for this is heresy. Again, "repentance" in the Bible simply means "a change of mind." Repentance means that we decide to trust Christ as our Saviour to forgive us of all our wicked sins. Repentance simply means to get saved. We get saved by confessing our sins to God and asking Him to forgive us. To turn to Christ is to turn from sin—this is repentance! This is why we find the word "believe" mentioned 85-times in the Gospel of John; yet the word "repent " is not mentioned even once. Hence, the man who believes on Jesus Christ to forgive his sins has repented already in his heart.

The Lord Jesus had plenty to say about REPENTANCE--

Luke 24:47, "Jesus said to them] that REPENTANCE and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem."

Luke 5:32, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to REPENTANCE."

Mark 1:15, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: REPENT ye, AND BELIEVE the gospel."


Regenerated versus Converted

I have known believers who claimed to be Christians; yet they went to nightclubs. I've known people who claimed the name of Christ who were often mean and abusive to other people. Does that mean they're not saved? Not necessarily. It does mean that they've not been "converted" yet. Conversion has NOTHING to do with being regenerated (saved). At the time we are saved we are re-gened, or regenerated with the Holy Spirit of God. Salvation is like being pulled from the garbage. Just because God pulled you out of the incinerator of Hell doesn't mean that you've been RECYCLED yet. The recycling process is conversion. Being saved from Hell is just the very beginning. God has a recycling program for every believer.

Of course, we are instantly saved at the moment we trust Christ as Saviour; but the conversion process to make us what God wants us to be takes time to grow in the Lord. Please don't misunderstand—a person does NOT have to be converted to be saved; but an unconverted person will remain outside of the will of God for their life. A person DOES have to be regenerated (born again) to be saved, i.e., Christ born in us.

Sadly, I knew a minister who went to be honored at a Masonic lodge. When the minister wasn't at his church, he usually would hang out at local bars. Does this mean he's not a Christian? Not necessarily. I just believe he's a dead-beat minister (and there's a lot of them out there!). He has not repented of his sinful ways, just as King David didn't repent of his sinful ways for so long. When a believer chooses to go into sin, they must repent of their sinful ways and get right with God. I've known many people to get saved, live for the Lord for a short time, and then go back into the world again. No doubt, many of them were never saved to begin with; but some were. We must be careful not to judge. Some of the people whom you think are Christians may not be (like Judas, one of Christ's Apostles). Likewise, some heathen (like Lot in the city of Sodom) may be a just man and you would never know it).

To be saved, we must repent of our sins only in the sense that we must agree with God that we are hell-deserving sinners! To be truthful, we will be repenting of sins for the rest of our life. To clarify, we are saved ONCE and only once. Once you accept Jesus into your heart as personal Saviour (John 1:10-14), you are a child of God forever. You CANNOT lose your salvation! Now once you've become a believer God is going to convict you of sin on a daily basis. Now that has nothing to do with your salvation because you are already God's child. King David went for almost a year in denial after killing a man after stealing the man's wife. It wasn't until Nathan the prophet came to open David's eyes that he repented. David was saved; but hadn't repented until almost a year later. This happens to many believers, i.e., we get out of line and fail to see it until someone else points it out to us.


Beware of Lordship Salvation

Too many Christian want to add holy living to salvation under the guise of repentance. No friend, repentance is simply a turn around of mind. At salvation, a man's mind has changed about sin and the Saviour. This is the beginning of his new life in Christ. Yes, he should be sorry for his sins; but this is a FRUIT of genuine repentance and not a part of saving-faith. Yes, he should have a desire to change his sinful ways to please God; but this is a FRUIT of genuine repentance and not a part of saving-faith.

To say that a new believer should be holy and separated is like saying that a newly born baby should be able to play sports or run a marathon. How ridiculous for anyone to place such a burden upon a new believer. God never asks us to give up anything to be saved. There are two types of religions in the world: "DO" and "DONE" (i.e., either you believe you must do something to get to Heaven; or else you believe it's already done, paid in full by the Lord Jesus Christ). I'm in the DONE group. How about you?

Jesus paid it all,
all to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow!

You do NOT have to make Jesus your "Lord" to be saved. Jesus is Lord; you don't make Him Lord! The idea of surrendering to Christ's Lordship as part of saving-faith is a false gospel of self-righteousness.


Conclusion

Acts 26:20 ...they should repent and TURN TO GOD, AND DO WORKS MEET FOR REPENTANCE.

Acts 2:39, 3:19 REPENT YE therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out...

Acts 17:30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to REPENT:

Acts 20:21 Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

Again, "repent" simply means "a change of mind." If I'm going down the road the wrong way and then make a U-turn, I'll have to spend some time driving back. Likewise, when you get saved, depending how far you've gone down the road of sin, it's going to take time (with the Lord's help) to straighten out your life. Lordship Salvation totally eliminates the growing-in-grace process. It takes years to genuinely mature in the Lord. All you need to do to be saved is to come as a guilty sinner and trust upon the Lord Jesus Christ to forgive your sins (Acts 10:43).

Do you have to give up your sin to be saved? No friend, just admit that you are a sinner. Go to the Lord Jesus and trust Him to forgive you. What's done is done and you can't make up for it, that's why Jesus came to die on the cross for you. Simply place your 100% faith in Christ for salvation. All you need is Jesus, just like the thief on the cross needed Jesus and called out to Christ for salvation. For more info, click HERE"
A Christian
Posts: 6
Comment
Biblical Repentance
Reply #4 on : Tue March 24, 2009, 12:37:51
"repent of their sins (thus acknowledging and forsaking their sins), and"

Yes, we have to repent. BUT, one does NOT have to forsake sin in order to be saved. We may forsake sin AFTER we are saved. Telling people they must forsake sin is works salvation and a false gospel. Preachers of such a message include Jack Chick and Ray Comfort.

"What is Biblical Repentance?

by David J. Stewart


Baptism and Repentance

There is a great misunderstanding about "repentance." Such verses as Mark 1:4 confuse many people because they do not take into account the rest of the Bible. Mark 1:4 reads, "John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins." By itself, this verse seems like It is teaching baptismal regeneration, but it certainly is NOT. This verse is referenced in Acts 11:16, "Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost." And a few verses later in Acts 11:21 we read, "And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord." This is Biblical repentance... acknowledging one's guilt of sin and turning to the Lord for forgiveness. Please note that NO mention of baptism is found in Acts 11 other than the one reference to John the Baptist in verse 16. Clearly, baptism was not required for their salvation in Acts 16, just is it has never been required. John preached the same Gospel of Jesus Christ as we preach today — salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone (Ephesians 2:8-9).


Repentance Unto Life

Again, Biblical repentance is simply TURNING UNTO THE LORD. Acts 11:18 reads, "When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life." Notice that the Bible does NOT call this a repentance from sins. The "baptism of repentance" in Mark 1:4 is clearly not referring to water baptism; but to the "baptism of repentance." This is the repentance unto life which can only be found in Christ Jesus. The Word of God does NOT teach that we must give up our sins to be saved. If this were true, then no one could be saved because we are all sinners incapable of ceasing from sin. Even the best of Christians still commit sin! Believers shouldn't commit any sins; but the fact of the matter is that we all do. So how can you tell an unsaved person to give up their sins to be saved?

As I mentioned, there is a woeful misunderstanding about repentance circulating in our churches today. Again, Acts 11:21 states, "And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord." Biblical repentance is TURNING to Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. It is a change of mind. Mark 1:15 proclaims, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel." Notice here that repentance led to believing the gospel — NO mention is made about making a commitment to God or forsaking sins.

So do believers have a license to sin? I am saying that a believer's Christian walk has absolutely nothing to do with his salvation. Lordship Salvationists have a problem with this because they have added works to simple faith in Christ.


Repentance from Sins

There are only a few references in the Bible where the word "repentance" is used with sin. The Bible usually speaks of "the remission of sins"; but never commands anyone to repent from sins to be saved. Search the Bible and you will find that "repentance" is almost always mentioned with salvation; but it never tells us that forsaking sins is the way to be saved.

In Acts 8:22, Simon (a new believer) had said something wrong and Peter sharply rebuked him... "Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee." Simon ignorantly thought he could buy the power of the Holy Spirit. Witches are used to buying all sorts of demonic paraphernalia in order to practice their works of darkness. No doubt, Simon sincerely thought God's power was for sale. He was a new convert and needed to be taught the Truth of God's Word. My point here is that Simon was already a believer. So the word "repent" in this Scripture is used in an entirely different context than in other Scriptures which speak of salvation. There is a repentance unto salvation; and then there is another repentance of one's sins AFTER salvation (as we saw with Simon).

The only thing that we need to repent of to be saved is our unbelief. Do we have to realize our sinful condition to be saved? Of course, yes! But there is not one verse in the entire Bible which requires a person to forsake sin to be saved. Nor does the Bible give anyone a license to sin. Every time Jesus forgave someone and healed them, it was AFTERWARDS that He said... go and sin no more. John 5:14, "Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee." Thus, we don't give up our sins to become a Christian; no, rather, we forsake our sins because we are a Christian. There are no prerequisites or conditions for salvation. God will save any guilty sinner who trusts upon Jesus Christ for salvation.

I do NOT believe it is inappropriate to apply the parable of the prodigal son to the unsaved who need to come back to their Creator, but technically the Parable is about a believer, a "son." The parable about the prodigal son applies to the wayward believer who is in need of repentance from sins. The repentance unto salvation is a ONE-TIME repentance, but the repentance from sins has no limit. Christians are people, and people are sinners. Just as a man cannot be UNBORN physically, neither can he be unborn spiritually. Once saved, always saved! For anyone to teach otherwise is to add works to faith alone and corrupt "the simplicity that is in Christ" (2nd Corinthians 11:3,4).

Once a person is saved, they begin to grow in grace by feeding on the Truth of God's Word (1st Peter 2:2). As a believer grows in the Truth, he or she realizes that there are changes in their life that need to be made. God's Holy Spirit works in that person's heart. Thus, we begin to see the FRUIT of genuine repentance. A changed life is the FRUIT of genuine repentance; and NOT a prerequisite to salvation or a part of saving-faith. Proponents of Lordship Salvation place the cart before the horse and have it all backwards. The change comes as a result of true repentance; not as a means to it.

In Mark 1:4, John the Baptist speaks of "...repentance for the remission of sins"; NOT "repentance of sins." Acts 20:21 reads... "Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." Notice that Biblical repentance is TOWARD God. In Acts 11:21 we read, "And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord." This is Biblical repentance... turning to the Lord. To turn towards Jesus Christ in faith for salvation is to turn one's back against sin, even though the person may not be willing to forsake sin at the time of salvation. It is ludicrous for anyone to teach that a lost sinner must give up their sins to be saved. As we saw with Lot and Samson in the Old Testament, not all believers live for God.

Consider the following quote by the mighty man of God, Dr. Harry Ironside (1876-1951)...

"Repentance is the recognition of my sinnership — the owning before God that I am as vile as He has declared me to be in His holy Word."

SOURCE: Except Ye Repent, by Dr. Harry Ironside, chapter 3

This is vastly different than actually ceasing from one's sin to be saved, which is a false gospel. Pastor Ironside is correct — repentance is simply realizing that one is a guilty, dirty, rotten, hopeless sinner in God's eyes. This is why we need a Savior. Thankfully, Jesus paid the price with His own literal precious blood (1st Peter 1:18,19; Hebrews 9:12).


Repentance and Faith

Salvation is not a process as some teach. You don't repent and then have faith in the Lord. There are not two steps to salvation; but rather, two parts to just one step. Repentance and faith are inseparable. In the Gospel of John, the word “believe” is mentioned 85-times; but the word “repent” is never mentioned even once. This clearly evidences that the sinner who believes on the Lord for salvation has also repented. You can't turn to the Savior for forgiveness of sins without turning your back against sin (not the literal forsaking of the act of sin, but a realization of one's having violated God's holy Law and deserves punishment in Hellfire).

As mentioned, the Bible never mentions turning from sin to be saved. All Biblical references mention turning to the Lord to be forgiven from our sins.


The Change Comes AFTER a Person is Saved, NOT before

The internet is plagued with heretics who are teaching that a person must forsake their sinful life to be saved. 2nd Corinthians 5:17 reads, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." Please notice that a man does NOT become a "new creature" until AFTER he is in Christ (saved). The change comes after a person is saved; NOT before, but AFTER. If a person claims to be a Christian but is living a wicked life, then I would sincerely doubt that person's salvation as well. However, I am not going to start teaching damnable heresy by saying that sinners must forsake their sins to be saved. Salvation comes through childlike faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, nothing may be added. Once a man becomes a new creature in Christ, then he begins to change.

The Raging Battle Over "Repentance"

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." -John 3:16"
travis
Posts: 6
Comment
TYPES OF CHIRISTIAN
Reply #3 on : Fri March 13, 2009, 14:06:02
The American Heritage Dictionary defines a Christian as "one who professes belief in Jesus as Christ or follows the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus; one who lives according to the teachings of Jesus."[5]

A wide range of beliefs and practices is found across the world among those who call themselves Christian. A 2007 survey in the United States identified the following five typical categories:


Active Christians: Committed to attending church, Bible reading, and sharing their faith that salvation comes through Jesus Christ.
Professing Christians: Also committed to "accepting Christ as Savior and Lord" as the key to being a Christian, but focus on personal relationships with God and Jesus more than on church, Bible reading or sharing faith.
Liturgical Christians: High level of spiritual activity, mainly expressed by attending and recognising the authority of the church, and by serving in it or in the community.
Private Christians: Believe in God and in doing good things, but not within a church context. In the American survey, this was the largest and youngest segment.
Cultural Christians: Do not view Jesus as essential to salvation. They are the least likely to align their beliefs or practices with biblical teachings, or attend church. They favor a universal theology that sees many ways to God.

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travis
Last Edit: March 17, 2009, 18:17:25 by cmeek01  
Lucky
Posts: 6
Comment
Reply
Reply #2 on : Sat March 07, 2009, 13:57:40
Hi, Thanks for your nice work on this site.
You have done a good job by your blog comments...
I like the comments ...
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Lucky
Last Edit: March 08, 2009, 14:23:49 by cmeek01  
Kerstin Chapman
Posts: 6
Comment
Who is a Christian? What do we confess?
Reply #1 on : Fri February 27, 2009, 05:51:19
Thank you for a very clear explanation of the Christian faith. It is a great reminder of who we are as believers and what our lives should reflect to others. Salvation is so simple and yet still one of the greatest stumbling blocks of modern society. Our best witness is the new life we live in Christ. God's grace gives us a glimpse of Heaven long before we get there. We need to pass this on without hesitation, especially to those who are the most dear to us.

Thanks and blessings to your ministry.

Kerstin

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