Fear to Crucify
We numb what we hate to crucify,
In fear we can’t be free.
To kill the sin seems unjustified,
Scared to lose identity,
I ignore what’s killing me.
The sin within must never prosper,
Fed through vices sheepishly,
The death of Christ revealed to sinners,
God’s judgment of sin to see –
The cost of depravity.
Bruised and broken,
He hung for me,
Love unspoken,
Death…sets… me… free.
As the incarnate Word gives up His Ghost,
He sends another to my side,
He too is God who convicts selfish boasts,
Hanging sin on my whipping post.
My sin must accept its bitter passion,
For Christ out-loves my harmful rebellion.
Now that the Father has drawn me near,
I dare crucify sin without fear.
©2012 by Chris Clody 4/10/2012
How does the following verse speak to you?
“Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.” Romans 6:6
For more Christian encouragement check out my ebook by clicking the following link: Thoughts2Share
Christopher Clody 
I love Romans 8…about the war within us between the Spirit and the flesh. That particular verse means to me that when I accepted Christ, that old me and my sinful ways is to be destroyed and Christ in me is to be reflected in the way that I live and behave. There’s still that war within, though.
Love your poetry, by the way!
Blessings,
Anne
Hi Anne! Acceptance of Christ…sinful ways destroyed…yet still a war within…is a mysterious transformation but a wonderful book that ends – “Well done good and faithful servent!!!” I hope I get to hear God say that to you. He lives,
Chris
Ditto, friend!! 🙂
Blessings,
Anne
Reblogged this on The Existence Of A Teenager.
A good book on this topic of crucifying our sin is Charles Colson’s Born Again. It’s his autobiography about his mix-up with Watergate. It’s pretty powerful. And in it, he suggests other books that helped him along his journey.
Very cool Andrew! Sounds like something I’d read and pass along to my Pop. Thanks for reaching out. His Peace, Chris
That henceforth we should not serve sin…
To me, this is a parallel with John 8.36…Jesus is speaking about those who serve sin, and he says that whoever the Son sets free is free indeed. Those who are born again are set free from sinful habits that used to bind them. Example….I used to cuss and swear, but since getting saved, I’m free from that habit. Wonderful freedom! The gospel is the power of God.
Josh, thanks for your honesty. I love hearing when Grace collides with our reality to set us free from our vices. He lives bro! Peace,
Chris
Romans 6 is such a good reminder of what it means to ‘die in Christ,’ & not only what it means to identify with His resurrection, but also with His crucifixion. Although God’s Word tells us that once we accept Jesus as our Lord & Savior, that our salvation is eternal & cannot be taken away (John 3:16; 10:27-29; Romans 8:38-39), too many times people believe that because they have ‘made a decision for Christ,’ or ‘said a sinner’s prayer,’ or ‘made an altar call,’ they are ‘good to go,’ & they can ‘bank on’ their eternal security & continue to live their old life before their ‘conversion.’ In reality, they were never truly converted to begin with & never received the ‘Helper’ (aka: the Holy Spirit – John 14:26; 15:26; 16:7), & that it was a false conversion. Paul tells us in Romans 6 & James tells us in James 2 that evidence of a ‘true’ conversion is our works, but that works is the ‘result’ (rather than the ‘means’) of true conversion. Of course, we never stop sinning, as we are constantly “working ‘through’ our salvation” (Philippians 2:12 – but ‘not’ working ‘towards’ it), which is the ongoing process of sanctification, until we are glorified in heaven with Christ. Unfortunately, some Christians believe that when a person has a ‘genuine’ conversion & they say that it’s a result of ‘grace through faith & not of works’ (Ephesians 2:8-9), that they are accused of ‘easy believism.’ In reality, they realize the promise of God’s word that when a ‘genuine’ conversion takes place, which means that you not only accept Jesus as the Savior of your soul, but also Lord over ‘every’ aspect of your entire life (not just the parts we want to ‘pick & choose’ to be obedient to Him). It is at this moment that a person realizes that he/she is truly converted, a true Christian, & a true child of God, saved alone by Christ’s atoning work on the cross. When we ‘get this’ we then have the desire to live our lives completely for Christ, rather than for ourselves anymore, & we become ‘born again’ (John 3:3) & a ‘new creature’ in Christ’ (2 Corinthians 5:1), dying to our old sin nature (Romans 6). Praise God for ‘that old rugged cross!’ & the assurance of ‘true’ salvation according to His Word (1 John 5:13). In Christ, Steve.
Truly there is beauty, joy, gratitude and love in the obedience God allows us to choose in following the One who makes all things new. God bless you! Shine on, Chris
The verse makes me think about the following written by Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins (Left Behind) which puts in words something we have discussed a lot at home. We give up sin (and act righteousor good) “not so we can earn our salvation. We’re to do that in response to our salvation.”
I connect it as an explanation to what it means that the righteous shall live through faith… and also as a way to respond to Gods and Jesus love for us.
Thanks for your perspective on this Suri. Somehow “living” through faith must shadow the obedience Christ displayed as He plowed through Calvary. I too am truly grateful for the opportunity to choose the indestructible life which is Christ himself. Keep in touch Suri, I love your insights. His Peace, Chris
Suri, I love Tim Lahaye & Jerry Jenkins’ perspectives, especially on eschatology, which leaps straight from the pages of God’s Word giving such visualization to it. I also love that fact that your perspective isn’t really yours, but that it’s backed up by God’s Word too, in the words of the apostle Paul – that we are saved by grace through faith & that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God & not of works lest no man should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9). Sola gratia, sola fide, sola Christo, sola scriptura, soli Deo gloria! Amen! In Christ, Steve.
Thanks Steve for your comment.
Yes, my mother and I had thought and discussed this topic alot, originating from readings in the Holy Bible, but had not been able to precise it into one sentence. Then I read Left Behind for the first time (had previously concentrated on the movies) and: Wow! Here it is!
All glories to Jesus!
Suri
It’s good to hear people talking about following God in righteousness. Surely we are saved by faith alone, yet after salvation we don’t want to wallow in the mire of sin.
And why decorate God’s temple in the mire of sin?Hmmm… thankfully only God can truly see the state of His temple within us. God bless you Josh.
He lives,
Chris
“wallow in the mire of sin”
Thats a nice way to put it!
🙂
This verse reminds me that I am a new creation in Christ and I am not longer a slave to sin but a bondservant of Jesus Christ. It also indicates there still is a choice I must make, will I walk in the flesh and not please God or in His Spirit? I love God therefore I desire to obey Him and walk in His Spirit. So thankful
Romans 8:9-17
9 However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. 10 If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is [d]alive because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies [e]through His Spirit who dwells in you. “As the incarnate Word gives up His Ghost, He sends another to my side…” Yes! We are not alone He prayed that we would receive the Spirit of Truth our helper Who convicts us of sin, righteousness, and judgment. So thankful!! Thank you for sharing!
12 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— 13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you [f]must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery [g]leading to fear again, but you have received [h]a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.
Love,love,love the scripture you quoted! How incredibly encouraging! Thank you for your insights…keep in touch! Truly He Lives, Chris
Thank you for sharing
“Bruised and broken,
He hung for me,
Love unspoken,
Death…sets… me… free.”
Beautiful wonderful truth! God be praised! Thankful for His grace that covers ALL my sins.
Blessings
ann
Thanks Ann! Honestly it’s hard to “like” such a bittersweet – yet joy unspeakable thankfully follows the bitter sorrow. I pray that God demonstrates His nearness to you ….you know, just to say, “I’m with you my child…”
Peace and keep in touch,
Chris
Hi Chris. I found you through The Master’s Table, and am really glad I did. I really like your poem.
I am in the middle of a 4 part series on Christians and sin, and have been interested in the thoughts of other bloggers on this topic. I have heard some that say that we cease to sin when we are born again, and that if we still sin, we were not really saved to begin with. I believe that there is a difference between a lifestyle of willful, consistant sin and the occasional sin of weakness. The life that is lived in habitual, deliberate sin does not have fellowship with God, but even Paul talked about his own struggle with his sinful nature.
I take Romans 6:6 to mean that we are slaves to sin until we are saved and have been given the power of the Holy Spirit, then we have the power and the obligation to resist sin and not allow it to hold us in bondage. We still have that sinful nature, will have until we are given our incorruptible bodies. We will always have that battle within us; but we have the power now to overcome it.
Wow…that question is a mountain Drusilla! I didn’t answer because I just wanted it to marinate in prayer and meditation – yet it is still a mountain. Maybe the question isn’t so much looking down the mountain with a reborn power and perspective, but understanding our intentions before we climb. Sacred scripture implores us to count the cost before embracing discipleship of this God-man, Jesus the Christ. Maybe even the “reborn” process, although absolutely necessary, is being rushed in emotional altar calls instead of investing time forming the conscious of the curious like Christ did with His disciples. Despite seemingly good intentions to evangelize those looking in from the outside of this confusing bubble of Christianity, those that rush in – may just as quickly rush out. Therefore, answering the question of who is “truly” saved or not because of their actions after being “reborn” is our insecurity, our escape clause, if the mysterious power of the Holy Spirit fails the “newly saved” to plow past any temptation without stumbling. This is not Christianity. This is a lie. The answer is not found conquering a mountain but embracing a person, Jesus Christ. Dare we truly understand the Grace abounding in us when we die with Christ in our baptism, “knowing… that our old man was crucified with Him?” “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him.” “For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Everything is about “Him”…not so much understanding our “reborn” status. I believe, if we are “In Christ,” empowered by the Comforter He sent, then we should heed the words of James 1:4, “But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” Hebrews 13:21, proclaims our transformative union with Christ to “make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” Our transformation is a journey, a perfecting process evidenced in Philippians 1:6 which reads, “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” Our blessed Holy Spirit not only comforts us from despair but convicts us of rebellious actions. This Spirit Christ sent truly encourages us to press on while clinging to the promise proclaimed by Isaiah 40:31, “But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.”
Hopefully, I didn’t stray too much from your question, however, I thought it was necessary to unpack my understanding and approach to being perfect as my Father in Heaven is perfect. Let us give pause to what is meant to be perfect. Really, who among us is perfect and eligible to cast the first stone in judgment of another’s reborn heart? Truly, this is a management question… and I only work in sales.
In Christ,
Chris
Hi Drusilla…as a ‘fellow blogger,’ I thought I’d put in my ‘2 cents’ on this subject – which is an important one you brought up.
Unfortunately, there are Christians who believe that when they are ‘born again,’ they cease to sin. Nothing could be further from God’s Word. In fact, the Apostle John reminds us that “if we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8). When a person becomes ‘born again,’ they realize that they still ‘wrestle’ with that old sin nature, until they reach glory when we die & are “absent from the body & at home with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8). But, after we are ‘born again,’ WHEN we do sin, it CONVICTS us, because we now realize that when we do sin, it hurts God & our relationship with Him, which is an indication that we have ‘genuine’ faith, which is why the writer of Hebrews defines this ‘genuine’ faith as “the ASSURANCE of things hoped for & the CONVICTION of things not seen.” So, the newly converted Christian no longer has the ‘desire’ to sin, but rather the ‘desire’ to live their life for Christ, by dying to our old way of life by being ‘buried with Christ’ in His crucifixion, & being ‘born again’ by identifying with Him through His resurrection (Romans 6).
But this ‘assurance’ of our salvation, doesn’t give us a ‘license to sin,’ because we think we are saved, so we can keep on living that old sinful lifestyle. But rather, the Apostles Paul & John assure us that we can have this ‘assurance’ of our salvation based on what’s written in Holy Scripture (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 1 John 5:13). There are many things about our salvation that we don’t understand (how God works it, whose heart He chooses to change, whose He chooses to harden, etc.), but the part of the plan of God’s rescue efforts that we can understand are the parts He reveals to us in Scripture.
Unfortunately, just as there are people who make a quick ‘decision’ for Christ, make a ‘spur-of-the-moment altar call,’ or say a ‘sinner’s prayer,’ but then don’t have a change of attitude, lifestyle, or mindset to trust Christ’s finished work on the cross, & choose to live their life for Him, instead of themselves, there are, unfortunately, those who because they have participated in church beliefs, like baptism, many (but not all) of them believe that because they were baptized, they are ‘good to go,’ & can continue to live their sinful lifestyle, too. Sadly, I see it everyday, & even hear people say that, even at funerals. Although ‘true’ salvation is eternal & cannot be lost (John 3:16; 10:27-29; Romans 8:38-39), since some believe that you are ‘born again’ at baptism, that can lead to a false sense of eternal security. James tells us to show our faith BY our works, which doesn’t mean that works & faith together lead to salvation, but rather our works is EVIDENCE that our faith is ‘genuine’ & that we are truly saved (James 2:18).
When we “call on the Name of the Lord, we will be saved” (Romans 10:13), we are accepting Jesus not just as the Savior or our souls, but also accepting Jesus as the Lord over EVERY aspect of our life. This is when we are TRULY ‘born again’ – when we become a ‘new creature’ & the ‘old things pass away’ (old attitude, old lifestyle, old speech, old personal and/or religious works-based view of getting to heaven, etc) (2 Corinthians 5:17),such as water baptism, which although is a command that Jesus gives us ONCE we are born-again, it isn’t a ‘means’ by which we become born-again, because otherwise EVERYONE would have to be baptized in water, or we couldn’t ‘see the kingdom of God’ (John 3:3,5). Hope this gives you some ‘food for thought’ from a ‘fellow blogger’ & adopted son of God, who was forgiven & “cleansed” by the blood of Christ (Hebrews 9:22). In Christ, Steve.
Thank you Chris and Steve for your thoughts and input. I am reading through a terrible head cold and am having trouble focusing, so I hope I will make sense of what you are saying. I wasn’t really standing in judgment of others, just stating (maybe not too clearly) what I have seen and heard recently as far as others’ views compared to my own. None of us are perfect, nor will we be this side of heaven; and it is not my right to judge others.
I was agreeing with you on the fact that we still sin after we are converted, but that sin does/should not have power over us like it used to. I understand that God is the only one that knows a person’s heart, but it is still my thought that the evidence of a person’s salvation can be seen in their lifestyle – hence my statement that a life lived in habitual, willfull sin is not a life that is lived in fellowship with God. A life lived in fellowship with God and the Holy Spirit would/should be a life convicted of sin and a lessoning of the power of sin. We have been freed from the hold sin had over us, and our lives should reflect that freedom.
I am in the middle of writing a 4 part series on whether Christians still sin after conversion. I have published the first 3 parts and the 4th (about the working of the Holy Spirit in the believer’s life) will be published next Wednesday.
I will come back later, when this cold has cleared up, and re-read all of this to see if I have missed or misunderstood something that I am just not up to seeing right now. But I wanted to at least acknowledge you comments and verses.
Again, thanks so much for your thoughts and the added verses. I may just add a link to this article to my post next week, if that is ok.
Uggh! Head colds!
Get Rest. Chicken Soup. Repeat
😉
Get well soon!
Chris
Drusilla…hope your head cold improves. I ‘second’ Chris – get rest, chicken soup. Also, plenty of Vitamin C (OJ, etc.) & plenty of fluids.
I can’t speak for anyone else, but I didn’t think you were trying to ‘judge’ anyone based on your own ‘personal’ views. in fact, a lot of what you said was backed up by Scripture, & what a lot of ‘other’ Christians forget is that Jesus tells us that we CAN judge others, as long as we examine ourselves first, by getting the log out of our eye, & then we can see clearly to get the speck out of others (Matthew 7:3-5)(‘judging’), & when we do judge others, to make sure we are judging them by what’s been written by God (2 Timothy 3:15-17), but to do so with ‘gentleness & reverence’ towards them (1 Peter 3:15). May God bring comfort to you. In Christ, Steve.
Yes, we still have a struggle. The version of the Bible that I read never mentions a “sinful nature”, but instead it mentions “the flesh.” Paul said the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and they are contrary to each other – Galatians 5.17. The struggle is between our flesh and our new heart (Ezekiel 36.26). Peter says we have become partakers of the divine nature – 2 Peter 1.4. When we’re born again, our heart takes on the nature of God, but we’re still tempted because our flesh is drawn to sinful pleasure.
Drusilla…as far as your thoughts on willful, consistent sin, I believe that the scripture is in agreement. John the apostle says in 1 John 2.1 “…these things I write unto you, that you sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate…” John, being a well trained disciple of truth, describes the Christian walk so perfectly. He says “if we sin” rather than “when we sin.” It is more accurate to say “if a Christian sins today” than it is to say “a Christian will sin today.” There is no scripture that teaches that Christians are expected to sin every day. If we sinned every day, we would look like the servants of sin, hopelessly bound in a rut of failure.
Very well put Josh, especially the part that you mentioned that we aren’t ‘expected’ to sin, but that we sin by choice. Of course, even though we aren’t expected to sin, it’s impossible that we can go our whole lives without sinning. Even Mary, the mother of Jesus was a sinner, & needed a Redeemer in her Son since her birth (Luke 1:46-47; Galatians 4:4-5). And, you are correct that you won’t find the phrase ‘sin nature’ in the Bible, but then again, you won’t find the word ‘Trinity’ or ‘Rapture’ in the Bible either, but both concepts are implied – Matthew 28:19 & 1 Thessalonians 4:17 (Latin: ‘rapimier’), respectively. Paul tells us that ‘by nature we were children of wrath.’ This is what is meant by us having a ‘sin nature,’ before we were ‘born again,’ but we constantly ‘struggle’ between this old ‘sin nature’ & our new one as we ‘work through our salvation’ (Philippians 2:12). ‘Nature’ by definition (Greek: ‘physis’ – ‘natural characteristics; a mode of feeling & acting which by long habit has become nature’) is who we have been since birth, which Paul tells us that we ‘were by NATURE childre of wrath,’ who ‘formerly LIVED in the lusts of our flesh’ (Ephesians 2:3) – ‘flesh’ – (Greek: ‘sarx’ – ‘animal NATURE with cravings that incite to sin; the earthly NATURE of man apart from Divine influence, & therefore prone to sin & opposed to God.’) So, it’s true that mankind isn’t ‘expected’ to sin, our ‘flesh’ that lusts against the Spirit, is because we are born with a ‘nature’ that is prone to sin – & we WILL choose to sin at some point in our lives – even daily, hourly, & even every minute. However, our new nature that struggles against the old, should desire to serve Christ rather than ourselves.
Wow…3:59 am…you were up late last night.
Thanks for the thoughts. True…the sin nature is a concept rather than a phrase in the scriptures.
You must be speaking of inward sins when you mention daily or hourly sins. I don’t believe you expect that Christians will steal or commit adultery every day or every hour. Paul expected these things to be eradicated from the Christian’s life. “Let him that stole steal no more.” The man that was living in fornication with his father’s wife was put out of the Corinthian church as unacceptable.
When you mention daily sins, I believe you are trying to make room for thoughts that cross the Christian’s mind. And this is true: we cannot control the thoughts that enter the mind. Temptations work in the mind. But we can control whether we keep dwelling on evil or whether we act upon it or not.
Tempted every day, or hourly, by evil thoughts? Yes, but Paul says we must bring every thought into captivity to obedience to Christ – 2 Corinthians 10.5. The weapons of our warfare are mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds (verse 4). He is describing the battle of the mind. If we refrain from calling the battle a sin, then we won’t charge Christians with sin so often. Temptations turn into sin when we realize the thoughts are wrong and refuse to bring them into captivity, thus yielding to temptation and indulging in the sin.
We all definitely have sin in our past, as Mary did. We all need a savior. Without the blood of Jesus we would never be purged. After the purging, we become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1.4), which leads us to think and act differently than the sinner. Christians are in the world, but not of it.
Chris’s poem was about crucifying sin.
There are plenty of scriptures that teach us to crucify sin in our living…
Jesus – John 8.11 Go and sin no more.
Paul – Romans 6.2 – how shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
Peter – 1 Peter 1.16 be he holy, for I am holy
Paul – Romans 6.6 that henceforth we should not serve sin
Jesus – John 8 – he that commits sin is a servant of sin. Whom the Son sets free is free indeed.
John – 1 John 3.8 – he that commits sin is of the devil.
John – 1 John 3.9 Those that are born of God cannot sin. (like the loving husband that says, I can’t commit adultery against my wife. I love her too much. I just can’t betray her.)
Paul – 1 Thessalonians 4.7 God has not called us to uncleanness, but unto holiness.
Paul – 2 Tim 2.19….let all those that name the name of Christ depart from iniquity.
Peace, Josh
Josh…yeah, I was up late [either I was at work or I just woke up in the middle of the night & couldn’t sleep – the side effects of a night shift worker. 🙂 ]
Yes, you are correct when I was talking about sins we commit ‘every day, hour, & even every minute,’ I was referring to ‘inward sins’ – the sins of the mind, the fleeting sinful thoughts that go in & out, that we sometime can’t control, but when we are aware of them, we desire to ask God to rid our minds of them, which happens when we are truly His, because the Holy Spirit convicts us. However, I was also talking about those purposeful, ‘active sins’ too, but I didn’t mean that we always & purposefully commit these sins ‘every day, hour, & even every minute,’ but rather, even though we are adopted children of God with a new nature, there are times when we do actively, willfully, & purposefully sin against God. However, because we are now children of God, these ‘active sins’ SHOULD occur much less frequently (or even not at all), like murder, adultery, theft, etc, which ‘may’ have occured more frequently before we were saved, but now we are convicted of them by the Holy Spirit if/when they occur.
The passages you mentioned about ‘sinning no more,’ such as Romans 6, when Paul tells us to ‘sin no more,’ these passages are talking about a ‘lifestyle change,’ made possible only by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the Temple of God, which gives us the desire to serve Christ, rather than serve sin. However, to believe that even though we are ‘new creatures in Christ,’ that means that we aren’t going to ‘actively sin’ anymore, isn’t what Paul & those other passages are meaning. Yes, once a sinful thought enters our minds, we should ‘get rid of it’ so it doesn’t fester into sinful action, but sometimes we choose not to do that, & we actively sin. How many times have we gotten unjustifiably angry with a fellow brother or sister in Christ – the kind of ‘anger’ that leads to sin? Or actively & purposefully lied to someone, knowing it’s a lie? Or actively & willfully not honored our parents for whatever reason? The point is that when a person is a ‘genuine,’ born again, Holy Spirit-indwelling Christian, the old, natural, DESIRING ‘sinful lifestyle’ is dead, but if we’re honest with ourselves, throughout the course of our lives, we are ‘occasionally’ going to actively & purposefully sin – maybe not on a regular minute, hourly or even daily schedule, but there will be days, hours, & even several minutes in a row, when we will actively & willfully sin, because we ‘choose’ to disobey God, just as King David ‘chose’ to actively & willfully disobey God by ‘choosing’ to act on his lust towards Bathsheba, choosing to turn lustful desires into lustful actions, & then actively & willfully sinned against God again by having her husband murdered. However, what made King David ‘a man after God’s own heart’ was that he remorsed & ‘genuinely’ repented for his sins.
Just like King David, when we ‘choose’ to sin, since ‘the spirit is strong but the flesh is weak,’ what makes it evident that we are ‘truly’ children of God, is that when we do actively & willfully choose to sin, are we convicted, do we remorse, do we repent, & do we have the desire to sin no more? Otherwise, if we actively commit the same ‘active sin’ more than once, we would be condemned to Hell, which is unbiblical, since a ‘genuine’ Christians can’t lose their salvation.
So, basically, my point is that the sign of ‘genuine’ Christian is evident by the fact of whether their sinful LIFESTYLE has changed or not – not whether or not they have stopped ‘actively’ sinning or not, because if that were true, if we were all honest, we’d ‘all’ be doomed to Hell.
Praise God for His Son’s propitiation for us, & for sending the ‘Helper’ when we accepted Jesus not only as the Savior of our souls, but also when we accepted Him as the Lord over ‘every’ aspect of our lives, Who convicts us whether we commit ‘inward sins’ or ‘active sins.’
Okay, its 3am…time to go to bed! 🙂 In Jesus’ Name, Steve.
Reblogged this on Cayo Buay and commented:
An awesome poem…
We numb what we hate to crucify,
In fear we can’t be free.
To kill the sin seems unjustified,
Scared to lose identity,
I ignore what’s killing me.
Wow! Thanks for the reblog Cayu Buay!
Great discussion Josh and Steve. Steve you mentioned at the end of your last reply, “since a ‘genuine’ Christians can’t lose their salvation.” For the last two weeks or so, I have been offering my reason to persevere in hope with several bloggers who say the following:
“We listened, we preached, we studied, we missioned, we gave, we wept, we rejoiced, we prayed, we loved, we repented, we sang, we taught, we comforted, we mourned, we cooked meals, we vacuumed floors, we built churches, we moved sheets of plywood and watched out for nails. We directed traffic, we taught seminars, we led countless to a saving knowledge of Christ, we went to Bible college, we counselled . . . we lived a Christian life more than any of us ever have to discuss or admit to.” In a reply to my comment regarding Christianity, among other harsh words towards believing in the Christian faith was, “I no longer accept that Christianity is an “invitation to Truth.”
It is your context of “genuine” that does not seem applicable to this scenario of Christians leaving the fold. Could you say that these were not genuine “Christians?”
As always Peace,
Chris
Chris, I cannot look into the heart of another person, including those who call themselves a Christian, & declare if a person is a ‘genuine’ Christian or not. Only the individual person & God Himself can know for sure if they are a ‘genuine Christian’ or not. I can only comment on what the Word of God says. If a person says “I no longer accept that Christianity is an ‘invitation to Truth'” after reading Bible verses that I post, then their issue is not with me, but with the Word of God says. If the person who says this claimed to be a Christian, but then ‘left the fold,’ then, in the words of the Apostle John, no, they were never truly Christians to begin with:
“They went out from us, but THEY WERE NOT REALLY OF US; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.” (1 John 2:19)
When a person ‘truly’ belongs to Christ & has ‘genuine’ faith, they won’t leave the fold, since ‘faith is the ASSURANCE of things hoped for & the conviction of things not seen’ (Hebrews 11:1). That would be like someone learning in science class that the universe is not eternal but had a beginning (Genesis 1:1), but when they got older, they no longer believed that it had a beginning. You & I can’t comprehend why a person would stop believing this scientifically supported theory, but what we can understand is that they didn’t truly understand the science behind this theory in order to truly believe in it. Once a person has ‘true’ faith in the beginning of the universe, there is nothing, including their personal beliefs, that will change their minds. The same is with ‘true’ faith in ‘true’ Christianity, because Christianity is about the Person of Jesus Christ & his ‘finished’ work on the cross. When a person makes a ‘genuine’ conversion & ‘truly’ believes this, they will ‘never’ stop being a Christian, anymore than a person who accepts the scientific theory that the universe had a beginning. The only difference is that for the ‘genuine’ Christian the reality of Christ dying for our sins & bodily rising from the dead is more ‘real’ to him/her than the theory that the universe had a beginning. If they do, as I previously quoted from the Apostle John, they were never ‘really of us’ to begin with, because a ‘genuine’ Christian can ‘know’ they are saved by what is written:
“These things I HAVE WRITTEN to you WHO BELIEVE in the name of the Son of God, so that YOU MAY KNOW that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13)
Again, I reiterate that I can’t look into the heart of a person who ‘leaves’ the fold, including someone who says, “I no longer accept that Christianity is an ‘invitation to Truth.’” however, ‘if’ their statements match what they ‘truly’ believe in their hearts, & they ‘walk away’ from Christ, then Scripture is clear that they were never truly His to begin with, especially if they walked away based on what they have been convicted of from what they have read from God’s Word, because “the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). Also, I noticed a lot of ‘we’ statements that you posted from other people’s replies. ‘We’ can’t do anything without God first giving us the will & desire to do it first, which includes the free gift of faith, which gives us the ability to eternally believe in Him:
“For by grace you have been saved through FAITH; and that NOT OF YOURSELVES, IT IS THE GIFT of God” (Ephesians 2:8)
“”For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM shall not perish, but have ETERNAL life” (John 3:16)
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I GIVE ETERNAL life to them, and they will never perish; and NO ONE WILL 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.” (John 10:27-29)
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, NOR ANY OTHER CREATED THING, WILL BE ABLE TO SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF GOD, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39)
Lastly, I wish to clarify, once again, it is not ‘my’ context of ‘genuine’ when I talked about those who walk away from Christianity never being ‘genuine’ Christians to begin with, but rather it’s God’s context, which I am merely basing my faith on from His Holy Inspired Word. ‘True’ Christianity isn’t about what ‘we’ do – it’s about what Christ did for us, which motivates a ‘genuine’ Christian to be like Him, which includes believing what what He authored, since Jesus is the ‘Author & perfecter of our faith’ (Hebrews 12:2). Hope this answers your question. In Christ – forever – Steve.
Good stuff Steve. It is an incredible comfort to know that through the many gifts of the Holy Spirit, He continues to comfort and encourage us to endure with a power that is a truly a most profound sense of love. It is within that love that condemnation has no power for those in Christ. What a gift we have in faith!
He lives,
Chris
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