Hi Anon
Thanks for the comments.
You said:
"when someone gets saved (not sure how u define this)...."
Act 11:13 And he told us how he had seen the angel stand in his house and say, 'Send to Joppa and bring Simon who is called Peter;
Act 11:14 he will declare to you a message by which you will be saved, you and all your household.'
Salvation is by believing the Good News of Gods UNDESERVED Favor to you through Jesus Christ.
....Act 15:9 and he made no distinction between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith.
Act 15:10 Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? ("Salvation" by works - Law ...or that requires works to be maintained year after year.)
Act 15:11 But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will."
you said:
"thereby removing the power of sin and guaranteeing salvation.
2) therefore you cannot sin any longer
3) you cannot lose your ticket into heaven"
The power of sin is the Law (1 Cor 15:56)and we have died to the Law (Rom) so sin has lost its grip on us. BUT, we do certainly STILL SIN - as Im sure you would agree.
How does all this fit?
Well, clarity comes when we see that the "sin" that we have died to (Rom 6) is not the VERB of sin. It is the NOUN of sin.
Of the 37 times the word "sin" is mentioned in Romans, only 1 is a VERB but 36 times it is a NOUN, speaking of our POSITION IN SIN - not the actual ACT/behavior of sinning.
So believers are no longer "IN SIN", we are now "IN CHRIST".
Rom 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
Rom 6:2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
It is impossible to go on "IN SIN" (I think the NIV has "sinning"- verb here. That is wrong.) because we have died to that POSITION and are now seated IN CHRIST.
That’s why the ACT of sinning cannot place us back under the position of "a sinner", because we have supernaturally been translated from that kingdom into the kingdom of the Son He loves.
But the revelation of this truth will cause us to sin (verb) less because 'the Law stirs up the VERB', and when we realise we have been removed from under that Law, its power to cause us to Verb-sin is broken!! Praise GOD!!
Now, faith in the Gospel is what translates us from Sin into Christ. Any "verb-sin" (including unbelief) once you IN CHRIST has no power to alter the Covenant you are in with God because the Covenant is built on the blood of Jesus - not yours! Jesus represented you as "the Son of man", and was found to be PERFECT. You are now IN HIM!! We cant mess up our half of the covenant because JESUS is our half. That’s the Good News.
The Only outstanding sin (according to John 16) is the sin of UNBELIEF. But He is talking about "the World" - who are not yet saved.
So, the only outstanding sin is Unbelief UNTO Salvation - NOT unbelief within Salvation.
All the sins (verb) of the world have been paid for (1 John 2:2), except unbelief UNTO Salvation (Noun....in Adam). This still leaves the free will decision of man to Choose to respond to the Gospel.
Sometimes believers who are wrongly taught that God sends calamity upon them to teach them or for some greater good - (sickness, death of loved ones, car accidents..Etc), turn against God and want nothing to do with HIM (and rightly so.... who would want to worship a God who causes 4 year old kids to drown or kill parents in flaming car wrecks!!)
But the truth is that Satan has come to Rob, KILL, and destroy. If you are IN CHRIST, God is not holding your behavior - even acting in reaction in unbelief - against you.
However, Jesus and the Apostles do speak about weeds among the wheat (who look outwardly just like wheat in the early stages), and wolves in sheep clothing, and spy's of our freedom. Outwardly these individuals look just like "good" Christians, but time reveals that they are actually not. When they "reject" God, people create a theology that you can fall away or loose your Salvation, but you cant loose what you didn’t have in the first place!!
So how will you know if you are really saved?
Do you believe the Gospel? Yes, then you are IN CHRIST and are Saved.
Lets Keep the Gospel as it is - Simple!
Regards
Andrew
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