Very Nice! How sad it is that many Christians do not know they are saved. I spent 35 years as a minister in the One Cup segment of our faith heritage, this was one of the areas that brethren struggled with and at times I was asked if I was a Baptist masquerading as a C of C preacher when teaching the very same thing that you guys just presented. I asked brethren if they were saved and usually received this reply; Maybe, I hope so, won't know till I get there, none of those answers are found in Scripture! I told the members I was going to drown all new members in the Baptistry so they could not sin after being cleansed. They said, that is ridiculous, I said, INDEED IT IS.
I agree. The difficult thing though is we can fall from grace. So, having a proper balance is sometimes tough to know. I agree that if we die before repenting and asking forgiveness of a sin there may be grace where we will go to heaven. But there seems to be a point where if we live in the sin and our heart plays a factor, we can fall away where we won't be in heaven. This is where I say God being the perfect judge knows at what point we have fallen away but it can still leave this lingering doubt when I've struggled with a certain sin for years. I know in my heart it is wrong and don't like the sin but seem to continually struggle and fall at times.
Thanks for the comment, Aaron. You are totally right about the possibility of falling away, and that's always a crucial aspect of this conversation. I think the distinction the Hebrews author makes about "if we go on sinning deliberately..." (Heb. 10:26) is important here. Not all struggle with sin is continuous, deliberate sin. The "struggle against sin" (Heb. 12:4) can be a good sign.
Very Nice! How sad it is that many Christians do not know they are saved. I spent 35 years as a minister in the One Cup segment of our faith heritage, this was one of the areas that brethren struggled with and at times I was asked if I was a Baptist masquerading as a C of C preacher when teaching the very same thing that you guys just presented. I asked brethren if they were saved and usually received this reply; Maybe, I hope so, won't know till I get there, none of those answers are found in Scripture! I told the members I was going to drown all new members in the Baptistry so they could not sin after being cleansed. They said, that is ridiculous, I said, INDEED IT IS.
God Bless, thanks for the great 5-minute take!!
Thanks for your perspective, Randy! Your illustration about drowning in the baptistry is spot on. We're glad this was an encouraging episode.
I agree. The difficult thing though is we can fall from grace. So, having a proper balance is sometimes tough to know. I agree that if we die before repenting and asking forgiveness of a sin there may be grace where we will go to heaven. But there seems to be a point where if we live in the sin and our heart plays a factor, we can fall away where we won't be in heaven. This is where I say God being the perfect judge knows at what point we have fallen away but it can still leave this lingering doubt when I've struggled with a certain sin for years. I know in my heart it is wrong and don't like the sin but seem to continually struggle and fall at times.
Thanks for the comment, Aaron. You are totally right about the possibility of falling away, and that's always a crucial aspect of this conversation. I think the distinction the Hebrews author makes about "if we go on sinning deliberately..." (Heb. 10:26) is important here. Not all struggle with sin is continuous, deliberate sin. The "struggle against sin" (Heb. 12:4) can be a good sign.