Pete,
1 John 5:5-10
5This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
6If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
8If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
10If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."
Be careful Pete. It will not be me that correction will come from.
If that was the perspective we got then we would not have thought much about it. But that was not how it all played out. I have no concern if that was all this was a strong conviction.
But if you read the complete thread I don’t see how you get to this assumption Teren. Anyway, it is not something I want to deal with as I am not here to judge but to sharpen iron. I see Dallas pointed out a couple of things I will leave that there and in agreement.
One of my concerns was when pointed scripture was provided after Pete provided scripture it was not ever addressed. So how does one sharpen iron when there is only one wanting to sharpen iron?
Strong convictions are not always good for learning as you have said in more ways than one. I find if you are not secure in those convictions enough to test them with others’ convictions or beliefs.
For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee: Titus 1:5
This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. 1 Timothy 3:1
All that said I respect Pete’s convictions on this subject but the way he came across it does not seem he has respect for our convictions. That’s fine but that also leaves me with nothing to discuss with him on this subject.
Rom 14:23 And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.
Whatever a man does without full conviction of its legality is a sin for him. Because by living in Faith and acting by Faith, we remain without sin.
Heb 4, 11-13 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
please pray for Mr. Lawrence, he’s 97 and for his son to stop drinking and find Jesus. I was up last night praying for many people, the Holy Spirit has put Mr. Lawrence on my heart. Thank you
Pete,
It was and is my hope to better understand your heart. Perhaps another brother or sister can better connect with you than I. You have told me to repent, and you have implied that I am without any understanding of God’s word. You are also implying that I do not possess salvation from Jesus Christ; that I have not true faith. To call out from the same chapter in Romans, that being the 14th and verses 7 thru 13. My salvation comes from the LORD, and I am sealed by the Holy Spirit until the time of Rapture when my corruptible body will change to an uncorruptible body and will forever be with Jesus the Christ. I hope that I haven’t put a stumblingblock in your way.
7For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
8For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.
9For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.
10But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
11For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
12So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
13Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.
When the Lord Jesus comes, to take us to the Father’s house, as He promised, we will also be transformed, and our sinful nature will be forever removed from us.
No more sin, no more mistakes, no more anything evil - be it from either our sinful nature, or from the enemy.
I can’t wait for the perfect fellowship we will all have forever!
Stacey, my dad was a medic in WWII. He passed at 94 years of age. He would have been a year younger than Mr. Lawrence. Please thank him for his service for me.
He said that he was a Christain.
Am I understanding that his son is not yet saved, or that he is but drinks? Please, also tell him that I will call out to God for him. Maybe others will join us so that a soul will be saved, and Mr. Lawrence can have the blessed peace of Jesus.
Oh, yes, Anca. We may joke about not worrying anymore about our weight, bad backs and knees, or to have hair again, but truly, this is our desire - to be with Jesus forever. Amen
Yes, we joke about many things… God has a sense of humor, and we are His children:)
I often think of Lot…
How the apostle Peter calls him “righteous Lot”, and yet, from what we read in Genesis about him, Lot was so far from perfect… I wonder why didn’t he move back with his uncle???
BUT Lot had faith in God, so Peter calls him righteous.
And not just the above aspect about Lot, but the other part where he was oppressed by the evil conduct of the world surrounding him.
We are in the same situation these days, so much evil in the world…
Nothing is getting better on this earth…
But ONE DAY, our Lord will come for us and that will be the end of any kind of evil for His Bride. I think, because the stakes are so high, and the enemy has such little time left to hurt and accuse us, we experience so many battles, on so many different fronts…
Dear Lord, help all of us, please You are all we have. Our hope is only in You.
P. S. The verses I had in mind…
“and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds),”
I understand Dan there is more going on in the back and forth with you guys than I might have not caught. At certain specific highlight points though I would notice a few things. I understand your desire to sharpen.
From how Pete has recently been posting it looks like he leans toward Christian perfectionism. Which would explain perhaps some blinders on more charitable nuances of where others might be coming from. This would make for difficult discussion. Blessings.
I am sure many more are aware of the intense conversations that arise on a forum like this. I am also aware, like myself, they do not want to join the conversation but just pray for those who are involved to come together for the sake of the Body of Christ. I haven’t seen any malice or deceit, but only the Lord knows the intent of the heart. I don’t respond or join in the conversations many times because some here are more knowledgeable and some very strong in their belief that it you don’t see any tender care in the delivery of those beliefs. This forum seems to swing either all the way one way or the other. Never middle ground, as I see it. I am sure some won’t agree with me and that is o.k., but I know that I have grown spiritually when care and discernment are used when sharing an opinion or belief. Isn’t that how we are to be? Just a thought and not speaking to anyone specifically.
Amen. I come from a rather fundamentalist background and it can be overtly “in your face” lol. And this is an epidemic like today of sorts. There are also non-fundamentalist environments that still place a very high premium on certaom doctrines or escatological views. We live in a time where to a dedgree that is understandable. And in places perhaps even helpful given the context. But I agree that middle ground "empathy’ is a good starting point. Not that our convictions are middle ground, but that our hearts are centered in and on Christ as we discourse the variations. Blessings dear sister
So well said, dear Teren. I know personally that my “pride” in what I believe is right comes across to others and it can hurt; even kill someone spiritually. I have gained so much from you and everyone on this forum; each in different ways. I am happy to call you each my family and we need each other, I hope. Blessings right back at you, bro!
You are all we have. Our hope is only in You.