Knowing this, that our old humanity was crucified together with Him, that the body of sin may be nullified, for us by no means to be still slaving for sin, for the one who dies has been justified from sin. Now if we died together with Christ, we believe that we shall be living together with Him also, having perceived that Christ, being roused from among the dead, is no longer dying. Death is lording it over Him no longer, for in that He died, He died to sin once for all time, yet in that He is living, He is living to God. Thus you also, be reckoning yourselves to be dead, indeed, to sin, yet living to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul to the Romans 6: 6-11, Concordant New Testament
I can still remember one of the last times that I walked into a church for a Sunday service. It was an Easter Sunday, and the pastor had just finished his sermon on how Jesus had risen from the grave three days after giving Himself on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. Immediately following the sermon, the pastor invited anyone who needed prayer, including those who felt led to confess sin in their lives, to come forward where the church staff could pray with them. In my mind, something didn't click with this invitation to prayer. For I had just been told that it is Jesus who has given Himself for the forgiveness of my sins. Now, you're telling me that I still have sin to worry about? At that moment, I knew that I was done with the hypocrisy of the mainstream church. Granted, this wasn't the first time that I had been told that I needed to worry about those sins Jesus had supposedly forgiven. Growing up in the church, I had been taught to continually pray over that sin which Jesus had supposedly forgiven me. I spent most of my life wondering what I had done that would make Jesus overlook my own sin. Never once did I think that this was not a Jesus or a me issue, but an issue with the teachings of the church. For if the scriptures tell me that Jesus gave Himself for the forgiveness of sin, but the church says otherwise, I will accept the words of Jesus each and every time. Therefore, it's my belief that the church has sold us a bill of goods when it comes to sin. Those within the church know full well that Christ Jesus died for the sin of all mankind, yet they continue to preach otherwise. Scripture tells us that He is "The Lamb of God which is taking away the sin of the world!" {Johns Account 1:29}. That Christ Jesus has been dispatched not to judge, but that ALL the world would be saved through Him {Johns Account 3:16-17}. Somewhere along the way, the church lost that message.
Religion has actually convinced people that there is a invisible man living in the sky watching everything you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a special list of ten things he doesn't want you to do. And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry forever and ever until the end of time. But he loves you. He loves you and he needs money. He always needs money. He's all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing and all-wise, somehow he just can't handle money.
~George Carlin~
A good friend of mine made the comment to me the other day that Christians love their sin, and I would agree. Think about it, too many believers spend their days wondering and worrying over something which Jesus has already given Himself to remove from our lives. The apostle Paul speaks to the truth that Jesus died that we "By no means still be slaving for sin" {Paul to the Romans 6:6}. Not only that, but that He gave Himself for the death of our sin "Once for all time" {Paul to the Romans 6:10}. Jesus has not overlooked some sin that we would once again be under its influence. Jesus has given Himself that ALL sin would die on that cross! Yet the argument I get from too many believers is that they continue to "Behave wrongly." They falsely identify this as being sin. But if we're promised that Jesus has died once already for the forgiveness of sin, can we therefore assume that this means ALL sin past, present and future? Once again, Jesus said it, I believe it. Yet whenever I mention this truth to well intentioned believers, they scoff at my seemingly blatant heresy. But is it heresy? I have been told that Christ Jesus is the Lamb of God which is taking away the sin of the world, can we trust the scriptures in this? I know that I do. One message I will not trust is that of the mainstream church, whose message contradicts the truth we find in the evangel of Paul.
~Scott~
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