You said you did not necessarily accept Paul’s word as God’s word
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Is “Paul’s word” an assertion that one might freely sin (after sincerely affirming one’s faith in Jesus Christ) without repentance and still see the face of God? There seems to be no small group of people who believes that is Paul’s view.
We ALL freely sin.
ALL sin is a choice for the believer.
Nobody forces the believer to sin.
So yes, even if we sin after salvation, it does NOT cost us our salvation or place in heaven. We do not have to repent of every last specific sin to get into heaven.
God is not a petty nit-picky tyrant sitting up there keeping account of every misdeed so he can throw us in hell cause we didn't do what some religions think we should.
Heavens no. “May it never be.” Repentance is Christ’s first command. Following are the first words to Christ’s very first sermon in each of the first three Gospels:
Matthew 4:17 (ESV): From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Mark 1:15 (ESV): The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
Luke 13:3 (ESV): No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
II think it’s very clear that repentance ia an essential element of a godly and sincere faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.