Posted on 04/23/2022 3:08:57 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
[T]oday’s churches are increasingly offering the same get-out-of-hell-free cards the culture offers; whatever you do is good because you are being "true to yourself" and are "following your heart" and "your truth."
That is not Christianity; that is enhanced 60’s hedonism. Want to be gay? Why not? Want to be a woman, just shave, grow long hair, take hormones, dress up, wear padded bras, and join the Navy and the women's curling team. Want to mess with little kids? Have at it, but make sure parents don’t find out. Want to be an anti-white racist, a cop-hater, a Marxist, or a corrupt pro-Russia politician with a job that pays hundreds of thousands of dollars a month because daddy lives in the White House? Go for it. Want to make personal happiness your priority? Why not? After all, what is more important than being happy? Want to avoid being insulted or suffering any form of anxiety? We will move heaven and earth to give you that safe space. Want to shut people up you disagree with? Great, happy to close down our business or website because your delicate sensibilities are offended. Want to deny that Satan exists? Better still. In fact, best.
Too many of our churches have watered down Christianity into a church of cowards, too cowed to speak up. They are told that "Jesus would never behave that way." Jesus behaved exactly that way. He was strong, not wimpy. He got angry, He didn’t slink away when confronted with disbelief and evil. He challenged His followers to give up everything for Him, to be strong and courageous, not to wuss out. He went to the cross for fallen, sinful human beings and never shrank from His mission like many of today’s churches are doing.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Galatians 3:1-3 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?
AHHHhh...
Saved by faith: Kept by works.
Why is the JST now getting any traction?
I’ve always heard that the PTB in SLC did not consider it to be ‘scripture’.
A year and a half later, Joseph Smith said his translation was completed. On July 2, 1833, History of the Church 1:368 reported,
“We this day finished the translating of the Scriptures, for which we return gratitude to our Heavenly Father.”
If Joseph Smith truly finished his translation of the Bible and made corrections to a book that he claimed was true “only as far as it was translated correctly,” and if these changes are as good as McConkie says they are, then why doesn’t the LDS Church officially use the Inspired Version rather than the King James Bible?
In an authorized gospel manual published in the early 1970s, tenth president Joseph Fielding Smith explained the LDS leadership’s view on this issue:
“The reason why the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has not published the entire manuscript is not due to any lack of confidence in the integrity of Joseph Smith, or doubt as to the correctness of the numerous additions and changes which are not in the Authorized Version of the Bible. The members of the Church do accept fully all of these (changes) as having come by divine revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith. The reason that is has not been published by the Church is due to the fact that this revision was not completed. It was the intention of Joseph Smith, while at Nauvoo, to take the scriptures up again and complete his labors, making numerous corrections which had not been made by him in the earlier revision. Due to persecution and mobbing this opportunity never came, so that the manuscript was left with only a partial revision” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Selections from Answers to Gospel Questions: A Course of Study for the Melchizedek Priesthood Quorum 1972-73, p. 312).
Smith’s reasoning is inadequate for several reasons:
1) If Smith did not finish the Bible as God supposedly told him to do so 1832 (D&C 73:4b), should Smith’s negligence to do what God commanded be considered a sin? After all, Smith lived for twelve more years after he was told to do this. Did he never have the chance to sit down and complete this reasonable task set forth by God?
2) If the translation wasn’t finished, then why did Smith say that he finished it in 1833?
3) If the Bible was only partially revised, does this mean the words that were revised or added by Smith are no better than what the King James Version has to offer?
Finally, why doesn’t the current LDS leadership—whom members believe possess “keys” and serve as God’s mouthpiece upon the earth—finish the work themselves? McConkie wrote that “up to the present time none of his successors have been directed by the Lord to carry the work forth to its final fruition” (Mormon Doctrine, 1966, p. 383). However, he promised, “There will be a not too distant day when all necessary changes shall be made in the Bible, and the Inspired Version — as then perfected — shall go forth to the world” (Mormon Doctrine, 1966, p. 384).
Oh?
What are works then?
The admin mod posted that 11 years before Bozo signed up on FR, and about a decade after I was FReeping.
Love is a work/verb as described by God.
Do you not love God then?
Does not only those who LOVE God enter into to Heaven, as they deny themselves and FOLLOW God, especially from the Apostles who actual saw the risen Christ. They believed and became obedient, espesially doubting Thomas. They did not sit on their asses and proclaimed OSAS.
Prodies have some anti-Biblical beliefs along with the “traditionalist” from the Patriarchal/Apostolistic era. I take Gos’s contextual commands very serious
WOKENESS = WEAKNESS
Indeed, but heresies abound.
"” They have no forgiveness until they first repent, believe, and follow Him."
Actually God forgives/purifies their hearts by effectual, regenerating faith (Acts 15:7-9; Titus 3:5) which results in obedience, with baptism normally being the first formal example of that. Acts 10:43,47) Meaning that just as all we decide to do is a manifestation of what we truly believe, at least at the moment, then to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ who died for our forgiveness and rose again and is now Lord of all, is to believe in Him to save us and to be our Lord and respond accordingly. Not self or the world or the devil and repent when aware we are not. . And with obedience being relative to light and ability given.
DON’T make the mistake of thinking I’m saying people are all saved, already; that’s not so, but they stand — at this moment — forgiven. It remains for all to believe, and to repent in light of Gods immense grace toward them, but the blood of Christ was sufficient to satisfy the penalty of sin for all man, for all time, and the transaction was complete at The Cross, and Validated forever at the empty tomb.
You object, saying that unbelievers are not “pre-forgiven.”
FIRST of all, we were ALL “unbelievers” when Christ paid our death penalty in our behalf.
But, SECOND of all, St. Paul disagrees: he told the Corinthians “God WAS [PAST TENSE] in Christ reconciling the whole world to Himself, not counting men’s trespasses against them...” St. Paul also told the Colossians: “...EVEN THOUGH you were dead in your transgressions and in the uncircumcision of your flesh [being yet unbelieving and unaware of any of it], [God] NEVERTHELESS made you alive with [Christ], HAVING FORGIVEN [already, in the past] ALL YOUR TRANSGRESSIONS. He has destroyed what was against us, a certificate of indebtedness expressed in decrees opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross (Col. 2:13-14).”
So, Who did the forgiving? God.
When? When the Colossians [who predate us] were still dead in [their] transgressions.
How? He nailed the certificate of our condemnation to the Cross of Christ.
To what had the Colossians been condemned? DEATH (Rom. 6:23).
Who was executed by God instead of us all? Jesus.
For it was the will of God to crush him, to put him to grief (Is. 53:10).
Since God, in Christ, wrought our forgiveness in blood Holy enough to save everyone, what’s left for us to ask for?
We don’t ask; we repent, and believe with thankful hearts.
“Repenting means we are asking God for forgiveness for our sins.
Repenting and asking forgiveness are two different things; the latter is not inherent in the former.
“The definition of repentance, according to the Bible, is remorse and sorrow for the sins we have committed.”
https://www.biblestudy.org/basicart/what-is-repentance.html
Repentance is a change of heart to turn from sin, including the sin of unbelief, Which is why salvation requires believing in faith, just as st. Peter preached in Acts 2.
Look carefully at what St. Peter told the stricken crowd they had to do to be saved: “Peter said to them, “REPENT, and each one of you BE BAPTIZED in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins,...”
NOTE particularly that there is no commandment, here, to ask God for forgiveness; that the forgiveness is, instead, described as inherent in being baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
We don’t separately ask God to be forgiven, we — inherent in our baptism into Jesus’ person and work — step into acknowledgement that, in Christ, we were already forgiven long before we ever knew we needed to be.
[Baptism has a much broader sense in the New Testament than just being dunked in water. See Mark 10:38, Acts 10:37 and Acts 19:3 for just three instances illustrating this point.
It’s about the wholehearted embrace of an entire message, the dunking in water being only an outward exhibition of the inward commitment.]
Consider this: if I showed up tomorrow at the bank and paid off your mortgage, when you found out, what would you say to me?
I’ll tell you ONE thing you certainly WOULDN’T say; you WOULD NOT say to me, “Sir, please pay off my mortgage.” That would not make sense, because the payment had already been made. The request to do what I had already done would be puzzling, if not a bit insulting, and would reflect that you didn’t fully grasp the nature of my benevolence.
In the same way, having been forgiven in Christ at the Cross, it is equally nonsensical for us to ask God to forgive us; He paid that debt in blood so precious we cannot even begin to imagine the enormity of what it cost Him.
Our response is REPENTANCE, and, by faith, BELIEVING with grateful hearts for His manifest love toward us.
DON’T make the mistake of thinking I’m saying people are all saved, already; that’s not so, but they stand — at this moment — forgiven. It remains for all to believe, and to repent in light of Gods immense grace toward them, but the blood of Christ was sufficient to satisfy the penalty of sin for all man, for all time, and the transaction was complete at The Cross, and Validated forever at the empty tomb.
You object, saying that unbelievers are not “pre-forgiven.”
FIRST of all, we were ALL “unbelievers” when Christ paid our death penalty in our behalf.
But, SECOND of all, St. Paul disagrees: he told the Corinthians “God WAS [PAST TENSE] in Christ reconciling the whole world to Himself, not counting men’s trespasses against them...” St. Paul also told the Colossians: “...EVEN THOUGH you were dead in your transgressions and in the uncircumcision of your flesh [being yet unbelieving and unaware of any of it], [God] NEVERTHELESS made you alive with [Christ], HAVING FORGIVEN [already, in the past] ALL YOUR TRANSGRESSIONS. He has destroyed what was against us, a certificate of indebtedness expressed in decrees opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross (Col. 2:13-14).”
So, Who did the forgiving? God.
When? When the Colossians [who predate us] were still dead in [their] transgressions.
How? He nailed the certificate of our condemnation to the Cross of Christ.
To what had the Colossians been condemned? DEATH (Rom. 6:23).
Who was executed by God instead of us all? Jesus.
For it was the will of God to crush him, to put him to grief (Is. 53:10).
Since God, in Christ, wrought our forgiveness in blood Holy enough to save everyone, what’s left for us to ask for?
We don’t ask; we repent, and believe with thankful hearts.
“Repenting means we are asking God for forgiveness for our sins.
Repenting and asking forgiveness are two different things; the latter is not inherent in the former.
“The definition of repentance, according to the Bible, is remorse and sorrow for the sins we have committed.”
https://www.biblestudy.org/basicart/what-is-repentance.html
Repentance is a change of heart to turn from sin, including the sin of unbelief, Which is why salvation requires believing in faith, just as st. Peter preached in Acts 2.
Look carefully at what St. Peter told the stricken crowd they had to do to be saved: “Peter said to them, “REPENT, and each one of you BE BAPTIZED in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins,...”
NOTE particularly that there is no commandment, here, to ask God for forgiveness; that the forgiveness is, instead, described as inherent in being baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
We don’t separately ask God to be forgiven, we — inherent in our baptism into Jesus’ person and work — step into acknowledgement that, in Christ, we were already forgiven long before we ever knew we needed to be.
[Baptism has a much broader sense in the New Testament than just being dunked in water. See Mark 10:38, Acts 10:37 and Acts 19:3 for just three instances illustrating this point.
It’s about the wholehearted embrace of an entire message, the dunking in water being only an outward exhibition of the inward commitment.]
Consider this: if I showed up tomorrow at the bank and paid off your mortgage, when you found out, what would you say to me?
I’ll tell you ONE thing you certainly WOULDN’T say; you WOULD NOT say to me, “Sir, please pay off my mortgage.” That would not make sense, because the payment had already been made. The request to do what I had already done would be puzzling, if not a bit insulting, and would reflect that you didn’t fully grasp the nature of my benevolence.
In the same way, having been forgiven in Christ at the Cross, it is equally nonsensical for us to ask God to forgive us; He paid that debt in blood so precious we cannot even begin to imagine the enormity of what it cost Him.
Our response is REPENTANCE, and, by faith, BELIEVING with grateful hearts for His manifest love toward us.
but they stand — at this moment — forgiven.
Unjudged, not forgiven.
Take it up with St. Paul; I laid out his case.
Well said.
I'd hate to have any of these!!
Can you show me in Scripture where... Love is a work/verb as described by God. ?
But many minds still wonder:
Is baptism used to help save us, or is it a sign that we have been saved?
HMMMmmm...
John 3:18 kjv
He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
There can only be one means of appropriating justification, which is by effectual regenerating faith being imputed for righteousness, which effects the same, and not a ritual that requires a certain physical element, and which renders one good enough to be declared righteousness, but who quickly discovers he is sinful and thus must usually endure postmortem "purifying punishments" (as if suffering itself makes on righteousness) to once again to become good enough to with God.
However, since baptism properly requires and fosters faith then in some cases it can be a catalyst in conversion, being the occasion, but not the cause, of conversion. An altar call can likewise be one, as inducing faith, which is what sound preaching itself is to do.
This union of cause and effect is illustrated in the case of the palsied man, in which Christ asked, "Whether is it easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk? (Mark 2:9) then to tell a person to do something which requires faith can be the same as telling them to be believe, as in Acts 2:38 which is consistent with Acts 10:43. It was forgiveness which effected the healing, and thus "Thy sins be forgiven thee" or "take up thy bed, and walk" went together and could be used interchangeably. However, the effect is never to be confused with the cause, even though they go together as cause and effect.
“...and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ...”
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