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NASB | Micah 7:19 He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast all their sins Into the depths of the sea. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Micah 7:19 He shall again have compassion on us; He will subdue and tread underfoot our wickedness [destroying sin's power]. Yes, You will cast all our sins Into the depths of the sea. [Ps 103:12] |
Subject: God's Forgiveness of Sin |
Bible Note: Greetings Nolan, I'd like to comment on the scriptures you've listed relative to negative judgement and the believer. Please give me your views in return. I understand these scriptures to say that God forgives all of our sins past, present, and future. To me, the bible makes it clear that God has judicially removed sin from the believer and has done it completely. "For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more" (Heb. 8:12) With regard to sin, scripture affirms that the child of God under grace shall not come under judgment (Jn 3:18; 5:24). Our sin, past, present, and future, has been born by a perfect Substitute, and we are therefore forever placed beyond condemnation (Col. 2:10), accepted as perfect in Christ (I Cor. 1:30; Eph. 1:6; Col. 2:10; Heb. 10:14), and loved as Christ is loved (Jn. 17:23). However, we see in many other passages that God does judge us when we become carnal and does remember our sin. "Unless I wash you, you have no part with me (Jn. 13:8). So, if the Christian does not confess, he is not forgiven. This sounds like a penalty for willful sin. This is true even though Paul has declared elsewhere that "nothing shall be able to separate us from the love of God" (Rom. 8:39). "And behold I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to everyone according to his work" (Rev. 22:12). This passage seems to assert that every man, Christian and nonchristian, will be judged according to his work. We are also told that we will reap what we sow. We have been warned that there is no sacrificial protection from judgement in time (Heb. 10:26)for willful sin. Paul tells us that at the judgment seat of Christ we will be rewarded for both the good and bad things we have done. For the persistently carnal Christian a dreadful experience awaits him at the last day. He will suffer the loss of everything but will be saved as through fire (ICor. 3:15). We have Christ's warning to the wicked servant (Would He call an unsaved man a servant?), that he would be cast into the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. The foolish virgins are excluded from the wedding banquet, and the man without the proper attire for the banquet was cast into the darkness outside. These all sound like punishments. We cannot say that they are all unregenerate just because our theological system teaches that these punishments could not come upon the regenerate (born again). As I mentioned in an earlier note, it seems as though there are three negative consequences for the consistently carnal Christian at the judgement seat of Christ. First, for some there will be a stinging rebuke. Could this be the meaning of the Lord's warning that some will be "cut in pieces"? (Mt. 24:51) And of his stern denunciation, "You wicked, lazy, servant" (Mt. 25:26) Second, such unfaithful Christians face millennial disinheritance. A father may disinherit his son, but the son is still his son. Isn't this disinheritance a forfeiture of one's share in the millennial reign. And finally, the carnal Christian faces exclusion from the joy of the wedding banquet, "Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?" (Mt. 22:12) It has been suggested that this line of thought approaches catholocism's "purgatory". From "Dabney" pp. 538-545. "Purgatory must be rejected. The Scriptures teach that the saint is made perfect at death and there is therfore no room for a purgatorical cleansing. Satisfaction of Christ is complete in regard to providing eternal unconditional acceptance and immediate entrance to heaven at death. Therefore, what ever befalls the glorified saint at the judgment seat cannot exclude him from immediate entrance into heaven." From R. T. Kendall, Once Saved Always Saved (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1984), p. 123 "We must deduce from this that there is no contradiction between Paul's doctrine of justification and his conception of the judgment of God; and that being declared righteous so as to escape the wrath of God (Rom. 5:9; I Thess. 1:10) does not exempt us from rewards or punishment in the Last Day." I've written all of the above to express my conviction that the scriptures you listed are absolutely literal regarding final justification. I believe that carnal Christians who die without "Making a Comeback", will make it to heaven. I don't believe hell is a consideration for these Christians. They along with Christians that have disciplined themselves to walk with Christ to the best of their abilities, will be judged according to their works, whether good or bad. Please excuse the length of my note. I look forward to hearing from you. Eagle One |