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NASB | John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 3:3 Jesus answered him, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless a person is born again [reborn from above--spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified], he cannot [ever] see and experience the kingdom of God." |
Bible Question: I'm puzzled by Galations 5:19-24. I want to know if you have committed any of these and repented are you safe from being kept from receiving the kingdom of God. I have been saved a long time and committed one of these fleshly sin's but have repented, has God rejected my prayer like he did with Saul over the Amelikites? help! |
Bible Answer: Greetings in our Savior's Name! Once upon a time there was a little boy who broke his father's prized possession. He was afraid. What would his father do to him? With tears and fears, the little boy carried the pieces to his daddy. Seeing his face and hearing his sobs, the little boy's father rushed to his side saying, "Son, what is the matter, are you OK?" Between heaves, the little boy said, "Oh daddy, look what I've broken!" The father threw his arms around his son saying, "Oh son, I am so glad that you are all right, I thought YOU were broken! Don't worry, I'll put it all back together; I'm the best "fixer!" It is the same with our Heavenly Father. Yes, we, God's prized creation, are ruined by sin. We are all sinners, and sin separates us from Him. Should be be afraid? Yes and no. Yes, if we choose to reject Jesus, God's propitiation for our sinfulness. You see, when you accepted Christ as your risen Savior and Lord, you believed that HE paid the pentalty for your sin - that God's wrath against sin was satisfied, and as a result you received TOTAL AND COMPLETE forgiveness. Because of what Christ has done, you are complelely forgiven and totally accepted and approved by God. When Jesus declared "It is finished," it WAS. Your payment for sin was satisfied. Therefore, there is NO CONDEMNDATION for those who are IN CHRIST! (Rom 5:8) HIS perfect love (for you as demonstrated on the cross) casts out fear.(1 John 4:18) God has already punished Christ for our sin, so why do we persist in thinking that we need more forgiveness? I suspect it is because we have not completley grasped the message of the cross (mercy and grace) and specifically the awesome wrath of God and the propitiation of Jesus. When we continually ruminate over our sin and wallow in "sorrow" for a time as a "penance," this becomes a "work". NOTHING we can do will EVER attone for our sin! Yet, by our response to sin, wondering if we are truley forgiven, is a clear indication that somehow we have not understood the COMPLETE forgiveness we have in Christ. For the BELIEVER, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and clease us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9), CAN be misunderstood IF we make forgiveness conditional upon our confession. Our forgiveness is based soley upon the finished work of Christ which we are given ONCE - upon our confession of faith in Him. (Agreeing with God that we are a sinner in need of a Savior!) Suppose the little boy in the story I wrote came to his daddy day after day begging to be forgiven for what he had done. How would that father eventually feel? Perhaps frustrated at first and then very sad as he realized that his beloved child did not trust him - he didn't believe he had been truly forgiven. Isn't this just the way that we approach our Heavenly Father at times? Our adversary loves to remind us of our past failures . . . it keeps our minds focused upon self and not the Savior! In essence, we say to God that our sinfulness is too great for Him to forgive, or that Christ's sacrificial death was inadequate for our sin! These are lies from the pit of hell! For the wrath of God against sin was TOTALLY satisfied by the cross! So now, when the Holy Spirit convicts you of sin, confess and make a decision to repent of it, agree with God about it, let Him do the cleansing and claim the forgiveness that is ALREADY yours! Remember when Jesus washed the disciples feet? He told them that the one who is clean already only needs to wash his feet . . . you see, just as a foot bath is a refreshing reminder of the whole bath, our time of confession is to be the same, a joyous reminder of the forgiveness we have in our salvation! Ponder these things . . . the more you place your confidence on the finished work of Christ, the less you will focus on the work that you can not do! I hope this long but heartfelt response strikes a chord in your spirit and assures you that you are a deeply loved child of the King! Enjoy His embrace. Blessings, mommapbs |