The sinner has concluded that he is in fact a sinner, he confesses, repents, receives justification (forgiveness of all PAST sins), is baptized (with John’s baptism–read that series.  Key word–John’s) and joins the church of his choice (the one that practices the version of the Gospel that he).  Now what?  If one is a Catholic or Protestant, its business as usual, only without the specter of guilt and punishment due to his unavoidable sins, which are a natural part of his spiritual dna thanks to Adam’s sin transferral miracle.  The only rules that apply are 1) go to church each Sunday, and 2) repent after each sin, though not necessarily immediately after each individual sin.  One fellow told me that he saved up his repentances and took care of them all at once, supposedly on Sunday.  Others perform their sin dump each night at bedtime.  The sin-repent-sin-repent cycle is what the whole of professing Christendom believes in and practices.  The questions are: IS THE CHURCH’S SIN-REPENT CYCLE BIBLICAL?  IS IT THE WILL OF GOD IN OPERATION?  IS SUNDAY HIS SABBATH?  DOES HE REACT POSITIVELY TO THIS GLOBAL CHURCH PRACTICE?  The Biblical answer to all three questions, spoken throughout both the Old and New Testaments, is: “NO.”  Two and one-half billion people say: “Yes.”

The reason the Biblical answer is “no” is that the new church member does not recognize, nor will he recognize the second reason Christ died on the cross: HE HAS NOT RECEIVED AND REFUSES TO RECEIVE THE POWER OF GOD NEEDED TO RESIST SATAN’S TEMPTATIONS TO SIN.  The new believer is not equipped to win the inevitable war he must fight with Satan.  He has only received John’s baptism of repentance, then told that the fix is in.  All he needs to do now is repent.  Repentance is not enough to make one a saint of God.  As Jesus made clear in Revelation 3:21, in order to join Him in the Kingdom of God (not heaven), one must: “… overcome (Satan) as I overcame (him) ….”  Only those who do so will join Him on His throne in paradise.  Overcoming is what Jesus told the prostitute and the man at the Bethesda pool to do.  Only by overcoming Satan could they obey His command to “SIN NO MORE.”  What the new (and old) church member hears repeatedly is, “Sin is inevitable, so just repent afterwards.  That is all that is necessary to maintain your salvation.”  Who but Satan could concoct such a monumental religious mess?  And the “angel of light” has many “ministers of righteousness” to help him in his universal deception program (II Cor. 11:13-15).

True Bible students know that what one is told in church–any church–comes straight from the heart of Satan through the lips of his false prophets.  I have been criticized for being blunt.  My response is: “If you want your ears scratched and your ego messaged, go to church.  If you want God’s Truth, stay tuned.”  I have neither the time nor the inclination for the “I’m O.K., you’re O.K., we’re all O.K.” nonsense flowing from the lips of Satan’s messengers and into the hearts of their Biblically ignorant followers.  Judging from the number of visits to this website, there are many from around the world who want to know God’s Truth.  Frankly, I was shocked to see the numbers.  That is the best payment I could receive for what I do.  A day will come when I will not be allowed to write and speak God’s Truth.  Therefore, I work literally night and day to put forth as much Biblical Truth as possible.  Thank you for staying with me.

Bible Students know that GOD COMMANDS OBEDIENCE TO HIS LAW.  First John 3:4 tells us that sin is the transgression of His Law.  Therefore, when He commands us to “Sin no more,” He is commanding us to obey His Law, which creates holiness in us.  We have two options: obey God and live eternally; obey Satan and die eternally.  All of the repentance one can mouth will not change that.  The question is, HOW DOES ONE OVERCOME SATAN SO AS TO OBEY GOD’S COMMAND TO “SIN NO MORE.”

Before we examine the answer to that question, let us check Satan’s answer as embraced by the Institutional Church.  According to him and his people, one can ignore Christ’s Words commanding the prostitute and the pool visitor not to sin.  That had been the old God and His old Law.  You see, Jesus later died so as to do away with that Law by nailing it to His cross.  His death allowed them to go back to sinning.  And now they could get away with it.  Following His death, they, along with everyone who would ever join “get saved,” would be allowed to determine for themselves what is good and evil, as did Adam and Eve.  Having made those determinations, each “saved” and “born again” person could join with others of the same mind-set, thereby creating a “church.”

Let us put away that Satanic nonsense and see what God says about His holiness requirement for receiving eternal life.  He summarizes His requirement in I Peter 1:16 where He commands us to: “Be ye holy for I am holy.”  “Ye” are those who obey that command and will spend eternity with Him in an earthly paradise known as the Kingdom of God.  The “I” in the statement is the Word (Jn. 1:1-4,14) Who came to earth as Jesus of Nazareth and walked in holiness as a man.  He commands no less of those who call themselves by His name.  Those who claim to be His must “walk as He walked” (1 Jn. 2:6).  Only those who do will spend eternity with Him.  Those who remain “sinners saved by grace” will not.

Jesus said that, as a man, He could do nothing on His own power (Jn. 5:30).  He noted that He was totally dependent on power from on high for His words, deeds and thoughts.  That power was: “… the gift of the Holy Spirit.  For the promise (of the gift) is to you (in Jerusalem) and to all (true believers) afar off ….” (Acts 2:38,39).  Why did believers need the Holy Spirit?  Isn’t faith all that is needed for salvation?  No.  Jesus said to those who followed Him:  “… you will receive POWER after the Holy Spirit comes upon (fills) you ….” (Acts 1:8).  Note it, all true believers must have the power of God’s Holy Spirit within them in order to live life in such a way as to be His witnesses to those among whom they live.  Such a life was commanded of Jesus and is commanded of us.

An important question is: WHAT DOES THE TRUE SAINT’S WITNESS LOOK LIKE?  HOW IS HE TO REPRESENT CHRIST?  Is our witness, as we are are told repeatedly from pulpit and podium, on t.v.. on radio, in movies, on dvd’s and in print, TO SIN AND GET AWAY WITH IT?  Or must our witness of Christ be to “walk even as He walked” (1 Jn. 2:6), to “be pure as He is pure” (1 Jn. 3:3) and to “… overcome even as I (He) overcame ….” (Rev. 3:21)?  The answer is obvious to those who truly seek God’s Truth (His Word–Jn. 17:17).  The other 99.99% of professing Christendom does not agree.  Jesus warned that this would be the case in Matthew 7:13,14) where He prophesied that “few” salvation seekers would “find” His strait gate and walk His narrow way leading to the Kingdom.  The “many,” He warned, would simply “enter in” Satan’s wide gate and walk his broad way leading to destruction–ALL THE WHILE BELIEING THAT THEY ARE FOLLOWING THE BIBLICAL GOD.

In closing this posting I would remind the reader of what the resurrected Christ told His 120 or so disciples when He met with them on the Mount of Olives where He taught them for 40 days about the coming the Kingdom of God.  He told them to return to Jerusalem and remain there, that there would come a time when they would receive the PROMISE FROM THE FATHER about which He had told them.  He said: “… you will be baptized with (in) the Holy Spirit not many days from now ….  You will receive POWER when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you will be My WITNESSES … to the uttermost parts of the earth” (Acts 1:1-8).

His message is the same today.  Our witness is the same as was Christ’s witness.  We are commanded to live in such a way that, WHEN PEOPLE SEE US, THEY SEE THE FATHER” (Jn. 14:9).  If we are to spend eternity with Him we must reflect the Father as did the man Jesus.  There is no sin in the Father, nor shadow of turning.  Therefore, we must “SIN NO MORE.”  If one has received the Holy Spirit, then “Greater is he (the Spirit) in us than he (Satan) that is in the world” (I Jn. 4:4).  Here John is telling us that we must overcome the spirits of antichrist (vs 3).  This is possible only through the power of the Holy Spirit living within us and leading us, for “They who are led by the Spirit, (only) they are the sons of God” (Rom. 8:14).  Obedience to God is possible only by His power abiding within us.  Only through that power can we emulate the walk of Jesus of Nazareth and join Him in paradise. Christ died so that we could receive that Spirit and “walk as He walked.”  There is no other option for one who would spend eternity with Him.  Sin and righteousness are the only two options open to us.  We must choose one of them. Only by the power of the Holy Spirit can we choose the second option.  L.J.