Many people today preach that even though God said we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, we don’t have to do any of those works because all our sins, past, present, and future, are forgiven, wiped clean on the cross with Christ Jesus. They claim that from the day we accepted Jesus God doesn’t see us sin, He only sees the righteousness of Jesus.
One man put it this way, “God sees us as perfect as Jesus Christ, no matter how dark our sins are. Our past, present, and future sins are wiped clean through and by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary.”
If this is true, that our present and future sins are wiped clean while we are committing them and before we commit them, and God sees only the righteousness of Jesus, how would God even know about them when He looks at us?
If this is true, there is no reason and no sense to repent of them since they’re already forgiven. And if all present and future sins are forgiven, why did Jesus tell several churches in Revelation He’ll be done with them if they don’t repent? He told one congregation that was lukewarm that He would spit them out of His mouth if they didn’t repent and do what they were supposed to do, Revelation 3:16.
And why would Paul write the following words to Titus?
Titus 2:11-14,
11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men,
12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age,
13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus;
14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and PURIFY FOR HIMSELF a people for His own possession, ZEALOUS FOR GOOD DEEDS.
If those who believe in once saved, always savedare right, then faith without works is alive and well, and the word of God is in question for containing such passages as
For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? Hebrews 9:11-14.
The blood of animals atoned for past sins; the blood of Jesus not only atones for past sins, it also takes away future sins. He takes them away; He doesn’t cover them; He provides a way of escape for every temptation common to man that we might escape sin through faith in Jesus, who made this way of escape possible for us.
Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness. And you know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. 6 No one who abides in Him sins… 1 John 3:4-6.
Jesus is the shepherd of those who trust in Him, and they shall not want. He makes them lie down in green pastures; He leads them beside still waters. He restores their soul; He guides them in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake, See Psalm 23:2-3.
Do you follow Jesus? If so, you are walking down the paths of righteousness, rather than the paths of the flesh. And you are doing it FOR HIS NAME’S SAKE.
Jon David Banks, God’s most unworthy servant
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org
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