How do I find truth amidst so many opinions?

[ViaCrucis]

In Philippians 3 the goal Paul refers to is this: "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead." Philippians 3:10-11

Paul had not yet attained this for obvious reasons, the resurrection of the dead is still yet to come. So, quite obviously Paul had not yet reached that final goal because no one will until Christ's Parousia at the end of the age (1 Corinthians 15:20-26).

While we yet live in the mortality and corruptibility of this present life we have not reached the end goal, but are instead still running the race. But here and now we have confidence in the grace of God which is ours, freely, in Christ through faith of that future hope. That He who began a good work in us will continue that good work until the day of the Lord Jesus (Philippians 1:6).

Because our salvation is both now and yet to come; both present and future.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[SeventyTimes7]

That passage should not be misapplied to mean uncertainly about salvation. What Paul was saying is that he had not attained in practise the perfection of Christ -- "either were already perfect" (v.12). Paul was 101% sure of his salvation, as were all the apostles, and as are those who simply believe God. Paul believed what John believed (1 Jn 5:13): These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

11 if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.
12 Not as though I had already attained it, either were already perfect, but I follow after, if I may lay hold of that for which I have also been laid hold of by the Christ, Jesus.
13 Brethren, I do not reckon to have laid hold of it yet, but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and extending myself unto those things which are ahead,

Only God has the last word on everyone and everything; no one of us can tell "Oh I am going to heaven cause I've decided that", humbleness is one of the first key to success; only the Pharisee believed to be saved.
We must not fall in the error to forget which there is a Judge.

 

[Job8]

Christians should always keep in mind that the Resurrection/Rapture is the time when all the saints will be completely perfected (body, soul, and spirit). Although we are imperfect in our mortal bodies and Christians can and do sin, we are perfect in God's sight because (a) we have been washed in the blood of the Lamb and (b) we have been clothed with the righteousness of Christ. This has nothing to do with our merits because we have received this purely by God's grace. Paul was already perfect in God's sight, but in practical terms he was awaiting the Resurrection/Rapture in order to be totally perfected.

 

[CGL1023]

I really don't mean to be antagonistic, but those seem like cop-out answers. Do you not really know either, or are you not sure? I feel dirty going before God and asking for forgiveness with the knowledge that I will definitely sin again. It feels cheap and inauthentic to read His word and entertain notions that perhaps forgiveness is for people like me. And yes, I actually do want to be spoon-fed the answers. I'm sorry to say that I do not feel like the Bible speaks to me like living word, but rather just text that can, and IS, interpreted differently by whoever reads it. Seriously people, I'm exhausted. I mean, just living feels like too much to bear and I'm losing hope for any meaning or redemption. If you know, can you just tell me- please?

When you say what is in the paragraph above, it seems that you don't know the wonderfully uplifting things that God says about you in His Word; God will not appreciate that you demean yourself. He declares in Ps 139, through David that you are fearfully and wonderfully made; those are God's thoughts on the subject and He would not accept you saying less than that about yourself. Countless other examples could be given. The very fact that you are made in God's image is huge beyond description.

 

[ToBeLoved]

Hello, let me preface this by saying that I do not have as much knowledge of the bible as many on here, despite being raised in a Christian home. I have recently been considering dedicating my life to God, but I am having some trouble. First, I understand that repentance is a necessary part of salvation, but what exactly is that? Is it simply acknowledging that I am a sinner and completely unredeemable by my own merit, or is it actively trying to turn from sin and live a holy life despite the fact that I will certainly sin again whether I want to or not? I know this sounds bad, but what if I don't really want to stop sinning? I mean, if I could snap my finger and not sin anymore without any struggle or temptation I would do it in a heartbeat, but what if I would rather just take the easy way and keep doing what I've been doing? I guess what I'm asking is, if I intentionally and habitually sin am I not saved? I have heard people say different things on the topic, and I'm not really sure who to believe. I guess my personal feeling is, if I truly had the love of God in my heart I wouldn't want to sin anymore. Does anyone have a definitive answer? I am confused. Thank you in advance for any light you can shed on the subject.

First of all, let's put your sinning and whether you will keep doing it on the back burner for a minute. We will get back to it in a little while.

It seems that you have a pretty good handle on Jesus dying for your sin. Each of us must stand one day before a holy God. God cannot be anything but holy. And holy and sin are direct opposites. So to spend eternity with God, with God being holy we must EACH take care of our sin problem, because sin separates us from a holy God. But God loves us. He does not want us separated from Him for eternity. So He sent His Only Begotten Son to be a perfect (holy) sacrifice for our sins. By Jesus living a holy life as both fully God and fully man, He is able to appropriate for our sins. His blood on the cross was your sacrifice. He is our Advocate to the Father. So, with Him cleansing us from all unrighteousness (not ourselves) but through Jesus Christ we are made holy.

John 14:6-7
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. 7 "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him."

So the only way we come to holiness is through the forgiveness of our sin by Jesus Christ who is our Advocate to the Father.

1 John 2:1-2
My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; 2 and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.

Ephesians 2:8
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

God offers all who believe in Him and have faith that He is the Son of God who died for our sins on the cross and through Him we have the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. God Himself loves you so much that He died for you, so you can spend eternity with Him. There was no other price that could have been paid, but for God Himself to do it because no one else could have lived a perfect life. That is why it is a gift of God by grace.


So do you believe that?

That the Son of God died on the cross and shed His blood as the only appropriation that could have resulted in forgiveness of sin?