SERMON CENTRE

Justification!

Dr. Joel Beeke | Heidelberg Catechism Season 23

Heritage Reformed Congregation

sermonaudio.com/sermon/10524216436920

The King's invitation

Corey Betts | Matthew

Christ Community Church

sermonaudio.com/sermon/519211843162269




The Hidden Beauty of the Gospel

Voddie Baucham

Lusaka Baptist Church


sermonaudio.com/sermon/618241422575282




Gospel Dynamite in Ephesus

Mark Powell | Acts

Covenant Reformed Baptist

sermonaudio.com/sermon/119231917493043

Pommer said:

Who should determine that fact?

Click to expand...

Not who, what.

Akita Suggagaki said:

Amen to that.
Can we get someone in there who doesn't say or do something stupid for a change.
Someone who's "team" does not have to explain or make excuses on a daily basis?

Click to expand...

That's someone other than Harris

bump

Stephen3141 said:

I think that you are referring to the Canaanite religions, that existed in the
land of Canaan before the Israelites crossed the Jordan, coming out of the
wilderness.

You need to take care, when trying to apply an example of God's judgment
(in the Bible) to other situations.

Click to expand...

Agreed - but in Lev 18 God is dealing specifically with non-Bible-aware pagan nations and the line that they cross to get God to wipe them out.

America has more Bible awareness by every measure -- than the pagan nations around Israel in Lev 18.

So it serves as an interesting low-bar that we should strive not to sink below.

Stephen3141 said:

1 He supported the rule of law of the Roman Empire,
even though this law allowed abortion and infanticide.

Click to expand...

And then Rome gets wiped out.

God says that the more light a nation has -- and yet does those abominations -- the shorter is its probation, the more swift its judgment

mourningdove~ said:

Okay, Charlie.

God bless you ... and don't forget to vote!

Login to view embedded media

Click to expand...

I'm an Election judge in my county


I voted absentee weeks ago.

Forbearance

Goodness of God Leads to Repentance

Rom 2:4 Or despise you (Christians) the riches of his (God) (1) goodness and (2) forbearance and (3) long-suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?

Remission of Sins and Self-control of God

Rom 3:25 (1) Whom(Jesus) God has set forth to be a propitiation (appeasing) (2) through faith in his (Jesus) blood, (3) to declare his (Jesus) righteousness for the remission of sins (4) that are past, through the forbearance (self-control) of God;

Goodness

Israel Seeks the LORD and David

Hos 3:4-5 For the children of Israel shall abide many days (AD 70 driven out) without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod (apron), and without teraphim (idol): Hos 3:5 (1) Afterward shall the children of Israel return (1948 became a nation), (2) and seek the LORD their God, (3) and David their king; (4) and shall fear the LORD (5) and his goodness in the latter days. (Ezek 37 {Dan 9:27 Rev 6:2})

The Goodness, Forbearance, and Long-suffering of God

Rom 2:4 Or despises you (Christians) the riches of his (1) goodness and (2) forbearance and (3) long-suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leads you (Christians) to repentance?

Goodness of God Provides a way for Possible Repentance

Rom 11:22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward you (Christians), goodness, *if you continue in his goodness: otherwise you also shall be cut off. Is (1) goodness and (2) forbearance and (3) long-suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?

*If you continue in his goodness (along the roads of the offered opprotunity for repentance): otherwise (if you don't remain on the road of God's goodness) you also shall be cut off

God Uses Infirmities to Keep Paul Humble

Rom 15:15 Nevertheless, brethren (Christians), I (Paul) have written the more boldly unto you in some sort, as putting you in mind, because of the *grace (strenght to continue) that is given to me (Paul) of God,

2Co 12:7-10 *And lest I (Paul) should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted (become self-righteous) above measure. 2Co 12:8 For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. 2Co 12:9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for you: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2Co 12:10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

The Nine Strengths of the Holy Spirit

Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is (1) love, (2) joy, (3) peace, (4) long-suffering, (5) gentleness, (6) goodness, (7) faith, Gal 5:23 (8) Meekness, (9) temperance (developing infirmities of Christians): against such there is no law.

Gal 5:19-21 Sixteen Evil Fruits of Lucifer: Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; (1) Adultery, (2) fornication, (3) uncleanness, (4) lasciviousness, Gal 5:20 (5) Idolatry, (6) witchcraft, (7) hatred, (8) variance, (9) emulations, (10) wrath, (11), seditions, (12) heresies, Gal 5:21 (13) Envyings, (14) murders, (15) drunkenness, (16) revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you (Christians) before, as I (Paul) have also told you in time past, that they (children of darkness 1Thess 5:5) which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

1Th 5:5 You (Christians) are all the children of light (God), and the children of the day: we are not of the night (Lucifer), nor of darkness.

Php 3:18 (For many (unsaved) walk, of whom I (Paul) have told you often, and now tell you (Christians) even weeping, that they (unsaved) are the enemies of the cross of Christ:

2Co 11:13-15 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 2Co 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan (title of Lucifer) himself is transformed into an angel of light. 2Co 11:15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

From Spiritual Death to Eternal Life

Eph 5:8-9 For you (Christians) were *sometimes (before salvation) darkness, but now are you (Christians) *light in the Lord (Jesus): walk as children of light: Eph 5:9 (For the *fruit of the Spirit is in all (1) goodness and (2) righteousness and (3) truth Eph 5:10 Proving what is acceptable (Rom 7:8-25) unto the Lord.

*Gentles Receive the New Birth: Joh 1:11-14 He came unto his own (Jews), and his own received him not. Joh 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Joh 1:13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. Joh 1:14 And the Word was made flesh (Jesus), and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

*The Light of the World: Joh 8:12-16 Then spoke Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. Joh 8:13 The Pharisees therefore said unto him, you bear record of yourself; your record is not true. Joh 8:14 Jesus answered and said unto them, though I bear record of myself, yet my record is true: for I know whence I came, and whither I go; but you cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go. Joh 8:15 You judge after the flesh; I judge no man. Joh 8:16 And yet if I judge, my judgment is true: for I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me.

*The Nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit: Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Gal 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

The Work of Faith

2Th 1:11 Wherefore also we (Christian Servant Leadership) pray always for you (Christians),*that our God would count you (Christians) worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, *and the work of faith with power:

*Act 5:31 Him (Jesus) has God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

*Col 1:10 That you (Christians) might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

*1Th 1:3 Remembering without ceasing (1) your work of faith, (2) and labor of love, (3) and patience of hope in our (Christian) Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;

*2Th 1:11 Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you (Christian) worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:

hislegacy said:

The DSA’s second item is “Abolition of the Carceral State” (“carceral” refers to prison and jail time). The DSA wants to “defund the police” — where have you heard that before? — and “free all incarcerated people.” Harris supported the “defund” movement and eliminating bail for some crimes until those positions became political liabilities. Now she tries to hide her soft-on-crime policies by stressing her background as a prosecutor.

Click to expand...

"Defund the police" is too broad a term - almost slanderous - implying the person's position is a wholesale abandonment of law and order! It's just so TRUMP-ist to accuse her of that. Forget the facts. Forget being honest. Forget gathering '2 or 3 witnesses'. It's true - because my right-wing echo chamber said so - so I'm just going to smear it all over the virtual world I live in!

Harris's position is vastly more nuanced than that - and I'm actually kind of surprised that a Prosecutor gets various social policies like this! I have a bit of a Social Sciences background - and the nuance she shows on this makes sense! She seems to be talking about the excessive militarization of police - because as the streets get harder (so the mentality goes) - the Police need to get harder. Until you have APC's and robot-cops with machine guns ready to 'Police' those ethnic neighbourhoods. (As if they have not suffered enough with previous decades of racist policies, financial prejudice against them in having the worst schools on the wrong side of the line, and 1950's 'emergency highways' built through their neighbourhoods - dislocating neighbourhoods that were just starting to function as cohesive and supportive communities!)

So what was Harris REALLY saying in answer to all of this?

If you're SMART about these things - instead of buying APC's to drive through scary neighbourhoods - and having those police officers so stressed and hyped up by a military locker-room mentality that they're prepared to open fire on anything that moves! - how about spending SOME of that 'militarised' budget on drug programs that will benefit the WHOLE community - making it vastly less dangerous to live in? This is just one area of social spending that could help reduce neighbourhood crime AND de-escalate the militarization of police.

END THE WAR ON DRUGS!​

The “War on Drugs” has failed.

IT CREATES CARTELS: The War on Drugs ignores the basic economics of supply and demand! By making drugs criminal (rather than a mental health policy) the illegal drugs become scarce, which drives up the price! That creates an IRRESISTABLE incentive to developing countries to grow drugs and create enormous cartels that rival some multinational corporations for sheer infrastructure!

IT INCREASES CRIME AND MURDER RATES something like 25% to 75% more! So do we militarize the police - or create harm minimising drug treatment programs instead and cut the source of this poison at the root rather than letting it spread throughout the whole society?

VASTLY INCREASES INCARCERATION: The USA has 5% of the world’s population, but 25% of the world’s inmates. Is America really 5 times more immoral than the REST OF THE WORLD - are just suffering the results of a well-meaning but ultimately failed drugs policy established decades ago - before the full effects had been analysed? Bottom line for jail costs - you’re paying for 5 TIMES MORE prisons than you should need due to the war on drugs!

RACIST OUTCOMES: While white kids are more likely to be wealthier and abuse drugs, black kids are more likely to get arrested for drug offences.

THE ANSWER? A mental health model. While not ‘legalising’ hard drugs for normalised commercial sale - we can decriminalise their use. The harm minimisation model provides “Maintenance centres” with clean versions of the drugs, safe sleeping places, reduces street crime from its most potent source, and offers counselling which gets them into employment!

DEFUND THE POLICE only to the extent that the War on Drugs has massively inflated police costs. How much does having 5 times MORE jails cost AMerica? - and pour that money into the Harm Minimisation model and my guess is with 5 times less jails - you’ll have vastly more money to pour into local educations programs for disadvantaged neighbourhoods! Then the police that do patrol those neighbourhoods might be able to focus on dealing with other real crime, rather than punishing people with a mental health issue. Login to view embedded media

Magdalene laundries( aka Magdalene asylums ) were institutions usually run by Roman Catholic orders that sadly abused females that were rejected by society.
Pray that Jesus Christ heals & comforts all those affected by the abuse in Magdalene laundries:

a little odd. To each their own, I guess?

A more Godly Way is as written: I bless those I choose to bless, I curse those I choose to curse. God does whatever He chose or chooses to do.

Who dare contend with our Creator - A Consuming Fire !

Fantine said:

I just woke up to hear his comment that Liz Cheney should face a firing squad.

Who would that inspire except the unhinged?

Click to expand...

Horrible. People can be so hateful sad indeed

will be a tremendous boom for mexico and other countries when they go back and have to work to fix their communities instead of leaving them.

the brain drain of the world into the usa and other countries, artificially props up us vs them. so many people don't want to think about this...

Amen to praying for all world leaders

They should work with the IRS. He should lose his tax exempt status.

[This chaplet is prayed using regular Rosary beads]

On the Cross, pray the “Apostle’s Creed”:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, and sits at the right hand of God, the Father almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Amen.

Then pray 1 “Our Father”, 3 “Hail Marys” and 1 “Glory be”:
Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy Will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Continue to the five decades. For each of the following five decades…
(1.) Pray the “Our Father” on the large bead.

(2.) On each of the 10 small beads, pray:

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal Church, those in my own home, and within my family. Amen.

(3.) Conclude each decade with the following three prayers:

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, open the hearts and minds of sinners to the truth and light of God, the Father.

Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for the conversion of sinners and the world.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Login to view embedded media

I think it is beneficial to hear what Cyril of Alexandria has to say, i would follow his teachings on this passage of scripture.

"Christ, when He gave the Spirit unto them, said: Whosesoever sins ye forgive, they are forgiven; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained; though only the living God is able and powerful to grant unto sinners remission of sins; for whom could it befit to pardon the transgressions that sinners have committed against the Divine Law, save the Lawgiver Himself? You may, if you choose, see the meaning of the saying from the analogy of human affairs. Who has authority to meddle with the decrees of earthly monarchs, and who tries to undo that which has been ordained by the will and judgment of rulers, save only someone who is invested with regal honour and dignity? Therefore, wise was the saying, Insolent is he who saith unto the king, Thou breakest the law. In what way, then, and in what sense did the Saviour invest His disciples with the dignity which befits the Nature of God alone? The Word that is in the Father cannot err; and this He did, and whatsoever He doeth, He doeth well. For He thought it meet that they who have once been endued with the Spirit of Him Who is God and Lord, should have power also to remit or retain the sins of whomsoever they would, the Holy Spirit That dwelt in them remitting or retaining them according to His Will, though the deed were done through human instrumentality.
They who have the Spirit of God remit or retain sins in two ways, as I think. For they invite to Baptism those to whom this sacrament is already due from the purity of their lives, and their tried adherence to the faith; and they hinder and exclude others who are not as yet worthy of the Divine grace. And in another sense, also, they remit and retain sins, by. rebuking erring children of the Church, and granting pardon to those who repent; just as, also, Paul gave up him that had committed fornication at Corinth, for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved, and admitted him again into fellowship, that he might not be swallowed up with his overmuch sorrow, as he says in his letter. When, then, the Spirit of Christ dwelling in our hearts doeth things which befit God alone, surely He is the living God, invested with the glorious dignity of the Divine Nature, and having power over sacred laws"

Astrid said:

Actually there no room for holy or any other type of war in me.

Click to expand...

Same with me.

Astrid said:

Those full of their holy righteousness,
and belief in “ sin nature”, though, are
much Inclined to see those not like them
to be in need of exterminnation.
So that love can prevail.

Click to expand...

I've found it a blessing to be freed from images of "sin nature". Coming from the perspective of Lover of God, that freeing process has opened the door to being able see every soul as an activity of God. And that, for me, is where Love prevails.

cow451 said:

Conflicting witnesses and no body cams and a no-knock warrant that turns out to have been "optional". The feds are going to have a field day on the civil rights investigation.

Click to expand...

Former Louisville officer convicted of violating Breonna Taylor’s rights​

A former Louisville police officer was found guilty late Friday of violating Breonna Taylor’s civil rights during a March 2020 police raid in which she was fatally shot, becoming the first officer directly involvedin the case to be convicted on criminal charges.

The jury, which deliberated for three days, found Hankison not guilty on a second charge of violating the rights of three neighbors.

None of the bullets fired from Hankison’s gun struck anyone, but several penetrated the apartment walls and entered into the adjoining unit.

This post was initially a topic I discussed on a separate website, The Philosophy Forum, but I have noticed a lot of militant atheists brewing in the forum lately so I have decided to distance myself from it. That being said, I will post a few threads that I wrote here to hopefully generate thoughtful discussion and dialogue. Hope you enjoy. This post in particular introduces a little known work by the great Jesuit evangelizer Matteo Ricci that attempts to blend Confucianism with the Stoic philosophy of Epictetus and Christian theology. The text became a popular moral treatise in 16th and 17th century China.

Matteo Ricci was known for being a great evangelizer of Catholicism as well as advocating for the use of Confucianism as a philosophical method in understanding Christian doctrine. Much like how Aquinas used Aristotle and other Greek philosophers, Ricci believed that Confucius and his followers ideas were complimentary with Christianity and the beliefs of the Catholic Church. Before we even get to this point, it is well known that Ricci had an interest in Stoicism. By his time the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius had been floating around in Latin and Seneca was also a big deal. Epictetus' Enchiridion, or Handbook, was very influential on him and he used this to formulate a work called the Ershiwu Yan or The Twenty-Five Paragraphs. This work is a translation of the first 25 chapters of Epictetus' Enchiridion without any reference to Greco-Roman religion or culture. All it contains are the ethical principles outlined by Epictetus. Ricci also enjoyed Epictetus because of his belief in a personal God rather than an impersonal one (this in my eyes seems to be the chief difference between the Greek Stoics like Cleanthes and Chrysippus and the later Roman Stoics). In the Erishiwu Yan he also tries to use as many references to Confucian philosophy as he can.

I theorize that if Ricci was not exposed to Stoicism then he probably wouldn't care much for Confucianism. In the following articles, the authors discuss Ricci and his use of Epictetus while evangelizing. Christopher Spalatin in his article Matteo Ricci's Use of Epictetus' Enchiridion says "Ricci's Book of 25 Paragraphs not only is an original example of trying to create a bond of human understanding between East and West through Stoicism and Confucianism, but also represents a unique historical effort to create and establish a Chinese Christian humanism." In another article by historian Yu Liu, The Complexities of a Stoic Breakthrough: Matteo Ricci's Ershiwu Yan, he states "In Tianzhu Shiyi (The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven), in particular, he eulogized ancient Confucianism implicitly as analogous to Stoicism in being an ethical theism lacking only the revelation of Jesus Christ." The articles are here:

https://www.jstor.org/stable/23575440

https://www.jstor.org/stable/43818412?seq=13

Disgusting

Stephen3141 said:

The foundation of biblical values, requires first a sound view of our
shared reality, and what objective perception of that reality is,
and what truth is.

A personal opinion can only be asserted to be true, after rigorous
testing. And this rigorous method of testing is the method of the
fair rule of law in America, in a court of law.

That is, the fair rule of law in America is based on rigorously tested truth,
as evidence. Without this rigorously tested truth, there can be no justice
from the fair rule of law.
---------- ----------

Those who are anti-intellectual, and bypass the rigorous testing of truth,
cannot possibly uphold the fair rule of law in America.

Those who appeal to conspiracy theories as support for "truth", are
appealing to opinions that do not meet the rigorous test of truth. This is
why Trump's dozens of lawsuits claiming fraud in the 2020 election, were
rejected by judges as being "without merit" or "frivolous".

Being popular does not make a conspiracy theory true.
Being repeated hundreds of times a day, does not make a conspiracy
theory true.

Trump cannot tolerate fact checking during debates, becasue so much
of what he claims is ridiculous falsehoods.

As many of Trump's inner advisors have testified, in the past months,
Trump is not concerned with what is true, or false.

And with this attitude, he can NEVER uphold the fair rule of law in
America. The fair rule of law requires true evidence, as input.
---------- ----------


Making the argument that American christians should vote for a
candidate who upholds who upholds Christian values, is not particularly
relevant in this election (sorry to be so blunt). Trump is not a Christian,
and has shown that he lives a profligate life. Kamala Harris is not a
Christian, or at least has not run as one. (Biden is not a Catholic
Christian, even though he claimed to be one.)

What Christians need most of all, in America, is a candidate who upholds the
fair rule of law in America (so that Christians may have freedom of religion).
Harris has upheld the fair rule of law.
Trump has threatened judges and their families, and incited a lynch mob
at the Capital Building, which was ready to lynch democratically elected
members of the United States government. Trump lives as if he is ABOVE
the fair rule of law, not upholding it.
---------- ----------

There is nothing wrong, Mitchie, with your appeal for Christian to vote.
Christians should vote.

But, voting to keep the fair rule of law in America is the most important
thing for Christians, in deciding which candidate to vote for. And this is a
very clear choice.

So many of the conservative Republicans have broken with the MAGA
Republican Party, to vote for the candidate for law and order, which is
Kamala Harris. And, Harris has welcomed these conservative voters.
She has promised that her government will be a government of consensus,
and not of partisan politics.

This attitude is much more conservative that the MAGA conspiracy theories,
and the threats of violence is they do not get their way.

There is nothing radical, about this type of democratic consensus.
It is more conservative than Donald Trump. And much, much more lawful.

Click to expand...

Does the "rule of law" include supporting bail funds for violent rioters, destroying public and private property?

QvQ said:

Harris has 1 Billion Dollars in donations.
Act Blue is being investigated for laundering campaign contributions from foreign goverments. (Russian, Chinese, Iranian)
Single Issue = Abortion = Democrats

Harris hammers three issues
Abortion
Magic government money wand to cure all ills
Trump (bad evil, gonna get you and get you good)

The Republicans have 3 issues
Economy
Immigration
Energy

Harris will most likely win on her issues, mainly abortion, just as Biden did
However Bidens economy, immigration and energy policies will be Harris's policies.

But hey, government funded abortion anytime, anywhere. The government will silence any dissenters, just as the government tried to silence Catholics as "domestic terrorist" and force all health care providers to provide abortion on demand.

Click to expand...

Ugh. Sounds terrible.

Who were the 'you'?

ESV, Jn 20:

19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week,

Click to expand...

resurrection Sunday

the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews,

Click to expand...

Thomas was not there.

Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them

Click to expand...

He gave them a special function of the Holy Spirit.

and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”

Click to expand...

These particular disciples [D1] were given a special revelation.

24 Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came.

Click to expand...

Does this mean that every Christian has the power to forgive and retain sins independently from God?

No, Thomas didn't have this. Even for D1, they didn't have this power. They had a special revelation concerning particular individuals' sins God would and would not forgive.

New American Standard Bible, John 20:

23 If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”

Click to expand...

they have been forgiven;
ἀφέωνται (apheōntai)
Verb - Perfect Indicative Middle or Passive - 3rd Person Plural

Who were the 'you'?

They were the few disciples [D1] that Jesus breathed on. Jesus gave them the ability on particular occasions to declare whether a sin was forgiven or not by God. Today, we do not have the power to forgive or retain sins at will. However, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, there are occasions when we can see another's spiritual condition and declare it.