Do you think Christians sin? If so, what common unconfessed sins do you think Jesus forgives?

[Bruce Leiter]

Yes, Christians still sin. Jesus' death earned us who believe justification, that is, God our Judge declares us right with him and gives us our "not-guilty" verdict, part of forgiveness. However, sins remain in our lives. Jesus' resurrection enables us to fight against those remaining sins only because of his victory on the cross. We need to pray for Jesus' victory to overcome our sinfulness, not only outward actions but inner selfish attitudes and emotions. After all, sin is self-centeredness.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

It's not about the sins Jesus forgives, it's about the heart of the one He forgives.

If you forgive others and love Him and others, He'll forgive you of much. If you don't love Him and you don't love others and you don't forgive, He won't forgive you for much.

All of those you mentioned can be covered by the blood, only if the person repents from each of them. If they desire not to watch porn, if they desire not to hate, if they desire not to lie, but they still trip up and occasionally do, so long as they hate what they've done and strive to change their ways so as to not do it anymore, I believe there is forgiveness for that person. But, if they are happy living in their ways, watching porn, cursing others, lying, stealing, etc, there won't be forgiveness for that person. Not without repentance.

I am not denying the possibility that Christians may sin. While I am not encouraging believers to make light of sin, I believe that for most Christians it takes time for them to mature and it is not an overnight process to put away all grievous sin out of their life. But after a Christian matures in the faith, and knows the commands of Jesus and His followers in the New Testament, they then would then walk uprightly with God. Oh, and yes. They must repent, too. I agree.

Part of the title of the thread said...

"If so, what common unconfessed sins do you think Jesus forgives?"
​

So I am not denying Jesus forgives confessed sin. 1 John 1:9 makes that fact very clear. What I am saying is what sins does Jesus forgive automatically when a person has a belief on Jesus as their Savior alone? Now, the publically declared "sin not unto death" is confessed grievous sin as mentioned in 1 John 5. This is not something that is not automatically forgiven because a person has to confess these kinds of sin (like Murder, adultery, theft, etc.) in order to be forgiven (1 John 1:9); And then they have to walk in the light (stop these sins) so that the blood of Jesus cleanses them of all sin (1 John 1:7). However, I think there are other kinds of "sins not unto death" (not mentioned in 1 John 5) that are automatically forgiven by a person having a belief on Jesus. I believe these kind of "sins not unto death" are minor transgressions in most cases. For example: Water baptism is a command that does not lead unto spiritual death if a person disobeys it in this life (See 1 Peter 3:21). Granted, I am not telling any believer to not be baptized. I think all believers should be baptized. I believe it is important spiritually. The point here is that it is not a command that if disobeyed, leads to spiritual death. Another command that I do not see as a loss of salvation (if it is not confessed) is Matthew 5:11-12. Nowhere does it state in the Bible that we are condemned if we fail to "Rejoice when others persecute us wrongfully." The Lord's supper is another one. I see no warnings attached to not keeping the Lord's supper. Again, I am not saying we as believers should ignore these commands. No, no. Most certainly not. My point here is that there are no warnings to not obeying these commands and or there is no mention of how keeping these particular commands is a part of inheriting eternal life. What about going over the speed limit by 5 miles per hour? Are we to assume that Christians will go to hell for going a little over the speed limit? Now, if they are doing 50mph down a 25mph street they know always has kids playing there, then that is wrong because it is showing a lack of love towards one's neighbor.

I believe we need to stress the importance of Christians to keep those commands that the Bible says can lead to spiritual death (if they are disobeyed) like:

1. Loving God.
2. Loving your neighbor.
3. Do not murder or hate.
4. Do not commit adultery or lust after anyone with your eyes.
5. Do not steal.
6. Do not covet.
7. Do not commit idolatry.
8. Worship God alone.
9. Honor your father and mother.
10. Preach or spread the gospel.
11. Help the poor.
12. Not seeking after riches (or to be wealthy).

The above list are commands that if disobeyed are grevious sins. If they are disobeyed, we have to confess them and seek to obey them by the power of the Lord (working in us).

 

[Maria Billingsley]

So.... George Sodini, a professed Eternal Security Proponent who committed mass murder and then suicide was saved?

No he was not. He murdered and committed suicide thus his name was blotted out of the Book of Life.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

No he was not. He murdered and committed suicide thus his name was blotted out of the Book of Life.

So it is possible for a Christian to be saved, and then sin and be lost again?
I believe that is possible.
We see it in the Parable of the Prodigal Son and in James 5:19-20.

 

[Maria Billingsley]

So it is possible for a Christian to be saved, and then sin and not be lost again?

Yes, and the son repented by coming back and his father greeted him with open arms just as our Father in heaven would.

 

[aiki]

Do you think Christians sin?
If so, what common unconfessed sins do you think Jesus forgives?

For example: Do you think lying, or cursing, or porn (lusting), hating, coveting are automatically covered by the blood of Jesus by having a belief alone on Him?

God forgives all our sins - when we confess them to Him (1 John 1:9). Known but unconfessed sin, however, stands as a barrier to fellowship with God (Isaiah 59:2). Though our relationship to God rests upon the perfect finished work of Christ at Calvary and his imputed righteousness (Romans 3:21-26; Romans 4:4-6; Romans 5:17; 1 Corinthians 1:30; Philippians 3:9, etc.), we can't enjoy intimate communion, fellowship, with God when known and unconfessed sin remains in our lives.

 

[DamianWarS]

I really should not have to tell you this (because it is so basic), but forgiveness with GOD leads to a right relationship with GOD.

it was a leading question

For example: If a man cheats on his wife, he would seek forgiveness with her in order to restore the relationship. It is no different with GOD. You want there to be a man who does not say he is sorry or who does not reconcile in some way with his wife over his cheating on her and yet you want there to be a normal relationship to follow. Sorry, life does not work like that, my friend. Maybe in happy OSAS candy land it works that way, but not in the real world.

Oh, and the man has to stop cheating on his wife, too. For if he just kept saying he was sorry and then went right back out and continued to cheat on her, he is not really sorry, but he is merely paying lip service. GOD told the Pharisees that they honored him with their lips, but their hearts were far from Him.

seeking forgiveness as an abstraction misses the point. when Jesus calls us to repent relationship with God is implicitly the focus, not forgiveness. It's not about that my sins are gone, which is a selfish focus, it's about being put in a state where we can approach God.

 

[Kenny'sID]

It's called being led by the Holy Spirit.

Then the Holy spirit led you to believe you should tell the OP he should not have been posting here at that particular time and should have been on his knees with a Bible?

It is what i said & i quoted it for you:

If you insist, but you may want to look more closely, and see ...it is not.

 

[GraceBro]

Do you think Christians sin?
If so, what common unconfessed sins do you think Jesus forgives?

For example: Do you think lying, or cursing, or porn (lusting), hating, coveting are automatically covered by the blood of Jesus by having a belief alone on Him?

Yes, Christians sin, but God is not counting our sins against us.

"God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people's sins against them." 2 Corinthians 5:19

The only sin that Jesus didn't die for is the sin of unbelief in Him. The death of Jesus doesn't cover sin. The death of Jesus took sin away.

"Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary." Hebrews 10:17-18

The question isn't whether or not our sins are a barrier between us and God. The question to ask when we sin is "Why did we choose to sin and not trust our God?" That is when we can experience the benefit of our forgiveness and approach God to find out why we weren't trusting Him.

"Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16

You can't approach God with confidence if your sins are separating you from Him. Rest in the finished work of Jesus Christ and grow in the knowledge of your Lord and Savior.

Be blessed.

 

[Thess]

"Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."

And people say that "Confidence is from the Lord". Sorry for the intermission.

 

[Thess]

You can't approach God with confidence if your sins are separating you from Him. Rest in the finished work of Jesus Christ and grow in the knowledge of your Lord and Savior.

Not too many folks want to talk about this, for if they do they jeopardize their false sense of transparency. So, most "Christians" avoid obedience so that they can continue to live their Secret Gospel.

Good to see someone with the truth around here.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

Actually it IS TRUE according to the words of Jesus.
What are they now in the eyes of God according to you.
Now how many murders does it take? What are they until they reach that number?

These are real questions I’m wondering. about.
So now one murder is no big deal?

Of course they were saved, just like all the others. That’s why they were afraid. If they’d been unsaved no one would have been afraid as they WERE saved.

Seriously doubt the man has only one sin.
Well it was a big one.

I showed you Scriptural proof that it only takes one sin to separate a person from God. It does not take habitual sin to be separated from God. One murder is all it takes (1 John 3:15). One act of adultery is all it takes (Proverbs 6:32). Adam sinned one time and He died spiritually. Ananais and Sapphira died by just one sin. You have to explain how the verses I presented to you are not saying what they are saying. For me: It is clear that one sin is enough to cause a separation from God. Does that mean we cannot be forgiven again? No. Well, it depends on the sin of course. Most sins are forgivable if we seek to confess them to the Lord with the intention to forsake them. David was NOT saved in his sins in adultery and murder. To say so otherwise is to teach a license for immorality and or to tell others that they can be saved while doing the same thing. David later confessed of his sins to GOD in Psalms 51. If he was saved, there would have been no need to confess of his sins or to say he is sorry. David poured out his soul in Psalms 51. It does not sound like he was a saved person before his confession because his words were seeking forgiveness with God. Don't buy into the lie that sin can cause just a loss of fellowship and yet we are still saved. The Bible does not teach that. It teaches the exact opposite.

Believers cannot be out of fellowship with the Lord and be saved.

#1. 1 John 5:12 says He that has the Son has life and He that does not have the Son does not have life. Life is associated with eternal life or salvation.

#2. John 17:3 says eternal life is in knowing the one true God, Jesus Christ. Knowing implies a fellowship. So if you don't know Jesus, then you don't have life (Salvation).

#3. Romans 8:9 says if he a man does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him.

#4. Psalms 73:27 says God will destroy all those who abandon Him (or go a whoring from Him).

#5. John 15:6 says if a man does not abide in Him, he is cast forth and burned.

#6. 1 John 1:7 says if we walk in the Light as He is in the Light, the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. Being cleansed of sin is salvation; If you were to contrast this with 1 John 2:4, it says that person who says they know the Lord and does keep His commandments is a liar and the truth is not in them. Revelation 21:8 says all liars will have their part in the Lake of Fire.

#7. Romans 11:21-22 says if you do not continue in his goodness you will be cut off. For if God spared not the natural branches (i.e. the Jews), take heed that he can do the same to you (i.e. Gentile believers). The analogy here is that you are branch and Christ is the tree. We need to continue in Christ's righteousness or goodness, not our own righteousness or goodness, or we will be cut off because of unbelief.

#8. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates? (2 Corinthians 13:5).

 

[Bible Highlighter]

I think that Christians sin but those may not be held in account. IOW, how much faith do we have in God? Anything not of faith is sin. So how much of ourselves have we turned over to the Spirit which we receive through baptism?

That is not for me to judge.

Jesus says,
"I tell you, No: but, unless you repent,
you shall all likewise perish."
(Luke 13:3).

Repentance is seeking the Lord's forgiveness. To see 10 points in Scripture that proves this fact, please click on the following spoiler button.

Spoiler

A Biblical Case For Repentance:

At the heart, I believe the Bible teaches that repentance means, "Asking God for forgiveness" (Which of course naturally then leads to the "fruits of repentance", i.e. obedience to the Lord):

Important Note: While I may believe "Repentance" does involve to a certain degree a "change of mind" (like a person changing their mind about their old life of sin), I do not think "Repentance" exclusively means a “change of mind.”

Anyways, here are my ten points using Scripture showing that "repentance" means "asking God for forgiveness of sin."

#1. Acts 2:38,
The New Living Translation says in Acts 2:38 to "repent of your sins."
Douay Reheims says in Acts 2:38 to "Do penance."
New Life Version says in Acts 2:38 to "Be sorry for your sins"

#2. Luke 17:3 says, "Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him." This doesn't make any sense if "repent" means believe in Jesus (as some teach) or to have a change of mind about sin (as others teach) or to exclusively forsake sin. Yes, we are to forsake sin as a part of repentance but that comes later after repentance (Which is to ask God for forgiveness of our sin). For how can we reconcile with a brother if we do not say we are sorry vs. just going on about life as if we did nothing wrong?

#3. Jesus said in Matthew 12:41 that the Ninevites will rise up in Judgment against this generation because they repented at the preaching of Jonah. If you were to turn to Jonah chapter 3, you would be able to see in Jonah 3:6-10 that the King of the Ninevites had told his people to:

(a) Cry out to God (i.e. Repentance) (See Jonah 3:8).​

(b) Turn from their sins or evil ways (i.e. The Natural Fruits of Repentance).

#4. Matthew 3:6 (which then lines up with Matthew 3:8). Also, in Mark 1:4-5, it says John preached the "baptism of repentance" for the remission of sins (verse 4), and it then defines this "baptism of repentance" by saying they confessed their sins when they were baptized (verse 5).

#5. We see in Acts of the Apostles 8:22 a clear example of Peter telling Simon to "repent" of his wickedness in trying to pay for the Holy Spirit. Peter is telling Simon to make a prayer towards God. For Peter says that he should pray that God might forgive him. In other words, Peter is telling Simon to repent of a one time event of wickedness by way of prayer to GOD. This only makes sense if "repent" means to "ask for forgiveness."

#6. Ezekiel 14:6 says,
"Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols;" Repent makes the most sense here if a person is asking God for forgiveness by way of prayer instead of a person just believing in God. Naturally a person believes in God as their Savior if they are planning on forsaking their idols.

#7. We see repentance is the topic of discussion in Luke 15 (Luke 15:6) (Luke 15:10); This is then followed up by the "Parable of the Prodigal Son" with the son desiring to be reconciled with his father. We learn the WAY the Prodigal Son desired to be reconciled with his father when he said,

"I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants." (Luke 15:18-19).​

In other words, the Prodigal Son was seeking forgiveness. This ties into the point of repentance in Luke 15:6 and Luke 15:10.

#8. Luke 10:13 says,
"Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes." This rules out the theory that repentance is exclusively forsaking sin. Granted, forsaking sin always follow true repentance (Asking God for forgiveness of one's sins) but forsaking sin is not repentance. The word "repented" here is describing a one time event because they "repented", sitting in sackcloth and ashes. In Jonah 3:6 we learn that the King of Nineveh sat in sackcloth and ashes. In Jonah 3:8, the King of Nineveh tells people to put on sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God (i.e. repentance): and then turn from their evil way (i.e. the fruits of repentance).

#9. John the Baptist says we are to bring forth fruits worthy of repentance (Luke 3:8). Fruits are deeds (or obedience to God). How can repentance be the same thing as the fruit? Is the fruit the same thing as the tree?

#10. Jeremiah 8:6 says, "I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle." Here we see the word "repented of wickedness" tied with the words, "What have I done?" This is an acknowledgement of one's sin to God as a part of asking His forgiveness.

Notable Additional Verses that Deal with Repentance
(But They Do Not Use The Word "Repent" or "Repentance"):

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Romans 10:13).

13 "And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. (Luke 18:13-14).

Proverbs 28:13 says whosoever confesses and forsakes sin shall have mercy.

1 John 1:9 says if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all righteousness.

This is another way of saying "repent."
According to this verse, we need to confess grievous sin to be forgiven.

What grievous sins can condemn us according to the Bible if we don't repent? Take your pick: Matthew 5:28-30, Matthew 6:15, Matthew 12:37, Matthew 25:31-46, Luke 9:62, Luke 10:25-28, 1 John 3:15, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-21, Revelation 21:8.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

I agree. John is speaking to Christians here. But notice there is no reference to repentance for Jesus to be our Advocate. That refers back to 1 John 1:7, the type of sin one commits WHILE walking in the Spirit who DOES NOT lead anyone into lawlessness - lying, stealing, adultery, homosexuals, killing, etc.

Those are not babes in Christ. But someone the Holy Spirit is still drawing, but has not indwelt. They are not saved. This is why Paul told the Corinthians to remove the young man sleeping with his step-mother. He wasn't a Christian. It is also why they were not to even have lunch with anyone calling themselves a Christian who weren't.

I believe it only takes one grievous sin (like lying, lusting, hate, etc.) to be unsaved. So you will not get any disagreement with me that a Christian has to live holy. I just also believe there is grace and God knows people's hearts and lives, too. Not everyone can go from zero to hero overnight. It takes time. Does that mean they are saved if they were in sin of some kind? No. I am just saying that if they confess their sins, Jesus is faithful and just to forgive them of their sins. 1 John 1:9 still applies for a believer who may stumble. You cannot say that a Christian cannot be forgiven if they walk holy for a while and then stumble. David was saved when he was a child, but when he sinned by committing adultery and murder, he then became unsaved and then when he confessed his sins, he was forgiven.

 

[Thess]

'So how much of ourselves have we turned over to the Spirit which we receive through baptism?'

Wow, just about everyone I know got much, much worse after their baptisms, including me. I turned into an absolute monster and remained that way for 36 years (which is not possible if it is true that God causes us to obey), so the water didn't do anything for me. Later, I did receive Christ in indescribable Power that generated a radical R12-2 experience where I can stand completely transparent to anyone at anytime. I am completely new. Get this, I have not received a second baptism.

[Act 10:47 NLT] 47 "Can anyone object to their being baptized, now that they have received the Holy Spirit just as we did?"

Peter got things backwards or is this a "one-off"?

 

[Bible Highlighter]

I'm not one to be offended, but I resent the accusation that my way of thinking is somehow in sync with someone guilty of such horrific crimes against humanity. You've taken this Sodini example and are pushing it to an extreme. By what you've displayed of your thoughtwork, if a Christian has so much as one disobedient thought for all of 0.977 seconds the very next logical step, according to you, is that they will become a mass murderer. To myself and other Christian's, the logical next step for a brother or sister who harboured a flicker of disobediance is the expectation that they will be sorry about it, not think that they have acquired a license to sin and go on a sin binge. It is very humbling that Christ has washed us clean by his holy blood and we as Christians, thought not perfect, when we happen to transgress, do not forfeit our respect and awe of God's great mercy either willingly or no. One can be mindful of walking in holiness without drowning themselves in despair the moment an intrusive, sinful thought pops into awareness.

Admittedly, I sinned by swearing a few times yesterday. My corresponding inclination wasn't to go out and kill as many people as possible before offing myself.

Maybe others are simply more sensitive to their true desperate sinful state than you are to yours. And just because a Christian is sensitive to the nature of their sin and their failings as a faliable human being doesn't mean they must also hold an attitude of reckless abandon when it comes to sin, nor is your assertion correct that an acknowledgement of ones sin transforms said Christian into a George Sodini. It is remiss to think that a Christian's shortcomings by way of sin should immediately toss all their sanctification efforts to the gravel and force them to be champing at the bit to imitate George Sodini. No, George Sodini was a fundamentally misguided human exception and it is quite unwise (and lazy) for you to extrapolate this example and imply that his life is an accurate representation of those who offer disagreement with your salvific theology, which seems to be a works-based revolving door.

If you are attempting to obtain salvation outside of grace then you must adhere to the law utterly and totally. If you have already sinned in the past even once, you are already not eligible for salvation by keeping the law. James 2:10, Galatians 3:11, Roman's 3:21-26

If an old man is on his death bed surrounded by family and happens to lie to spare their feelings and forgets to explicitly call out to God for forgiveness (despite doing so his entire life) due to his weariness, does he somehow forfeit his justification and salvation by the blood of Christ? What kind of relationship is that? What is the Christian concept of justification to you if it is subject to constant refundability?

Your not getting it. Don't look at yourself and or others you know. Imagine if you will that you did an amazing sermon on how we are only saved by God's grace and it is not in anything that you do. Now imagine, a child hears that message and they grow up to be the next George Sodini. They take your message to heart to the fullest extreme that they are saved by Jesus and His grace and it is in nothing they ever do. This "nothing they ever do" would include them doing any kind of sin they want because that is what it means. If one is not saved in any way by lifting a finger for God, or in living good, then one can technically murder, lust, steal, cheat, etc. and still be saved by having a belief on Jesus. Any or all future sin is forgiven. It doesn't matter how one lives because they are forgiven by God's grace and it is not in anything they do. This is what you are failing to grasp. But because you do have a sense of morality and say believers do not act like that, you would be correct. It's because God changes the heart and it is because Jesus says that if you will enter into life, keep the commandments.

After we are saved by God's grace, holy living is a part of the salvation process. In a way you kind of admit that. But God's standard of holiness is different than yours. God actually requires us to obey Him in order for us to have continued access to His grace (See 1 John 1:7 and Hebrews 5:9).

 

[Bible Highlighter]

It's not about the sins Jesus forgives, it's about the heart of the one He forgives.

If you forgive others and love Him and others, He'll forgive you of much. If you don't love Him and you don't love others and you don't forgive, He won't forgive you for much.

All of those you mentioned can be covered by the blood, only if the person repents from each of them. If they desire not to watch porn, if they desire not to hate, if they desire not to lie, but they still trip up and occasionally do, so long as they hate what they've done and strive to change their ways so as to not do it anymore, I believe there is forgiveness for that person. But, if they are happy living in their ways, watching porn, cursing others, lying, stealing, etc, there won't be forgiveness for that person. Not without repentance.

While we do need to be born again, Jesus's words was not ultimately spoken to unbelievers in Matthew 5:28-30, Matthew 6:15, Matthew 12:37, Matthew 25:31-46, Luke 9:62, Luke 10:25-28, etc. His words in these verses were said primarily to those who would believe because it does not matter if an unbeliever does not commit certain sins. They are already unsaved by not believing in Jesus. An unbeliever first needs to accept Jesus as their Savior in order to obey. It would be non-sensical for Jesus to warn believers of sin if your statement "It's not about the sins" is true. Surely Jesus was all about warning about how certain sins can condemn us.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

it was a leading question

seeking forgiveness as an abstraction misses the point. when Jesus calls us to repent relationship with God is implicitly the focus, not forgiveness. It's not about that my sins are gone, which is a selfish focus, it's about being put in a state where we can approach God.

A Biblical Case For Repentance:

At the heart, I believe the Bible teaches that repentance means, "Asking God for forgiveness" (Which of course naturally then leads to the "fruits of repentance", i.e. obedience to the Lord):

Important Note: While I may believe "Repentance" does involve to a certain degree a "change of mind" (like a person changing their mind about their old life of sin), I do not think "Repentance" exclusively means a “change of mind.”

Anyways, here are my ten points using Scripture showing that "repentance" means "asking God for forgiveness of sin."

#1. Acts 2:38,
The New Living Translation says in Acts 2:38 to "repent of your sins."
Douay Reheims says in Acts 2:38 to "Do penance."
New Life Version says in Acts 2:38 to "Be sorry for your sins"

#2. Luke 17:3 says, "Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him." This doesn't make any sense if "repent" means believe in Jesus (as some teach) or to have a change of mind about sin (as others teach) or to exclusively forsake sin. Yes, we are to forsake sin as a part of repentance but that comes later after repentance (Which is to ask God for forgiveness of our sin). For how can we reconcile with a brother if we do not say we are sorry vs. just going on about life as if we did nothing wrong?

#3. Jesus said in Matthew 12:41 that the Ninevites will rise up in Judgment against this generation because they repented at the preaching of Jonah. If you were to turn to Jonah chapter 3, you would be able to see in Jonah 3:6-10 that the King of the Ninevites had told his people to:

(a) Cry out to God (i.e. Repentance) (See Jonah 3:8).
(b) Turn from their sins or evil ways (i.e. The Natural Fruits of Repentance).​

#4. Matthew 3:6 (which then lines up with Matthew 3:8). Also, in Mark 1:4-5, it says John preached the "baptism of repentance" for the remission of sins (verse 4), and it then defines this "baptism of repentance" by saying they confessed their sins when they were baptized (verse 5).

#5. We see in Acts of the Apostles 8:22 a clear example of Peter telling Simon to "repent" of his wickedness in trying to pay for the Holy Spirit. Peter is telling Simon to make a prayer towards God. For Peter says that he should pray that God might forgive him. In other words, Peter is telling Simon to repent of a one time event of wickedness by way of prayer to GOD. This only makes sense if "repent" means to "ask for forgiveness."

#6. Ezekiel 14:6 says,
"Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols;" Repent makes the most sense here if a person is asking God for forgiveness by way of prayer instead of a person just believing in God. Naturally a person believes in God as their Savior if they are planning on forsaking their idols.

#7. We see repentance is the topic of discussion in Luke 15 (Luke 15:6) (Luke 15:10); This is then followed up by the "Parable of the Prodigal Son" with the son desiring to be reconciled with his father. We learn the WAY the Prodigal Son desired to be reconciled with his father when he said,

"I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants." (Luke 15:18-19).​

In other words, the Prodigal Son was seeking forgiveness. This ties into the point of repentance in Luke 15:6 and Luke 15:10.

#8. Luke 10:13 says,
"Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes." This rules out the theory that repentance is exclusively forsaking sin. Granted, forsaking sin always follow true repentance (Asking God for forgiveness of one's sins) but forsaking sin is not repentance. The word "repented" here is describing a one time event because they "repented", sitting in sackcloth and ashes. In Jonah 3:6 we learn that the King of Nineveh sat in sackcloth and ashes. In Jonah 3:8, the King of Nineveh tells people to put on sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God (i.e. repentance): and then turn from their evil way (i.e. the fruits of repentance).

#9. John the Baptist says we are to bring forth fruits worthy of repentance (Luke 3:8). Fruits are deeds (or obedience to God). How can repentance be the same thing as the fruit? Is the fruit the same thing as the tree?

#10. Jeremiah 8:6 says, "I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle." Here we see the word "repented of wickedness" tied with the words, "What have I done?" This is an acknowledgement of one's sin to God as a part of asking His forgiveness.

Notable Additional Verses that Deal with Repentance
(But They Do Not Use The Word "Repent" or "Repentance"):

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Romans 10:13).

13 "And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. (Luke 18:13-14).

Proverbs 28:13 says whosoever confesses and forsakes sin shall have mercy.

 

[Thess]

I believe it only takes one grievous sin (like lying, lusting, hate, etc.) to be unsaved.

Yikes! Several years ago after flushing a demon possessed boy out of my 78 year old friends house, I was driving my car home from Arizona to Seattle and found myself being assaulted by an evil spirit that was causing sheer terror, taking me and my body over. Never, never have I been aware that a person could feel this kind of indescribable terror. I was going to either have a heart-attack or an aneurism and explode within my own skull, crashing into the ditch at 60mph. I was filled with the most indescribable terror that I cursed and swore like you wouldn't believe....I was going to die a death of terror. In my agony, I finally realized that God was going to have to save me....and He did. One moment I was cursing and swearing and moments later, after praying desperately for His rescue, I felt His Universal Power that delivered not only my very life, but showed me the greatest peace and love that words cannot describe. This is when I learned that the spirit world is absolutely real, for the evil spirit and God's Spirit found me latitude and longitude. This is when I realized that God uses sinners....each and every single time. Our Powerful, Almighty Creator is reasonable and rational. He understands us far more than we could ever comprehend, He really does, having prepared a righteous path that we cannot possibly fathom in it's entirety.

 

[Devin P]

While we do need to be born again, Jesus's words was not ultimately spoken to unbelievers in Matthew 5:28-30, Matthew 6:15, Matthew 12:37, Matthew 25:31-46, Luke 9:62, Luke 10:25-28, etc. His words in these verses were said primarily to those who would believe because it does not matter if an unbeliever does not commit certain sins. They are already unsaved by not believing in Jesus. An unbeliever first needs to accept Jesus as their Savior in order to obey. It would be non-sensical for Jesus to warn believers of sin if your statement "It's not about the sins" is true. Surely Jesus was all about warning about how certain sins can condemn us.

Certain sins condemn someone because of the state of their heart.

Taking something someone said out of contextand ignoring the rest of the statements is never good for anyone.

Murder certainly is a sin that can condemn someone, yet due to the state of his repentant heart David was not only forgiven but called a man after God's heart. It's not a matter of the sin, because we all sin. What matters is that you have a heart for Him and repent, striving never againto commit said sin.