Ps. Thanks for the welcome, its a pretty neat board you have here.
I hope and pray that you will be blessed and matured here; it's already clear that we are blessed by you.
I did understand that this is the general view of those in this thread.
But, I am wondering if this is a false analogy.
I am sort of wondering -- Pregnant with WHOM.
It's not really "with whom"; but conveying "all or nothing".
saved from what. If you say 'sin' then does that mean all sin?
We sin. That's a fact. Please read 1Jn3, especially 5-10. It seems clear that we CANNOT sin, doesn't it?
...but then, isn't there a conflict with 1Jn1:8-9? Not at all; because it reflects the "ABIDING" persepective. As Paul writes in Rom6:11, "CONSIDER yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus."
I love Romans; the
entire Christian outlook is there. "ALL have sinned" in ch3; "faith" in ch4. "Born again" in ch6. Then in ch7 --- the WAR between the "newly-born-spirit", and the OLD (dead, but not gone --- and sometimes seems ALIVE) sinful man.
In ch7 Paul cries in despair:
"Oh wretched man that I am! Who will FREE me from this war within my members?"
The solution to the war, is in ch8; he speaks of "setting our minds on the SPIRIT, rather than on the flesh". Of "walking in the Spirit, by Him putting to death the deeds of the flesh (if we do, we will live!);
but if we walk in the flesh we MUST DIE!"
So --- we either die to sin (united in Jesus' crucifixion), and are raised WITH Jesus in newness of life (Rm6:4),
or we are alive to sin and dead to God.
You see --- we do not die to sin
by our own strength. Our faith receives Jesus,
and then HIS strength empowers us to RESIST sin. The Spirit indwells us and regenerates our hearts.
Jesus becomes our righteousness, in and THROUGH us.
So we are saved from the CONSEQUENCES of sin. Through Him we are truly repentant, His indwelling presence becomes our righteousness. We do NOT sin practicingly, as do the lost. See 2Cor5:21.
or just some sin? (pregnant with triplets or just one).
I do not deny that salvation is from sin.
I just want a little more scriptural enlightenment on the subject.
Look at the idea of "pregnancy" and "sin", as spoken by James:
"God is not tempted, and He tempts NO one; but each is tempted when enticed and carried away by his own lust; lust conceived births sin, and sin brings death. Do not be deceived, beloved brethren." Jms1:14-16
This is written to "saved" (beloved brethren); he uses "death", "thanatos" --- conveying "physical death
with eternity in Hell".
So --- we overcome death, and sin (which are the same), by Him-in-us.
What does that mean?
Right now --- you and I have dialog; we have fellowship.
We are spending TIME with each other. Though just by keystrokes, we commune in spirit.
You cannot know God, or fellowship with Him (see 1Jn1:1-3), without spending time with Him.
Prayer.
1. Worship --- He inhabits praise and worship; praise Him,
and He inhabits you.
2. Repentance --- He forgives our sin; then, quite amazingly,
He forgets we sinned, so complete is His forgiveness. Heb8:12
3. Thanksgiving; God never tires of hearing "thank You". Thankfulness is the basis of humility,
and unthankfulness is arguably the root of sin.
4. Intercession --- the opposite of Christianity is SELFISHNESS; while we are praying our hearts out for our friends, relatives (and ENEMIES!), it is impossible to be selfish. Prayer moves God;
but mostly it changes US, into what we need to BE to minister to them and to show them Jesus' incredible love.
5. Fellowship! The moment Jesus died the VEIL TORE! His blood washed over your soul;
now you are clean enough to walk BEHIND the veil into the very presence of God! As you delight in His presence --- do you know that He delights in YOURS? He really does. He
enjoys you. Perfect love.
6. Waiting on God. It takes discipline and maturity, to still our hearts and our thoughts; just to come into His presence and listen earnestly for His voice. He has promised, "You will come to Me and pray to Me,
and I will HEAR you. You will seek Me and you will FIND Me, when you search with all your heart.
I WILL BE FOUND by you!" Jer29:11-14
7. Pettition. How often prayer begins and ends ONLY with this! He already knows our hearts, our wants and needs. He has promised to meet our needs; what of our wants? Psalm37:4 says "delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.
If we delight in HIM, then our desires will be His.
James says "you have not, because you do not ask; you ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions."
Jesus is now the ONE mediator between God and us; we come into the very presence of the God of the Universe; only because of love. If we do not desire His perfect love and person, with ALL our hearts,
then Heaven really holds nothing for us. There is no need for golden streets, pearly gates, mansions and crowns; take them away! All I want, is to be with Him. Forever.
"When we've been there,
Ten thousand years,
We've no less days,
To sing His praise,
Than when we first began!"
This is what we are. It is what He is in and through us. May everything we say and do only give Him glory and praise and honor; may the world see us,
and see Him IN us --- and want what we have.
