Many people teach that once a person is saved, they must turn from sins and begin to live a holy life as a result of salvation. They say that you don't need to be perfect, but you must at least turn from some of your sins because God made you a new creature.
But here's the problem with this. Whenever you ask "How much?", they never give a clear answer. And now you could have all kinds of different degrees and types of this teaching. For example, imagine that a drunkard gets saved. Now the question is, how much does he need to turn from the sin of drinking alcohol if he is truly saved and a new creature in Christ? He could decrease his drinking by 1%. Some people would probably say that that's not enough. There needs to be more evidence of salvation. So he might decrease his drinking by 10%. Or maybe he needs to decrease it by 11%, 12%, 13%, etc. You get the idea. So now there are literally one hundred different versions of this doctrine. The extreme from of this doctrine would say that the person must decrease his drinking by 99.99% or otherwise he didn't truly get saved. But he doesn't need to be perfect, because he still has that 0.01% of his old sinful habits in his life. Maybe he still drinks alcohol once in five years.
Can you see how bizarre and weird and stupid this is? Why can't the gospel be simple?
First, I would remind that it does not matter what people say,
only what the Bible teaches... and the
only measure of Biblical
Truth is harmony with ALL RELATED Scriptures. Most heresies
can harmonize with one-or-two-or-three Scriptures... which is
why the measure of Biblical Truth is harmony will ALL Scripture.
I see your question in two parts:
First, what does salvation consist of? The Bible is clear that
salvation involves an Atonement for EACH of our sins, and the
"
fruit" of that is "
sanctification" in the Believer's life... for whom
God "
elected" He also "
predestinated" to be conformed into the
image of Jesus (which is the sanctification of the elect) and whom
He "
predestinated" He also "
called/draws" and them He also both
"
justifies" and "
glorifies". [Rom 8:28-30]
However, the Bible ALSO teaches that the sanctification of the
elect is DIFFERENT with each person... some produce "
fruit" of
thirty-fold, some of sixty-fold and others one hundred-fold".
And, I see this as the heart of your question:
Mat 13:8-9
But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit,
some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.
Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Instead of your example of drinking, let's use the example
or murder. Is decreasing your murders by 1% or 10% or
50% show the "fruit" of salvation... of course the answer
is NO. The Bible is clear that no murderer has eternal life.
And so, while the sanctification of each elect will be unique,
there are some passages that qualify who will NOT enter
into eternal life. Incorporating these passages gives us a
much better sense of what TRUE sanctification looks like.
The first set of verses below talk about walking in the Spirit,
what that looks like. The second set of verses talks about
the
lifestyle of those who are NOT SAVED. These provide
us with a look at the "
fruit" of those who are saved, and
walk after the Spirit and the "
fruit" of those who are NOT
saved and walk after the flesh. Now, does this mean that
a "
child of God" does not fall into a sin? Of course not...
Rather, it means no child of God has a
lifestyle of sin.
-------------------
Rom 8:1-5
There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are
in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free
from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in
that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in
the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk
not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the
flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the
Spirit the things of the Spirit.
Gal 5:16-18
This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust
of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit
against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so
that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the
Spirit, ye are not under the law.
Eph 2:2-3
Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of
this world, according to the prince of the power of the air,
the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past
in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and
of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath,
even as others.
----------------------
Gal 5:19-21
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these;
Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry,
witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions,
heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like:
of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time
past, that they which do such things shall not inherit
the kingdom of God.
1Co 6:9
Know ye not that
the unrighteous shall not inherit
the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators,
nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of
themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor
drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the
kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are
washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the
name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
Rev 22:15
For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
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