EmSw
White Horse Rider
- Apr 26, 2014
- 6,434
- 718
- Country
- United States
- Gender
- Male
- Faith
- Non-Denom
- Marital Status
- Married
Sin is what unholy people do. Therefore, if a person is to be made holy, then holiness is not something to be gained by not sinning. I am honestly surprised that what I said would be all that controversial. Sanctification comes from God's movement in a person's life, not by the person's own good works or merits. Is that last sentence something that you disagree with, or am I misunderstanding.
So, am I to understand that you believe that a person can have faith and not grow in holiness as a result? I would say that holiness is pursued by faith, not by works. But, before we get there, I think we need to establish what faith is. Faith is not merely believing, as in the same way that I believe that 2+2=4. Nor is it merely believing something that you cannot prove or observe, such as the way my children once believed in Santa Claus. Faith is conviction and steadfast belief that spurs a person to action. So, when Paul says that we are saved by grace though faith, not by works, he is not saying that works have no part in the equation. He is emphasizing that faith (which leads to leads to works) is what matters, not the works themselves. Compare this with James, who says that faith without works is dead, in which the emphasis is on the fact that works are the result of genuine faith. Though Paul and James place different emphases, their message is the same: We are not saved by doing good things, but by faith. Faith, in turn, leads to doing good things.
I'm going to give you these verses which state what our sanctification is.
1 Thessalonians 4
3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality;
4 that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor,
5 not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God;
6 that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified.
7 For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness.
8 Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.
Do you see what our sanctification is? WE SHOULD ABSTAIN from sexual immorality, for we are not called to uncleanness.
Nobody is going to abstain from sexual immorality for you. It is totally up to you. I'm not saying God won't help you, but it is your choice and action to ABSTAIN.
I hope you don't reject this, because then you are rejecting God, not me.
Upvote
0