John, Your words: "Let's use your example, you do agree that thinking lustful thoughts about a woman you are not married to is adultery, don't you? Well then is the physical act of having sex with another woman other than your wife adultery?"
Of course.
Your words: "So thinking holy thoughts is keeping the Sabbath? All the while breaking the letter of the law is perfectly acceptable?"
There is no letter of the law to break.
Mat 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
Mat 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
Exo 20:14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
And six verses prior to this we read...
Exo 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Your words: "Try killing someone and telling the judge I was actually thinking very nice thoughts about that person and see how that works out for you. I think we both know that is foolish reasoning.
You may think you're mocking me but in reality you're only mocking God's word.
Actually, I meant no mocking toward you or anyone. It was used to illustrate the fact that the intent and heart must be coupled with action. That is the meaning of writing the law on our hearts, that as we carry out the letter of the law (not killing someone) we are not breaking the spirit of the law (not being angry with our brother).
As a law-keeper there is something Christ taught about that you might be unfamiliar with, it's called faith. We keep the sabbath by having faith in Christ's completed work. Or do you think as He is dying on the cross, the words, "It is finished", meant nothing? All you're doing is reducing what He did to the mere act of being a convenient scapegoat. I'll leave you with this verse. Gal. 5:4 (AMP) "If you seek to be justified and declared righteous and to be given a right standing with God through the Law, you are brought to nothing and so separated (severed) from Christ. You have fallen away from grace (from God’s gracious favor and unmerited blessing)."
Trying to keep a "lawful" sabbath will condemn you before God. How would your defense be any different than those of orthodox Judaism over the past two thousand years? It will be worse for you because you had access to the truth and chose to deny it. For those, Christ says in Matt. 7:21-23 - "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. [sup]22 [/sup]Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? [sup]23 [/sup]And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."
I assume that one day I will have to stand before Christ and simply say, "I am sorry that I tried to obey you to the best of my ability.
For those who think Christ's work was insufficient for them will also find there is no grace left for them at all.
I find it interesting that you quoted Mat 7:21-23, here it is in the NKJV...
Mat 7:21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Mat 7:22 "Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?'
Mat 7:23 "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'
You live by the law you will be judged by the law. There is no payment but death. for that is what the wages of sin is. To live by the law is to trample the works of Jesus underfoot. He died for you ONCE and for all, if you are under grace than sin has no hold of you for the price was paid by Jesus. He was judged Guilty in your place and died in place of you. If you choose the law than you must die for you have not accepted the price Jesus paid and serve to do it yourself. Not withstanding that us gentiles came to Christ under grace, the law was given to the Israelites, the Jews, it was never ours. We are the sheep of the otherfold Peter was sent to teach us remeber the vision with the sheets. That where it changed for us.
In all His Love
So, since one is under grace we can live as we please? He can do the works of his father?
Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
You do not believe that for one minute and neither does anyone else.
On a procedural note, can someone help me? When I reply to different quotes, it seems to get lumped together in one reply as above. I replied to Trekson and the replied to mjrhealth and the board combined it into one reply. I apparently don't have something set correctly and am not savvy enough to figure it out. This was supposed to be in a separate post and it is tacked on the end. Thanks in advance.