Freedom from Sin

[Episkopos]

Luke 4:18
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance (aphesis) to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty (aphesis) them that are bruised,

In the above verse, which describes the gospel and the purpose of Jesus' time with us...there are two keys words that are both translated from the Greek "aphesis". And that word means "freedom." Jesus indeed came to set the captives free. Even though the Hebrew text uses two different words for both "deliverance" and "liberty"...in the Greek the word "aphesis" (freedom) is used to cover them both.

Now we must let the bible translate the bible for us. The Septuagint was translated from Hebrew to Greek..by Jews...before the coming of Jesus Christ. So we know that that translation is NOT biased towards a Church doctrine....unlike the translations we read today. Too often certain key words are misapplied and mis-translated to reflect a church dogma rather than the plain meaning of the text.

Now the Greek word "aphesis" should be plain enough....it means freedom.

But in our translations this word is translated as forgiveness or remission (concerning sins) RATHER THAN a freedom from sin...implying the victory over sin. A release FROM bondage rather than a freedom IN bondage.

Is the gospel about forgiveness in our bondage or freedom from that bondage. Did Jesus have to come all this way just to say..."I forgive you" ??? But there is real power in the gospel. The power that parted the Red Sea is available to they who are in Christ...for a full victory over this world...and our own worlds.

So we can trace much of our modern church doctrines to the beliefs of the translators who chose to translate the scandalous truth out of the biblical text that suggests something of a more miraculous nature.

The bible is indeed the inspired words from God...but NOT so much the translators. We need to look deeper into the words themselves to see where tampering has taken place. Now, normally this tampering is subtle...with the little words...the prepositions...but here is a case where the power of the gospel is being negated. And this is the case with the Greek word "aphesis."

I mean to show by example, using the bible translation...2 things. One is that the word was tampered with and 2 that there is more power in the gospel than people know.

This may scandalize the weaker people here....but there is a reason for that weakness. it is the lack of the power available in the gospel. No need to fear mankind.

 

[Episkopos]

Acts 10:43
43 To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in (into) him shall receive remission (freedom) of sins.


Peter said this very thing right before the Holy Spirit fell upon Cornelius and His household. Peter spoke the truth...and God confirmed it with HIS presence. But see how the truth has been altered and downgraded from freedom to remission.

Imagine Jesus going to the ones in bondage and instead of freeing them from their bondage...He just declared them forgiven IN their bondage.

The exodus from Egypt would be reduced to God simply forgiving His people in their chains rather than freeing them up to go to the promised land. IOW there would be no actual freedom.

And so we find the modern church...seemingly forgiven but having no power over sin.

This would seem to be our resignation...that God does not have the grace to empower us to obey His commandments...unless He does and we just remain in darkness.

But the light will come when we believe the truth. It is the TRUTH that sets you free (aphesis). But the truth must be the whole truth. Not a half-truth or an obfuscation of the truth.

So then when we enter INTO Christ (to be where He is in heavenly places) we are free of sin.....not just forgiven of sins.

Of course we don't have that power over sin of ourselves. It is Christ...and the abiding in Him that affords us this freedom.

There IS freedom over sin in Christ. Let the saints cry it out.

 

[VictoryinJesus]

Luke 4:18
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance (aphesis) to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty (aphesis) them that are bruised,

In the above verse, which describes the gospel and the purpose of Jesus' time with us...there are two keys words that are both translated from the Greek "aphesis". And that word means "freedom." Jesus indeed came to set the captives free. Even though the Hebrew text uses two different words for both "deliverance" and "liberty"...in the Greek the word "aphesis" (freedom) is used to cover them both.

One of my favorite passages: Romans 8:19-22 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. [20] For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, [21] Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. [22] For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.

Was talking to my husband last night about, as a mother, what the pain of child birth is like...how in the moment of deliverance of a new life ...something so beautiful and new which was not seen or realized yet...would come and change my life in every way possible...yet the pains of contractions had me swearing I would never go through that experience again. But new life is worth all the agony, yeah? I’m not sure why God would subject the creation to vanity and then turn around and subject the same to Hope...but maybe because of that beautiful birth that takes place of something new(a new thing) is delivered. “Freedom” and “deliverance”...the magnitude of what He has truly “finished” in the way of deliverance and setting the captives of death free. Zechariah 10:9-12 And I will sow them among the people: and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again. [10] I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and place shall not be found for them. [11] And he shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry up: and the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away. [12] And I will strengthen them in the Lord ; and they shall walk up and down in his name, saith the Lord.

“No place was found for them”...consider when He rode into Jerusalem and wept ...because “no place was found” ...echoes His brith into the world. He wasn’t alone, was He? But all those eagerly(awaiting) His rule (Job for one, Abraham another)where also “no place was found” for them...and Jesus wept. In the immediate passage after no place was found In Zechariah ...Zechariah shouts 11:1 Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars.

Remember those of the harvest eager to move forward and Jesus told them in a parable...not yet. Pray God sends out more ...no place was found and no place would ever be found for any of us....except HE went to prepare a place. Even the earth subjected to vanity and the bondage of corruption is in the agony of contractions ....eagerly awaiting for deliverance (new Life)in to the Sons of God. Remember all creation groans for the deliverance and freedom in to HIS new creation. Can’t fully comprehend but even with the earth, it yearns to obey God (fleeing from His face with no place found)...delivered into John 14:1-2 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. [2] In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

“Behold, I make all things New.”

Is it safe to suggest that all of creation groaning With contractions ...what is brought forth New in Christ, after birth: the agony will not be remembered nor the pain and agony of God subjecting the creation —-not willing—to vanity and the bondage of corruption... but rejoice and praise Him in the sight of the new creation delivered? As a mother and Father rejoice over a New infant...forgetting the hours of torment. He HAS set the captives free...not to fret and micromanage that old man crucified and the world crucified...but for what is delivered ANew of the Spirit of God. You can’t put what is born of God which is Spirit back under the bondage of what passes away. The new creature is separate from the old...delivered out of it that God is glorified.

 

[amadeus]

Jesus came to set us at liberty, to give us real freedom, to burn up the "ropes" that bind us. Jesus went to prepare a place for us in Him and for Him in us.

"Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king.
He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God." Dan 3:24-25

Where is the place He was/is preparing? A place then to lay His head?

"And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head." Matt 8:20

"... even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body." Eph 5:23

Where else would He lay His Head but on top of His Body? Are we ready and able to support Him as our Head? This is if we can understand it, Zion!

"For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation.
This is my rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired it." Psalm 132:13-14

Are we free? Have we been freed to be a part of His Body? To be a place fully prepared for Him to lay his Head?

 

[Heart2Soul]

Acts 10:43
43 To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in (into) him shall receive remission (freedom) of sins.


Peter said this very thing right before the Holy Spirit fell upon Cornelius and His household. Peter spoke the truth...and God confirmed it with HIS presence. But see how the truth has been altered and downgraded from freedom to remission.

Imagine Jesus going to the ones in bondage and instead of freeing them from their bondage...He just declared them forgiven IN their bondage.

The exodus from Egypt would be reduced to God simply forgiving His people in their chains rather than freeing them up to go to the promised land. IOW there would be no actual freedom.

And so we find the modern church...seemingly forgiven but having no power over sin.

This would seem to be our resignation...that God does not have the grace to empower us to obey His commandments...unless He does and we just remain in darkness.

But the light will come when we believe the truth. It is the TRUTH that sets you free (aphesis). But the truth must be the whole truth. Not a half-truth or an obfuscation of the truth.

So then when we enter INTO Christ (to be where He is in heavenly places) we are free of sin.....not just forgiven of sins.

Of course we don't have that power over sin of ourselves. It is Christ...and the abiding in Him that affords us this freedom.

There IS freedom over sin in Christ. Let the saints cry it out.

Truth does set us free....I started a thread about that.

 

[Heart2Soul]

Truth does set us free....I started a thread about that.

The Truth will set you free

 

[farouk]

The Truth will set you free

Great verse there! John 8.32.

(I didn't read the link ...yet)

 

[Episkopos]

Acts 26:18
18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness (actually freedom) of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.


Opening our eyes...going from darkness to light...taken away from the power of Satan unto God?...all to just be forgiven for remaining under the power of sin? Are we still under the power of Satan or not? He who sins is in bondage to sin. We are the slaves of who we give ourselves over to serve.

The gospel is that Jesus has come in the flesh to give us access to HIS full victory over sin...not just toleration for sins. The gospel is liberty to the captives....not forgiveness to the captives.

There is a time that the bible speaks of forgiveness of the sins that are past...not present or future sins.

Romans 3:25
25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission (toleration) of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;


Here the Greek is "paresis" meaning toleration. God allows for error before we come to Him...without question. He winks at our old ways. But now God would have us to "sin no more." He gives us His grace to that effect.

So then the gospel is about HIS power in our weakness. And not just His toleration of our continued weakness. So the translations into the vernacular don't help the situation. They would seem to encourage a faulty understanding of the freedom we have in Christ over sin.

 

[Episkopos]

When the bible speaks of forgiveness as in a gratuitous favour or granting pardon (karidzomai) that is speaking of what we are to do to one another. In fact God only treats us as we treat others. If we are gracious with others THEN He will be gracious with us. That is according to the law of righteousness.

Holiness doesn't forgive sins. In holiness you are either in or out. You are either pure or filthy. How many sins did Adam commit before rejection from intimacy with God? What of Uzzah and the cart? What of Ananias and Sapphira?

In righteousness there is 70 X 7 times of forgiveness. But not so in holiness. A little leaven leavens the whole batch.

When you take something pure and add in a little bit of the impure...what does that make the purity level do? Is it still pure? Or has the whole batch taken on impurity?

So then we are to be holy as God is holy....pure as He is pure...perfect as He is perfect. That is according to holiness. And that holiness is only found by entering into Christ...that we may be partakers of HIS holiness.

Don't be fooled...there is no such thing as sinful purity...or sinful holiness...or sinful perfection. Jesus is returning for a Bride that is without spot or wrinkle of impurity. They who add impurity to holiness are called "the filthy"...they who soil their garments.

Again there is another option...to be honest and remain humble. To remain under grace but avowing that we are lacking in faith and the gift of grace that makes us more than overcomers through abiding in Him.

It's ok to be humble and broken before God. He may yet give us an entrance into His full grace of victory over all things. We need to seek His face and wait for Him with a full assurance of faith.

Peace

 

[marks]

In fact God only treats us as we treat others. If we are gracious with others THEN He will be gracious with us.

Whew! It's a good thing for all of us that's not true!



Ephesians 4
29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:
32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Here's just one example, we are to forgive others as God has already forgiven us.

God is not matching His behavior to ours, He tells us to match our behavior to His.

In the Old Covenant, "Forgive others or your Father in heaven will not forgive you." In the Old Covenant, the covenant of Law, that was true, but in the New Covenant, we receive forgiveness by faith and not by works.

It's Good News, not another coffin nail! God's grace is ours by faith, not by being well behaved people.

Much love!

 

[marks]

To remain under grace but avowing that we are lacking in faith and the gift of grace

Are you here advocating ignorance? Lying?

What is it that you really believe about your relationship with God? That you merely hope you are sinless and can be with Him, but you really don't know, and you really are concerned that you may find yourself on the outer edge, in outer darkness, wailing, gnashing your teeth?

Or is this all smokescreen?

Much love!

 

[marks]

We need to seek His face and wait for Him with a full assurance of faith.

Wait a minute.

To remain under grace but avowing that we are lacking in faith and the gift of grace that makes us more than overcomers through abiding in Him.

Which is it?

 

[marks]

Don't be fooled...there is no such thing as sinful purity...or sinful holiness...or sinful perfection.

Of course there isn't. This should be evident to anyone.

 

[Episkopos]

The power of the gospel is the freedom from sin.

Matthew 1:21
21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.

...not IN their sins.

John 1:29
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.


...not just overlooks sin.

Ephesians 1:7

7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the (forgiveness?) freedom (aphesis) of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Hebrews 10:18
18 Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

Now the above verse makes no sense at it is translated. But if we translate the Greek APHESIS properly we get...

18 Now where FREEDOM (aphesis) of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

Now that makes more sense. If we are free of sin though abiding in Christ, there is no need for a further sacrifice for sins. A new sacrifice is only required if sinning again is inevitable. But if the power over sin is revealed, then that stops the need for further sacrifice.

The gospel is the power over sin.

 

[Episkopos]

Getting more grace from God is like getting oil for your lamp (like in the parable of the virgins)...or gas for a car. If we want to do the eternal works that are prepared in advance...we need grace to do that. If we want to continue the eternal road trip...we need gas fill-ups for the car.

Hebrews 4:16
16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.


The Christian walk only gets eternal with the gift of grace. The grace fill-ups afford us to walk in the Spirit. These fill-ups don't cost us money...but they cost us of ourselves. A full surrender to God and a plea for His mercy.

So then there is grace and there is the gift of grace.

Romans 5:15
15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

People perish from lack of knowledge...not applying themselves to seek the Lord for His gifts of grace. So they go nowhere even while claiming to be somewhere...by a religious indoctrination.

But God sees the reality...even if we don't. We can only overcome sin fully by entering into the truth...and the Spirit that gives us that victory.

 

[Episkopos]

We can't really speak of freedom from sin unless we go through the biblical progression from Romans 6 through 8.

In Romans 6 we are seeing the universal grace of God acting on the believer together with the choice of the will so that he leaves behind his old life of sin. This concerns righteousness. So then Romans 6 is about saving grace...but on a righteousness level. (The righteous are scarcely saved).

Romans 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

...not obedience unto holiness...since holiness is a gift.


What we see in Romans 7 is a righteous person being bothered by the sin life that is still in our bodies even after we are born anew by the Spirit. It's like God did half a work in us. Enough for righteousness but not enough for holiness.

So then Romans 8 speaks of the gift of grace...the progression from righteousness TO holiness. In that place we walk in a full victory over sin....by the Spirit. So then Romans 8 concerns holiness and perfection in Christ.

Many get caught up in Romans 7. Some people will just see sin as a non-issue at that point and just think God is ok with sinning. Or they will pretend that they don't really sin...inwardly...just outwardly. But we are responsible for the actions done in these bodies of ours. That is what John was speaking of in 1 John where he says.."if we say we have not sinned"...this is to counter the Gnostic notion that we remain sinless inwardly even as we sin outwardly. And many don't progress past Romans 7 through unbelief in the power of God...as in "no power in the universe can stop me from sinning"...that kind of unbelief. They who claim that they will progress into the full stature of Christ WITHOUT the full visitation and inspection of God..will die there...without the gift of grace that is promised to they who seek His face.

So then to get to Romans 8 we need to be fully tired of a life that is weak through sin. We need to cry out to God for His grace and mercy.

Can we remain as righteous in Romans 6 without the despair of Romans 7? Yes. First of all...a new Christian that dies before coming to the same conclusions as Paul in Romans 7 is surely in Romans 6. And by remaining humble a person can keep the benefits of grace in a righteous walk...remaining honest and humble. Such are saved by the (universal) grace of God.

The problem arises when people claim to be in a much better place than they actually are...OR else their unbelief in the power of God causes condemnation.

 

[Episkopos]

The full victory over sin is found only at the throne of grace. God waits for us to come to the right conclusion about ourselves and our own weakness. He waits for us to turn to Him..to seek His face...His presence...His visitation and inspection...that He might give us the full measure of grace that enables us to walk as Jesus walked.

Most of us will never get that far...having been short-circuited away from a deeper relationship with God through the doctrines of men and plain old unbelief.

We are like a living work in progress...a living sculpture that resists the hand of the Potter so often. We have our part to play in a full surrender and faith towards God that He might have His way with us. Whereas too often we are looking to have our own way with Him.

There is very little true faith in the church of today. People don't expect to encounter God as we read about in the bible. We so often fail to realize that Jesus chose ordinary men to do His extraordinary works. But God is looking for something in us...a childlike faith.

It is that kind of faith that God seeks to empower by giving these the faith OF Jesus Christ. God bestows His grace on people who please Him....as a gift...an outpouring.

So then to be overcomers we must be pleasing to God at the stage we are at present. When we pass muster, so to speak, and bear fruit...He will prune us (crucify our outer man) so that we can walk at that higher level of the Spirit to produce an abundant and eternal fruit. That is how we overcome all sin...as a by-product of being pleasing to God enough that He empowers us to win.

 

[stunnedbygrace]

We can't really speak of freedom from sin unless we go through the biblical progression from Romans 6 through 8.

In Romans 6 we are seeing the universal grace of God acting on the believer together with the choice of the will so that he leaves behind his old life of sin. This concerns righteousness. So then Romans 6 is about saving grace...but on a righteousness level. (The righteous are scarcely saved).

Romans 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

...not obedience unto holiness...since holiness is a gift.


What we see in Romans 7 is a righteous person being bothered by the sin life that is still in our bodies even after we are born anew by the Spirit. It's like God did half a work in us. Enough for righteousness but not enough for holiness.

So then Romans 8 speaks of the gift of grace...the progression from righteousness TO holiness. In that place we walk in a full victory over sin....by the Spirit. So then Romans 8 concerns holiness and perfection in Christ.

Many get caught up in Romans 7. Some people will just see sin as a non-issue at that point and just think God is ok with sinning. Or they will pretend that they don't really sin...inwardly...just outwardly. But we are responsible for the actions done in these bodies of ours. That is what John was speaking of in 1 John where he says.."if we say we have not sinned"...this is to counter the Gnostic notion that we remain sinless inwardly even as we sin outwardly. And many don't progress past Romans 7 through unbelief in the power of God...as in "no power in the universe can stop me from sinning"...that kind of unbelief. They who claim that they will progress into the full stature of Christ WITHOUT the full visitation and inspection of God..will die there...without the gift of grace that is promised to they who seek His face.

So then to get to Romans 8 we need to be fully tired of a life that is weak through sin. We need to cry out to God for His grace and mercy.

Can we remain as righteous in Romans 6 without the despair of Romans 7? Yes. First of all...a new Christian that dies before coming to the same conclusions as Paul in Romans 7 is surely in Romans 6. And by remaining humble a person can keep the benefits of grace in a righteous walk...remaining honest and humble. Such are saved by the (universal) grace of God.

The problem arises when people claim to be in a much better place than they actually are...OR else their unbelief in the power of God causes condemnation.

WORD!!!

I think I need to read Romans again...

 

[stunnedbygrace]

Well, I can't even get past the first chapter of Romans for all I am seeing in it.

The phrase that currently has me is "holding the truth in in unrighteousness."

It says Gods wrath is revealed against these men (who hold the truth in unrighteousness.)

I am not a scholarly studier, but what I have come to is that holding the truth in unrighteousness is rampant. It is to hold the truth in wrongfulness of character, life or act/action.

So it is to hold the truth (theoretically) but to separate it from character, life or action.

It is rampant. Men hold the truth and say the truth saves them no matter any subsequent wrongfulness of character, life or action. It is to hold the truth in unrighteousness.

It is to take the glory of an incorruptible God and change it to suit the image of a corruptible man. It is to change the truth of God into a lie.

It's rampant. It can't be changed unless God Himself does something to change it.

 

[Episkopos]

It says Gods wrath is revealed against these men (who hold the truth in unrighteousness.)

Yes...that is the iniquity I am speaking about so often. We can know ABOUT the truth without actually knowing the truth. That is to be concerned with the holy things, the things of Jesus Christ, but while we ourselves are being unrighteous in it...misapplying the things of God to benefit ourselves.

And these things are bound to happen if we lose the fear of the Lord and stop being humble (if we ever were).

We can learn humility as God shows us how off we are. A famous preacher once said...that if we believers could spend but a minute in hell (his ideas) there would be repentance and evangelism like we have never seen before.

But when we think we are just as entitled in God as we are rich and entitled in this life.....well...we are bound to fall into unrighteousness.