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David H.

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So, here is the thing about Grace.
Grace is not you trying to be a good Christian.
Grace is God's mercy that Created you to become a Christian.

Grace is the Sparkplug that ignites Spiritual growth, and leads to our will coming into submission to the will of God. I Have known many self proclaimed "teachers" who never figured this out, and in their pride they exalted themselves, and never grew spiritually.

You had the same assumption concerning me.

I Have known @Behold a lot longer than I have Known you here at CB. I Have interacted with him at a previous forum hundreds of times now probably, so please keep your condemnation to your self.

He is one of those people who does not believe in repentance and lives in Ephesians 2:8-9, while ignoring verse 10. This adversity to all things related to works comes from this misunderstanding and in so doing he is turning the Grace of God into Lasciviousness. I Understand his adversity towards anything legalistic in appearance, as this is well founded, But the Law is not the enemy of Grace. How could we know grace apart from the law?
 

Pearl

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I Have known @Behold a lot longer than I have Known you here at CB. I Have interacted with him at a previous forum hundreds of times now probably, so please keep your condemnation to your self.

He is one of those people who does not believe in repentance and lives in Ephesians 2:8-9, while ignoring verse 10.


@Behold Is it true that you do not believe in repentance?
 

David H.

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This idea, that Christ has made us brand new, righteous, that we are forever righteous in Him, forever alive in Him, forgiven of all sin, in Him, it's this knowledge that is the faith that opens the door to His grace, to stand and not fall.

HE brings HIS growth in us as we trust HIM.

We may have many ideas of what we think should happen to us.

We simply need to release ourselves completely into His care without self condemnation so that we aren't interfering in His work.

Exactly, this is my point, and this is what @Behold does not accept, neither in this post nor in my past conversations with Him. Grace is just the beginning. I Do not disagree with His premise, but what follows. He has taken "it is finished" to mean once we are saved we are fully there, much like you and I have discussed before, referring to the journey of faith. I See a lot of that in your doctrine as well.....

We are made righteous by Jesus Imputed righteousness, But we also are being made perfect by His Grace and the Work of the Holy Ghost in our lives. This is known as Progressive sanctification, as compared to instant sanctification. Instant sanctification is what happens when we are born again, Progressive sanctification is what a life of faith yields in us. This should not be a difficult concept to understand, None of it is "Our" work, But the work of God in us.
 

marks

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Exactly, this is my point, and this is what @Behold does not accept, neither in this post nor in my past conversations with Him. Grace is just the beginning. I Do not disagree with His premise, but what follows. He has taken "it is finished" to mean once we are saved we are fully there, much like you and I have discussed before, referring to the journey of faith. I See a lot of that in your doctrine as well.....

We are made righteous by Jesus Imputed righteousness, But we also are being made perfect by His Grace and the Work of the Holy Ghost in our lives. This is known as Progressive sanctification, as compared to instant sanctification. Instant sanctification is what happens when we are born again, Progressive sanctification is what a life of faith yields in us. This should not be a difficult concept to understand, None of it is "Our" work, But the work of God in us.
I don't think that you understand what he teaches. Just my opinion mind you! But as I read what you write about the fellow, that's what I think.

Much love!
 

marks

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This is known as Progressive sanctification,
"Progressive sanctification" is not Biblical terminology, and just confuses people.

But the "renewing of the mind" IS Biblical terminology, and shows the complete new inner man learning of God so that he becomes more capable of controlling the activity of the body of flesh.

Much love!
 

marks

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referring to the journey of faith. I See a lot of that in your doctrine as well.....
As if I say we've already finished our race?

Scripture please.

Again . . . Biblical Terminology. Let's discuss Scripture using the terms Scripture uses, OK?

"The journey of faith" is not used in the Bible.

Much love!
 

marks

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so please keep your condemnation to your self.
:eek:

Condemnation?

There's no condemnation. This is mud-slinging.

But shall I spend the time to find the posts where you've made that same erroneous assumption of me? No. I have better things to do, and if you remember, If you won't acknowledge, why should I bother?

It's too bad we can't have a converstion without you quickly becoming this way.

Much love!
 

marks

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Progressive sanctification is what a life of faith yields in us. This should not be a difficult concept to understand,
Do you know that you can live sanctified NOW, by trusting Him NOW?

Much love!
 

Behold

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We know God's offer of Salvation is extended to all mankind, but according to what is written in the Bible, long before Jesus Christ showed up on the horizons, God is said to pour out daily His mercy and compassion on all of mankind. And since you say that "grace" is God's mercy, then you invariably commit to God's grace being available long before Jesus came into the world even.

Abraham was on earth prior to Christ's Birth.

"And Abraham believed God, and it (his faith) was counted to him (accepted by GOD) as Righteousness".

So, Grace has been been around for as long as God has been around..

IN the OT, Grace was not missing, but God was revealing how sinful is sin, and how sinful are people.
He had to use the Law first, as this exposes our unrighteousness.

Had God revealed Grace, before He brought the Law's dominion, then we would not have recognized ourselves as sinful, fallen, lost.

The Law is God's Holy Mirror that reflects our sinfulness and our unrighteousness, as compared to GOD.

So, the Law revealed us, and then Grace heals us.
Grace is our Salvation.
Grace is God's Mercy.
Jesus is God's Grace.
 

Behold

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Grace is the Sparkplug that ignites Spiritual growth, and leads to our will coming into submission to the will of God. I Have known many self proclaimed "teachers" who never figured this out, and in their pride they exalted themselves, and never grew spiritually.
I Have known @Behold a lot longer than I have Known you here at CB. I Have interacted with him at a previous forum hundreds of times now probably, so please keep your condemnation to your self.
He is one of those people who does not believe in repentance and lives in Ephesians 2:8-9, while ignoring verse 10. This adversity to all things related to works comes from this misunderstanding and in so doing he is turning the Grace of God into Lasciviousness. I Understand his adversity towards anything legalistic in appearance, as this is well founded, But the Law is not the enemy of Grace. How could we know grace apart from the law?

There is one True Repentance, as found in the NT that God accepts.
Its to Repent of Unbelief.
Thats it.

Also, Your idea of "submissive will of God" is to "Present yourself as a sacrifice".
You believe that "working out your salvation" is the process of sanctification.
You talk about spiritual growth in the context of self will and long suffering.
And all that is flesh.
You teach flesh and law as "spiritual growth" because you have no idea what Grace is all about

God's "submissive will" is 2 fold.

1) Believe on Jesus whom God sent as this is the "work of God"
2.) Walk in the Spirit.
 

Behold

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@Behold Is it true that you do not believe in repentance?

People chase me around on forums and say all sorts of things..
It becomes their obsession.
Ignore these liars is answer.

Do i believe in Repentance?
I believe in the type that God accepts.
To "Repent" from unbelief.
See, before we are saved, we are committing the sin of Unbelief.
We are this. John 3:36
Unbelief is the unpardonable sin. Its why people go to hell after they die.
Its because they died in unbelief, which is Christ Rejection.
Christ Rejection is the unpardonable sin.
So, when we perform Godly Repentance, this is to turn from unbelief to FAITH in Christ.
This is REAL Repentance.

Legalists, and those who are not born again, but who are religious and claim Jesus without actually being His, teach that repentance is something you are to be doing all the time, because you are always sinning.
So, you need to be always repenting.
Note these heretics, and rebuke them.
 

Behold

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Exactly, this is my point, and this is what @Behold does not accept, neither in this post nor in my past conversations with Him. Grace is just the beginning. I Do not disagree with His premise, but what follows. He has taken "it is finished" to mean once we are saved we are fully there, .

You still confuse discipleship with the "finished work of Christ".
You are a one trick theology, and the people here dont know this about you.
You'll prove it soon enough.
And thanks again for chasing me around on forums.
My advice to you, David, is to get a real life, and come to the knowledge of the truth.
 

Pearl

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So, when we perform Godly Repentance, this is to turn from unbelief to FAITH in Christ.
This is REAL Repentance.

Yes. Separation from God is the sin we must repent of and so be reconciled to Him through Christ Jesus.

Legalists, and those who are not born again, but who are religious and claim Jesus without actually being His, teach that repentance is something you are to be doing all the time, because you are always sinning.
So, you need to be always repenting.

The scriptures tell us to confess our sins to each other, and I think this is a way of keeping everything in the light with nothing hidden, but not like the RCs with their religious confessions to priests. But I also think we need to bring our wrong doings before God to be washed in the fountain of life. Repentance though I see as a different thing.

James 5:16
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
 

Behold

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Yes. Separation from God is the sin we must repent of and so be reconciled to Him through Christ Jesus.
The scriptures tell us to confess our sins to each other, and I think this is a way of keeping everything in the light with nothing hidden, but not like the RCs with their religious confessions to priests. But I also think we need to bring our wrong doings before God to be washed in the fountain of life. Repentance though I see as a different thing.
James 5:16
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

Be careful whom you confess your sins to, as they may tell everyone in your church.

So what i do with that verse, is nothing.
Why is that?
Because if im sinning, then something is wrong with my Christianity.
Also, i know that the Devil is real and he uses Gossip as a way to destroy your life or your ministry.
James has some interesting theology, but you have to exercise some reality with it, as confessing your fleshy issues, can find you in a situation that you didn't expect.

Wouldn't it be great if there was no envy and no strife and no foolishness among the brethren?
So, until that is resolved you might want to keep your private life private, unless you absolutely know you can trust someone with your secrets.
 
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David H.

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As if I say we've already finished our race?

Scripture please.

Again . . . Biblical Terminology. Let's discuss Scripture using the terms Scripture uses, OK?

"The journey of faith" is not used in the Bible.

Do you know that you can live sanctified NOW, by trusting Him NOW?

Much love!
"Progressive sanctification" is not Biblical terminology, and just confuses people.

Progressive sanctification is a theological doctrine. I can post a link to show the scriptures.... Here is a good one in its entirety...

Question: "What is progressive sanctification?"

Answer:
The word translated “sanctification” in most Bibles means “separation.” It is used in the New Testament, according to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, of the separation of the believer from evil, and it is the result of obedience to the Word of God. Progressive sanctification is what gradually separates the people of God from the world and makes them more and more like Jesus Christ.

Sanctification differs from justification in several ways. Justification is a one-time work of God, resulting in a declaration of “not guilty” before Him because of the work of Christ on the cross. Sanctification is a process, beginning with justification and continuing throughout life. Justification is the starting point of the line that represents one’s Christian life; sanctification is the line itself.

Sanctification is a three-stage process – past, present, and future. The first stage occurs at the beginning of our Christian lives. It is an initial moral change, a break from the power and love of sin. It is the point at which believers can count themselves “dead to sin but alive to God” (Romans 6:11). Once sanctification has begun, we are no longer under sin’s dominion (Romans 6:14). There is a reorientation of desires, and we develop a love of righteousness. Paul calls it “slavery to righteousness” (Romans 6:17-18).

The second stage of sanctification requires a lifetime to complete. As we grow in grace, we are gradually – but steadily – changing to be more like Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:18). This occurs in a process of daily spiritual renewal (Colossians 3:10). The apostle Paul himself was being sanctified even as he ministered to others. Paul claimed that he had not reached perfection, but that he “pressed on” to attain everything Christ desired for him (Philippians 3:12).

The third and final stage of sanctification occurs in the future. When believers die, their spirits go to be with Christ (2 Corinthians 5:6-8). Since nothing unclean can enter heaven (Revelation 21:27), we must be made perfect at that point. The sanctification of the whole person—body, soul, and spirit—will finally be complete when the Lord Jesus returns and we receive glorified bodies (Philippians 3:21; 1 Corinthians 15:35-49).

God’s work in sanctification involves all three members of the Trinity. God the Father is constantly at work in His children “to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). He changes our desires, making us want to please Him, and He empowers us to do so. Jesus earned our sanctification on the cross and, in essence, has become our sanctification (1 Corinthians 1:30) and the “perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2). The Holy Spirit is the primary agent of our sanctification (1 Corinthians 6:11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2), and He is the one who produces in us the fruit of sanctification (Galatians 5:22-23).

Our role in sanctification is both passive and active. Passively, we are to trust God to sanctify us, presenting our bodies to God (Romans 6:13; 12:1) and yielding to the Holy Spirit. “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified” (1 Thessalonians 4:3), and God will have His way.

Actively, we are responsible to choose to do what is right. “Each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable” (1 Thessalonians 4:4). This involves putting to death the “misdeeds of the body” (Romans 8:13), striving for holiness (Hebrews 12:14), fleeing immorality (1 Corinthians 6:18), cleansing ourselves from every defilement (2 Corinthians 7:1), and making every effort to supplement our faith (2 Peter 1:5-11).

Both the passive role and the active role are necessary for a healthy Christian life. To emphasize the passive role tends to lead to spiritual laziness and a neglect of spiritual discipline. The end result of this course of action is a lack of maturity. To emphasize the active role can lead to legalism, pride, and self-righteousness. The end result of this is a joyless Christian life. We must remember that we pursue holiness, but only as God empowers us to do so. The end result is a consistent, mature Christian life that faithfully reflects the nature of our holy God.

John makes it clear that we will never be totally free from sin in this life (1 John 1:8-10). Thankfully, the work God has begun in us He will finish (Philippians 1:6).

What is progressive sanctification? | GotQuestions.org

I Use analogies like "journey of faith" or "progressive sanctification" to express doctrine so that i do not have to post long links like the above for you to read, in the hopes that you actually do the research yourself. Paul Himself spoke of "running the race" which is a lifelong process to sainthood, as we have discussed Before. So if you want i can post these long links full of chains of scripture to prove my point, but would rather keep it as a simple conversation using theological terms we can understand.... You can grasp these things, can't you?

What you are seeing in the theology of @Behold is Laodicean complacency which does not see the role of repentance in this journey of faith, Yes, he believes in repentance at salvation, but that is it. He does not see his partial unbelief, and the need for Jesus in each and every aspect of their life. Partial unbelief is the root of all sin. Here is a link you can read on this concept as well if you want scriptural backing.....(I will not copy and paste this as it is long) The Lifeblood of Sin is Selfishness (internt.net)

The reason why I use these terms is because i know you do not open or read links, so i try and summarize them in simple terms, I encourage you to do the research yourself, read the scriptures, study the life and faith of Paul and the other apostles and you will come to see these things. I Would rather you discover these things yourself and be taught by the Holy Ghost, than for me or another man to teach you these things.
 

Behold

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What you are seeing in the theology of @Behold is Laodicean complacency .

I think that you have posted this term "laodicean complacency" on every forum you get kicked off of, about 1000 times.
Its like a mental tattoo with you.
Its like your mantra.
How many more times do you think you will post the term "laodicean complacency" on this Forum?
And the heretic who taught you this term, is he still alive?
Does he have a name? Share it with us, as you are his disciple.

You have all this cut and paste stuff, that you dont write, that you copied from some heretic, and its all you can offer.
And you'll post it over and over and over and over and over and over, till a Mod wakes up and stops you., just like on every other forum you transgress.
Takes time.
 

marks

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Question: "What is progressive sanctification?"

OK, I can read "Got Questions" should I wish, though I prefer to simply read the Bible. And their explanation still doesn't make "progressive sanctification" Biblical terminology that can be understood in a Scriptural context.

The term "progressive sanctification" seems more to me to be phenomenal language, in that it describes someone's experience of their life. As if to to say, "I feel more sanctified this week than last week". It anticipates the experience, "I will feel more sanctified next week". Therefore, I am being "progressively sanctified".

3 For this is the will of God, iyour sanctification:2 jthat you abstain from sexual immorality;

God's will for us is our sanctification. It does not say that God's will for us is that we become more and more sanctified.

It does not say that. What is says is that God wants you to be sanctified.

When we come back to Biblical terminology, what we find is a description of the renewing of the mind through the knowledge of God. We find an admonition to "put on" and "put off", which is the choosing to live and act according to the new man, and not according to the old.

"By faith we have access into the grace in which we stand". Have access here is a Perfect Tense verb. In the same faith in Jesus Christ for which we are made righteous, in that same faith, and in that same way, once, continuing, we have access to God's favor and kindness, and in that we stand.

It seems to me that a common life experience for Christians is that they "get better at it" over the course of their lives. What I think is really happening is that the righteous and sinless new creation who is sanctified, once for all time, is having a greater and more consistent effect on the thoughts and actions of our bodies in this world. We are learning that by faith we can overcome the flesh. We are learning evermore the depth of God's love for us. We are gaining in the experiences of seeing God work, how we really ARE carried through afflictions, delivered from temptations, when we choose to trust Him.

These experiences build into a better life for us, as we learn to trust Him more consistently.

But we are not lacking in some kind of sanctification. We hold it in our hands right now in all of it's glory, by trusting Jesus that this is what He has done for us. We are justified and reconciled, but if we aren't believing it, we don't live like it. And when I say Justified, I mean rendered righteous, judicially, and in our nature.

When people talk about "progressive sanctification", yes, I know it's a theological doctine, and there are others which likewise do not appear in the Bible "as such". Personally I feel there are better ways to discuss this. I believe the Bible is clear that God has recreated us righteous and sinless and in everlasting union with Him, a most amazing and incredible thing!

I believe the Bible teaches us that having been made new people. That we were the fleshy children of Adam, we are now the spirit children of God. That we now have the full power and ability to live that way. Some may require more training than others to implement this new existence into our lives in this world.

What I'm asking you is,

Do you believe you can live sanctified right now, as you trust Jesus for that right now?

Much love!
 

Behold

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When people talk about "progressive sanctification",

Lots of talk about it.
Its always the theology of the Legalist who is "progressively sanctifying themselves" trying to stay saved and hoping to end up in heaven.
Another term for it, is "works".

Sanctification is Christ who is our Sanctification and our Justification and our redemption.

What David H is explaining badly, by using someone else's Commentary, is that Discipleship is a work in progress.
 

marks

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What David is explaining badly is that Discipleship is a work in progress.
Exactly!

:)

Meanwhile, Sanctification isn't left half undone. We just are called to live that way.

And we do that by letting go of all hope of making it happen by our own steam! And embracing the wonderful truth that Jesus did it all for me!!!

Much love!
 
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