Which to some extent I agree, but you leave out character development...
Perhaps you could reference a Scripture about character development, so I know what you are talking about.
^ That is a gift unto the body of a man who has become converted.
If we are transformed by the renewing of our minds that we have the mind of Christ, there are no limits.
Correct.
But this change is a real-time vital and sometimes radical alteration in man's whole worldview and way of life. This isn't an exercise in "virtual reality". It isn't just a book entry that God writes down in the books of heaven like some clever accounting. Harmony with God's commandments is simply the bare minimum. But it is real.
You are mixing two things...
The Lords ACTS
The mans ACTS
1) Fact...what the Lord DOES within a man.
2) Fact...what the man DOES with his gift.
God does indeed look upon us as if we had never sinned once we are born again.
Correct...and WHY?
1) Because He Forgave us
Forgave us...OF WHAT?
2) Not believing IN Him
As IF we had never sinned?
3) Our body of sin STILL EXISTS.
4) Our SIN is "COVERED"
5) With Gods LIGHT, (his INDWELLING Spirit)
6) SIN is "darkness"
7) Light Overcomes Darkness.
8) The Darkness can no longer BE SEEN.
9) That which God does not SEE, He remembers no more.
10) It is men who claim they Continue to SIN.
11) While the Lords Light within, is SUFFICIENT, to KEEP a man FROM continuing to SIN.
But He does not leave us to languish powerless and defenseless against temptation and the pressures and lusts of the flesh and the world.
Never said anything to that effect.
Victory over sin is, and was, one of the primary purposes of Christ's first advent.
No kidding....uh...Baptism of the Holy Spirit!
He did not circumvent the law to accomplish this, but to exalt the law...lift it up...make it honourable.
The LAW, The LAW, The LAW...
Come on. Gentiles were not given The LAW!
The LAW, was given the Hebrews/Jews.
The LAW, OF the Jews, was being set aside, and the Jews following after Gentile WAYS.
Jesus came to SEEK the "LOST JEWS".
The Jews who had "LOST" their WAY, of following after God, and instead, "following after Gentiles Ways and "statue" gods, and "moon" gods, or no "god" at all!
The JEWS were LOST, because they were forsaking their FIRST LOVE....Thee true God.
A man is not LOST, less he have first believed and then Wandered off.
(That did not apply to Gentiles)
And as we abide in Him, attached as we are to the Vine, the very same mindset grows within us...it cannot help but be so. It is a natural law that the fruit is a reflection of the mother plant, and the seeds reproducing the same...thus so long as we are attached to the vine, just as Christ walked in harmony and in obedience to God's commandments, so also shall we. We cannot help but do otherwise. And as you say, much much more besides. But just as Israel couldn't enter the promised land without bypassing Sinai, nor can we.
Scripture is a guide FOR ALL people.
It is full of knowledge ABOUT ALL people.
ALL people are not the SAME in what they believe.
Thus Scripture DOES NOT APPLY to ALL people the SAME.
When Scripture is speaking ABOUT Hebrews/Jews...and that is NOT you, why apply that TO YOU?
The NT focuses on men...
1) Jews who were LOST, (no longer having God as part of their daily lives).
2) Jews who were be LEAD by hypocrites, (elevating themselves, and expecting the people to also "elevate" them)
3) Bringing God back into the Center point of a Jews life.......AND
4) Introducting their Christ MESSIAH Savior.
Jesus' Message is Concrete...
Believe In BOTH....Father AND His Son.
5) a FEW Jews Accepted "BOTH"
6) Those Jews Became ACCOMPLISHED, in fulfilling "THEIR" LAW.
7) Many Jews "tried" to DO as the Apostals taught, and as the JEWISH Apostals began dying off, and their message NOT carried ON, BY JEWISH MEN...
8) Jews began "reverting" to FOLLOWING JEWISH LAWS...."again".
9) Jewish LAWS....BELIEVE IN GOD...
10) Jewish LAWS 'DO NOT" have an inclusion of their MESSIAH "having YET arrived".
So WHILE Christ Jesus, FULFILLED the LAW, by HAVING ARRIVED, and offering the gift of SALVATION "then/now"... (ie Fulfilling the LAW).....if a Jew, doesn't believe that....
FOR THEM.....their LAW, is not fulfilled..
AND WHY...Jesus DID NOT "DESTROY" the
LAW, (given the Jews). "THEY" can "CONTINUE" to 'follow" the Law....(or they can continue to be LOST, and follow whatever they want).
"THEY" are the "ELECT".
God has a PLAN, for them to BE "SAVED"...
And it requires "THEM" To:
1) Believe in God & Jesus
Or
2) Believe in God, & remain true to their Law
(And WAIT, for Gods "sending" of "JEWS" to teach them their Jewish Messiah IS Jesus Christ)...ie 2 witnesses, 144,000 Jews!!
Then there are the Gentiles, who began Converting ... by and through HEARING, JEWISH MEN, (and Jesus Himself) teaching of
JESUS, the Christ.
The Gentiles, began believing IN JESUS, then were also "introduced" to thee Heavenly God.
(Sort of backwards of how the Jews learned)
ie Jews learned of God first, then Jesus.
Ie Gentiles learned of Jesus first, then God.
The Gentiles were readily (for the most part) accepting of Christ Jesus...over what?
Moon gods, statue gods, etc.
Gentiles began believing and then what....?
Gentiles TEACH Gentiles....NOT JEWS.
Gentiles congregate together, open invitations to umpteen million Churches...and who flocks to the Churches? Jews? Muslims? Buddhists?....No. For the greater part...Gentiles...and Gentiles form missionaries and go and spread the Word of God.
It is primarily JEWS who continue in The LAW.
It is JEWS who continue in The LAW, who have to do that, BY THEIR OWN power and determination. And IF they continue, endure the Lawful Obedience, repeatedly ASK for Forgiveness of their SINS, till their end of life, THEY WILL BE SAVED.
Where as a man WHO has Accepted BELIEF, in BOTH....God, the Father AND Son...AND
Confesses their heartfelt BELIEF...<--->
THEY BECOME "FORGIVEN", once and forever.
THEIR Salvation is GIFTED TO THEM....
THEN..Immediately...ONCE and forever.
THEIR FaithFULLNES..is FOREVER, effected by the POWER of the internal HOLY SPIRIT, that ....KEEPS them Faith-FULL forever.
They can NEVER AGAIN stand in disbelief OF
God the Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
....and precisely WHY they are FREE FROM SIN...and can SIN NO MORE.
That man ^^ has TWO LAWS...
Love thy Lord God above all, & Love all others.
(THAT does not hinge on the man KEEPING those LAWS.
THAT DOES hinge on the POWER of the HS within that KEEPS the man fulfilled in those TWO LAWS)
The Relationship BETWEEN that man...
AND thee Lord God Almighty...IS SEALED!!
THE man Loves thee Lord God...
Thee Lord God Loves the man....
It is a SEALED "AGREEMENT" between TWO..
""IN AGREEMENT"" !!
Thereafter...the man does not struggle to KEEP ANY LAWS...Not statues or Laws of the JEWS...
Thereafter...it is ABOUT...
"PRECEPTS"..
PRECEPTS, are about BEHAVIORS between,
MAN and MAN.
IS every man "IN AGrEEMENT" with every other man? No.
Does the Lord CHANGE Every man and make them Love you, Like you, want to Listen to you, agree with you, blah, blah...? No.
Scripture Teaches "PRECEPTS", of how a man can get along with men even when they disagree...
THAT is an ongoing process, and leads a man to being Christ-Like in dealing with other men, whom they are not in agreement.
Lying, Cheating, deceiving, etc.....
Is another ACT....between men.
You may be the one being LIED to, or CHeATeD....or be the one LYING or CHEATING....<--- those are trespasses BETWEEN MEN
(Unless you are a Jew Under the Law, then it is a SIN).
Trespasses between MEN. Men have the authority to FORGIVE other men of Trespasses Against them.
And if you are the Trespasser toward another man...Scripture teaches to RIGHT your WRONG..."AND"...boo hoo..."YOU" suffer the consequences of your having wronged another man...
Maybe whoever you wronged will forgive you, maybe not. Maybe they will divorce you, take your kids, your house, your possessions, your bank $$. Maybe they will sue you in court. Maybe they will attack you. Maybe they will write a book about you, or make web pages about how lying and cheating you are.
Get the point?
You have to DEAL with the consequences...
And WHY, learning the Lords PRECEPTS, are practicing them, is beneficial to you, to try and avoid such negative consequences...
For when a man learns the Lords precepts...and puts them to use...and STILL another is determined to be AGAINST you...
Scripture teaches.....depart away from the other...
Or
If the other prevails in UNJUST behavior toward you...(perhaps an UNJUST court sentence, as innocent but in prison)...
THEN
Turn to the Lord.......FOR HIS Comfort.
THAT is a reality. Men do NOT all believe the same, nor will treat one another with love or what is JUST...
We are not accountable for what OTHERS believe or DO......only ourselves.
IF we do Wrong and Right it, that is accounted to us.
If we are Wronged, we have the Lord to help us THROUGH the hardship, and leaning on and Trustiing Him, is accounted to us.
Learn what DOES and Does not Scripturally apply to you, and WHY.
Three DIFFERENT things...
Neh 9:
[
14] ...
precepts, statutes, and laws ..
Gory to God.
Taken
