When The Cat's Away...

--> Luke12:43-46

43 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. 44 Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath. 45 But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken; 46 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers.





Perhaps this servant had the same mind-set commonly referred to today as "once-saved-always-saved." Notice in this passage that the servant, upon seeing that his master tarried, *began* to do wickedly. This interestingly suggests that before this point the servant apparently was faithful to his master. Albeit, when the master tarried, this servant was obviously so comfortable with his position and satisfied with himself; undoubtedly he was comfortable enough so as to believe that he could enjoy the pleasures of sin for one brief moment without consequence before his master returned. -But when the master returned unexpectedly and caught the servant in his evil deeds; the master severely punished the servant AND appointed the servant a place with the unbelievers -effectually disowning the servant.

Christians are the servants of Christ Jesus; and from this passage [and others] it can be decidedly ascertained that continuous and/or habitually unrestrained sinning will result in being disowned by the Master and counted as unbelievers if Jesus returns at a moment in which one is engaged in deliberate sin. We are sternly warned in Scripture against acts of deliberate sin{cf. Heb6:4-6 and Heb10:26-31}. Furthermore, God, who does not change{Malachi 3:6}, [and Jesus never contradicted a word God said] expressly declares in Ezekiel 3:20 / Ezekiel 18:24 / Ezekiel 33:12-13 that not even a lifetime of righteous living can deliver one from condemnation if that one dies [devoid of repentance] having engaged in deliberate sin.

To further evidence that OSAS is a damnable myth, draw your attention to Matt7:21-23. Many interpret Matt7:21-23 to indicate that the "many" whom were being rejected were not genuine believers because Jesus said that He didn't know them. This interpretation, however, comes from a lack of consideration for the Jewish culture. Incidentally, the "many" being rejected were *most definitely* genuine believers; e.g. they had professed faith in Jesus{they called Him "Lord"} and they had prophesied, performed miracles, and cast out demons all in Jesus name{something that could not be done apart from faith in Jesus(compare Acts19:13-16)}. "Depart from me I never knew you" is not a denial of acquaintance, but a resolute rejection. In Jewish societies [not just], when a son had shamed his father's name, it sometimes was so severe of an embarrassment to the family that the father would disown the son to preserve the integrity of the family name. A sort of legal suit, then, was often performed before witnesses in which the father publicly announced the son's sin [of which most were already aware] and the son was then disowned by the father; typically speaking words along the line of: "You have disgraced me with your [name of sin(s)]; leave me, you are no longer my son, I never knew you." --THAT is precisely what is going on in Matt7:23. Because the many were guilty of "lawlessness"{see note}and had sullied the Name of Jesus{cf. Heb10:29 (26-31)}, Jesus was disowning them on account of their "lawlessness"{see Note}.

Matt7:21-23 correlated together with Luke12:43-46 teaches that a servant of Christ cannot continue in lawlessness{see Note} and expect to be saved --because the fate of those guilty of "lawlessness" will be the same as the servant who was caught in the act of his sin -i.e. disavowed and cast among the unbelievers.


[Note: Matt7:23 "lawlessness" -cf. 1John3:4 (ESV) "practice of sinning;" -i.e. habitual sins which lack genuine repentance{cf. 2Cor7:10}]

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In conclusion, let us take to heart Proverbs16:6 and exercise genuine reverence for God by turning from sin:

-- 6 Wickedness is atoned for by loyalty and faithfulness, and one turns from evil by the fear of the Lord. -HCSB



...when the cat's away; rest assured that "the Cat" will return at a moment that you're not expecting it!!
--Matt 24:44  Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

How Dare God Send Somebody To Hell! -Really???

God is no more responsible for anyone ending up in hell than a judge is responsible for someone ending up on death row. Humanity goofed; not God.

God created mankind in His own image{Gen1:27} with the intention of mankind walking in love and good works while being at harmony with Him{Rom8:29/Eph2:10}. Harmony in a relationship is not achieved by compulsion but by the free-will; so God created mankind with a will which He allowed mankind to freely exercise -to choose good or evil.

The *genuineness* of a harmonious commitment is quite often only manifested/proved through testing; so God created a relatively easy test for Adam and Eve -eat any fruit from all the trees; including the Tree of Life; but don't eat this *one* fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Now that is a GOOD God... think of all the fruit that Adam and Eve could possibly choose from and God said "Enjoy it all except for this one -you'll live forever if you just don't eat that one." Wow, how much "gooder" can God be? Eternal life and scrumptuous varieties of fruit... Ooh if it were just SOOO simple today -but isn't it?

Isn't it still, today, a mere option of the will to choose good or evil? No one can deny that everyone's conscience illicits some capacity for knowing right from wrong -and quite often one readily choose to do the wrong -right?

Now, I'm going to skip some "hellfire" preaching and get into how good God *really* is...

In the same way prisons are not built for law abiding citizens; likewise, hell was not originally created for mankind. Hell was created for Satan and his angels.{Matt25:41}.

Now, throughout the Bible[Gen-Rev] we see how God has continuously made it possible for mankind to be redeemed of their sins and escape hell. Ultimately God instituted the New Covenant{a "covenant" is a dual party agreement} in which He sent His own Son to pay the penalty for our sins and save mankind. Now that is *good* and that is *love* -that was God's part of the Covenant. All that is required of mankind is to believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ and pursue harmony with God again by rejecting what God considers evil{Rom10:9}. God is so good that He goes even further in showing how much He loves us and wants us to not end up in hell by filling with the Holy Spirit those who genuinely seek to be in harmony with Him{Acts5:32}.

Now, the Holy Spirit doesn't *force* a believer to do good -that would be compulsion and null free-will. Without free-will love would be non-existent. The Holy Spirit does, however, incite the will to do good and empowers the believer[whom submits himself/herself to God(James4:7)] to follow through with doing good{Philippians2:13} -God is soooo *GOOD* to do that! 

Considering how much God sacrificed and continues to give for the salvation of mankind; it is purely no fault of God if anyone ends up in hell. Blaming God as being unloving or not good if someone ends up in hell is like blaming a judge for condemning a mass murderer to death row. Keyword here: *justice*!

It's not a strange concept at all to grasp, either: hell is the eventual punishment for evil doers who never turn to God{Rev20:11-13} and "heaven" is the reward for those who seek true harmony with God through faith in Jesus Christ:

--> Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he **rewards those who seek him.**

Self-Defense

"Guilt functions in the Spiritual realm like pain in the material realm. Pain tells us there is a physical problem that must be dealt with or the body will suffer harm. Guilt is a spiritual pain in the soul that tells us something is evil and needs to be confronted and cleansed."
"The Vanishing Conscience" by John MacArthur

These words by MacArthur are sound and true. We've all felt that nudge to our conscience; sometimes it's like a light brushing by and other times we're quite knocked over -but our conscience takes notice and oftentimes "interprets" that interaction as guilt. Now, guilty feelings don't *always* indicate that one is guilty of something; but as MacArthur said, it is a sign that *something* in one's spirit is not right -guilt is always a prodding to pray and "examine yourself"{see 2Cor13:5}. But this is not the thesis of my blog; my thesis is about "self-defense" -it's about the "natural" defense mechanism worked into our fallen nature by sin and preyed upon by Satan to keep one enslaved.

The first, and perhaps most prominent, defense mechanism is anger. All to often, most people do not even recognize this defense mechanism because Satan has cleverly disguised it as "indignation" over perceived judgment. Not that one's judgment of another is always justified, but if you find yourself pricked and agitated when someone approaches you with God's word concerning certain of your behavior; then let that agitation serve as a red flag that *something* needs examining. Jesus was accused of having a demon{more than once}... His responses were never in anger or agitation. He responded with the fruit of the Spirit of self-control and on this one specific occasion that I recall; Jesus reasoned with His accusers and concluded with this admonition: "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment{John7:20-24}." As a matter of fact, the one being "judged" often rejects the reproof through accusing the one "judging" as being self-righteous/judgmental. An irony which we see in Scripture is that, more often than not, the people{i.e. often the Pharisees} who became indignant over being judged by God's word were revealed to be the ones whom were self-righteous; believing themselves to be beyond reproach. Unless we submit to the Holy Spirit when we stand accused; we, like the Pharisees, may remain enslaved to the same self-righteousness anytime someone confronts us about a sin.

On the other end of the spectrum, some respond to guilt with depression. Depression is a monster... I kid you not. Depression opens doors to fits of melancholy, bouts of sadness, euphoria at times, and acts of rage, etc... Those at the receiving end of a fit can often feel victimized; but the true sufferer is the one battling the the depression. Trust me, they do not want to feel the way they feel and they deeply regret the things they do -even if they never communicate remorse. It's a vicious cycle... every time they do something bad, the guilt builds upon guilt making them feel powerless; and to admit that guilt -to apologize- would make them feel even more weak and powerless; defeated. They ultimately feel trapped inside a box that is closing... closing... and they are screaming from within begging for deliverance. I'm not *excusing* the behavior; just somewhat *explaining* it. The irony is that someone suffering depression *must* actually bask in their weakness and face the responsibility of their actions by acknowledging every legitimate guilt. Paul teaches that it is in coming to terms with one's weaknesses that one ultimately experiences the power of God within himself/herself more abundantly{cf. 2Cor12:7-10}. It is through confessing our guilt [to God(1John1:9) and to those whom have been wronged by one's action(Matt5:23-24)] that God cleanses *every* wrong from the slate. The power of depression is in Satan's ability to make one view weakness and guilt as defeat; Paul's words in 2Cor12:7-10 teach us all that it is through accepting our weakness that God's strength within us is perfected -for we are MORE than conquerors through Christ{Rom8:37}. John teaches us that it is only through confessing that we can be made clean{1John1:9}; and thus, one must welcome weakness and acknowledge and confess guilt in order to throw off the bondage that Satan tries to keep one under by enslaving him/her to guilt. Remember, guilt is not a punishment intended to torment. It is God's mechanism for moving one whom is drifting [or has drifted] too far from him back into communion with Him and then God will remove that guilt which is confessed.

In conclusion, all guilt is intended by God to be for one purpose -that purpose is to move one back into communion with Him. God intends for guilt to produce godly sorrow which moves one to repent resulting in salvation and leaves no residue of regret; Satan attempts to use the gift of guilt as an opportunity to enslave others through self-righteousness and feelings of defeat.
--> 10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. -2Corinthians 7:10

Paid In Full!

Considering the title, this may come as a shock: All sins are not forgiven.
Jesus didn't die for *every* sin; He died for the *debt* of sin. Scripture *expressly and explicitly* conveys that Jesus' death is our "propitiation"{Rom3:25/1John2:2/1John4:10}. The Greek word translated "propitiation" is ἱλασμός / hilasmos and literally refers to a "debt-settlement." Thus, Jesus as our "propitiation" can be better understood presented as a reverse class-action suit, so to speak... E.g. instead of many bringing a case against one{a typical class-action suit}; the One brings a case against the many.
So then, we are all guilty of sin, so God brings a case against us. We are all determined guilty and condemned to death. God, in His grace and mercy, presented to mankind an "offer to settle" in the form of a Covenant. 
One of the conditions for debt-settlement under the first [e.g. Old] Covenant was that in order for one's debt created by one's sin(s) to be forgiven one had to bring an animal sacrifice to accompany their confession of their sin(s). Each time a person sinned a debt was created; so confession and a sacrifice had to be made -for without the shedding of blood their is no forgiveness of sin{Heb9:22}.
Since mankind eventually began to abuse and neglect many of the conditions of the Old Covenant; effectually breaching this Covenant; God graciously and mercifully replaced the OC with a new and better Covenant{Heb12:24} -for He is not willing that any should perish. 
Under the New Covenant, the debt of sin is settled with Jesus' shed blood. Animal sacrifices accompanying confession and repentance for sins are no longer required under the New Covenant -e.g. ALL sins *which we confess and repent of* are forgiven by that ONE all-sufficient sacrifice of Jesus... [*rf. 1John1:9 {note esp. "IF..."}]

Ponder and Answer: If all sins{past, present, future} are covered and forgiven; why were the "many" in Matt7:21-23 being rejected? They had confessed Jesus to be Lord{rf. Matt7:22}... the Holy Spirit had worked supernatural signs through them{.ibid}... but Jesus said that they were lawless and rejected them{vs23}. 1John3:4 says: "Whosoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness." So here's the question again: If Jesus died for ALL sins -why were the "many" believers who were guilty of lawlessness{e.g. sin per 1John3:4} rejected?

My purpose for writing this is because I have encountered, on numerous occasions, a philosophy that claims to be biblical which states that confession and repentance of sin is no longer necessary after baptism -confessing and repenting is supposedly a one-time act that never needs repeating. Jesus, Himself, touched on this erroneous philosophy in John13:4-10...
Jesus alludes the need for REGULAR confession to God during His demonstration of humble servitude to His disciples{see John13:4-10 below}. In this passage, Jesus told Peter that only the feet need washing when the head has already been made clean; implicating symbolically the difference between being cleansed at regeneration and the necessity of being cleansed from "filth" acquired from trodding along through this world. The message is that we do not need to be thoroughly washed when we sin; as some would erroneously coin it "being saved again"; we need only to confess and repent regularly -just as feet need cleaning regularly.
--> John 13:4-10 HCSB 
4 So He got up from supper, laid aside His robe, took a towel, and tied it around Himself.
5 Next, He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples' feet and to dry them with the towel tied around Him.
6 He came to Simon Peter, who asked Him, "Lord, are You going to wash my feet?"
7 Jesus answered him, "What I'm doing you don't understand now, but afterward you will know."
8 "You will never wash my feet-ever!" Peter said.Jesus replied, "If I don't wash you, you have no part with Me."
9 Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, not only my feet, but also my hands and my head."
10 "One who has bathed," Jesus told him, "doesn't need to wash anything except his feet, but he is completely clean...

In conclusion, Scripture teaches in 1John1:9; that we are to confess our sins to God -and IF we do so, God[whom we know is just and knows the heart of all men], will judge the sincerity of the one confessing; and He can be trusted to be faithful in forgiving and cleansing those who are genuinely remorseful for the sins which they confess.
--> 1John1:9 NLT 
9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful *AND* just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.