Forgiveness from God has nothing to do with whether you confess all of your sins or because a pastor or priest declared it to be so; it is because of the blood of Jesus that has already been shed, once for all. Christian religionists have hammered a single verse from the Bible to imply you must confess every wrongdoing in order to be forgiven and cleansed. This week, we’ll quickly run through a list of passages showing the assurance we have already acquired when it comes to God’s forgiveness.
581. “How Can I Be Sure God Has Forgiven Me?”
Forgiveness from God has nothing to do with whether you confess all of your sins or because a pastor or priest declared it to be so; it is because of the blood of Jesus that has already been shed, once for all. Christian religionists have hammered a single verse from the Bible to imply you must confess every wrongdoing in order to be forgiven and cleansed. This week, we’ll quickly run through a list of passages showing the assurance we have already acquired when it comes to God’s forgiveness.
580. Revisiting “If We Sin Willfully…”
As we talked about a couple of podcasts ago, the writer of Hebrews was telling his readers that the animal sacrifices through the law came to an end, so they were not to go down that path anymore for forgiveness of sins, but rather they were to believe in the one sacrifice of Jesus that was sufficient for all sins for all time. If they reject the one perfect sacrifice of Jesus, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins. That’s really what Hebrews 10:26 is saying.
During a discussion on social media, a statement was made by someone that the sacrifice of Jesus "does NOT cover willful sinning." That is quite a breathtaking statement - and quite sad - and it misses the entire point of the book of Hebrews. So this week we dig a little more into this controversial passage in Hebrews. We also take a look at other scriptures about sin being taken away, that have no such added conditions regarding "willful" sin. Many scriptures plainly say that we are saved by grace, through faith (by believing), and they do not add any such caveat that this isn’t true if we sin willfully. In fact, many scriptures highlight the fact that we have the forgiveness, remission and removal of ALL sin through the blood of Jesus. The book of Hebrews was not written to scare believers, but rather to assure them of the sufficiency of the blood of Jesus. The warning about "willful sin" was not directed at people who sin, but rather at people who reject the sacrifice of Jesus as the only sacrifice that takes away all their sin.
During a discussion on social media, a statement was made by someone that the sacrifice of Jesus "does NOT cover willful sinning." That is quite a breathtaking statement - and quite sad - and it misses the entire point of the book of Hebrews. So this week we dig a little more into this controversial passage in Hebrews. We also take a look at other scriptures about sin being taken away, that have no such added conditions regarding "willful" sin. Many scriptures plainly say that we are saved by grace, through faith (by believing), and they do not add any such caveat that this isn’t true if we sin willfully. In fact, many scriptures highlight the fact that we have the forgiveness, remission and removal of ALL sin through the blood of Jesus. The book of Hebrews was not written to scare believers, but rather to assure them of the sufficiency of the blood of Jesus. The warning about "willful sin" was not directed at people who sin, but rather at people who reject the sacrifice of Jesus as the only sacrifice that takes away all their sin.
579. God With Us: Merry Christmas
We know Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Jesus as the savior of the world. But it can be a challenge to grasp the idea of God becoming human, becoming one of us and enduring temptation in the same way we do, yet without sin. Why is it that it would require a man who would bring redemption to a fallen human race? We know this occurred, but we don’t always stop to think about why. We often think of Jesus as the Son of God but He was also the Son of man. This week, we have a conversation that takes a closer look at the human side in the life of Jesus.
578. If We Sin Willfully…
A verse that is often misunderstood and used ruthlessly by religious legalists within Christianity, is found in Hebrews 10:26: “For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.” Individual verses without context will lead us into a place of misunderstanding. Various teachings from this passage have led people into a place of fear and uncertainty. Our program this week will bring a reminder of that “blessed assurance” so many have been missing.
577. Forgiveness “For All Time” Through One Offering
Our focus continues on the sufficiency of Christ’s one offering that has taken away sin once and for all. While religion has promoted the false need for people to keep seeking a renewed forgiveness from God, the tenth chapter of Hebrews reveals much better news for us. All of the forgiveness God is going to give has already been poured out through this one sacrifice. Once forgiveness has occurred, there is no longer the need for another offering. Whereas the priests kept standing while seeking more forgiveness with more offerings, Jesus offered Himself once and sat down.
It is finished!
It is finished!
576. The Will of God – It Has Been Done
The writer of Hebrews reflects upon a prophetic passage from the Psalms where we find a body was prepared for Jesus. Why? Sacrifices and burnt offerings God did not desire and He did not take any pleasure In them. The prophecy looked ahead to Christ coming to do the will of God by the sacrifice of Himself. By this offering, He took away the first covenant made with Israel, including the law, and established a second covenant. This resulted in our eternal salvation and sanctification. It was God’s will to bring an end to the need for further sacrifice.
576. The Will of God – It Has Been Done
The writer of Hebrews reflects upon a prophetic passage from the Psalms where we find a body was prepared for Jesus. Why? Sacrifices and burnt offerings God did not desire and He did not take any pleasure In them. The prophecy looked ahead to Christ coming to do the will of God by the sacrifice of Himself. By this offering, He took away the first covenant made with Israel, including the law, and established a second covenant. This resulted in our eternal salvation and sanctification. It was God’s will to bring an end to the need for further sacrifice.
575. How to Attain Perfection (the one-step plan)
God has a requirement for all of us: Be perfect as He is perfect. How do we go about this seemingly monumental task? It hardly sounds like a good news gospel if we're going to apply our own works and efforts, because we'll never meet that standard. However, there is another way for us to enter into a state of perfection - believe in the work of Jesus Christ. The Jewish people could not arrive at being perfect through trying to keep rules, commandments or offering repeated animal sacrifices; nor could they escape a sin consciousness that brought them more guilt. With one sacrifice of Himself, Jesus brought an eternal perfection… And it looks really good on you!
574. Why God Has Stopped Forgiving
Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. Jesus died once and He isn’t shedding any more blood. This shows the finality of his work at the cross. He was the perfect lamb of God that would bring an end to the previous covenant of law and repeated sacrifices that provided only a temporary forgiveness and could not remove sin. There is no longer the need to seek God’s forgiveness because He gave His all through Christ. Believe it! It was more than enough.
573. Avoiding the Religious Trap of Progressive Forgiveness
Although religion has encouraged people to keep seeking a renewed forgiveness from God, the gospel shows us a new and different way when it comes to forgiveness. Forgiveness is not offered unless blood is shed. Asking for repeatedly for God to forgive because we're sorry or we confess wrongdoing does not provide us with a newfound forgiveness. This was accomplished through one sacrifice of Christ, once for all. If we're only forgiven up to this moment, that would be bad news for everyone, because Christ isn't shedding any more blood... That's because it isn't needed. He has already completed what was needed, we receive it by simply believing it was enough.
572. The Death of the Testator & Freed from Dead Works
Christ did not enter a place made with human hands, but He entered the more perfect tabernacle, in the Most Holy Place once for all, obtaining eternal redemption with His blood. The writer of Hebrews contrasted this work of Christ with the former ministry of repeated animal sacrifices, and explained how this would be superior to the old way. It would cleanse our conscience from dead works and move us into serving the living God. When did all of this begin? Not with the birth of Christ, but with His death, which would allow for the will or covenant to go into effect.
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