Originally posted by AProdigy"...which is a radical cleansing of the spirit, after which the sinful nature is no longer a dominate force that we have to constantly battle."
Hey, guys, don't be so hard on yourselves. A Christian is someone who professes faith in Jesus Christ being the Son of God. No Christian is perfect. Some are further along in the journey and have more aspects of their lives under control, but perfect living is not a prerequisite to salvation.
Now, when you say "True" Christian, you might be referrin s trying to following the will of God.
[Edit] By the way, I'm a Christian 🙂 [/Edit]
Being a Spirit filled Christian I don't quite understand this, you mean
that people think that if the Spirit enters into your life you no longer
suppose to have to battle against the sinful desires? Odds are this is
another thread in the making; from my perspective the battles are
still there, they just take on different forms.
Kelly
Originally posted by KellyJayIf Christ had to sweat great drops of blood in order to avoid temptation being without a sinful nature, how much more are we able to be tempted having a sinful nature? That is why in the Lords prayer we are commanded to pray and ask that we be delivered from temptation. It reminds me of Christ begging his disciples to pray with him but one hour but none were able to stay awake to do so.
"...which is a radical cleansing of the spirit, after which the sinful nature is no longer a dominate force that we have to constantly battle."
Being a Spirit filled Christian I don't quite understand this, you mean
that people think that if the Spirit enters into your life you no longer
suppose to have to battle against the sinful desires? Odds are th ...[text shortened]... ; from my perspective the battles are
still there, they just take on different forms.
Kelly
Having said that, Biblically we are given a picture of the "spiritual man" verses the "carnal man". The spiritual man tends to the spiritual aspects of our being and the physical man the carnal aspects. They both have different needs thus they both war after your soul for your attention. The interesting thing is, is that when you starve one the other gets stronger. We are to then give heed to our spiritual man more than our physical man. After all, one will perish and the other will live for ever, thus we should invest in that which is not perishable.
Originally posted by whodeyWell said, I agree the battles are different but they are real struggles
If Christ had to sweat great drops of blood in order to avoid temptation being without a sinful nature, how much more are we able to be tempted having a sinful nature? That is why in the Lords prayer we are commanded to pray and ask that we be delivered from temptation. It reminds me of Christ begging his disciples to pray with him but one hour but none wer ...[text shortened]... ish and the other will live for ever, thus we should invest in that which is not perishable.
nontheless and worth going through.
Kelly
Originally posted by KellyJayThis is a tough concept and I hope I can explain it correctly. You've probably head of the term "Holiness" being used to describe a church or doctrine. For instance, the Armenian (Wesleyan) doctrine, which is followed by the Methodist, Nazarene, Pentecostal (sort of), and other denominations is a Holiness doctrine. That means that they believe in the ability of Holy living. Living free of sin. Of course, everyone has sinned and is deserving of death, but they believe that a Christian can reach a point in their lives when the sinful nature is eradicated.
"...which is a radical cleansing of the spirit, after which the sinful nature is no longer a dominate force that we have to constantly battle."
Being a Spirit filled Christian I don't quite understand this, you mean
that people think that if the Spirit enters into your life you no longer
suppose to have to battle against the sinful desires? Odds are th ...[text shortened]... ; from my perspective the battles are
still there, they just take on different forms.
Kelly
There are several Biblical text that support this, and I'm not familiar with them all. Here is one, though.
The Bible makes is clear what we have to do to achieve salvations. "Call upon the name of the Lord, and you shall be saved." "Believe in me, and you shall be saved." So all that is required for salvation is belief in Christ. Granted, it must be genuine belief, not just lip service. This is called Assurance, because by this we as Christians can KNOW that we are going to heaven. Other religions don't have this, causing fear of death and judgment.
But now lets look at what Paul wrote. "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me" If you think about the impact of such a statement, you see that this is above and beyond what is required for salvation. Death to one's self implies death to sinful desires. This verse gives a good illustration of what Sanctification is.
Non-holiness doctrines believe that we cannot achieve on earth. They believe that any failure to fulfill the will of God is a sin, whether its purposeful or not. Therefore Holy living is only possible if you are God, such as Jesus was.
This is all a really brief description as I understand it, so it will have tons of holes in it.
Originally posted by AProdigyI believe it is a relationship, I believe in being Spriit filled (Pentecostal)
This is a tough concept and I hope I can explain it correctly. You've probably head of the term "Holiness" being used to describe a church or doctrine. For instance, the Armenian (Wesleyan) doctrine, which is followed by the Methodist, Nazarene, Pentecostal (sort of), and other denominations is a Holiness doctrine. That means that they believe in the abi ...[text shortened]... a really brief description as I understand it, so it will have tons of holes in it.
really and I think I agree with you, enough to not worry about what
I also think are holes in what you said.
Kelly
Originally posted by KellyJayWell, good. Sometime you and I can get into a discussion of Pentecostal doctrine (charismata), just for fun and information, of course.
I believe it is a relationship, I believe in being Spriit filled (Pentecostal)
really and I think I agree with you, enough to not worry about what
I also think are holes in what you said.
Kelly
Originally posted by AProdigyI wouldn't mind that, I've been a Spirit filled Christian since Jan
Well, good. Sometime you and I can get into a discussion of Pentecostal doctrine (charismata), just for fun and information, of course.
of 1980, I wouldn't trade any of it for the world, literally. 🙂
Kelly
Originally posted by AProdigythanks
Hey, guys, don't be so hard on yourselves. A Christian is someone who professes faith in Jesus Christ being the Son of God. No Christian is perfect. Some are further along in the journey and have more aspects of their lives under control, but perfect living is not a prerequisite to salvation.
Now, when you say "True" Christian, you might be referrin ...[text shortened]... s trying to following the will of God.
[Edit] By the way, I'm a Christian 🙂 [/Edit]
Originally posted by AProdigyActually, nobody has the copyright on the word 'Christian'. In general use, a Christian is someone who claims to be a Christian or who other people call a Christian. Faith in Jesus Christ being the Son of God is not a requirement.
Hey, guys, don't be so hard on yourselves. A Christian is someone who professes faith in Jesus Christ being the Son of God.
It is not unusual to find two groups of people which both claim they are Christian and that the other group is not.