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Response to comment [from a Christian]: ""[If] you are sanctified, you are perfect..."

We are not sinless. We sin less.

"1 John 1:5–2:2
Key Verse:
Psalm 85:2

You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people;
You have covered all their sin.

We must make a critical distinction if we are to deal successfully with sin and enjoy God’s provision for overcoming its deceptive and destructive power. The crucial principle is this: God dealt with sin at Calvary. That was His responsibility that could not be executed by anyone other than omnipotent God.

We, however, must deal with sins. That is a responsibility that God assigns to us as believers. At the cross, God stripped away our sin nature by crucifying it with Christ. That is why we can be new creatures in Christ. The old, corrupt, fallen nature was done away with.

There is still a potential of sin in each believer, but we are no longer under its reign. We are freed from its tyranny, for we have died to its rule. We can freely choose to obey God.

Although God dealt with our sin nature through the Cross, making us saints who occasionally sin, we must deal with sins—habits or activities that violate God’s revealed truth. We do so by confessing our particular sins to God. We agree with Him that we have sinned.

You are completely forgiven. You can confess sinful acts to a Father who restores joyous fellowship. You have victory over the sin nature through Christ and cleansing from sins through confession..." Stanley, C. F. (1998). Enter His gates: a daily devotional. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

Response to comment [from a Christian]: "Was your entire post by Dr. Stanley? If not, what part/s were.

Thank you.

Edit: Never mind. I now see your quotation marks. All but the first line is by Dr. Stanley."

See:

Enter His Gates by Charles Stanley

Love him!

When he is energized (which is about always) he says: "Listen..." ~ Charles Stanley

We're listening pastor.

Order his In Touch Magazine which is a monthly mailer. It's a must read.

"Man calls it an accident; God calls it an abomination.
Man calls it a blunder; God calls it blindness.
Man calls it a defect; God calls it a disease.
Man calls it a chance; God calls it a choice.
Man calls it an error; God calls it an enmity.
Man calls it a fascination; God calls it a fatality.
Man calls it an infirmity; God calls it an iniquity.
Man calls it a luxury; God calls it a leprosy.
Man calls it a liberty; God calls it lawlessness.
Man calls it a trifle; God calls it a tragedy.
Man calls it a mistake; God calls it a madness.
Man calls it a weakness; God calls it willfulness.
—Moody Monthly" Tan, P. L. (1996). Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times. Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.

Response to comment [from a Christian]: "First off [p]erfect doesn't mean sinless. Pay attention..."

Do that (Mt 5:48).

"Why does the Bible say say keep on being filled? Because we leak." Eph 5:18 ~ Jeff Schwarzentraub

"People, can any of you righteous ones who are here to tell us all how it is, think of the last time you learned something, instead of trying to tell the world how it is?"

Believers are positionally declared righteous (Ro 6:1-10).

"...God imputes the perfect righteousness of His Son to the believer, and thereby declares him righteous positionally. But as you know full well, believers still have sin in their lives--Christians are not practically righteous, 100 percent of the time. However, it is on the basis of our positional righteousness, that we are exhorted to strive for practical righteousness in our daily lives." Full text: How to Get in the Game by John MacArthur

Response to comment [from other]: "So what you are saying. Work till you are perfect."

Don't do that.

"Heb 4:1 promise. This is the first use of this important word in Hebrews. The content of this promise is defined as “entering His rest.” His rest. See note on 3:11. This is the rest which God gives, therefore it is called “My rest” (Ps. 95:11) and “His rest.” For believers, God’s rest includes His peace, confidence of salvation, reliance on His strength, and assurance of a future heavenly home (cf. Matt. 11:29). come short. The entire phrase could be translated “lest you think you have come too late to enter into the rest of God” (cf. 12:15). With reverential fear all are to examine their own spiritual condition (cf. 1 Cor. 10:12; 2 Cor. 13:5) and to actively press for commitment on the part of others (cf. Jude 23)...

Heb 3:11 My rest. The earthly rest which God promised to give was life in the land of Canaan which Israel would receive as their inheritance (Deut. 12:9, 10; Josh. 21:44; 1 Kin. 8:56). Because of rebellion against God, an entire generation of the children of Israel was prohibited from entering into that rest in the Promised Land (cf. Deut. 28:65; Lam. 1:3). The application of this picture is to an individual’s spiritual rest in the Lord, which has precedent in the OT (cf. Ps. 116:7; Is. 28:12). At salvation, every believer enters the true rest, the realm of spiritual promise, never again laboring to achieve through personal effort a righteousness that pleases God. God wanted both kinds of rest for that generation who was delivered from Egypt." MacArthur, J., Jr. (Ed.). (1997). The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic ed., p. 1901). Nashville, TN: Word Pub.

Response to comment [from a Christian]: "You are here to learn something about theology? There are plenty of people on here that can teach you a few things. What do you want to learn...?"

"...Jesus concluded this section by saying, Be perfect therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. His message demonstrated God’s righteous standard, for God Himself truly is the “standard” of righteousness. If these individuals are to be righteous, they must be as God is, “perfect,” that is, mature (teleioi) or holy. Murder, lust, hate, deception, and retaliation obviously do not characterize God. He did not lower His standard to accommodate humans; instead He set forth His absolute holiness as the standard. Though this standard can never be perfectly met by man himself, a person who by faith trusts in God enjoys His righteousness being reproduced in his life." Barbieri, L. A., Jr. (1985). Matthew. (J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck, Eds.)The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

They keep saying that.

As a reminder, instant e-mail notification for new posts is inop.

"Mt 5:48 you shall be perfect. Christ sets an unattainable standard. This sums up what the law itself demanded (James 2:10). Though this standard is impossible to meet, God could not lower it without compromising His own perfection. He who is perfect could not set an imperfect standard of righteousness. The marvelous truth of the gospel is that Christ has met this standard on our behalf (see note on 2 Cor. 5:21)...

2 Co 5:21 Here Paul summarized the heart of the gospel, resolving the mystery and paradox of vv. 18–20, and explaining how sinners can be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. These 15 Gr. words express the doctrines of imputation and substitution like no other single verse. who knew no sin. Jesus Christ, the sinless Son of God (see notes on Gal. 4:4, 5; cf. Luke 23:4, 14, 22, 47; John 8:46; Heb. 4:15; 7:26; 1 Pet. 1:19; 2:22–24; 3:18; Rev. 5:2–10). sin for us. God the Father, using the principle of imputation (see note on v. 19), treated Christ as if He were a sinner though He was not, and had Him die as a substitute to pay the penalty for the sins of those who believe in Him (cf. Is. 53:4–6; Gal. 3:10–13; 1 Pet. 2:24). On the cross, He did not become a sinner (as some suggest), but remained as holy as ever. He was treated as if He were guilty of all the sins ever committed by all who would ever believe, though He committed none. The wrath of God was exhausted on Him and the just requirement of God’s law met for those for whom He died. the righteousness of God. Another reference to justification and imputation. The righteousness that is credited to the believer’s account is the righteousness of Jesus Christ, God’s Son (see notes on Rom. 1:17; 3:21–24; Phil. 3:9). As Christ was not a sinner, but was treated as if He were, so believers who have not yet been made righteous (until glorification) are treated as if they were righteous. He bore their sins so that they could bear His righteousness. God treated Him as if He committed believers’ sins, and treats believers as if they did only the righteous deeds of the sinless Son of God." MacArthur, J., Jr. (Ed.). (1997). The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic ed., p. 1772). Nashville, TN: Word Pub.

We will be like Jesus.

See:

1 Jn 3:2 J. Vernon McGee

"Understand, that you don't understand anything...Until you can answer, directly refuting, anything I've said, you haven't earned the right to breathe my flatulence...Last chance, [M]r. quote-smiley face-evasive-coward dude..."

"Mt 5:48 — “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

The only way to be “perfect” as the Father is “perfect” is to be clothed, through faith, with the righteousness of Christ. This is necessary, for without holiness “no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14)." Stanley, C. F. (2005). The Charles F. Stanley life principles Bible: New King James Version (Mt 5:48). Nashville, TN: Nelson Bibles.

"I'm fine with that. Do you have any idea what leads you to be arrogantly disrespectively rude for Christ?"

"Ministry is not safe. It's a battle." ~ Jeff Schwarzentraub

"Can you imagine..."

"...to tell other people about a God of Love, when His "alleged" followers, are deliberately obtuse, and refuse to reason, but instead just lecture with fascist force? [Y]ou hold no value and you are the very reason the book unChristian was written."

"...but just use abusive verses to passive aggressively attack people's character..."

[

You're projecting again (Eph 4:14).

] "You don't know what projecting is either..."

"...[B]e a perpetual passive aggressive , disengaged opinion vomiting bother. It's your choice, but I'm only walking through vomit so many times...

You are rude, and disrespectful.

Grow up or shut up..."

[Mt 5:48, "Why does the Bible say say keep on being filled? Because we leak." Eph 5:18 ~ Jeff Schwarzentraub ] "It spits in my face...

...make you a passive aggressive thug.

...Why do you deliberately disrespect all of us?"

Heterodoxical

"You will be nothing more than a cute purse pooch safe and protected in it's own little luis vitton world on some rich ditzy blonde's shoulder, yip yip yipping at anything that gets their attention, but being a threat to no one."

[Understand the difference between: justification, sanctification and finally glorification.] "You can't show you understand them...

You apparently aren't even bright enough to understand when scripture is abused and raped...

...Your lack of an engaging response...just contradict them like an arrogant, worthless narcissistic abusive person, shows you either are just deliberately obnoxious, or you literally don't understand ANY of the conversation...

Your deliberate refusal to engage, is rude, and inflammatory beyond need or reason. It's the intellectual equivalent to calling your child and when they run to you for a hug hitting them in the nose, then calling them again."

Jas 1:26-27, 3:1-12; 4:11-12; 5:12

Star Trek: I'm not crazy!