I just had an interesting conversation with a friend of mine today. We were talking about 1st Co 10:23. He makes the claim that we are free to sin. I say that we are free not to sin meaning we have a choice to please God now because of the grace of Christ. I leave it to your able hands.
Aaron,<br><br>Your friend might as well toss out the Bible, for in far too many places to mention, sin is something which does exist, is forbidden, and those who practice such will suffer eternal damnation. Where in Scripture is sin every sanctioned as a legitimate practice? Tell your friend that he must take care to observe CONTEXT, CONTEXT, CONTEXT! [img]http://www.the-highway.com/w3timages/icons/laugh.gif" alt="laugh" title="laugh[/img] Paul is speaking of "food and drink" and specifically the question as to whether it was sinful to eat meat which was sold and used by people as offerings to idols. See these 3 articles on "Christian Liberty":<br><br>The Weak and the Strong by Prof. John Murray<br><br>Liberty of Conscience by Donald McCleod<br><br>Christian Liberty by A.W. Pink<br><br>In His Grace,
Does your friend embrace Hedonism, Epicureanism, or Cyrenaicism? Don't philosophers have fun names?<br><br>Of course, what he sates is totally false. A person truly saved does not seek for ways to sin, but rather ways to say God forbid. Pilgrim kind of covered everything else with the articles he posted.
Romans 6:1,2 <br>"What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?"<br><br>I John 1:5-10<br>"This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." <br><br>"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us."<br><br>I John 2:28,29 <br>"And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him."<br><br>Sin and the Child of God<br><br>I John 3:4-9<br>"Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him." <br><br>"Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God." <br><br>Obedience by Faith<br> <br>I John 4:20,21 <br>"If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also."<br><br>Knowing the True--Rejecting the False<br><br>I John 5:18-21 <br>"We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. <br><br>We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. <br><br>And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. <br><br>Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen."<br><br><br>The Doctrines of Grace Do Not Lead to Sin by Charles Hadden Spurgeon<br><br>
When I survey the wondrous cross on which the Prince of Glory died, my richest gain I count but loss and pour contempt on all my pride. - Isaac Watts
<blockquote>[color:blue]Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor.</font color=blue>(1 Corinthians 10:24 NASB)</blockquote><br><br>I think that verse helps too to clear up some misunderstanding of 10:23.
Last edited by Kalled2Preach; Thu Apr 17, 200310:47 PM.
[color:blue]Freedom is what we have---Christ has set us free! Stand, then, as free people, and do not allow yourselves to become slaves again.</font color=blue> (Galatians 5:1 Good News Bible)<br>
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