We have to Be perfect in order to make heaven

[Aquila]

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Do you know that Christ was that believer’s propitiation? That means that EVERY bit of the Father’s wrath that could ever be against this believer was poured out upon Jesus Christ upon the cross. The Father’s holy justice has been satisfied. Jesus died in the believer’s place. Christ became sin that we might become the righteousness of Christ. Jesus didn’t have to sin to become sin…nor do we have to DO RIGHTEOUSNESS to become righteous. Righteousness is imputed upon us just as our sins were laid upon the Savior. It is an exchange performed by God. Once one receives the Holy Ghost, their spirit is regenerated, they are a new creature, they now have the abiding Spirit, and they are now partakers in Christ’s nature. In an instant. However, though the spirit has been regenerated by the indwelling of the Spirit of Christ, the mind of a person is still thinking in the old carnal fleshly patterns. It must be renewed to bring the believer’s mind into harmony with the believer’s spirit. In this way one is righteous by virtue of the regeneration received through the indwelling Holy Spirit, and is also being made righteous through sanctification. Sanctification is the process in which the believer’s mind is renewed through the Word of God bringing right thoughts, right desires, right vision, and thereby producing good works. So a believer’s spirit is righteous…because it is regenerated by the Holy Spirit. The believer is also becoming righteous, by virtue of the sanctification resulting from the mind being renewed.

If I placed five million dollars in your bank account…would you look at your empty hands and claim that you are not a millionaire? The spirit of a man is regenerated and made alive and holy after receiving the Holy Ghost. Just because his mind has yet to appropriate that reality and he acts out of character with regards to that new nature, it doesn’t mean that the believer isn’t righteous.

Their works give them if led by the Spirit God's consideration and judgment of being "right of heart." If they are doing it through the flesh they will fail.

Not so. Many men are practicing fleshly religion quite successfully. Basically because they define righteousness by their said religion. It’s easy to be righteous when you can pick and choose the Laws you follow. The point is…if a man believes he must keep the Law to be righteous…he must keep ALL of the Law.

IF what you said is true then you are deceivd. HOW in the WORLD can a BY FLESH seeking righteousness put to shame the righteousness of someone who is led by the SPirit?

There are Muslims and Hindus whose “righteousness” far exceeds the righteousness of Christians if we gauge “behavior” and outward standards. The point is…religious disciplines are not what will make one righteous. Righteousness is imputed to the believer by the very presence of the indwelling Christ. A born again Christian who is struggling with smoking and a pornography habit that they are prayerfully seeking deliverance from is righteous and holy in God’s sight because Jesus died in that man’s place. Judicially, Jesus bore every sin that man has ever committed or will commit, and died in His place. Jesus took every ounce of God’s wrath toward that man’s sins and received it in Himself. Jesus was executed in that man’s place. Jesus became sin that this struggling believer might believe and become the righteousness of God. This struggling believer is righteous and holy (set apart) in God’s sight, though he’s struggling with his sanctification. If a devout Muslim who was clad in modesty, clean in all speech, faithful in all dealings, prayerful (beyond five times a day), faithful to his wife, and kind and compassionate towards his children…the struggling saint is still righteous and holy in God’s sight and the Muslim is condemned where he stands. The struggling believer will do well to look to Christ’s cross for his righteousness, and witness to Christ’s Gospel to that faithful Muslim.

Having a new nature imparted does not make me righteous in itself. It allows me to now the will of God. I am righteous IF I do the will of him that is in me not simply because HE is in me.

Again, if I dropped five million dollars in your bank account…would you look at your empty hands and claim you weren’t a millionaire until you went out and worked for it? You might not understand that I dropped that into your account and that you’re a millionaire. You might not believe that I dropped that into your account and that you’re really a millionaire. Here’s the deal… as long as you don’t believe you’re a millionaire, you’ll never tap into that account and begin living like one. We are justified by faith, allowing us to come forward and receive remission of sins and the Holy Ghost (not always in this order). Christ became sin (our sin) for us that the righteousness of Christ might be imputed to us, and then we stand righteous in God’s sight. Not in our righteousness, but in Christ’s righteousness. The very Spirit of Christ comes to indwell us at Holy Ghost baptism and our spirits are regenerated, making us new creatures. Now, our mind needs to be renewed. And if we do not understand what has been deposited in us…or we do not choose to believe what is deposited in us, we will not begin acting in accordance to the new nature of which we have partaken. When you look into the mirror…realize something, own it, reckon it to be so, embrace it, accept it in faith…you are already righteous and holy in God’s sight. No, it’s not your righteousness, you have a LONG way to go…and you’ll NEVER be as righteous and holy as God (what’s demanded). Instead, you stand clothed in Christ’s righteousness. Your mind may still need renewed so that you might begin acting in accordance to the nature inside you. But you are righteous and holy. Now… IF you choose to walk way from Christ, and denounce Him, refusing to have your mind renewed… backsliding occurs. The first step down this slope is resisting the Spirit. Resisting that Spirit led conviction that gnaws in the pit of your stomach when you’ve done wrong. Then one begins to quench the Spirit by stifling all promptings to repent. This leads to grieving the Spirit, making the Spirit sorrowful and placing the Spirit at odds with the believer. One can then begin insulting the Spirit of God, rejecting the blood of Christ. Finally…one can fully turn and blaspheme the Holy Spirit, condemning them to eternal damnation. The example of this functioning as a progression is very general.

He is if I choose him not because he is there compelling me.

Yes, you must choose to die to self and allow Christ to live His life through you. We agree.

Uh for now I will say NO as I am unsure what your whole meaning is behind this statement.

If the Christain knows...

1) If they are struggling to do. They need to pray and fast and seek the elders of the church and the body and lean on God for his strength in the time of temptation. If they continue to fail most likely they are simply appeasing the flesh that... hey I tried. If you love me you will obey my commandments. He has not given us anything we cannot overcome. We don't dwell in sin.

I’d like to know your answer. I’ll share my thoughts afterwards. We both might be able to take away something from the other’s answer to this question.

Take a close look at this Luke. The question was…

Let me ask you a question. It will fully reveal if you’re looking at this legalistically, or biblically. How does a saint of God who is struggling with Christian disciplines and sin increase their love for Jesus, thereby bringing a life that is congruent with the new nature imparted to them?

You’re answer to how the Christian can increase his or her love God is as follows. They must:

1.) Pray.
2.) Fast.
3.) Seek assistance from the elders of the church and the body.
4.) Lean on God for His strength in time of temptation.

Do you notice anything consistent? Do you see anything missing?

The consistent thing is that your answer is that the believer needs to perform a bunch of religious duties. Prayer, fasting, assistance, and leaning on God’s strength to act or behave a certain way. All these things are good things. And I’ll admit, I’ve advised almost the very same thing. The only thing that comes close to the answer I’m now seeing is leaning on God for His strength in time of temptation. The problem with the answer in how you presented it is that…you don’t tell us how this believer is to lean on God’s strength. It’s ambiguous. And in my experience if they ask how to do so, we begin running in circles…just pray, fast, and seek assistance again. And so now they are on the hamster’s wheel of legalistic, performance based religion.

You really never mentioned... the atoning work of Jesus.

TO BE CONTINUED...