Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uwm.edu!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: johnw@sag4.ssl.berkeley.edu (John Warren) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Let's end the silliness of "relative" sinfulness, shall we? Message-ID: Date: 29 Jul 90 17:47:13 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: University of California, Berkeley Lines: 34 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article timh@ide.com (Tim Hoogasian) writes: > > We push the Gospel of the love of Christ (which certainly should > be stressed!) at the expense of stressing the Holiness and Justness > of Almighty God! (Listen to a copy of John MacArthur's tape on > God's Holiness, and I *GUARANTEE* you'll get convicted, no matter > how righteous you think you've been lately...) > > God wants us to minister to the world, certainly! But He doesn't > want for us to water down his commandments to make them "taste" > better. If we softpedal God's Law, and the penalties for flaunting > that Law, in favor of "Isn't Jesus so wonderful?" evangalism, we > are not serving Christ - at least, not very well. > Maybe you need to heed the words of Paul: "I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by faithing (active belief, supported by confidence, in God's promises) what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit [i.e., through faith, which is active belief, supported by confidence, in God's promises], are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?" Galatians 3:2,3. If we are really in tune with God, and faithing in his promises, we do start to realize how sinful we are, i.e., how short we fall of his perfection. But we don't need a preacher to beat into us how sinful we are. > Paul has issued us the challenge to run for the prize. What > are we waiting for? > >Tim >--- Again I ask, How do you run? By the Spirit (i.e., through faith) or by the flesh (i.e., through observance of the law, any kind of law or regulation on how to be holy)?