January 21, 2012

Sinning is Bad…We Get It

Anonymous asked: Hiya, Matt:] I was wonderin’, what’s your opinion on Nate Pfeil’s popular YouTube video “The Fire”? Some people think it’s like, all judgmental and stuff; and other people are saying it is convicting. Whaddya you think? c:

I said: Well I’m going to be honest, I didn’t make it all the way through the video. Regardless of content, I am staunchly morally opposed to 12 minute YouTube videos.

Best I could make out, here was the dude’s point: “Christians shouldn’t sin because sinning is bad, and if other people sin you should be sure to let them know that they are bad”. Now, not taking your sinful nature seriously would certainly lead to an inability to understand the gospel. I just don’t think that happens all that much. People may deny their Sin, or try to ignore it, and in those cases, yelling at them about it will accomplish nothing.

I made it to the point where the guy in the video was talking about the place in the Gospels where Jesus says that many will say to him “Lord, Lord” and he will say “Away from me, I never knew you”. However, Jesus doesn’t say He will say “away from me, you never felt guilty enough about your sin or angry enough about other people’s sin”. In fact, in the beginning of that chapter (Matthew 7) Jesus says point blank “don’t judge others”.

My final analysis of this kind of hell fire and brimstone stuff is that it is basically sound and fury signifying nothing (that’s pretty good, remind me to TM that). It feels awesomely holy to yell about wickedness and whatnot, but it rarely saves anyone or moves anyone forward in their walk. Jesus boils it down to love your neighbor as yourself, and Corinthians says love is patient and kind. So I think we should stick to that.

Filed under preaching jesus Sin guilt end times The Fire

10 notes &

January 10, 2012

What about sins committed after becoming a Christian?

What’s your opinion on remarriage after divorce? I know a guy who recently divorced and wants to re-marry in the future. I know if his wife was unfaithful, he’d have the right to, but he cheated, and he was a Christian back then as well. God forgives sins, even adultery, but does that mean he can still re-marry?

Anonymous

I Said: From a very practical standpoint, if someone wants to marry him, then I don’t see any legal or scriptural ban on it. Now, to be honest, if he were trying to marry one of my dear female friends, then I would be skeptical at first. But the Lord can redeem people and change them.

The interesting thing about your question is the caveat that your friend was a Christian when he cheated. There is a very prevalent undercurrent that Jesus will forgive and redeem your sin, as long as your sins happened or at least started before you were a Christian. So this says, without outrightly saying it, that Christians shouldn’t screw up. And if they do, Jesus holds it against them because they should have known better. God is outside of time. When Jesus died on the cross for your sin, they were all future sin to him. Romans 7 is all about Paul wrestling with his sin, and admitting to sometimes losing, well after he had seen the Lord in person.

Just as there is no sin that is beyond the forgiveness of God, there is no circumstances around a sin that renders it beyond God’s grace.

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Filed under Q&A sin marriage relationships