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Is smoking a sin?
I just want to know Ferris, not trying to be smart.
I understand. I did not sense an ounce of contention in your post. In fact, it showed me that I was being successful at purposely staying out of the argument by not coming right out and taking a stand for OSAS either way, but rather focusing on that which the Bible makes crystal clear to us - keep believing. I just don't see any value in arguing whether or not that automatically happens for the true believer. The point is, that's what we are to do.
I'm only asking because I don't believe in it, humanity will always sin, even if they believe in God and Christ.
That's too broad of a subject. I don't think you can broad stroke every believer into the category of never going back to unbelief. What I believe is there are some believers who are susceptible to going back to unbelief. Weak believers. Which is why I think the Bible exhorts us to grow and be strengthened in faith.
I prefer to think of it in terms of continuing to believe vs. not continuing to believe. Sin doesn't separate the believer from the gospel (because the blood of Christ is always interceding on their behalf). Unbelief does.
Even strengthened in Faith we sin, we are not perfect we are made of the flesh and there will be times we slip and think or say something that is sinful.
Yes. I just edited my previous post to address this.
That's fine if you want to see it that way. What I see is Galatians 4:29 where Paul also talks about flesh born of flesh and we see there that it means the fleshly effort of relating to God through the works of the law to be justified, and how that does not produce a son who will inherit the kingdom, but rather a slave who won't. So, water in John 3:5-6 is probably referring to what was happening when Jesus spoke that - people were being baptized by John, a baptism in water for repentance and the forgiveness of sin. But that, without the spiritual birth, is just flesh giving birth to flesh. Repentance alone births a natural man who will not see or enter into the kingdom of God. For John's baptism of repentance, though necessary, was leading the way to faith in Christ and the birth of the spiritual man.
Believing and trusting in God's faithfulness in salvation is what is important. The argument over whether one can technically stop believing and trusting in God's grace or not doesn't change that. You still have to believe and continue to believe to be saved when Jesus comes back either way. That's what matters.
No, I did not bring it up. Because I do not believe there are performance requirements to receive the free gift of justification. A person is justified by having their sin forgiven, not by performing works of righteousness. Works of righteousness are the evidence that you have had your sin forgiven in Christ:
I think I replied to this already. Jesus is talking about actual water. The waters of John' baptism for repentance. And how that repentance alone is not enough to see and enter into the kingdom of God. You must also be born again, from above, by the Spirit.
You should read ALL of Scripture instead of the parts that fit what your men have taught you:
No one can believe or continue to believe without the presence of God's gift of faith. This has nothing to do with discounting the power of faith that God gives to people so they can know the gospel really is true so they can put their trust in it.
