sin – Freeread

Keys Writings 2013, Part 9

July 17, 2013 Joseph Dewey

This entry is part 9 of 25 in the series 2013

The Thinker Examines Sin and Salvation

Thinker: So, what is your thinking on the atonement of Christ?

True Believer: I believe he died for my sins and through the shedding of his blood I am saved.

Thinker: And what have you done to be saved?

True Believer: I believe on Him and accept the gift he has given me.

Thinker: And what are you saved from?

True Believer: My sins.

Thinker: All your sins or part of them?

True Believer: All of them, of course.

Thinker: Are you saved now?

True Believer: Yes, I’m saved through the blood of Jesus.

Thinker: Does this mean that your past sins will be as if they never happened?

True Believer: Yes.

Thinker: Theft is a sin, is it not?

True Believer: Yes. The scripture says, “Thou shalt not steal.”

Thinker: Let us suppose that before you were saved you robbed a guy on the street of his money that was going to pay for an operation to save his daughter’s life. Without the money the kid dies but shortly thereafter you find Jesus and get saved. Is the kid still dead?

True Believer: Of course.

Thinker: So, even though you are now saved, your sin still has a terrible effect and the father hates your guts. Sounds like your sin still has an effect even though you accept Jesus.

True Believer: Well, I suppose our sins have a residual effect in this world, but when we accept the atonement we have a clean slate in God’s eyes for the next world.

Thinker: So, even though you are saved your sins have an effect in this world but none in the next.

True Believer: Yes.

Thinker: Let us suppose that the sick girl was not saved when she died but was on the verge of it and would have found Jesus if she had lived. Because of your sin then she goes to hell instead of heaven. Does that sound like your sin will have no effect in the next world?

True Believer: There’s no way to tell if she would have been saved.

Thinker: We do know that a lot of kids do eventually accept Christ. That is a fact and in our example we are talking about one of these. Now, let us place ourselves in the kid’s position after death. There she is suffering in hell with the realization that she was going to turn her life around if she had lived, but this didn’t happen because of you. She curses your name even as you are enjoying bliss with Jesus. Does that sound like your sin has no effect in the next world?

True Believer: God will take away the memory of my sins so I will not be affected by anyone in hell.

Thinker: Where does it say that in the Bible?

True Believer: I’m not sure. It’s in there somewhere.

Thinker: Wrong. It’s not in there. And even if this strange idea were true it would be pretty cold hearted to ignore the eternal suffering of a child, by blotting out the memory, when that suffering was your fault. Don’t you agree?

True Believer: God’s ways are not man’s ways. If we could understand God then it would all make sense. We can’t use the reasoning of this world.

Thinker: But it sounds like you are using the reasoning from your mind in this world to make sense of the atonement. What makes you think that reasoning from your thinking in this world is correct?

True Believer: That’s what faith is all about.

Thinker: So your faith is based on the reasoning of this world?

True Believer: You’re twisting things. My faith is based on the Bible, the Word of God.

Thinker: And what makes you think you understand it since you have to use your worldly mind to read it?

True Believer: The Bible is clear. I just accept what it says.

Thinker: Let’s see if you accept this:

Gal 6:4 But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.

Gal 6:5 For every man shall bear his own burden.

Gal 6:6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.

Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

Would you read verse five for me?

True Believer: “For every man shall bear his own burden.”

Thinker: Does that sound like Jesus is going to negate the effects of our mistakes or sins?

True Believer: You’re taking things out of context.

Thinker: But the context continues in verse seven. Read that.

True Believer: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”

Thinker: So, even though you have found Jesus this does not negate the fact that you robbed a guy and caused his daughter to die and go to hell. What do you suppose this will cause you to reap?

True Believer: I will reap heaven because I am saved.

Thinker: Not so fast. Read Revelations 14:13

True Believer: “And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.”

Thinker: So, even though you now accept Jesus and are righteous what happens to your works?

True Believer: (He doesn’t want to answer.)

Thinker: Since you won’t say it, I will. It says “their works do follow them.” It is clear here that it is speaking of our works following us into the next world. Concerning our debts, Jesus said something interesting. He stated that those who are cast into prison “shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.” Matt 5:26

So let us sum these scriptures up. They tell us that we will bear our own burdens, that we reap what we have sown, that our works follow us to the next world, and finally we have to pay our debts to the “uttermost farthing.” That doesn’t sound like a simple belief in Jesus is going to instantly undue all the damage created by the robber who cost the girl her life, does it?

True Believer: But the scriptures clearly say we are saved by the blood of Jesus. How do you explain that?

Thinker: One of the problems with the scriptures is that those who prize them greatly often misinterpret them the most. A prime example, from the Christian viewpoint, is the ancient Jews belief in the Messiah. From diligently reading the scriptures they thought he was going to come as a conquering hero, destroy the wicked and restore the kingdom to Israel. Did that happen?

True Believer: No.

Thinker: Correct. They missed reality by miles. He had no army, he said to love our enemies and his kingdom was not of this world. Yet you can’t blame them because when you read the Old Testament it does sound like they could have been right. Have you ever considered that you may also have wrong interpretations of the scriptures?

True Believer: No, because I interpret them just the way they are written.

Thinker: And so did the Jews who were looking for a conquering Messiah – and so do the hundreds of religions who disagree with you. They all think they are interpreting the scriptures just the way they read, but obviously they are not all correct. Would you agree?

True Believer: Some people just read things into them that are not there.

Thinker: Well, let us see what is there. Since you give much eight to the scriptures that tell us that we are saved from sin through the sacrifice of Christ let us examine those words. The word “sin” in the New Testament comes from the Greek word HAMARTANO which means “to miss the mark.” In other words, when the Greeks, 2000 years ago, shot at a target with an arrow and missed they “sinned” (HAMARTANO) or missed the target. Another way to phrase this would be to say that to sin is to make an error in their aim or judgment. Would you agree?

True Believer: I suppose.

Thinker: The word “saved” comes from SOZO which is “to save or deliver.” The similar word “salvation” comes from SOTERIA which is more correctly rendered “deliverance” or “rescue.” Therefore, when the prophets wrote of being saved from sin they were literally saying they were delivered from error. So what did Jesus do to save the people from error?

True Believer: I’m not sure what you are getting at,

Thinker: Let us look at the actual words of Jesus. He said to his disciples, “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.” John 15:3

Notice that this was spoken before his sacrifice of the cross. He didn’t speak of blood saving them from sin but something else. What was it?

True Believer: His word.

Thinker: Good. In other words, that which delivered the people from error was the words of Jesus. He also said, “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” John 6:63

So what did he say his words were?

True Believer: Spirit and life.

Thinker: Here’s another powerful scripture giving light on the words of Jesus: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” John 5:24

So, his word can lead to what?

True Believer: Everlasting life.

Thinker: Notice that he taught this salvation before he shed any blood. Now let us read the advice of James. He advised us to “receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” James 1:21-22

So, what is it that can save our souls?

True Believer: The word.

Thinker: Yes, Jesus’ words were so powerful he was referred to as the “Word of God.” Now we see that when he saves us from sin he really delivers us from error. How did he deliver people from error when he was alive?

True Believer: I see what you are getting at. You want me to say his word.

Thinker: That’s what the Bible you believe in says and it is quite a simple principle. When we error we can be corrected through words that set us on the right course. For instance, the people sinned or erred in thinking that they should hate their enemies but the words of Jesus corrected or saved them. He told them to love their enemies and do good to those who despise them.

What error did the sacrifice on the cross correct?

True Believer: I’m not sure.

Thinker: Again, the answer is quite simple. People had very limited ideas of how far we should go in showing love and forgiveness. Jesus not only forgave those who crucified him but volunteering for the great sacrifice was an unheard of act of love that saved or delivered the people from their wrong thinking. One could say that the shedding of his blood saved many from their errors. Because of him many take the principle of love to a much higher level than before.

True Believer: Wow, you are really twisting the scriptures.

Thinker: No, I’m following in the footsteps of Jesus and attempting to save you from your sins by the power of the word. In other words these teachings have power to deliver you from your errors of judgment and wrong interpretation.

“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” John 17:17

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It’s A Sin

December 6, 2008June 23, 2017 Joseph Dewey

Book Of Quotes

Inspirational, Spiritual & Metaphysical Quotes

From The Discourses Of JJ Dewey

1 Today the average person sees a sinner as “a person who will let his hair down” and have a good time. Thus if you are not a sinner you’re pretty much an introverted geek. If you don’t sin a little you’re just not cool. But in the days of Jesus it was not cool to sin because the word sin had quite a different meaning from today.

2 The word “sin” comes from the Greek HAMARTANO which literally means “to miss the mark.” “Out of harmony” or “error” would be other ways to put it.

3 Sin is merely error and there will always be error of some kind in the worlds of form, but every error that we have will eventually be dispelled by light and the application of that which is revealed.

4 Fables have indeed been built around many of the teachings of Christ, including the sacraments.

5 Sin among humanity is corrected when light is manifest and a link with the will of God is established to enable the disciple to stand in the light.

6 We cannot justify our harmful actions, our errors, and our laziness by merely throwing up our hands and saying: “I screwed up and drank some Drano. I guess this is part of the perfect Will of God.”

7 If I were to demand or declare that certain teachings be accepted as truth beyond dispute, and others of little worth because they are just mindless opinion, then I would be directing you away from your own self discovery.

8 The ancient wisdom teaches there is only one sin in the real sense and that is the sin of separateness.

9 The heresy of separateness must be dealt with by all groups and individuals whether scattered or gathered, and the danger is especially perilous when successful physical results are manifest.

10 The icon that is worshipped is not the Christ, but a dim astral reflection with no intelligence.

11 Individuals who believe they are in the most subjective groups on earth can be as guilty of this feeling of specialness as the close knit religious extremists.

12 Separateness is the “root sin.” From it springs every physical evil that confronts mankind. It lays the foundation to the great illusion that we are all isolated entities and therefore breeds individual and group selfishness.

13 Separateness is settled in with humanity whether we are working individually or collectively and will not go away by ignoring it. It must be prepared for, faced, and dealt with. The strongest weapons against it are enlightenment and inclusive love blended with power.

14 If we then, being imperfect, know how to treat our children with reasonable helpfulness, would not God who is perfect be even more loving, more giving and give us better and more exciting creative gifts than any of us can give to our children? Who could be afraid of a God like this? Jesus was teaching that it is silly to think that God, who is our Father, is sitting on some throne ruling in anger, waiting to destroy us at the first sign of rebellion. If your own child makes a few mistakes would you send him to some fiery hell to burn forever? No. A thousand times no! If we would not do that to our children, then why in the hell do people think that God would take some type of fiendish delight in seeing his own children suffer so?

15 Is one normally criticized for moving from one city to another to better himself, or for building a new home to improve his condition? It is no greater sin to desire to gather with like minds and participate in building the kingdom of God. In fact it is not a sin at all and we should not have to defend ourselves to rational people on this point.

16 Responsibility only enhances freedom and prosperity when it is reasonably free from illusion and motivated with pure intent. It is a virtue but virtues can be misplaced.

17 To live in the body and enjoy a higher state of life because of the body, yet reject the body because it has nothing to offer, is a contradiction in terms.

18 Abortion is an error, but not as bad a murder of one who has an investment in life; nevertheless, the freedom to commit this error should not be infringed when the pregnancy is young.

19 Good statistics can only defend a falsehood when some of the truth is left out or the margin of error is high.

20 There are those who think it is blasphemy to consider that God can be anywhere except sitting on a throne in heaven being worshipped by his hosts.

21 Obviously, we are better off avoiding really bad mistakes if some are so bad it would be better if we had not been born in order to avoid them.

22 To recognize sin is to merely recognize error and then seek to correct it, not through guilt but through practice and by common sense.

23 The negative effect of error is guilt.

24 You seek for justice not for revenge but to assist, by the aid of law, in rendering the abuser harmless, to protect society from harm and to guide, by justice, the offending person away from his error.

25 Sacrificing everything for nothing is a sin against all that is holy if there ever was one.

26 Much of my family, who are mostly Mormons (several have broken away), see me as so far astray that it would be a sin to read my book.

27 Some may not give a rat’s behind as to whether the Master plants his feet among us or not, claiming instead that they have the Christ Consciousness and that is good enough.

28 The true antichrist not only denies the coming of Christ in the past, but the coming of Christ in us in the present and the future.

29 Jehovah commanded Moses to “let me alone,” but Moses ignored him and argued for his people, yet it was not accounted a sin because Moses was manifesting the same Spirit of the One God as was Jehovah and because they both listened to that One Spirit they reached agreement.

30 The sin against the Holy Ghost is really a sin against the soul where the soul contact is denied after having received it. This happens when you feel it but say you didn’t feel it.

31 Everything that we consider a sin that really produces harmfulness in this world comes from being separative.

32 Each of us is responsible for our own actions and each of us can be influenced positively or negatively by either a saint or a sinner.

33 Rape is a sin of violence rather than one of sexual pleasure.

34 Doubting the word of God is not a sin. How can one even know if a statement is from God unless he doubts it first and examines it logically and through the Spirit?

35 Attachment is a very misunderstood concept and is often mistaken for virtue.

36 The principle of atonement releases us from the negative effects of sin or error.

37 We are being indoctrinated with the idea that the basic nature of human kind is evil and the only way around it is to force men and women to do good. And, that we must pass laws to force us to wear seat belts, helmets, obey speed limits, and to abstain from harmless and harmful drugs. Taxes are forced from us to spend on hundreds of give-away projects for our own good whether we agree with them or not.

38 That which creates bondage is sin and freedom is obtained when the truth releases us from sin.

39 If you want to fight then come out in the open and fight; and do not hide behind the words of love, peace and oneness.

40 Have you noticed that most of the true successful people don’t really say much about their success but just go forward and demonstrate it? Yet time and time again people hire financial advisors who have done nothing in their lives but advise and success motivators who have only succeeded at convincing others that they are successful.

41 I personally think that the various holidays are one of the most positive aspects of our world-wide culture. There is always more goodwill during them and people as a whole are more cheerful and reflective of positive things in life. It saddens me when I see a large percentage of them condemned by those with fanatical beliefs calling Halloween evil, Christmas anti-God or Thanksgiving as hypocritical.

42 How can dwelling on Thanksgiving–or the spirit of peace and love at Christmas ever be a bad thing?

43 If you or anyone you know still has even the slightest desire to help your brother or sister then you have not committed the unpardonable sin.

44 When it is written that Jesus saved the world from its sins, the meaning is simply that He left the teachings and example necessary to correct the world from its error in belief and thinking. Most people did not believe a man could rise from the dead. Jesus corrected this error by demonstrating power over death, thus he saved the world from sin in this matter.

45 When we err and discover the error, we, through the Will of God, seek to correct the error.

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