New Here - Being a Christian

[launger100]

Hi All,

I am new to this board after google searching "what is heaven like"

I have today buried a very dear friend who I have known all my life since being a child (I am now 25)
John was a victim of a rare cancer that only 1 in 1000 people get and he was very brave from start to the end of his days.

I was reading the article on the site about if you have any of the below you go into the burning lake of fire which scares me deeply no one is "perfect" and had done one of the sins below. Even it be a simple thing as a "lie" or "theft" or "drunkeness! If this is the case how come we are thown into the burning lake of fire?

I am a very big believer in Spiritualism and attend the churches and have received messages from past over loved ones. I also believe in Jesus and God and how daft it seems know I have let him down in some of the below

Should I join a Christian group to repent on my sins to try and make amends?


Sins That Keep One From Heaven
sexual immorality idolatry adultery prostitution
homosexual offenses theft greed drunkenness
slander swindling impurity witchcraft
hatred discord jealousy fits of rage
selfish ambition dissensions factions and envy orgies
abomination lying cowardice unbelief
murderer sorcery

The list is fairly extensive and includes some things that all of us have done. At the end of the first creation we will appear before the great white throne of God.48 God will go through the "books" to see if we have committed any of the deeds listed in the table above.49 In addition, our names will be checked to see if they are in the "Book of Life." Anyone whose name is not found in the "Book of Life" will be thrown into the lake of fire, based upon the unrighteous deeds that they had done in their lives.50 God does not grade on the curve, so all people who have been guilty of any one of the violations above will be sent to the lake of fire, which is the second death.51 However, those who trust (believe) in Jesus escape judgment and inherit eternal life in heaven (see below).52

How do we enter into a relationship with Jesus Christ? We do this through belief in Him:

Repent of your sin and selfishness. Repentance is agreeing with God that you have been wrong and being willing to turn from that old life to a new life61 in Christ.
Receive Jesus Christ as your Lord (God and Master) and Savior (who takes away your sin).
Receive the Holy Spirit as the promise62 of what God will do in your life.
Thank God for His grace and the free gift that He has given you.

Kind Regards,
Lee

[jlay]

I am a very big believer in Spiritualism and attend the churches and have received messages from past over loved ones. I also believe in Jesus and God and how daft it seems know I have let him down in some of the below

Should I join a Christian group to repent on my sins to try and make amends?

Lee,
The short answer is, no. The Bible never ask you to repent of your sins to be saved. (Look it up.) Religious people do put that burden on you. The word, repent, is perhaps the most misunderstood and abused word in the scripture. If you are required to repent of your sins, then this means your salvation is contingent on you reforming your behavior, and thus is conditional on your contribution. That is works based salvation, and a false Gospel. That means you have to earn your salvation. But, how do you know if you repented enough? What if you have forgotten some sin? What if you didn't experience enough grief over it?
Surely you can see the problem, as it is a hopeless situation.

Repentance is about your thinking, or your mindset. For example, if one thinks that there are many paths to God, and Christ is merely one of those, then this person needs to repent. That is, they need to change their way of thinking. They need to abandon a wrong way of thinking to embrace a correct one. You may have heard the term, "forsake the thought." I think this is actually a better modern usage of the term than what most churches are teaching. So, if a person believes that Jesus is just a way to God, then they can not be saved. They are not trusting the one true Gospel. They need to repent (abandon that thought), or else they cannot be saved.

Let's take a look at a scripture on repentance and salvation.

(Luke 13:1-5) "There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."

Here we have two examples of repentance, and each one is tied directly to wrong thinking. To break it down, Jesus says, 'Do you think....., well forsake the thought.'

You quoted this.

Repent of your sin and selfishness. Repentance is agreeing with God that you have been wrong and being willing to turn from that old life to a new life in Christ.

Here is what you need to do. Repent of this advice. It is wrong and a false gospel, period. This is a traditional, man made doctrine, and is not biblically correct.

[Jac3510]

jlay is exactly right with reference to repentance, Lee. I would only add what is essential for salvation. And rather than give you my spin on it, let me just quote Jesus:

• "Whoever believes in Me has everlasting life" ~ John 6:47.

Or you may have heard the most famous verse in Scripture:

• "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but has everlasting life" ~ John 3:16

If Jesus isn't enough for you ( ), then how about Paul?

• "And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." ~ Acts 16:27-31

Or Paul again:

• "Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law." ~ Rom. 3:28

I don't want you to think that this is only Jesus and Paul and John, as if this was some new religion. Let's go all the way back to Abraham:

• "And [Abraham]believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness." ~ Gen. 15:6

I could go on and on, but I think you can see what I'm getting at. Just ask yourself what all these verses have in common--what are they all saying is necessary for salvation. You see, the Scriptures put one and only one essential on salvation. To say anything else is necessary (including turning from sin) is to say that Scripture is wrong. So let me close on one more passage that says the same thing again for you to ponder:

• "These things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name" ~ John 20:31

[1over137]

Lee, well, welcome to the forum which is also a place one can share what bothers him or is painful for him and get support from other Christians.

We are family.