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        • Introduction: Understanding Repentance
        • Don't Make The Mistake of Repenting of The Wrong Thing
        • Check Your Focus - Are You Asking Yourself Any Of These Questions?
        • A Changed Lifestyle Is Not Proof of Salvation
    • Beware the False "Free Gift" That "Costs You Everything"
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      • Forsaking All and Dying To Self Are Spiritual Goals Not Physical Requirements
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Introduction: Understanding Repentance

Contrary to John 3:16, Eph 2:8-9, the account of the Philippian jailer (Acts 16: 25-34), the account of the Pharisee and the Publican (Luke 18:9-14), the account of the thief on the cross (Luke 23:39-43), and a host of other pertinent salvation Scriptures, well-meaning yet misguided professing Christians everywhere have put the cart before the horse and have inadvertently replaced pinnacle salvation grade repentance (repenting of having any other gods before God) with the much lesser discipleship grade repentance (repentance of far lesser sins by comparison). As important and good as it is to repent of one's sins in general, nevertheless, it is unbiblical to pair this with the Gospel as a requirement of salvation for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that general sins-repentance pertains to one's walk as a Christian, not their salvation.

Ask yourself this: if repentance of assorted personal sins was really required for salvation, then how then could anyone ever know for sure that they have repented enough, surrendered enough, forsaken enough, carried their cross enough. etc. as some excellent authors and teachers have rightly pointed out? Suddenly and ironically, the very thing that Christian evangelists are supposed to be looking for from potential converts: total trust in Jesus Christ and total reliance upon Him is suddenly and completely undermined by the idea of attaining to a certain level of repentance of sin in order to achieve merit, as well as self-evaluation and personal performance being turned into a gauge of salvation. Self trust is amplified rather than diminished in this aberrant view. Just like in every religion except Christianity, trust in personal merit is emphasized rather than diminished. 
​
What we see overall today is on-going works-centered messages masquerading as the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The teachers who say that "it is by faith and repentance that we are saved" are correct, but they are usually very confused as to exactly what type of repentance is required. And due to the widespread misunderstanding of the meaning of the word repentance in this context, much confusion results when the "by faith and repentance" statement is made with no further explanation. When people hear that it is by faith and repentance that we are saved, they automatically assume the word repentance is referring to general personal sins. That is not what the Bible teaches.


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​© 2006-2019 ChristiansFree.com - All Scriptures quoted are from the KJV Bible with Old English words updated to modern English and with word definitions in brackets as needed. These updates do not affect the meaning of the verses, but simply make them easier to read and understand. Old English is not spoken in our modern society and it is shortsighted to believe that God's Word is trapped in any language and therefore cannot be updated or translated into other languages for other cultures. For information on why the King-James-Only position is in error, click here.
  • Home
  • True Salvation
    • What It Means To Really Believe: Faith (Trust) Alone In Christ Alone
    • WHOSOEVER Believes
    • Eternal Life is a FREE Gift
    • But What About....? >
      • What About James Chapter 2, Doesn't It Teach Salvation By Faith + Works? No!
      • What About the Verse That Says “Unless You Believed in Vain” ?
      • What About Repentance? >
        • Introduction: Understanding Repentance
        • Don't Make The Mistake of Repenting of The Wrong Thing
        • Check Your Focus - Are You Asking Yourself Any Of These Questions?
        • A Changed Lifestyle Is Not Proof of Salvation
    • Beware the False "Free Gift" That "Costs You Everything"
    • Is Belief Really Enough? Don't Even The Devils Believe?
    • More ... >
      • Different People Come To Christ Under Different Circumstances
      • Doubting Thomas or Due Diligence?
      • The Anathema Curse Upon Preaching a False Gospel
      • A Curious Encounter With a “Self-Made” Man
  • The Real Christian Life
    • For The New Christian
    • General Articles >
      • You Have A Ministry
      • What A True Church Looks Like
      • Are Churches Supposed To Be Large or Small?
      • The Blindness of the Pampered - Why Churchmen Don't Usually Question The Status Quo
      • Conversations With God?
      • Response To Question - Should I Leave My Church?
      • Forsaking All and Dying To Self Are Spiritual Goals Not Physical Requirements
    • Problems To Avoid >
      • Don't Fall Victim to a Cult-Like Business Disguised as a Church
      • Church Buildings – A Monumental Waste of Money
      • Some Churches Aren't Just a Business, They're a DREAM Business in Disguise
      • Are Christians Supposed To Tithe? No!
      • Nice Guys With Good Intentions?
      • Beware of Ministries Disguised As Churches
      • Is Staying in a Bad Church Ever the Lesser of Two Evils?
      • Beware The "Faithful Givers" Manipulation
      • The King James Only Error
      • Beware of the Spiritual Serial Killers
  • Audio
  • More Information
    • Archive >
      • Is There A Good Church in Your Area?
      • The Error of Spontaneous Pastoral Authority
      • Is Tithing Biblical?
      • Exposing the Tithing Error
      • Answering the Question: Should I Confront My Pastor?
      • But God Is Working Through Our Church
    • About >
      • About This Site
      • Am I Against Pastors and Elders? No! Only False Pastors and Elders!
      • By What Authority Do I Teach?
    • Legal / Disclaimer
    • Privacy Policy