PHOTO BY The ORDER OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD+
HOW DO WE CLEANSE
OURSELVES
FROM OUR SINS ?
Scripture speaks of TWO
DIFFERENT WAYS to TWO DIFFERENT sets of people for the cleansing of sin.
We know this is true
because of Acts
2:38 AND . . . 1 John 1:9.
These TWO Scriptures
APPLY
to TWO DIFFERENT
The FIRST way is for
ALL:
Repent and Be Baptized, every one of you in the Name of JESUS CHRIST for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the Gift of the HOLY SPIRIT. Acts 2:38 .
The Apostle Peter,
newly baptized with the HOLY SPIRIT on the Day of Pentecost, gave these
instructions. He gave them to devout seekers of The GOD of Abraham.
They had been pricked
in their heart with conviction after hearing that JESUS --- Whom+ they [ i.e., the nation of Israel ] had
crucified -- was indeed made LORD and CHRIST.
They asked the Apostle
Peter and the other Apostles with him: Men and Brethren, WHAT MUST WE DO ?
We see here that these
devout men DID NOT KNOW JESUS. They had not repented and been baptized in His+
Name for the remission of sins
. They had not received the Gift
of the HOLY SPIRIT.
Here is where we all stand
until we Repent and are Immersed (baptized ) in the
Name of JESUS CHRIST for the Remission of sins, according to
Scripture.
THIS is the FIRST step
and all who follow JESUS
must take it,
with no exceptions.
Repentance and Conversion to CHRIST is the Conception; Baptism is our New BIRTH.In the soul-cleansing Waters of Baptism is where we are Born-Anew as that New Creature in CHRIST.This is WHERE the BLOOD+ of JESUS first cleanses our soul and spirit from sins.This is WHERE the HOLY SPIRIT first enters our heart.
ONCE this has been
done, we who have become that New Creature in CHRIST, ARE JOINED unto the LORD+ by The LORD HIMSELF+, and we enter into
that 2nd group or set of people: the BODY of CHRIST.
NOW . . .
when we find that we
have slipped into sin,
that we have acted like
the Old Man
instead of the New
Creature in CHRIST,
we do NOT have to go and
be RE-BAPTIZED.
Now, though sorrowful
that we have Grieved CHRIST again with our sinful flesh, we simply must obey 1
John 1: 9, which states:
If
we confess our sins,
HE+
is faithful and just
to
forgive us our sins
and
to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1
John 1: 9
Sin, you see, breaks FELLOWSHIP. Hidden sin breaks Fellowship with The LORD and with GOD our FATHER and sometimes with our Brethren. Open sin always breaks Fellowship with our brothers and sisters, as well as with The LORD and our Heavenly FATHER.
So, for those who have already
been JOINED BY The LORD+ into His+ Body ---
that
Second group, the set of people who are Born Again, Born Anew, Born from Above --- we must return AT
ONCE into Fellowship with Our LORD and our Heavenly FATHER, if we fall away
into a sin.
We do this by Repentance
that we have GRIEVED the HOLY SPIRIT.
We NEVER leave a breach
between us and The LORD. We must immediately confess our sin to HIM+ and repent
of it and ask His+ forgiveness and cleansing.
Then it is that we are
walking in His+ LIGHT.
Then it is that we can RETURN unto FELLOWSHIP with
CHRIST JESUS and with our Brethren.
But if we walk in the
LIGHT
as HE+ is in the LIGHT,
we have FELLOWSHIP one
with another,
and the Blood of JESUS
CHRIST His+ SON+
cleanseth us from all sin.
1 John 1:7
THIS PATH stated in 1 John 1:9 is only open unto the Body of CHRIST, those who are already New Creatures in CHRIST.
For those who are NOT BORN ANEW, they must obey Acts 2:38 to become that New Creature in
CHRIST, through conversion, serious Repentance
and Immersion. It is NOT a ROTE ceremony.
Now , this is important to understand . . .No man can come to The LORD for cleansing until they have taken the FIRST STEP in Acts 2:38.
Much confusion as to
the Entering
Into CHRIST
has occurred because well-meaning, sincere Christians have this concept
backwards.
Omitting Baptism, they
tell Seekers to just believe in CHRIST, repent of their sins, and they are IN !
Well-meaning Christians
tell Seekers that they are “born again” when they JUST REPENT.
Did this error come in through the Salvationists and / or Billy Graham and his followers ?
They were quick to tell
Seekers to repent of their sins and ACCEPT The LORD in their hearts, in order
to become that New Creature in CHRIST, but THAT IS ONLY HALF of the Way.
What did The LORD JESUS
teach ?
JESUS answered ,
Verily, verily, I+ say unto thee, except a man be born of Water
and of The SPIRIT, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of GOD. John 3:5
The confusion about entering in comes because 1 John was written by the aged , beloved Apostle John TO THE CHRISTIANS . . . not to the Un-Redeemed.
The Un-Redeemed must do
Acts 2:38 … Repent, Be Baptized in the Name of JESUS CHRIST for the remission
of sins . . .
That is the FIRST TIME
one’s sins are washed away by the Blood of JESUS, cleansing the soul and
spirit.
The Taint of Sin is
INFUSED into the body, soul, and spirit of every man for every man is of the
Seed of Adam.
When one is repentant, converted to CHRIST,
and immersed into the supernatural Waters of Baptism,
THAT IS WHEN
the Water and the Blood
and the SPIRIT act as ONE to cleanse the body, soul, and spirit of man.
THAT IS WHEN
we KNOW that 1
John 5:8 is True Scripture :
And there are three
that bear witness in earth,
the SPIRIT, and the
Water, and The BLOOD+,
and these three agree
in ONE.
After being BORN ANEW
from Above,
it is THEN we have the
way opened to us
to confess our sins,
bringing them into His+ LIGHT,
and are swiftly
cleansed by His+ BLOOD,
to CONTINUE our
Fellowship with CHRIST.
It is the UNBROKEN
FELLOWSHIP with CHRIST
that keeps us safe from
the wiles of the devil.
Brethren . . .
let us not
confuse 1 John 1:9 with Acts 2:38. Those
verses apply to TWO SEPARATE GROUPS of people.
As a matter of fact, 1 John 1:9 can only
apply to those who have already been through Acts 2:38, which is the starting
point, the entering into the Kingdom of GOD , for us all.
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