1 JOHN 1: 9 IS NOT for " EVERYBODY" ! Well . . . How are our Sins REMOVED ?

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

sets of people !

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 2^nd 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.