"Can I be saved and still have many sins?"
By David J. Stewart
Someone recently wrote my a letter asking...
Hi,
So, according to the bible (and what I just read at your "How to be Saved" page, all I have to do is Believe and have faith that Jesus Christ is out Savior and I shall be saved and that's the only sin that will get you lost towards perdition. So, according to this, you can have many other sins, BUT, if you do believe and have faith that Jesus Christ is our savior and ONLY repent for the Sin of Not Believing on that, then you shall be saved, am I right?
Thanks for your time in clarifying my religious questions.That is a very good question. Here's my reply:
Hi *********,
Thank you for your e-mail.
Salvation is a gift from God, paid for by Jesus' precious blood (1st Peter 1:18,19). The only sin which a person must "literally" forsake to be saved is the sin of unbelief, which is the only sin which can prevent a person from going to Heaven. Romans 4:5 clearly states... "But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." Salvation is of God not man.
Now 2nd Corinthians 5:17 teaches that genuine repentance will bring forth a new life, i.e., a "new creature." I wouldn't give you a dime for preaching about forgiveness that didn't include repentance. God's Law is necessary for salvation. The Law condemns us all as GUILTY sinners. The purpose of the Law is to show us our woeful sinful condition, and then point us to the Savior, Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:24,25). The purpose of the Law in salvation is NOT to be keep it, or even be willing to be keep it. The Law (through our failure to keep it) shows us our desperate need for Christ.
It is important to understand that godly sorrow, good works and turning from sin are the evidences of saving faith, i.e., genuine repentance; and NOT a requirement to be saved. If we had to give up our sins to be saved, then no one could be saved, because even the best of Christians still sin (like the Apostle Paul—Romans 7:14-24). As Pastor Lester Roloff once said, "Real repentance is putting your trust in Jesus Christ so you will not live like that anymore." Again, good works and turning from sin are the evidences of saving faith, i.e., genuine repentance; and NOT a requirement to be saved.Even still, some of the most famous Christians in the Bible commit horrible sins at times (e.g., Noah got drunk, Samson went with a prostitute, David commit adultery and then murdered the woman's husband, Solomon was a whoremonger who permit idolatry in his kingdom, Ananias and Sapphira lied and stole money from the church, Peter cursed the name of Jesus and denied knowing Him. Yet, we see evidences of genuine repentance in the overall testimony of their lives. I am not condoning sin, I am just saying that Christians at best are still people, and people at best are sinners. Jesus paid for our sins with His own precious blood, because we are incapable of doing anything to save ourselves. We have nothing to offer God but our own self-righteousness, which is unacceptable to God (Isaiah 64:6). We need HIS righteousness (Matthew 6:33; Romans 10:3,4). Please read...
http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Basics/true_righteousness.htmThe Gospel of John never mentions the words "repent" or "repentance" even once, yet we find the words "believe" and faith" 98 times in the Book of John. John 20:31 tells us why the Gospel of John was written... "But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name." Clearly, to believe on Jesus Christ is to simultaneously turn one's back against sin, otherwise the word "repent" would have been mentioned repeated in the Book of John, but it wasn't mentioned even once. Acts 16:30,31 state... "Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved..." Again, there is NO mention of repentance. To believe on Christ is to repent TOWARDS God, because of one's sins (Acts 20:21)
Yes, Jesus will save you if you'll come as a guilty sinner, placing your faith solely in Him as your personal Savior. Salvation is receiving; not giving. God, through His Holy Spirit, will help clean up our life after you're saved. Eternal life is a free gift (Romans 5:15;6:23). We don't make Jesus Lord; He is Lord! All we need to do to be saved is BELIEVE.
Kindest regards,
David J. Stewart