The New Testament treats external rules like guardrails for the flesh rather than a checklist for salvation. This is an inportant realisation because yes we have the Spirit of God indwelling and yes we do not fulfill the desires of the flesh when we are led by the Spirit. However there are times we do not listen or we become deceived. ashamedly i thought that if you could end up with a familiar sopirit or demon by sleeping with a lady who was not saved then if you slept with a christian would you then have the Holy Spirit? This is just as an example of how some lateral rules do help to keep us on track. This is because the devil is sneaky and so is our flesh and the desires of the world often tempts us to join it. This in no way negates Gods love or faithfullness in completing the work he started in us as an act of grace nor will it take us out of his hands if we fall into areas that he wouldnt have us go. If we look at 1 Corinthians 5:1 it discusses a case of incest as an area one person took part in. ordinarily we would concider the person to have fallen away from Christ and possibly disqualified himself from salvation. But if you look at what paul says to do with the person and the result he is hoping for you will see that this isnt the case. In verse 5 we read: you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord. Have you experienced a time when you were given into the desires of the flesh and felt no remorse for doing so? there are times when the lord will warn you time and time again. Then if you refuse to turn from it he will allowe you to go your way and you will see the wreckage of using your free will against the Lord. One way or another you will have Godly sorry and come to repentance but the Lord would rather that came by way of him giving you a spirit of repentance than you suffering unto death so as to save your spirit bcause he knows you will never turn from it. You may even have an early death as Gods mercy allows. I know this is probebly more heavy than people want to hear but i myself was in a situation once where i had gotten caught in a sin that i didnt want to stop doing. You have to understand that once desire has conceived and turned to sin then it is willfull sin. Most sin is not accidental sin. So he gave me a warning. He showed me that if i continued in this way i would end up in jail or dead. So i heard his warning and said but lord i cant turn from it. I know that you warned me but i cant do it or even have the desire to stop. Then i remebered reading in the bible about how Paul said that Jesus had granted even the gentiles the spirit of repentance. So i asked God there and then for a Spirit of repentance and i was balling within half an hour and turned my life back to him just like that. It didnt mean i didnt fall sometimes and have to crawl away from it again but as time went by i was less and less drawn to the sin. there is another verse that goes. For inasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind, for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin. Now this could be taken to just mean that just as christ suffered for us we will also suffer for him but i took it to mean that the laws of consequence, sowing and reaping would cause a person to decide to not keep doing it. But i guess it depends whats driving it.
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