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MelodyDawn77
Posts:3
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Posted:02/16/2007 7:26 PM |
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Dear Pator(s),
I have a friend who recently became a Christian Preacher. He was telling me that I'm not a Christian because I do not act Christ like. I really don't think I'm a bad person, at least not in my opinion. I help people when I can and do what I can to make others happy. I admit that I might curse more than I should and I really could pray and read my Bible more, but other than that I think I'm a decent person. He also told me that if I were to die today, I'd probably go to Hell because I'm not doing the things that I should be doing (ie reading my Bible, praying like I should, getting tattoos, smoking cigarettes, etc.), even though I accept Jesus as my Savior. He then gave me a few verses in Scripture that I would like you to look at and explain for me (Matt 19:16-21, Mark 10:17-22 and Luke 18:18-23). He believes that you have to live your life pretty close to perfect in order to get to Heaven and believing in Christ and accepting Him as your Lord and Saviour isn't enough to get you there. Is this true? Will the little things I do keep me from entering the gates? Your wisdom is really appreciated. 
Thanks in advance,
Melody
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gfike
Posts:242
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Posted:02/17/2007 9:48 PM |
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Hi, Melody.
Your friend missed the point of the rich young ruler story. It was not about being perfect; it was about the choice to follow Jesus or to follow something else (like wealth). You can depend on God's forgiveness or you can depend on your own obedience; the parable of the rich young ruler illustrates the failure of trying to be perfect. Saving faith means relying on God's grace alone. Matthew 19:25-26 says, "When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, 'Who then can be saved?' Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'"
A good passage to read is Galatians 3, especially verses 2-5:
"I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? Have you suffered so much for nothing—if it really was for nothing? Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?"
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| MelodyDawn77 (guest) |
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Posted:02/18/2007 11:45 AM |
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Thank you. That helps a lot. 
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