Please, read this, paying close attention to the Romans 2:13-15 reference: 'Bombshell' then come back here and read these scriptures:
All People Are Sinners
“Well then, should we conclude that we Jews are better than others? No, not at all, for we have already shown that all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under the power of sin.”
“As the Scriptures say, ‘No one is righteous—not even one. No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.’ ‘Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are filled with lies.’ ‘Snake venom drips from their lips.’ ‘Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.’ ‘They rush to commit murder. Destruction and misery always follow them. They don’t know where to find peace.’ ‘They have no fear of God at all.’”
“Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God. For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.” ~Romans 3:9-20 (NLT)
Christ Took Our Punishment
“But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.”
“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.”
“Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.”
“After all, is God the God of the Jews only? Isn’t he also the God of the Gentiles? Of course he is. There is only one God, and he makes people right with himself only by faith, whether they are Jews or Gentiles. Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law.” ~ Romans 3:21-31 (NLT)
If we could operate apart from God and be “good people”, then there would have been no reason for Jesus to die for the sins of humanity. Do you understand this?
When God is removed out of the picture man merely operates according to what he deems “good”. But, as you’ve just read, there is no one who is good, no not one; there is no boasting of how “good” people are apart from Christ.
Continue reading, please:
Living by the Spirit’s Power
“So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.”
“When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.”
“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”
“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.” ~ Galatians 5:16-25 (NLT)
Again, there is no “self-governance” to do “good” apart from God. The scripture clearly states that when we are left to our own devices we will always do the wrong thing. But, when we are led by the Holy Spirit we then have ‘self control’.
If you want to continue to argue that an atheist or a believer in a false god can operate in a “good” way apart from God, then read this:
A little background; this was when Abraham moved south to the Negev and lived for a while between Kadesh and Shur, and then he moved on to Gerar. He told everyone that Sarah was his sister and not his wife so that he would not be killed if anybody desired to have her. I won’t get into the wisdom of Abraham’s decision because it wasn’t wise, but that’s beside the point. Keep reading.
“But that night God came to Abimelech in a dream and told him, “You are a dead man, for that woman you have taken is already married!”
“But Abimelech had not slept with her yet, so he said, ‘Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? Didn’t Abraham tell me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘Yes, he is my brother.’ I acted in complete innocence! My hands are clean.”
“In the dream God responded, ‘Yes, I know you are innocent. That’s why I kept you from sinning against me, and why I did not let you touch her. Now return the woman to her husband, and he will pray for you, for he is a prophet. Then you will live. But if you don’t return her to him, you can be sure that you and all your people will die.’” ~ Genesis 20:3-7 (NLT)
Abimelech did NOT know the One True Living God, yet it was God NOT Abimelech that kept Abimelech from doing wrong. It wasn’t in Abimelech to do good (not touch Sarah) apart from God. So, this notion that non believers or believers in false gods can do “good” under “self-governance” is not true. When we make choices we operate under God’s Moral Law; we know what is right and what is wrong because God has written His law on our hearts, as I already pointed out in my ‘Bombshell’ blog post.
I do not know how to say this any more plainly; God exists and we can "agree to disagree", argue, agree, deny, believe, hate it, love it, despise it, ignore it, get angry over it, rejoice over it, laugh at it, cry over it, become completely indifferent to this fact; IT WILL NOT CHANGE THE REALITY THAT GOD EXIST.
And if you want to say that if we can’t operate in a good way apart from God, then it must be true in the reverse; God makes us do evil. Don’t kid yourselves; “And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, ‘God is tempting me.’ God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else.” ~James 1:13
Again, when Beck says what he says on faith, he makes the Word of God of no affect and the death of Christ meaningless; if you can believe in anything you want and that will somehow make you a “good” person, why put your faith in Christ? Do you understand how this can lead countless people to Hell? I pray to God you do, and that you will speak up when you hear people say false things like that, because it DOES MATTER.
Pray for Mr. Beck and Mr. Jillette that God will open both of their eyes and the eyes of anyone who would read this.
In Christ, for Christ,
CommissionerG
