Joyce Meyer said, “When people make mistakes, don’t make them feel rejected, but go the extra mile to make them feel forgiven, accepted—and free.”
This type of theology is rampant today in a world of conflicting religious teaching. What is clearly being taught above is that when people sin, don’t reject them, but forgive and forget and accept. What is wrong with that you might ask; it’s not according to divine teaching, which calls sin lawlessness, (1 John 1:4) and all sin must be repented of (Mark 13:5). Christians cannot accept sin but must sorrow over sin. This godly sorrow when applied produces repentance leading to salvation. (2 Cor. 7:9-10). The world teaches a message of “feeling forgiven”, but the divine writing states that all sin is against God and only God can forgive sins. If we just make people feel accepted they may enjoy our company here, but without a turning away from sin, called repentance, they will be one day condemned of God for He said, “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained…” (Acts 17:30-31).
Joel Osteen said, “We have to conceive it on the inside before we’re ever going to receive it on the outside,” Osteen writes. “To experience [God’s] immeasurable favor, you must rid yourself of that small-minded thinking and start expecting God’s blessings, start anticipating promotion and supernatural increase. You must conceive it in your heart before you can receive it. In other words, you must make increase in your own thinking, then God will bring those things to pass” (from Your Best Life Now, chapter 1).
There is nothing biblical in this teaching. No power inherent in positive thinking exists: We don’t create our own realities. God is not our servant, just waiting for us to fire up our imaginations so He can lavish us with material goods. To the contrary Jesus told His followers to “give up everything you have” (Luke 14:33), not to seek to get more. Sadly, and because of false teachers, the religious community at large now refer to sins as mere mistakes, requiring no godly sorrow, no change, just acceptance by our fellow man.
What is a mistake? Not having knowledge of your error is a mistake: “Jesus answered them, “You are mistaken because you don’t know the Scriptures or God’s power” (Matthew 22:29). What is not a mistake, is having knowledge and continuing in a mistaken path: “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin” (John 15:22). Why no excuse? Because we all have equal access to the God breathed word which is written for our good that we may be complete and thoroughly equipped to do God’s will (2Timothy 3:16-17). These most precious words provide for us all that we need to live godly lives, to avoid sin, and to secure our own salvation through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue (2Peter 1:3). Therefore, if we know what we do is wrong, it no longer falls under the category of a mistake, but is now in the category of sin.
When one makes a mistake, meaning that they did not understand what they did was wrong, we should make every effort to help them by speaking the truth in love (Eph. 4:15) and encourage them to repent and if they do choose the right way and we should forgive and forget. But when someone continues to take the wrong course, to deviate from the correct path and refuses the right way, then we are to obey the gospel and: “… note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. 18 For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ…” (Romans 16:17&18; See also 2 Thess. 3:6, 14).
The half message given by Mrs. Meyer is common teaching among many T.V. evangelist today but has no power to save the lost soul on the wrong course. Each person must consider their current path in light of scripture and if they have a fertile heart, and if they can accept truth, they will change course because they will weigh the possible loss of their soul against temporary relationship with the world. The scriptures quoted above are seldom taught in the denominational world, which wants men to believe that all are sinners, sin abounds, and you cannot help but sin, that is why Jesus died so that when you do sin His blood covers you. This false doctrine of “continual cleansing” so prevalent in denominations today, gives one license to sin with the disclaimer that Jesus will cover the sin with His blood. “Don’t worry, it’s all good”, “Hey, we’re all sinners”, “Everyone is the same”, and “God understands”, are all quick phrase teachings used today to teach love and acceptance in place of repentance and change as the scriptures teach.
What does the word of God teach? First, we are all under sin, for “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23), and we do need the blood of Christ Jesus our Lord to wash away our sins, (Acts 22:16) and to redeem us. (Eph. 1:7) When we are redeemed, we must accept that we cannot “…drink of the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons…” (Matt. 10:21). In other words, we cannot live in sin any longer (Rom. 6:1&2). Now we are called to live holy lives keeping our eyes firmly fixed on the revelation of Jesus, knowing that we were not redeemed by corruptible things, but with the precious blood of Christ (1Pet.1:13-19). Furthermore, the scripture states that “He who abides in HIM ought himself also to walk just as HE walked” (1 John 2:6 [Emphasis mine]). When we are born again our spirit is to die and be renewed with God’s Spirit of holiness to the point where we are living as “new creations” (Rom. 6:4), and everyone who has this hope purifies himself (1 John 3:3). We are not deceived, “He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous” (1 John 3:7), and “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God” (1 John 3:9). Worth repeating: “Whoever has been born of God does not sin.”
Am I saying that Christians cannot sin, No! What I am saying is Christians can’t continue in sin but are moved in spirit to learn what is approved by God and what is idle babbling (2 Tim. 2:15-16). Christians hold fast to the pattern of the sound words (2 Tim. 1:13). When caught in what is considered by God as sin, they are empowered by Him to stop it! Christians are not conformed to the ways of man but rather they are conformed into an image of Godliness through the renewing of their minds by the word (Rom. 12:2; Phil. 4:13), thus able to change course from sin to godliness. And sin is not defined by man, but by God. All transgression against His law is sin (1 John 5:17) and keeps us separated from God and Christ (2 John 1:9).
Bottom line is this; “He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning…” (1 John 3:8). “For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries”, “30 For we know Him who said, Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord. And again, The Lord will judge His people. 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. 10:26-27, 30-31). This term “willfully” implies knowledge, and therefore will suffer loss due to sin, and the loss will be great! Your soul’s separation from God for eternity (Matt. 25:41).
The word of God was written so that we can know the truth about sin and stop sin in our lives and if we do “trip up, fall or error”, we will know it by God’s word, be convicted in our hearts and convert to God’s way. When you do sin, “we do have an advocate with the Father…” (1 John 2:1). But don’t let anyone deceive you into thinking that continued sin is, “just a mistake that is forgiving on a continual basis by God”, because it is not! For God has said, “He who says, ‘I know Him’, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word truly the love of God is perfected in Him. By this we know we are in Him” (1 John 2:4-5). “Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit” (1Thess. 4:8).
Let’s all be doers of the Word (James 1:22) and build up the Most Holy Faith remembering what Paul said. “Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, 19 storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life” (1 Tim. 6:18-19).
In Love
David Scarpino