Tilling and Planting

Tag: Christian Lifestyle

Saved – or not?
Intro

I’m hitting on a long debated question with no end in sight. That question being “Can a person lose their salvation?” It’s also known as the “Once saved always saved” question. And I’m going to be up front with you. I don’t think anyone can actually know for sure the answer to this question. In the end, I believe only God knows the whole truth. But that’s okay. So long as we trust in Him and seek Him, we can become sure of our own personal salvation. And God doesn’t call us to ensure the salvation of others, He calls us to bring the gospel to others and let Him work the salvation in them. We are not the judges of another’s salvation, God is.

With all that, the structure for this post will be to put forth the question in greater detail and then present both sides of the debate. I will be as objective as possible and will wait until the end to present my personal opinion. But I will again be up front and say that I could be wrong. I am not so prideful that I believe I have all the right answers – though that has been a struggle of mine, see my post about that very topic. Now that I’ve got all the fun disclaimers out of the way, let’s get started.

The Question

First I’m going to elaborate on the question “Can a person lose their salvation?”. It often starts out something like this. A person has an encounter with God and answers a call to salvation. They pray and are now thought to be saved. However, in time they abandon their faith and walk a road diametrically opposed to God and His Word. By the fruit they are producing people who never knew their story would not assume they are a Christian at all. And as far as the Christians who do know them, they wonder if this person will spend eternity in Heaven or Hell. This is a tricky situation to navigate – especially when talking to any loved ones of such a person.

Now the question becomes, was this person truly saved at that moment they prayed? And if so, are they still saved and going to Heaven despite their lifestyle and wanting nothing to do with God? Or did they lose their salvation and are now on their way to Hell for eternity?

Now that I’ve set the stage, I’m going to present the arguments of both sides with their strengths and their weaknesses. The opposing doctrines are called Eternal Security (once saved always saved) and Conditional Security (can lose salvation). When referring to people who hold to these viewpoints, I’m going to use the terms Eternalists and Conditionalists – just for simplicity’s sake. Okay, here we go.

Eternal Security

To expand a bit on the doctrine of Eternal Security, it claims that once a person receives salvation through faith in Jesus, they are eternally secure and destined for Heaven. I’m going to go over the key points and related Scripture passages in an objective manner. Everything I write here that’s not Scripture will be paraphrases and summaries of the arguments I found in my research.

All Scripture is from the NIV.

Biblical Foundation

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.

John 10:27-29

To the Eternalist, once a person has been saved, they cannot lose that salvation because no one can overcome the Father to remove them from His hand.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38-39

Bolstering the argument made for previous verse, Paul emphasizes that nothing can separate us from the love of God.

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

Ephesians 1:13-14

A couple arguments I found about this passage. Only an authorized person can break a seal. So if God places Holy Spirit as a seal, then God alone is the one who can break it, not us. In addition, a deposit in this passage is like the earnest money when buying a house. It’s a guarantee that I will purchase the house at full price. For the believer the guarantee is for the rewards they will receive.

Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 1:6

God is the one who initiates and finishes our salvation. This gives believers confidence that He will do what He said He will do.

To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy

Jude 24

It is up to Jesus, not us, to present us before God. Believers are eternally secure because of His ability to keep us, not in our ability to maintain our own salvation.

Arguments and Explanations

In this section, I’ll lay out some arguments and explanations from Eternalists as to what they believe.

“”

This position points to the promises found in Scripture and testifies that those who are genuinely in Christ have a secure standing before God. This view rests on passages declaring the irrevocable nature of God’s gift of salvation, the sealing work of the Holy Spirit, and the believer’s eternal position in Christ.

…

Salvation stands on God’s sovereign initiative, rooted in grace. By grace, believers are forgiven and granted life in Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9). This gift is not earned; it is received through faith. Because God is the origin of that work, the outcome ultimately rests in His hands rather than on shifting human merit or performance.

However, humans must respond in faith. True faith produces transformation over time, yet the anchor of one’s security remains in the finished work of Christ on the cross (Romans 5:1-2). Through ongoing trust that aligns with obedience, believers experience assurance-not because they never stumble, but because Christ’s atoning sacrifice is sufficient to cover sin’s penalty.

“”

“Does the Bible support eternal security?” BibleHub.com
https://biblehub.com/q/does_the_bible_support_eternal_security.htm Accessed March 22, 2026

“”

Ephesians 4:30 tells us that believers are “sealed for the day of redemption.” If believers did not have eternal security, the sealing could not truly be unto the day of redemption, but only to the day of sinning, apostasy, or disbelief. John 3:15-16 tells us that whoever believes in Jesus Christ will “have eternal life.” If a person were to be promised eternal life, but then have it taken away, it was never “eternal” to begin with. If eternal security is not true, the promises of eternal life in the Bible would be in error.

“”

“Eternal security – is it biblical?” GotQuestions.org
https://www.gotquestions.org/eternal-security.html Accessed March 22, 2026

“”

Salvation depends upon God to bring it to pass, not us. Nothing, not even our sin, can frustrate the eternal and sovereign purpose of God who determined to save us by grace through faith in His Son. Since God’s holiness has been satisfied by the death of Christ, He can be just and the justifier of those who receive His Son by faith.

…

Sin does not change our relationship to God as His children though it does affect our fellowship, the intimacy of our walk with God, our ability to serve Him, and the rewards we will receive in the future kingdom.

…

Regeneration refers to the impartation of spiritual and eternal life which makes us new creatures in Christ. This can never change. First, it is based on the work of the Son, not our works. And second, as physical birth makes one a child of his parents forever, so spiritual birth does the same.

…

This argument is simply this. The New Testament plainly states we are saved by grace through faith in the person and work of Christ, and that salvation is not of human works or works of righteousness which we have done. If, however, having put our trust in the person and work of Christ, we can lose our salvation by what we do or do not do, then in the final analysis, we are saved by works.

“”

“Assurance of Eternal Security” Bible.org
https://bible.org/seriespage/14-assurance-eternal-security Accessed March 22, 2026

Conditional Security

To expand a bit on the doctrine of Conditional Security, it claims that a person who receives salvation through faith in Jesus, can lose it through unbelief and rebellion against God. I’m going to go over the key points and related Scripture passages in an objective manner. Everything I write here that’s not Scripture will be paraphrases and summaries of the arguments I found in my research.

All Scripture is from the NIV.

Biblical Foundation

There are several passages warning against falling away from the faith.

See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.

Hebrews 3:12-13

My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

James 5:19-20

Extra argument I found about the James 5 passage, bringing a person back into the fold saves them from death. This is not a physical death, but a death of the spirit/soul implying that a soul made alive by salvation can experience death.

There are other passages that indicate that salvation remains only by continuing to persevere in faith and obedience (take note of the conditional “if” statements in these passages).

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior.But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

Colossians 1:21-23

But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory.

Hebrews 3:6

We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.

Hebrews 3:14

Other passages contain exhortations to examine oneself to ensure your own salvation.

Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?

2 Corinthians 13:5

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble

2 Peter 1:10

Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.

1 Timothy 4:16

The Conditionalist points out that such warnings, conditional statements, and exhortations make no sense if it were not possible to fall away and lose salvation.

Arguments and Explanations

In this section, I’ll lay out some arguments and explanations from Conditionalists as to what they believe.

“”

Perhaps more mis-understood and mis-represented than Calvinism is the theological belief and the Biblical teaching that a Believer is Secure in Christ based on a condition. What is the condition? Is it get saved, sin, then lose your salvation everyday? Certainly not! This truly would be a miserable condition wouldn’t it? Some claim that the focus turns from Christ to yourself in examining every last detail of your performance thus making you fall into the trap of some sort of works salvation. Does this sound like the ‘good news’ to you? Not me! I should go ahead and tell you that I too am a Conditional Security Believer and I affirm that I am saved by grace through faith alone. I have become a recipient of God’s grace through my faith in the work of Christ alone and I remain in God’s grace through this same faith alone. It is Christ plus nothing.

…

Arminians believe that “It is abundantly evident from the Scriptures that the believer is secure.” Furthermore, believers have assurance in knowing there is no external power or circumstance that can separate them from the love of God they enjoy in union with Christ. Nevertheless, Arminians see numerous warnings in Scripture directed to genuine believers about the possibility of falling away in unbelief and thereby becoming severed from their saving union with God through Christ. Arminians hold that if a believer becomes an unbeliever (commits apostasy), they necessarily cease to partake of the promises of salvation and eternal life made to believers who continue in faith and remain united to Christ. Therefore, Arminians recognize the importance of warning believers about the danger of apostasy and exhorting them to persevere in faith as a means of building them up in their faith and encouraging them to mature spiritually, which is a sure and biblical way to avoid apostasy.

…

Marshall concludes: “The New Testament contains too many warnings about the danger of sin and apostasy for us to be complacent about these possibilities…. These dangers are real and not ‘hypothetical.’” Methodist scholar Ben Witherington would add: “The New Testament suggests that one is not eternally secure until one is securely in eternity. Short of that, there is the possibility of apostasy or rebellion against God by one who has believed in Christ. Apostasy, however, is not to be confused with the notion of accidentally or unconsciously “falling away.” Apostasy is a conscious, wilful rebellion against God . . . . Unless one commits such an act of apostasy or rebellion, one need not worry about one’s salvation, for God has a firm grip on the believer.”

“”

“Conditional Security of the Believer” Drews2CentsForYou
https://drews2centsforyou.wordpress.com/2011/05/17/conditional-security-of-the-believer/ Accessed March 22, 2026

“”

Additionally, believers can “fall away from the faith:”

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons. (1 Tim 4:1)

One cannot fall away from something without first having it, just as one cannot leave a place to which they have never been. Only Christians can fall away from faith. This departure from faith (that Hebrews 6 and other passages warn us against) must be man’s choice since God has promised not to change His mind. God will never stop believing. Only we can do so.

…

Faith is like a bucket placed under a faucet that freely pours out the living water of grace. The bucket does not conjure up the water; it simply receives. Still, if the bucket departs from its position that benefits from the water’s flow, it will no longer receive. Those who depart from the faith forfeit the salvation that is only received by faith.

…

The conclusion of this is that if one in good standing rebels, stubbornly persisting in a disobedient lifestyle, they are no longer part of the faith and no longer Christians. They have “fallen away from the faith” (1 Timothy 4:1). They have departed from Christianity. Please note that this involves much more than occasional falling. Falling away is a much more grievous thing than occasional falling. It is a stubborn, hardened, rebellion against God.

“”

“Is Eternal Security Conditional or Unconditional?” Apologetics Index
https://www.apologeticsindex.org/3046-conditional-security Accessed March 22, 2026

Criticisms

Now in this section I bring up a couple popular criticisms of both positions and responses to those criticisms.

Eternal Security
1. Some people feel that Eternal Security gives people a license to sin.
  - Response from aforementioned reference to BibleHub article.
  - “Scripture counters that those who truly love Christ demonstrate obedience (John 14:15). Moreover, the Holy Spirit convicts of sin (John 16:8). A believer who deliberately and unrepentantly pursues sin calls into question whether they experienced genuine conversion (1 John 2:19).”
2. Why else would there be warnings against apostasy if it were not possible to lose salvation?
  - Response from GotQuestions.org https://www.gotquestions.org/apostasy-salvation.html
  - “The passages warning against apostasy serve two primary purposes. First, they exhort everyone to be sure of their salvation. One’s eternal destiny is not a trifling matter…The second purpose for the Bible’s warnings against apostasy is to equip the church to identify apostates. They can be known by their rejection of Christ, acceptance of heresy, and carnal nature (2 Peter 2:1–3).”
Conditional Security
1. Risk of works-based salvation
  - In my research, Conditionalists time and again acknowledge that we cannot perform works to achieve salvation and the only reason we can lose salvation is by abandoning faith – they surmise that one needs faith to receive salvation, so by abandoning faith it logically follows that you can lose that salvation.
2. Undermines assurance
  - I referenced this one earlier.
  - “Arminians believe that “It is abundantly evident from the Scriptures that the believer is secure.” Furthermore, believers have assurance in knowing there is no external power or circumstance that can separate them from the love of God they enjoy in union with Christ.” Drews2Cents
Additional Information

There is so much out there I can’t squeeze into this. I’m going to summarize some more stuff I found.
1. Both believe God orchestrated salvation and that the believer receives it by faith through grace alone.
2. Conditionalists define those who commit apostasy as those who received in faith and then turned their backs on God and rejected their faith – thus losing their salvation.
3. Eternalists define those who commit apostasy as those who merely pretended to be believers. They talked the talk, but never received salvation by faith. So when they fall away from the faith, they are merely showing their true colors.
4. Both acknowledge backsliding as different than apostasy in that it’s occasional sinning and not permanent rejection.
5. Conditionalists do not believe that occasional backsliding causes one to lose salvation, only rebellion and rejecting their faith (this answers another common criticism of Conditional Security – Which sin will end salvation?).
6. The people who cry “Lord, Lord, did we not…” are people who never had relationship or faith as indicated by Jesus’ response “I never knew you.” So this cannot be used to support Conditional Security.
7. Conditionalists say that people receive salvation by faith and through faith they continue to walk with God. So when a person rejects that faith and rejects that relationship with God, how can they still be saved?
8. Eternalists believe God holds our salvation and perseverance of faith no matter our choices. Conditionalists believe that God holds our salvation no matter our choices, unless our choice is to stop letting God into our lives and reject Him and His salvation.
9. Both sides claim to have eternal assurance of salvation. For the Conditionalist, willful rejection negates that assurance.
10. Eternalists focus on God’s ability to hold us. Conditionalists focus on that and our ability to choose/reject God.
My Opinion

I promised at the beginning I would give my opinion – with the caveat that I could be wrong. In the end, I lean a bit more towards Conditional Security.

On the one hand, the idea of Eternal Security sounds really nice. Not having to fear losing salvation or your place in Heaven – no matter what. And the arguments that those who fall away never received salvation through faith to begin with makes sense (see 1 John 1:19 for a passage that supports this position).

However, the arguments that this can lead to people being morally lax is valid. By the same token, though, the arguments that Conditional Security can lead to a works-based salvation is also valid.

And Conditional Security answers the question of why so many passages exist regarding the perseverance of faith and warnings against falling away.

And God shows us time and again that He will not override our free will. He gave us choice and He gave us the ability to choose to have faith. So if we choose to have faith (“without faith it is impossible to please God” Hebrews 11:6) and receive salvation, He comes right into that relationship. But what should happen if we choose to abandon that faith? Will God say, “Sorry you’re stuck with me for eternity”? That doesn’t mesh with my understanding of Scripture.

My Conclusion

In conclusion, I lean toward Conditional Security. But regardless of which is true, I know I received my salvation by faith through the grace of God by the work of Jesus on the cross and did nothing to earn it. I am personally secure in Christ and choose to follow Him every day, seeking to draw closer in my relationship with Him. And no external power has the ability to separate me from God.

I also acknowledge that the church houses people who have a profession of faith and yet no heart change. And many of these people probably believe they are saved when they are not.

Final Statements

Both sides agree with the statements I just made in my conclusion. In fact, these two viewpoints agree on more than they disagree. The ultimate question surrounds apostasy and whether that exclusively belongs to people who profess faith without true heart change, or if truly saved people can reject their faith and lose their salvation. And in either case, only God knows their hearts. It’s not my place to say if a person lost their salvation or were never saved to begin with. In either case, God calls me to bring that person back into the fold if possible.

The other major difference surrounds responsibility. Both sides acknowledge that God holds us securely in His hand when we come to salvation. For the Eternalist, that’s it. Now God holds us for all of eternity and nothing changes that – because if we commit apostasy than that shows we never received salvation in the first place. However, the Conditionalist claims we have a responsibility to continue to have faith and allow God to hold us. By rejecting His hold, we reject the eternal security He offers us. To be sure, if this happens God will pursue us relentlessly – perhaps more than He did before we received salvation. And praise God He pursues us – even those of us still in the faith. He never stops that pursuit.

Wrapping Up

Hoo boy. This has been quite the ride. Admittedly I hadn’t known a whole lot beyond the surface-level arguments of either side until I started working on this blog. And I highly encourage you to read the articles I posted. Be forewarned, some are a bit dense. And please remember, do not try and judge another person’s salvation. Only God can do that. Pray for other’s whose salvation you may be uncertain of. If given the opportunity, lovingly correct and point people to Jesus. Even those who commit apostasy can be brought back into the faith – James 5:19-20 makes that clear.

As I said at the beginning, ultimately only God knows the whole truth about this topic. I don’t think it’s black and white enough to come down hard on one side or the other. And the most godly position any of us can take on anything that isn’t clearly laid out in Scripture is being humble enough to admit we might be wrong on whichever side we agree with. Though if you genuinely don’t know which to believe, that’s okay too. Admit that. Honesty is the best policy. Until next time, God Bless.

Outro

If you enjoyed this post, please consider doing one or all of these things. First, subscribe if you haven’t. If you have, thank you! Second, spread the word. Send these to everyone you know and encourage them to read and subscribe. This blog is purely word of mouth right now. I rely on you, my readers, to help me get more readers. And third, please consider donating. It’ll enable me to continue to offer regular posts.

Feel free to leave a comment with any questions about what I’ve written, any additional comments about the post, or if there’s a topic you’d like me to write about. Before doing that though, be sure to check out all my posts here and see if I’ve covered it already. And if you find I’ve done it already but aren’t satisfied or still have more questions, let me know!

Thank you for reading this! I greatly appreciate each one of you. Until next time, God bless you all!
March 28, 2026
Answers Are Not Necessary

Intro

I’ve got kind of an interesting topic today. Especially given the nature of this blog. For those who don’t know (and as a refresher for those who maybe knew) my tagline for this blog is “Simplifying the Truth”. And on my front page I have “If you’ve ever struggled with understanding the truths found in the Bible you’ve come to the right place.” right in the center of it. In hindsight, this almost sounds arrogant. It almost sounds like I think I have all the answers. I hope no one has gotten that impression of me. It certainly wasn’t my intent when I wrote it. The truth is that I know I don’t have all the answers and I’m okay with that.

Which leads me to my topic for today. It’s okay to not have all the answers. Why am I writing about this? Because so many Christians fear getting asked a question regarding the Bible, God, or their faith by an unbeliever and not having the answer.

The Fear

When it comes to evangelism – sharing your faith with others – there are three major fears I believe that everyone encounters (I know I have/still do). The first is fear of rejection. Let’s face it, no one likes sharing something that they are passionate about only to have the other person go “meh”. The second is fear of judgment and being labelled a “Fanatic” or “Jesus Freak” or mocked and ridiculed in some other way. The third – and the one I aim to address here – is the fear of not having answers for all the questions they might get.

Ironically, for those of us with substantial knowledge, this is almost worse. Historically, I felt embarrassed when I didn’t have the answer to a Biblical or Theological question. Why? Because everyone around me knew that I had a lot of knowledge and could answer so many questions. Especially in highschool it was always “Got a question, ask Cory. If he doesn’t know, no one does.” At least, that was the perception I had. I don’t think anyone actually thought that, but that’s how I felt. And I was afraid of not having all the answers.

There was one gal in particular who didn’t know a lot, but wanted to learn more. She asked me questions all the time – usually over Facebook messages. Even after I graduated and started college, she reached out and asked more questions. I was more than happy to oblige. I enjoyed explaining the Word of God to her and others. But I still feared not having the answers. I hated admitting when I didn’t and I hated admitting that I Googled questions to find out the answers.

The Solution

So what’s the solution? In a word, God. Okay, but what’s the practical side of it? Practically speaking, it looks like learning to be secure in your identity in Christ. And trusting that with Holy Spirit living inside you, you can overcome any fear and doubt and, when you need them, He will give you the words to speak. Key phrase: when you need them. As my pastor has said when he preached on John 10:10 (paraphrased), “Abundance is not a warehouse that I can go get what I need when I need it. But that when I need it, I’ll have it.” In this case, it’s an “in the moment” speaking of Holy Spirit. Not a massive file cabinet in our head of knowledge that we can rely on.

But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

John 14:6 (NIV)

Over the years, I have learned (by the grace of God) to be more comfortable with saying, “I don’t know”. Learn to use this phrase in your vocabulary. The people who are genuinely curious and searching for truth will greatly appreciate it and will have no problems with you saying, “Let me find out for you”. If you’re mocked or ridiculed for not knowing, then that person really isn’t interested and you should say a prayer for them and not waste any more time with them.

Honesty is truly the best policy here. People greatly appreciate it and will respect you more for it.

My Key Verse

But what about my key verse? If you’re not sure what that is or you just need a reminder, here it is.

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect

1 Peter 3:15 (NIV)

This verse sure makes it sound like we need to always have the answers. But that’s not true. The verse says to be prepared to give an answer specifically for the “reason for the hope that you have”. In other words, if someone asks you “how could you have hope even in the midst of chaos?” I think with that question, we don’t need a whole lot of Biblical knowledge to answer. And we should be prepared to answer that type of question. The world searches for hope. Every person in some form craves hope. And we have it. So we need to be ready to share it.

Remember this: the gospel is simple enough for a child to understand. We don’t need to be theologians to win people to Christ. And we don’t need to dump a load of theological textbooks on people in order to be effective witnesses to them. We just need the simple gospel.

With Tilling and Planting, I seek to give a bit more knowledge with every post to give you more confidence in your faith so that you’ll become more comfortable with sharing your faith. And God help me, I need to become more comfortable sharing it as well.

Wrapping Up

Hey! What’s this? I’m at the end already? Yes you are. This is a shorter post and that’s okay. There aren’t a lot of answers to discuss about this topic. Learning to be okay with not having all the answers isn’t all that complicated. It all comes down to your relationship with God and your security in your identity in Christ. I’m not saying that it’s necessarily that easy, but it is simple. Keep your focus on Him and eventually you’ll find that you really don’t care what other people think about you. This is something I’ve been learning for years. And I’m not there yet, but like Paul, I’m pressing on.

In case you missed my email (or you aren’t a subscriber yet), this is the first post on the new schedule – 2nd and 4th Saturdays of every month. In addition, I’d like to remind you that I want to answer your questions and concerns you have about the Bible and your Faith. So, please, feel free to leave a comment or fill out the contact form on this site with any questions or topics you’d like to see me cover.

Outro

If you enjoyed this post, please consider doing one or all of these things. First, subscribe if you haven’t. If you have, thank you! Second, spread the word. Send these to everyone you know and encourage them to read and subscribe. This blog is purely word of mouth right now. I rely on you, my readers, to help me get more readers. And third, please consider donating. It’ll enable me to continue to offer regular posts.

Feel free to leave a comment with any questions about what I’ve written, any additional comments about the post, or if there’s a topic you’d like me to write about. Before doing that though, be sure to check out all my posts here and see if I’ve covered it already. And if you find I’ve done it already but aren’t satisfied or still have more questions, let me know!

Thank you for reading this! I greatly appreciate each one of you. Until next time, God bless you all!

February 14, 2026
Real and Fake

Intro

Wrapping up the Sermon on the Mount, we enter into a list of real and fake Christians and how to identify them. I think these passages are all pretty familiar to us (as has been most of this sermon), but I hope to not only refresh your memories, but also bring new perspective on each of them.

Spotting the Fakes

Real quick before delving into each of the individual sections, I want to tie this to my post about judging rightly. In that post, I explain that Jesus wants us to judge, but to do so with humility, love, and kindness. Not with condemnation or a holier-than-thou attitude. And these sections very quickly destroy the claim that Christians can’t judge people period. After all, how in the world can we spot the fakes if we don’t discern (judge) their actions? And how can we then warn others about them if we haven’t determined (judged) that they are fakes? Food for thought as well as additional arguments for judging rightly. This allows us to not only steer people back onto the narrow path, but also help to spot the real from the fake Christians.

Real and Fake Prophets

“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.”

Matthew 7:15-20 (NIV)

This first warning Jesus issues about “real and fake” deals with false prophets. I think a lot of times when we read this, we think about people outside the church either intentionally trying to deceive people to get money or self-proclaimed prophets like Joseph Smith (founder of Mormonism) who added onto the Bible with his Book of Mormon. And while that certainly could fit, the passage also says they are wolves in sheep’s clothing. We as Jesus’ followers are called sheep. Therefore, this passage also refers to people within the church who claim to be Christians and yet are not living for God. And it doesn’t necessarily have to be the leaders. Could be anyone.

Jesus says we know them by their fruit. In other words, we can identify them by their actions, their lifestyles. Are they producing fruit consistent with the Fruit of Holy Spirit? Do their lifestyles match the lifestyle that Jesus tells us to live? If they aren’t producing fruit watch out! They may be hanging around church to deceive, disrupt, or distract the body. And we must be able to discern that and reject anything they say that does not line up with the Word of God. We should do the loving thing and try and correct them (gently) but if they reject us, then it would be better to interact little with them. If they aren’t seeking God and they find their message is being ignored, they’ll move on.

If you find that the false prophet is in leadership, approach someone else who’s in leadership there. Because it could be that person has also deceived the others on the leadership team. But you may also find that the entire leadership team falls into this camp of false prophets. At that point just leave.

Real and Fake Disciples

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

Matthew 7:21-23 (NIV)

The next warning Jesus issues about “real and fake” are disciples. Unlike the previous one where there’s much more intent of deception and a focus on people gathering a following, this one is more broad and more introspective. Jesus is warning us about self-deception. His desire is for all His disciples (that’s us) to be genuine and seek His will and do His will for the glory of God the Father. However, many so-called Christians deceive themselves into doing lots “for God” but not for His glory. They’re doing it either for the praise of man, or their doing it because they’ve deceived themselves into believing in a works-based salvation rather than trusting in Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross.

This one is scary because so many people will go their whole lives believing that they are going to Heaven because the did such-and-such for the Lord. But they’re going to get there and get a rude awakening. And Jesus lists out some pretty impressive things including prophesying and miracles. Honestly it’s hard for me to imagine anyone being able to perform miracles in Jesus name and not be saved. But Jesus seems to say it’s possible. But how?

There’s really two possibilities here and both could fit the overall context of the Bible. And some people might fall into one category or the other on the day of judgment. But one thing they have in common, they never came to true faith in Jesus and thus will not spend eternity in Heaven with God.

The Options

The first possibility on how unsaved can perform miracles is the deception of Satan. The magicians of Egypt were able to mimic a few of the plagues as well as the staff-to-serpent sign. Now it is possible that these magicians used sleight of hand and similar things. But it’s also possible there was some demonic activity going on. The New Testament also warns about false signs and wonders designed to deceive people. Again, some of these are going to be fake and not miracles at all, but some could be demonic. Then there’s the example of the psychic girl that Paul rebuked. These types of “miracles” are likely the most common for the demonic – after all they can communicate with each other and spread information around to make psychics appear genuine. And as my pastor says, they can also “predict” the future by causing the future they just predicted.

The second possibility is that God will empower unbelievers for His glory. The best Biblical example of this is Judas Iscariot. He followed Jesus for His entire ministry and performed miraculous signs and wonders like the other eleven. However, his heart did not belong to the Lord. And he ultimately betrayed Jesus and then hung himself in shame. God saw fit to use Judas alongside the other disciples for His glory despite the condition of Judas’s heart. And God might continue to do that today and in the future. Why? I don’t know. But Paul said that there were people preaching the name of Jesus out of envy and rivalry (Philippians 1:15-18) and he rejoiced! Why? Because the gospel was still being preached. So if these miracles are genuine, then praise the Lord and give Him glory.

What do We do?

So what do we do if we suspect that someone performing these miracles are not true disciples? Two things: determine if their message lines up with Scripture, and determine if their fruit lines up with Scripture. If either of these is “no”, talk to them in love and gentleness and try to steer them onto the narrow path. If they refuse to listen, then they are probably in the “false prophet” camp and we should avoid them and warn others about them.

But as I opened this section with, we must beware that we are not deceiving ourselves into falling into this camp of false disciples. And we may have the right message to boot! But don’t live in fear about whether you’re actually saved or not; if you’re questioning it, there’s actually a good chance you are saved. If you need assurance, pray. Pray hard and read your Bible. Talk to someone who’s more mature in the faith. Search your own life for fruit. If you find you are living in sin and have no desire to change, that’s a red flag. If you find that over time since your point of salvation you have been making progress in overcoming sin and are producing more fruit of the Spirit, then those are indicators that you are truly saved.

Real and Fake Builders

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

Matthew 7:24-27 (NIV)

This is a story I first learned through song format. Which is kind of funny when you think about it. “What would make a good children’s song?” “How about the story of a couple of guys building houses and the one guy’s house comes crashing down.” “Perfect!” I titled this section “Real and Fake Builders” because only a fake builder would build on a foundation of sand. So be sure to check that guy’s credentials before you hire him!

All joking aside, this store contains powerful truths and warnings. Again, this one is more introspective. Jesus warns His followers against merely hearing His words and then doing nothing with them. He compares such people with a foolish person who builds his house on a sandy foundation. Sand is very unstable and pretty much guarantees that something is going to go wrong. And this isn’t a warning about ignorance. The foolish person is not stupid or ignorant. The foolish person already heard the truth. But the foolish person chose deliberate action to not do what they know to be the correct way of doing something.

In contrast, the wise person hears the words of Jesus and puts them into practice. As a result, he can weather anything that life throws at him because he has Jesus’ teaching and Jesus Himself to fall back on. Jesus and all of His teaching forms a foundation that is rock solid.

Sidenote

An interesting tidbit about this parable is that it echoes many Proverbs that contrasts wise and foolish people. So His listeners hearing the initial part of “a wise man” probably expected to hear the contrasting actions of the foolish man. This was a common style of teaching for the Jews and was very familiar to His listeners. This wasn’t the first time Jesus used a familiar style of teaching, nor would it be His last. Though in many of Jesus’ familiar styles of teaching, He often subverted expectations in some way. Does Jesus do that here? I say yes. After all Jesus opens this parable with “everyone who hears these words of mine”. That’s bold. Jesus is putting His words on par with Scripture and on par with the very words of God. That definitely ruffled some feathers amongst the religious leaders. Which actually leads to my final point.

True Authority

When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching,because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.

Matthew 7:28-29 (NIV)

In the end, we see that the crowds were amazed. Because Jesus taught with authority, unlike the religious leaders of the day. Honestly, given how much the religious leaders puffed themselves up, it’s almost weird to hear such a statement. They lorded themselves over the common people, so how could Matthew write that the teachers of the law didn’t teach as if they had authority?

Well, what I found out when I asked this question is that the religious leaders actually would have always appealed to the highest authority. In rabbinic tradition, it often meant referring to the which “line” of rabbis a particular teacher came from. In more genuine cases, the teachers might have appealed to the authority of Scripture and the author – either the human author or God Himself. But when Jesus taught, the authority He appealed to was Himself. No other teacher, no rabbit, etc. For Jesus was and is, the ultimate authority.

And at the end of the day, we can identify real and fake people by whether they accept the ultimate authority of Jesus Christ (1 John 4:1-3).

Wrapping Up

We all need to be able to discern those who are real followers of Christ and those who are fake. The ones that are fake are dangerous since they often sound good, but underneath are not living for Him. These people can deceive many others into believing false doctrines. So we must be alert to not fall into that and to help guide people out of it.

That’s the end of my series on the Sermon on the Mount. In many ways it feels like it went too fast. I didn’t go into real depth on most of the topics, so if there is one that you you want me to go into greater depth, please leave a comment on this post or on the post where I touched on that topic! I don’t want this blog to only be what comes to my mind, but also what you, my readers, want to understand better. So please leave a comment or reach out to me through the contact form.

Outro

If you enjoyed this post, please consider doing one or all of these things. First, subscribe if you haven’t. If you have, thank you! Second, spread the word. Send these to everyone you know and encourage them to read and subscribe. This blog is purely word of mouth right now. I rely on you, my readers, to help me get more readers. And third, please consider donating. It’ll enable me to continue to offer regular posts.

Feel free to leave a comment with any questions about what I’ve written, any additional comments about the post, or if there’s a topic you’d like me to write about. Before doing that though, be sure to check out all my posts here and see if I’ve covered it already. And if you find I’ve done it already but aren’t satisfied or still have more questions, let me know!

Thank you for reading this! I greatly appreciate each one of you. Until next time, God bless you all!

September 25, 2025
Seek and Find

Intro

In these next couple of sections, Jesus invites us to ask His Father for good gifts. He lets us know that if we seek after His Father and if we walk His path, we will find Him and eternal life. These are the core elements to get out of these verses. But there is a lot more to be pulled from this text. As well as some confusion and misconceptions to clear up. So let’s get started.

Don’t Stop Asking

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

“Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”

Matthew 7:7-12 (NIV)

Ask and you shall receive is a phrase that I think we have all heard over the years. The problem is when we start asking for the wrong things and then we get upset when God (or our parents) don’t deliver. “But you said to ask and we shall receive,” we whine. Yes, Jesus did say that. And yes, parents have said that. But to understand what “ask and it will be given to you” means, we need to read the rest of the passage. And it goes on to say “seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” and then affirms that everyone who does these things will be satisfied.

Not Just Anything

And then the next paragraphs starts. Jesus asks His listeners if they would give bad things to their children when they ask for good things. And Jesus asked rhetorically. Obviously none of them would. And that – Jesus says – is the type of Father that God is. He gives good gifts to His children when they ask for them. The key here is “good” gifts. And the definition of good here is God’s definition. In His infinite wisdom and knowledge, knowing past, present, and future, He knows what we need and what will benefit us the most. I covered in an earlier post Matthew 6:25-34 where Jesus clearly states that God knows what we need, and He will provide them to us. In that passage, Jesus says to seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be added.

Elsewhere, Jesus states that if we ask in His name, He will do it (John 14:14). Now to ask of anything in Jesus’ name is to invoke His authority, but it is also to pray in His will. I mentioned that God knows what we need and will give us the good things we ask for. If what we ask for will lead to destruction or is just plain wrong, He will refuse to give it to us – just like a loving parent will refuse to give their kids ice cream for every single meal.

God Honors Our Prayers

What’s awesome about this passage, is that when we understand what God will honor, and if we truly seek His will in all things, we will find Him and we will find what we are looking for – because a prayer that honors God and His will is one that God will honor. And while I’m not going to go into depth here, God wired us to have certain desires and if those desires are honoring to God, He will grant them as well – perhaps not as quickly as we want, but they will come. Case in point, I got married several years later than what I had desired and prayed for. But God needed to prepare both me and my wife. It wasn’t that it was a bad thing to get married, but my timing of that marriage wasn’t right.

God needed to get my heart to a place of being okay being single and needed to work out a couple of other issues in my life to prepare me for my wife. And He needed to do similar things for her. So if what you ask for is good, and you’re confident it is within God’s will, keep asking! Keep knocking on the door of Heaven! But above all, seek God and a greater relationship with Him and you will find Him. And He will – in His perfect timing – bring about what you are seeking.

The Golden Rule

The last verse in this section contains what we commonly call “The Golden Rule”. There are a couple of variations you may have heard depending upon which translation of the Bible it came from. The two most common I hear are “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you” and “Treat others the way you want to be treated”. In either case, the meaning remains the same.

If you want others to be kind and gentle with you, then you should be kind and gentle towards others. If you want others to show you grace and mercy, then you should show grace and mercy. And if you want others to forgive you, then you should forgive others. The list goes on and on. And there’s no reason for me to continue. Insert your own thing that you want others (broadly) to demonstrate towards you and become that kind of a person.

Pick the Right Gate

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Matthew 7:13-14 (NIV)

Jesus wraps up what we call chapter 7 with a bit of a cautionary warning. He informs us that the way to life is through a narrow gate and down a narrow path. It’s not easy. Much easier is the path that leads to destruction – wide gate, broad road, piece of cake. But here’s an interesting interpretation I found of this passage that is different than what I think most people assume. I for sure assumed that Jesus is referring to the path to Heaven. But in light of the rest of the Sermon on the mount, Jesus is more likely referring to heart posture vs outward piety.

We can refrain from murdering someone and thus obey the law, but we could still harbor hatred toward that person – which Jesus said earlier equaled murder. That hatred leads us down the broad path that leads to destruction. And the same goes for all of the other things Jesus refers to in this sermon. Effectively, these two verses sum up everything Jesus said already by saying that all the outward actions with no heart change is the wide gate and broad path leading to destruction. And having the proper heart attitude leads to life.

Jesus doesn’t want us to just seek after pious actions, He wants us to seek heart change – which leads to those actions. And if we seek that heart change with the help of Holy Spirit, we will find it.

Wrapping Up

I hope you now have greater confidence to ask God for things that you know are good and align with His will and desires. If you aren’t sure, ask Him! Seek council from the Word, from Holy Spirit, and from men and women in the faith who are maybe a little wiser. If you earnestly seek to understand what God seeks to give you, you will find it. He doesn’t want to hide His desires for your life from you, but if you don’t seek Him, how will you ever know what those are?

And heed Jesus’ warning about taking the easy road. The one that leads to destruction. Even those of us who are on the road to Heaven can take detours that destroy various areas of our lives. Relationships, reputation, etc. So beware and seek guidance from Holy Spirit.

Outro

If you enjoyed this post, please consider doing one or all of these things. First, subscribe if you haven’t. If you have, thank you! Second, spread the word. Send these to everyone you know and encourage them to read and subscribe. This blog is purely word of mouth right now. I rely on you, my readers, to help me get more readers. And third, please consider donating. It’ll enable me to continue to offer regular posts.

Feel free to leave a comment with any questions about what I’ve written, any additional comments about the post, or if there’s a topic you’d like me to write about. Before doing that though, be sure to check out all my posts here and see if I’ve covered it already. And if you find I’ve done it already but aren’t satisfied or still have more questions, let me know!

Thank you for reading this! I greatly appreciate each one of you. Until next time, God bless you all!

September 10, 2025
Judge Rightly

Intro

To judge or not to judge, that is the question. People who know little to nothing about the Bible do know “Do not judge” is in there. Rather than make this just one of a few topics from the Sermon on the Mount squished into a single post, I’m going to address the first six verses of Matthew 7 separately. It’s a topic that has been misunderstood, misused, and abused over the years. And yet, it’s so important to understand. Too many Christians judge poorly and frankly, we need to judge rightly. If we can’t do this, we become ineffective at so many things that Jesus calls us to do. So let’s dive in and find out how to do this correctly.

What Does it Mean to Judge?

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

Matthew 7:1-2 (NIV)

I’m going to just get this out of the way up front: Jesus wants us (His followers) to judge. However, as I mentioned earlier, all too often we judge wrongly. And that’s why I’m going to explain what Jesus was talking about here when He says “Do not judge”, that way we can all learn to judge rightly. Christians have been scared into silence because of unbelievers pointing their fingers and saying, “You can’t judge me”. But the problem is that what those people are claiming is that by “judge” Jesus means “Don’t reject alternative lifestyles” or “Accept everyone and don’t encourage them to change”.

But this is just wrong. If that was Jesus’ meaning then He would be the biggest hypocrite of them all. After all, He called the religious leaders “vipers” and “hypocrites”. He also told the young rich man that to inherit eternal life he needed to sell his belongings and give to the poor. And how about the woman caught in the act of adultery? He told her to “go and sin no more”. Jesus clearly rejected the lifestyles of the Pharisees and encouraged people to change. So, Jesus can’t mean any of those commonly believed interpretations of “Do not judge”. So what is He saying?

The Definition

The Greek word for “judge” here is krino which can mean “to discern”, “to decide”, or “to condemn”. And I’ve already pointed out that Jesus can’t mean “discern” or “decide” because He discerned that the rich man had a great love of his wealth and that needed to change. And likewise, He discerned that the woman’s accusers were trying to trap Jesus, so Jesus flipped the tables on them. That really leaves only condemnation for Jesus’ meaning. And this fits the overall context. After all, later in chapter 7 of Matthew (coming soon to a blog near you), Jesus starts telling us how to identify (judge) fake and real people. And later, Paul calls Christians to approach sinning brothers and sisters and point out their sin and urge them to repent (more on that in the next section).

In Jesus’ conversation with the woman caught in the act of adultery, He asks her “Has no one condemned you?” And the He says, “Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin.” (John 8:10-11). So very clearly, Jesus is not about condemning people, but He is about making a judgment about a person’s lifestyle and then encouraging them to change it to line up with how God wants them to live.

So, in conclusion here, Jesus calls us to not condemn people. After all, we don’t know what’s in their hearts. It’s not our job to condemn people. It’s our job to love people and bring to them the truth of the gospel and introduce them to Jesus. Let Him sort out their messes. He’s better at it then we are.

Measure it Out

How about that phrase “with the measure you use, it will be measured to you”? What’s that all about? This one is pretty simple. If you routinely look in condemnation upon people – and verbalize it – than other people will do the same to you. It’s another form of the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. If you treat people poorly, expect people to treat you poorly at some point. Show grace, kindness, and love towards others and you can expect the same to come back to you.

Moving on we’ve got a couple of more sections of this passage to cover in order to really grasp what it means to judge rightly.

Speck Vs Log

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

Matthew 7:3-5 (NIV)

I think people have taken this passage on specks and logs too far as well. To the point where some Christians think (or non-Christians try and tell us) that we have no right to point out other people’s sin because we ourselves have sin in our lives. And once again, we must use context. As I mentioned earlier, Jesus pointed out other people’s poor behavior, attitudes, and sin. So He can’t be saying that here. And as I also mentioned before, Paul tells Christians to come to other believers and gently point out sin in their lives.

What Jesus is addressing here is what He’s been addressing throughout this entire sermon: hypocrisy and holier-than-thou attitudes. In this context, this passage would be like a Pharisee telling people how bad their sin is and what they can do to fix themselves – while being ignorant of how much fixing they need, because as religious leaders who followed the Law to the letter, they must be perfect.

In light of this, I think the log isn’t what we might think of as a traditional sin, i.e., drunkenness, sexual immorality, etc. I think the log is pride. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were swimming in pride and self-righteousness. And pride blinds us to our own faults and magnifies everyone else’s. It makes us feel like we’ve got it all together. But what Jesus wants is for us to humbly remember that we too are sinful and avoid the self-righteous attitude if/when we come to a brother or sister and point out that they are living in a way that is dishonoring to God. This is another aspect of what it means to judge rightly. Humbly admitting that we ourselves are imperfect and with mercy and grace approach the one with the speck.

Avoid Criticism

Another aspect to this speck vs log is to not be critical. And I don’t mean constructive criticism. I’m talking about being critical and offering no additional help. Basically the attitude of “What a horrible thing you’re doing that God’s going to judge you for. Have a nice time in Hell!”

Now this might sound a little extreme, but being critical of another person’s lifestyle (to their face) without offering grace, mercy, hope, or any way around it, is just plain mean. Even the religious leaders didn’t do that (most of the time). Sure they were pretty critical, but they usually followed it up with “If you would just follow the Law…” etc. So they offered a solution, even if it was done with disgust and a holier-than-thou attitude. At times, with the “worst of sinners”, they might be less “helpful” and have a more critical disposition. And this is what we must avoid if we want to judge rightly. Our words must be laced with love, grace, and mercy. Not criticism. We must be gentle, not harsh.

Dogs and Hogs

“Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.”

Matthew 7:6 (NIV)

In this last section, Jesus does one of the things He does best: throw out a metaphor that seems to be completely out of left field and not make any sense given what He was just talking about. Except that perception tends to be for the modern reader rather than His first century listeners who could usually pick up on most of the cultural cues. In this case, and in this context, Jesus is telling His followers that if the person with the speck refuses to listen to you and rejects your correction – even when you do it with love and respect – then don’t bother telling them anything more. If you keep doing it over and over, they’ll likely come to resent you and the gospel and become even more hard-hearted. At that point, your best option is to let it go and pray for them.

That can be hard to hear if the one you’re trying to love into the Kingdom is a relative or a close friend whom you dearly love. But sadly, not everyone wants to hear that they’re living a sinful lifestyle that’s going to send them to Hell. Some people just don’t want to change. And having the discernment (judgment) to know when a person is in that place and drop the subject – without coming down critically or holier-than-thou – is the last piece of what it means to judge rightly.

Wrapping Up

As you can see here, there is a right way and a wrong way to judge others. Jesus doesn’t want His followers judging people the way the self-righteous religious leaders of His day judged others. He wants us to be wise and discerning, always falling back on loving others. If we learn to judge rightly – with love, grace, and mercy – we’d be amazed at the spiritual growth we’d see in others – and ourselves. It’s going to take practice. And forgiveness. And probably some apologies along the way, but with God’s help, we can do it.

One more thing. During my research and reading articles written by others, I found this from one blogger named Matt Walsh that I’d like to quote because I agree with this wholly (full post here).

I am a sinful person. If you would ever consider accepting and celebrating my sins for the sake of being “non-judgmental,” please do me a favor and stop doing me that favor. I don’t want to be made comfortable and confident in my wrongdoing.

I’d rather have you hurt my feelings as you help me get to Heaven, than protect my feelings as you usher me right along to Hell.

And to be honest, if a Christian strongly disagrees with this statement (i.e., doesn’t want to hear where they’re going wrong), then I fear they are too comfortable in their sin and they need God to wake them up before it’s too late. Who knows, maybe He’ll use you or me to do it with a well placed conversation.

Outro

If you enjoyed this post, please consider doing one or all of these things. First, subscribe if you haven’t. If you have, thank you! Second, spread the word. Send these to everyone you know and encourage them to read and subscribe. This blog is purely word of mouth right now. I rely on you, my readers, to help me get more readers. And third, please consider donating. It’ll enable me to continue to offer regular posts.

Feel free to leave a comment with any questions about what I’ve written, any additional comments about the post, or if there’s a topic you’d like me to write about. Before doing that though, be sure to check out all my posts here and see if I’ve covered it already. And if you find I’ve done it already but aren’t satisfied or still have more questions, let me know!

Thank you for reading this! I greatly appreciate each one of you. Until next time, God bless you all!

August 25, 2025