Hi, my name is Philip Davis. You can call me Phil. I am a 19 year old Student at the University of Maryland majoring in marketing and visual communication. I am also a freelance graphic and web designer in my “free time”.
I’m a huge fan of Philosophy, Graphic/Web Design, Video Games, All the Ladies, Biblical Exegesis and most importantly Jesus.
I’m just a guy trying to represent, radiate, and glorify Christ.
“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
[1 Cor 10:31]
September 28, 2008 at 3:53 pm |
Well Philip with all of your studies did you ever have the chance to read the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians?
Does Paul call the Ephesians “sinners”?
September 28, 2008 at 6:04 pm |
Yes Mssc54! its one of my favorite books in the Bible,
Does Paul call the Ephesians sinners? off the top of my head I dont recall him bluntly stating it, but as he is writing to Christians I don’t think he needs to tell them, he assumes that his audience already knows.. do you have a specific passage in EPH you are referring too?
thanks for commenting!
September 28, 2008 at 6:43 pm |
Phil; Here’s my point – The Apostle Paul starts his letter off by….
“To the Saints In Ephesus”
He did NOT say “To the SINNERS in Ephesus”.
The more a person says they are a sinner the more that “sin door” is held open.
The more a person confesses that he/she is a Saint who sometimes falls short….
Words are a powerful “tool” of the spirit realm. Choose them carefully.
Just my current understanding.
September 28, 2008 at 7:06 pm |
Ahh I get where you are coming from, Well I consider myself to be a sinner because frankly I am one, whether or not that subconsciously influences me is an interesting point. I don’t think that admitting the fact of sin in my life in anyways justifies my sin, Romans 6:1 poses the question: Shall we continue in sin that grace might abound? Certainly NOT!
Sin is an crime against God, an act worthy of death. I by absolutely no means say that I am a sinner as an excuse to sin (see post on sin nature) and I am in no way proud of the sin ect. in my life…I include the fact that I am a sinner as many of my friends are atheists/nonbelievers who tend to think that Christians see themselves as “better people” or tend to see everyone else as “sinners” which as I stated everyone is. I am a sinner, but I have been Justified by Faith, and for that reason I continue to strive towards Grace and living a life like Christ.
thanks for the concern though!
September 29, 2008 at 12:30 pm |
Once again I think you have “fallen into the trap.”
My paster has a bunch of letters in front/behind his name. He often has said that it took him a while to realize but sometimes people need “deliverance” from their education.
phillysound11 wrote: “, Well I consider myself to be a sinner because frankly I am one,..”
Another thing to ponder. Since you have accpeted the Savior does HE see you as a sinner?
Kinda makes the cross useless doesn’t it?
If we are “joint heirs to the throne”….? How can we be seen as sinners?
September 29, 2008 at 12:54 pm |
Once again I think you have “fallen into the trap.”
if by the trap you mean realizing and recognizing sin in my life then yes I have…
“Kinda makes the cross useless doesn’t it?”
I dont think so, we are all sinners (Rom 3:23) but those who accept christ have been forgiven from those sins…everything they have done, and everything they will do…I dont think it wise to go around with a mentality that ignores sin, James states that we should be saddened when we sin:
4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom
if someone sins then they are a sinner I don’t know what I am missing…
John Newton the writer of the hymn “Amazing Grace” summed it up perfectly when he said
“My memory is nearly gone;
but I remember two things;
That I am a great sinner, and
that Christ is a great Saviour.”
please be a little more concise on what you are saying I didn’t understand what you meant when you stated “My paster has a bunch of letters in front/behind his name. He often has said that it took him a while to realize but sometimes people need “deliverance” from their education.”
September 29, 2008 at 2:54 pm |
It is my understand that (some) people with years of Thelogical study rely more on those who taught them in their classes.
It is (at times) difficult to realize that… perhaps (just maybe) that which was learned in the class was either in error or in the least not the full message.
“4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom”
Clearly I can not disagree that those here in this passage are sinners.
However, once they do draw near to God and He draws near to them; once they do purify their hearts and are no longer double-minded… What are they then.
Darkness and Light CAN NOT occupy the same place. So, once again, if “they” have purified their hearts what are “they”?
We really only have to look (once again) at the cross. Once Jesus the Christ took on all of the world’s sin He asks the Father; “My God, My God why has Thou forsaken Me?” The Father turned His back on the Son because of sin.
I know you know that. My point being that you can not be a sinner AND saved. You can, however, be a “saint” who occassionally falls short. Being a sinner who sometimes doesn’t fall short is a completely different animal.
September 29, 2008 at 6:02 pm |
I think you are confusing terms,
When I say I am a sinner I say that I am one who sins…and I most likely will sin until I have a glorified body, now this is no excuse as I mentioned before, I am constantly striving to live like Christ, (sanctification) saying you fall short in reality is saying that you dont live up to God’s standards or you sin. I am using it in the most literal sense…Now if my blog was addressed to Believers only, I probably would have used different language (child of God ect.) but since I am aiming this blog at nonbelievers I did not.
I clearly stated that one who sins (in my books) is a sinner, same could be said that one who lies is a lier, now if I had no sin in my life (which I can assure you dont ) then I could make the claim that I am no longer a sinner…but like other people I struggle with sin…and for that reason I am a sinner… BUT this is not to say that I am not a saint…A saint who falls short is in reality a saint who sins…and as I just stated someone who sins is a sinner…but I have been justified, I am being Sanctified and praise the LORD one day I will be glorified!
“Clearly I can not disagree that those here in this passage are sinners.”
The book of James was addressed to Jewish Believers, He calls them sinners, and asks them to purify there hearts, and yet you claim that “you can not be a sinner AND saved.”?
Im not sure if you are claiming that if one is a sinner he/she loses salvation or if you are claiming that he/she was never saved to begin with in either case James calls this select group of Believers “sinners”
(if “they” have purified their hearts what are “they”?) they are Christians in a state of obedience…
(We really only have to look (once again) at the cross. Once Jesus the Christ took on all of the world’s sin He asks the Father; “My God, My God why has Thou forsaken Me?” The Father turned His back on the Son because of sin.)
Exactly, His price made it able for us who are disobedient to be justified…he completely forgave us all of our past, present and future sins…
Falling short=sinning
one who sins=sinner
thats all I am saying
You can take sinner to mean unbeliever (as it is definitely used throughout scripture) but you do not have to…as I said I am using it literally…