New Member And Struggling :/

Hello everyone this is my first post I look forward to talking to other believers on this site. Ok I've been feeling guilty for a while, sometimes I don't know if its conviction from God or my own conscience because I want to have fun and do things that may be sinful in my life and just lose my heavenly rewards. In other words I just want the free ticket to heaven but I don't want to have to give up or avoid certain things that christians shouldn't do like partying, drinking and things like that. I've been wondering if I'm truly saved because of this and it's driving me crazy. I think the name for this is lukewarm but I'm not sure.. If anybody can give me some positive advice I'd really really appreciate it! Thank you in advance!
 
Hi there.

It's not really a knowledge of God's will that you need to find out about, evidently. Your conscience evidently knows already.

You need to put the question to yourself, right? read 1 Corinthians 10:13.
 
Hello and welcome....


God left this note for you:

...God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them... And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.


Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. ...Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.


For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.


For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.


This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.


Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.


I am the way, the truth and the life.


Love

Jesus the Christ-Son of the Living God


The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.But God commandeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

With Love,
Paul-Apostle to the Gentiles
 
Hello and welcome....


God left this note for you:

...God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them... And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.


Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. ...Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.


For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.


For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.


This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.


Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.


I am the way, the truth and the life.


Love

Jesus the Christ-Son of the Living God


The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.

For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.But God commandeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

With Love,
Paul-Apostle to the Gentiles
 
Hi and welcome to the forum,

In response to your question about conviction, it's quite simple, if it's from the devil it will push you away from God and His Word, if it's from the Holy Spirit it will draw you to God's Word for cleansing.

And just to ease your conscience you are NOT lukewarm, people that are lukewarm don't realize their need, because you are questioning proves that you realize you have a need.

Now, since you brought it up, are you born again, was there a specific moment in your life when the Holy Spirit shined His holy, righteous light into your soul/spirit and you KNEW that if you died then you would go directly to Hell, if so, did you receive the free gift of salvation, did you confess you are a sinner and ask for His forgiveness, did you invite Jesus into your heart to rule and reign as Lord of your life, if so, then you are born again, it's not feelings, we walk by faith not sight, Jesus died on the cross in your place, the ransom has been paid, it's a historical fact that can't be disputed, ...but, if you can't say yes to these questions, don't be afraid, all is not lost, God is calling you, drawing you to Himself. In human reproduction there is a nine month gestation period between conception and birth, so it is with a sinner being born again, at first the Holy Spirit starts moving in your life, causing you to be interested in the things of God, it's the progression Jesus gave, first He opens our eyes to see our sinful state, then He opens our ears so that we can hear the remedy (the Gospel) for it, then He opens our minds so that we can understand the good news of the Gospel message and in His timing (Jn 1:13) He opens our hearts to accept or reject His Salvation.

If you are born again then I humbly suggest you ask the Lord to show you the Bible believing, Word teaching church He has for you, where they need your gift and you need theirs and if you're not then follow the Holy Spirit's nudging to a church where you can talk to the pastor and he can help you more with being born again.

Lord bless and don't forget that the Lord loves you so much He gave His only begotten Son to die in your place,

Gene
 
Thank
Hi and welcome to the forum,

In response to your question about conviction, it's quite simple, if it's from the devil it will push you away from God and His Word, if it's from the Holy Spirit it will draw you to God's Word for cleansing.

And just to ease your conscience you are NOT lukewarm, people that are lukewarm don't realize their need, because you are questioning proves that you realize you have a need.

Now, since you brought it up, are you born again, was there a specific moment in your life when the Holy Spirit shined His holy, righteous light into your soul/spirit and you KNEW that if you died then you would go directly to Hell, if so, did you receive the free gift of salvation, did you confess you are a sinner and ask for His forgiveness, did you invite Jesus into your heart to rule and reign as Lord of your life, if so, then you are born again, it's not feelings, we walk by faith not sight, Jesus died on the cross in your place, the ransom has been paid, it's a historical fact that can't be disputed, ...but, if you can't say yes to these questions, don't be afraid, all is not lost, God is calling you, drawing you to Himself. In human reproduction there is a nine month gestation period between conception and birth, so it is with a sinner being born again, at first the Holy Spirit starts moving in your life, causing you to be interested in the things of God, it's the progression Jesus gave, first He opens our eyes to see our sinful state, then He opens our ears so that we can hear the remedy (the Gospel) for it, then He opens our minds so that we can understand the good news of the Gospel message and in His timing (Jn 1:13) He opens our hearts to accept or reject His Salvation.

If you are born again then I humbly suggest you ask the Lord to show you the Bible believing, Word teaching church He has for you, where they need your gift and you need theirs and if you're not then follow the Holy Spirit's nudging to a church where you can talk to the pastor and he can help you more with being born again.

Lord bless and don't forget that the Lord loves you so much He gave His only begotten Son to die in your place,

Gene
thanks so much for your answer. I don't attend a church because I have social anxiety, but in January my mother took me to talk to the preacher of their church about the guilt I've had about sin and fearing hell. I said the prayer and became born again but what I'm struggling with is wondering if I'm really saved because I still sin willfully a lot of times and I don't want to stop sinning I just want the free ticket to heaven which I know is very selfish of me but its how I feel. On a good note I'm able to feel God's comfort after I pray at times so I guess that's proof that Im really saved??
 
Thank
thanks so much for your answer. I don't attend a church because I have social anxiety, but in January my mother took me to talk to the preacher of their church about the guilt I've had about sin and fearing hell. I said the prayer and became born again but what I'm struggling with is wondering if I'm really saved because I still sin willfully a lot of times and I don't want to stop sinning I just want the free ticket to heaven which I know is very selfish of me but its how I feel. On a good note I'm able to feel God's comfort after I pray at times so I guess that's proof that Im really saved??

Saying a prayer will not save you from hell. We are saved by faith (belief) through the Grace of God. With belief, comes obedience, with obedience comes joy and peace. You need to address your 'heart condition'-and that is betwixt you and God.
 
Brandon,

You need to go to church!

Jesus cam heal any and all types of psychological disorders if we will trust and believe Him, I know, I was diagnosed a paranoid schizophrenic in depression and he healed me!

Hang with me here, you said you prayed, but you didn't say there was a moment in your life when the Holy Spirit showed you you were going to Hell, please read John 1:13, everyone is born again in God's timing, not because you want to be born again or not because your mother or the pastor wanted you to be born again.

The fact that you want to sin concerns me, tell me more, when you want to willfully sin, do you, ...or is there a hesitancy in you that say's I know I want to, but I don't want to and then you either don't sin or do, ...which is it

Please answer this question first and then we'll talk about the proof of being born again.

Gene
 
Brandon,

You need to go to church!

Jesus cam heal any and all types of psychological disorders if we will trust and believe Him, I know, I was diagnosed a paranoid schizophrenic in depression and he healed me!

Hang with me here, you said you prayed, but you didn't say there was a moment in your life when the Holy Spirit showed you you were going to Hell, please read John 1:13, everyone is born again in God's timing, not because you want to be born again or not because your mother or the pastor wanted you to be born again.

The fact that you want to sin concerns me, tell me more, when you want to willfully sin, do you, ...or is there a hesitancy in you that say's I know I want to, but I don't want to and then you either don't sin or do, ...which is it

Please answer this question first and then we'll talk about the proof of being born again.

Gene[/quote I've believed in and had a relationship
with God since I was in my early teens but as I've gotten older I've became a deep thinker and I just overthink a lot. The sins I'm talking about are not huge they're just things like idol worship and looking up to athletes and wanting to be like them and having lustful thoughts a lot. Those are probably the biggest sins I have that I came name right off the bat. I'm just really confused and it's taking a toll on me mentally
 
I've believed in and had a relationship with God since I was in my early teens but as I've gotten older I've became a deep thinker and I just overthink a lot. The sins I'm talking about are not huge they're just things like idol worship and looking up to athletes and wanting to be like them and having lustful thoughts a lot. Those are probably the biggest sins I have that I came name right off the bat. I'm just really confused and it's taking a toll on me mentally

Brandon,

It's normal son, to become a "thinker" as we mature, it's called adulthood, so scratch that one off the list.

At your age there's nothing wrong with looking up to athletes or have some sort of role model, I think most of us did when we were young, and we all, if we are truthful with ourselves, have lustful thoughts and it gets worse the older we live in this "tent" with the old sinful nature, now hear this, lustful thoughts are not sins, they are temptations from the devil to sin, we read Jesus was tempted in every way but without sin, since he was 100% human then He was tempted by thoughts too, yet didn't sin, so thoughts are not sin, it's when we carry out or act on those thoughts we sin, ...you shall know the Truth and the Truth will set you free, so when tempted with idolizing an athlete, then turn it around against the enemy and think about Jesus as your role model.

The things you are stressing over can be easily overcome with Jesus, but, He rarely works outside of His Church, and I take it you are in the States, so there is a church for you, that is why I suggested you pray for Him to guide you to the church He has for you, one with an active youth program that is teaching from the Word, and also, you need to have a daily reading plan of God's Word that will take you through the entire Bible in a year, that is how we develop a personal relationship with Him.

Gene
 
farouk,

Patience brother, let's not confuse him, there are four stages of spiritual development noted in the New Testament, babies 1 Cor, and children, teenagers and adults 1 John, ...from what we have read he is not in the "adult" stage and in the Luke 9"23 verse Jesus was addressing an adult "man."

No offense meant Brandon.

Gene
 
Hello everyone this is my first post I look forward to talking to other believers on this site. Ok I've been feeling guilty for a while, sometimes I don't know if its conviction from God or my own conscience because I want to have fun and do things that may be sinful in my life and just lose my heavenly rewards. In other words I just want the free ticket to heaven but I don't want to have to give up or avoid certain things that christians shouldn't do like partying, drinking and things like that. I've been wondering if I'm truly saved because of this and it's driving me crazy. I think the name for this is lukewarm but I'm not sure.. If anybody can give me some positive advice I'd really really appreciate it! Thank you in advance!

Hello Brandon.

When you except Jesus as your Lord and savior you form a relationship with Him you become a new creation in Him. This means you are justified in Him and sanctified by the Father from darkness into the light. To picture this Lord Jesus is the vine and you are a new branch in Him and the Father is the one that prunes you, (reconciles you into the reconciliation formation). We all go through the conviction process some take longer then others but we have a mediator when we sin read 1 John 1;9.
20 years down the track and i still need 1 John 1:9.


In Jesus name


Brother in Christ
 
Brandon, does it take effort for a loving husband to avoid adultery? If you love your wife it shouldn't be difficult. Focus on where your heart is, not a free ticket into heaven. How miserable will heaven be if you don't like Jesus? Partying per sae is not bad. Just take Jesus with you to the party. If you can't take Him with...then what are you doing at that party? If you ever feel like you can't go somewhere or do something with Him, then just face the reality that you don't love Him. Being saved / born again is inline with being engaged / married. Except that unlike a human, God searches our hearts and minds for sincerity, properly. We cannot fool God and that is a good thing. Living a lie is worse then being open about your hatred for God. When you can be honest with yourself and grasp that you hate God...you can make progress into analyzing why exactly it is that you hate Him and consider why you should love Him.

When you love someone you will do what pleases them. It comes ''naturally''. No effort should be needed. If you havn't got this for God, you havn't got it and will only be fooling yourself with the ''effort'' you put in thinking it is enough / God must just be happy with what you do bring as a sacrifice like Cain.
 
Hello everyone this is my first post I look forward to talking to other believers on this site. Ok I've been feeling guilty for a while, sometimes I don't know if its conviction from God or my own conscience because I want to have fun and do things that may be sinful in my life and just lose my heavenly rewards. In other words I just want the free ticket to heaven but I don't want to have to give up or avoid certain things that christians shouldn't do like partying, drinking and things like that. I've been wondering if I'm truly saved because of this and it's driving me crazy. I think the name for this is lukewarm but I'm not sure.. If anybody can give me some positive advice I'd really really appreciate it! Thank you in advance!

You have beeb given a lot of really good advice Brandon. "Going to church" may be one of the best.

You see, we need positive reinforcement from our friends to keep us pointd in the straight path. And YES, I also expect the Holy Spirit to do that as well.

The problem I have seen over the years, and it seems that you are saying the same thing............people decide to "REFORM'
They want to do better, live better and be better. Their conscience tells them that they need to live right......BUT instead of allowing the Lord to make them right by giving them a new heart, they try in their own power and ability to change their heart and life.

IF....IF that is you, allow me to say that it will not work. The reason anyone can not live right is that they have never been MADE RIGHT. We can not "reform"......we must be TRANSFORMED!

That can happen only one way and that is by the New Birth when when are BORN AGAIN. Now, how does one know that they are really born again???????

By a changed life!!!!! The Bible tells us that the Old Man of sin is crucified by our belief in Christ and then we have the power to serve God and not self and sin.
 
You have beeb given a lot of really good advice Brandon. "Going to church" may be one of the best.

You see, we need positive reinforcement from our friends to keep us pointd in the straight path. And YES, I also expect the Holy Spirit to do that as well.

The problem I have seen over the years, and it seems that you are saying the same thing............people decide to "REFORM'
They want to do better, live better and be better. Their conscience tells them that they need to live right......BUT instead of allowing the Lord to make them right by giving them a new heart, they try in their own power and ability to change their heart and life.

IF....IF that is you, allow me to say that it will not work. The reason anyone can not live right is that they have never been MADE RIGHT. We can not "reform"......we must be TRANSFORMED!

That can happen only one way and that is by the New Birth when when are BORN AGAIN. Now, how does one know that they are really born again???????

By a changed life!!!!! The Bible tells us that the Old Man of sin is crucified by our belief in Christ and then we have the power to serve God and not self and sin.
 
BrandonC,

I can't help but laugh sometimes at the way God allows things to unfold. I just recently put together a brief message called "Half & Half Only Works In Coffee", which I think fits in perfectly with what you're feeling.

Before sharing that, I want to encourage you to get in the Word every day. It's absolutely vital, and something you have to make time for. But at the same time, I don't recommend just sitting down with your Bible and no plan. Do you have a good devotional/study? I would recommend Oswald Chamber's My Utmost For His Highest. It's an oldie but a goodie, and doesn't pull any punches when it approaches the tougher issues of living as a Christian. It's inexpensive and available pretty much everywhere. If you don't have a copy, please check it out. It's more than worthy of a place on a your bookshelf.


Half & Half Only Works In Coffee
How many times in our lives have we gotten ready to do something we know we shouldn’t?

Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. You get a plan together, for whatever it is, and you hear this little nagging voice in the back of your mind saying, “Maybe you shouldn’t do that.”

What happens next?

We start to justify our plan, usually by telling ourselves things like, “God will understand.” Or maybe, “God knows where I’m coming from.” Or perhaps even, “I know that’s not what God really wants, but...”

Yet we know God doesn’t change His outlook to fit our actions. If that were the case, there would be millions of different ways to salvation. And yet, there’s only one – Jesus Christ.

Take a quick look at James 4:17.

“Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”

So we have here in James’ epistle, written In very plain language – if you don’t do what you know is good, it’s a sin. There is no gray area here. There is no room for “God will understand”.

Yet we often want to have it both ways. We want the gifts, the blessings, the salvation, the promises…but we also want to do things our way. We want to bend, grease, and stretch the rules. We want to do things God’s way, but we also want to do things our way, too.

That is what makes us Half & Half which, obviously, only works in coffee.

“Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.” – John 9:41

Once again, do you see any wiggle room here? Knowing what is good means that you see – therefore ignorance, or “blindness” is not something you can claim – and therefore it is sin.

Even if you think you’re setting out with good intentions, you should be mindful of two things:
1.) Last I checked, there wasn’t a road to Heaven that was paved with good intentions.
2.) Christ Himself told us, “No man can serve two masters,”. (Matthew 6:24)

You simply can’t have it both ways. There’s no two ways about it!
 
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