Looking for Loopholes in All the Wrong Places – Part 8

Looking for Loopholes in All the Wrong Places – Part 8

Freedom to Sin?

This article is #8 of 9 in our series on Biblical “Loopholes”.  During this series, we have looked at several ways that both Christians and non-Christians attempt to find loopholes in the Bible.  We may do this to pick and choose what we like and don’t like about the Bible, to avoid doing things that we find unappealing, or to discredit the Bible completely.  Regardless of our reasons for doing so, this type of thinking brings consequences to our physical and mental health, and it may even have eternal consequences.  

The issue that we will look at today is one that I clung to for a large part of my life.  It had been taught in the church in which I was raised, and it gave me the freedom to live life the way I wanted to live it.  When I read the Bible, I understood that it said something else, but I decided to believe my church over the Bible.  As I’ve mentioned before, this took a serious toll on my mental well-being and led to self-destructive tendencies that damaged me and those around me.

“I was baptized as a baby and/or said a prayer, so I’m saved and can now do whatever I want to do.” 

First, salvation is a personal decision that only you can make.  There is nothing in the Bible that even suggests that sprinkling a baby will protect them.  In fact, there is no sprinkling in the Bible.  The Greek word “Baptizo” means “to immerse”.  Immersion symbolizes death to sin and rising up to life in Christ.  Sprinkling was a practice of convenience that started in the second century. 

But regardless of how you were baptized, baptism itself does not save anyone.  It is an act of obedience and public declaration that we do after we have made the decision to follow Jesus. The thief on the cross was not baptized, yet Jesus told him that he would join him in Heaven that very day.  At the same time, conscious baptism through immersion is obedience to God, and it is something that we should not avoid if possible.

Mark 16:16 tells us that if you believe and are baptized, you will be saved.  But what exactly does this mean?. Some feel that belief simply means you believe Jesus is the Son of God, but even Satan and his minions know that.  You can even believe that Jesus died for our sins, but is that all there is to real salvation?  

Saving faith is not about saying a magic prayer, sprinkling magic water, or doing some kind of ritual.  It is about a relationship with our Savior.  It is about admitting to him that we are sinners in need of a savior, and then asking him to guide our life.  It is about living for Christ instead of for ourselves.  It is about obedience.  Jesus said it very plainly in John 14:15:  “‘If you love me, keep my commands.’”  (NIV) It means putting Jesus first in our life, allowing his Spirit to work in us, and desiring holiness in our lives.

We are saved by grace through faith, but this doesn’t give us license to sin.  Paul addressed this misperception in his letter to the Romans.

Well then, since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not!  Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.  

Romans 6:15-18 (NLT)

Sin enslaves us. It is easy to see with addictions, but any kind of sin that we choose over God becomes our master.  Initially, the sin produces guilt as the Holy Spirit tries to nudge us away from it. But the Holy Spirit is a gentleman and will not force truth on us, and the more we reject that truth, the more our conscience becomes dulled.  Even so, there is a hint of guilt that we continue to try to erase.  And sadly, we seek to convince others that sin is okay so that we will feel better about it. 

Paul addresses this in Romans as well.

Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. 

Romans 1:28-32 (NIV)

On the cross, Jesus, in love, took on every sin that ever was or ever would be committed. To continue to willingly sin increases that burden.  Jesus gave everything so that we could be freed from the bondage of sin and spend eternity with him.  We have freedom in Christ, because he gives us the power through the Holy Spirit to defeat sin and have joy in this life and Heaven for eternity.  

If you missed any of the other articles in this series, you can find them here. God Bless!

1. Since God already knows what I need, do I still need to pray?
2. Is it still sin if I have a good reason for doing it?
3. Do I really need to read the Bible or can I just rely on someone else to tell me what it says?
4. If I am a “New Testament Christian”, do the Old Testament rules no longer apply?
5. Relevance of the Bible today in an age of “enlightenment”
6. Dealing with Biblical Contradictions
7. Many Paths to Heaven?

“The Requirements For True Salvation” from Pursuing Intimacy With God. https://www.intimacywithgod.com/the-requirements-for-true-salvation/

“Be Free:  Jesus Wants to Set You Free” from Pursuing Intimacy With God.  https://www.intimacywithgod.com/free/ 

“How to Be Sure of Your Salvation” by Steven J. Lawson with Billy Graham Ministries.  https://billygraham.org/story/how-to-be-sure-of-your-salvation/

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® NIV®Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society®Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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