'Sin' Tagged Posts

'Sin' Tagged Posts

Ask The Pastor: Can people who actively pursue a sinful lifestyle become members of a church?

Ask The Pastor: Can people who actively pursue a sinful lifestyle become members of a church? In the last blog I talked about the balance between loving people while also protecting the purity of the church. In this blog, I’m going to look at this from a different perspective: church membership. Can a person who is actively, blatantly pursuing a sinful lifestyle still become a member of a church? Or what should be done about a current member who is…

Ask The Pastor: How can the church be loving to sinners while also protecting its purity?

How can the church be loving to sinners while also protecting its purity? This question came to me specifically in the context of someone that is in an active gay relationship that wants to be involved in the church. However, as we will see, the answer is the same for any person that is involved in intentional, public, unrepentant sin. So whether we are talking about a person that is actively involved in a relationship with someone of the same…

Psalm 1:1 – Don’t Get Sucked Into Sin /// Morning Fuel – A Three Minute Devotional

Psalm 1:1 says, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers” Notice the progression. First, there is WALKING with the wicked. Wicked is a generic word for evil. Walking shows you are moving with it. But then the person, “stands in the way of sinners.” The word “sinners” is a step further. It is no longer just doing evil, it is…

Purity Matters

In the day and age we live in, it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking it is alright to do a little sin. Many have a line that they think, “As long as I don’t cross THIS, I am fine.” So they engage in activity that the Bible considers sin and they justify it, thinking, “as long as I am a good person, I am fine.” Or, “As long as I do not pass this particular line,…

Ask The Pastor: Is it a sin to watch “R” rated movies?

Is it a sin to watch “R” rated movies? Great question! I will begin by saying that the MPAA rating system was not around when the Bible was written, so there were no ratings at all. So no, the Bible does not give any direction about “R” rated movies. Is that skirting around the question? 🙂 Let’s ask it another way: “Is it a sin to watch sinful behavior in movies?” This could involve filthy language, violence, sex, and so…

Ask the Pastor: Is it biblical to confess to a priest?

“Is it biblical to confess to a priest?” One of the foundational beliefs of Protestant Christianity is the “priesthood of all believers.” This is the belief that all believers (all who have put their faith in Jesus Christ) share privilege of being priests. There is no special class of Christians who have a greater spiritual ability to understand Scripture, are able to forgive sins, or are mediators between humans and God. Some passages that back this idea up (priesthood of…