open2itall

What assurance does John give us if we do sin? that the Lord Jesus Christ, is our link to God and that through Him we are forgiven How does this comfort us? we understand we are loved How does it make us want to avoid sin? out of love we want to avoid sin

How would you define "confession"? confession is owning up to what I've done, and to how I am. Why is confessing our sins so important? without confession there is no feeling of forgiveness. how can I feel forgiven if I do not accept that there is something to forgive confession is admission What happens to us if we stop confessing our sins? we experience no clean newborn start, instead we live with dis-ease What are the promises given to us if we do confess our sins? How is forgiveness of sins different from cleansing? forgiveness is felt instantly like an inpouring from above cleansing takes time.

What is the result when a Christian walks in darkness, that is, continues willfully to do what he or she knows to be wrong? we distant ourselves form God and live in a hell of our own making How does this involve self-deception? we may think that we do nothing wrong we may say that a little bit of sin wont be bad, that it wont affect us. we may say its impossible to be perfect, so why bother trying. we may say it wont matter because Ill get forgiven afterwards. we may think that He didnt mean us, that it somehow doesnt apply to us Be ye perfect even as your Father in heaven is perfect Jesus believes in us What is the result, according to verse 7, when we walk in the light? we are at ease and have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. How do we get back into the light if we sin? we have to reach out to that which is held high we have to recognise and acknowledge our wrong doing with heartfelt pray we have to ache for forgiveness Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled

Why is our fellowship with fellow Christians so often just on a surface level? Because we don't live in Christ. How can we have fellowship at a deeper level in Christ? We need to love Christ. all the time, and if we truly love Christ this happens, when we love someone they are always on our mind, and what we behold we see, and what we see we behold. What would it take in your Christian group or your relationships with other believers to deepen your level of fellowship so it is authentically Christian? I need to be more loving, to see clearly, living in the light.

Q5. (Romans 8:13-14) What does it mean to "mortify" or "put to death" the deeds of the body by the Spirit? it means to ask our Lord, the Son of God, to have mercy on us, and in His mercy to enter us and live in us so that we might live in Him, and through His Strength turn our back on sin What would it look like to watch a person do this? it sounds like a violent act "to put sin to death" but in my experience it felt like bliss and so I guess that it might look blissful. What does it mean to be "led" by the Spirit? it means to not lose sight of Spirit and listen What does this look like in actual practice? peaceful How do "putting to death" and being "led" by the Spirit fit together? Like two sides of a coin. How much of this is the Spirit and how much is us? when I live in Him my mind is at peace, as if I where being lead by still waters, when I foolishly forget our Lord I make life really difficult for myself. Christ, in His great mercy, has been my resurrection and my Life many times... I live in Hope that I will one day give myself to Him so completly that I will be free Beliefs and Attitudes Frequent repetition of the same type of thoughts create our beliefs and attitudes. This is why I will be positive. I can be free from sin, just like Paul is saying, we all can do it with The Power of The Spirit

Q4. (Romans 8:12) Do we have to sin? Are we compelled to sin? Is it possible to live for two hours of wakefulness without sinning? Four hours? One day? Two days? Where do we Christians get such a defeatist attitude towards sin? From Scripture? we have a choise we need to be positive and not defeatist however I must admit that sometimes I am less than I should be Mt 22:36 which is the great commandment in the law? And he said to him,

Q3. (Romans 8:9) Is it possible to be a Christian without the Holy Spirit residing in us? No What is the difference (if any) between the indwelling of the Spirit and the fullness of the Spirit? time and and heart-felt prayer How do we remain "full" of the Spirit? love God

Q2. (Romans 8:5-6) Exactly what does it mean to set your mind on the things of the Spirit? it means that I resonate in harmony with what I experience it means that I see God in unexpected places it means that I am inspired and guided How do you do this? I do this by thinking of God to such an extent that my mind is fixed on God How can you recognize when the things you're setting your mind on relate to your sinful nature? I feel disturbed when my mind goes astray, my bodies energy feels out of tune and my mind is ill at ease. (Normally there is a steady fire in the belly, as Spirit is felt only in my experience in the heart and head and not in the lower body although the lower body is not unaffected by spirit) edit, I speak here about everyday life and how I feel spirit move me in everyday life, during pray in stillness Spirit can and does fill the whole body. How much of this is deliberate? How much is habit? good question, I think it has recently become habit which makes life easy. What part does the Holy Spirit have in this? Or is this primarily right living by force of will? the strong hold that sin had on me has dissolved with the Holy Spirit, and now I feel only a slight pull occasionally. This slight pull can be dealt with by force of will, thank God. this question makes me think about my practice of repeating the Lords Holy Name, repeating to myself Jesus Jesus Jesus, Jesus Jesus Jesus, Jesus Jesus Jesus.... (I do this in everyday life while doing simple tasks like washing up, waiting in line at the check out, walking down the street.... and it really does help me to stay tuned into God) the mystics of the world tell us that eventually The Lord repeats His Own Name, and that even in sleep you can hear His Holy Name being gently repeated. Wow, what a wonderful state of mind to be in. This must be the Holy Spirit working without the will or perhaps it is a case of Spirit and will merging. Heaven knows, all I know is that it sounds good.

Q1. (Romans 8:3-4) Why can't obedience to the law save us? What is the weak link? the sinful nature of our flesh is the weak link. What then does it take to save us? we need to receive The Holy Spirit we can do this through our beloved Christ

Q5. (Romans 7:14-25) Christians disagree about who is the "I" in Romans 7. Is Paul referring to himself or others? What is your opinion? (We won't all agree here, but we'll learn what the issues are by taking and arguing for a position -- lovingly). as Christians we do our best to live in Christ, but our best is not always good enough. I suspect that Paul is referring to himself at times of weakness. I believe that Paul was unmarried and may have had difficulty controlling sexual energy at times, but I am simply making an educated guess.

Q4. (Jeremiah 17:9; Matthew 15:18-20; Romans 7:24) What is the doctrine of "total depravity"? that man is sinful without God. Put it in your own words. Does it mean that none of God's original goodness shows through? Then what does it mean? God created man God's seed is within. in the stillness we find it let it take root and grow Why does modern man tend to believe that man is basically good? I don't know

Q3. (Romans 7:12; 8:3) What does the law do well? it reveals what is sin. What does it do poorly? the written Law is poor at fighting sin Why is the law (knowing right and wrong) powerless to save us? What is the problem here? on our own we are not strong enough.

Q2. (Romans 7:7-8) The law reveals sin for what it is. Why wouldn't we be better off just not knowing that we should not covet, for example? because sin would still be damaging us and the world around us, sin is always ultimately painful, it takes us away from God. Why does the flesh respond to being told "Do not covet" by coveting all the more? I'm not sure I understand this, but in my experience, what I focus on rules, and so it is counter productive to focus on what I shouldn't be doing. What I mean is that it is not enough to be told what not to do. Our senses will only disengage with what is wrong, when we engage with Christ.

Q1. (Romans 7:5) Paul uses the word "flesh" (or NIV "sinful nature") many times in chapters 7 and 8. In your own words, what does Paul mean by "flesh" in these verses? Paul means by "flesh" the human existence without the Divine energy that is Christ. A ship lost at sea without its Master

Q5. (Romans 6:18-22) In Paul's analogy in these verses, is there a place of independent freedom apart from "slavery" to sin or to Christ? No, apart from the ability to choose. Why do we long for this kind of independent freedom? Independently experiencing Gods energy and occasionally dipping our toes in sin... sounds good, but it doesn't work like that, I've tried it. Just a little dip into sin turns out to feel like a bucket of water, thrown on the fire that comes from living right.

Q4. (Romans 6:17b) How does good doctrine affect the way we live? It makes leading a good life easier Why should we honour good doctrine? It lights our way in the world today while remaining faithful to the original message. If we shouldn't look down on doctrine itself, what kind of teaching should we be avoiding? If we have Christ within, then we should avoid what doesn't ring true in our hearts.

Q3. (Romans 6:15-18). What does obedience have to do with slavery? We fall in line with what holds us In what way does doing acts of righteousness demonstrate your slavery to God? I fall in line with Gods energy and have a feeling of being totally at ease In what ways does doing bad things demonstrate a slavery to sin? I can see that doing bad things is done not wholeheartedly and with dis-ease. How is such a slavery or bondage broken? slavery to sin is broken by hearing a higher energy, there is no higher energy than love, and this truth prevails What part does obedience have in breaking this bondage? we surrender to the highest, and certainly want to obey that which is held high, namely God In what areas is God speaking to you about a fresh obedience in your life? Christian fellowship (I am going to a Christianity Explored course and it feels good) many thanks again for these lessons, they are helping me greatly

Q2. (Romans 6:13) In what ways do you "offer the members of your body" to either sin or God multiple times in a day? I submit to either sin or God Why is it that we can sin unconsciously? we react automatically at times, the physical body sometimes responds to the world with low energy, but as soon as our higher-self notices the low energy, we can align ourselves with Christ. Also, we can sin sometimes without realising that what we do is not right How can we begin to offer our members deliberately to God? By listening to God. By living in Christ. The body is made up of individual cells, each cell has an intelligence (an energy) of its own. Likewise each area of the body, being made up of millions of cells, has a collective energy. Yoga teaches that the highest most beautiful energy that is available to us is above the head, and that we need to invite this energy in and raise the base energy of the lower-self. This is the teaching of Yoga. What changes will it take in our daily life to do this? We need to listen to God. We need to develop a daily practice of pray and listening. We need to daily reach up to Christ and have the Lord enter us with His strength. "Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; Where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek To be consoled as to console, To be understood as to understand, To be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; It is in dying to self that we are born to eternal life" Saint Augustine

Q1. (Romans 6:12) What does obedience have to do with the "reign" of sin? I can remember being a slave to sin, there is no denying that it had a strong hold on me, but that strong hold dissolved with Christ. I am no longer a slave to sin, a new Master reigns over me. And I willingly and gratefully accept Christ as my Divine Master because of the love I have for Him.

Q5. (Romans 6:11) What does it mean to "reckon, consider, count" in verse 11? Does this actually mean that we are convincing ourselves of something that isn't really true? What will be the effect in our lives if we actually do consider it to be true that we died with Christ's death with regard to sin? It is absolutely reality It is real because I experience it as real. To those who say "but isn't this just in your head, isn't it just your imagination?" I reply yes, in a way it is, and that is how God works mostly. We pray to Him mostly in silence, (in a kind of 'Stillness') and it is in this way that we receive. The changes that have happened to me, the peace of mind, the love in my heart, the energy that I feel in my life, it is all real. Yes, I am dead to sin, the fear is gone and instead I am cultivating a heart-centred way of life with Christ. Thank God

Q4. (Romans 6:6-7) In what way has our "body of sin," our "flesh," our old nature been made powerless because of our crucifixion with Christ? In what way have we been freed from slavery? What difference does this understanding make in our struggles against temptation? The body of sin is gone. We are dead to sin. And alive to love. With Christ we have a new life in which we operate from the heart with peace of mind. The key to continuing the transformation is to find a daily practice of remembering the love that is Christ.

Q3. (Romans 6:1-7) Is Paul referring to a figurative "death" to sin, or to a kind of historical, actual death? Paul is (I think) referring to an actual death. Whose death is he talking about? Jesus Christ How does this death become our own? By surrendering our old-self to Christ, dieing to self, and living in Him (and this is symbolised by baptism) To what degree is this just theological mumbo-jumbo or does it have some basis in reality? We are transformed in a very real way. The cause that prevents is removed, namely guilt. This happens instantly. And then by reaching out to God who is always there for us in the form of Jesus Christ the transformation continues, and the more we expect from Christ, the more we receive from Him:

Q2. (Romans 6:3-4) In Paul's reference to baptism in 6:3-4, what does "buried" (6:4a) correspond to in the act of baptism? death What does "Christ was raised from the dead" (6:4b) correspond to in baptism? new life thank God

Q1. (Romans 6:3-5) In what sense does baptism bring about our union with Christ? In what sense does baptism symbolize our union with Christ? we undergo (experience) a death and emerge as new with Christ

Q4. (Romans 6:2-5) According to this passage, at what point do we move from being under the headship of Adam to the headship of Christ? this passage seems to say that the point of change was with the death of Christ, I would have said with Christ's life and death, but the exact point I suppose is with our Lords death Is there anything we must do to bring about this change in headship we must receive Christ as our Lord What are the implications of us having died with Christ? we were given new life, a new beginning free from sin and live in Christ