James, when Jesus writes the law in our hearts, He is not condemning us. The law only condemns law breakers, not law keepers. Also, love is only one of the fruits of the Spirit. And all of the fruits of the Spirit combined harmonize with the principles of the law. There is no condemnation when our experience is in agreement with the law. Plus, Jesus pardons all our prior violations of the law when we repent and accept Him as our personal Saviour. Thus, in Christ there is no condemnation.

As you noted in Rom 3:23 – “All have sinned” – therefore all are condemned, based on their own commission of sin, and not based on inheriting and possessing sinful flesh nature. As you said, sinful flesh nature cannot sin, therefore we must first sin in order to incur guilt and condemnation.

But from the very moment we first experience conscious thoughts and feelings (beginning in the womb), we respond to the various stimuli affecting our five senses in sinful ways. We naturally and automatically choose to act out (in thought, word or deed) the unholy suggestions communicated to us by our sinful flesh nature.

And until we are born again and receive the sinless seed of the mind of the new man we cannot cease from sin, all we can do apart from Jesus is sin. We are guilty and condemned based on the sins we commit as we respond to the tempting voice of our sinful flesh nature. But in Christ we are free from sin through pardon and through the power of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who empowers us to resist the unholy suggestions generated and communicated to us by our sinful flesh nature.

James:

Would you answer my questions I directed to you last week:

"Do you actually claim to be an Adventist?
I may have missed that declaration somewhere. If not, then please say so, because what I've seen here is pure Dallas Theological Seminary.
Perhaps your time would be better spent "raiding" some church that doesn't claim salvation through the spilt blood of Jesus.
If you have a personal axe against Adventists, the place to resolve that is on your knees, not at your computer. God knows who we are and who you are. Ask Him...and wait for an answer from Him, not Bill Bright, Dr. Ice, Hal Lindsey or anyone else. Not even the pope.
Act 5:38 And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:
Act 5:39 But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God."

==========

Note: To avoid a misconception, James is still a registered member of MSDAOL, but for some unknown reason has chosen to post his last few posts as a visitor, however, I believe that James has indicated in his profile that he is a SDA. Correct me James, if I am wrong.

Daryl Fawcett
Administrator
MSDAOL.

[ June 12, 2002, 03:22 PM: Message edited by: Daryl Fawcett ]

This was a post James made in the "Search for Truth" section under the Topic "Clean and Unclean meat". The second post of that thread.

"Dear Forum moderator.

Many thanks for allowing me to share my thoughts regarding the Gospel of Christ, and I apologize if my thoughts is against the teaching of the SDA church. I am still a SDA church member (baptized 1981), but in my study regarding the law I found those interesting thoughts that I have shared.

Besides sharing it, I would like to know as well, does my thoughts fits the teaching of the Gospel of Christ? It is not too late for me if some one might correct me and give me a solid scriptural basic that I’m wrong.

This forum and other forums is the best media to share and discuss about the Gospel of Christ and seek for the truth.

If you think that my thoughts will shakes the faith of many Adventist and that I’m sharing a wrong gospel, feel free to delete my posts. But to me, I just want to discuss an important matter whether I’m wrong or right. I need inputs from our loving brothers and sisters in this forum to fix my faith on the truth of the Gospel of Christ.

But if you allow me to go further, I would really happy and appreciate that very much.

May God blessed you.

In his love

James S. "

John S.
My oversight! I rarely read that part of the forum: thanks for the correction and insert Daryl! I see why you have the job!

Yet and still, would it not be considerate for you to answer my questions?

Ikan,
Please note the above post by me....I have posted James' answer to that question. Perhaps you missed it thinking it was my post/words.

JAMES WAS BAPTIZED A SDA IN 1981.

Concerning our friend James S.
Thanks Charlene I understood that and appreciate your showing me, honest.
However after many attempts at my asking and others spending many, many hours in a futile tail chasing, please, let James answer for himself:

JAMES
Are you NOW a Sunday keeping christian who, as you say, feels that the Law is dead, and was for Jews?
Do you regret your past links to Adventist Bible truths?
Is Ellen White a false prophet to you?

No debates please.

As you put it yourself, "Yes or No."

No one will stop talking with you, but a clear and honest answer would be very nice.

Perhaps we are misunderstanding James? I don't hear him saying that we are free to sin. He is saying that in Christ we are free from sin. He does have a strange of way of looking at the relationship between the law and condemnation. But I don't believe he is saying we are free to sin.

In essence, I hear James saying that if we keep the law we are condemned, but if we keep the faith we are saved. Which is true. He is speaking against law keeping as the means and method of our salvation. Which is also true. And he is very quick to agree that if we are in Christ, then our life will be in harmony with the principles of the law.

Please reread the "ten commandments" thread in this 'search the truth" section.

I think a lot of james confusion is coming from him not understanding the diference between Justification and Sanctification.

I too have spent hours with James on this subject, infact several years, off and on, in other forums and so have many friends on the other forums...I see he has not changed one iota in his theology. Maybe his presentation, composition of words confuses my understanding of 'his message' but i find it not in harmony with the bible or the SOP. He is not a believer in SOP because it goes against his doctrine..so that says alot to me.

It would be nice if he would say that what i have understood about him is wrong.

James needs to answer for himself, folks. My I suggest we discontinue until we do hear from him?

As a child, I was raised in a Presbyterian church, and went through all the steps for membership there, including baptism. I do not consider myself a Prebyterian now, even though I have not officially gone back and made formal withdrawal from that organization. I see no need to, for my standing with Christ amongst His brethren has absolutely nothing to do with my name on a piece of paper!
BUT to claim to be a Prebyterian and spend countless hours debating them on their own forum to disprove and attempt to urge them to my Adventist ideas,based on my old baptism, would that be HONEST? What that be Christ's way?

Pastor Ikan.

Are you a pastor of the SDA church just as pastor Mike Lowe is? Pastor Mike understood the way of my presentation and I believe we just have a very small difference that might to get straight one day.

To answer your question straight and direct; I am not a Sunday keeper, and I don’t regret my past links to SDA Bible truths. I believe that through the SDA church I came to know the truth of the Gospel of Christ, as I was a Catholic since I was born and baptized in a SDA church in 1981.

As an SDA I was taught to keep and obey the law, and in further study I believe that with keeping the law I still seeks for Jesus Christ because the law is our “school master” that lead us to Christ. Thus, a law keeper is still in the way that leads them to Christ, that means he is not in Christ yet.

So, I believe that now since I have faith in him, the law was behind me! My life will go further not more in the way of the law but in faith and according to the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the “compass” in my heart that will lead me to heaven, and with His leading I don’t need any law even the Ten Commandments. But as Mike has clarified, even there is no law it doesn’t meant that I promote a life in sin. How can we live in sin if the Spirit leads us, but if we live in sin that means we live for the flesh?

I am promoting here that Christians must live by faith and be led by the Spirit, and that means according what I believe was the core of the gospel preach in Pauline epistle, is to abandon the law that by keeping it will only lead to condemnation and death.

Through the law I was led to Christ, and I live in the law when I was an SDA church member, but now I’m still an Adventist but no more in the law but in Christ.

I like to share my thoughts because that is what I did in my free time as a SDA member, preaching SDA doctrine door to door and have converted some Protestant members to SDA including my own parents.

I am not a member of any church except SDA, but for me a church member means nothing because not the church that saved me but Christ.

I will continue with my thoughts as there are still a lot to share, just take it as a new way of thinking about some verses that you are accustomed to and then compare it with the bible. Did I tell the truth or not?

Once I believe that EGW is a prophet but after studying her books, I saw some contradiction according to the mood or faith she was in when she wrote these books. Now I believe that she was a special woman that also grew in faith from within the law till she settled in Christ. But you must read and take what is true according to the gospel of Christ, and throw what is in contradiction.

In His love

James S