How does a Protestant deals with sin in their life.

[grace_singh]

well, as a non-Catholic Christian, i simply confess my sins to God, ask His pardon, and ask Him to help me be more aware of my sins and to avoid falling into sin in the future.

i don’t do any acts of pennance or pray a certain way… when the Holy Spirit convicts me of my sin, i appologize to my Father, talk to Him about it, and ask His mercy and help, then thank Him for His grace, pardon, and succor.

 

[AmericanJosiah]

In John 19: 22-23 he instituted the method of dealing with sin, guilt , repentance and forgiveness. We in his Church are blessed with the sanctifying gifts of the Holy sacraments:yup::clapping:::dancing:Carlan

Here is John 19:22-23

**“Pilate answered, ‘What I have written, I have written.’ When the solders had crucified Jesus, they took his garments and divided them into four parts, one part for each of them, also his tunic.”
**

IMHO, this does not limit the extension and announcement of forgiveness to those ordained as priests by The Catholic Church exclusively.

Nor does it necessitate that The Lord’s Prayer be prayed only by ordained priests of The Catholic Church exclusively.

.

 

[Carlan]

Then show me where Jesus clearly limited the authority to forgive to the ordained clergy of The Catholic Church.

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Again Christ’s Church began on Pentecost. He gave the Authority to the Apostles at that time in the upper room. John19:22-23.

Then show me where Protestants do not tend to embrace that forgiveness may be extended and announced by those other than ordain clergy of The Catholic Church.

Then show me where The Lord’s Prayer states that the “as WE forgive…” actually means ordained clergy of The Catholic Church (does that mean only they may pray this prayer?)

I under stand the some P.traditions ,such as your own ,do have a formula for dealing with sin in your life
The prayer you refer to is telling us that we personally must forgive others as God forgives us. Example. your brother does you wrong, You have gotta forgive him.!Carlan
It does not concern the Sacrament of Confession as such.

 

[Carlan]

Here is John 19:22-23

**“Pilate answered, ‘What I have written, I have written.’ When the solders had crucified Jesus, they took his garments and divided them into four parts, one part for each of them, also his tunic.”
**

IMHO, this does not limit the extension and announcement of forgiveness to those ordained as priests by The Catholic Church exclusively.

Nor does it necessitate that The Lord’s Prayer be prayed only by ordained priests of The Catholic Church exclusively.

Goodness me, Josiah, I messed up. Go to John 20: 22-23 Sorry:blush:Carlan

 

[AmericanJosiah]

The prayer you refer to is telling us that we personally must forgive others as God forgives us. Example. your brother does you wrong, You have gotta forgive him.!

I agree. Therefore, Protestants tend to embrace that forgiveness is not limited to those officially ordained by and serving as clergy in The Catholic Church. I agree with you, if it was so exclusive, then the only ones who could pray The Lord’s Prayer (or at least that petition) would be priests of The Catholic Church. Protestants believe that the announcement of forgiveness is not so limited.

.

 

[AmericanJosiah]

Go to John 20: 22-23

Okay, let’s quote it:

"And when he said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Recieve the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld."

Some comments:

1. The command the WE are to forgive is expressed elsewhere (including every time we pray The Lord’s Prayer). Thus, this verse cannot be viewed as exclusive to disciples in the upper room (so that when they died, the ability to forgive died with them). The verse you reference is not a limitation. It doesn’t say, “you ONLY…” (which would create a contradiction in Jesus’ teachings).
2. It should be noted that while we do not know all to whom He said this (the very broad, generic term “disciples” is used) - we ONLY know that Thomas was not one of them. Therefore, this verse cannot be used to indicate that only 10 men had the command and ability to forgive - and such died with them.
3. Note also that there’s nothing here about being an ordained priest in The Catholic Church.
4. IF we interpret this as not limited to the unknown persons in that room (again, we ONLY know that one WAS NOT there - Thomas), then we simply know Jesus gave this command to “disciples.” IF it is not limited to those unknown persons in that room (and ended when they died), then it can reasonably we seen that this is a command Jesus gives to His disciples - then and now. This "fits’ well with His numerous commands to forgive, His inclusion of that petition in The Lord’s Prayer (“forgive us our sins as WE forgive…”). Thus, disciples may forgive sins. This is the general Protestant position. The ability to forgive is not limited to those ordained by and serving as priests in The Catholic Church.

Thank you.

Pax

• Josiah

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[Carlan]

Okay, let’s quote it:

"And when he said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Recieve the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld."

Some comments:

1. The command the WE are to forgive is expressed elsewhere (including every time we pray The Lord’s Prayer). Thus, this verse cannot be viewed as exclusive to disciples in the upper room (so that when they died, the ability to forgive died with them). The verse you reference is not a limitation. It doesn’t say, “you ONLY…” (which would create a contradiction in Jesus’ teachings).
2. It should be noted that while we do not know all to whom He said this (the very broad, generic term “disciples” is used) - we ONLY know that Thomas was not one of them. Therefore, this verse cannot be used to indicate that only 10 men had the command and ability to forgive - and such died with them.
3. Note also that there’s nothing here about being an ordained priest in The Catholic Church.
4. IF we interpret this as not limited to the unknown persons in that room (again, we ONLY know that one WAS NOT there - Thomas), then we simply know Jesus gave this command to “disciples.” IF it is not limited to those unknown persons in that room (and ended when they died), then it can reasonably we seen that this is a command Jesus gives to His disciples - then and now. This "fits’ well with His numerous commands to forgive, His inclusion of that petition in The Lord’s Prayer (“forgive us our sins as WE forgive…”). Thus, disciples may forgive sins. This is the general Protestant position. The ability to forgive is not limited to those ordained by and serving as priests in The Catholic Church.

Thank you.

Pax

• Josiah
  .

The CC has what is called the Sacrament of reconciliation,as has been explained in previous posts.  And the Gospel verse for that doctrine is John 20: 23-23.I trust and follow the teaching authority of the Catholic Church when it comes to teaching doctrine revealed by Jesus and handed on to us by his Apostles. The teaching authority of the Church consists of Sacred Tradition, The word of God in Scripture , and the Magisterium, all three, one cannot stand without the other.:)

I thank you for sharing your understanding of the Scripture and God bless you.Carlan

 

[rev_kevin]

The CC has what is called the Sacrament of reconciliation,as has been explained in previous posts. And the Gospel verse for that doctrine is John 20: 23-23.I trust and follow the teaching authority of the Catholic Church when it comes to teaching doctrine revealed by Jesus and handed on to us by his Apostles. The teaching authority of the Church consists of Sacred Tradition, The word of God in Scripture , and the Magisterium, all three, one cannot stand without the other.

I thank you for sharing your understanding of the Scripture and God bless you.Carlan

Verse 22 may have been a special filling of the Holy Spirit for the disciples, sort of a foretaste of what all believers would experience from the time of Pentecost and forever after. See to do God’s work we need the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit.
Also there is life in the breath of God. Man was created but did not come alive until God breathed into him the breath of life which is found in Genesis 2:7. God’s breath made man different from all other forms of creation. Now through the breath of Jesus, God imparted eternal, spiritual life. With this inbreathing came the power to do God’s will on earth.

Verse 23 Now Jesus was giving the disciples thire Spirit-power and Spirit-guided mission, which is to preach the Good News about Jesus so people’s sins might be forgiven. The disciples did not have the power to forgive sins, only God can forgive sins, but Jesus gave them the privilege of telling new believers that their sins have been forgiven because they have accepted Jesus’ message, All believers have this same privilege. We can announce forgiveness of sins with certainty when we ourselves have found repentance and faith.

 

[rep140]

I’ll forget about scripture and offer a different perspective. I’m a cradle Catholic who got away from going to confession. You skip one year then another, etc. I was asked to be on a parish adult catechesis group and agreed, after all, I’m a good Catholic. As Easter and the end of our program approached I was really bothered by “talking the talk”, but not
“walking the walk”. I decided to go to confession to a priest who would not recognize my voice. I was scared to death. What I didn’t expect was the exhiliration I felt after confessing to someone!

When I read the posts here and then look at my Bible I’d honestly say that the Protestants win a split decision. That doesn’t matter to me. I’ve asked Jesus for forgiveness, but this doesn’t compare to asking someone who is said to be taking the place of Jesus for forgiveness.

 

[Carlan]

I’ll forget about scripture and offer a different perspective. I’m a cradle Catholic who got away from going to confession. You skip one year then another, etc. I was asked to be on a parish adult catechesis group and agreed, after all, I’m a good Catholic. As Easter and the end of our program approached I was really bothered by “talking the talk”, but not
“walking the walk”. I decided to go to confession to a priest who would not recognize my voice. I was scared to death. What I didn’t expect was the exhiliration I felt after confessing to someone!

When I read the posts here and then look at my Bible I’d honestly say that the Protestants win a split decision. That doesn’t matter to me. I’ve asked Jesus for forgiveness, but this doesn’t compare to asking someone who is said to be taking the place of Jesus for forgiveness.

You are so right Rep, as I mentioned in a previous post. Jesus knew how much the sinner would need the priest sitting in for him in his person. God bless you for all you do! Carlan

 

[Justy90]

A Christian will say he intends to do good, but will rationalize and then turns around and does wrong .Sin involves self deception, and when one has been kidding oneself, by what means does he arrive at the conclusion that self deception has stopped ?.Protestism does not seem to offer any helpful way for the sinner to cope with guilt and reform.Carlan

Herein lies the misunderstanding. One needs not to be able to deal with sin when Christ becomes involved. The biggest thing I learned in the years since I left Catholicism is that when you truly begin to know Christ and walk with him, he begins to transform you from the inside out. Your fears being to transform into faith and your degree of belief escalates. It’s indescibable in terms of how it actually feels.

 

[Carlan]

Herein lies the misunderstanding. One needs not to be able to deal with sin when Christ becomes involved. The biggest thing I learned in the years since I left Catholicism is that when you truly begin to know Christ and walk with him, he begins to transform you from the inside out. Your fears being to transform into faith and your degree of belief escalates. It’s indescibable in terms of how it actually feels.

I do understand you Justy, and as Christians we thank and praise God for the beautiful gifts of sanctifying grace which takes away all the fear and transforms us with his grace and love. I am glad that you found that peace. Sometimes it happens, with Christians of all faiths, that their acceptance and knowledge of our salvation in Jesus has a hard time getting out of the head and into the heart where it must be for us to surrender completely to his will for us. Many end up putting God on the shelf, and some like you go else where to mature and find his love finally in your heart. I offer a prayer to God the Father that you find your way back home along with my eldest son who put him up on the shelf many years ago after Viet-Nam. We trust God for our prayer even if we don’t live to see it answered in this life.:sad_yes: God bless you, Carlan

 

[Justy90]

I do understand you Justy, and as Christians we thank and praise God for the beautiful gifts of sanctifying grace which takes away all the fear and transforms us with his grace and love. I am glad that you found that peace. Sometimes it happens, with Christians of all faiths, that their acceptance and knowledge of our salvation in Jesus has a hard time getting out of the head and into the heart where it must be for us to surrender completely to his will for us. Many end up putting God on the shelf, and some like you go else where to mature and find his love finally in your heart. I offer a prayer to God the Father that you find your way back home along with my eldest son who put him up on the shelf many years ago after Viet-Nam. We trust God for our prayer even if we don’t live to see it answered in this life.:sad_yes: God bless you, Carlan

I think you for your prayers but I must tell you, I AM Home and thank God for it!

 

[rev_kevin]

I think you for your prayers but I must tell you, I AM Home and thank God for it!

Amen Justy90

 

[Carlan]

I think you for your prayers but I must tell you, I AM Home and thank God for it!

Yes Justy, but do you have it all in this life,? The center of our Christian worship as Catholics, the Body ,Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus in the Eucharist.Carlan

 

[Justy90]

Yes Justy, but do you have it all in this life,? The center of our Christian worship as Catholics, the Body ,Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus in the Eucharist.Carlan

I have him and I share your same communion beliefs. We as Anglicans recognize that you as Catholics celebrate the Eucharist as the Body Blood Soul and Divinity of Christ as we do. It’s just a damned shame that you don’t believe that we do. But hey, such is life. I know that I have him; communion time and throughout the week.:byzsoc:

 

[Carlan]

I have him and I share your same communion beliefs. We as Anglicans recognize that you as Catholics celebrate the Eucharist as the Body Blood Soul and Divinity of Christ as we do. It’s just a damned shame that you don’t believe that we do. But hey, such is life. I know that I have him; communion time and throughout the week.:byzsoc:

Please excuse me Justy, I fall so short when it comes to communicating in these forums, I had over looked your Christian affiliation,sorry, I do understand that Anglicans and Lutherans hold some of the same beliefs handed on down from the Apostles through Christ’s church, I do not deliberately aim to offend.
I don’t hold todays separated brethren responsible for the protesting revolution of 500 years ago. That isn’t what this thread is about anyway.
My deepest hurt concerns mostly the fallen away Catholics and my hope for them. Jesus longs for the unity of his Flock, and in the case of the Orthodox and the Anglicans there is much hope. God bless! Carlan

 

[mmmcounts]

Jesus knew how much the sinner would need the priest sitting in for him in his person.

Is this an example of oral tradition? Do you really believe Jesus expressed this kind of thought and that the apostles preserved it through oral tradition, or is this just a guess by you that you believe to be true?

Or- here’s an idea- is it possible that you believe the first option to be true but it’s actually an example of the second one? How would you know the difference? How would you demonstrate that?

 

[Carlan]

Is this an example of oral tradition? Do you really believe Jesus expressed this kind of thought and that the apostles preserved it through oral tradition, or is this just a guess by you that you believe to be true?

Or- here’s an idea- is it possible that you believe the first option to be true but it’s actually an example of the second one? How would you know the difference? How would you demonstrate that?

3 M. I had said in a previous post The Sacrament of Reconciliation, or confession was given by Christ in the Gospel of John 20: 22-23. It is taught by the teaching authority of the Church , the magisterium, as Catholic doctrine. It is part of our faith, It is no guess it is the part of the Truth of revelation. You can accept it or not. It is part of the Truth which Catholics will pass on to visitors of CA who are interested in knowing what our beliefs consist of. Fair enough? God shine your light us all.Carlan

 

[billschild]

A mainstream protestant deals with sin, if they recognize it as such, by asking God for forgiveness. The protestant believes that all your sins are forgiven, even the ones you aren’t really sorry for. Since a protestant does not have access to the sacrament of penance, there is no grace to help them defend against the attacks of temptation from the dark side, and/or, there is no assistance from grace to combat the concupiscence that arises out of original sin.

But a Catholic is sorry for sins and goes to confession, right? So, why do Catholics keep sinning? Sin, at a very basic level is a mystery. Many people return to confession again and again for the same sins. Isn’t confession working?

The answer is that graces received from confession do work, but there is a horrible battle taking place at the level of spirits. We human beings cannot see this battle, but we can see the effects of the battle every day in the tragic news stories we read and hear about. We must run the race to the finish and pray that protestants of sincere heart and firm resolve to repent will be saved by the mercy of God.

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