Easy Beleivism, What is it?

Acts, chapter 2
"47": Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

Acts, chapter 10
"47": Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
"48": And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

Matthew, chapter 10
"32": Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.

To believe in Christ includes fullfilling what He has commaned us to do. To love Him is to fullfill what He has commanded us to do. "easybelieving"? Sure it is easy but only to those who really are believers for they will do whatever it takes to be saved. Also, it is God who does the saving, not us, taking too much credit for something that God does and we might end up like Moses.

 

Oh? So, have you sold everything and distributed it to the poor?

Believing in Jesus simply means believing what he did for you and your need for it. Otherwise, it's a works based salvation.

 

No but I did make a confession with the mouth that I believed, did you? I am simply saying to believe from the heart means more than just belief. Satan believed. I went home and told my friends what good things the Lord had done for me, not what a preacher had done for me.

Is that your belief that Jesus wants me to sell everything and give to the poor? I think He knew the young man put his wealth above the Lord. I could do that if you would pay more taxes to keep me up.

 

Repentance is a result of salvation not the means to provide it. That would be a works based faith. We cannot repent until we have Jesus in our heart. It is simply foolish to ask a lost person to repent. Romans 10:9-17 tells to believe that Jesus died because of our sin. He provides the way, alone, to salvation. The Holy Ghost is the means of repentance and sanctification.

We do not ask a sinner to get his life right then come to Christ. But we are witnesses to repentance after salvation.

 

There was nothing easy about Christs suffering on the cross! There was nothing easy about bearing our sins! There was nothing easy about bearing all our shame! All the work was done on the cross! We have nothing to do to have salvation!

Romans 6:23
The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Salvation is a gift, and all we have to do is reach out and recieve it, to make it ours.

 

Repentance is a Godly sorrow. You have to become sorry you sinned against God.

Go ye into all the world and preach, repent ye for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

Luke, chapter 5
31": And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick.
"32": I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance .

 

John, chapter 8
21": Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.

"24": I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

You did say you must reach out and take it. I guess you do believe man has to do something.

 

I shall get into this shortly, but right now I have something else I must do. Hang around for a few.
Ed

 

Repentance actually has little to do with either sorrow or sin, as used in Scripture, especially in the NT by definition. In fact, repentance is specifically differentiated from "Godly sorrow" in II Cor. 7:10.

(There happen to be multiple words in italics in the NKJV that are in the KJV, ASV, and ESV not italicized, that don't seem to me to change the effective meaning either way. And in an unusual case, I used the same version I usually use, but without 'jumping through the hoops' necessary to italicize each and every word.)

As I have mentioned before, the phrase "repent of (or from)(your) sin(s)", is not found in the Scriptures, at least in the KJV, RV and ASV, at least to my knowledge. However Scripture does speak of "repentance toward God".

Did you get that? Repentance is not directed at sin, or at self, but toward God, at least in the sense of "metanoe'O", and has to do with the changing of one's mind, not necessarily "changing one's life", to coin a phrase. It does little good to search the OT for support for this, either, for God is said to repent or not repent, at least twice and probably three times, as much as Israel is said to. In fact, the only individual that is said to have 'repented' in the OT is Job. And God said it over thirty times, if I am not mistaken, but don't have time to count at the minute.

In short, "easy believism", what ever it is supposed to mean, is usually nothing more or less than a pejorative term, for someone who detests the idea of grace and salvation that is offered "Absolutely Free!" ©. The Scripture speaks nowhere of "Easy-believe-ism"; "hard-believe-ism", or anything in between, like a 'hard outer shell, soft-center believe-ism', in any fashion. It does speak of 'believe' and 'believe not'. It knows nothing of any so-called "mental assent", another pejorative term, IMO. I would submit these are the same individuals who really are usually not particularly happy, if the truth were known, with God's and Scripture's declaration of Lot as righteous, not once but three times, and is the only individual specifically identified as Godly in Scripture.

gtbuzzarp writes and asks:

I dunno'. But I'm going to assume that "be saved" is equivalent to "everlasting life", if I may. I don't really know, myself.
Let's ask someone else:

I'll go along with Him; how about the rest of you?
In his grace,
Ed

 

Luke, chapter 13
1": There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
"2": And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?
"3": I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent , ye shall all likewise perish.
4": Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem?
"5": I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent , ye shall all likewise perish.

Luke, chapter 16
"30": And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent

2 Corinthians, chapter 7
10: For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of.
How much more could it be in conjunction with than the above Scripture

As I have mentioned before, the phrase "repent of (or from)(your) sin(s)", is not found in the Scriptures,"1": But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine:


Revelation, chapter 2 ave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not.
Revelation, chapter 2 ion, except they repent of their deeds. And I wil

Exodus, chapter 32 ierce wrath, and repent of this evil against thy people.

Ed;
There is one thing that I didn't fully explain and that is that I was simply saying that to serve God is easy for His children. I failed to explain that it was easy for us but certainly not for Jesus to die and suffer.

Repentance Webster: : the action or process of repenting especially for misdeeds or moral shortcomings.

I don't understand your comments. It seems you just wanted to contradict my post with not a real good position you are coming from.

Mark, chapter 16
"15": And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
"16": He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.


"1": There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.

Luke, chapter 13
"2": And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things?
"3": I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.


Acts, chapter 2
"36": Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
"37": Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
"38": Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
just have a change of mind? I think not.

2 Corinthians, chapter 12
21": And lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and that I shall bewail many which have sinned already, and have not repented of the uncleanness and fornication and lasciviousness which they have committed.


2 Timothy, chapter 2
"12": If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:
"13": If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.
"14": Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers.
"15": Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
"16": But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.
"17": And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
"18": Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.
"19": Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.