Do Christians Have To Keep Asking For Forgiveness For Each Sin?

[Wired 4 Fishen]

If we are truly walking with Jesus in full awareness of the grace in which we live, when we sin, we need to CONFESS it---agree with God about it---and then thank God for His forgiveness that we received when we were saved, for it was at that point in our lives that God forgave us for all our sin---past, present and future. It is knowing this that instills joy within us! God imputes no sin to us, but on His Son.


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Very well said Ophal. Repentance is simply Admitting it and asking to be forgiven and changing the situation.
The problem with this thread and others like it is simple - people TRY to lump being forgiven when we are born again with walking in Christ every day.

One clenses you and puts you in right standing with the Father ( born again )
The other is learning to grow in Christ with reverence towards Gods With A Deeper Understanding Of Gods Way.

Yes unforgiven sins or what some call daily sins for a born again Christian may not keep you out of heaven in the end BUT it will limit and hinder your faith and prayer life and desired results. Unforgiven sins will trip you up and eventually render you powerless in the things of God.

Now then Ophal i ask you this - can you add to this or put it into other words? There has been too much bickering in the forum over this in many threads. It is time the people wake up to the way of God. Thank you again my friend.
James

 

[Ophel]

Very well said Ophal. Repentance is simply Admitting it and asking to be forgiven and changing the situation.
The problem with this thread and others like it is simple - people TRY to lump being forgiven when we are born again with walking in Christ every day.

One clenses you and puts you in right standing with the Father ( born again )
The other is learning to grow in Christ with reverence towards Gods With A Deeper Understanding Of Gods Way.

Yes unforgiven sins or what some call daily sins for a born again Christian may not keep you out of heaven in the end BUT it will limit and hinder your faith and prayer life and desired results. Unforgiven sins will trip you up and eventually render you powerless in the things of God.

Now then Ophal i ask you this - can you add to this or put it into other words? There has been too much bickering in the forum over this in many threads. It is time the people wake up to the way of God. Thank you again my friend.
James

A born again believer who is walking daily with God doesn't have UNFORGIVEN SIN. He may have unconfessed sin, as it is UNCONFESSED SIN that hinders and weakens and makes the believer ineffective. ..but we are forgiven people!

 

[Wired 4 Fishen]

A born again believer who is walking daily with God doesn't have UNFORGIVEN SIN. He may have unconfessed sin, as it is UNCONFESSED SIN that hinders and weakens and makes the believer ineffective. ..but we are forgiven people!

Yes we are forgiven people and yes we walk in Grace - HOWEVER - unrepentant sin is as an unforgiven sin until we repent. It might not keep you out of heaven but it does tie Gods hands in working in some areas of your life.

Example..........say i get fed up with people and decide to start hanging out at my neighbors getting high and playing play station every night.
This would be a sin in my life and an open door unto our enemy the devil. I would have no real defense as long as this sin goes unrepentant and therefore as long as it is unrepentant it is unforgiven UNTIL i activate Gods Grace in my life and seek repentance of this sin.

God forgave me my sins before i was born through Christ Jesus on the Cross BUT I STILL HAD TO ASK.
Your reply is true to a point but also lacks some. Until a born again believer repents of a sin it is still there hanging over them giving the devil a door he did not have right to have.....so there fore.......like i said it might not keep you out of heaven but to simply say it is forgiven is like saying it is ok to sin for it already was forgiven.

 

[RJ]

If we are truly walking with Jesus in full awareness of the grace in which we live, when we sin, we need to CONFESS it---agree with God about it---and then thank God for His forgiveness that we received when we were saved, for it was at that point in our lives that God forgave us for all our sin---past, present and future. It is knowing this that instills joy within us! God imputes no sin to us, but on His Son..

I agree completely. A Christian, in their walk would / should agree with God over their sin....I think it is the hallmark of a Christian and one of the very "first fruits" of the spirit within, that you are even capable of seeing your sin, much less having a repentant heart / attitude about it. Each time this occurs, it is a byproduct of Jesus inside you....it is his work, not yours. He gets all the praise and glory, least you forget or are not aware of the sin you just committed .

 

[Curtis]

1Jn 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
1Jn 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

The Lord only holds a man accountable according to what he does know, not what he does not know. If we walk in the "light" as he is in the light, "the blood of Jesus will continue to cleanse us from all sin..." Why would we need the blood of Jesus to cleanse us from all sin if we are doing what we know as right? Because we still sin in areas we do not know we are sinning. As long as a man is being obedient to what he does know the rest God takes care of. "unto whom much is given, much is required" The more we know the more God holds us accountable.
What if we know something is wrong to do and we still do it. Then we must confess our sins before they are forgiven. If not our prayers can be greatly hindered, and it opens the door for the devil to do his thing against us.

 

[Ophel]

Yes we are forgiven people and yes we walk in Grace - HOWEVER - unrepentant sin is as an unforgiven sin until we repent. It might not keep you out of heaven but it does tie Gods hands in working in some areas of your life.

Example..........say i get fed up with people and decide to start hanging out at my neighbors getting high and playing play station every night.
This would be a sin in my life and an open door unto our enemy the devil. I would have no real defense as long as this sin goes unrepentant and therefore as long as it is unrepentant it is unforgiven UNTIL i activate Gods Grace in my life and seek repentance of this sin.

God forgave me my sins before i was born through Christ Jesus on the Cross BUT I STILL HAD TO ASK.
Your reply is true to a point but also lacks some. Until a born again believer repents of a sin it is still there hanging over them giving the devil a door he did not have right to have.....so there fore.......like i said it might not keep you out of heaven but to simply say it is forgiven is like saying it is ok to sin for it already was forgiven.

We confess our sins and thank God for His ever-flowing forgiveness, because of Jesus' ever-flowing, ever-cleansing blood. 1 John 1:9. That's God's grace always working. Unconfessed sin hurts our walk, and our intimacy with God. That's not true to a point...THAT'S JUST TRUE.

 

[LordKnows]

I say YES we do need to ask for forgiveness over & over & over NOT for the sin that we have already asked for forgiveness for but the new ones. Since NO MAN is without sin & we NEVER will be we should have to say we're sorry & ask for forgiveness just like we would require of our own children to do.

If your child came to you after you let them know they have done something wrong & they said they were sorry would they not have to say they were sorry ever again? NO of course not, that just sounds dumb. Asking for forgiveness to me is like saying you're sorry. Do we say sorry & do it again? Some do but their just saying sorry because they got caught NOT because they are actually sorry. WE Christians are Gods children. He loves to hear about our accomplishments, goals & everything else that makes us feel good about ourselves & he also likes to know & be TOLD when we make mistakes. God KNOWS all YES but so what... what's that mean? Many people think that just because God already knows them inside & out that they don't need to say anything to him. That's a pretty weak relationship if anything. When we acknowledge our mistakes & turn to him & let him know we feel bad about it THAT is what bonds our relationship with him. Wives & Husbands don't stay mute throughout the entire marriage why? Because communication is what bonds the two. Ad love, trust, commitment & all the other marriage bonds & you'll have a good marriage, a strong marriage & a healthy marriage.

Just because God already knows us doesn't mean he doesn't want to hear it from us. When we accomplish something we call our friends, families & whoever else will listen so why not make a call to God? When we mess up we tell someone so why not tell God too? It's NOT easy admitting you've done something wrong but God already KNOWS that too... he just wants to hear it from us.

Look at it like this... Have you ever had someone with something on their mind but didn't mention it? Yet you KNEW something was on their mind. First thing we may think is that it must not be that important because their not saying anything so we leave it alone. We think well, if they want to talk about it they will & if not, oh well. God wants to KNOW & HEAR every little thing about us FROM us. Good, bad & ugly.

 

[Ophel]

When a person relents to Christ and asks the Lord Jesus to come and live His life in and through him, he comes to repentance and receives God's forgiveness---once and for all time....past, present and future. Jesus' blood is applied and flows continually, cleansing constantly. We don't ask for sonething wealready have...like salvation. No...we express thankfulness and rejoice in all we have been given.

 

[Curtis]

"Our Heavenly Father knows what things we have need of before we ask him....." (Matt 6:8) Even thou the Lord knows what we have need of before we ask him, we are still required to ask him for them. No one can receive from God without "faith". Faith comes by hearing the Word of God which is were we find his "promises" that tell what we already have.
Confessing our sin(s) is not when the Lord God found out about them. He requires us to confess them so that we know what we did or did not do that was contrary to his will. There can be no fellowship between two people who know, and have ought against each other. When we see that person we usually go the other away from them. All sin is against God. "When we confess our sin(s) God forgives us our sin(s)" that is for God himself when he forgives us. Then God "cleanses" us from all unrighteousness. Now we have two parties that can continue their love relationship with each other.

1John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

 

[Wired 4 Fishen]

When a person relents to Christ and asks the Lord Jesus to come and live His life in and through him, he comes to repentance and receives God's forgiveness---once and for all time....past, present and future. Jesus' blood is applied and flows continually, cleansing constantly. We don't ask for sonething wealready have...like salvation. No...we express thankfulness and rejoice in all we have been given.

So then by what you are saying then you could go sin and have no need to ask for forgivness because you already have it and we dont ask for what we already have. Now there is a huge problem with that kind of thinking.

 

[Wired 4 Fishen]

I say YES we do need to ask for forgiveness over & over & over NOT for the sin that we have already asked for forgiveness for but the new ones. Since NO MAN is without sin & we NEVER will be we should have to say we're sorry & ask for forgiveness just like we would require of our own children to do.

If your child came to you after you let them know they have done something wrong & they said they were sorry would they not have to say they were sorry ever again? NO of course not, that just sounds dumb. Asking for forgiveness to me is like saying you're sorry. Do we say sorry & do it again? Some do but their just saying sorry because they got caught NOT because they are actually sorry. WE Christians are Gods children. He loves to hear about our accomplishments, goals & everything else that makes us feel good about ourselves & he also likes to know & be TOLD when we make mistakes. God KNOWS all YES but so what... what's that mean? Many people think that just because God already knows them inside & out that they don't need to say anything to him. That's a pretty weak relationship if anything. When we acknowledge our mistakes & turn to him & let him know we feel bad about it THAT is what bonds our relationship with him. Wives & Husbands don't stay mute throughout the entire marriage why? Because communication is what bonds the two. Ad love, trust, commitment & all the other marriage bonds & you'll have a good marriage, a strong marriage & a healthy marriage.

Just because God already knows us doesn't mean he doesn't want to hear it from us. When we accomplish something we call our friends, families & whoever else will listen so why not make a call to God? When we mess up we tell someone so why not tell God too? It's NOT easy admitting you've done something wrong but God already KNOWS that too... he just wants to hear it from us.

Look at it like this... Have you ever had someone with something on their mind but didn't mention it? Yet you KNEW something was on their mind. First thing we may think is that it must not be that important because their not saying anything so we leave it alone. We think well, if they want to talk about it they will & if not, oh well. God wants to KNOW & HEAR every little thing about us FROM us. Good, bad & ugly.

Amen !!!
We can actually tie Gods hands from getting involved in area's of our lives by unrepentant sins. How do we repent of sins? Simply ask God to forgive us and then change what ever it is we did wrong. So then if we need to ask to be forgiven in order to allow God to get involved on our behalf, well that destroys that thinking that we are forgiven and need to do nothing. Does ths sound about right with you?
God BLESS and thank you for a wonderful reply.
James

 

[JohnP]

I say YES we do need to ask for forgiveness over & over & over NOT for the sin that we have already asked for forgiveness for but the new ones.

What if we don't though? If I sin at 4:00, and I die at 4:05 before I have had a chance to ask for forgiveness - or if I just forget to, then what? Saying that we need to ask for forgiveness over & over & over implies there is a consequence if we don't. I completely agree that we should ask for forgiveness. Myself, I know that I feel bad after I have sinned, and I want to ask for forgiveness. Almost as soon as I realized that I have just sinned I feel terrible until I have gone to God and apologized. As Christians, we should feel this and ask for forgiveness because we want to, not because we have to.

 

[Ophel]

So then by what you are saying then you could go sin and have no need to ask for forgivness because you already have it and we dont ask for what we already have. Now there is a huge problem with that kind of thinking.

The problem is that people don't get that there is a difference between repentance and confession. We don't "go sin". We live to please God, and have a repulsion to sin as God does. When we do sin occasionally, we cinfess it---we agree with God that we missed the mark and thank Him for His forgiveness that was granted to us when we first repented at our salvation. He responds by picking us up, dusting us off, and says, "Let's go, child...we will do this together a different way." We walk in his ever-flowing forgiveness. 1 John 1:9 uses the tense of the verb, "cleanses" that indicates a perpetual action. His forgiveness is always flowing...like a river. We just need to jump in and get wet.

Repentence is turning around 180 degrees and changing course. We do that when we make our decision to follow Christ. In relationship with Him, we maintain that relationship by confessing our waywardness, and stepping back into step with Him.

 

[Wired 4 Fishen]

What if we don't though? If I sin at 4:00, and I die at 4:05 before I have had a chance to ask for forgiveness - or if I just forget to, then what? Saying that we need to ask for forgiveness over & over & over implies there is a consequence if we don't. I completely agree that we should ask for forgiveness. Myself, I know that I feel bad after I have sinned, and I want to ask for forgiveness. Almost as soon as I realized that I have just sinned I feel terrible until I have gone to God and apologized. As Christians, we should feel this and ask for forgiveness because we want to, not because we have to.

As i have said.........that sin you are referring to may NOT keep you put of heaven but it will hinder your walk NOW and LIMIT what God can do in your life.

 

[Wired 4 Fishen]

The problem is that people don't get that there is a difference between repentance and confession. We don't "go sin". We live to please God, and have a repulsion to sin as God does. When we do sin occasionally, we cinfess it---we agree with God that we missed the mark and thank Him for His forgiveness that was granted to us when we first repented at our salvation. He responds by picking us up, dusting us off, and says, "Let's go, child...we will do this together a different way." We walk in his ever-flowing forgiveness. 1 John 1:9 uses the tense of the verb, "cleanses" that indicates a perpetual action. His forgiveness is always flowing...like a river. We just need to jump in and get wet.

Repentence is turning around 180 degrees and changing course. We do that when we make our decision to follow Christ. In relationship with Him, we maintain that relationship by confessing our waywardness, and stepping back into step with Him.

Sounds like a watered down way to say i am not at fault. Lol i said sounds like

 

[RJ]

If your child came to you after you let them know they have done something wrong & they said they were sorry would they not have to say they were sorry ever again?

@LordKnows , a point very well taken but, a couple of points to ponder:

• Your clearly seem to be a child of God, comparing us, parent / child to that of us / God are similar in some regards but, He is he is perfect in his holiness and plan, we are not
• I certainly understand and do see the need to ask for forgiveness for each subsequent sin and I certainly wake up each day feeling sinful when compared to God but, I respectfully see this a bit differently:

1. The bible says that Jesus died for all sins and that makes since to me. He died once, and he sat down for all eternity; this is also refereed as his finished work on the cross. He is our final priest, all other priests before him had to repeat their job every year culminating at "The Day of Atonement"....one of the basic differences between the Old Covenant and the New covenant.
   
2. If you feel that you are not forgiven for future sins and your continued forgiveness is dependent on your future confessions, then Jesus would have to be re-crucified over and over again to make your need valid, otherwise he has already taken care of it for you.
3. What do you do, if you fail to make confession or what do you do about the sins you are not aware of? I certainly try to be aware of my sins and in that, it could be called confession but, I don't feel the need to do this for something God has already provided (forgiveness) as much as I do having a repentant (new man) heart and thanking God for loving me and what he already has provide through his awesome and "fail-proof" plan to defeat Satan.

 

[Ophel]

Sounds like a watered down way to say i am not at fault. Lol i said sounds like

That may be your perception, but maybe you've forgotten that our sins are not imputed to us, but to Jesus.

 

[JohnP]

As i have said.........that sin you are referring to may NOT keep you put of heaven but it will hinder your walk NOW and LIMIT what God can do in your life.

I think we are in agreement then. Since it won't keep you out of heaven, then you don't need to. You should - but you don't need to. Your salvation isn't dependent on it. I'm not suggesting that you don't ask for forgiveness after you sin. Quite the opposite.

I think we're all splitting hairs over the difference between need and should, including me. Probably should just say God bless at this point and move along!

 

[RJ]

That may be your perception, but maybe you've forgotten that our sins are not imputed to us, but to Jesus.

Yes and they were nailed with him on the cross!

 

[LordKnows]

I dunno about anyone else here but when I'm in a relationship with someone I like them to know most EVERYTHING about me even if they were there with me. We can kick back & reminisce about what we did, how I felt, how they seen things & what I seen & so on. I think a lot of the times us Christians get so caught up in the study of Christianity rather than the basic walk we fumble. We're NEVER EVER EVER going to figure Jesus out NEVER. ANYONE that thinks they will are lying to themselves. WHO CARES about the fine details of a single word? It's small things that divide people to take their eye off the ball. It the end it will not even matter. We tend to analyze the tiniest things & for what really? To be the smartest, the best, the top dog? First WILL be last & last WILL be first isn't that what God himself said? That being the case we should ALL be like little kids in our walk with the Lord.

Who wouldn't want to let God in on everything they do???? We're all so quick to pick up the phone & enlighten a girlfriend or guyfriend, husband or wife know what our bowling average is, how many RBI's we got in the game they missed, how delicious a meal was at a friends house or when we closed on our first house so why NOT kick back & talk to God like a best friend , husband or wife??? I feel terrible when I mess up in all honesty. My head hangs low & I just feel down & almost grey. Like wow, I messed up & I feel bad about it. SO WHAT if God already knows, I want him to hear it from ME because I want a personal deep loving relationship with my dad. It doesn't matter to me if he watched me hit 75 out of the ball park home runs I want to tell him about it. Like "DID YOU SEE THAT GOD!?! WASN'T THAT AWESOME!?!!" Same goes with when I screw up...and "Oh dad I am SOOOOO SORRY I did what you have told me not to do". I want him to KNOW that I feel bad even if he already knows & has paid for my wrong doings. That makes it personal to me. I want to confess more than just the good things to him I want to confess the bad too so he knows I'm trying. That's why I refer to him as "my dad" so I have a more personal relationship. I don't see him as my Boss that comes around to my work station to remind me of what I didn't do right. Or the police officer that pulls me over for speeding & lectures me. I see God as my dad who backs me up when I'm being bullied at school, and the dad that cleans the dirt out of my skinned knee & kisses it & makes it all better, the dad that sees my black eye after a fist fight & asks what happened. The dad that wraps his arm around me when I'm crying saying it's going to be alright.

I've never had a dad & I have NO IDEA who owns the other half of my DNA. My mom has some idea but I don't even bother to ask anymore because that will not change who I am. But as far as knowing what it feels like to have a dad I have no clue so I just know that me & God are father & daughter.

I'm a "baby Christian" & I don't care to gain knowledge of the fine details as long as I have the definite summarized version. I see & read so many people dissecting the utmost minuscule parts of the Bible & for what? Satan is slick!! He does whatever he can to divide Gods kids because that takes the focus of God's LOVE. So, As long as we're quarreling about if God went to hell after he died on the cross to separation of religions that's all satan wants... division so he can move on in & do his dirt... It's pure madness if you really think about it. I loathe the word "religion" like no other. My faith in God is NOT a religion & NEVER will be. God & I have a personal relationship. Anything less isn't even worth having. If God came down & became a man because he cared about me enough to be betrayed & sold out by his close friend, get beat, kicked, have snot spit on him, stabbed, screamed at, made fun of, have railroad tie like spikes pounded into his hands & feet stretched out on a cross in front of everyone for MY asinine behavior the VERY LEAST I can do is let him know that I AM SORRY for acting a fool AFTER he paid for my sins. I want to let him KNOW that his death is not being taken for granted by me!!! I want him to KNOW that what he's done for me does NOT go unnoticed or is expected. SO even if his dying on the cross is a one & done thing for my sins, past present & future I WILL show my gratitude & faithfulness by telling him things he is already aware of just so I KNOW that he's heard it straight from the horses mouth.

Sorry for my long winded post... I get a tad bit passionate when I talk about my dad :glasses:

ONE God, ONE love, ONE way