Stupid Things Christians Believe:

Forrest Gump's Mamma had it right when she gave us the wise adage, "Stupid is as stupid does." The things we believe become our behavior. That is why what we believe is so important. Here is one of many stupid things believers believe.

"I am just a sinner saved by grace!"

Heard on any given Sunday or from religious television any day of the week is a Christian mantra and not Biblical truth. Songs contain this phrase, Christian books are full of it, and testimony givers love to quote it as Scripture (which it is not). This statement is not a total lie without a seed of truth, but it is twisted just enough to cause Christian believers to live in a state of a self-fulfilling prophesy.

In Sunday school or from the pulpit, it is a sound bite spun by the Master Spin-Doctor, our Enemy the Devil. Satan knows that he cannot change your citizenship in heavenly places or in our relationship to Christ (Ephesians 2:1-7); he can make us feel like second-class citizens. What is this heinous statement of heresy? "I'm just a sinner saved by grace."

The Grace of God saved you, but you are a "sinner" no more. That is the enemy's lie to keep you in a defeated place. Before you start your Bible beating, listen to this: Nowhere in the New Testament do the writers call those who have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ - "sinners". It is not who they are any more. They have the living God within and Paul and the other New Testament writers call believers, "saints". Just think about the repercussions of that statement, "I am just a sinner saved by grace". If you think of yourself as a sinner, how you will act? Lowered expectations cause you to act like you think. If you think you are a "sinner" then you will act like a sinner. "Stupid is as stupid does." Do not take my word for it. Take God's for it:

Know the Truth

Read Romans 7:15-16 and mark the word "I". Count how many times is "I" used in these verses? ______

Paul cannot understand why he does the things he does - He says he hates the things he does. He tries to explain the question, "Why do saints sometimes sin?"

Read Romans 7:17-21 to discover the answer. How many players are in these passages? Name them. (This is a trick question- be careful)

In these passages, sin and "I" are not the same. Paul tells us in Romans 7:17, "Hey! I did not do it! It is Sin's fault." He is saying that this bad thing "sin" is not really in me or I am not sin. This sin in me is preventing me from doing what I really want to do.

Fill in the blank with Romans 7:24: "What a _________man I am! Who will ------------- -------- from this body of death?"

Notice what Romans 7:24 does not say. IT does not say, "What a sinful man I am!" He says what a "wretched man" I am. To be wretched is to be miserable. If we are giving in to sin, we will be miserable. It is against our new nature to sin. A Christian is a saint who sometimes sin. Sin for a believer is not a "way of life". We have, through the blood of Jesus, the power not to sin - we are no longer slaves to sin. So, who can deliver us from this body of death?

In your life, what makes you most miserable? Probably yourself, but why? Read Romans 8:1-17.

The Greek word sarx, is translated "sinful nature" in the New International Version; but in the New American Standard version the same word is "flesh". It can be confusing, so read slowly. If you are reading an NIV Bible, then every time you the words "sinful nature" note it on the chart below. If you are reading from an NAS Bible every time you see the word, "flesh," mark it down. Every time you see these words in the text, note where you found them and what it says using the exact wording. Similarly, look for the "Spirit" and make a similar list below:

In Romans 8:1-17, compare the "flesh" or the "sinful nature" with the Spirit: The Flesh or The Sinful Nature

HERE IS AN EXAMPLE:

The Spirit v. 4 Do not walk according to the flesh

v. 4 Walk according to the Spirit

How does Paul encourage us in Romans 8:1-4?

When we are born-again, we receive a completely new nature - the old nature is gone.* However, when we are born again with a new nature, we still content with a fleshly body. Programmed from birth to live according to our sinful nature, we are all born "little sinners." When God saves us from our sin, no one presses the delete key. We spend the rest of our Christian lives on earth learning to walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh. Our initial attempts at "walking" are wobbly at best. With practice, we learn to walk steady in the Spirit. Eventually, we may even "run and not grow weary." (Isaiah 40:31)

[* Remember the Greek word sarx is translated "sinful nature" in the New International Version, but in the New American Standard Version, the same word is "flesh". It can be confusing, so read slowly.]

Pray the Truth: Father, I just do not get it! I do not understand why I sin - I try so hard not to sin. I just keep on doing what I hate to do. It is hard to accept that it is the sin in me that is doing it and not me in Christ. I cannot live this life without your grace and help. I want to live like the saint that you made me to be. I ask all this through Jesus' blood, Amen.

[List below an area of sin from which you need freedom].

Know Who You Are

You may not feel like it today, but you are a saint.

Think about this all day, " I am a saint" (I know it feels weird - it doesn't seem to fit, but it is the truth. )

You are a saint; now believe it and you will start acting like it.