He died for our sins.........explain, please!!

those who believe that "a blood sacrifice is necessary to obtain forgiveness for sin." MAY, if the Bible means anything to them, be interested in Numbers 31:50 as evidence that a blood sacrifice is not necessary for atonement. It records, "So we have brought as an offering to the LORD what each man found, articles of gold, armlets and bracelets, signet rings, earrings and necklaces, to make atonement for ourselves before the LORD." Leviticus 5:11 goes further. It states that even flour is acceptable “If you cannot afford to bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons, you may bring two quarts of choice flour for your sin offering. Since it is an offering for sin, you must not moisten it with olive oil or put any frankincense on it”

"Beware the saved Christian" should now be used to replace Virgil's classic line: "Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes."

Claiming to be a "saved Christian" provides no credentials as to whether a person should be listened to with regard to Christ.

Right.

While it is true God will forgive if we are trying to overcome a sin. God knows if we are trying to overcome it or if we are simply following our own heart to sin. 
And the Bible tells we cannot continue sinning as normal. 

There are some who say "well, I will just continue my life of 'wine, women and song'  until I am on my deathbed -then I will accept Jesus".
Not such a wise idea neither I don't think. 

Nope it is not. One does not always know when they are on their death bed. Anyone of us could fall and hit our head and be gone in an instant.

Right.

Yup

Back in a while---I'm tearing out my hair---lol.

Oh, my dear...did not even realize, or intend, you would see this...your way works so beautifully...

Hi, Virginia---just teasing you there. Have you seen those circular puzzles that are composed of 500 or 1000 pieces of equal size and shape and can be assembled to reveal a picture with symmetry around any diameter?

The problem is not not having all the pieces, it's trying to put them together to make sense---just like trying to answer this question.

You mention that you don't see me as much around here as you used to on Blurtit and I thought you you might appreciate my explanation: As you know from askdotcom through Blurtit, many of my answers were "apologetic" in nature and dealt with the existence or non-existence of God (specifically, the Abrahamic one). Such responses require a lot of work on my part---trying to understand the argument advanced, isolating the misunderstandings or logical fallacies, point them out, and then (since nothing that I or anyone else can say can compel belief) responding to the attacks on my comments. And I frequently have the problem of the person responding not ever having studied formal logic and therefore requiring me to then go so basic that I cannot find a large enough lever to open the closed mind that I am usually dealing with.)

(And let me make this abundantly clear, since people who know me probably know the people I have dialogued with in the past , Z on here (aka The Z on Blurtit) is at least my equal in being able to advance the position alternate to mine---the lack of belief in gods. He is intelligent, educated, has an orderly mind and like me, his passion is for what he thinks to be true and not against those who have reached different conclusions. He is a man whom I both admire and esteem.)   

But back to my explanation. Since the beginning of February I have experience something that I had never really expected---namely that my Catholic theology has finally answered all the questions about life, living, and immortality that I had posed to myself over 40 years ago. (GK Chesterton speaks of the same realization in his life in his book Orthodoxy.) So at the moment, I am disinclined to take on the significant work that is involved in developing a reasonable explanation for such questions and frequently requires a pedantic and theological approach---both of which can be rather dry and unappetizing. So I am not going back there for at least the near future.

The actual answer that I posted was a delight to write. It simply involved an attempt to cast a magic spell that might allow the asker to fly above the issue and look at it from a new perspective; rather than trying to explain how each piece of the puzzle related to the others.

If it doesn’t help him, it may help someone else. If it helps no one, I enjoyed doing it and that is more than enough.

Great to “talk” with you again.

Regards…

Yes Tom, always a special joy when I see your posts...I read this one twice, then went back to your original answer and read it again.
What stands out for me is your experience of your questions answered, posed so long ago. And it IS an experience, I feel sure, and wondrous too.
I rejoice for you, with you.

Yes, it is so real, it is almost palpable.

Change, when fully achieved (active and real) is wonderful.

Drop by for cake any ice cream anytime---it's always home made, fresh, and served at any temperature to your liking.---and there is no advance warning necessary.

Getting in there before Trump, eh Didge?

Why do you think the rewards are only prospective / paper profits?

To someone who lives and thinks what I do, life is a continual birthday party thrown by God---no presents to bring, and you can start with the cake and ice cream as soon as you arrive---no waiting to enjoy the fun of being there.

Belinda Carlisle had the right idea: Ooh, heaven is a place on earth.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOGEyBeoBGM

(I admit, she stumbled upon that truth by accident; but interestingly enough through one of the legitimate was to begin to understand that reality.)

Regards




This post was edited by tom jackson at April 4, 2017 9:28 PM MDT

Even I am not pessimistic enough to think Trump could bring us to WWIII. Surely Congress would put the kibosh on any moves he made that were THAT extreme.

Why do I think it's all a con? Oh, boy. I've had to buy 2 Gb Internet a day while I'm away from home and, Tom, any explanation worthwhile would gobble that up. A draconian god like that of Mr Abraham is beyond my comprehension. I can't imagine any god worthy of the name tempting us with rewards or threatening endless retribution. 

Successful parenting involves both unconditional love and conditional love (In biological life, this is frequently seen expressed by the mother and father respectively.) And that by it's very nature involves "rewards" and "punishment" to achieve the desirable outcome for the child as well as the parent.

In the Old Testament, one finds the conditional love of God and an exposition of how it works (and yes, it's a little scary, and I'm glad I wasn't there---but if my parents had had a girl, then, since I am an only child, I wouldn't be here either.)  The New Testament showcases the unconditional love of God which is now extant due to the "Redemption" and further explains this new reality that Christ ushered in and further states how it we are to respond to that new reality to bring its effects into our lives.

I'm beginning to think that one of us is looking at this wrong---but that's why every worthwhile game has two players.  (And you know I've never thought this particular game was in the zero sum category.)