Turn from Sin & Believe? -Or- Just Believe?

And then how to go to Heaven, how to be saved etc…

That would be our response to the Gospel. If someone says what you must do to be saved, they’re basically telling you how to respond to the Gospel (unless they’re a cult).

So like two Christians can both believe the same Gospel, but one can believe & teach the truth on how to be saved & another can believe & teach “false teaching” on how to be saved.

Anyway, that’s almost an unnecessary distinction to make. Cause if you have a false teaching on how to be saved, and someone says you have a false Gospel, kinda makes no difference to be like: Correction, I actually have the turn Gospel, I’m just wrong on how to be saved haha.

Anyway…

It’s my understanding that…

The Gift of Salvation is absolutely free, it cost you nothing to be saved.

You don’t have to clean your life up first, then come to Jesus.

You come to Jesus how you are, smackdab in the middle of your sin, Heroin needle sticking out of your arm if needbe, you don’t need to turn from sin + place your faith in Jesus.

You just need to place your faith in Jesus — to be saved.

Acts 16:30-31
“He then led them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.””

You are Born Again instantaneously, forever Saved & Sealed with the Holy Spirit in a nanosecond.

And at that same time, the lifelong process of Sanctification begins.

Any turning from sin, will fall under that category.

Salvation is free, costs nothing, come to Jesus as you are — infested with Sin. You get saved for free. The faith has to be real tough, Saving faith.

The Gift is free, but Sanctification you can say “costs something” & some people would say it cost them everything.

2 Corinthians 3:18 (NLT) So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord–who is the Spirit–makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

A lot of Calvinists & Lordship Teaching would place Sanctification before Salvation, which is wrong.

Expecting you to either turn from sin before you’re even Born Again, or commit to quit sinning as you are about to place faith in Jesus.

Well… No one, I man NO ONE lives up to that standard.

No one has ever turned from sin, ever. (Maybe “a” sin, like drugs or porn) but no one can honestly say “I turned from sin back in 2008 when I got saved, and still going strong” nope! The only one who’s been steadfast in anyway since your Salvation has been God. At most you might be able to say “my faith has been there every moment since I got saved in 2008” but even then, some people experience faith issues for a bit, then come back.

The commitment Salvation is guaranteed to fail basically. Like, you can be all passionate the moment you get saved, go Home & throw away all your drugs, lighters, porn, whatever — but then later that same day you tell a white lie, you gossip, you this, you that… Then 2 months later you fall back into Lust or whatever.

Everyone who claims Salvation comes by a commitment + placing faith in Jesus, they’re not being honest with themselves, cause they have for sure fallen from that commitment, probably the same day they made it — if not then… the next day, same week almost certainly.

Paul says in Romans 7 “what do I do what I hate? And the thing I want to do, I don’t do” (paraphrase).

The honest, true life of a Christian isn’t what Lordship Salvation teaches — it would be nice if every saved person truly did live that way, but that’s just not the reality.

When you get saved it’s your fleshly body + The Holy Spirit, they both sort of stir the ship at different times in your life.

Galatians 5 Paul is imploring the Born Again Christians he’s talking to — to not walk in the flesh, but to walk in the Spirit.

When you walk in the Spirit you do sorta live like a Lordship Salvation illustration of what a Christian is like, but when you walk by the flesh — you sin dude. Totally saved, Godly people have done these things off & on in their 10+ year walk with God so far: Fallen into masturbation, fallen into porn, fallen into Lust (while being married), on & off with lying, cussing, gossip, slander, pride etc… I don’t even need to finish the list, you get what I mean… and no senior Christian would debate against that.

In Theory — yes Lordship Salvation sounds great!

But I’m reality — no one lived up to that standard, not even the people preaching it.

It can also lead to super self righteous thoughts, sort of Pharisee like. Like you think you’re saved, while the dude next to you isn’t cause he’s struggling right now. Or you see yourself as different than a majority of the Church who isn’t as enthusiastic about the things of God as you are, or living for God like you are etc…

It’s not a humble perspective & at the end of the day it’s just not true. It’s not what Scripture says.

I’ll copy paste a bunch of verses below that I already have saved in my phone cause I’ve spent a bunch of time talking to friends about it, and researching as we’ve had these conversations.

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There’s 21 chapters in the book of John, here are the last 2 verses of Chapter 20:

John 20:30-31 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

It basically says the purpose of the book is for non believers to learn how to be saved.

So everything a person needs to know about Salvation is in John, if it’s not in John, then it’s not required for Salvation. John alone – that book alone contains everything that anyone needs to know, hear, believe or do to be saved.

And no where in John does it say anything besides — place your faith in Jesus in order to be saved.

After you get saved though, then there’s suddenly these “rules” You are expected to follow

John 6:40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:47 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.

John 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

John 11:25-26 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

John 20:30-31 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

It’s all just believe, believe, believe.

Thief on the cross didn’t commit to quit sinning or anything. Simple faith is all it took.

The Gospel is free.

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The question “what must a man do to be saved” is literally in the Bible.

Now I know we’ve heard men say all sorts of things on how to be saved,

But this is what God says in His Word:

Acts 16:30-31 MEV
“He then led them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.””

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Out of the entire Bible, every single place in Scripture on how to get to Heaven (and there are many)

…ALL of them just say “believe” and you will be Saved!

Only 1 place in the entire Bible does it say “repent & believe” and that’s in Mark 1:15.

And NO WHERE in the Bible does it say “Repent of your sins” period! It’s just not in the Bible at all.

Repent is a vague word, simply means to change one’s mind.

Here’s the Greek Word from the Interlinear / Concordance:

μετανοέω
transliteration is: metanoeō
Strongs Definition: to think differently or afterwards, i.e. reconsider

Mark 1:15 is saying think differently than you have been & believe the Gospel!

www.oed.com/search/advanced/Meanings?textTermText0=repent&textTermOpt0=WordPhrase

Click this link, it will show you the word repent from over a dozen dictionaries from year 1,200 to 1,600, look what it says ☝️

Yes, the Latin Vulgate mistranslated the Greek word for “repent” (μετανοέω *metanoeō*) as *paenitentiam agere* in several places. This Latin phrase means “to do penance,” which implies an action or outward work of atonement rather than the inward change of mind or heart conveyed by the original Greek.

Greek Term: Μετανοέω (*Metanoeō*)

– Meaning: To change one’s mind, heart, or inner disposition, often in a spiritual or moral sense.

Latin Vulgate: *Paenitentiam Agere*

– Meaning: To perform penance or acts of contrition.

This mistranslation had significant theological consequences. It contributed to the medieval Catholic emphasis on external acts of penance, such as confession, fasting, and other rituals, as essential to repentance and salvation. This interpretation differs from the biblical emphasis on an inner change of heart.

The Reformers, including Martin Luther, highlighted this issue during the Reformation, arguing that the biblical concept of repentance is about faith and an inward turning to God rather than performing prescribed actions.

For example, in Luther’s 95 Theses, the very first thesis critiques this misunderstanding:

*”When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said ‘Repent,’ he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.”*

This mistranslation in the Latin Vulgate illustrates how translation choices can shape theology and religious practice for centuries.

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So people who still try to teach repent means actions, are holding on to Catholic Doctrine.

They’re not reformed enough.

(They missed a spot) so to speak.

There’s a lot of things bro, that we only believe, because that’s what we were told. But if you do like Martin Luther, or a Berean from Acts, and go out of your way to ensure everything you believe & teach is Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone) it’s amazing what you’ll discover you’ve thought all this time was Biblical, but it in fact was not.

There’s a LOT of things actually that are more man’s best guess, or man’s imagination, being passed off to us as truth (as Scripture) but it’s not. I am referring to “Theology” now. More than half the Theology you might hear is not actually Scripture, it’s guesswork created by some “Theologian” & then taught by Pastors to the flock & we just assume it’s Scripture, but it’s not. So much of “Theology” is actually Theory (as in it could be wrong, it’s just an idea) and because it’s just an idea it should never be taught dogmatically by Pastors, yet it is…

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www.patheos.com/blogs/rogereolson/2015/02/theology-and-speculation

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I think you will love this. It’s an honest, Godly, short read. A Theologian gets honest with himself & admits to doing this, and that his colleagues (other Theologians) also know they are doing this (passing off guess work that was conceived in their mind, as dogmatic fact).

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Now the only other places that come remotely close to Repent & believe are the following, but they do not say repent & believe. They just mention repent:

Acts 2:38 – “Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

Acts 3:19
“Therefore repent and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.”

Acts 16:31
“They said, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you and your household will be saved.'”

Acts 20:21
“I have testified to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Luke 24:46-47
“He said to them, ‘Thus it is written, and accordingly it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.'”

Hebrews 6:1
“Therefore, leaving the elementary principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God.”

For each of the Above, every time you see the word repent. Just say in your mind “Change your mind” in place of the word repent & see if you understand it now.


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And remember these are the Only verses that say anything about repent, as it relates to how to get saved☝️

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The rest of the Bible is just believe, believe, believe… See for yourself:

John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

John 3:18 – “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”

John 5:24 – “Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.”

John 6:29 – “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

John 6:40 – “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:47 – “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.”

John 11:25-26 – Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.”

John 20:31 – “But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

Acts 10:43 – “To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

Acts 13:39 – “…by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.”

Acts 16:31 – “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Romans 1:16 – “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

Romans 3:22 – “The righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.”

Romans 3:26 – “…so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

Romans 4:5 – “And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness.”

Romans 10:9-10 – “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Romans 10:11 – “For the Scripture says, ‘Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.’”

1 Corinthians 1:21 – “…it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.”

Galatians 2:16 – “…we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ.”

Galatians 3:22 – “But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith

Galatians 3:26 – “For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.”

Ephesians 1:13 – “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.”

Ephesians 2:8 – “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.”

Philippians 3:9 – Paul desires to “be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.”

1 Thessalonians 4:14 – “For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.”

2 Thessalonians 2:13 – “…because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.”

1 Timothy 1:16 – Paul writes, “…I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.”

2 Timothy 3:15 – Scripture is able to make one “wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”

Hebrews 10:39 – “But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.”

Hebrews 11:6 – “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”

1 John 3:23 – “And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.”

1 John 5:1 – “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God.”

1 John 5:5 – “Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”

1 John 5:10 – “Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself.”

1 John 5:13 – “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.”

This is a list I put together quickly. I’m not saying this is an exhaustive list. But anyone who believes otherwise should honestly ask themselves…

Why would God write allllll this☝️if it’s not even true!? Haha.

How can anyone believe: Scripture is wrong & there in-fact is a missing component & doing the above ☝️ will not save anyone.


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Bible says God Repented, here’s a list of times it says God Repented in the Bible:

– Genesis 6:6-7 – God repented that He had made man on the earth.

– Exodus 32:12-14 – God repented of the evil He thought to do unto His people after Moses’ intercession.

– 1 Samuel 15:11 – God repented that He had made Saul king.

– 2 Samuel 24:16 – God repented of the destruction He was bringing upon Jerusalem.

– 1 Chronicles 21:15 – God repented of the evil He was bringing upon Jerusalem.

– Psalm 106:45 – God repented according to the multitude of His mercies.

– Jeremiah 18:8 – God repented of the evil He thought to do unto a nation if they turned from their evil.

– Jeremiah 26:3, 13, 19 – God repented of the evil He had pronounced against a nation if they turned from their evil ways.

– Jonah 3:9-10 – God repented of the evil He had said He would do unto Nineveh.

– Amos 7:3, 6 – God repented concerning the judgments He had planned.

– Joel 2:13-14 – God is described as one who repents of evil.

…When people say “repent means to turn from your sin” (Ray Comfort is a big time popularizer of this)

How can that be possible?

Look here☝️, it says God repented many times.

Was God formerly sinning, then God repented of His sin & got Saved?

Or did God sin, ever?

All this means is… many people we both know & have met, many teacher’s understanding of repent has been wrong.

This is a revelation, what many of us have been thought about the word repent up to this point has been wrong.

We shouldn’t hold on to any doctrines we were taught that are disproved by Scripture, or reject Scripture & try to teach their own understanding.

Anyone who previously thought repent always means to turn from sin — and to be saved it’s not free, one must turn from sin and believe to be saved, anyone who thinks or thought that — should “repent” (change their mind) and realize “I must have been wrong” and move forward into truth about the Gospel & How to be Saved: )

We should never fall into this:

Mark 7:7-8 in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ 8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

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Jonah 3:10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did [it] not.

As you can see here☝️

According to God, turning from sin is a “work.”

So that should never, ever be brought up as we’re sharing with an unsaved person — what they must do to be saved.

If we say turn from sin & place faith in Jesus, we just taught them a works based Salvation, and messed up the Gospel message (though not intentionally most the time, we mean well, but these things are happening like crazy — maybe cause Ray Comfort is equipping so many of the Saints worldwide to teach this stuff.

If we share the Gospel right, and we also get to see them place faith in Jesus & at least from all appearances — get saved. Then… we can hold their hand & help teach them about what God now expects of them, now that they’re Born Again. Which will include all types of sins to be turning from, and Good works to be pursuing, among all sorts of other things God wants us to do & not do, and things God wants us to change our minds about.

But that 2 Cor 3:18 — anyone who’s saved — IS — Becoming more & more like Jesus (this happens by default it seems). Obviously not always, there are things we learn through Scripture & felllowship with believers that we learn we need to cut X,y,z off — cut that relationship out of my life, quit doing this & that, start doing a,b,c instead etc.