Why bother trying not to sin?

Wolfe Tone

I was always told that no matter what you did God would forgive you. So why bother trying so hard to follow the Bible etc if you can just go to confession and be absolved of your sins?

tenchi-fan

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

I was always told that no matter what you did God would forgive you. So why bother trying so hard to follow the Bible etc if you can just go to confession and be absolved of your sins?

Because it's a mortal sin to confess your sins when you're not really sorry for them, or when you intend on continuing to sin. The confession would be invalid.

philologos

Wolfe Tone - I wouldn't see it so much as sinning or not sinning. A broader approach to this is to think about what really happened. Jesus came into the world, lived a perfect life and He died for me. Why did He die for me? My sin had been getting in the way of my relationship with God, as such Jesus paid the price for it. The price being His crucifixion. My forgiveness was costly.

Jesus has created a way for me to rebuild my relationship with God because the sin is forgiven. Out of my love for God and my thankfulness I can either continue to build my relationship with God, or I can ignore Him and pretend that Jesus never came into the world. In other words, I try to do what is right by God not because I have to, but because I want to. I know that God has a plan for my life and I want to fulfil that plan.

If I reject God, and if I continually reject Him I am devaluing His crucifixion and showing no respect for who He is and no appreciation for what He has done for me.

Quo Vadis

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

I was always told that no matter what you did God would forgive you. So why bother trying so hard to follow the Bible etc if you can just go to confession and be absolved of your sins?

The only person you would be fooling is yourself, not a wise thing to do.

Wolfe Tone

Just to point out I'm very much a lapsed catholic and don't see myself going back to Church any time soon. Maybe one day.
This is just something I was thinking about.

You can sin and be sorry for it, and do the same thing again and still be sorry. So as long as you feel sorry afterwards everything is OK then?

philologos

Wolfe Tone: How to you determine how truly sorry someone is? Is just that they ask for forgiveness forget about it and willfully go out and try and do the same thing again? Or is it that they ask for forgiveness and resolve to never do that again? How do you think God could be so readily deceived? If He is omniscient and omnipotent surely He can tell what is going on in peoples motivations and aspirations.

As for being lapsed and not going back to church, my suggestion wouldn't even ask you to do this. How about reading the Bible yourself and thinking about it for yourself? It's a book that has changed the world and countless peoples lives. Even on a historical or cultural level it would be something important to get to grips with?

dvae

I was always told that no matter what you did God would forgive you.

Not true, there is one sin which is unforgivable, and that is to sin against Gods holy spirit.

Mark 3:28-30

28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”

God gave us many laws in which we must try to uphold.
If for what ever reason we find our selfs breaking any of His laws, we must
repent and ask for forgiveness. (directly to God through Jesus)

Also to enter into Gods kingdom we must also do His will.

tenchi-fan

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Just to point out I'm very much a lapsed catholic and don't see myself going back to Church any time soon. Maybe one day.
This is just something I was thinking about.

You can sin and be sorry for it, and do the same thing again and still be sorry. So as long as you feel sorry afterwards everything is OK then?

Wolfe Tone, chances are if you live like this you will not get a chance to say sorry!


You and I get into an argument, and I punch you in the stomach.
I tell you I am truly sorry, so you forgive me.

Next time I see you we argue and I give you a black eye.
I was having a rough day.
I beg for your forgiveness. You forgive me again, as Jesus told you to.

Next time we meet you irritate me some more, and I go to strike you... I know you're a decent chap and you will forgive me. I also know I will immediately feel remorse for what I have done. But at this moment, you just annoyed me too much!

No sooner do a raise my hand when Jesus grabs it and says "what are you doing, tenchi-fan"

"Err... i was going to confess it afterwards"

He'll say "didn't I already forgive you twice before? And didn't you say an act of contrition that you weren't going to do it again"

The bible teaches people to forgive sins immediately. The church will absolve any sins in confession. But at some stage you'll be standing in front of Jesus and He'll make the final decision on whether He wants to spend eternity with you or whether you should be cast into hell where you can argue and punch people to your heart's content.

And as for Wolfe Tone, the guy who was used by tenchi-fan as a punchbag but graciously forgave tenchi-fan each time, he's the one who'll go to heaven.

You don't need to get bogged down by the mechanics of confession and absolution.

This is basically the Catholic teaching on judgement. It's ridiculously simple.

22Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. 23Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?”

He said to them, 24“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’

“But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’

26“Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’

27“But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’

Op, there are plenty of parables in the bible where people were caught unaware. If you are a lapsed Catholic, all the more reason to make an effort to read the gospel.

PDN

Why bother being nice to your wife if you know she's not going to divorce you anyway?

Onesimus

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

I was always told that no matter what you did God would forgive you. So why bother trying so hard to follow the Bible etc if you can just go to confession and be absolved of your sins?

Its good to ask questions wolfe tone, I too was a lapsed Catholic at one stage and asked questions also. If I didnt I wouldnt be able to understand the power of the Sacraments in their fullness. Consider the following:

"Whoever confesses his sins ... is already working with God. God indicts your sins; if you also indict them, you are joined with God. Man and sinner are, so to speak, two realities: when you hear 'man' -- this is what God has made; when you hear 'sinner' -- this is what man himself has made. Destroy what you have made, so that God may save what he has made. ... When you begin to abhor what you have made, it is then that your good works are beginning, since you are accusing yourself of your evil works. The beginning of good works is the confession of evil works. You do the truth and come to the light" (CCC 1458).

The Catholic faith is about endurance and a battle and we must work with the Lord and endure to the end to be saved. It is in this endurance that gives us safe passage to the kingdom that is heaven. We enter confession with the resolution never to sin again. But should we fail and fall out of the boat again then we return, ask for forgiveness and carry on the battle. But there is happiness in it. And like how I used to refuse brocolli from my mother as a child ( cause I hated it ) she would say: ''you wont know how good it tastes until you try it''.

So the invitation to attend confession and receive this grace is there for you. And like my mother said to me ''you wont know how good it tastes until you try it.''

It is good to see you ask questions, thanks for the post

In Christ
Onesimus

kelly1

Quick reply -

"If you love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15)

Bottle_of_Smoke

This was parodied in desperate housewives at one point. Catholic wanted to continue life of sin so queried if she could just go to confession when she's old. I suppose the most obvious problem is you might get hit by a bus on the way to confession.

antiskeptic

Bottle_of_Smoke wrote: »

Catholic wanted to continue life of sin so queried if she could just go to confession when she's old. I suppose the most obvious problem is you might get hit by a bus on the way to confession.

..or in my case, not hit by a bus soon enough afterwards. There being many a slip 'twixt box and church Exit.