Does God require that people not sin before they are saved?

Question from C.S.:
Does God require that people not sin before they are saved?

Answer from Pastor Bob:
Sometimes people think that they must stop sinning before they can be saved, but that is not what the Bible teaches.
While God does not want us to sin, He recognizes that we do sin, and we need a Savior, because we are unable to overcome sin on our own. The answer is not to try harder. We need transformation, not just trying! As the apostle Paul says, "For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it. For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do" (Romans 7:18-19).
That is why we needed God to come down to earth in flesh, as Jesus Christ, and die on the cross as the perfect, sinless sacrifice for our sins, paying a price that we could not pay ourselves. Read this verse carefully: "But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us!" (Romans 5:8). Notice that it says that Christ died for us "while we were still sinners." You see, we are saved by God's grace, not by the good deeds we do (Ephesians 2:8-9). If we could just stop sinning on our own, we wouldn't need Jesus to die for us. Galatians 2:21 says, "I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing."
Once we accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, we are forgiven of sin. "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). Then we begin a growing process as a Christian, of daily growing to be more like Christ and seeking victory over sin in His strength. Romans 6:11 talks about how a Christian should "consider" or "reckon" self to be "dead to sin," and Romans 6:13 says to "offer" yourself to God. So it is a decision of the mind and will to believe God has truly forgiven us, and to daily offer ourselves to Him in faith.
We are saved from the penalty of sin when we trust in Jesus. We then daily learn to have power over sin as we live the Christian life. When we die and go to heaven, then we will finally have victory over the presence of sin in our lives.
The apostle John wrote to Christians, "My little children, I am writing you these things so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father-- Jesus Christ the Righteous One" (1 John 2:2). This is the wonderful assurance we have as believers-- that we offer ourselves to God, desiring not to sin, but if we do sin, we do not have to live in fear of losing salvation, for Jesus Christ is our defense attorney, standing before God, the righteous judge. Satan may accuse us, but Jesus stands to plead our case, saying that He shed His blood for our sins. And God, the judge, declares us "not guilty" of sin before Him, forgiven!

Follow-up question from C.S.:
If God does not require people to not sin before they are saved, than why does God send people to hell for doing those sins that he does not require them to not do?

Answer from Pastor Bob:
Interesting follow-up question.
I think the misunderstanding comes at the point of why God we would be separated from God for eternity in hell. It is not because of sins, but because of sin. That is, it is not because we commit or don't commit certain sins, but because we have a sin condition, a sin problem.
Think of it like this: if a person has an infection that causes a cough and fever, it is not enough to treat the symptoms with Tylenol or a cough suppressant. Antibiotics are needed to get rid of the infection. Likewise, trying to just get people to not do "sins" is like treating the symptom instead of the cause of the illness.
That's why Romans 8:3-4 refers to the sin offering of Jesus on the cross as satisfying the "law's requirement" (singular), rather than "requirements" (plural).
All people are sinners, guilty before a holy God, according to Romans 3:23. So something must be done about that sin condition; if not, we will be separated from God for eternity in hell. Thus, God does require us to remove the guilt of sin to go to heaven. Since we cannot do this in our own power, we need the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ.
Once we trust in Jesus to save us by his grace, that grace that we receive from God motivates us to begin winning victory over sin. Titus 2:11 says, "For the grace of God has appeared with salvation for all people, instructing us to deny godlessness."
So to say God "does not require them not to do" sins is a misunderstanding of what God requires. God requires us to trust in His solution to our sin problem, trusting His salvation by the cross of Christ. And when we make Jesus Lord, then God's Spirit will require a change in our lives, giving us a new desire, drawing us away from sin. But God does it by treating the root cause of our sin, not just the symptoms.

Another follow-up question from CS:
Bob how than can Jesus die for sins in my stead. if I don't go to hell for committing sins but for being born guilty and born a sinner? This means I would be going to hell for being born separated from God because of Adam, and Jesus would be dying not for my sins but for what I would be going to hell for, how could Jesus be punished for something I can't be punished for?

Answer from Pastor Bob:
I did not say that I am responsible for Adam's sin. In fact, I am not. I'm responsible for my own sin. Romans 5:12 says that sin entered the world through one man (Adam), and death came to all people as a result, but the verse also says, "because all sinned." In other words, Adam brought sin into the world, but each of us are responsible for our own sin.

How can I know I am saved?

Question from Beverly:

I was baptized when I was a real small child. I followed my brother down the aisle. Later when I was a young adult I got serious about following Jesus. In my heart I doubt that I'm really a Christian. Now I wonder if I'm really saved! How can I know?

Answer from Pastor Bob:

We base our salvation upon the truth of God's word, not our feelings. First John 3:19-20 (ESV) says, "By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything."
So we don't follow our hearts, because our hearts may lead us astray; we let God's word lead our hearts.
Do you need a test? We read in 2 Corinthians 13:5 (HCSB): "Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith. Examine yourselves. Or do you not recognize for yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you?-- unless you fail the test." So the test is "Jesus Christ is in you." That comes by faith and trust. Notice what it says in 1 John 5:13 (HCSB): "I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life." Did you trust in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and Him alone, to save you from sin? Then according to scripture you can know that you have eternal life in heaven.
Stand on the truth of God's word, not what your heart feels at the moment. Let faith be the engine that drives your life, and feelings will the caboose that will come along in due time.

What does the Bible say about Calvinism?

Question from Evan:

Hi Pastor Bob- I've got another question for you!
... I came to believe in the doctrines of grace, or some-what Calvinism. I don't venture to take it as far as some people will when they claim that God will take care of saving people, so we can just take it easy- i believe that is contradictory and ridiculous for many reasons. I also believe that humans have free will. But I also believe God is totally sovereign. The only way I was able to reconcile these 2 beliefs was with the doctrines of Irresistible grace (and total depravity). I came to be pretty convinced of these, but I do want to ask you your thoughts about it in case I discover any irrationalities in my own beliefs (don't want that!).
I don't dare to venture into "hyper-Calvinist" territory, where there is arrogance among the "chosen" but i do believe that God is in control of nature. Just wanted to know your thoughts on the subject.

Answer from Pastor Bob:

Calvinism is often explained with the acrostic TULIP: total depravity, unconditional predestination, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and perseverance of the believer. Evan, I read your website where you posted your beliefs, and you appear to be a four-point Calvinist. From what I gathered on the blog you sent me, you believe in four of these points, but you do not believe in limited atonement.
I believe in total depravity and perseverance of the believer, but I do not believe in two-sided, unconditional predestination, I do not believe in limited atonement, and I do not believe in irresistible grace, so I guess I am a two-point Calvinist. This is a complex subject, and I only have space for a brief explanation here. For more detail, visit our church website at www.fbcrincon.com and listen online to the sermon on predestination preached on 05.03.09.
Predestination in the Bible always refers to those chosen for salvation (Romans 8:29; Ephesians 1:11). The Bible never says anybody is predestined to go to hell. Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41), because God does not desire any to perish (1 Timothy 2:3-4; 2 Peter 3:9). God's knowledge is beyond time, and He already knows what is going to happen, so He can speak of our salvation as predestined; in fact, in 1 Peter 1:1-2 scripture links these two concepts together, saying the elect are "chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father."
Limited atonement: I agree with you that atonement is not limited to the elect; in other words, Jesus did not only die on the cross for those who will be saved, He died for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2).
Irresistible grace means we cannot resist God's grace if He calls us. Evan, I agree with you that man still has free will-- thus I cannot accept the doctrine of irresistible grace. Also, it contradicts scripture. Luke 7:30 says the Pharisees rejected God's purpose for themselves and 2 Peter 1:10 urges brothers to make their election sure and Romans 1:24 says God gave over the wicked to their will.
If predestination was unconditional and grace was irresistible, I would see no need to send missionaries or preachers, yet Jesus told His disciples to urge people to respond (Luke 14:23) the Apostle Paul said "we try to persuade men" (2 Corinthians 5:11) and he asks how can people believe if preachers aren't sent (Romans 10:13-15).
Again, this subject is too complex for a detailed discussion here. I refer you to my sermon posted at www.fbcrincon.com on 05.03.09.