Do Christians Sin?

by Kyle Butt, M.A.

 

A quick reading through the small epistle of 1 John reveals a number of verses that seem to disagree with each other. For instance, in 1 John 1:8,10 the author assures his readers that all people have sinned. In 2:1, John seems to indicate that even Christians will sin and therefore need Jesus Christ to be their advocate. Yet, 3:6 has John on record as saying: “Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.” In verse 8 of chapter 3, John wrote: “He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning.” And verse 9 states: “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.” Steve Wells, in his work, The Skeptic’s Annotated Bible, wrote concerning these verses in chapter 3: “Earlier in this letter (1:8,10) John assured us that everyone sins. Yet in these verses he claims that Christians don’t sin” (Wells, 2003).

Are these verses examples of contradictions within the Bible? If they are not, what do they mean? Do Christians sin, or don’t they?

The answers to these questions actually are much simpler than it may, at first, appear. When we compare other translations of 3:6,8,9, we see that the actual Greek wording of the verses makes a major difference in the understanding of the passages. R.C.H. Lenski translated 3:6 as follows: “Everyone remaining in him does not go on sinning; everyone continuing to sin has not seen him, nor has he known him” (1966, pp. 457-458, emp. added). Lenski translated verse 9: “Everyone that has been born from God does not go on doing sinning because his seed remains in him; and he is not able to go on sinning because he has been born of God” (p. 462, emp. added). The New International Version translates 3:6: “No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him” (emp. added).

Lenski explained that 1 John 3:6,9 uses a Greek construction called the present durative, which should be translated “does not go on sinning” (pp. 458,462). John, then, is saying no more in these verses than what Paul was saying in Romans 6:1-2, when he stated: “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any long in it?” Numerous other verses teach that Christians will commit sins, even after they have been washed in the blood of Christ (cf. Romans 7:14-25; Philippians 3:12-13). However, John is saying that any person who rebelliously continues to sin, making it his or her usual, habitual way of life, is not following God. In 1 John 3:9, the Greek present infinitive means to habitually sin without compunction. In more practical terms (to offer an example), it is one thing for a Christian to slip up and commit an act of sexual immorality for which he or she is penitent. It is altogether another thing for a person to live as a prostitute and claim to be “having fellowship with the Father” (1 John 1:6).

Therefore, it is easily shown that no discrepancies exist between the verses under discussion in 1 John. Furthermore, it is refreshing to know that when a Christian does sin, “we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”

REFERENCES

Wells, Steve (2003), Skeptic’s Annotated Bible [On-line], URL: http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com/1cor/index.html.

Lenski, R.C.H. (1966), The Interpretation of the I and II Epistles of Peter, the Three Epistles of John, and the Epistle of Jude (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg).


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Kingdom of Renewed Men

By A. W. Tozer

 

Those present-day teachers who place the Sermon on the Mount in some other dispensation than this and so release the Church from its teachings, little realize the evil they do. For the Sermon on the Mount gives in brief the characteristics of the Kingdom of renewed men. The blessed poor who mourn for their sins and thirst after righteousness are true sons of the Kingdom. In meekness they show mercy to their enemies; with guileless candor they gaze upon God; surrounded by persecutors they bless and curse not. In modesty they hide their good deeds. They go out of their way to agree with their adversaries and forgive those who sin against them. They serve God in secret in the depth of their hearts and wait with patience for His open reward. They freely surrender their earthly goods rather than use violence to protect them. They lay up their treasures in heaven. They avoid praise and wait for the day of final reckoning to learn who is greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.

If this is a fairly accurate view of things, what can we say then when Christian men vie with one another for place and position? What can we answer when we see them hungrily seeking for praise and honor? How can we excuse that passion for publicity that is so glaringly evident among Christian leaders? What about political ambition in Church circles? What about the fevered palm that is stretched out for more and bigger “love offerings”? What about the shameless egotism among Christians? How can we explain the gross man-worship that habitually blows up one and another popular leader to the size of a colossus? What about the obsequious hand kissing of moneyed men by those purporting to be sound preachers of the gospel?

There is only one answer to these questions; it is simply that in these manifestations we see the world and nothing but the world. No passionate profession of love for “souls” can change evil into good. These are the very sins that crucified Jesus.

Verse

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3

Thought

If the Sermon on the Mount is a fairly accurate view of things, what can we say then when Christian men vie with one another for place and position?

Prayer

Take away our love of the world, Kind Father, and replace it with a love for You and Your Kingdom.

 

Days of Heaven on Earth

By A. B. Simpson

 

What a beautiful expression the angel used to Cornelius, Thy prayers are come up for a memorial. It would almost seem as if supplications of years had accumulated before the Throne, and at last the answer broke in blessings on the head of Cornelius, even as the accumulated evaporation of months bursts in floods of rain upon the parched ground.

God is represented as treasuring the prayers of His saints in vials; they are described as sweet odors. They are placed like fragrant flowers in the chambers of the king and kept in constant remembrance before Him. Later they are said to be poured out upon the earth; and lo, there are voices, and thunderings and great providential movements fulfilling God’s purposes for His kingdom.

We are called “the Lord’s remembrancers,” and are commanded to give Him no rest, day or night, but to crowd the heavens with our petitions. And in due time the answer will come with its accumulated blessings.

Not a whisper of true prayer is ever lost. The longer it waits, the larger it becomes.

Scripture

Thy prayers . . . are come up for a memorial before God—Acts 10:4

 

 

True Prayer

by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam

 

Let us suppose that I have just had the joy of leading a soul to Christ. He was a godless, wicked creature until lately, but now, suddenly, a great transformation has taken place in his life. He is overwhelmed with the joy of sins forgiven. Nevertheless a few things still trouble him.

As he stands there, touched by the love of Christ, he says: “I don’t look very much like a Christian. Look at my clothes. And I ought to get a job and work like other people do. Then too, I’ve been a wicked blasphemer. Swearing seems to be part of my nature. I don’t know how I’ll ever stop it.”

I suggest that we pray about it, but he says he has never prayed in his life and doesn’t know how, so I teach him. I tell him how simple prayer is — that he should simply talk to God and say, “Lord, I need a decent suit of clothes and a job, and oh, please help me to stop swearing. I ask it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

We arise from prayer, and feeling for the man, I myself get him a suit of clothes and a job and he goes on his way rejoicing.

Now let us suppose that I return ten years later to find that he is happily married, has three children and is living a consistent Christian life. Calling at his home, however, I find that one of his children is seriously ill. We get on our knees to pray for the child and he begins: “Lord, I need a decent suit of clothes and a job, and oh, please help me to stop swearing.”

Ridiculous! you say. No man would be so foolish. Yes, ridiculous indeed, yet many people simply repeat prayers in the same way. The so-called “Lord’s Prayer” is, of course, a perfect prayer, but it is significant that in giving this very prayer, our Lord cautioned His disciples: “When ye pray, use not vain repetitions as the heathen do… Be not… like unto them… After this manner therefore pray ye…” (Matthew 6:7-9). Yet this very prayer is repeated word for word at funerals and weddings, in storms at sea, before meals and at church services — on practically any occasion, whether it applies or not.

Thank God for those who know God through the Lord Jesus Christ and can truly enter into His presence in prayer “to obtain mercy and to find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

 

 

An Eternal Bond

February 13, 2015

“This is what the LORD says: ‘If I have not made my covenant with day and night and established the laws of heaven and earth, then I will reject the descendants of Jacob and David my servant and will not choose one of his sons to rule over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes and have compassion on them.’” — Jeremiah 33:25–26

The Torah portion for this week is Mishpatim, which means “laws,” from Exodus 21:1–24:18, and the Haftorah is from Jeremiah 34:8–22.

This year on December 22, the seventh day of Hanukkah, a modern-day miracle took place — 226 Jews from Ukraine came home to Israel. This was the first of many Fellowship-sponsored flights that have brought, and will continue to bring, Jews in need home to Israel. For the passengers on board that plane, young and old, this was a dream come true. They were saved from a war-torn country where many had been displaced from their homes and thrust into poverty. However, more importantly, they have returned to the Jewish homeland with a promise of a brighter tomorrow. It is the fulfillment of the biblical promise in Isaiah 11:12 in which God vowed to “assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth.”

In this week’s Torah reading, we read about the covenant between Israel and God. In Exodus 24:7–8, Moses oversaw the sealing of the covenant: “Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, ‘We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey.’ Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, ‘This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you . . .’”

This week’s Haftorah reading concludes with the confirmation that this is an eternal covenant. This wasn’t a deal that could be broken. This wasn’t an arrangement where God might change His mind about it at some later date in time. God’s covenant with the children of Israel is binding forever. We read, “If I have not made my covenant with day and night and established the laws of heaven and earth, then I will reject the descendants of Jacob and David . . .”

What’s God saying? That just as there will always be day and night, heaven and earth, there will always be God and the children of Israel. God established physical laws in the world and He also created spiritual laws in the world. One of those laws is that the children of Israel will always be God’s chosen people, and when the time is right, God “will restore their fortunes and have compassion on them.”

God promises to bring His children home no matter what. It doesn’t say that God will bring them back to Israel when they deserve it; it says that God will bring them back out of compassion for them.

We are the generation that is privileged to witness God’s biblical promises come to fruition. We are also the generation that has the opportunity to be a part of it. Join us at The Fellowship as we help fulfill God’s eternal promise to bring His children home.

With prayers for shalom, peace,

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein

 

Sharp Separation

By A.W. Tozer

 

For myself, I fear any kind of religious stir among Christians that does not lead to repentance and result in a sharp separation of the believer from the world. I am suspicious of any organized revival effort that is forced to play down the hard terms of the Kingdom. No matter how attractive the movement may appear, if it is not founded in righteousness and nurtured in humility it is not of God. If it exploits the flesh it is a religious fraud and should not have the support of any God-fearing Christian. Only that is of God which honors the Spirit and prospers at the expense of the human ego. “That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.”

Verse

For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:16

Thought

No matter how attractive the movement may appear, if it is not founded in righteousness and nurtured in humility it is not of God.

Prayer

As we turn away from this world, Lord, let us glorify You with our lives.

 

Seven Times a Failure

by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam

 

Despite man’s natural tendency to boast, history has proved again and again that he is a failure, in deep need of God and His grace.

The Age of Innocence closed with man rebelling against his Creator and becoming a fallen, sinful creature (Romans 5:12).

The Age of Conscience opened with one murder (Genesis 4:8) and before another age was ushered in “the earth was filled with violence” (Genesis 6:11).

Then came Human Government, but the world’s first ruler made a spectacle of himself through drunkenness (Genesis 9:20,21). Little wonder we soon find the race intoxicated with its own importance so that God had to confuse their language at Babel (Genesis 11:4,7,8).

The Age of Promise came next, with Abraham failing to enter the promised land through unbelief (Genesis 11:31-12:3). It closed with Israel, his seed, failing to enter the promised land through unbelief (Hebrews 3:19).

The Age of Law began with Israel worshipping a golden calf before Moses had even gotten down from Sinai. Little wonder it ended with the rejection of Christ.

The Age of Grace commenced with the Apostle Paul, God’s ambassador of love and grace, persecuted and imprisoned (Ephesians 6:20). This showed man’s attitude toward God and His grace. It will be brought to a close as man continues persistently to go on in his sin rather than accept redeeming grace through Christ (II Corinthians 4:4; II Timothy 3:1-5).

The Kingdom of Christ, which is to follow the present age, will begin with our Lord rebuking strong nations (Micah 4:3) and will close with multitudes, who for a time had rendered enforced obedience, following Satan (Revelation 20:7-9).

How all this demonstrates man’s need of God and salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ! “All have sinned” (Romans 3:23) but, thank God: “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13). Though surrounded by sin and rebellion, multitudes down through history have called and have been saved.

 

 

A Copious Outpouring (AUDIO SERMONS)

By A.W. Tozer

 

That every Christian can be and should be filled with the Holy Spirit would hardly seem to be a matter for debate among Christians. Yet some will argue that the Holy Spirit is not for plain Christians but for ministers and missionaries only. Others hold that the measure of the Spirit received at regeneration is identical with that received by the disciples at Pentecost and any hope of additional fullness after conversion simply rests upon error. A few will express a languid hope that some day they may be filled, and still others will avoid the subject as one about which they know little and which can only cause embarrassment.

I want here boldly to assert that it is my happy belief that every Christian can have a copious outpouring of the Holy Spirit in a measure far beyond that received at conversion, and I might also say, far beyond that enjoyed by the rank and file of orthodox believers today. It is important that we get this straight, for until doubts are removed faith is impossible. God will not surprise a doubting heart with an effusion of the Holy Spirit, nor will He fill anyone who has doctrinal questions about the possibility of being filled.

Verse

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Ephesians 5:18

Thought

I want here boldly to assert that it is my happy belief that every Christian can have a copious outpouring of the Holy Spirit in a measure far beyond that received at conversion, and I might also say, far beyond that enjoyed by the rank and file of orthodox believers today.

Prayer

Lord, answer our doubting hearts and fill us with Your Spirit.

Audio Sermons Pertaining to the Holy Spirit:

Who and What the Holy Spirit Is download 3.91 MB

Date Preached: 1-3-60Duration: 34:06Reference: John 14:15-17

 

 

The Lord Is at Hand

By Vance Havner

Excerpt from Vance Havner’s book — Reflections on Prophecy

 

It is interesting to note that some of the saints are beginning to awake to the meaning of world events shaping up so perfectly according to Bible patterns. One of the leading papers of my own denomination has lately carried a full-page article on the German-Russian confederacy in light of the Word. In November there is to be held in New York City a great prophetic conference with over a score of speakers from many different bodies of believers.

It would be unbelievable that so many Christians should be so indifferent to the signs of times did we not know that such a fact itself is a sign of the times, for in the last days scoffers shall arise. There are thousands of Christians in all our denominations to whom the great prophetic portions of the Scriptures are abandoned areas left to students of the apocalypse. It is amazing that Christians who claim to believe the Bible take almost a sneering attitude toward a subject that covers a tremendous part of the Bible. Take out of the Bible all that deals with prophecy and it would look like a Polish town after bombardment. Yet prophecy is dismissed with a shrug of the shoulders as though it were the crossword puzzle section of the Bible, provided for those who seek that sort of entertainment.

We know that many have been discouraged from interest in these things by those who have misused the subject to build fancy theories of their own. But every major subject in the Bible has been so misused that we might as well abandon the doctrine of salvation on those grounds.

Just as in Luther’s day, God called men back to the message of justification by faith, and, as in Wesley’s day, He called them back to free grace and evangelism. So today I believe that the neglected doctrine which needs to be preached is the Lord’s return. Some preach it unwisely and too many preach it not at all, that is the trouble. I believe that it is the lost note today and that some of our great church bodies need the vision of it with the changed perspective which it brings and the sense of urgency it generates to transform such bodies into great agencies of God for evangelism.

No Bible student can deny that the early Christians were not only ready for the Lord’s return, they were expectant and that sense of expectancy colored all their activity. The epistles pulsate with that note. Today it has been lost in favor of the social gospel or world conversion. We are out to bring the whole world into the Kingdom of God, something which is not in the Bible, and we are farther from it today than when we started. Evangelizing the world is one thing and converting the world is another. We have gotten mixed up in our objectives.

If we read the signs at all we cannot fail to see that the Lord is at hand in the sense of His imminent return. And He is also at hand in that He is always with us, accessible to our call and standing by to help us. With such assurance we need to get busy redeeming these last hours of this age. No other incentive can take the place of God’s incentive and He has given us the blessed hope to encourage us and stir us to action in His name. Let us occupy till He come and live with that light in our eyes.

 

 

A Clean Break

By A.W. Tozer

 

It is true also that the grosser manifestations of fallen human nature are part of the kingdom of this world. Organized amusements with their emphasis upon shallow pleasure, the great empires built upon vicious and unnatural habits, unrestrained abuse of the normal appetites, the artificial world called “high society.” These all are of the world. They are all part of that which is flesh, which builds upon flesh and must perish with the flesh. And from these things the Christian must flee. All these he must put behind him and in them he must have no part. Against them he must stand quietly but firmly without compromise and without fear.

So whether the world present itself in its uglier aspects or in its subtler and more refined forms, we must recognize it for what it is and repudiate it bluntly. We must do this if we would walk with God in our generation as Enoch did in his. A clean break with the world is imperative. “Ye adulterers and adultresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is an enemy of God” (James 4:4). “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:15–16). These words of God are not before us for our consideration; they are there for our obedience and we have no right to claim the title of Christian unless we follow them.

Verse

You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? James 4:4

Thought

Whether the world present itself in its uglier aspects or in its subtler and more refined forms, we must recognize it for what it is and repudiate it bluntly.

Prayer

Father, we need to make a clean break with the world and learn to love You with all our beings.