This is a truth many Christians do not see in the Scriptures. Why?
• They have already sinned as a Christian, and they then interpret the Word of God in the light of their experiences. That is backwards. We are to conform our experience to the Word of God, not the other way around.
• They derive doctrine from stories of disobedient believers in the Bible . This is self-justification.
God gave us commands, and God gave us the provision we need to carry out those commands. God does not give impossible commands to Christians. He does not tell us to do things He knows we can't do.
• “My dear children, I write this to you SO that you will not sin” (1 John 2:1). The key word in this verse is so. That word connects the provision “I write this to you” with the requirement “that you will not sin.” The Word of God is the provision.
• “And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us who do not live according to the sinful nature, but according to the Spirit.” (Rom. 8:3-4). The key words are in order that. The provision is “He condemned sin in sinful man.” This condemnation made it possible for us to fully meet “the righteous requirements of the law.” In the same sentence, there is the provision of the Spirit of God.
• “We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” (Rom. 6:2). The provision is “We died to sin.” We cannot live in something we have died to.
• “But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness” (Rom. 6:17-18). You are slaves of righteousness.
• “Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator” (Col. 3:9-10). The provision is “You do not have the old self.” You have the new self, which is becoming more and more like its Creator. Therefore, do not lie.
• “Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Pet. 1:3-4). The provision is His divine power.
• “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it” (1 Cor. 10:13). God is faithful.
• “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do” (1 Pet. 1:15). God is holy.
These Scriptures are not taken out of context. Please read the chapters they are from.
It is possible to not sin!
If you would like to read more on this subject, I have written a book on it: Dead and Alive: Obedience and the New Man.
• They have already sinned as a Christian, and they then interpret the Word of God in the light of their experiences. That is backwards. We are to conform our experience to the Word of God, not the other way around.
• They derive doctrine from stories of disobedient believers in the Bible . This is self-justification.
God gave us commands, and God gave us the provision we need to carry out those commands. God does not give impossible commands to Christians. He does not tell us to do things He knows we can't do.
• “My dear children, I write this to you SO that you will not sin” (1 John 2:1). The key word in this verse is so. That word connects the provision “I write this to you” with the requirement “that you will not sin.” The Word of God is the provision.
• “And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us who do not live according to the sinful nature, but according to the Spirit.” (Rom. 8:3-4). The key words are in order that. The provision is “He condemned sin in sinful man.” This condemnation made it possible for us to fully meet “the righteous requirements of the law.” In the same sentence, there is the provision of the Spirit of God.
• “We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” (Rom. 6:2). The provision is “We died to sin.” We cannot live in something we have died to.
• “But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness” (Rom. 6:17-18). You are slaves of righteousness.
• “Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator” (Col. 3:9-10). The provision is “You do not have the old self.” You have the new self, which is becoming more and more like its Creator. Therefore, do not lie.
• “Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Pet. 1:3-4). The provision is His divine power.
• “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it” (1 Cor. 10:13). God is faithful.
• “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do” (1 Pet. 1:15). God is holy.
These Scriptures are not taken out of context. Please read the chapters they are from.
It is possible to not sin!
If you would like to read more on this subject, I have written a book on it: Dead and Alive: Obedience and the New Man.
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