IF WE SIN

“My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.”  1 John 2:1

       There is a school of thought that says in part that if you sin you have not been saved for those who have received Christ no longer sin. While those that follow Christ certainly don’t sin habitually, they will end up sinning at some point or another in their walk with the Lord.  That absolutely does not mean you aren’t a believer.  If that were true, what then would we say of King David who not only lured another man’s wife to his chambers and lay with her, but also had her husband killed?  What of Abraham who lied about his wife being his sister?  What about Moses striking the rock with the stick in anger instead of tapping it as the Lord instructed him.  We will make mistakes in judgment at one time or another; however, if we truly seek to follow God’s standards for living we will have a feeling of conviction from the Holy Spirit and desire to 1) seek forgiveness and 2) seek to alter our behavior in the future.

      It is obviously better if we don’t sin at all, but that is unrealistic.  We shouldn’t become uptight regarding sins we might commit.  Rather, we should spend our time seeking to learn more of God’s character, for that is what we are to imitate.  We sin out of ignorance many times and that is nobody’s fault but our own.  The more time we involve God in every aspect of our lives, the less we will be tempted to go off on rabbit trails.  The path we are to stick to is the one laid out before us by the Lord Himself.  It is the narrow path that leads us over hills and down thru valleys, around obstacles and thru difficulties. 

     We can learn from every twist and turn we encounter in life as long as we are attentive to God’s word and His will for us.  Jesus is our advocate, our lawyer, so to speak.  He stands up for us before the Father and declares that His blood has removed our sin.  So if you think you’ve finally crossed the line and there’s no turning back, think again.  As long as you are seeking to please the Lord with your life, a momentary lapse in reason isn’t going to send you to hell.  You must always remember to confess it and move past it.  Our sins are never held against us, nor are we ever reminded of them again.  Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing!

Resources:  The Asbury Bible Commentary; The American Heritage Dictionary; The Reformation Study Bible.

* Micah 7:19  “You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” 

* Hebrews 8:12 “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." 

* Isaiah 43:25 “I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” 

* Jeremiah 31:34 “For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”