Unkeepable Command?

I have a question. When Jesus would tell people to "go and sin no more" is He giving them a command that they can keep or one they cannot keep?

I ask this in light of what Paul says in Romans 6.

Thanks,

sscott

Jay...I'm talking about the people Jesus told that too while He was on earth. Before they had the Spirit and before the cross.

sscott wrote:

I have a question. When Jesus would tell people to "go and sin no more" is He giving them a command that they can keep or one they cannot keep?

I ask this in light of what Paul says in Romans 6.

Thanks,

sscott

I have found, and I believe this is borne out by Scripture, that when the Lord commands it happens. [b]With the Word comes the [i][u]power[/u][/i] to obey[/b].

Remember, in the Gospels, the man with a paralysed arm? Jesus said "Stretch out your arm". How??? His arm was paralysed, that was exactly the problem, he [i]couldn't[/i] stretch out his arm!

But when Jesus commanded, suddenly he could do what was impossible a moment before!

Left to ourselves we can't stop sinning. But, when He tells us "Stop!" the power to obey comes with the command.

I believe this is part of the meaning of the words in John 1, "To any who received him he gave power (the original word means [i]authority[/i]) to become sons of God..."

The power comes through Jesus' death and resurrection, and the fact that we are in Him, (as Paul explains in Rom 6)but it has to be applied in practice, day by day. Paul said somewhere else, "I die daily".

More than once I've pleaded in prayer along the lines of: "Lord, Jesus died to deal with sin. I'm fed up with this. How much more must YOU be fed up with it! So why should we have to put up with this any longer? I don't want to be like this. You don't want me to be like this, so please do something about it!"

"Pleading the Blood", is much more appropriate in this context than in the one it's usually used!

When Adam rebelled against God, he aligned himself with Satan. The New Birth gives the power to re-align ourselves on God's side - even against sin in our own lives!

The victory and the glory and the power are His, but we have to be willing to let go that thing that binds us to wrong motives, words or actions.

At least that's how I see it so far, how it works in practice. And it really does work! Not as a method but in relying wholly on Him to deliver us, to "speak the word and your servant shall be healed".

I used to be very hung up on trying to be "perfect" but in practice it's just a daily walking by faith and letting the Lord have His way.

Blessings

jeannette

JaySaved wrote:
...But, we must also remember that [i][b][u]we are not judged on whether or not we have lived a sinless life, but whether or not we believe in the one who had a sinless life.[/u][/b][/i]

Thanks Jay

Jeannette