You Can Be Holy

I have put together some questions for those who oppose the preaching of complete repentance (forsaking all sin in this life). Those who don't believe in holiness also do not believe in repentance, because repentance is the beginning of a holy life.

1) Which sin can't be repented of? Which sin is it impossible to forsake? Please be specific. Which sin can not be overcome through Jesus Christ? Which sin can't we live without?

2) According to your theology, how much sin can a man commit and still go to Heaven? What sin can we hold on to and still be Christians?

3) What is meant by Jesus when He said "follow me"? Matt 4:19.

4) What is meant by Jesus when He said "For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you." John 13:5

5) What is meant by Jesus when He said "be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect"? Matt 5:48

6) What is meant by Jesus when He said "unless you repent, you will all likewise perish"? Luke 13:3

7) What is meant by Jesus when He said "go and sin no more"? John 5:14, John 8:11

8) What is meant by Jesus when He said "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled." Matt 5:6

9) What is meant by Jesus when He said "Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God." Matt 5:8

10) What is meant by John when he said "the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin." 1 John 1:7

11) What is meant by John when he said "if we confess our sins, He is fiathful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness"? 1 John 1:9

12) What is meant by John when he said "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And IF anyone sins...." 1 John 2:1

13) What is meant by John when he said "Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments." 1 John 2:3

14) What is meant by John when he said "He who says, 'I know Him' and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him." 1 John 2:4.

15) What is meant by John when he said "but whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him." 1 John 2:5

16) What is meant by John when he said "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked." 1 John 2:6

17) What was meant by John when he said "And you konw that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin." 1 John 3:5

18) What is meant by John when he said "Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him." 1 John 3:6.

19) What is meant by John when he said "He who sins is of the devil"? 1 John 3:8.

20) What is meant by John when he said "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"? 1 John 3:9

21) What is meant by John when he said "In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God". 1 John 3:10

22) What is meant by John when he said "And whatever we ask we recieve from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight"? 1 John 3:22

23) What is meant by John when he said "This is love, that we walk according to His commandments"? 2 John 1:6

24) What is meant by John when he said "Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God"? 2 John 1:9

25) What is meant by John when he said "but he who does evil has not seen God"? 3 John 1:11

26) What is meant by Jude when he said "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy"? Jude 1:24

27) What was meant by Paul when he wrote "having been set free from sin"? Romans 6:18, 6:22

28) What is meant by Paul when he said "Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord"? Romans 6:11

29) What is meant by Paul when he said "And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God"? Romans 6:13

30) What is meant by Paul when he said "Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."? 2 Cor 7:1

31) What is meant by Paul when he said "Him we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus"? Col 1:28

32) What is meant by Paul when he wrote: “Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.”? Col 4:12

33) What was meant by James when he said “But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”? James 1:4

34) What did Peter mean when he said “But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.”? 1 Peter 5:10

35) What was meant by Paul who said “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”? Gal 5:15

36) What was meant by John the Baptist when he said “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”? John 1:29

37) What does the Psalmist mean when he wrote "Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive blessing from the Lord, And righteousness from the God of his salvation."? Ps 24:3-6

38) What is meant by Jesus who said "I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."? John 17:23

39) What is meant by Paul who said "For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins"? Heb 10:26

40) What is meant by Paul who said "Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?--unless indeed you are disqualified." 2 Co 13:5

41) What is meant by Jesus who said "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."? Matt 23:25-26

42) What was meant by Luke when he wrote "And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless."? Luke 1:6

43) What is meant by Paul who said “who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.”? 1 Co 1:8

44) What is meant by Paul who said “that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world”? Php 2:15

45) What is meant by Paul who said “concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.” Php 3:6

46) What is meant by Paul who said “in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight”? Col 1:22

47) What is meant by Paul who said “so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints”? 1 Th 3:13

48) What is meant by Paul who said “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”? 1 Th 5:23

49) What is meant by Paul who said “A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach”? 1 Ti 3:2

50) What is meant by Paul who said “But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless”? 1 Ti 3:10

51) What is meant by Paul who said “And these things command, that they may be blameless.” 1 Ti 5:7

52) What is meant by Paul who said “that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ's appearing” 1 Ti 6:14

53) What is meant by Paul who said “if a man is blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of dissipation or insubordination.” Tit 1:6

54) What is meant by Paul who said “For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money”? Tit 1:7

55) What is meant by Paul who said “Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;” 2 Pe 3:14

56) What is meant by Paul who said “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent,

57) What is meant by James who said “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded”? James 4:8

58) What is meant by Jesus who said “Repent, and believe in the gospel." Mr 1:15

59) What is meant by Paul who said "Be saved from this perverse generation”? Acts 2:40

60) What is meant by Paul who said “And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Gal 5:24

61) What does it mean when Paul said "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it"? 1 Cor 10:13

62) What is meant by Paul when he said “So then, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”?

63) What was meant by Jesus when He said “But Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." Luke 9:62

NSCalvinist said:

Those who don't believe in holiness also do not believe in repentance, because repentance is the beginning of a holy life.

I don't think there is anyone here who doesn't believe in holiness or repentance. However, the holiness of the believer comes through the righteousness given to us by Christ through his blood. On our own, we all repent of sin and strive to attain perfect holiness as we are taught in the Bible, and as we are enabled by the Holy Spirit. However, the Bible also reminds us clearly that there is no righteous man who does not sin (despite all our efforts to avoid sin). We must ascribe our "holiness" to Christ and not to ourselves.

[i]Ecc 7:20 There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins.[/i]

NSCalvinist/TheArminian (more of Jesse Morrell's accounts?):

Your opinion:

Nobody is morally perfect on our own. On our own we sin every day. But through Jesus Christ we can have victory over all sin. By the grace of God we can live a holy life overcoming sin.

According to 1 Cor. 10:13 God has made it possible for us to never sin again. If we want to, we can go the rest of our lives without sinning. Praise God for His goodness!

- If God doesn't want us to sin, He would make it possible for us not to sin
- God doesn't want us to sin
- Therefore God makes it possible for us not to sin

If sin is unavoidable, God must want us to sin.

These are all your own erroneous ideas, for they are contrary to God's Word. Speaking to Christian believers, the Apostle John said:

[i]1Jn 1:8-10 "[b]If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us[/b]. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. [b]If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives[/b]."[/i]

You are trying to propagate false teaching that a man can be totally without sin, thereby stoking a man's pride in self and leading him to glorify in himself rather than in the grace of God.

All the Biblical teaching about "believers never sinning" doesn't mean that they will successfully live a sinless life. It means that they will successfully live a life that is no longer enslaved to sin, and no longer desiring sin. It means that, by God's grace, they will hate sin and will repent of sin every time it happens in their lives.

With this understanding of what those verses mean, all the scriptures quoted by me and by you are in harmony; with your erroneous idea, you embrace the scriptures that support your position while ignoring 1Jn 1:8-10 and other similar teachings.

Since Scripture cannot contradict itself, you are in error.

Jesse (or Jesse-wannabe), please stop trying to spread your false teaching in this forum -- by the grace of God, you will not succeed.

Solomon's teaching is true for all time:

[i]Ecc 7:20 There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins.[/i]

I agree with what Leo_Grace said.

1Jn 1:8-10 "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives."
AMEN to that.
Not that we use it as an excuse to sin,no way!And yes,we can be and must be Holy in Jesus Christ!
But if all what TheArminian says here is right then apostle John must be wrong.
With love in Christ,Nasekom.

I was reading the forum and this thread provoked me to make an account.

Can anyone give me just one good reason why Jesus Christ cannot make us holy?

Or can you give me one good reason why Jesus doesn't want to make us holy?

If we cannot be holy in this life, it must be because Jesus Christ doesn't want us to be or because Jesus Christ cannot do it.

And the idea that you cannot live holy without being proud is absurd. We will be holy in Heaven but we won't be proud. So why can't we be holy on Earth and not be proud?

Jesus said to be perfect. If this was impossible, we shouldn't even try. Jesus wouldn't have said it if it wasn't possible.

It seems that the only verse people use in the Epistle John is 1 John 1:8 and they take it out of context. It is talking about someone who hasn't yet been forgiven and cleansed 1 John 1:9. Just read the REST of 1 John. It is all about not sinning and keeping the commandments.

If we sin, it is not because God's law is impossible. We must take the blame. It is our own fault. Inability is an excuse that will not hold up on Judgment Day.

Even in the days of George Fox he said that while he would preach in the open air, “the professors were in a rage, all pleading for sin and imperfection, and could not endure to hear talk of perfection, and of a holy and sinless life.” These professors would use the Bible to justify their unholy lives. George Fox said, “I bade them give over babbling about the Scriptures, which were holy men’s words, whilst they pleaded for unholiness.”

I really like those quotes! They are the reason I decided to take this name....

Can anyone give me just one good reason why Jesus Christ cannot make us holy? Or can you give me one good reason why Jesus doesn't want to make us holy?

He can make us holy and he wants to make us holy, and he does make us holy in God's eyes through his imputed righteousness when he gave his life for us.

All believers who truly love God are holy and acceptable in his sight by grace.

All believers who truly love God will hate sin and avoid it as much as possible.

But the bible, through the apostle John, tells the believers:

[i]1Jn 1:8-10 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.[/i]

So we must accept the truth in God's word, like Paul, that though we hate sin and try our best to avoid it out of love for God, we can never be free it. It is the grace of God that cleanses us of all unrighteousness when we repent.

This is not taking license to sin. This is humbly accepting God's Word that we will continue to sin and we must continually deny ourselves and seek God to avoid sin.

Anyone who claims he can live a sinless life while alive in the flesh on earth is refusing to believe the Bible in 1Jn 1:8-10.

Regarding 1 Jn 1:8 Charles Finney said, “This verse is immediately preceded by the assertion that the "blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin." Now it would be very remarkable, if immediately after this assertion the apostle should mean to say, (as they suppose he did,) that it does not cleanse us from all sin, and if we say it does, we deceive ourselves; for he had just asserted, that the blood of Jesus Christ does cleanse us from all sin. If this were his meaning, it involves him in as palpable a contradiction as could be expressed…. This view of the subject then represents the apostle in the conclusion of the seventh verse, as saying, the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin; and in the eighth verse, as saying, that if we suppose ourselves to be cleansed from all sin, we deceive ourselves, thus flatly contradicting what he had just said. And in the ninth verse he goes on to say, that "He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness;" that is, the blood of Jesus cleanseth us from all sin; but if we say it does, we deceive ourselves. "But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Now, all unrighteousness is sin. If we are cleansed from all unrighteousness, we are cleansed from sin. And now suppose a man should confess his sin, and God should in faithfulness and justice forgive his sin, and cleanse him from all unrighteousness, and then he should confess and profess that God had done this; are we to understand, that the apostle would then affirm that he deceives himself, in supposing that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin? …. This then appears to me to be the meaning of the whole passage. If we say that we are not sinners, that is, have no sin to need the blood of Christ; that we have never sinned, and consequently need no Saviour, we deceive ourselves.” (Finney’s Systematic Theology, Lecture LXX)

That is a great explaination of 1 John 1:8. I believe John Wesley also understood verse 8 to be talking about those who say that they have never sinned in their lives, as opposed to those who say that Jesus Christ has saved them from sin.

1 John 1:8 is by no means contrary to the Biblical doctrine of Christian perfection. In fact, 1 John was written so that we wouldn't sin. John also tells us that the test of a true believer is that they keep the commandments as opposed to break the commandments.

To ever use the Bible to defend or excuse having sin in your life is a misuse and abuse of the Bible. The Bible teaches perfection.

To deny that we can be perfect in this life is to say that the grace of God is powerless to save us from sin. It is to say that Jesus Christ is not really our Savior.

Jesse Morrell aka GeorgeFox,

The verses in 1Jn 1:8-10 are crystal clear. The meaning is unambiguous. Please stop your distortion of God's Word to fit your own false concepts. The opinions of mere men carry no weight against the truth of Scripture.

You speak exactly like JMorrell, truefaithsav, TheArminian, and NSCalvinist. Your endless deceptions with regards to your identity reveal more about you than your messages. You always misread God's Word to serve your own purpose, and you presume to speak of the thoughts and intentions of the Lord in your posts as if you were privy to divine wisdom.

You are the one who said:

I would sooner become an atheist than to become a Calvinist.

You love yourself and your false doctrines more than God. You will never succeed.

You speak exactly like JMorrell, truefaithsav, TheArminian, and NSCalvinist. Your endless deceptions with regards to your identity reveal more about you than your messages.

This bothers me. Some posters have implied you may indeed be Jesse Morrell and you never denied it, so I assume these posters are correct...

If this is so, I would like to ask you one question, Jesse. If you have read my post addressed to you on the thread that was locked, you know I am not being critical, at least I hope I am not...

My question is: why do you preach with a hat on? This bothers me greatly. I have seen pics of you/Jesse preaching and you wear a hat most of the time. Why? Do you not know what 1 Corinthians 11:4 says? Why do you choose to dishonor your head? Is this being holy?

I wish I could get the answer to this question.

Blessings,
ginnyrose

nasekom wrote:
I agree with what Leo_Grace said.

1Jn 1:8-10 "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives."
AMEN to that.
Not that we use it as an excuse to sin,no way!And yes,we can be and must be Holy in Jesus Christ!
But if all what TheArminian says here is right then apostle John must be wrong.
With love in Christ,Nasekom.

Although i dont believe in sinless perfection as in perfect in our every thought, action, motive i do believe it is possible to walk as the Lord Jesus walked. But i want to say that it is important to remember why John wrote this epistle, that there where many gnostic teachings that had stated to creep into the church, also i think John is addressing the fact not that the believers have sin always in them or in their life, but rather to the fact we need a savoir, we need Christ, if i have no sin i have no need for christ.

The best i have read, or the closest i have seen a man put this in writing outside of the bible, without falling into either of the ditches on any side of the road was John Wesley. And what we need to watch out is to say we can be perfect as Christ was perfect here on earth, the bible does not say we can, but also it does not say we can live in sin and wait til death saves us and not Christ, as John Wesley points out below, if we can only be totally free from sin when we die, then death is our real savior, and Christ merely a bandage til then to get us by. But as with everything, many promote perfection to make others conform to their view of it. my self have not reached the point where i can say i am perfect in all my ways, all the time the Lord shows me more and more i can lay away, the main problem is not acts of sin, as all sins flow from PRIDE and SELFISHNESS. All sins flow from these two, and just as an union has several layers we can peal one of at the time, we se some sin in us and we peal that layer away, and alas, a new one, we can not entirely get the whole union out but if we walk in his light and in truth the union will be smaller and smaller all the days of our lives until we one day will be perfect.

Be ye holy, is not a recommendation. But also i can sy as i believe it was jonathan edwards or Whitefield , "in me i see a sea of infinity, infinites of iniquity" and when having read how they spent their lives, what shall i say? anyway, i hope many shall find this small article of encouragement to seek more of Christ in them.

Christian Perfection

“Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus”
(Philippians 3:12)

Introduction

The teaching of Christian Perfection causes more offence among believers than any other doctrine. Why? Because many cannot tolerate the word ‘perfect.’ Those who teach it are considered to be the worst of heretics. Some warn us that it is best not to use such terminology, but does not Scripture make use of it? We cannot make room for the devil by modifying the words. In our text Paul indicates that he was not as perfect as he should be. Some who deny the idea of perfection use this as an excuse for their own ungodliness, forgetting that Paul adds, “Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded” (Philippians 3:15.)
In this sermon we will endeavour to find out in what sense a believer is not perfect, and in what sense he is perfect.

In what sense is a believer not perfect?

(1) Scripture and personal experience reveal that we are not perfect in knowledge. We may understand many wonderful truths, yet there are many areas where we verge on total ignorance. There are apparent mysteries both in the spiritual and natural world we will never fathom out. Do we fully comprehend the doctrine of the Trinity, or how Christ could empty Himself and take upon Himself human flesh? Are we able to interpret all the signs and the seasons? Do we know the exact moment of Christ’s return? We fail to understand the way God works, especially in our own generation. Without revelation we would find no answers for the many questions we have. In reality we are not perfect in knowledge.

(2) Christians are not perfect to the extent that they cannot make mistakes. Errors are the result of our limited capabilities. True, we do not err regarding the plain teaching of salvation and sanctification, but we all go astray on everyday matters. How often we have been mistaken about facts and have presented them in a false light? How many times have we misunderstood the intentions of others? Do not even the wisest of Christians disagree regarding the interpretation of some Bible text?

(3) Christians are not perfect with regards to personal infirmities or failures. We often lapse in the areas of morality, worldliness, evil speaking, and even taking God’s name in vain. By infirmities we also refer to physical problems such as slowness of understanding, muddled thoughts, and loss of memory. Do we not all have flaws in manners, speech, and personality?

(4) Every day we have to contend with many temptations. The devil constantly tries to fill our minds with his lies. The fact that we are tempted proves that we have not reached absolute perfection, for do we not give in to it? Except for our Lord Jesus Christ, because we are in the flesh, we are prone to lapses and find it easier to sin than obey God. Nevertheless, those who seek holiness are always moving to higher ground.

In what sense is a believer perfect?
We have to agree that there are several stages of growth in the spiritual life, just as there is in the natural. The apostle John writes to “little children,” “young men,” and “fathers” in the faith

(1 John 2), indicating that this is true, however at no stage is ungodliness acceptable. If we are truly under grace then “sin shall not have dominion over” us (Romans 6:14.) Genuine Christians are free from outward sinful deeds … “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God” (1 John 3:8-9.)
Some suggest that these verses teach that believers do not sin to the same extent as the unsaved, but what support is there anywhere in Scripture for such a view? Is this not the same as saying that Christians must sin? We agree that even the holiest of men, Abraham, Moses and David for instance, committed some terrible sins, but this does not mean that there is no victory over it. Also we ought not to measure the Christian life against the failures of men. John makes it abundantly clear that all who commit sin are of the devil (1 John 3:8), and that the child of God does not sin (1 John 3:9.) Does this not speak of the need of Christian Perfection?
To answer the question, “In what sense is a believer perfect?” we submit the following:

(1) Believers have freedom from evil and sinful thoughts. Genuine Christians do not meditate on ways to carry out wickedness, to steal, murder, or lust. Evil intentions come from within an evil heart, but if it has been cleansed through Christ’s blood the evil heart no longer exists. Whenever the devil seeks to implant evil thoughts in our minds we can use the spiritual weapons at our disposal to defeat them … “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:11-12) … “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5.)

(2) Believers have freedom from evil attitudes. The Lord Jesus Christ has called His followers to love their enemies, abusers, and persecutors. This means that they do not retaliate or seek revenge for the wrongs done against them; instead they have a forgiving spirit. Only a purified heart can contain such love as this.

(3) Believers have freedom from an evil nature. The apostle Paul states, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20.) Do not these words reveal that Christians have been delivered from both inward and outward sin? All true believers have had their hearts cleansed by faith, and seek to be pure and holy. They have a new inward nature that affects the outside. Instead of anger, bitterness and unforgiveness there is the spirit of meekness, gentleness, and self-control. If, as some say, we are only freed from sin at death, then does not this make death the saviour? Yes, we do allow sin into our lives, but through the Holy Spirit our consciences tell us that we must “confess our sins” so that the faithful and just Lord would “forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9.)

Conclusion

To suggest that Christ does not give us power over sin is to establish justification by works. But, sin no longer has dominion over the child of God (Romans 6:14.) We do not have to commit sin, have evil thoughts and wicked attitudes. God has created a new and clean heart within us (Ezekiel 36:25-36.

These are wonderful promises! But listen, “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 7:1.) Instead of looking back to the way we were, let us look forward to what we ought to be, to the provisions won for us through the blood of Christ … “Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before” (Philippians 3:13.)

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