s***u
发帖数: 1911 | 1 zt
How much can a Christian sin and still say he or she is a Christian? Every d
ay? Every hour? Constantly and continually? As a regular practice of life? J
ust how much can a Christian sin and still say they're a Christian?
There are two general extremes on this issue of "How much can a Christian si
n?"
VIEW #1 "Christians Can't Sin."
On one extreme are those who argue a real Christian can't sin, because being
delivered from sin is what being a Christian is all about. These folk argue
that if you claim to be a Christian but you are sinning, you are a liar桟hr
istians can't sin. You might be able to say, "I used to be a Christian," or
"I thought I was a Christian," but if you are sinning you can't say, "I sin,
but I am a Christian." Christians can't sin.
The "can't sin" people can assemble plenty of Scripture to back up their pos
ition. They use verses like 1 John 3:6 & 9, "No one who lives in Him keeps o
n sinning." "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's s
eed remains in him and he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of
God." The Bible is clear. Jesus came to save people from their sins, not in
their sins, they assert. Christians don't sin. They can't. And if they shoul
d sin, they are no longer saved. After all what is the difference between a
saved and an unsaved person? One lives like they always have梚n sin and diso
bedience, and the other has a changed life: they have stopped sinning.
Those off on the "can't sin" edge of doctrine often come from hyper-Arminian
or holiness denominations. They have a great concern for the pure life梐 li
fe without sin. This is admittedly an admirable hope. But they go too far. T
hey eventually came to insist on absolute purity as the minimum requirement
for the Kingdom. They think they are following John Wesley. In fact, they st
art with Wesley then ride off on a tangent into the sunset with an aberratio
n of Arminian doctrine. Instead of offering the future hope of living above
sin, they insist on the present minimum of a sinless life梛ust to be in Chri
st's family.
The "Christians can't sin" doctrine leads to all kinds of crazy eccentriciti
es in practice and doctrine. For instance, for these folk, every time a Chri
stian does indeed fall into sin, he loses his relationship with Christ and h
as to start all over again and get saved. To them, sin is not allowed for Ch
ristians. So, whether a person sins or not is the ultimate measurement of yo
ur Christianity. The spotlight is on sin and self, not Christ and the cross.
This is a seriously misplaced focus.
Doctrines, even wacky ones, tend to be self-correcting. The people who teach
and believe a doctrine somehow have to adjust to the reality of daily life.
And the reality is that Christians in fact sometimes do fall into sin. The
"can't sin" teachers are embarrassed by good solid Christians repeatedly get
ting saved all over again, every time they slipped into some wrong act, atti
tude, word, or thought of disobedience. It is awkward to have so many of the
Christians getting saved so often.
So the "can't sin" folk eventually came to re-label sin. Words, thought and
actions which were formerly labeled "sin" were simply re-labeled "mistakes."
The list of "sins" was slimmed down to the things梞ostly outward actions梬h
ich few Christians ever actually did. Presto! Immediately the church was ful
l of sinless Christians. At least sin the way the "can't sin" people defined
it.
Sure, the church still had some people with rotten attitudes, and questionab
le methods were sometimes used in local churchly politics, but these were no
w labeled "mistakes" and not sin. The doctrine had self-corrected to reality
. But the correction may be more dangerous than the aberration! With the pow
er of this new labelquot;mistakes"梞any Christians could sin more boldly than e
ven before. They just labeled it a "mistake" this time. And of course, peopl
e being what they are, there is always the tendency to label your actions an
d attitudes "sin" while I label mine "mistakes!"
The "can't sin" people are still around teaching this doctrine. It is, howev
er, a doctrine far over on one extreme. But there is another group far over
on the other side of the road.
VIEW #2 "Christians must sin."
This group takes up position on the other end of the scale. They argue that
Christians must sin梩hey "can't not sin." This group teaches that sin is a n
atural and normal part of being human, and getting saved doesn't change that
at all. Why do we sin? We sin because we're human, that's why. We were born
sinners. It's in our blood, or at least our nature to sin. Adam was a sinne
r, and since then so have all his progeny梬e are sinners at heart, and becom
ing a Christian doesn't change that a bit. Before I was saved I was a sinner
. After I was saved I am still a sinner, just a "saved sinner" now. In a sen
se God switched the label on me!
Then what does getting saved change? It changes our position before God, the
se folk teach. Before being saved we were a sinner on the way to hell. Now w
e are a sinner on the way to heaven. Our position changed: we are now adopte
d into God's family. And because of this, all our sins梡ast present and futu
re梬ere forgiven at one moment on the cross of Calvary 2000 years ago.
For the "must sin" people the focus is on Christ and the cross, never sin an
d self. They argue that St. Paul confessed he was the "chiefest of sinners"
yet certainly he was a Christian wasn't he? They like the book of 1 John too
, especially preferring chapter one, verses 8 & 10, "If we claim to be witho
ut sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us," and "If we claim w
e have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His word has no place in
our lives." The Bible is clear, they say. Christians sin. They are human. S
in is just what we do. The point is not to be sinless, it is to recognize th
at the sins you regularly commit were forgiven in advance. They teach that C
hristians do not confess to gain forgiveness. Rather the value of confession
is internal梐 value to the person themselves.
So they say you are destined to keep on sinning. In fact, every Christian si
ns regularly, even "in word, thought, and deed every day." These teachers de
ny that a Christian could ever "stop sinning." Sorry, it's just not possible
. You might overcome an individual sin. You might even overcome a number of
individual sins. But, they say, you will never overcome all sin. You must si
n. There will always be some sin in your life. So just expect it and confess
your daily sins to God each day. You might as well start now梱ou'll have to
do it until the day you die.
As we remarked earlier, doctrines on the edges of the spectrum tend to be se
lf-correcting. The "must sin" eventually had to do some light-footed doctrin
al dancing to adapt to reality. While the "can't sin" people narrowed their
definition of sin until they could pronounce themselves sinless, the "must s
in" people simply broadened their definition so they could pronounce everybo
dy sinners.
The "must sin" folk define sin as anything falling short of the perfect exam
ple of Jesus Christ. In other words, any single thought, word, or deed which
is not completely Christ-like is sin. What would Jesus say? How would Jesus
think? What would Jesus do? If you fall even 1% short of this perfect stand
ard you are sinning, these folk teach. So, presto! Every Christian becomes a
n immediate and habitual sinner. Who could claim absolute perfection in thou
ght, word, and deed every day? Not one of us. So the "must sin" folk, with t
heir broad definition of sin, sweep everybody in. If you accept the definiti
on, you've got to admit you're a sinner...regularly, habitually, daily.
But the danger here is to treat sin too casually. With the focus totally on
the cross, and none on my daily life, it provides the Christian an "out" for
all kinds of practices and attitudes the Bible warns us about. The "must si
n" teaching is pessimistic, offering little hope of doing what Jesus command
ed us to do條ove and obey Him. We are stuck as sinners. The "must sin" peopl
e see only the forgiveness side of the atonement and ignore the deliverance
side. If I "must sin" then why try to stop? If I'm destined to sin regularly
until the day I die, what good was getting saved, other than to save my nec
k for eternity? Isn't there more here and now? Isn't the blood of Jesus Chri
st stronger than this? Can't God forgive me of sin, and deliver me? Is this
all there is to it?
The "can't sin" people offer a false hope. The "must sin" folk offer no hope
. Where is the middle ground?
THE MIDDLE GROUND
Christians can sin...but they don't have to. You can't help reading the two
extremes on this issue without wondering, "They're really saying the same th
ing aren't they?" It's true. At least in a way. While the teachers of these
two extreme positions probably would not admit they agree, the average perso
n in today's church can quickly see the sensible middle road approach to the
se doctrines. They say, "Sure, Christians can fall into sin, but they don't
have to." Where is the middle ground? What is the position where the vast ma
jority of sensible laymen stand?
1. Christians CAN fall into sin.
James was hot-headed, John was judgmental. Peter denied Christ. The Bible is
full of sinners梥aved ones. To say that Christians can't sin squares neithe
r with the Bible nor life. Christians can and do sin. When they do sin they
don't immediately "fall from grace" either. Their relationship with God is s
tronger than that. How can you read in Paul's epistles the constant call for
Christians, saints, the redeemed, to put off sin, lay aside sin, crucify si
n, mortify the deeds of the flesh. If Christians never sinned why would Paul
address these "saints" and tell them to stop? The truth is, Christians can
fall into sin.
2. But Christians don't HAVE to sin.
While sin is possible for Christians, it is not required. To say that Christ
ians have to sin梩hat they can never be delivered from disobedience梥ells sh
ort the blood of Christ and the cross. Sure Christians can sin. But they can
not sin too. Sin is a choice we make. We can choose to do it and sin. Or we
can choose to refrain, and not sin. But we are not trapped forever in a sin
ful cycle. It is possible to resist temptation and keep from sinning. I migh
t admit that I sin every day in word, thought, and deed. But I don't have to
. The atonement is powerful enough to not only forgive my sins, but to deliv
er me from sin. Christians don't have to sin.
3. There are two ideas of sin.
Perhaps the biggest reason the middle ground is so hard to find on this issu
e is there are two ideas of sin. These two ideas are both in the Bible. But
even our culture and legal system makes a distinction between them.
A) Sin as falling short. This idea of sin focuses on God's standard of holin
ess. It says that anything which "falls short" of God's perfect standard as
seen in Jesus is sin. Our life is like an arrow, and any time the arrow of m
y thought, words, or deeds "falls short" of the perfect target in Jesus, I s
in. This is the first idea of sin.
B) Sin as intentional disobedience. The second idea of sin focuses on intent
ions, or my will. This idea states that sin is knowing something is wrong bu
t doing it anyway. Or it is knowing God wants me to do something right, yet
refusing to do it. This idea of sin emphasizes only willful disobedience. Si
n is a deliberate, premeditated incident. Sometimes this is called "sin, str
ictly speaking" to distinguish it from the more global definition of sin in
A) above.
Anyone who works with children can readily see the difference. If a 13 month
old child knocks over his milk because of his childish clumsiness, he clear
ly falls far short of the perfect standard of adult table manners. But any s
ensible and loving parent would not punish their baby for this. The parent o
verlooks this behavior as an unintended shortfalling. The baby is held to be
"blameless" because "he didn't mean it."
On the other hand, suppose your 12 year old son is fooling around with his b
rother at the dinner table and you warn him to be careful before he spills h
is milk. Let's say he looks defiantly at you, then reaches out his finger an
d knocks the milk over on your table. He'd better run, right? Parents see th
e difference between purposeful and unintentional disobedience.
So does the legal system. For instance, the crime of murder is purposeful an
d premeditated. However, "manslaughter" is a lesser crime where there was no
intent to kill. Some kinds of fraud require intent. And, of course, treason
or conspiracy must have intent. These are all examples of the two levels of
disobedience to the law, one with malice or intent, the other an actual bre
aking of the law, but without intent to do so.
The point is, both ideas of sin are accurate. In a sense every thought word
and deed which falls short of perfect Christ-likeness is sin...in the genera
l sense. But it is also true that, strictly speaking, we are only held accou
ntable for intentional disobedience.
4. Christians CAN'T live above sin, generally speaking.
In the sense of sin as falling short, Christians will always sin. That is, t
hey will always fall short of being exactly Christ-like in every attitude, w
ord, action, or response to others. This kind of perfection is neither promi
sed nor given on earth. Christians can daily confess that they fall short of
absolute perfection every day. This is speaking of sin in its general, or f
alling short manner. Do you sin every day in word, thought, and deed? In thi
s sense of sin, yes. We all do.
5. Christians CAN live above sin, strictly speaking.
However, on the other hand, Christians can live above sin if you mean sin in
the stricter sense梡urposeful premeditated sin. A Christians can indeed gro
w up...be cleansed...get deliverance...be filled with the Spirit...walk in t
he light...so that they do in fact come to a place where they do not purpose
fully disobey God in their day to day life. There really is hope for "obedie
nt living." At least for a life free from defiant and deliberate sin. Sure,
such a person may still fall short of perfection, but they can live above pu
rposeful disobedience. This is the optimistic hope of the atonement.
So, what about you? Is there purposeful sin in your life? Is there something
you are doing梠r not doing梬hich is out of line with God's instructions to
you? You know its wrong but you are doing it anyway? Or you know God wants y
ou to start something, but you're dragging your feet? If so, what you need t
o do is clear. You need to (1) confess this sin to God, then (2) repent梩urn
away from the sin and "get in line." If you are sinning in defiance, the is
sue is not to debate the definitions of sin. The issue is to stop your defia
nce. And the route to stopping has always been the same: confess and repent.
Trust God's atonement for the power to both forgive and deliver you from th
is sin. He can do it. And He will do it. | R*o
发帖数: 3781 | 2 thank you for taking time to select and post this article
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argue
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【在 s***u 的大作中提到】
: zt
: How much can a Christian sin and still say he or she is a Christian? Every d
: ay? Every hour? Constantly and continually? As a regular practice of life? J
: ust how much can a Christian sin and still say they're a Christian?
: There are two general extremes on this issue of "How much can a Christian si
: n?"
: VIEW #1 "Christians Can't Sin."
: On one extreme are those who argue a real Christian can't sin, because being
: delivered from sin is what being a Christian is all about. These folk argue
: that if you claim to be a Christian but you are sinning, you are a liar桟hr
| j********1
发帖数: 2073 | 3 Thanks for sharing
d
J
si
being
argue
hr
【在 s***u 的大作中提到】
: zt
: How much can a Christian sin and still say he or she is a Christian? Every d
: ay? Every hour? Constantly and continually? As a regular practice of life? J
: ust how much can a Christian sin and still say they're a Christian?
: There are two general extremes on this issue of "How much can a Christian si
: n?"
: VIEW #1 "Christians Can't Sin."
: On one extreme are those who argue a real Christian can't sin, because being
: delivered from sin is what being a Christian is all about. These folk argue
: that if you claim to be a Christian but you are sinning, you are a liar桟hr
| m****u
发帖数: 1689 | 4 Thanks for sharing
d
J
si
being
argue
hr
【在 s***u 的大作中提到】
: zt
: How much can a Christian sin and still say he or she is a Christian? Every d
: ay? Every hour? Constantly and continually? As a regular practice of life? J
: ust how much can a Christian sin and still say they're a Christian?
: There are two general extremes on this issue of "How much can a Christian si
: n?"
: VIEW #1 "Christians Can't Sin."
: On one extreme are those who argue a real Christian can't sin, because being
: delivered from sin is what being a Christian is all about. These folk argue
: that if you claim to be a Christian but you are sinning, you are a liar桟hr
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