The Perfect Christian

Verse of the day: I John 5:18 We know that everyone begotten of God does not sin; but he that was begotten of God keeps himself, and the evil one does not touch him.

There is no perfect Christian. There...I said it. Now, if you are honest about this, you too would agree. I have yet to meet, self included, a born again believer that does not sin. If this is true (which it is), then why does God say, in this verse, that "everyone begotten of God does not sin"? First, let us understand that He told us in 1 John 1:8-10 that if we say that we do not sin, we deceive ourselves, and call God a liar. God forbid! So, how is it that He can now say we do not sin? Simple...we have been saved by Jesus, and washed in His Blood. The Holy Spirit indwells us. In 1 John 3:9, He tells us that anyone who is begotten by God does not practice sin, because the Spirit is in us. Simply put, the Father sees the Blood of Jesus, and His righteouness (not ours), and because we have been washed in His Blood, and the Spirit dwells us, we have been justified, or declared "not guilty". As far as the sins we commit, God did not say that we would never sin. He said that we do not practice sin. There is quite a difference. To not practice sin means that we do not sin as a lifestyle, as the unsaved, unrepented, person does. The Spirit, working in us, changes us so that our desire to live a sinful life is quenched. However, because we are still in the flesh, a battle exists between our flesh and our spirit. This is where our choices make us or break us in living a holy life. Nonetheless, we have the Spirit, who strengthens us when we choose right, and God's Word to correct us, convict us, and give us direction, through the Spirit's work. In this chapter (v.19) we are reminded that the evil one has sway over the world. He is the one who tries to convince us that we are forsaken by God when we stumble in sin. That is simply not true. The majority of this chapter assures us of our salvation, and essentially reminds us that if we are certain of our salvation, we will not be swayed by the evil one's lies (as is the rest of the world). The bottom line is that, if we have called upon Jesus, and surrendered our lives to Him, we are safe from comdemnation, and Satan's lies. We no longer live a life, or desire a life, of sin. Instead, we do our best to live holy, and righteous, lives, and when we stumble, we have an Advocate who speaks on our behalf. It is because of His righteousness that we are acceptable to our Heavenly Father, and never forsaken. So, if we battle in our minds with guilt over sins committed, simply repent, confess, and move forward. We belong to God, have been washed in the Blood of Jesus, and have the Spirit in us to help us know, and understand, the truths in God's Word that ressures us. We can have the ultimate victory over sin in our lives. However, it will be, and is, a battle. Someone said that the Christian life is a battleground, not a playground. Thank the Lord that He is the One who fights on our behalf!