Sin or not Sin

“No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.” (1 John 3:9 ESV)

This verse can be somewhat confusing for us. We know that we are sinful in nature and that we who are saved will continue to sin. However, unlike those not born of God, the Spirit convicts us of our sins. Those who are not of God feel no conviction.

We who are saved know that we cannot continue purposely sinning. Paul asks, "Shall we continue sinning that grace may abound?" The answer is no. Some have been catechized who believe they can continue living in sin and still go to heaven. This unbiblical belief proliferates in this society.

Much comes from society's view of love: the belief that all love is good and that Jesus called us to love, so love cannot be wrong. This is another unbiblical belief that those who are uneducated or cherry-pick scripture use as a justification for their sinful actions in love.

Love that is born of sin is sin and wrong. Scripture spells this out, for example:

Leviticus 18:22: “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.”

Leviticus 20:13: “If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.”

Romans 1:26-28: “For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.”

1 Corinthians 6:9-10: “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”

Proverbs 6:32: “He who commits adultery lacks sense; he who does it destroys himself. (This is obvious, but in the moment it may not feel like it.)” 

Hebrews 13:4: “Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.”

Let us look at this using a simple example. A friend tells you they are leaving their marriage because they have fallen in love with another. One must spend time with another to become close and for love to develop. So, adultery has been committed in which this love grew.

Would you tell this friend what they are doing is not sinful?

In the eyes of a Christian, it is a sin. Those of us who have either committed adultery and or been divorced often regret our actions later, as we should. When we commit these sins outside of Christ, the revelation of the devastation of our actions when we are justified is usually crushing.

The point is no love born of sin is okay in the eyes of God, be it a heterosexual relationship or a homosexual relationship. Love born of sin is sin and will lead the one who continues to live in this sin to destruction. Those who say they believe in Christ and attend church living in a sinful relationship have not repented and will be judged for their sin. There can be no growth in sanctification when we purposely commit sin under the guise of “love” that is sinful in nature. It is the false teacher and the enemy who tell them, "It's okay. God loves you unconditionally, and all love is good, Jesus said so."

Given this, one should question their relationship with God and ask if they think God will condone such behavior. We who are saved and no longer committing these sexual sins have assurance through our devoted repentance that these past sins that are no longer being committed have been forgiven through the grace and mercy of Christ.

Not all love is good, and not all love is permitted by God; we can choose who we love and not love when we take solace in the Lord's words.

Grace and Peace!