By Kevin Harris, pastor of the Illawarra Community Baptist Church in Wollongong, NSW
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 3:9
It would be a mistake to conclude from this verse that Christians can be sinless.
Greek grammarians will know that both the phrase ‘doth not commit sin’ and ‘cannot sin’ are present active indicative, speaking of going on sinning. The child of God does not have the habit of sinning. It’s not his practice.
Sure, we who wear the holy Name of Jesus Christ occasionally fall. But praise God that when we confess our sin and place it under the blood of Christ (see 1:7-9), He forgives and cleanses us.
However, to go on and on practising sin is not possible for one who has been born of God. Why? Because God’s seed remaineth in him.
This takes us back to Genesis 1:11, ‘And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.’ Each species (‘kind’) contains its own seed which it passes along to another generation.
A magpie has the nature of a magpie because the seed of a magpie is in him. A mango tree has the nature of a mango tree because the seed of a mango tree is in it. You get the picture.
So a Christian has been regenerated, given spiritual life, and he acts in accordance with his ‘species,’ if you will.
And what is that ‘species’? ‘The wisdom that is from above is first pure…’ (James 3:17). God’s primary attribute is His holiness, so a Christian’s primary attribute increasingly becomes holiness too.
Praise the Lord for His seed in me!
Father, thank You for making me a new creature. Thank You that ‘old things are passed away,’ that sin no longer has a stranglehold on me because You rebirthed me. Thank You for making ‘all things…become new.’ I rejoice that You continue to renovate me. Help me to live the victorious life You planned for Your children. I ask this in the Name of the Lord Jesus, Amen.
This article was written by Kevin Harris Dapto pastor of Illawarra Community Baptist Church.