So what is the deal here? Are Christians allowed to Sin? Since we know that when Christians sin, we have an advocate that is in Jesus Christ (1 John 2:1). So shall we Sin so that Grace may abound (Rom 6:1). How much Sin is considered acceptable, and how much is not? Let's explore:
Jesus preached in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5-7), that if one hates a brother, he has committed murder in his heart (Matt 5:21-26). And if one lusts over a woman in his heart, he has already committed adultery in his mind (Matt 5:27-30). Which means that, all of us are guilty of Internal Sins that are committed in our hearts and mind, as well External Sins committed by us a acting upon our natural fleshly tenancies. There is none righteous (Rom 3:9-20), and one of the purpose of the Law, is to show us that no man can be justified by his ability to obey (v19-20).
So knowing that Grace is a concept as a gift by Faith and not works (Rom 4:4-5), we know that Salvation is never something that can be earned neither by our good works nor abstinence from Sin, simply because, we cannot do it. But does it mean that since there is nothing we can do for our justification (Rom 5:1-2), and Salvation is a free gift from God through Jesus Christ (Rom 5:17), are Christians are free to Sin since we are to do nothing about our Salvation?
1 John 2:4-6 gives as a very good idea of what a believer is supposed to do, "And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments". And this is the key to what we have explored so far:
WE CANNOT BE SAVED BY KEEPING THE LAW, BUT UNDER GRACE, TRUE BELIEVERS WILL DESIRE TO KEEP THE LAW.
Which means, that if one is a true believer, it does not mean that he is saved by his ability to keep the Law. But rather he will keep the Law because he is under Grace (Rom 6:14), he is no longer slave to Sin, but to Righteousness (Rom 6:15-19). Then again, since believers don't work for their Salvation, and yet those who are saved will desire to do the works, then how much work or how much Sin can one commit before we can say one is truly saved or not? So based on our understanding of Grace vs Works as above, let's continue to explore the title post of the difference between Internal vs External sins...
INTERNAL SINS, which is our inclination or tendency towards Sin is sufficient to condemn us to Hell (Matt 5:21-30). It means that no one is righteous enough to earn his way to Salvation for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. As written above, we know we have been forgiven by the blood of Jesus Christ as there is no way anyone on the face of this earth, but yet no one can avoid having an evil thought throughout their lifetime. But we also saw that in Romans 6, those who are saved are Slaves to Righteousness and not to Sin, and so the truly saved should have a diminishing and not growing tendency towards Sin.
In Romans 7:13-20, Paul gives an account of a believer's struggle with Sin. We are constantly torn between what we ought to do in the Spirit and what we desire to destroy with our Flesh. It is clear in v24, that this hypothetical example of a man who yearns to please God finds that there is no way he can do it. And in v25, he thank God that he can do it through Jesus Christ so that "I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.". A Christian will always struggle with Sin till the day he dies.
EXTERNAL SINS, are what we actually do when we act upon our fleshly desires. So one can lust for a woman in his heart, but it is only when he actually makes his advances towards the woman and commits adultery with her that he has acted upon his desires. For example:
- Someone having a Same Sex Attraction towards a person (internal), but chooses not to pursue it (external).
- A married person may fall into infatuation (internal) with another person but chooses not to act upon these desires (external).
- A salesperson stumbled upon an opportunity to cheat his client for a huge profit (internal) but chose to walk away from that deal (external)
- A colleague at work that one actually hates (internal) makes a mistake at the mercy of your knowledge, but you chose not to back stab nor gossip (external) about this person.
These examples shows us that anyone can have a desire to sin in our heart and minds. But we can also choose not to act upon it as it brings harm against another. Acting upon our Sins also causes other bystanders who witness the act, gets stumbled or even follow it (Matt 18:6). But what if one occasionally falls into temptation and acts upon his sinful inclinations? Is there Grace for such a person? Is there Grace for David who acted upon his lust for Bathsheba (which is external), killed Uriah and committed adultery with her?
The key thing to this question, is repentance. 1 John 1:9 gives us an idea of who are walking in the Light and who are walking in Darkness. Those who walk in darkness does not acknowledge their sins (1 John 1:8), whereas those who acknowledge their sinful nature walks in the Light (1 John 1:9). We can naturally say that those who does not acknowledge their Sins (walk in darkness) also does not understand their total deprivation, and hence does not seek to please God. They may have some form of righteousness, but they have no concept of pleasing God (Rom 8:7-8), but only seek to please their own conscience. Those who walk in the Light confesses their sins and Jesus is righteous to forgive them.
1 John 3:4-9, tells us that those who walk in the Light practices Righteousness, and those who walk in Darkness practices Sin. He does not say that those who walk in the Light are perfectly Righteous. Which means, a believer may Sin, and he is covered by the blood of Christ (1 John 2:1-2), but he does not actively pursue a life of Sin (Rom 8:5-6). So we can safely say:
WALK IN THE LIGHT = REPENT, PLEASE GOD, TRUE RIGHTEOUSNESS.
WALK IN DARKNESS = DOES NOT REPENT, DOES NOT PLEASE GOD , SELF RIGHTEOUSNESS.
So how much Sin can we continue to commit before we are considered as actively practicing or willfully sinning (Hebrews 10:26-27)?
Well, one can always disguise his willful sinning by saying things like "I really cannot help it..."... "This temptation is too overwhelming". Pornography for example, although private, is a result of acting upon lust. It promotes promiscuity and infidelity which are against the principals of the bible. Pornography also supports an industry whereby women and sometimes Children are often abused in order to produce those materials. As Christians, we do not want to support such industries. Yet men often have tendencies to fall into sexual sins. Hence although we have Grace over the Sins that we inadvertently fall into, we can also disguise our rebellious sinning by giving excuses for it. Other Sins can also be Jealousy, Back Stabbing, Gossip, Reviling, Covetousness, Fraud, etc.
So even though one who is a professing believer, if he actively practices a Sin, to him that is a willful Sin, and it proves that he is actually an unbeliever (1 John 3:4-9, Rom 8:7-8). Which means this person disregards the Laws of God and does not care about whether one's actions are displeasing to Him; he is an unbeliever.
But if compared to one who is struggling with his sinful inclinations but yet loses the battle once in a while and fell into it, then Romans 7:25 applies and he is covered by Jesus blood. It is not possible for a sincere student who diligently studies for his exams to fail all the time. Hence a true believer who wants to live a Holy life will not end up losing the battle all the time.
A true believer also actively seeks to help those who are in need (Matt 25:38-40), for "everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him" (1 John 5:1). Hence if we Love God, and Love our Neighbors, we can fulfill the Law through the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ "For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself." (Gal 5:14)
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