Saints Cannot Sin?

Saints Cannot Sin?

1 John 3:9 and 5:18 say those “born of God” (saints or believers in Christ) will not “continue in sin” (NASB and NIV). This seems to imply that once a person becomes a believer in Christ, he or she no longer sins. However, 1 John 1:8 says,

“If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not

in us” and verse 10 says, “if we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a

liar and His word is not in us.”

Is that not a contradiction?

Let’s take an in-depth look.

A saint (“holy one”) believes Christ died for his sins and rose again (1 Cor. 15:1-4).

He can never be condemned again (Romans 8:1).

A non-saint does not believe in the death of Christ for his or her sins and His resurrection.

While the sin of a saint breaks his fellowship with God, it does not break his relationship with God (1 John 1:6-7). When the saint confesses his sin, he is forgiven and cleansed “from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

The non-saint has no relationship with God to be broken. He or she is “dead In trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 1:1-3). “dead” refers to spiritual death which means the absence of a relationship with God or spiritually separated from God.

The non-saint is in danger of dying in his or her sins after which there will never be forgiveness (John 8:21-24).

On the other hand, a saint can never be condemned again (Romans 8:1, 33-39). If he continuously sins without confessing them, he is in danger of committing “a sin leading to (physical) death” (1 John 5:16). This is what happened to Samson (Judges 13:24-16:31) and Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11). As saints, they persisted in sinning and, as God’s children, were chastised with physical death by God. Non-saints are not chastised because that doesn’t change nor save them. They are given time to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved before they die physically.

So, while a saint can sin, he or she cannot revert or fall back into the sin of unbelief and be dead in sins again. That’s what 1 John 3:9; 5:18 mean.

Why can’t a saint become a non-saint again? Because of the following (be sure to read these references):

1. 1 John 5:18

2. Philippians 1:6; 2:13

3. 1 Peter 1:5

4. John 10:27-30

5. Jude 24

Reading all the other above references will also provide insight into this lesson.

Blessings!