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Title: God's Cure for Habitual Sin
Date: Mar 9, 2010
Topic(s): Sin/Temptation
Scripture: John 15:12, 1 John 3:6, 1 John 3:9-10, 1 John 1:7-9, John 15:4, 1 John 3:24, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 3:23

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The post office in a small town received a letter that was addressed to "Any Sinner." It was undeliverable because every person in the town qualified! The Bible says, "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). It also tells us, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8).

If you have trusted Christ, you have been saved from your sin by the sacrificial work of Christ on the cross (see 1 John 1:7).

Does that mean, then, that you will never have a problem with sin again in your life? No. Like the bumper sticker says: "Christians are not perfect; just forgiven." Every believer is tempted, and may sin against God. If that happens, we're to confess our sin and receive God's gracious forgiveness (see 1 John 1:9). But there is a difference between committing a sin and continuing to practice sin. Let's see what the Bible has to say about "practicing sin."

What Does God Say?

1 John 3:9-10 (ESV) says "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. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who  does not love his brother."

• What prevents a Christian from making a practice of sin (v.9)?
• What two groups of "children" do you see in this passage (v. 10)?
• What two characteristics prove that people are "not of God"(v. 10)?

My Thoughts

The word, "abide," is seldom used in ordinary conversation these days, so when you hear it or read it in the Bible, you may wonder about its meaning. The dictionary says that to "abide" means "to remain in a place, to continue to be sure or firm, or to dwell."

Jesus talked to His disciples about "abiding" in John 15:4 (ESV): "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me."

1 John 3:6 (ESV) says, "No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him." Now let's put the dictionary definition into the verse to clarify what "abiding in him" means. It would read like this: "No one who continues to be sure and firm in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him."

How can you be sure and firm in Christ? Read 1 John 3:24 and answer the questions.

• Who abides in Christ? (Look at John 15:12 for one of Christ's commandments.)
• Who confirms that Christ dwells in the believer?

This verse, joined with 1 John 3:9, tells us that the Holy Spirit plants the seed of God's truth in a believer's heart, so that the transformed believer cannot continue to practice a life of sin, even though he or she can never be totally free from sin in this life.

My Part

Read through the Book of 1 John (it isn't very long) and jot down the reference for each verse where you find a form of the word "abide." Go back over your references and consider how each one affects you.

Memorize 2 Corinthians 5:17. It clarifies what God has done to enable a Christian to abide in Christ and not practice sin.

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