Saint Or Sinner?

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Category: Doctrines

Published on Saturday, 28 March 2009 05:59

Written by Ryan Hicks

SAINT OR SINNER?

By Ryan Hicks

Today there are many false teachers in the church today. It is these same type people that Paul said:

Acts 20:29-31
29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
31 Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

These people that have given "heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron" (1 Timothy 4:2) continually compromise the word of God. They are "ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ" (Jude 4). They may pretend to serve God and His Christ, but it is simply another Christ and another God they serve. Paul talks of these type people when he says, "They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate" (1 Timothy 1:16).

These ravening wolves in sheep's clothing (Matthew 7:15) seek to deceive the saints into thinking they are sinners. They pervert the whole gospel and the reason for Jesus' very coming (Matthew 1:21), and use the Bible to try to make an excuse for sin.

The truth is that anyone that is truly born-again is "a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). Paul made it clear that "they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts" (Galatians 5:24). They are no longer sinners but they have become saints (i.e. holy ones).

1 Peter 4:17-18
17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?
18 And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

Notice that the righteous are scarcely saved, and the ungodly and sinner do not even appear in the salvation role call. People claiming that they must sin every day in thought, word, and deed are self-admitted sinners and have no salvation. The Bible says of Jesus, "[H]e shall save his people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21). You cannot believe that and also believe that you must sin every day, or even that you may commit sin at all and get by with it because you call yourself saved. The truly saved are saved from their sins, and not just from sin's punishment (See What Are You Saved From?).

2 Thessalonians 1:7-10
7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
10 When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.

Notice that "them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ" will be punished with everlasting destruction. No one that does not obey the gospel is saved. And yet these false teachers claim "once you are saved, you are always saved." They try to make a mockery of the Bible and its teachings against sin. Jesus said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15), and went on to say, "If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me" (John 14:23-24). This is clear. True believers obey Jesus, the unsaved do not. There is no in-between area. You cannot serve two masters (Matthew 6:24)!

1 John 5:1-3
1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.
2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

Those who are true believers, the truly saved, "love God, and keep his commandments." His commandments ARE NOT grievous, except to the unsaved who choose to rebel and serve Satan rather than God.

SATAN'S MINISTERS' (2 CORINTHIANS 11:14-15) ARGUMENTS FOR SIN

I will put my comments in black and the arguments of Satan's ministers in blue. Scripture verses will be put in red.

The Bible says, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8).

No, the Bible does not say that. The NIV does, but the Bible and the Greek say, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." These new "bibles" generally are produced by sinners and Christ-denying apostates. They want to use language that conveys freedom to sin, rather than the original language that conveys freedom from sin!

All this verse means is that if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us! One of the central themes of the gospel is that "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). When you deny this and say that you have no sin (i.e. have never committed a sin), then you deceive yourself and the truth is not in you! You must acknowledge that you are a sinner in need of a Saviour to be saved. Otherwise you are denying Christ's very reasoning for dying for you, to save you from your sin!

This does not mean that once someone is born-again and made free from sin (John 8:30-36; Romans 6:6-7; Galatians 5:24; 1 John 3:1-10; 5:18; etc.), that they cannot boldly say, "The blood of Jesus Christ hath cleansed me from all sin (1 John 1:9). I am free from sin!" For this is the true statement of a believer. Now, if one gets saved and starts claiming that they have never sinned, then they are self-deceived and the truth is not in them!

If we could live free from sin we would not need Jesus.

This is a fools argument. The only reason that we can live free from sin in the first place is because of Jesus, and without Him we would be lost. The Bible says, "because as he is, so are we in this world" (1 John 4:17). We are to live like Christ lived, that is without sin. Peter puts it this way, "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously" (1 Peter 2:21-23).

Jesus is our example (1 Peter 2:21). He is "the Apostle and High Priest of our profession" (Hebrews 3:1). He is "the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2). Without Him we are nothing more than sinners hopelessly lost in sin and blinded by the devil (2 Corinthians 4:3-6). No one that is saved from all sin is saying that they are doing it on their own or that they do not need the Lord Jesus Christ. We rely solely on the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and His precious blood to keep us cleansed from all sin and enable us to stay free from sin as we walk in the light (1 John 1:7-9).

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT SINNERS

Below are the 21 occurrences of the word "sinner" in the Bible. You can look up "sinners" also in the 46 times that it occurs (Genesis 13:13; Numbers 16:38; 1 Samuel 15:18; Psalms 1:1, 5; 25:8; 26:9; 51:13; 104:35; Proverbs 1:10; 13:21; 23:17; Isaiah 1:28; 13:9; 33:14; Amos 9:10; Matthew 9:10-11; 11:19; 26:45; Mark 2:15-17; 14:41; Luke 5:30, 32; 6:32-33, 34 [twice]; 7:34; 13:2, 4; 15:1-2; John 9:31; Romans 5:8, 19; Galatians 2:15, 17; 1 Timothy 1:9, 15; Hebrews 7:26; 12:3; James 4:8; Jude 15) and see in both cases that a sinner is always distinguished from the saved, righteous believer. Thus, the testimony of one that says they are saved and also a sinner is that they are really unsaved and mostly likely have never been born-again.

Proverbs 11:31
31 Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth: much more the wicked and the sinner.

Proverbs 13:6
6 Righteousness keepeth him that is upright in the way: but wickedness overthroweth the sinner.

Proverbs 13:22
22 A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children: and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.

Ecclesiastes 2:26
26 For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom, and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner he giveth travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him that is good before God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit.

Ecclesiastes 7:26
26 And I find more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her.

Ecclesiastes 8:12
12 Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him:

Ecclesiastes 9:2
2 All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good, so is the sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.

Ecclesiastes 9:18
18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war: but one sinner destroyeth much good.

Isaiah 65:20
20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed.

Luke 7:37
37 And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment,

Luke 7:39
39 Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.

Luke 15:7
7 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

Luke 15:10
10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

Luke 18:13
13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

Luke 19:7
7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.

John 9:16
16 Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.

John 9:24-25
24 Then again called they the man that was blind, and said unto him, Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner.
25 He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.

Romans 3:7
7 For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie unto his glory; why yet am I also judged as a sinner?

James 5:20
20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

1 Peter 4:18
18 And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

One of the false prophets of today told me that because I said that the Lord Jesus Christ freed me from sin by His blood that I am a liar, because no one can be free from sin. I simply told him that he is calling Paul (Romans 6:6-7); Jesus (John 8:30-36); Peter (1 Peter 4:1); and others who taught freedom from sin liars also. He did not know what to say when he read those verses, but he still was clinging to his doctrine of devils because it made him feel good about committing sin. It helped him to quite his conscience which was thoroughly rebuking him, saying, "Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?" (Romans 6:1-2).

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT SAINTS

Below are the 3 times the word "saint" occurs in the Bible. Note that the word saint (or saints) in the New Testament is the Greek word hagios and the word for it in the Old Testament is qadowsh. Both mean "holy one." The very usage of the term saint in reference to believers proves them to be no longer sinners, rather they are holy ones obeying 1 Peter 1:15-16 and Hebrews 12:14.

Psalms 106:16
16 They envied Moses also in the camp, and Aaron the saint of the LORD.

Daniel 8:13
13 Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot?

Philippians 4:21
21 Salute every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren which are with me greet you.

The term "saints" occurs 95 times in the Bible and can be seen in the following Scriptures: Deuteronomy 33:2-3; 1 Samuel 2:9; 2 Chronicles 6:41; Job 5:1; 15:15; Psalms 16:3; 30:4; 31:23; 34:9; 37:28; 50:5; 52:9; 79:2; 85:8; 89:5, 7; 97:10; 116:15; 132:9, 16; 145:10; 148:14; 149:1, 5, 9; Proverbs 2:8; Daniel 7:18, 21-22, 25, 27; Hosea 11:12; Zechariah 14:5; Matthew 27:52; Acts 9:13, 32, 41; 26:10; Romans 1:7; 8:27; 12:13; 15:25-26, 31; 16:2, 15; 1 Corinthians 1:2; 6:1-2; 14:33; 16:1, 15; 2 Corinthians 1:1; 8:4; 9:1, 12; 13:13; Ephesians 1:1, 15, 18; 2:19; 3:8, 18; 4:12; 5:3; 6:18; Philippians 1:1; 4:22; Colossians 1:2, 4, 12, 26; 1 Thessalonians 3:13; 2 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Timothy 5:10; Philemon 5, 7; Hebrews 6:10; 13:24; Jude 3, 14; Revelation 5:8; 8:3-4; 11:18; 13:7, 10; 14:12; 15:3; 16:6; 17:6; 18:24; 19:8; 20:9.

CAN A SAINT COMMIT SIN AFTER THEY ARE SAVED?

Many people try to deceive the simple by saying, "If we could be free from sin then we could not sin after we are saved." This is the devil's logic. It assumes something with no Scriptural proof backing it. If someone is freed from any other bondage other than sin these same people would acknowledge that a person could go back into that bondage, but when it comes to their love (i.e. sin) they will defend their "right" to commit sin under the guise of forgiveness.

1 John 2:1
1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

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