Born of God and Cannot Sin Part 2

 

I John 3:2-9

"He who has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he CANNOT sin, because he has been born of God".

 

Our most recent study discussed "born" as being synonymous with "made".  As we consider that we are being "made of God" as a potter would fashion and form a vessel, this portion of scripture becomes clearer.

 

"Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness". This reminds me, in the book of Matthew, 7:21-23, where many who prophesied, cast out demons and did many wonders in His name were told: "I never knew you; depart from Me you who PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS". These folks were content to pursue spiritual gifts, given to each one for the profit of all, but, it appears they were not eager to let God finish His work in them.

 

"Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him". I Peter 4:1,2 states,"therefore, since Christ suffered in the flesh, ARM YOURSELF ALSO WITH THE SAME MIND, FOR HE WHO HAS SUFFERED IN THE FLESH HAS CEASED FROM SIN, so that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God". We must not refuse Him who speaks from heaven for as He speaks He is revealing Himself and the Father to us, so that we may know Him and not sin.

 

"He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil". The soul of man is a battlefield. With it we "bless God and curse man".  The scripture clearly depicts the salvation of the soul as a progressive work.  The soul that has received the Lord's salvation is Christ-like much like the young person who has received acceptance to medical school is a doctor: all the resources of  heaven, as with the medical college, are at the disposal of the accepted one to reach an expected end; completion in Christ for the soul and the ability to help people in physical need for the physician. In both cases, it takes education and diligent attention to fulfill. As we sin after we have received His salvation, we show that in those areas, Satan still exercises influence in our soul. As we receive Him who speaks from heaven, His ways of doing things overwhelms Satan's temptation and we DECIDE not to sin. We are being MADE OF GOD and WE DO NOT SIN! I am impressed that as we believe in Him through the Word He has made alive to us, we will be one with the Father and the Son, who are one. Jesus desire to be one with His Father was the strength of His sinless life!

  

George Harlow

(609) 312-1178

Born of God and Cannot Sin

1 John 3:2-9

 

 

"Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we SHALL BE, but we know WHEN HE IS REVEALED, WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. WHOEVER ABIDES IN HIM does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. Little children, let no one deceive you, He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. WHOEVER HAS BEEN BORN OF GOD DOES NOT SIN, for His (JESUS') seed remains in him; and HE CANNOT SIN, BECAUSE HE HAS BEEN BORN OF GOD".

 

First of all, we must differentiate between "born again" and "born of God". When an individual is born again, he/she has been forgiven their sins, and made a new creature, a new CREATION in Christ Jesus! One of the definitions of born in this discussion is "to be made". We understand that Jesus has been likened to a potter, we being like clay. The potter fashions and forms the clay into what he desires. We understand that Jesus is "a wise masterbuilder". A wise builder does not build the 3rd floor structure of a building before he builds the 2nd; in fact, he can't. Nor does Jesus. He teaches us, revelation by revelation, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to our newly created spirit. When John says, "Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him", I feel he is saying that whoever practices lawlessness has either rejected His revelation which comes by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit OR has not yet heard in the spirit. If it has not yet been revealed to you, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to overcome. As He reveals Himself to us, we KNOW more of Him and are empowered to fall not short. When we sin, we show that, at least in that activity, that we do not know Him. When we SEE what He reveals we are empowered to perform that in righteousness. Jesus is the Son of God and the Son of Man. He was tempted in every way we are, yet without sin. He wanted nothing more than to be one with His Father. The result: a sinless life.

 

As we seek, knock and ask, His holiness is revealed from faith to faith and we, by necessity, are undone. He reveals Himself to us: we see Him, we know Him and He is making us like Him!

To Be Partakers Of The Divine Nature

2 Peter 1:1-11

"Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, 'to those who have attained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ: Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may BE PARTAKERS OF THE DIVINE NATURE, having escaped the corruption of the world through lust'.

 

'But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, ADD to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverence, to perseverence godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, to brotherly kindness love. FOR IF THESE THINGS ARE YOURS AND ABOUND, YOU WILL BE NEITHER BARREN NOR UNFRUITFUL in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is short-sighted, even to blindness and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things YOU WILL NEVER STUMBLE; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ'."

 

This portion of scripture discusses the transformation of the saint from new birth to completion or maturity in Christ Jesus. These people have attained like precious faith and have been cleansed of their old sins. Yet they must add things to the faith they have attained: virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverence, godliness, brotherly kindness and love. Lacking these fruits indicates short-sightedness: you are not looking past the prayer to receive your sins forgiven to see the end of your faith: the salvation of your soul. The entrance to be supplied to you into the everlasting kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ comes with your diligence to make your call and election sure, becoming a partaker of the divine nature.

 

Peter called himself a bondservant. What do you call yourself?

mph501@yahoo.com to discuss this or previous posts

Tradition or Truth: By Which Shall We Live?

 Mark 7:5-9

 

"Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, 'Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?' He answered and said to them, 'Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: 'This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctines the commandments of men'. 'For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men- the washing of pitchers and cups and many other such things you do'. He said to them, 'All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition'."

 

The Jewish people were well aware of God's supernatural hand: the plagues that ultimately freed them from Egyptian rule; daily manna from Heaven to feed them in the wilderness; a promised land where they would lack nothing. Yet with all the good He had done, their hearts were far from Him. When presented with their Messiah, they mostly rejected Him, instead seeking to kill the One who could save them from their sins. The Pharisees and scribes - those who studied the Law and prophets and were in the best position to know when He had come, were the worst offenders. They served themselves and were unfruitful in Him.

 

We, the church, comprised of the ministers as well as the rest of the body, will be tempted in the same way. We must speak to the mountain that would stand between us and becoming a fruitful branch in Christ Jesus, saying unto that high thing which is any/every self-serving notion that would keep us from walking as He walked, "be removed, be cast into the sea, and doubt it not in our hearts, but believe it, and we shall have IT" - freedom from the bondage of self-service.

Greatness is Serving

Matthew 20:20-28
"Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him. And He said to her, 'What do you wish?' She said to Him, 'Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.'  But Jesus answered and said, 'You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?'  They said to Him, 'We are able.'

So He said to them, 'You will indeed drink my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but for whom it is prepared by My Father'. And when the ten heard it, they were greatly displeased with the two brothers. But Jesus called them to Himself and said, 'You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you, but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life a ransom for many.' "

What if we current day saints came to the Father in the name of Jesus Christ, asking Him to show us what it means to serve as Jesus did? What if we asked Him to show us how to love Him by keeping His commands and laying our lives down for our friends? What if our focus was on Him and what He knows we need to overcome rather than what we think is best for Him to do for us?

"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten(Reference here to Job 5:7; Hebrews 12:6). Therefore be zealous(or eager) to repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sit down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." (Revelation 3:19-22)

In order to sit with Jesus on His thone, we must overcome those things that Jesus knows bind us to this world's ways. Lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, pride of life produced from the root of self-service. Selfish ambition and envy produce unrighteous fruit- nothing good in Jesus Christ as an answer to carnality. He stands at the door of your heart. Open the door so He can get in!

The Centurion's Great Faith

(Matthew 8:5-10, 23-26; 28:18; Luke 8:22-25)

 

 

"Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, saying, 'Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.' And Jesus said to him, 'I will come and heal him.'  The centurion answered and said,  'Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, Go, and he goes; and to another, Come, and he comes; and to my servant, Do this, and he does it'. When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed (which included His disciples),  'Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel'."  Uh Oh.  (Matthew 8:5-10)

 

Why was Jesus so impressed by what the centurion said? Was it because he had a good understanding of authority?  I would think that a person who understands and is willing to submit to authority as     opposed to one who is prone to rebellion would be set to do well under the hand of the Lord, yet is this the point Jesus is making? Where would be the analogy between the centurion's understanding of regimental authority and the deliverance of his servant from torment?

 

"All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth" Jesus Christ (Matthew 28:18)

 

The fact that the centurion understands authority is good. He clearly knows that Jesus was not only able but willing to heal his servant. The fact that he UNDERSTOOD that Jesus need not come to his home but that He only speak a word and his servant would be healed puts his UNDERSTANDING right up there with Peter's UNDERSTANDING that Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the living God". It is one thing to know who Jesus is; it's another thing altogether to know for sure that what Jesus says will pierce the natural surroundings/findings with the His supernatural truth!

 

"Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, 'Lord, save us. We are perishing!' But He said to them, 'Why are you fearful, O you of LITTLE faith? '(Uh Oh) Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm." (Matthew 8:23-26)

 

"Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples. AND HE SAID TO THEM (only speak a word and it shall be), 'Let us cross over to the other side of the lake'. And they launched out. But as they sailed, He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy. And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, 'Master, Master, we are perishing!' Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased and there was a calm. But He said to them, Where is your FAITH? (I wish the centurion was in this boat! Just kidding.)  And they were afraid and marveled, saying to one another, 'who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water and they obey Him!' "

 

Jesus had spoken something to them and He expected them to hold on to it. Quite a contrast. The centurion knew and therefore acted and received. The disciples didn't hear and were afraid and marveled even saying, "Who can this be?" We know the disciples went on and grew in Christ Jesus. Where do we find ourselves in this comparison?

The Wisdom That Is From Above

 James 3:13-18

 

"Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your heart do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace."

 

We should understand that God attempts to inspire us in the components of wisdom by the Holy Spirit. It is in the soul where we make our decision to receive it. You have heard it said, "a chain is only as strong as it's weakest link". If the soul is weak, either because we have not yet heard or having heard, are unwilling to do (wayside ground), the blessing of His grace will produce little, if any, fruit. It falls to the ground as a torrent of water does little to help parched ground- it rushes past before it may be taken in. Satan's wisdom too often finds a place for rumination in the soul. At that point, the carnality of man is enticed, drawn away from the peace of His wisdom.

 

 

The answer lies in the soul's willingness to be a peacemaker. God's inspiration by the Holy Spirit awakens, alerts, reminds and warns us. (Without this empowerment it is impossible to overcome. Satan strikes at the weakest part of our souls.) He strengthens us to make peace (or produce peace in a place of temptation), displaying the fruit of righteousness! Be wise and understand this battle. As He inspires you in this, there will be less ground for Satan to sow his seed! What a blessing to recognize Satan's assault AS he comes to steal rather than after he has stolen. Christ is being formed in you!