Lessons for Living from the Bible in Everyday English by Dennis Magee

There is a New Testament scripture that tells us “If we deliberately continue to sin, there remains no more forgiveness for sin, because we have rejected the only Salvation there is”. On the other hand, the Apostle Paul tells us in Romans, chapter 7, that he cannot stop doing what he shouldn’t do and can’t make himself do what he should do. So, all of us, even Paul, is guilty of deliberate sin. Paul said “Who can save me from this body of sin and death?”

Left on our own, and ruled by our sinful nature, we can’t escape deliberate sin and its consequences, which is eternal separation from God. But then Paul says “Thanks be to God, it has been done by Jesus Christ; so now in my inner being I serve the righteous law of God, though in my body I still serve the sinful nature.”

When Christ died, was resurrected, and returned to God, He left us His Holy Spirit. When we truly accept Christ as our Savior, we receive the Holy Spirit. And so Paul says “The law of the spirit of life sets us free from the law of the spirit of sin and death; the controlling power of the Holy Spirit sets us free from the controlling power of the sinful nature; we are not enslaved by it or obligated to follow it as we did before we received the Holy Spirit.”

Now if we sin, we are convicted by the Holy Spirit, feel guilt, and repent. Repentance is a change of mind and will arising from sorrow for sin and leading to transformation of one’s life. Our continuing to sin is due to our fallen human condition; but if we truly have accepted and not rejected the only salvation there is, we will have the Holy Spirit within us and will be in a continual state of repentance. Those who deliberately and defiantly continue to sin and don’t feel guilt or the need to repent haven’t received the Holy Spirit because their faith has not been real, and so they have rejected the only salvation there is. There are many who go through the motions of living the Christian life whose faith was never genuine. In the New Testament (2 Corinthians) Paul says “Examine yourselves to see if you are truly in the faith; do you not know that the spirit of Christ (the Holy Spirit) lives in you?; unless you fail to pass the test.”

And so when we sin, even deliberately, but feel guilt and repent because of the indwelling Holy Spirit, God forgives us. We have a union with Christ because we have accepted Him as our Savior and trust that we are considered righteous by God through this union. Though we displease Him from time to time, just as a child might, that doesn’t change our union with Him no more than a relationship with a son or daughter would change. So we can take comfort in the fact that though we sin, and will continue to throughout this life, we will spend eternity with God due to our union with Christ. We need to remember that Christ’s sacrifice covers our past, present, and future sins. But He still expects us to try not to sin in all good conscience.