Is a Sinless Life Possible (Part 3 of 5)

Paul frequently framed the life of a believer in terms of a battle between two opposing forces: the flesh and the Spirit.  In Paul’s writings, "the flesh” is consistently portrayed as the unstoppable superhuman force “in opposition” preventing a believer from doing the works of God, while “the Spirit” offers the Divine Assistance capable of overcoming the flesh.

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.” (Gal 5:16-17). 

According to Paul, a human being does not have the power to overcome “the flesh”, because “it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,” (Rom 8:7). 

“For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Rom 8:6-8)

The only way the flesh can be overcome is through the Divine Assistance of the Spirit, as written, “Walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh,” and “if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Rom 8:11).

The Law reveals the type and nature of sin, but the Law is not the source of sin; “May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law,” (Rom 7:7).  Sin existed before the Law, “sin indeed was in the world before the law was given,” (Rom 5:13).  Sin did not originate because of the Law, as some might argue, but through the weakness of man, as testified by the writer of Hebrews, “for finding fault with them (the people of Israel), He says, ‘Behold the days are coming,’ says the LORD, ‘When I will effect a New Covenant with the House of Israel and with the House of Judah,” (Heb 8:8). 

If sin is to be eliminated, God must either change the definition of sin, which requires a change in the Law, or God must change the nature of man.  Many believers espouse the former approach, a lowering of the standard until the Law is eliminated, “where there is no law, there is not transgression,” (Rom 4:15).  One need look no farther than our current society, to understand the popularity of this approach taught under the general heading of "tolerance".

However, the Law has not been eliminated or altered.  It remains as unchanging and eternal as the very nature of God the Author, as Jesus said, “Until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished,” (Matt 5:18). Since the Law cannot be altered or removed, sin can only be eliminated by transforming the nature of man, removing man’s inclination toward sin, “You must be born again.”

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. ⁶ That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷ Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” (John 3:5-7)

At the very heart of the New Covenant we find God’s promise to change the nature of man by writing the Law on a person’s heart (Jer 31:33-34), empowering each person to live a life free from sin.  The fact that this has not occurred in every believer stands as evidence that the fullness of the New Covenant has not come into effect.

-- Scott 

Is a Sinless Life Possible (Part 2 of 5)

A hierarchy exists within the creation that positions the heavenly realm as superior in power and authority to the earthly creation.  Scripture may speak of a future time when believers will judge the angels (1Cor 6:3), but in the current age, angels have power and authority over mankind, limited only by the providence of God’s eternal plan.  Under the existing hierarchy, the natural person will continually struggle and ultimately conclude that it is impossible to resist “the power of sin”. 

In the Garden, the superhuman power of Satan was able to overwhelm Adam and Eve at a time when they were separated from God.  In a similar way, the “daughters of man” also succumb to the superhuman power of the “sons of God” (Gen 6:4), leaving the creation of the Nephilim a foregone conclusion once angels abandoned their own domain and came down to the earth.  If evil and temptation are superhuman in origin, then how can mere mortals resist the power of sin?  Answer that question, and you have taken a significant step toward living a sinless life.

When Jesus dwelt on the earth, He was made “like His brethren in all things” (Heb 2:17), “made for a little while lower than the angels” (Heb 2:9), after the pattern of Adam (Rom 5:14), “tempted in all things as we are,” (Heb 4:15).  To be “made for a little while lower” is to surrender one’s own power and authority, as with Jesus Who “did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but  emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men,” (Phil 2:6-7).  Yet, in this submissive condition, living with the same frailties and weaknesses of the flesh as you and I, Jesus lived “obedient to the point of death” (Phil 2:8), as written, “A high priest…who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin,” (Heb 4:15).

If Jesus came as a type of Adam who surrendered to sin, and “like His brethren” who “all have sinned”, then how was Jesus able to resist the superhuman power behind sin?  Surprising to many, the answer cannot be that Jesus was God.  If the explanation for Jesus’ sinless life is relegated to Jesus’ role in the Godhead, then it becomes impossible for any individual believer to fulfill the commandment to “walk in the same manner as He walked,” (1John 2:6), and “Resist the Devil” (James 4:7).  We are not individually gods with power in the heavenly realms, despite the insistence of Satan (Gen 3:5), and the attitude of secular humanists.  So what power did Jesus, made “like His brethren in all things”, draw upon to resist the temptation of Satan?

It seems reasonable to surmise that a superhuman force can only be resisted by the application of an opposing and more powerful supernatural force, a bigger stick, a larger engine, more horsepower, or greater thrust.  In scripture, the superhuman force given to resist sin is “the Helper, the Holy Spirit,” (John 14:26).  The Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus at His baptism (Matt 3:16), was the power behind His resurrecti0n (Rom 1:4), and remained on Jesus through His ascension, (Acts 1:2).  It is the power of the Spirit, and not Jesus’ position in the Godhead that empowered Him to live a sinless life, as written, “God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power,” (Acts 10:38). 

The death of Jesus was the payment required for each of our sins, but the life of Jesus empowered by the Spirit is the pattern given in scripture for believers to overcome sin, to “walk in the same manner as He walked,” (1John 2:6).  If sin is likened to the waves that drive our ship toward the rocks, it is the wind (Spirit) that can be captured in our sails to overcome the negative forces of the waves.  

Happy 4th - Scott

Is a Sinless Life Possible? (Part 1 of 5)

As a believer, I desire to walk as my Master walked, in an obedient life free from sin.  However, I find myself wondering if a sinless life is achievable for the believer.  The general consensus of believers, supported by personal experience, would say no.  After all, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (Rom 3:23).  As John wrote, “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us,” (1John 1:8).  Yet, scripture also holds out the hope of a condition “freed from sin” (Rom 6:7, 6:18), offering the potential to live a sinless life.  If it is possible to be “freed from sin”, then why is a sinless life so difficult to achieve?  Why does sin hold such a powerful sway over our lives preventing us from doing what we ought to do, while at the same time, enticing us to perform the very sins we despise?

These questions are not new.  The apocalyptic writings of the first and second century before Christ, dealt with many subjects including the origin and nature of evil.  One tradition (called Enochic) linked the introduction of evil to the rebellion of the fallen angels (1Enoch 10:8), a position apparently supported by the Essenes in the Qumran community, and reflected in the Book of Revelation, “And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war,” (Rev 12:7).  In the Enochic understanding,

“The transgression of the created order (that is, the boundaries between heaven and earth) by fallen angels (1Enoch 7:11) leads to violence and bloodshed teaching humans ‘to make swords of iron and weapons and shields and breastplates and every instrument of war’ (1Enoch 8:1), and to idolatry, ‘and there was much godlessness on the earth’ (1Enoch 8:2).” [1]

The other predominant position (called Adamic) held that evil was introduced into the creation through the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden.  Paul was a strong proponent of the Adamic position in his writings, “Just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned,” (Rom 8:12).  In short, Second Temple Jews principally argued two parallel, but virtually mutually exclusive explanations for the origin of evil, the “Enochic” and the “Adamic” positions.

“According to the first (Enochic), the sins committed by…the fallen angels, the ‘sons of God,’ were the source of evil and the cause of the state of the world.  Quite different stories (Adamic), attributed the state of the world to Adam’s disobedience in general, or more specifically to Eve’s seduction by the serpent, also circulated in Jewish works of the Second Temple period, as well as in the New Testament…There can be no doubt that Paul belongs to the Adamic camp.” [2] 

Whether evil originated through the cosmic rebellion of angels or the deception of Adam and Eve in the Garden by Satan, the origin of evil has, at its source, a superhuman angelic element.  Whether leading a heavenly rebellion or deceiving Eve, it is Satan who tempts us (1Cor 7:5), for “the devil has sinned from the beginning,” (1John 3:8).   

The superhuman force behind sin, referred to in scripture as “the power of sin” (1Cor 15:56), is reflected in Paul’s words, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places,” (Eph 6:12).  If sin is superhuman in origin, how is mankind, created lower than the angels, capable of resisting the “spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places”? 

...to be continued - Scott

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[1] Paul the Jew, Gabriele Boccaccini & Carlos A Segovia, 2016 Edition, page 187

[2] Paul the Jew, Gabriele Boccaccini & Carlos A Segovia, 2016 Edition, page 23-24