I was listening to a local call in show this evening when a pastor was explaining salvation. He mentioned that at the time one accepts Jesus Christ, they "forsake sin." When I heard this I wanted to ask him how he was doing at forsaking sin? Out of curiosity, I looked up the definition of forsake. According to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, the definition of forsake is to "renounce or turn away from entirely." If I were to apply this definition, literally, to what the pastor's explanation of salvation is, then I would have to assume that when a person comes to Christ they will never sin again. After all, if you turn away from something entirely that means that you have nothing to do with it ever again. Now, to be fair, I don't necessarily believe this pastor means what he said exactly in the light that I have cast it. But, I can't be certain because there is a significant portion of the Body of Christ that believes that if you sin once you have become a Christian, than you are not truly a believer or some variation of that form of condemnation. However, as I have stated before, these individuals, who believe a person should never sin again are the same ones that will promote sacrifices for sins like keeping short accounts, prayers of penance, confession of sin to get forgiveness and a myriad of other useless cleansing rituals. Of course, this begs the question, "If you have forsaken sin, why are you still sinning?"
"We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it." Romans 7:14-20
This may sound odd, but this is one of the most encouraging passages of scripture to me. Why? It is encouraging because it is Paul admitting that no matter how hard he tries, no matter how much he knows about the evil of sin, he cannot overcome it in his flesh. Remember, this is the same Paul who later admits in Philippians that his legalistic righteousness was flawless as a Pharisee. The same Paul who said he learned the secret of being content in any and every situation. To me this isn't Paul encouraging a believer to sin or that we should not avoid sinning if at all possible. This is Paul saying that sin is going to be with us as long as we are in these fleshly, fallen bodies and we will never snuff it out as long as we live. As one pastor put it, "if you want to stop sinning, pray for death." But, when Paul says that "nothing good lives in" him, he clarifies it by saying in his sinful nature. That is because something good does live in Him. That something is the Holy Spirit of God. And may I say that the reason Paul was struggling with his sinful nature, and the reason we do as well, is because the Holy Spirit was within him fighting against that sinful nature. If we think back to the time before we were saved, did we have the struggle with sin that we do now? Of course not. After I got saved, I realized just how sinfully terrible I am in the flesh. All of a sudden the light came on and all I saw was the filth that I called normal. And to think, I would call myself a good person. Yeah, right! In my eyes? Perhaps. In the eyes of a totally holy and righteous God? No way.
"To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:7-10
The goal of the Christian life is not to stop sinning. It is not to repent of every sin we have ever committed and live the rest of our lives trying not to repeat a sin. The goal of the Christian life is to start trusting the Lord and relying on His indwelling Spirit. I can't say that I have had an actual demon given to me, but I find it difficult enough dealing with sin without having a "messenger of Satan" sent to me. Whether Paul was actually dealing with an actual demon is another conversation. However, he equates this "thorn in his flesh" to suffering insults, hardships, persecutions and difficulties. Now, isn't this something Christ warned us would happen if we named His name? Throughout the New Covenant you see saint after saint suffering through a variety of trials because of their faith in Jesus. And this has not changed to this day. Many, if not all of us, have suffered for Christ's sake or soon will suffer for Him, even if it is just battling the daily onslaught of sin and the temptation that goes along with it. Without the struggles we face we would probably forget about Jesus. If we didn't struggle with sin or suffer for His name, how long would it take before we forgot all about Him or questioned our need for Him to begin with? That is why I took exception to the pastor saying that we forsake sin. Flee from it? Absolutely. Call it what it is when it rears its ugly head? Definitely. Stand against those trying to advance it? Without a doubt. Thank God for having to struggle against it, internally and externally? You better believe it. Because without it we would not be reminded of Who it is that has overcome the sin of the world and saved us from the clutches of its terrible destination. And that is why Paul, in the midst of his struggles could say that when he is weak, he is strong, and proudly proclaim to God his thanks for the One who will rescue him from this body of death.
"Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!" Romans 7:25
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