QUESTION
Why do Christians sin and how can we overcome sin?
ANSWER
Before I became a Christian, my understanding of right and wrong was shaped by various influences - my upbringing,1 the opinions of my peers, and societal norms absorbed through the media. Morality was fluid and subjective. However, when I became a Christian, a process of re-education began, with a much clearer standard of right and wrong defined by God’s word. Sin became personal, as God was now real and alive, and living a life to please Him became a priority.
Yet, it was not long before I realized that, despite my desire to do God’s will, the pull towards sin was still present. Sometimes, this pull was subtle and deceptive. This struggle can be a shocking and disturbing realization for many new believers - the ‘flesh’ nature remains even after salvation. The flesh represents the unconverted part of our human nature, inherited from Adam, which will only be fully removed when we reach heaven. It does not improve over time and, if anything, gets worse. It is often the key factor leading Christians into sin. The Apostle Paul captures this internal conflict, ‘For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would’, Gal. 5. 17.
Thankfully, God has provided several resources to help us resist sin and recover when we fall:
- The Spirit of God: When a person becomes a Christian, they are permanently indwelt by the Holy Spirit, one of the persons of the Godhead who inwardly empowers us. The Holy Spirit is grieved when we sin, Eph. 4. 30. We are called to ‘walk in the Spirit’ so that we do not fulfil the desires of the flesh, Gal. 5. 16.
- Forgiveness: Our relationship with God, as His children, is secure when we become believers. However, sin can disturb our fellowship with Him. When we do fail, God promises to forgive us if we confess our sins, ‘If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness’, 1 John 1. 9.
- The word of God: God’s ultimate goal is to conform us to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ. Romans chapter 8 verses 28 and 29 explains that, ‘all things work together for good’, specifically to make us more like Christ. This transformation often happens unconsciously as we immerse ourselves in scripture. Paul writes, ‘But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord’, 2 Cor. 3. 18. As the psalmist declares, ‘Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word’, Ps. 119. 9.
- Our hope: The hope of seeing the Lord Jesus face to face and becoming like Him should profoundly influence how we live. This hope has a purifying effect upon our lives, ‘And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure’, 1 John 3. 3.
- Our identity in Christ: Baptism symbolizes our union with Christ in His death and resurrection. It points to a profound truth: we have died to sin. This addresses the misconception that grace permits ongoing sin, ‘Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?’ Rom. 6. 1, 2. This is known as positional truth - a reality that God has established for us, independent of our behaviour. Paul urges us to ‘likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord’, v. 11.
- A way of escape: Temptation is inevitable, but God has promised that we will never face it without a means of escape. ‘There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it’, 1 Cor. 10. 13.
- Fellowship: God has not left us to struggle alone. The fellowship of other believers provides encouragement and accountability. Solomon reminds us that, ‘Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up’, Eccles. 4. 9, 10.
In conclusion, while Christians still struggle with sin due to our fallen human nature, God has provided us with powerful resources to resist sin and grow in holiness. Through the Holy Spirit, God’s word, the hope of seeing Christ, and the support of fellow believers, we can live lives that reflect our new identity in Christ, even amidst the ongoing battle with sin.
