The Potter's Molded Clay

“If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” (1 John 1:8-10) Sinless perfection, is this possible? John Wesley seemed to believe so, but the word of God does state otherwise. Though one could see where he might make such inferences from Scripture. “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 seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.” (1 John 3:4-9) However, is this speaking of a state of sinless perfection reached in the life of the believer? 

​I would urge you to reexamine those texts, study them in light of the entirety of the word of God; especially regarding texts that speak of sin in the life of a believer. Sinless perfection I would argue is a heretical view, it’s a distortion of the gospel of our Lord and Master Jesus Christ. The Lamb of God died for our sins, not to make us perfect but to atone for the sins of His people. That included past sins, present sins, and future sins. If there are present and future sins covered by the shedding of His blood and giving of His life, then that certainly means that we are indeed still going to struggle with sin even after having been brought near by the blood of our Lord. Paul Washer has judiciously and precisely stated, “The evidence of genuine conversion is not sinless perfection, but a life marked by genuine repentance and confession. The one who professes faith in Christ and yet lives in sin with little or no brokenness or divine discipline should be greatly concerned.”

Let me now quote an excerpt from R.C. Sproul’s, “Pleasing God”. “Someone might answer: ‘We could still sin against Him in ignorance.’ But the perfect love with which we are called to love God is a perfect love of our minds as well as our hearts. If we perfectly loved God with all of our minds, from whence could this ignorance flow? One who loves God perfectly with the mind is perfectly diligent in studying and mastering the word of God. The perfectly loving mind perceives correctly the light into our paths. A perfectly loving mind doesn’t make errors in understanding Scripture. But could we not still make mistakes because our minds are less than perfect? I ask why our minds are less than perfect. It is not because we lack brains or the faculty of thinking. Our thinking is clouded because our hearts are clouded. Take away the cloud from our hearts and our minds are illumined by the clear light of God. A perfect love would yield perfect obedience. The only perfected love this world has ever seen was the love of Christ, who exhibited perfect obedience. Jesus loved the Father perfectly. He sinned not at all, either willfully or in ignorance.”

​If we could live claiming sinless perfection, what need would we of an Advocate, a Mediator, or an Intercessor? ​“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (1 John 2:1) Let me be as transparent as possible, often times when I look back at when by God’s grace through faith in Christ He caused be to be born again by His Spirit; upon regeneration, I had such zeal, suchfervor for God, a hunger for righteousness and holiness. By His grace He caused a great many sins to be conquered. As time went on, I found myself looking to the victory over sin, and how it had been thus long since it last happened. However, the moment I took my eyes off Christ, I began to fall into the very things that by His grace He allowed to be conquered. Once I fell into sin, it opened the door to more sin, and this in turn caused my eyes to continue to be off Christ, looking back at those times of loss/defeat to sin. That closeness to God would not be felt during those times, but instead it felt as if there was an immeasurable void between us. It had me questioning if I was indeed falling into the sin, giving it power over me, or if I were self-deceived and it had power over me. Such doubts and feelings I knew to be of the enemy. There was an is no mistaking the power of God in the work He had done in me and continues to do in me. I could never have changed myself from who I once was to who I know am in Christ. Once again, as Voddie Baucham has said, “I’m not who I ought to be, but Hallelujah, I’m not who I was.” To further quote Voddie Baucham, “The new birth is not you bending your will towards God. The new birth is God making you new and giving you a will bent toward Him; that you then exercise by God’s grace.” 

​The new birth was evident to myself, but more than justmyself, it was evident to those around me, most certainly with my family. In fact, when I was first regenerated, my wife too was born again not long after I. In our zeal for God and His word, we sought to obey His command to make disciples. We reached out to everyone in our families, friends as well. Of all that we reached out to, none really wanted anything to do with us again, it most definitely changed some relationships, causingsome to end as those people wanted nothing to do with us. In fact, my own mother upon our conversations, said that we were coming off as extremists, if I remember correctly. If not, it was certainly within the realm of the same meaning with whatever word she used. By God’s grace through speaking the truth in love, He drew my mother unto Himself and caused her to be born again. I’m getting a bit off topic, but my point was to say that even upon being born again, I found myself in sin, I still find myself in sin. Perfection is not possible this side of heaven.To quote Richard Baxter, “This life was not intended to be the place of our perfection, but the preparation for it.” 

​The life of a believer is one of repentance not perfection. In fact, James White has accurately stated, “The standard is not perfection, the standard is repentance.” The life of a true disciple of Christ is one that is perpetually repenting. Martin Luther had it right, the life of a believer is “Simul Justus et Peccator”, simultaneously justified and sinner. All too often can I relate with the Apostle Paul. “For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. I find then a law, that evil is present with me,the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God – through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.” (Romans 7:14-25)

​Let me exhort you, to continue to keep your gaze upon Christ. Take not your eyes from Him even for a moment, for He is the Author and Finisher of our faith. “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1-2) Sinless perfection is nothing more than a heretical doctrine, one of which attacks at the very heart of the Gospel. Christ did die to redeem His bride, and perfect her, but that perfection will never be accomplished this side of heaven. Hence why we undergo sanctification, we need to grow in holiness, grow in Christlikeness. 

​Let us close with the word of Christ. “For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as sons: ‘My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; for whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.’ If you endure chastening, God deals with you as sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. Now no chastening seems to be joyful in the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:3-11)