Posts Tagged ‘sin’
Should everything I do be done in plain sight?
Question: I read through John recently, and John 3:20-21 stood out to me. I can’t quite make sense of how to apply it. My understanding is that I should do everything in plain sight so that everyone can observe that I’m doing nothing wrong. But I’m unsure of how far it extends. If someone were…
Read MoreSins of Ignorance!
by Russell H. Dunaway via Guardian of Truth XXVII: 12, pp. 372-373, June 16, 1983 Perhaps one of the most controversial issues among brethren today is that which arises concerning the child of God and his sins of ignorance. Some brethren teach that if a child of God sins through ignorance, that sin of ignorance will not…
Read MoreDoes the baptism of the Holy Spirit give you the power to fight sin?
Question: Hi! Does the baptism of the Holy Spirit give you the power to fight sin? Does the baptism of the Holy Spirit give you the power to overcome sin? Answer: Peter was baptized with the Holy Spirit: “Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, ‘John indeed baptized with water, but…
Read MoreCan you explain to me what willful sin is?
Question: How would you describe willful sin? Can you explain to me what willful sin is? Answer: Willful sin is a purposeful choice to sin, even though you know God is against it and that you should not do it. It means you are putting your will above God’s. Parents often see this in their…
Read MoreSelling Yourself
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2005/07/SellingYourself.mp3 Text: I Kings 21:1-26 I. Have you heard the old phrase that someone had sold his soul to the Devil? A. Unfortunately, it is not just some mythological idea. It has some biblical basis. B. Elijah, in I Kings 21:20, accuses Ahab of selling himself when he took possession of Naboth’s vineyard. 1. Notice though that Ahab…
Read MoreConfessing Our Faults
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/ConfessingOurFaults.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Psalm 32 I. I John 1:8-10 A. Forgiveness of our sins is not automatic. God has always required action on our part to gain His forgiveness. B. In this passage we learn that God wants us to confess our faults. II. Confession has always been required by God A. In the garden, God…
Read MoreWhat is spiritual death?
Question: What exactly is spiritual death? Some say that spiritual death is a separation from God. But what exactly is being separated? A physical separation, personal separation, or soul separation after physical death? If it was a physical separation, then why did God continue to have a relationship with Adam and Eve by clothing them…
Read MoreHow could there be sin before Moses when there was no law?
Question: I need to understand Noah’s history. It says in Genesis 6:9 that Noah was a just man; that he walked with God. But what does it mean by “just?” I mean, there wasn’t a law at the time, Moses didn’t exist. The same about Cain killing Abel. God told him to do good when…
Read MoreThe Continuation of Slavery
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/SlaveryInTheBiblePart1.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: John 8:28-36 I. It is difficult to imagine, but slavery continues in the United States A. Oh, I know that slavery officially ended with the passing of the thirteenth amendment on December 6, 1865. B. Yet slavery continues to this day. C. Perhaps you are thinking, “I’m an American. I was born…
Read MoreWhy does my sinful ex seem to have it so good?
Question: I am truly struggling with this. I was married for 21 years now divorced due to infidelity and a horrific divorce. My ex is now with the women he committed adultery with. He continues to come around my family as well as our friends bragging about how God is now blessing him. It seems…
Read MoreCan you explain what “if we sin willfully” in Hebrews 10:26 means?
Question: I am confused at what I am reading in Hebrews 10:26-27: “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries” (ESV). I am confused because I know…
Read MoreWhat does it mean to love the world?
Question: What does it mean to love the world? Answer: “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world–the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of…
Read MoreHow do I turn myself around?
Question: I am a 30-year-old single man. I lost my virginity about the age of 15, but the girl couldn’t stay with me as she was a foreigner and had to return home. Having sex with women became a priority in life for me, but I have been single for most of my life and…
Read MoreCould Jesus have been flawed like other men?
Question: I wanted to speak more with you. I hope not to offend you. I know that we are very different people and have made different choices for different reasons. I do believe in a god, but he’s obviously different than yours. I have read passages of the Bible too, and I would love to…
Read MoreHow were the foreskins disposed of under the Old Law?
Question: I am curious: in the Old Testament, what was done with the piece of foreskin that is a type of putting off of the sins of the flesh (Colossians 2:11) by the circumcision of Christ? We know that Jesus was the sin offering acceptable to God and as such his body of flesh is…
Read MoreDoes God Send People to Hell?
by Jesse M Kelly via Preceptor, p.12 – Vol.57, No.6, June 2008. While discussing the subject of “Hell” with a lady acquaintance one day, she said to me, “I just cannot conceive of a merciful God sending one to Hell to suffer eternally.” We readily agreed with her. God doesn’t send people to Hell. He…
Read MoreDo I need to fix all my past sins in order to repent? Must I confess sins I did years ago before the church?
Question: Hello! Okay, I am going to tell you some things that have happened over the course of about six years. I am currently 20 years old. When I was 14 years old, I was baptized. Soon after, I began to mess up and commit sin. (By the way, I do not have a perfect…
Read MoreI Got Sick of the World
by Gerry Sandusky “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers but with the precious blood of Christ” (I Peter 1:18-19). My religious background could be summed up by saying there was almost none. My Baptist grandmother took me to the Methodist…
Read MoreIf just thinking about doing oral sex with a woman is as bad as doing it, then why not just do it?
Question: If just thinking about doing oral sex with a woman is as bad as doing it, then why not just do it? Answer: To illustrate why your argument fails, let me make a similar one: “If hatred is just as bad as murder (I John 3:15), then why not just commit murder?” The answer…
Read MoreAre our sins completely wiped away or will they be remembered at Judgment in some way?
Question: In II Corinthians 5:10, it reads: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” Then in Hebrews 8:12, it reads: “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their…
Read MoreWhat sins under the Old Testament remain as sins today?
Question: Hi there. I really like your work and biblical analysis. I read your answer on “Which scriptures are applicable today?” and I have some questions to ask. I am currently dealing with which sins are applicable to life today. I have to, of course. check myself that I am not motivated to discard these…
Read MoreHow can there be no condemnation if Christians can sin?
Question: I’ve been trying to fit Romans 8:1 and I John 1:7-10. We know that if we walk in the light then we can ask for the forgiveness of our sins and they are cleansed. How does Romans 8:1 come into play? If we sin, we are separated from God. If we die in our…
Read MoreThanks for the useful tool
Question: I had meant to point it out for a while now but have been very busy. In your article over The Nature of Sin, Temptation, and Lust. I believe you meant the first chapter of James, not the third for the beginning text. Otherwise, a well-orchestrated piece as usual. I cannot put into words how…
Read MoreHow do I let go of remembering my sins?
Question: Last year I went through some trials and became discouraged. I had a led a fairly solid Christian life until I turned away from Christ and the Jesus I knew for a period of time. There were serious illnesses and disorders in my family and knew three young people who died recently, one by…
Read MoreA Thief Named Sin
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/AThiefNamedSin.mp3 Text: Psalm 38 I. Somewhere between 1 in 8 and 1 in 7 people will experience a robbery, either of their property or their person (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2008) A. Loss of property is a violation of the person 1. You lose more than just valuables 2. You lose your feeling of safety 3. You lose your…
Read MoreThese Six Things the LORD Hates
by Tanner Campbell “These six things the LORD hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him: A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren” (Proverbs…
Read MoreIs Paul talking about destroying the body with food or sin in I Corinthians 3:16-17?
Question: In I Corinthians 3:16,17, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye.” Paul talks about the temple of God, which I…
Read MoreIs it possible not to sin daily?
Question: What do you think about the statement that a preacher said from the pulpit that he does not sin every day and then said that the closer and the more we grow in Christ the less we sin? Answer: John warns that we should never think that we immune to the problem of sin.…
Read MoreWhat were Hymenaeus and Alexander’s sin?
Question: What were Hymenaeus and Alexander’s sin? Answer: “This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck, of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander,…
Read MoreWas Jesus fully human when he was born into this world and could he have sinned?
Question: Was Jesus fully human when he was born into this world and could he have sinned? Answer: In discussing Jesus, the writer of Hebrews stated, “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of…
Read MoreDoes sinning or being tempted to sin mean you aren’t really saved?
Question: I was reading a page on your web site that said if you give in to sexual desires, even just once, Satan can more easily bring you in and cause you to go further and further into sin until he has you trapped. This is only true for those who are lost. A child of God…
Read MoreWhat is sin? Is it spiritual or physical?
Question: What is sin? Is it related to the spiritual or the physical? Answer: The simplest definition of sin is, “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness” (I John 3:4). Sin is when you break one of God’s laws. All sins start from inside, “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts,…
Read MoreHe Cannot Sin
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/HeCannotSin.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: I John 3:1-10 I. It is amazing the lengths people reach to avoid responsibility for sin A. Often the same groups who teach that people cannot help but sin because they are born sinful also teach that once saved they cannot sin. B. It is a difficult deception to hold on…
Read MoreShould I turn myself in for the sins I did in the past?
Question: For some time now, my guilty conscience has reminded me of several crimes that I have committed in the past. The felonies include physical abuse, shoplifting, illegal file sharing and perhaps other things. I was caught red-handed for shoplifting once. However, I was only convicted for that one time. I had actually been shoplifting…
Read MoreLearning to Let Go
by Matt Allen via The Jackson Drive Reporter, June 28, 2009. We are first introduced to Paul at the end of Acts 7. In a few words there, and a short collection of verses in chapters 8 and 9, we get a brief glimpse into his life before coming to Christ. In Philippians, Paul would…
Read MoreWhat do I do about my family? Some are so deep into sin, I don’t know how to handle it
Question: I am writing today in regards to something I am finding extremely difficult to think about, or even to accept, especially in living a Christian life. In the recent past, one of my goals was to try to re-connect with my family. I come from a very difficult and hard life. For my own…
Read MoreIsn’t sin the tendency of human beings to do evil?
Question: I am particularly disturbed by the concept of Original Sin. The article mentioned that there is no original sin and every baby is born sinless. This is an Islamic concept. All along, I had been taught that sin entered into the world through Adam. The sin here is normally referred to as the tendency…
Read MoreDon’t be Hoodwinked!
by Allen Dvorak via Gospel Power, Vol. 15, No. 10, Mar. 9, 2008. Our word “hoodwinked” is actually a falconry term. We use it to mean “to deceive,” but Webster notes that the word also means “to blind by covering the eyes.” The falconer must hoodwink his falcon. At the beginning of training, the bird…
Read MoreConsider the Cost First to Lessen the Debt Later
by Kent Heaton The burden of debt robs happiness and joy from life. In our economic crisis, our world has been propelled into a dark period of hardship, sadness, and depression. As many have spent their time enjoying whatever the heart finds to do the day of reckoning brings about the reality of life unbridled.…
Read MoreAre all sins equal? Is no sin greater or worse than another sin?
Question: I have heard sin is sin and no sin is greater, heavier, or worse than the other. Is this scriptural, if so where is this found, or is this old hearsay? Answer: If you are looking at it from the ultimate result of unrepented sin, all sins lead to the same consequence — an…
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