Former Blackout Artist

No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him. – 1 John 3:6

John gets straight to the point, doesn’t he?! He doesn’t say anything about a true Christian being sinless. Every believer still battles the presence of sin and often grieves over his personal failures. What John teaches is that no one who truly abides in Christ can be content to live in sin.

The reason is because the person who knows Christ has been changed at the deepest level. His desires are different. And his conscience is more sensitive. He may stumble from time to time, but he can’t possibly settle down comfortably in disobedience. He no longer sees sin as a pleasure, but rather the heaviest of burdens.

John is ultimately calling us to honest self-examination here. It’s easy to talk about Christ, attend church faithfully, and do a lot of religious things, and yet show little evidence of a transformed life. Saving faith, on the other hand, will produce a growing likeness to Christ.

The true believer may not be perfect, but he will not be at peace with sin. Where Christ dwells, holiness is sure to follow.