DAY 17—God has set us free from the necessity to commit sin.

 

The first Scripture to take my attention when I began studying the Greek New Testament was I John. I was a young believer. It was important to me to know how to deal with sin in my life. Even after I was saved, I knew the tendency to sin was still in me. I saw this passage in the King James Version and it disturbed me. It made me wonder if I was truly saved. But when I saw it in the Greek New Testament, hope came.

I John 3:4-8—Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the Law (Literally, whoever is making a practice of sinning is making a practice of being lawless.): for sin is the transgression of the Law. And ye know that He was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in Him sinneth not (Literally, whoever is abiding in Him does not continue sinning.): whosoever sinneth hath not seen Him, neither known Him. Little children, let no man deceive you (lead you astray): he that doeth (is doing) righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous. He that committeth sin (whoever is continuing in sin) is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. (The word destroy is from the Greek lúo meaningthat He might undo the works of the devil.) There are two words for sin. One, hamartía,  means “missing the mark,” and is found in Romans 5:12,13. The other, anomía, means“lawlessness” and is found in II Thessalonians 2:7 and Titus 2:14. Both occur in the above passage from I John.

FATHER, this much is sure: I do not want to continue in sin. By Your grace I expect to overcome the lawless attitude that has worked in me for as long as I can remember. There is so much buried in me that is ugly and wrong that I would have no hope if it were not for Your grace. Oh, I thank You for what Jesus did to undo the works of the devil in me! Let His work continue till I’m completely cleansed from the ravages of the sin that once held me!

 

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