If We SayThis is speaking of how Christendom, has twisted 1st John, about the fact, they claim, to say if we dont sin, we make God a liar. TOTAL twisting of scripture. Christendom, being carnal, loves to take verses out of context, to back up a lying teaching they support. There is much ado over the Apostles use of the term we. It is claimed that when John stated that if we say we have no sin that John included himself, and thus, all Christians. We must understand that John used we in a way that does not always include himself and others. Concerning the antithesis between we and you in 1 John 1:3, F.F. Bruce wrote(4) John tells his fellow-Christians to whom he writes of what he and his contemporaries had seen and heard, because his readers had not seen and heard it. We must sometimes distinguish between the inclusive we (meaning you and I or you and we) and the exclusive we (meaning we and not you.) Bruce does not tackle the use of we in verse 1:8, but there are options in light of its context. First, these hearers were mixed in with the visible Church. So, John includes himself as a matter of softening the blow as we can imagine the one called the Apostle of love would do. It is common when one talks to a group to use the third person to make a point while avoiding direct attacks long enough to have the listener hear you out. This is not an admission of sin in John anymore than it is a proof of constant sinning in any believer. In the verses preceding, and following this comment of John, he clearly states that the believer can be cleansed from ALL sin. It is assumed by many that these verses say that we as Christians continue to sin, and this somehow frees us from the responsibility of abstaining from sin. The point under present consideration is not whether we (as Christians) have or have not sinned heretofore; and neither of these verses asserts that we do sin or commit sin now.(5) 1 John 1:8 does not say that Christians do sin, as many suppose. But, say some of those against whom Johns polemic is directed, What is it to us if the blood of Jesus is not available to cleanse us from sin? We have no sin!....If people claim.....to have got beyond good and evil, to have reached a stage of spiritual development where moral principles are no longer relevant, they are self-deceived.(6) John, by the use of the inclusive we in verse eight, was in no more danger of falling into this erroneous doctrine than any Christian would be. He was not writing this warning to Christians who were cleansed from all sin and walking in the light, but his comments were directed towards the Gnostics and their denial of the need of cleansing and Christs atonement. It is only fair to consider that the context of this verse and that the application of we to believers would be an impossibility in light of the fact that no one can be a Christian and deny before God that they have not ever sinned. We must also consider that if the if we in this verse is not talking about we as Christians, then it would be equally wrong to suggest that the if we in this verse includes John as being a participant in this sin with these heretics. It is perfectly natural to see the phrase if we as referring to people in general, I.E., those that would make such a claim of not needing the atonement of Christ. It is clear from the context and common sense that the if we is this passage does not include John himself, or any other Christian. The Consistency of John Scripture never contradicts Scripture; this is the basic law of hermeneutics. This principle of non-contradiction must be even more critically applied if we compare the self-consistency the work of one individual writer within the same letter. The most solid proof that John is not advocating a doctrine that says that all Christians sin, is contained within this very letter. In verse 7 John tells us that Christians are cleansed from ALL sin. If ALL SIN is cleansed, how can their be anything left? If nothing is left, then how can it be inconsistent with Christian profession to claim that you have no sin, in the Scriptural sense? In Chapter 2:1, John states the purpose of his letter, My little children, these things write I unto you, that you sin not. This is plain on its own, but the Greek says that you may not have a sin once. In chapter 3:8-9 , we are told plainly that he who sins is of the devil and Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin. To make verse 1:8 say that John admitted or demanded the presence of sin in himself, and all Christians, while at the same time he claimed to be walking in the light and having been cleansed from all sin, is to make him the most self-contradictory writer to be found in all of secular and sacred writing! If what some commentators say about this verse in John is true, he must have been terribly confused, and his inspiration while writing these statements must come into question. The assertion that Christians must admit we still sin if we are saved, while preaching that people who violate the commandments of Christ are not saved (2:4), seems to promote a strange dichotomy, that a Christian can be of the devil and of the Lord at the same time.... interesting, but impossible. It is a hermeneutical and ethical tragedy to take this singular and lonely verse out of its intended context, and use it to obscure every other reference to sin that John had to say. It is clear from the writing of John concerning sin, that he is opposed to the continuance of its presence in the believer. John states emphatically that sin and the state of being a Christian is something that is not only incompatible, but impossible. Theological Options What class of people does 1 John 1:8 have in mind? When he says we does he mean all Christians, including himself, as some expositors say, Christians just described as walking in the light, and by the blood of Christ being cleansed from all sin? In this verse, is St. John writing to persons whose sins have been forgiven? I do not think so, because when it says If we say we have no sin, this implies that Christians have sins that we have not committed, but are only liable to commit. Verse seven already substantiates that the believer is cleansed from all sin. To say that all Christians still have sin, is to assert that the blood of Christ does not cleanse. To say that verse eight is saying that we are guilty of sins that we are only liable to commit is to accuse every angel in heaven while keeping his first probationary state, and Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, before their first sinful volition, of having sin, because they were liable to sin. It asserts a palpable contradiction, that a person cleansed from all sin still has sin. To have sin includes the idea of personal guilt, and guilt requires uncleansed sin. If we say we have no sin, he means not Christians walking in the light of purity and perfect love, but any unregenerate man who declares that he has no sin to be forgiven, no guilt to wash away in the blood of Christs atonement.(7) The passages can be applied to two types of people. It should be applied primarily to those who believe the Gnostic philosophy, whether it be pure Gnosticism, or the candied-over christian version of it that is still corrupting the Church today. The second class of person that this can be applied to is the self-deceived, self-righteous sinner who denies their need of Christ and His atonement. In order to help the reader to understand this second perspective, I enclose the following fictional dialogue: Let us suppose a conversation between a Christian depending, as all must, on the blood of Christ for salvation, and a self-righteous sinner, who thinks he is good enough and has no sin, consequently no need of the cleansing blood. Christian: My friend, did you know that if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin? I have proved this to be true, and if you will come to Him as I did, you may prove it for yourself, and be cleansed from all sin. Self-Righteous: But I have no sin to be cleansed away; I have no need for the blood of Jesus. Christian: What? You say you have no sin? If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. Surely you are wrong and self-deceived. You should repent, confess your sins, and be saved, for we read in 1 John 1:9, If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Self-Righteous: But I have never sinned, and do not feel that I have anything to confess or repent of. I pay my honest debts, and treat my neighbors well, and support my family, and I believe I am just as good as anyone. I am not a sinner, and have never done anything wrong. Christian: Surely, you are making God a liar, for in 1 John 1:10 it says: If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. Thus we get at the meaning of the last four verses of 1 John 1.(8) Conclusion This scarecrow can no longer frighten us, or defeat us from holy living. This scarecrow has a nam
Posted on: Sun, 25 Jan 2015 00:09:29 +0000
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