Sin Management Does Not a Believer Make

Sin Management does not a Believer Make.

The idea that most believers hold to in order to be a believer is primary behavior modification...Stop the bad doing and do the good doing. This concept reveals what it "looks like" to be a believer, and a lot of believers are dressed in such religious garb. Looking like a believer because of behavior modification, is nothing less or nothing more than sin management. What people who advocate sin management fail to understand is that Jesus has already dealt with the sin issue thoroughly and completely.

Being a believer is not about behavior modification...it is about the revelation of that God has made His dwelling place in us and we are led by His Spirit that lives INSIDE us.

Being a believer is not about trying to manage our sin. I subscribed to the gospel of behavior modification for most of my life and I never succeeded. The way we have been taught to study the Bible was an attempt to find out what we could and couldn’t do.

Rather than reading the Bible as an avenue to Jesus, we read it as a User’s Manual. I am sure most believers know this acronym for the Bible:

B.asic
I.nstructions
B.efore
L.eaving
E.arth

That take on the Bible is nothing other than using it as an instruction manual and is contrary to it’s contents and leads to misunderstanding and misapplication if its content. The Bible is the history of creation, the dispensing of the law, the redemption of mankind the fulfillment of the law and the Grace Gospel that came by Jesus revealed. It’s truth is of a God that does everything for the creation He loves.

It is a love story that points to Jesus and the Good News that many believers have never fully grasp. And so we look to trying to manage sin...an impossibility.

In fact a lot of believers don't know what Bible sin is. When they talk about sin they refer to the obvious...lying, cheating, murdering, etc., but are unaware of the sin of serving religion, the sin of denominational segregation, the sin of self righteousness, the sin of spiritual elitism and so on. So the more we know about sin, the more we think we can control it. The problem is that all our efforts can never manage sin.

Sin is not to be managed, because our sin is forgiven and God doesn't remember them. Not only does He not remember our past sin, He does not remember our present or future sin because through His blood He has forgiven our past, present and future sin..."never to be remembered against us any more".

Throughout the Bible we see God leading men, not managing them. He constantly appeals to hearts. Sin is a by product of our humanity, it is only through the power of His love and grace that we keep sin at bay.

A true believer knows that willful obedience can only be sustained when our hearts are in love and in alignment with the heart and plan of God.

Romans 8:14 says “all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” Then in Galatians 5:18 it says “if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law“. Sons and daughters are not managed with a list of rules. They are led with freedom within boundaries.

We no longer need to use the law to manage our sin. We simply need to submit to His Spirit. Under Holy Spirit’s leadership, we will thrive in freedom from the guilt of sin.