Righteousness in Christ: our victory over Sin.

Believers, committing sins like stealing, lying, watching porn, fornicating, buying and selling pirated content, fear, worry, etc, horrible as they are, is not what makes people sinners. Sinners are made sinners by Adam's sin, according to Romans 5:19 -

"For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous."

Everyone descended from Adam inherited the sin/old nature by default, thus people are made sinners long before anyone got the chance to do a sinful deed. The sin nature, when activated by the law that many are trying to keep in order to get right with God, is what makes people commit plentiful sinful deeds that lead to death. See Romans 7:5-

"When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death."

Try to obey the law to get right with God and sin will have dominion, "For sin shall not have dominion over you for you are not under law but under grace." Romans 6:14.

Christ died to rid us of this inherited sin nature: "When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature." Colossians 2:11.

In Christ, the sin nature inherited from Adam is no more in all who confess Him as Lord and believe that God raised Him from the dead. According to Romans 4:25, His resurrection is the divine proof that we have been made righteous-

"Who was delivered up because of our offences, and was raised up because of our being declared righteous."

In Him, we are a new creation. With Christ as our righteousness (and not our own filthy rags righteousnesses from obeying the Ten Commandments in order to be right with God) the old nature that produces sin is cut away. And this is the result f our being married to Christ and having Him as our righteousness:

"So, my dear brothers and sisters, this is the point: You died to the power of the law when you died with Christ. And now you are united with the One who was raised from the dead. As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God."

Try to obey the law to get right with God and sin will multiply. Believe and receive that free gift of righteousness which comes from the obedience of Christ and you will not continue to live in sin. This is the logic of heaven but it is illogical to many, "For the message of the cross is foolishness [absurd and illogical] to those who are perishing and spiritually dead [because they reject it], but to us who are being saved [by God’s grace] it is [the manifestation of] the power of God." 1 Corinthians 1:18.

The reason why many people are not committing particular sins is because they have not been tempted beyond what they can bear in those areas. If a big enough trial comes, the arm of flesh will fail. Yet we tend to look at some people's sins and self-righteously say "I can never do that." This is pride (confidence in self) that leads to destruction. Christ saves from sins. See what Matthew 1:21 says of our Lord Jesus Christ:

"She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

If you can stop being a sinner all by yourself, you don't need our Saviour Jesus Christ. Acts of sin, wrongdoing, sickness, stress, fear, anxiety, lack and all worldly ills are fruits of the sin nature inherited from Adam. Without Christ, we can do nothing. Sin will only multiply.

For this reason, preachers can shout to the ends of the earth that people should "stop fornicating, stop wearing vulgar clothing, stop stealing, stop watching porn, love God and come to Jesus or burn in hell" yet no souls will be saved. People will only go and sin more. Under law is where sin has dominion. This is putting the cart before the horse. Toeing this line is more futile than asking a person who has broken all of the bones in his body to participate in a marathon.

We tend to condemn people for their outward sins but we pray and care for outwardly sick people, even visit them at the hospital and buy them gifts, even when it is glaring that they brought their diseases on themselves. Both have the same root: the old (sin) nature inherited from Adam. Both have the same cure: Righteousness by faith through Christ.

Keeping the Law to get right with God produces more sin acts. Trying to get right with God by keeping the Ten Commandments not only activates and strengthens sin (1 Cor. 15:56 says "...the strength of sin is the Law,") it also cuts one off from Christ-

"For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, youhave been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace." Galatians 5:4.

Unless God's undeserved, unmerited favour (Grace) expressed in His love for us (Christ's death FOR us and AS us) is unveiled from the pulpit, the people will remain sinners and commit even worse sin acts.

Think of it in the context of three people living with HIV after a cure has been found, with the virus representing the sin nature inherited from Adam through his disobedience.

The first person either does not know of or understand the cure: (abundance of Grace and the gift of righteousness in Christ). He uses medication to keep the virus in check (suppressing sin via a checklist of the Ten Commandments in order to remain righteous or "healthy") and to ensure that it does not develop into full-blown AIDS (aka outward sins.) This one still has HIV (the root,) even though it does not manifest in the form of tuberculosis and other associated diseases (outward sin) because he is keeping it in check. Notice not Christ but he. He is always scared that something bad will happen if he misses a dose (fear of judgment.) Recall that "the fearful" lead the pack of those that are hell-bound in Revelation 21:8.

Whatever a pastor in this situation feeds his flock cannot cure their HIV. He can even infect those who have been really saved if they listen to him repeatedly! When such run out of medication for whatever reason (a temptation that they cannot bear like that of Peter when he denied Jesus,) their sin nature will manifest outwardly! There is no Christ our Saviour in their equation. Their salvation rests on their own strength. Their Sin is still within.

The second group also do not know there is a cure. They do not even know that they are HIV-positive! These ones become sick (commit acts of sin) very often and they try to treat the symptoms as they arise. These ones go to their doctor (pastor) for help and the pastor does not diagnose the sin virus that produces sinful deeds nor prescribe God's abundance of grace and His gift of righteousness. Instead, When TB comes, he tells them "stop having TB." When it is malaria, he says to them "stop having malaria," all variations of "stop sinning." How is this even possible? But the sin nature, when activated by the law only causes sin to proliferate! See Romans 7:5 above. These beloved of God, even Christians, continually battle curses, porn, fornication and other symptoms (full-blown AIDS) and their pastor tells them to "stop being sick." He can only prescribe "stop sinning," fasts and "being careful in your office and in your village." There is no Christ our Saviour who came to "save His people from their sins" in the equation.

By God's grace, the third group know that they HAD this sin virus (Adam's sin nature.) Only by God's grace did we hear of and freely receive the cure: Our Saviour Jesus in whom we have God's abundance of Grace and His gift of righteousness by which we reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ! (Romans 5:17.) By His grace, we see that no amount of anti-retroviral drugs (sin suppressants of self-will and sheer determination) can save from the virus of the old nature and death. By His grace we see that treating the symptoms of the disease aka telling people to "stop sinning" in order to be right with God is pointless. The root has to go first!

By His grace, we see that the fact that the symptoms of the sin virus is "almost undetectable" (living a "holy life" by human effort) is just as dangerous as having full-blown AIDS (just sinning anyhow.) God cannot stand a speck of sin. James 2:10 says one is guilty of breaking the whole Law if he stumbles at one point.

By His grace we see that Christ has borne our sins, sicknesses, pains, diseases, fear, curse, every ill, in His own body. By His grace, we see 2 Corinthians 5:21 "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."

By His grace, the Lord is our Righteousness. We have none of ours from works of the Law. Because we are dead to the Law, we are a New Creation. The old sin nature that produced sin is dead so we do not need sin-suppressants anymore. We just cannot continue to do produce sin, much like how a mango tree cannot produce yam. The old nature virus is dead so the symptoms of the virus (acts of sin) die off too. Our paths grow brighter and brighter like the morning sun and it has nothing to do with our efforts. Our Saviour Jesus does it ALL. We are "...united with the One who was raised from the dead. As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God." Romans 7:4.

As you can today!

A simple prayer "Help me Father, I don't know what to do. Help me in Jesus' name" will reach His Throne in the twinkling of an eye. He loves you. He wants you to see yourself as a helpless newborn whose every need is met by its loving parent - sheltered, bathed, fed, protected and "showed off:)" by the parent. He loves you much more than this. He will train you up in the way you should go. Please see Isaiah 49:14 -16 for "this kain love" that He has for us. My husband says these posts are too long:) Imagine being angry at your precious newborn because he pooped carelessly:) Without Christ, we can do nothing. He will help you grow and mature in His grace. The Holy Spirit will teach you all things.

Without God's gift of righteousness through Christ, even the most righteous person in the world is a dirty sinner covered with filthy (menstrual) rags (Isaiah 64:6) in God's sight if he presents his own good deeds and "holy life" as evidence of his righteousness. Please run from any teacher that boasts in his own righteousnesses from keeping the Law or doing right as why he is going to heaven and tells you to do same. In Christ, we have nothing to boast about but Him. When He gives you His revelation (I pray He does!) and you see others who are "still sinning," you have compassion on them and see "sheep without a Shepherd," just like Christ did. You find it difficult to point fingers, knowing that you would do worse were it not for God's saving grace! Instead of condemning such, you point them to Christ who saves from sins, yet not you but Christ in you!

See His way with everyone who received from Him in the gospels- the prodigal son, Zacchaeus the thieving tax collector, the Canaanite woman with the demon-possessed child, even the woman caught in adultery that was about to be stoned to death. He never condemns. He saves, even the worst of the worst and without terms and conditions like "have you been obeying the Ten Commandments." He will save you from your sins. Matt. 1:21.

Believer, our Saviour Jesus died for you. He loves you and wants to heal you, help you and make you clean. Whiter than snow. He is willing. Always.

Believe Right and you will Live Right.