We Believe in Biblical Separation Part 5 Sin Not!

First John chapter one and we'll begin reading in verse nine. First John chapter one verse nine. So, Everybody got it there? Everybody's quick today. You must have marked it earlier when I said something.

I'm impressed. Either that or nobody's turning. First John one nine, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us. My little children, these things write unto you that you sin not and if any man sin, we have an advocate with the father, Jesus Christ, the righteous and he is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Dear Lord, thank you for your word today. Thank you for this passage and others will look at this morning. They remind us Lord that it is your desire expectation command to your children that we sin not that we take sin seriously As it is indeed a serious matter. And Lord, if there be one here that's never trusted Christ today, for the forgiveness of their sins, and to give them eternal life that today would be that day.

In Jesus name, we pray. Amen. So, the message this morning is sin not. Sin not. We've been talking about biblical separation.

What that means is that God wants his children as he says in first Peter to be holy, to be sanctified, to be set apart unto him. As children of God, we have been set apart unto God through faith in Jesus Christ, his son. We have been born again into a new family, the family of God and we now belong to him. We are bought with a price. The Bible tells us in first Corinthians six and God has set us apart unto himself unto his glory, testimony, service, and all those wonderful things that go along with being children of God but we are also in the scriptures told that we are to also set ourselves apart in our behavior that we're to be holy in all manner of conversation or conduct in our life because it is written, God writes, be you holy for I am holy and we are supposed to be like him.

Set apart to his service separated from sin and those things that dishonor the one who has given us life in his son, Jesus Christ. We talked about being set apart from false doctrine. That is vitally important. The Bible says to contend for the faith. We talked about being set apart not from unequal yokes, unbinding relationships with others who do not share our faith.

This morning, we're going to look at being separate or set apart from sin, from sin. God is clear in scripture. He wants his children to be set apart from sin in our decisions, in our thoughts, in our actions, to be doing, participating, practicing sin is to be going contrary to the nature and will of our heavenly father and as his children, we are to be set apart from that. The Bible is very clear. Let's look at a few passages here to start with.

Romans chapter 12 verse nine, let love with be without dissimulation. The word dissimulation also means hypocrisy. Let your love be real. Love for God and love for others. He continues on, abhor or hate that which is evil, cleave to that which is good.

Abhor means to hate strongly, to to avoid is something that is disgusting. Abhor that which is what? Evil. That's what God says to his children. Second Timothy two nineteen.

Nevertheless, foundation of God standeth sure having the seal. The Lord knoweth them that are his and let everyone that name it the name of Christ what? Depart. Depart from iniquity. What?

Does God command, declare here? That those who say, yes, I am a child of God are also saying yes I am going to make it a a determined pursuit in my life by God's grace and help to depart from what? Iniquity. Iniquity is rebellion against God. It is another word for sin.

It is a type of sin. That's God's will for his children. John eight eleven. Why did Jesus say? There was a lady that was brought, that was caught in adultery and brought before Christ and and the Pharisees wanted to get Christ in a pickle and they said, now what would you do with this lady?

She was caught in adultery. Should we stone her to death? As the old as the Old Testament law? The law of Moses said or or should we let her go? What should we do?

They knew if he said well stone her to death that the people would not be happy about that. If he let her go they would say well you're not keeping the law of Moses. So they thought they had him either way. Jesus began and he sat down. He wrote something in the what?

In the sand. He said, let him who who was without sin cast the what? Cast the first stone. They were all that brought her were all a bunch of hypocrites. They care about her.

They care about the law. All they cared about was trying to find something to get on Jesus to use against them. But Jesus cared about her and as they thought one by one, they all put their stones down and left and then, Jesus turned to the lady and this is what he said. He asked her, where are your accusers? In verse 10, she said, no man, Lord.

There's there are no accusers left. Jesus said unto her, neither do I condemn thee. Go and what? Go and sin no more. Did he forgive her?

Did he let her go? Yes, he did. Did he show mercy? Our God is a merciful God but what did he say to her? He said, go and sin no more.

The Bible is very clear. God expects his children, those who have been granted mercy and forgiveness through the blood of Jesus Christ to go and sin no more. That is God's desire for us. His expectation of his children In other words, we need to separate ourselves from the practice of sin in our lives. It has no place and it serves no purpose in the life of believer.

It has no place and it serves no purpose in the life of believer. Turn if you would to first Corinthians chapter six. First Corinthians chapter six and we'll look at verses nine through 11. What does the Bible have to say concerning sin in our life as children of God? Let's see what Paul has to say and he uses some pretty strong terminology here.

Think you'll get the gist of what he's talking about. First Corinthians six verse nine. Paul writes to the Corinthians, by the way, the Corinthian church was a church that struggled with sin. The believers in the church at Corinth were saved out of a very immoral promiscuous idolatrous culture and when they got saved, they didn't completely abandon some of those practices and some of those ways and and Paul had to write them to tell them that those ways, the ways of the old life before they knew Christ, before they were saved, that they need to to separate themselves from those practices because they did not fit. They do not fit into the life of a Christian, into the life of a believer.

So, he says here in verse nine, know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Those are unbelievers who have not been forgiven by their sins, the blood of Christ. Be not deceived neither fornicators are immoral people nor idolaters nor adulterers nor effeminate nor abusers of themselves with mankind. Those terms both reply refer to homosexuality. Verse 10, nor thieves nor covetousness greediness, nor drunkards, nor revilers, those who abuse people with their language nor extortioners or swindlers shall inherit what?

The kingdom of God. People are defined by these things. We haven't come to Christ. We're still in their sin. They practice them without remorse and repentance.

These define the lost. They should not define who? They should not define the Christian. Verse 11, and such were some of you. These are the things defined you that you practice regularly before you what?

Before you came to Christ. Such were some of you but ye are washed in the blood of the lamb. Sanctified by God set apart but you are justified, declared guiltless in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the spirit of our God. You worthy. This is what you were before you came to Christ.

This is not who you are to be what? After you come to Christ. You have been changed on the inside. Now, let it show on the what? Let it show on the outside.

These things do not belong in the life of a Christian. They are offensive to our father in heaven. They have no place. They have no place. Look if you would.

Well, I'll show it up here on the screen. Proverbs chapter six, I put this up here for you. In the Old Testament, in Proverbs, God wrote this, these six things doth the Lord hate. Yea, seven are an abomination unto him. A proud look.

A lying tongue. Hands that shed innocent blood. And heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, plots, plans. Feet that be swift and running to mischief. A false witness that speaketh lies and he that soweth discord among brethren, a gossip.

These are sins what God says that I I hate. I hate them with a passion. They are an abomination. They are disgusting before almighty God. Now, you might notice these lists are not completely the same, are there?

There's some things that contain in one list that aren't contained in the other and there are other sins, things that are offensive to God that aren't contained in either list. The point that both Solomon, the writer of Proverbs, under inspiration the spirit is making and Paul is making under the inspiration of the spirit. In first Corinthians is the same. Sin does not belong in the life of the believer. It is offensive to God.

It must be rooted out. It needs to be taken seriously. We must not excuse it or justify it. We need not make light of it or accept it as normal or condone it in the lives of others. The world in which we live today does all of those things.

The world today excuses sin. It justifies sin. It doesn't admit to sin. It makes light of it. It's funny.

The majority of stand up comedy today makes light of sin. The Bible says, fools make a mock at sin and so much of what is called comedy today is just making light of sin, of things that disgust our father in heaven. And the world condones it. They condone it in others. They encourage it in others.

In Romans chapter one, it speaks of a downhill spiral in society. It's a society that knew God, turns from God, turns to sin, ends up in perverse immorality which leads to the to the bottom of the spiral. Well, it says, not only do they do these things but they condone or encourage them. In others. Celebrate them in others.

Sadly, a much lot of our music and entertainment today does that very thing. These actors and singers and all of that to get up at these awards and in these concerts, they're promoting often the things that are clearly identified as sin. Immorality, high on the list. That is who the world is and such were what? Some of you.

But you are washed. You are sanctified. You are justified. In the name of our Lord and by his spirit. And this should not be the case in us.

Take for instance, lying. Lying. This list here, it is lying in that list. It's twice in that list by the way. A lying tongue and a false what?

False witness. Both of those are aspects of lying. Twice in the list of things that God hates. Lying. Do we excuse it?

In our lives? Do we justify it? Do we? I think sometimes we do. Well, it's okay to lie if it turns out okay in the end.

I and I always get in trouble when I mention this. So, but if you make a habit of watching Andy Griffith Show, take note as you watch the Andy Griffith Show which I'm not telling you not to. It's a cute show but take note when you watch it. How often Andy and Barney lie and it's always for a what? It's always for a good cause.

It's always for a good. It's always justifiable that they lied because it's always for a good cause and somehow in the end, though consequences ensue, in the end it always turns out what? It always turns out okay. We must be careful. We cannot excuse lying in our life.

It is a sin. We must not make light of it. Oh, it's just a little what? A little white lie. A little white lie.

You tell a white lie it becomes a gray lie and eventually turns into a big black lie. Okay? Sin is addicting and sin grows. It always does. Especially when we don't deal with it Or when we treat it lightly.

So don't treat lying lightly. And don't condone it in others. It is sin. And we as Christians need to set a higher standard. We as Christians are to reflect the holiness not of the world but the holiness and character and morality of our God.

And he is clear in his word. Sin is still evil and wrong. An offense to the God of heaven. That is what sin is. It is an offense toward God.

It's a transgression, a breaking of God's law. It is rebellion against his will An affront to his person and to his nature. That's what sin is. First John three four. Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law for sin is the what?

The transgression of the law. Whose law are you transgressing? Whose law are you breaking? God's law. Not breaking man's law.

You might be making brand's law as well. But you are also breaking whose law? God's law. And it is offensive to him. You say but but I'm saved and he's my father and he loves me.

And he's not offended anymore. I don't know about that. No, I have an earthly father. Praise God. He's he's still alive and in pretty good health and hopefully, my mom and dad will be down here to visit from Virginia in about a month but my dad is now 84 going on 85 years old and my dad isn't quite perfect like any other dad.

My dad worked evenings all the years of my my years growing up. So, I didn't see my dad much except on the weekends and and over the summer. When I did see him, we were doing work because we had seven acres of property out in the middle of nowhere to take care of and My dad didn't have a lot of patience with me if I wasn't going to do what I was told but I always knew something about my dad I knew he loved me and I never doubted that and I I don't doubt that to this day. My dad was a good dad. But my dad expected his child to what?

To obey. That was proper That was right and my dad still loved me when I disobeyed but he also disson me, disciplined me when I disobeyed and it was his right to do so The Bible says, children, obey your parents and Lord for this is right Do you not think our heavenly father in heaven expects us, his children to obey him? He does. A matter of fact, he says so and when we disobey him, it is an affront, an offense to our heavenly father. Didn't make my dad real happy when I did obey him.

It doesn't make our heavenly father real happy when we disobey him either. Still loves us. Doesn't make him particularly happy. As God sanctifies us, so we must sanctify ourselves in Christ and forsake that which is evil. It is both our responsibility to be holy in all manner of life.

It is also our privilege in Christ to be free to do so. It is our responsibility to obey him and it is our privilege to be free to do so. The Bible says before we're saved, we are bound in sin. And we are not free. To serve the Lord and to honor him.

But when we come to Christ, those chains are what? Broken and we're set free to serve him and it's our privilege to do so. The whole concept of grace is counter to the unrestrained practice of sin. Grace not only frees us from the condemnation of the law but it also gives us a reason and a hope for the conquest of sin. Grace gives us a reason and a hope for the conquest, the defeat of sin in our lives.

Up without apart from grace, we do not have hope for the conquest of sin. To get victory over. It has victory over us but when we come to Christ and we receive God's gift of eternal life and forgiveness by his grace, God gives us his spirit and his word and his grace and strength in order to get the what? Victory. To get the victory over sin.

In our life. Look, if you would at I think I have it up here. Titus two eleven through actually that's 11 through 13. It says, for the by the grace of God that bring us salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lust, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our savior, Jesus Christ.

What does grace teach us? What does grace instruct us and guide us in? He has a list here of the things that grace instructs us in. It instructs us to deny what? Ungodliness.

Wickedness. The things that are contrary to God's nature. It instructs us, guides us in denying that. Jesus said, if any man will come after me let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. We are to deny the wickedness that is our old nature.

That is the lust of the flesh and instead we are to walk in the spirit and we can. Grace teaches us to denying God. It teaches us to deny worldly lust, to flee temptation rather than to fall to it. It teaches us to live soberly, temperately, self controlled, thoughtful lives. The grace of God gives us that ability and that opportunity to think before we act and to live self controlled.

To live righteously. That means justly, honestly, with integrity as we deal with others in this life. And to live godly. Piously. Like who?

Like God. Like Jesus Christ. Grace gives us that opportunity and as we read God's word and as we walk in the spirit, the grace of God empowers us to get victory over the flesh, to get victory over temptation. He provides a way of escape. And he gives us the victory in Jesus Christ.

Turn if you would to Romans chapter six. Romans chapter six. Back a few pay. If you're still in first Corinthians, it's just back a few pages. Romans chapter six Imma read a few verses here.

Wanna focus on a couple of them. But I have to read this whole context one through 14 for you to understand what Paul is saying. Verse one, what shall we say then? Having been saved by grace. Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?

God forbid or certainly not or may it never be. How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein? Know you not that so many of us as we're baptized into Jesus Christ, we're baptized into his death. Therefore, we are buried with him by baptism into death, the like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we, if for, if we have been planted or united together in the likeness of his death, we shall all be also in the likeness of his resurrection.

Knowing this that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth, we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now, if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him. Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more, death hath known more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died under sin once but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

Let me stop there for just a moment. What is Paul saying? He's making this argument. When you trusted Christ as savior, his death on the cross for your sins and his resurrection to give you life in him. When you trusted him as savior, your old life died with him and you were risen with him to a a new life as a child of God.

You were a child of the world and of sin and of Satan and now you are a child of who? God. Before you were saved, you were dead in trespasses and in sins. What that means is, you were responsive to sin but you were unresponsive to God before you were saved. Now, that you're saved, you are to be dead to what?

Sin and now you are responsive to who? To God. That's what it means, okay? And that's what Paul is saying here. You have died to sin and you've been raised to serve who?

Your new master, Jesus Christ. The good master. He says in verse 11, likewise, reckon you also, consider yourselves also to be dead indeed to sin but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body that you should obey it in the lust thereof. Neither yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin but yield yourselves unto God as those who are alive from the dead and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God for sin shall not have dominion over you for you're not under the law but under what?

Under grace. Paul says, you're under grace. You've been freed from the condemnation of law. You've been freed from the bondage of sin that you might serve by God's grace and power, your new Lord and savior and master, Jesus Christ. Grace is not an excuse to sin.

Grace is a reason to not sin. You see, some have accused those who believe in eternal security as saying, well, because of God's grace, it doesn't matter and it seems that some were accusing Paul of that very same thing. So, Paul defends grace here. He says, no, grace doesn't free us to sin. It frees us from sin.

You don't understand what grace is. Grace is what makes this possible. The law cannot change the heart. Only the grace of God can do that and we who are saved in Christ have been made alive to walk with him in newness of life. And we need to see it in that light and choose to live accordingly.

Not allowing sin to rule in our lives. Knowing that with God's help, no charge nor sin can stand against us. Look if you would in first Peter chapter one. First Peter chapter one. So, the grace of God doesn't free us to sin.

It frees us what? From sin. I want us to see one other thing here that's important. People say, well, I'm I'm freed from sin by grace and that means that sin has no consequences. Nope.

You're wrong there. Sin for the Christian still has what? It still has consequences. Don't allow the devil to deceive you into thinking that because you're forgiven, that means that there are no consequences. He wants you to believe that.

He wants you to make light of sin. He wants you to offend your father. He wants you to destroy your testimony. He wants you to have your joy robbed from you. By not dealing with sin in your life.

By convincing you that it's no big deal. It is. First Peter one verse 14. As obedient children not fashioning yourselves according to the former lust and your ignorance. Before you were saved.

Thus, he which hath called you as holy so be holy in all manner of conversation because it is written be holy for I'm holy and if you call on the father who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in what? What's the next word? Fear. For as much as you know that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, the silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers, but with, you were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ. It was a lamb without blemish and without spot.

It was fully of who was barely was foreordained before the foundation of the world but was manifest in these last times for you who by him do believe in God that raised him from the dead and gave him glory so that your faith and hope might be in God. In the middle of that passage, it says, be holy for I am holy and it says here, two Christians, pass the time of your sojourning here in what? Fear. But I thought, I thought Christians had no reason to fear. I thought if I was saved I have no reason to fear.

Well you have no reason to fear eternal destruction and damnation in hell because Jesus Christ took your hell on his what? On his cross. And your name is written in the lamb's what? Book of life and you shall never what? Never perish and no man can take you out of his what?

The father's hand. However, does that mean that you should not fear sin? No. Does that mean that you should not fear when you sin? No.

You should still fear sin. It is your enemy. You should still fear when you sin because there are still consequences to sin. Number one, the Bible says, Galatians six seven, be not deceived. God is not mocked for whatsoever a man soweth that shall he what?

Also reap if you if you sow sin, you're gonna reap the consequences. There are natural consequences to sin in this world that God has established. If you go out and get drunk and you don't know what you're doing and you let the flesh loose the flesh is apt to do something that you're going to regret the next day. There are consequences to what? To sin.

Secondly there is the chastening hand of who? God. Remember my father? My father that loved me? If I disobeyed him, I got what?

I got chastened. I got disciplined. I got punished. Why did he do that? Did that because he loved me.

It was the right thing to do. Same thing is true of God. My son despise not the chasing of the Lord nor faint when thou rebuked of him for whom the Lord loveth he what? Chasteneth and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. God says, if you sin and sin and sin and you don't deal with it, you can bet your heavenly father that loves and cares about you isn't going to just say, okay, do whatever you want.

No, he's going to step in and he's going to try to help you wake up to what you're doing before you suffer all the what? The consequences here on earth. Now, I never feared my dad was going to abandon me or beat me or hurt me, injure me but I feared just the look on his face and the sound of his voice and the occasional belt when I disobey him. And that's the way we should also See our heavenly father. He's not up there waiting for you to do wrong so he can get you.

No, he wants you to do right. He wants to reward you but make no mistake. If you do not repent and do not deal with your sin, your loving heavenly father is going to try to change your ways. He will chasten you. And number three, there's loss of reward.

The Bible tells us of the judgment that we as Christians will stand before to be given our rewards in heaven. And if we have wasted our life and if we have not lived for our savior, then we'll see all of those rewards go up in what? Go up in smoke and we will have nothing to lay at his feet. We will be held accountable. We will look him in the face.

And hopefully we will hear well done. Thou good and faithful servant. As I said, I didn't like the look on my dad's face when I knew that I had been caught. I assure you, I will not like the look on my savior's face. If I have to stand there empty handed and neither will you do.

So, in closing, I want us to look back at first John one more time. First John chapter one. You say, all that's fine and dandy, pastor. But you know something? I still sin.

Maybe I hate sin. Maybe I don't like sin. I don't want to sin and as a Christian, all of those things should be true of you. But I still succumb to temptation. Sometimes, I still what?

Sin and betray my heavenly father and offend him. What should I do? Well, the Bible tells us what to do. It says here in verse nine of first John, it says, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us.

My little children, these things write unto you that you sin not and if any man sin, we have an advocate with father Jesus Christ, the righteous. What does God say? God says this, if you sin child of God, it's under the blood of Christ but you have an offense between you and your heavenly father and you need to do what? You need to confess. You need to deal with it.

You need to repent of it because if you don't, the sins going to what? Is it going get smaller or bigger? It's going to get bigger and it's going to be a an obstacle in your relationship with the Lord. It's going to be an obstacle in your service for the Lord. So, the Bible says, Jesus says, God says, if you sin and sadly, you will, if you sin, do what?

Confess it. Go to God and say, tell him what you did. Admit what you did. Ask him to cleanse you and help you to get what? To get victory over that sin and you know something?

Your loving heavenly father will. He will help you but it starts with hating sin and it it ends with confessing when we do fail. But even before that, it starts with having a relationship with God based on what? On faith. If you're here today and you've never accepted the blood of Jesus Christ shed on Calvary's Cross for you, you are yet the Bible says in your sin and you will suffer the punishment in the lake of fire forever for it.

But all of that can change today. God's grace offers you. Forgiveness. And victory. If you will receive Jesus today and if you've never done that, as we give this invitation to him, you say, pastor, I don't know what you're talking about.

Come see me. I would love to show you from God's word how you can be saved. Born again, have your name written in the book of life and by God's grace, have the power to get victory over sin in your life. Let's pray. Dear heavenly father, thank you Lord for your word.

Thank you for what it tells us of the grace of God and your great mercy. Lord, I pray as Christians that if there is sin in our life today, that we would confess it and we deal with it. We wouldn't put it off, Lord. As we give this hymn of invitation, Lord, we we bow our head or right now, bow your head and ask Lord for you to forgive us and help us, Lord and I pray if there's anyone here that's never trusted Christ today, that they would come as we give this hymn of invitation that you might show them how to be saved and know it. In Jesus precious name, we do pray.