5 Minute Read
Prepare Your Heart
To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.
Read God’s Word
A Verse for Today
Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.
1 John 3:6 (CSB): “Everyone who remains in him does not sin; everyone who sins has not seen him or known him.”
Reflecting on God’s Word
We sometimes don’t listen to the Bible as we read it. By that, I mean that we read difficult or problematic texts without so much as giving them a second thought when we should be circling back to make sense of what we just read.
The verse I have chosen for today is a case in point. Because if we listened to what 1 John 3:6 appears to be saying, we would have some MAJOR questions arise in our minds.
Let’s reread it. Does it raise some questions in your mind?
1 John 3:6 (CSB): “Everyone who remains in him does not sin; everyone who sins has not seen him or known him.”
Clearly, our English translation of 1 John 3:6 tells us that if we are saved, we won’t sin. If we sin, we aren’t saved.
Ok. Show of hands. How many of you sinned last month? Last week? Yesterday? Today? Multiple times today?
If we are honest, we all struggle with sin every single day. Each day, we disobey our God in word, deed, motive, attitudes, etc.
We agree with what the Apostle John said at the beginning of his first letter.
1 John 1:10 (CSB): “If we say, ‘We have not sinned,’ we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
So, let’s put this together. First John 1:10 says that if we say we don’t sin, then we are liars. But 1 John 3:6 says that if we sin, we aren’t saved.
Got any questions yet?
The answer lies in a proper understanding of Greek verb forms and their meanings.
John uses the present tense a lot in 1 John. So, what exactly does the present tense mean? In the English language, present tense verbs mean that the action is happening right now. But in 1st-century Greek, present-tense verbs had another primary meaning. Greek present-tense verbs primarily indicated that the action was ongoing.
“The Present tense in New Testament Greek usually indicates an action that is ongoing, habitual, or repeated. It belongs to the imperfective aspect, emphasizing the continuation or repeated nature of an action rather than its initiation or completion.” – https://www.newtestamentgreek.net/the-tenses-in-new-testament-greek.html
So, if we apply this rule to 1 John 3:6 and translate it a bit more accurately, it would become clearer. A more literal translation would be…
1 John 3:6 (CSB w/my clarification on present tense verbs): “Everyone who is remaining in him does not keep on sinning; everyone who keeps on sinning has not seen him or known him.”
The meaning of 1 John 3:6 was that a truly saved person will not keep on sinning. Bringing other Bible passages to bear, God’s Holy Spirit will not allow a true Jesus-follower to keep on breaking God’s laws with impunity. God’s Holy Spirit will bring conviction. If the believer does not respond appropriately, God will bring discipline and eventually judgment.
First John 3:6 tells us that anyone who claims to be a Jesus-follower but continues in sin without any guilt and who does not eventually seek to make things right has demonstrated that they are not actually saved. They think they are on their way to Heaven, but their actions indicate that they may be on their way to Hell.
This, after all, is the reason John wrote the letter we call 1 John. He wrote it so that believers can know for certain that we are saved.
1 John 5:13 (CSB): “I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”
As we read 1 John, we realize that true saving faith manifests itself in changed behavior. We will continue to struggle with sin, but it will be a struggle. We will sin and hate it. We will love our God enough that we will want to break the chains of sin. Anyone who continues in sin simply isn’t saved.
1 John 3:6 (CSB w/my clarification on present tense verbs): “Everyone who is remaining in him does not keep on sinning; everyone who keeps on sinning has not seen him or known him.”
Spend Time in Prayer
- Ask God to help you to always be honest about your sin struggles.
- Ask God to lavish his grace on you, enabling you to obey Him and despise disobedience.
Going Deeper
If you want to dig a little deeper into 1 John 3:6, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:
“What does it mean that believers do not continue to sin (1 John 3:6; 5:18)?”
Sharing
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Matt Ellis is the pastor of White Hall Baptist Church in Richmond, Kentucky (whitehallbaptistchurch.org)
Matt’s Musings 