Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness

1 John 3:4-7 “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness. You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin. No one who abides in Him sins; no one who sins has seen Him or knows Him. Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning.”

I believe the crux of these verses couldn’t be any more clear, the children of God and the children of the devil are distinctly obvious by what they practice. Yet, there seems to be a tremendous amount of confusion about this issue in the church today.

A debilitating approach to the gospel and to salvation has infiltrated the church and modern evangelism has defected from the sound teaching of Jesus Christ and the result is those proclaim to be born-again people who continuously live like the unsaved. Salvation, true Christianity cannot be separated from the truth of the gospel.

In this false Christianity, no repentance, no obedience, no righteousness, no turning from sin, no spiritual fruit is required. Just believe in Jesus and say this simple prayer, that’s it. Isn’t the alternative to God’s plan that’s being offered in the church today exactly what Satan offered Christ in the wilderness when he said, “You can have it all, without obeying God, just bow down to me!”

1 John 2:4-5 “The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him:” The qualifier then comes in 1 John 2:6 “the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.” You cannot ignore the necessity of obedience and righteousness and call yourself a Christian, knowing Jesus was obedient, even unto death on a cross.

Children of God are obvious, because they consistently, although not perfectly, practice righteousness. He’s not saying that a Christian cannot sin, or doesn’t sin, that’s not the issue. What he’s saying is that if you treat sin with indifference, you’re not a Christian. You can’t just ignore sin and go on living as you once did if you are in fact born-again.

Lawlessness is the proof that you’re outside the Kingdom of God.
Because God is love, He hates that which destroys eternal life with Him. Because God loves perfectly, He also hates perfectly. Because God is righteous, He hates that which is unrighteous, and because He is holy, He hates that which is unholy.

So pardon my love for God’s Word, its what causes me to hate error and all that seeks to destroy it. The more you love something, the more you hate that which seeks to destroy it. Much in the same way we hate cancer, that which destroys the lives those we love. When you love something, or someone, you hate whatever threatens to destroys them.

Brian Monzón grew up attending church with his grandmother. Through her actions, she impressed upon him the power of the prayers of the righteous, as she herself spent many hours kneeling before God, praying for her family and the needs of others. Besides being a pastor, Brian has been studying and teaching the Word of God for many years. He has devoted his life to sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ, praying with and for others, especially the unsaved. Brian is also a proud father of four children. He challenges them to be their best and has strived to raise his family up in church and on the Word of God. To discover more about Brian and his ministry please visit Brian Monzón Ministries.