Do Believers Still Sin? How Do We Reconcile 1 John 1:9 And 1 John 3:6?
Q: If believers still sin and can ask God for forgiveness (1 John 1:9), how do we understand 1 John 3:6, which says that whoever sins has not seen or known Him?
1 John 1:9 – If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 3:6 – Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.
A: The New Testament was originally written in Koine Greek. The phrasing of 1 John 3:6 in the Koine Greek implies continual or habitual sin. Whoever abides in Him does not sin habitually. Whoever sins habitually has neither seen Him nor known Him. The Bible does warn us that it is not appropriate or fitting for a believer to live in habitual sin. There’s something seriously wrong if somebody who claims to be a believer in Jesus Christ, and claims to be born again by God’s Spirit, yet abides in habitual sin. Does the problem mean that the person isn’t saved? Possibly, but that verdict would require further investigation.
In no way is John saying or implying in 1 John 3:6 that occasional acts of sin mean that a person is not saved. But I think John would say that if a person is comfortable in habitual sin, then there’s a legitimate question regarding that person’s standing with God.
Enduring Word Bible Commentary by David Guzik on 1 John 3:6 (enduringword.com/bible-commentary/1-john-3/)
a. Whoever abides in Him does not sin: Since sin is lawlessness, a disregard for God (1 John 3:4), and since Jesus came to take away our sins (1 John 3:5), and since in Jesus there is no sin (1 John 3:5), then to abide in Him means to not sin.
i. It is very important to understand what the Bible means – and what it does not mean – when it says does not sin. According to the verb tense John uses, does not sin means does not live a life style of habitual sin. John has already told us in 1 John 1:8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. In 1 John 1:8, the grammar indicates John is speaking about occasional acts of sin. The grammar of 1 John 3:6 indicates that John is speaking of a settled, continued lifestyle of sin. John is not teaching here the possibility of sinless perfection.
ii. “The present tense in the Greek verb implied habit, continuity, unbroken sequence” (Stott); the NIV has the right idea when it translates these verbs with phrases such as keeps on sinning, continues to sin, and he cannot go on sinning.
b. Whoever abides in Him does not sin: John’s message is plain and consistent with the rest of the Scriptures. It tells us that a life style of habitual sin is inconsistent with a life of abiding in Jesus Christ. A true Christian can only be temporarily in a life style of sin.
i. Paul’s teaching in Romans 6 is a great example of this principle. He shows us that when a person comes to Jesus, when his sins are forgiven and God’s grace is extended to him, he is radically changed – the old man is dead, and the new man lives. So it is utterly incompatible for a new creation in Christ to be comfortable in habitual sin; such a place can only be temporary for the Christian.
ii. In some ways, the question is not “Do you sin or not?” We each sin. The question is, “How do you react when you sin? Do you give in to the pattern of sin, and let it dominate your lifestyle? Or do you humbly confess your sin, and do battle against it with the power Jesus can give?”
iii. This is why it is so grieving to see Christians make excuses for their sin, and not humbly confess them. Unless the sin is dealt with squarely, it will contribute to a pattern of sin that may soon become their lifestyle – perhaps a secret lifestyle, but a lifestyle nonetheless.
iv. What is important is that we never sign a “peace treaty” with sin. We never wink at its presence or excuse it by saying, “Everybody has his own sinful areas, and this is mine. Jesus understands.” This completely goes against everything we are in Jesus, and the work He has done in our life.
c. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him: To live a lifestyle of habitual sin is to demonstrate that you have not seen Him (in a present sense of the ultimate “seeing Him” mentioned in 1 John 3:2), and that you have not known Him. There are some people so great and so wonderful that seeing them or knowing them will change your life forever. Jesus is that kind of person.