The one born of God cannot sin

[spiderman1917]

1 John 3:9 ►

No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God   Obviously, there are other scriptures that speak of men of God sinning , Romans 7 being a clear example.   What do you think was originally meant by that statement , and do you think when it was translated from Greek to English , the meaning changed?

[Willa]

Amplified Bible, 1 Jn 3:8b-10

The reason the Son of God was made manifest (visible) was to undo (destroy, loosen, and dissolve) the works the devil [has done].

1Jn 3:9  No one born (begotten) of God [deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] practices sin, for God's nature abides in him [His principle of life, the divine sperm, remains permanently within him]; and he cannot practice sinning because he is born (begotten) of God.

1Jn 3:10  By this it is made clear who take their nature from God and are His children and who take their nature from the devil and are his children: no one who does not practice righteousness [who does not conform to God's will in purpose, thought, and action] is of God; neither is anyone who does not love his brother (his fellow believer in Christ).

A person who deliberately sins will get what I call "the Holy Ghost miserables".  We are chastened by God, and it hurts to feel so separated from Him.  We come to Him for forgiveness, confessing our sin, and He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  Eventually we no longer want to go through that so we start to choose to do God's will instead.  It is a training process that will yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness.  

[missmuffet]

1 John 3:9

 What is happening is that John is saying that the one who is born again does not habitually abide in sin. He may fall into it, but he does not practice it as a lifestyle. The nuances of the Greek language are not carried over to the English, but when we understand what is happening, we then see there is no problem.

Finally, any Christian who would say that he does not sin anymore fails to agree with 1 John 1:8 which says, "If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us."  He would then be self-deceived.

https://carm.org/can-true-christian-sin

[Jayne]

Well, compare that to John's earlier statement in the same book [1 John 1:8] that "if we claim to have no sin that we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us." Does this mean that we have constant sin in our lives and we just sin 24 hours a day and nothing can get rid of it?

Of course not. It means that we live in this body of flesh and we are going to sin sometimes and there is no denying that. To deny that is to lie.

Here is your verse [1 John 3:9] in the Greek: πᾶς ὁ ἐν αὐτῷ μένων οὐχ , ἁμαρτάνει ; πᾶς πᾶς ἁμαρτάνων , οὐχ ἑώρακεν αὐτὸν , οὐδὲ ἔγνωκεν αὐτόν.

The literal translation is "Anyone in him abiding not sins; anyone sinning not has seen him nor has he known him".

Some say that the grammatical thrust of the Greek word for "sins" here is talking about a continual unrepentant lifestyle. I can't personally find that, but maybe someone else more knowledgeable about Greek verb tenses can help.

I would say that is the case based on the first verse I posted. John says two things:  [1] to say we don't sin is a lie - [2] living a lifestyle of sin and claiming to abide in Christ is also a lie.

[Ezra]

3 hours ago, Jayne said:

Here is your verse [1 John 3:9] in the Greek: πᾶς ὁ ἐν αὐτῷ μένων οὐχ , ἁμαρτάνει ; πᾶς πᾶς ἁμαρτάνων , οὐχ ἑώρακεν αὐτὸν , οὐδὲ ἔγνωκεν αὐτόν.

The above is probably a different verse, not 1 Jn 3:9. Here is the Greek:

Scrivener's Textus Receptus 1894
πᾶς ὁ γεγεννημένος  ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἁμαρτίαν οὐ ποιεῖ, ὅτι σπέρμα αὐτοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ μένει· καὶ οὐ δύναται ἁμαρτάνειν, ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ γεγέννηται.

Nestle Greek New Testament 1904
Πᾶς ὁ γεγεννημένος ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἁμαρτίαν οὐ ποιεῖ, ὅτι σπέρμα αὐτοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ μένει· καὶ οὐ δύναται ἁμαρτάνειν, ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ γεγέννηται.

Berry's Literal Interlinear

Not anyone that has been begotten of God practices sin, because his seed in him abides, and he is not able to sin, because of God he has been begotten.

As we can see above, both the TR and the Critical Text are the same (one of the few instances where they actually match). Now we look at the KJV and the ESV, and find that the ESV is presenting the doctrine clearly by paraphrasing (while it is not as clear in the KJV because it is more literal).

King James Bible
Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

English Standard Version
No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.

In essence, the person who is truly born again does not make sinning an ongoing habit.  Why?  Because the Holy Spirit (God's *seed*) is within him.  So if a person claims to be a Christian, but maintains a sinful lifestyle, he is fooling himself (while trying to fool others).

[Jayne]

I stand corrected on the Greek.

I accidentally looked up 1 John 3:6, not 1 John 3:9. 

[appy]

The meaning has not changed at all nor is there any contradiction with Paul's letter to the romans. Both are saying that as Christians we should not permit ourselves to have habitual sin in our lives. The one who is born again, lacks the the desire to continue in habitual sin. Not that we will never sin again, but that we can not go on desiring and living in a sinful lifestyle.

[RustyAngeL]

11 hours ago, bopeep1909 said:

1 John 3:9

 What is happening is that John is saying that the one who is born again does not habitually abide in sin. He may fall into it, but he does not practice it as a lifestyle. The nuances of the Greek language are not carried over to the English, but when we understand what is happening, we then see there is no problem.

Finally, any Christian who would say that he does not sin anymore fails to agree with 1 John 1:8 which says, "If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us."  He would then be self-deceived.

https://carm.org/can-true-christian-sin

Agreed.  As believers in Jesus, those who are born again, it will not be natural for us to sin now because the Holy Spirit of God now dwells in us.  That doesn't mean we will not make human mistakes and do something we shouldn't do.  However it will not be of that sin nature we once were.  We now belong to Christ and less likely to step out in the world and live as those in the world do.  And if we do, we now understand repentance and will be quicker to see our action and will be quicker to make it right through the Holy Spirit, by asking to be forgiven. 

11 hours ago, bopeep1909 said:

1 John 3:9

 What is happening is that John is saying that the one who is born again does not habitually abide in sin. He may fall into it, but he does not practice it as a lifestyle. The nuances of the Greek language are not carried over to the English, but when we understand what is happening, we then see there is no problem.

Finally, any Christian who would say that he does not sin anymore fails to agree with 1 John 1:8 which says, "If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us."  He would then be self-deceived.

https://carm.org/can-true-christian-sin

 

[LadyKay]

17 hours ago, spiderman1917 said:

1 John 3:9 ►

No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God   Obviously, there are other scriptures that speak of men of God sinning , Romans 7 being a clear example.   What do you think was originally meant by that statement , and do you think when it was translated from Greek to English , the meaning changed?

My take on the meaning is this:  Someone climes to be "born again". But they live a sinful life. They are not really "born again". They are just telling people that they are. I think one of the things that this passage warns us about is not to believe everyone who simply say they are "born again". But to see how they live their life. Also I think it tells us that when we are "born again", we will change the way we live.  More thoughts on this is that we all sin. But as we grow in Christ,  I think our desire to sin becomes less and less. To the point where we simply do not take happiness in sinning anymore. I know it has been that way with me. Many of the sins I did even after I became born again and was a young Christian, as I have grown in Christ; I no longer get happiness of those sins and no longer desire to do them. That isn't to say that I am perfect and without sin.  But the sins become less and less as I grown in Christ.

[kwikphilly]

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⁹ Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

Once again here is a Scripture verse that can baffle the carnal  minded,,,,,,WALKING in Spirit & in Truth,having access to & receiving FROM the Power Holy Spirit which indwelleth,one cannot sin,,,,,,,,,,this is having the Heart & Mind of Jesus Christ who abides within...

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King James Bible
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.           Proverbs 3:5

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King James Bible
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.                                                                                                             Galatians 5:17 

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King James Bible
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.                                                                                                                                                                         Eph 6:12

The carnal mind,heart(all that is made of flesh & blood) will be tempted & ensnared without the POWER of the Holy Spirit