We're talking about unintentional sins, which are sins we commit spontaneously. The question is - Can the grace of God empower us to avoid sinning under such circumstances. The answer seems to be, Yes. If we have no problem with this particular insight then we should be able to understand why it is that we sometimes commit unintentional sins.

Spontaneous sins, from my experience, are committed unconsciously, that is, we don't reason it out from cause to effect before we blow it. It's something we do by default, which is related to the strength of that particular weakness. In order to overcome such recurring incidences we must pray without ceasing, because at any moment something might happen that preys on our weaknesses, our predisposition to sin.

Several years ago I began praying that God would grant, what I call, mind time, time to think about what I'm doing before I do it. He answered my prayer immediately. It's amazing, there's no other way to describe it. It's almost like everything goes into slow motion. Now, I have plenty of time to stay connected to Jesus and to imitate His example.

Which dosen't mean I always succeed in making the right choice. But I know victory is mine if and when I want it. If I fail now it's because I was too tired to care, or some other inexcusable reason. Not that I believe unintentional sinning is excusable, because it isn't. There is no excuse for any sin, no matter how tired or uncaring we might feel at the time. Salvation is a thorough work, and victory is available every time, all the time. Thank you, Jesus.

DenBorg, technically separation precedes sinning. At least, that’s what I believe. Thank you for pointing that out. However, in another sense separation is also the result of sinning. When we stop partaking of the divine nature, which is what empowers us to imitate the example of Jesus, we separate ourselves from God, from our only source of success. Once we disconnect ourselves from Jesus we are immediately incapable of being Christlike and, as such, we are in a sinful state, which is manifested in any number of ways – subtle sins or blatant ones. Regardless of whether or not we can detect our sin (self-righteousness is harder to discern as a sin) we are, nevertheless, in a state of sin when we’re not abiding in Jesus.

The difference between a seed and a blossom is not sin or imperfection, but rather the difference has to do with degrees of maturation. Perfection is inherent in the seed itself, and this perfection unfolds as the plant grows and matures. It is perfect at every stage of growth. The unrevealed portion of a developing plant does not symbolize sin or imperfection, instead it illustrates how Christ matured in the fruits of the Spirit as He grew from childhood to manhood. The same thing applies to newborn babes in Christ as they grow in grace and mature morally. The seed that God implants in them, which Paul refers to as the mind of the new man, comes complete with all the righteous character attributes of God and all of the fruits of Spirit. We are born again with each one of these traits and qualities, and as we grow and mature they shine brighter and brighter, more and more unto the perfect day.


ML 250
"The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul." Through obedience comes sanctification of body, soul, and spirit. This sanctification is a progressive work, and an advance from one stage of perfection to another. {ML 250.4}

DA 676
When we live by faith on the Son of God, the fruits of the Spirit will be seen in our lives; not one will be missing. {DA 676.4}

COL 330
All righteous attributes of character dwell in God as a perfect, harmonious whole, and every one who receives Christ as a personal Saviour is privileged to possess these attributes. {COL 330.2}

1 John
3:9 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.

1 Peter
1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

Ephesians
4:24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

In his First Epistle I believe John is saying that born again believers do not and cannot commit a known sin while abiding in Christ because he found it to be true through personal experience. He may very well be talking about all types of sin, known and unknown, but I doubt it, because he is addressing Christians in general, not just fully developed, well seasoned believers, full of wisdom and years of experience.

When he says, Whoever sins has neither seen or known Jesus, I believe he is talking about the contrast between those who are connected to Jesus and those who are not. But if and when a believer disconnects from Jesus all he can do is sin. When we take our eyes off Jesus we can’t see Him, and we sin, because without Jesus all we can do is sin. To know Jesus is to show Him in our everyday life and choices. We can’t do this when we’re disconnected from Him.

“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. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.” 1 John 3:9, 10. Christians are manifested by their Christlike choices and behaviour, and non-Christians are manifested by their unChristlike choices and behaviour. The difference is whether or not we have been born again and continue to abide in Jesus.

quote:

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But I am curious, Mike. Do you think that the frequency of mistakes would be consistent throughout the growth towards natural, automatic obedience? Or do you think the frequency of mistakes would lessen as such a person reaches the point of natural, automatic obedience?

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First of all, I think it is important that we understand and believe that there is no excuse for committing known sins.

DA 311
The tempter's agency is not to be accounted an excuse for one wrong act. Satan is jubilant when he hears the professed followers of Christ making excuses for their deformity of character. It is these excuses that lead to sin. There is no excuse for sinning. A holy temper, a Christlike life, is accessible to every repenting, believing child of God. {DA 311.3}

I do not believe making mistakes is necessary in order to become more and more like Jesus. Nor do I believe becoming less and less like Satan is the same thing as becoming more and more like Jesus. Satan is not the opposite of God. God has no opposite. And neither is sinning the opposite of righteousness by faith. There is no excuse for falling short of the glory of God. And just because we sometimes do commit known sins it does not mean we cannot successfully recognize and resist every known sin, every time we are tempted, from henceforth until Jesus returns.