Bible Texts Examined: What Scripture Really Says About Sin (Rewritten)

Much of the disagreement about sin comes down to a lack of precision. People often talk past one another because they mean different things by the word sin. In this discussion, we are not talking about involuntary human weakness or unavoidable imperfections. We are talking about willful violations of God’s known law — whether that law is written in Scripture or impressed on the conscience.

The idea of living without sin immediately alarms many people. To them, it sounds like taking the crown off Christ — the only sinless person to walk the earth — and placing it on human heads. But before reacting, we need to ask a deeper question: does sin in the human soul honor Christ, or does it dishonor Him?

Why did Jesus come into the world? Scripture answers clearly: to save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). If Christ does not actually save people from sin, then His mission falls short of its purpose. He came to make believers new (2 Corinthians 5:17) — to create something genuinely transformed. Any lingering corruption that stains this “new creation” reflects not glory, but failure. Scripture says, “You are His workmanship” (Ephesians 2:10). A work reveals the skill — or lack of skill — of its maker. Is anyone prepared to argue that sin would be a decorative feature rather than a defect in the work of the Divine Sculptor?

In His high-priestly prayer (John 17), Jesus says of His followers, “I am glorified in them.” Is Christ glorified by sin reflected in the lives of His people? When St. John describes the Word made flesh (John 1:14), he does not point to wealth, power, reputation, or brilliance. He points to moral glory — “grace and truth.” These qualities, when present in believers, bring honor to Christ. Sin, by contrast, is always a disgrace — not just to people, but to the God they claim to serve.

Jesus is not threatened by a believer who, through His grace, experiences real victory over inward sin and outward transgression. He rejoices in it. Christ is not afraid that someone clothed in His righteousness will somehow outshine Him. Sin might obscure His glory — but holiness never does.

Is Sin Necessary to Keep Us Humble?

Some argue that sin must remain in the heart to prevent spiritual pride. But this makes no sense. Asking whether pride will rise once sin is destroyed is like asking whether a man will lift his head proudly after his neck has been broken. When the Holy Spirit fully takes possession of the heart, He not only breaks sin’s power — He casts it out entirely, leaving no root of pride behind. Perfect love for Christ produces perfect humility.

If someone can prove that a person must drink a little alcohol daily to remain temperate, steal a little each day to remain honest, lie occasionally to stay truthful, or violate the seventh commandment to preserve purity — then we might entertain the idea that a small reserve of sin is necessary for spiritual health. Until then, the argument collapses under its own absurdity.

Do the Scriptures Teach That Everyone Must Keep Sinning?

Some appeal to Scripture to argue that freedom from sin is impossible. They point first to Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the temple: “There is no man who does not sin” (2 Chronicles 6:36), repeated in Ecclesiastes 7:20. But when these passages are accurately translated — as they are in the Vulgate, the Septuagint, and most ancient versions — they do not teach that everyone does sin, but that no one is incapable of sin. In other words, they say “may not sin,” not “does not avoid sin.”

Hebrew lacks a true potential tense, so it uses the future indicative instead. Context determines the meaning. In the King James Version, the logic collapses into nonsense — an if statement that assumes the condition is always true. It’s like reporting a governor saying, “If any person is insane — for everyone is insane — let them come here for care.” We would immediately correct the error. Solomon deserves the same courtesy. Properly understood, he is saying that no human being is immune from the possibility of sin — not that all must live in it.

The same reasoning applies to Ecclesiastes.

What About James: “We All Stumble in Many Ways”?

St. James says, “In many things we offend all” (James 3:2 KJV). But who is the "we"? All difficulty disappears once we recognize that "we" refers to humanity in general. James immediately adds an exception: “If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man.” Far from endorsing constant failure, James explicitly acknowledges the possibility of moral completeness. 

[EDITOR'S NOTE: In the New Revised Standard translation the phrase in James 3:2 πολλὰ γὰρ πταίομεν ἅπαντες is translated: "For all of us make many mistakes." James is not saying they should make mistakes. Rather, they are prone to make mistakes. They should hesitate to become teachers too readily in light of the human proneness to error. Error is to be avoided, it is not inevitable. cla.]

“If We Say We Have No Sin…”

The final refuge for this argument in favor of ongoing willful sin is 1 John 1:8: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves.” But the very next verse explains the meaning: “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar.” John is not talking about a believer who has been cleansed; he is addressing anyone who claims they never needed Christ’s atoning blood in the first place.

This interpretation aligns perfectly with John’s equally strong statement that “whoever is born of God does not commit sin” (1 John 3:9) — that is, deliberate and known sin. To interpret verse 8 as teaching that all believers must keep sinning directly contradicts John’s own teaching about victory over sin.

Filled With God, Not With Sin

Once these misunderstandings are cleared away, Scripture consistently points to complete deliverance from sin through the fullness of divine love and the fullness of the Spirit. Consider St. Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3. There is not a single negative request in it — no mention of sin, guilt, or corruption. Paul prays that believers would be filled with all the fullness of God. That request makes no sense if sin is expected to remain in the soul. Paul would have prayed for forgiveness and cleansing if he believed they were still sinners. Instead, he prays for fullness — because he assumes cleansing has already occurred.

Does Romans 7 Describe the Christian Life?

Some insist that Romans 7 is the believer’s ongoing experience. We disagree entirely. Paul is not describing the Christian at his best, nor offering a self-portrait. His writing style — shaped by synagogue debate — is dialogical. He often speaks in different voices, anticipating objections and embodying opposing arguments. This requires care in interpretation.

For the first three centuries of church history, the entire Christian church understood Romans 7:13–25 as describing the unregenerate person. It was considered far too bleak to represent a believer’s life. That interpretation changed with Augustine, was reinforced in the Middle Ages, and widely adopted after the Reformation — especially among followers of Calvin. Yet many modern scholars and entire Christian traditions have returned to the earlier, more coherent view. As Dr. Daniel Whedon notes, Romans 7 portrays a convicted sinner struggling under the law, not a believer living in the Spirit. 

[John Wesley says of Romans 7:

"The character here assumed is that of a man, first ignorant of the law, then under it and sincerely, but ineffectually, striving to serve God. To have spoken this of himself, or any true believer, would have been foreign to the whole scope of his discourse; nay, utterly contrary thereto, as well as to what is expressly asserted [in] Romans 8:2."] 

The true picture of Christian life appears in Romans 6 and 8: “Now being made free from sin… you have your fruit unto holiness” and “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Paul uses the darkness of Romans 7 as contrast — like a painter setting a dark background to make the central figure shine. The tragedy is mistaking the shadow for the subject and holding it up as the model for Christian living.

Final Conclusion

Scripture never excuses sin, never licenses it, and never treats it as a necessary feature of grace. To claim that God requires sin to remain in the believer is to slander His character and declare redemption a failure. The Bible consistently points in the opposite direction: real freedom, real holiness, and real victory through Christ. 

 

 

 

 

 

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This is a revision of Chapter 5 of Love Enthroned: Essays on Evangelical Perfection (1875) by Daniel Steele, completely rewritten with the assistance of Microslop CoPilot. The original chapter can be found here: BIBLE TEXTS FOR SIN EXAMINED.