The Faith of Enoch

The Bible tells us that, "By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death; and he was not found because God took him up; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God." (Heb. 11:5 NAS) Enoch and Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) were the only two men to never die a physical death. Elijah went up by a whirlwind to heaven after a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated him from Elisha, his traveling companion and the one appointed to take his place as a prophet of God. Of Enoch, we only know that the Bible says he was taken up. How we are not told.

Very little is known about Enoch and his life. We know he was the father of Methuselah (Gen. 5:21), the oldest man to have lived, as far as we know, who died at the age of 969 (Gen. 5:27), and that he was the great-grandfather of Noah (see Gen. 5:21-29). We also know that Enoch was a prophet of God in the seventh generation from Adam (Jude 14) and that he is found in the genealogy of Christ on Joseph's side in Luke 3 (see Luke 3:23-38, especially verse 37). So little is known about Enoch that we can quote all the Bible has to say about him in the short passages that follow, along with the passage quoted above.

"And Enoch lived sixty-five years, and became the father of Methuselah. Then Enoch walked with God three hundred years after he became the father of Methuselah, and he had other sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him." (Gen. 5:21-24 NAS)

"And about these also Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, 'Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.'" (Jude 14-15 NAS)

What can we learn from these passages? To be more specific, what can we learn about the faith of Enoch? The answer is more than is first apparent.

The Hebrew writer in Heb. 11:5 tells us, "by faith Enoch was taken up." (NAS) Paul tells us, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Rom. 10:17 NKJV) The NAS (New American Standard) translation has "word of Christ" here rather than "word of God" but it is hard to see that that makes any difference since Jesus is the Word (see John 1:1, 14) and the Word was God (John 1:1). Enoch's faith then had to be, as does that of all men, based on God's word. By that, I mean he had to have heard from God to have faith (Rom. 10:17).

We do not know how much God communicated his will to those of ancient times, pre-flood days in the case of Enoch, but we know enough to know from Rom. 1:18-21 that man was "without excuse" (Rom. 1:20 NAS) as it relates to sin, and we know man was sinning. Man had grown wicked in pre-flood days. "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." (Gen. 6:5 NAS)

Read in context it is clear that Enoch's prophecy, as recorded in Jude 14 and 15, was applicable not just to the people of his day but for all people from his time forward until Judgment Day. When the Lord comes again he is going to execute judgment "upon all," which is exactly what the text says, and he is going to convict "all the ungodly" regardless of when they lived.

Mankind had enough knowledge of God in Enoch's time, and before and afterwards, to live in a way that would please God. Enoch, being a prophet, was an inspired man. God used prophets in those early days to communicate his will to early man, at least in part. Luke 1:70 and Acts 3:21 both indicate that there have been prophets since the beginning of time (see KJV or NKJV, see also Luke 11:50 in any version). If you read Luke 11:49-51, you see Abel listed as a prophet, which is easily overlooked.

Enoch knew God's will. He heard the words of God and spoke them as a prophet. His faith was in God by means of what God spoke to him which is to say, as Paul said, "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Rom. 10:17 NKJV) God spoke, and Enoch believed. Without word from God, Enoch could only have known that God existed, that he had great power, knowledge, and understanding.

But we can learn even more from the few scriptures we have on Enoch. It is said Enoch pleased God (Heb. 11:5) and Enoch "walked with God" (Gen. 5:24 NASU).  To please God, one must walk with God. How does one do that? The Bible tells us that Zacharias and Elizabeth, his wife, the parents of John the Baptist, "were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord." (Luke 1:6 NASU) Zacharias and Elizabeth lived under the Law of Moses, Enoch did not. That aside, how could Enoch please God the way he did and walk with God, which the Bible says he did, unless he obeyed the commands God gave him just as Zacharias and Elizabeth did?

Someone might object and say he walked by faith. Certainly, he did but how does one walk by faith? Is it possible for a man to walk by faith while actively and willfully disobeying God’s word? I cannot walk with God unless I have determined to go down the road he leads me down. If on that road he says stop (gives a command) I must obey. If he says turn right I must turn right. If he says slow down I must slow down. In other words, I cannot walk with God if I do not allow him to lead me and I follow along in accord with his directions, or put another way, in accord with “his commands.”

Faith in God, the Old Testament often calls this trust, manifests itself in obedience. Years after Enoch the children of Israel were given the Promised Land but the generation who were originally set to receive it, those who came out of Egyptian bondage led by Moses, were not able to enter in, and why not? Because they were not willing to obey and enter and fight for the land, even with God assuring them of victory. And why were they not willing? Because of a lack of faith.

"And to whom did He swear that they should not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient? And so we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief." (Heb. 3:18-19 NAS) If you turn to this passage and read it in context you see clearly that this is a direct reference to the children of Israel and their failure to enter into the Promised Land. The passage teaches us that faith would have led to obedience, just as a lack of faith (unbelief) led to disobedience. So what is the point? It is this--faith and obedience to God's commands cannot be separated.

When one is unwilling to obey God, or just is negligent in doing so, it is a manifestation of a lack of what the Bible calls faith or belief. If we truly believed strongly enough that God said what he meant and meant what he said, we would not be hesitant to obey but would obey readily and promptly. In doing so we would be walking with God and pleasing God as Enoch did.

Much of Christendom is today guilty of disbelief while calling it faith. Faith is more than just what is in your mind. The faith that leads to one's salvation is coupled with obedience and cannot be uncoupled. You obey because you believe, you disobey because you disbelieve, or just do not believe strongly enough to obey.

Now, what is it that must be believed if one is to walk with God? Eve believed the serpent's lie, his deception. One cannot just believe anything and everything. The apostle John, in 2 John 4, tells us what we need to believe. "I was very glad to find some of your children walking in truth, just as we have received commandment to do from the Father." (2 John 1:4 NASU) One must believe the truth if one is to walk in the truth, as John says we are commanded to do; thus, what must be believed is the truth.

Why will men perish? The answer is "because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved." (2 Thess. 2:10 NASU) Jesus, in his John 17 prayer to the Father, said, "Thy word is truth." (John 17:17 KJV) When the Bible says Enoch walked with God do you think he walked in truth? He walked by God’s word.

John says just a little later, "And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments." (2 John 1:6 NASU) Do you think Enoch walked with God without walking according to the commandments God gave him? Do you think it would even be possible to walk with God without walking according to his commandments? Does not this passage teach that without commandment keeping there is no love? Many complain that strictness in commandment keeping is legalism, an attempt to be saved by works. John teaches that it is love. “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments.” (1 John 5:3 NAS)

The point is not that Enoch was a perfect commandment keeper or law keeper for "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23 NASU) and "there is none righteous, not even one." (Rom. 3:10 NASU) The point is that one cannot walk with God, or walk or live by faith, without believing enough in God to believe he knows best, better than you or me, and thus trust him enough to make a genuine good faith effort to obey him thus manifesting our faith in him. It is simply letting God be God, letting him be the ruler and taking our rightful place as bond servants of his. We obey because our faith leads us to that. Only then has God become in our hearts the God that lives in the heart. Only then does he rule within us.

So the truth is we can know quite a bit more about Enoch and his faith than what first appears to be the case. We too ought to try and please God and walk with God just as Enoch did lest we fall into the camp of those he prophesied against--the ungodly who do ungodly deeds, or put another way, the disobedient.

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Faith That Does Not Avail

The Bible teaches there is a type of faith in Jesus that does not avail. Unfortunately, this is a faith that is prevalent among many. These are people who are decent in most respects, people who believe they are saved. They do believe that Jesus is the Son of God but they are irreligious. They do not attend worship services; they never read the scriptures; the good works they do are not done because of anything God said but rather because it seems good to them. They believe faith (alone) will save them. There is more to saving faith than just believing in Jesus, believing that he is the Son of God.

If faith alone, defined as believing that Jesus is the Son of God, could save by itself then even the demons would be saved for James says, "even the demons believe--and tremble!" (James 2:19 NKJV) What they believed was that there was one God but by studying the gospel accounts one also knows they believed in Jesus as the Son of God for they often confessed him. One such example is Mark 3:11, "And whenever the unclean spirits beheld Him, they would fall down before Him and cry out, saying, 'You are the Son of God!' " (NAS)

Another example is found in Luke 4:33-34 (NAS), "And there was a man in the synagogue possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, 'Ha! What do we have to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are--the Holy One of God!'"

Yet another example is Luke 5:41 (NAS), "And demons also were coming out of many, crying out and saying, 'You are the Son of God!' And rebuking them, He would not allow them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ."

But, it is not just demons that have faith that has not availed. John 12:42 proves beyond doubt there is a faith that lacks value. "Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God." (NAS) Would you say these believers were saved?

In the late chapters of the book of Acts, we find Paul being examined by one official after another on his way to Rome after being put in custody in Jerusalem. One of the first of these was Felix, the Governor. It is said of Felix that he had "a more exact knowledge about the Way," a reference to Christianity, (Acts 24:22 NAS). Then in verses 23-26, "And he gave orders to the centurion for him to be kept in custody and yet have some freedom, and not to prevent any of his friends from ministering to him. But some days later, Felix arrived with Drusilla, his wife who was a Jewess, and sent for Paul, and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. And as he was discussing righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened and said, 'Go away for the present, and when I find time, I will summon you.' " (NAS)

Paul preached faith in Christ Jesus and things that are entailed in that. If Felix did not believe why was he frightened? Did the faith of Felix save him? He evidently believed.

In the Parable of the Sower you find two of the four types of men who hear the word and believe and yet end up being condemned. Luke 8:13-14 (NAS), "And those on the rocky soil are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no firm root; they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away. And the seed which fell among the thorns, these are the ones who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to maturity.”

In verse thirteen Jesus says specifically that these people believe. Are they saved? How about that class of believers represented by the seed that fell among the thorns? Are they saved? The Bible clearly teaches men can be believers and yet remain unsaved. They have the faith that does not avail and not the faith that saves.

In the New Testament, the word "faith" and its synonyms can be and are used from time to time as a figure of speech called a synecdoche. What is a synecdoche? It is where one puts the part to represent the whole. In speaking of salvation, when it is said one is saved by faith and nothing else is mentioned, then it is understood that faith is used in an all-inclusive sense to include everything that naturally follows from the belief.

In his book entitled Hermeneutics, D. R. Dungan says, in discussing synecdoches, "This is many times the case with the salvation of sinners. The whole number of conditions is indicated by the use of one. Generally, the first one is mentioned-that of faith-because without it nothing else could follow." (Page 305)

Faith is the basis of Christianity. Surely, a man lacking faith in Jesus will not be concerned with obeying Jesus or keeping his commandments so why proceed with anything else? There is no reason to until faith is first established. But, when faith by itself is mentioned as the saving factor it is a use of the word as a synecdoche. It includes everything that flows from a living faith and is far more than mere mental assent or belief. When the word faith is used as a synecdoche in the New Testament it is a reference to saving faith.

There are two types of faith--the kind that leads a person to take action on his beliefs (a living faith) versus the kind that is merely mental assent (a dead faith). The latter kind can never save. James says, "But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?" (James 2:20 NAS) Later, he says, "Faith without works is dead." (James 2:26 NAS) Thus James confirms what has been said all along in this article--there is a kind of faith that leads to destruction.

When the Bible talks about being saved by faith it is talking about the kind of faith that has works (works of obedience), the kind of faith where the word faith is used to stand for and represent everything that Christ requires of us (the word "faith" or "believe" used as a synecdoche). We are told what does avail in Gal. 5:6, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working by love.” (NKJV) Faith cannot just set in one’s mind but must act. Act on what? Act on what God’s word directs you to do.

The faith that saves goes beyond obedience to just commandments that are pleasing to us. The faith that saves is willing to do whatever Jesus says and sometimes that can be tough. We live in a type of Christian environment today, if you want to call it that, that has rationalized every sin away. They tell you why this passage no longer applies to us today, why that one does not, and on and on it goes. They believe what they want to believe and discount the rest of scripture. Their faith is of the mental assent kind.

Jesus is "the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him." (Heb. 5:9 NKJV) "If you love Me, keep My commandments." (John 14:15 NKJV) "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me." (John 14:21 NKJV) "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word." (John 14:23 NKJV) "He who does not love Me does not keep My words." (John 14:24 NKJV) Can a man have faith and go to heaven and yet not love Jesus? "If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be accursed. Maranatha." (1 Cor. 16:22 NAS) That does not sound like such a man is saved to me.

The faith that saves is not a smorgasbord where one can go in and pick this or that, as you choose, to believe and obey. One must believe and obey all that Jesus taught directly or through the word of inspiration as found in the New Testament scriptures. Saving faith is faith working through love.

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The Silence of the Scriptures

 From a book entitled A Short History of Christianity by Stephen Tomkins I quote as follows:  "The basic difference between Zwingli and Luther was in their attitudes to the Bible.  Zwingli saw it as a precise blueprint for church life.  For Luther, what is not forbidden is permitted; for Zwingli, what is not permitted is forbidden." (page 141)  Both Zwingli and Luther lived in the Age of Reformation, often referred to as the Protestant Reformation, and both men were leading figures in its beginnings.

The subject of this article is the issue that separated Luther from Zwingli, namely, the silence of the scriptures.  While I will be concentrating primarily on issues related to worship practices in this article the principles enunciated extend beyond what happens inside the doors where we meet for worship weekly.  Does the silence of the scriptures permit a practice or forbid it in Christianity?

This can only be answered by an appeal to the scriptures to which we will go but before doing so it would be good to make the point that some have answered this question without an appeal to scripture at all.  Authority within the Roman Catholic Church, for example, resides in the church itself, the Magisterium, not in scripture.  However, I suppose, if one was forced to put them in either Luther’s camp or Zwingli’s camp they would have to be placed with Luther.

When one takes the position Luther took one cannot complain too much, and be consistent, about wild innovations in the church.  If what is not forbidden is permitted then pretty much anything goes.  On what basis could you forbid it? 

But what do the scriptures teach for those desiring to know?  If there was only one passage one could use to settle this debate as it relates to worship it would be for me John 4:24, "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (NKJV)  It is easy to overlook a very important word in this passage, the word "must."  That means neither you nor I have any choice in the matter.  It is we "must."  It is the only worship God will accept, that which is in spirit and truth, or else the word "must" is a word without meaning.

We know what is meant when we are told we must worship in spirit.  I think we all agree about the meaning of that part of the passage.  That leaves only the word truth and the question about that only revolves around what is truth, where it’s found, and how you can know it.  The Bible tells us. 

"Truth came through Jesus Christ." (John 1:17 NKJV)  Whatever Jesus spoke was "truth."  In prayer to the Father, Jesus said, in John 17:17, "Your word is truth." (NKJV)  The words Jesus spoke, whatever, wherever, to whomever were truth.  He spoke the words the Father had given him.  Hear Jesus, “I have not spoken on my own, but the Father himself who sent me has given me a command to say everything I have said.”  (John 12:49 CSB)  And, again, “I speak just as the Father has told me.” (John 12:50 CSB)

All the words of the New Testament, red letter or not, are the words of Jesus, the words of God the Father, the words of truth.  After Jesus’ death and ascension, when the Holy Spirit was given to men, the Holy Spirit did not speak independently of Jesus and the Father.  Jesus referred to the Spirit calling him “the Spirit of truth.” (John 14:17, 15:26 NKJV)

Jesus further speaking of the Holy Spirit said, “He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.  He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.  All things that the Father has are Mine.  Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.” (John16:13-15 NKJV)

To worship in truth, then, involves worshiping by the word of God.  That means, and it seems so obvious that I do not see how men overlook it, that if there is no word from God there is no truth in matters religious.  If God has not spoken on a practice how does man practice that thing, whatever it be, and say he is worshiping in truth?

Additionally, how can we have faith in a worship practice if there is no word from God when “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Rom.10:17 NKJV)  And, again, “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.” (Col. 3:17 NKJV)  If there is no word from Jesus (God) how do you practice an activity in worship “in the name of the Lord Jesus”?  Perhaps it would be more accurate to say we are doing it in our own name.

There is such a thing as the teachings of men.  Listen to Jesus again, "Hypocrites!  Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: …'And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' " (Matt. 15:7-9 NKJV)  Paul says in Titus we are to not give heed "to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn from the truth." (Titus 1:14 NKJV)  A worship practice that does not have a book, chapter, and verse for it in God’s word is a commandment of men, an invention of men, and is certainly not worship in truth for if it was book, chapter, and verse could be provided.

Now I know many are with Luther on this—if a practice or act is not specifically forbidden then it’s permitted.  If he was right then truth, God’s word, does not matter and one can on his own authority, manmade and man-given, institute worship according to one's desire.

Paul's rebuke of the Corinthians regarding the Lord's Supper provides further evidence that what is not clearly revealed in scripture is prohibited.  The Corinthians had been taught about the Lord's Supper or else they would not have been observing it, correctly or incorrectly.  Furthermore, Paul comes right out and tells us they had been taught when he says, "For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you." (1 Cor. 11:23 NKJV)  That is past tense.  Since he had last met with them they had obviously made some changes in the way they were partaking of the supper.  I ask—on whose authority did they do so? 

Note the principle Paul is establishing.  He is telling the Corinthians to do what you are told to do by inspiration and do not make changes, or additions, or subtractions.  To do so is to change the word of God and is to go outside of truth for one's worship.

In the book of Deuteronomy, we find Moses addressing the children of Israel, acting as God's spokesperson.  Hear what he has to say, "You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you." (Deut. 4:2 NKJV)  Upon what evidence do you think that principle has changed today?  Do you think that today God does not mind us adding to his word or taking from it?

We recognize the principle of silence being prohibitive in human wills and legal documents.  Why do we not recognize the same principle in the last will and testament of our Lord and Savior, the New Testament?  What was left out of that will was left out for a reason.

If a doctor writes you a prescription for drug X then you cannot use it to get drug Y in addition to drug X.  The silence of the prescription prohibits that.  And there is no substitution unless it is specifically written on the prescription that is allowed, normally to a generic.  Silence has meaning.  Silence prohibits and does not authorize.  It is impossible to gain authority from silence.

The police need a search warrant to search your home.  That warrant does not give them the legal right to search your neighbor's home.  Why not?  Because the warrant is silent, it does not speak about your neighbor's house.  You cannot have faith in silence no matter how strongly you may feel about what ought to be.  Our faith must be in what is written, not in the unsaid.

We cannot change what is written in the New Testament (the guide for Christians and Christ's last will and testament).  If we add to it we do so without having the authority to do so and thus do so as men using man's authority, not God's.  If we take away from what is written, ignoring it, then we may as well take a pair of scissors and cut it out of the biblical text.  Who would dare do that?  There is a Day of Judgment when men must stand before God and tampering with his word is not something you want to do when you contemplate that fearful day. 

A practical application of all of this, because it is such a widespread practice, is that of the use of instrumental music in worship.  It was allowed under the Law of Moses.  Why?  Because there was word from God commanding it (see 2 Chron. 29:25).  It is prohibited, even though commonly practiced, under the law of Christ (Gal. 6:2, 1 Cor. 9:21) under which we live today.  Why?  There is no command for it.  The scriptures are silent.  You can only bring it into New Testament worship by adding to the words of Christ.

The secular history of the church is such that it can be proven instrumental music was not used in the New Testament church for a few hundred years after the first century.  Most historians date it to the late seventh century.  The Jews were a people well versed in the use of harps and other musical instruments.  One must ask why Jewish Christians did not use them in the earliest years of the church.  I think the answer is self-evident. 

I close this by reiterating what I have already said.  If the silence of the scriptures allows freedom to do as we please there is no end to the man-made innovations that men can dream up and bring into the church.  Who can believe we can do anything and everything with God’s approval?

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More on Willful Sin—Can Anyone be Saved?

While I have written on this subject, willful sin, in the past, I thought it worthwhile to write a follow-up as this is a subject that troubles many Christians. There is material here that was not in the first article.

The passage that troubles people is Heb. 10:26-31 but more specifically verses 26 and 27. "For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries." (NKJV) I want you to hear the words of Albert Barnes, perhaps the best-known of all English Bible commentators, in his comments on the willful sin of this passage. He says:

"It is not to be construed here strictly, or metaphysically (here Barnes is talking about the word 'willfully'), for all sin is voluntary, or is committed willingly, but must refer to a deliberate act, where a man means to abandon his religion, and to turn away from God. If it were to be taken with metaphysical exactness, it would demonstrate that every Christian who ever does anything wrong, no matter how small, would be lost."

You will be hard-pressed to find a commentator anywhere who would disagree with Barnes’ statement. Virtually every commentator will tell you that the passage has reference to one whose intent is to leave the faith altogether. That person willfully chooses to go another direction.

I do not think this person is one who necessarily ceases to believe. I say that because of verse 27 where there is with this individual "a certain fearful expectation of judgment." (NKJV) However, I grant that the phrase could be taken to be merely descriptive of the judgment and how awful it will be and that is Barnes’ take on it for he says, “The ‘fearful apprehension’ or expectation here does not refer so much to what would be in the mind itself, or what would be experienced, as to what must follow.” Philip Schaff in his commentary agrees for he says, “It describes not what is expected, but what will certainly be, and in truth what is already in reserve—‘a reception of judgment.’” They may well be correct.

We all know Christians who have fallen away simply because they enjoyed sin more than righteousness. They preferred "the pleasures of sin for a season" (Heb. 11:25 KJV) over an eternity of bliss. They did not go into another religion but into a sinful life.  

Here are some words from Neil Lightfoot's commentary on the passage. "He speaks not so much of an act of sin but of a state of sin, for the force of the verb is repeated action—'if we go on sinning,' 'if we continue to sin,' 'if we persist in sin.'" That this is true can be seen from some of the newer Bible translations of the passage. "For if we willfully persist in sin after having received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins." (Heb. 10:26 NRSV) "Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins." (Heb. 10:26 NLT) The passage is not talking about a single act of sin but a determination to live a life of sin after becoming a Christian.

The New Testament never envisioned Christians ever reaching the point in this life where they would never sin. Yes, that is the goal but the apostle John said, in talking to Christians, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." (1 John 1:8 NKJV) Well, then, what is the Christian to do about his sin? John tells us in the very next verse where he says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9 NKJV) Finally, he says, "If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us." (1 John 1:10 NKJV)

The Christian who sins needs to confess their sins to God after having become penitent. "Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter." (2 Cor. 7:9-11 NKJV) The Corinthians were Christians who had sinned and considering the sins they committed as we read about them in the book of First Corinthians one has to think "they knew better" before committing some of them.

John says he wrote to his little children, as he calls them, "that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." (1 John 2:1 NKJV) I assure you a penitent Christian can be forgiven of sin. Not a doubt in the world about it as far as scripture goes and Jesus will be your advocate. Before the Christian era began, we all recall from scripture that Peter denied Christ and lied about being his disciple and even said he did not know the man (Matt. 26:72). Was this a willful sin? Did Peter not know he was lying? Was Peter forgiven? Could Peter be forgiven but you can't be? Who can believe it?

"Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Heb. 4:16 NKJV) There is grace and mercy for the Christian. Grace and mercy are not just reserved exclusively for the alien sinner who comes to God.

It is true we may always feel sorrowful about what we have done and have long lingering regrets but I am not so sure that is a bad thing if it helps us to determine to never ever again even entertain the thought of doing such things. I often think of David and Absalom which is a heart-wrenching story. Where did David go wrong with his son who he loved so deeply? This whole thing with Absalom tore David's heart out. Then think about what he had to live with in having had Bathsheba's husband murdered and his adultery with her. Many of us are men and women of sorrows but we have to lean on the only hope we have, a true hope, one that will forgive—Jesus. Yes, Jesus will forgive you and save you.

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