WILL BELIEVERS WHO SIN GO TO HELL? “For we can do nothing against the truth but for the truth” (2 Corinthians 13:8, KJV) Many theories, mostly inconsistent with the word of God, have been postulated about sin and hell in many quarters. More often than not, such theories are based on hearsay, tradition or merely a shallow search of the scriptures. These theories have often misguided many innocent and ignorant people, throwing them into a state of despair, confusion and frustration. What does the word of God truly have to say about believers in relation to sin and hell? Sin comes from the Greek word “harmatia” which means “wandering from the way of righteousness, missing the mark of erring.” In the mind of God, a person is said to be a sinner when he misses the mark which has been set, errs or wanders from the path of righteousness. The Bible makes mention of two kinds of sin: the sin that leads to death and the sin that does not lead to death. 1 john 5:16-17 asserts, “If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.” The sin that leads to death was first committed by Adam. Adam missed God’s way for him. Thus, he fell, that is, lost his place of glory as a result of the sin he sinned in the garden and his sin did not affect only him but all his posterity; his sin led to the death of all men. Hence, the word of God says, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed on all men, for that all have sinned”…“for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 5:12; Romans 3:23, NIV). By virtue of Adam’s disobedience, sin and death became the lot of every man born of Adam. This sin is the “father” (root) of all sin. Thus, the culmination of the sin of Adam in all his descendants is death- “The sting of death is sin…” (1 Corinthians 15:56); “The wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23). This is however not the end of the road for man. God made the ultimate provision to translate man from sin and death into life; this provision is Jesus. In John 1:29, when John the Baptist saw Jesus, he said, “…Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” The remedy to the predicament of sin and death inherited by every man as a result of the fall of Adam is Jesus’ death and resurrection, because he came to deal with the root of all sin. For any man who believes and confesses the resurrection of Jesus, the nature of sin and death is uprooted and the life of God is injected into his being. Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation.” The Bible further proclaims in Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” The only means by which man is saved from the clutches of sin and death is by believing and confessing the Lordship of Jesus. This is the only way provided by God for the salvation of all mankind. Though the believer has been saved from sin and death which resulted from the fall, it does not end there, the sin that leads to death could again be committed by the believer when he willfully denies the Lordship of Jesus and disdains the Spirit of Grace, after having contacted grace and knowing the riches of that grace. Hebrews 10:26 declares that, “For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy who had trodden underfoot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of Grace?” This does not pertain to the unbeliever however, because according to Romans 5:12 he is already in sin and death. The scriptures furnish us with two to commit this sin: “…Wherefore I say unto you, all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; buy the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto all. And whoever speaketh a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh a word against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come…” (Matthew 12:31-32). The parallel account of this scenario is in Mark 3:29-30; we are to see what this despicable sin is and the action that merits a designation of this sort. It says, “But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation because they said, he hath an unclean spirit.” The Pharisees of Jesus’ day were not just offending the Father or the Lord Jesus Christ, they withstanding and resisting the Spirit and his work in the earth. The caution is, when men revile and rebuff the gracious activity of God’s Spirit, in whatever form it might appear, and with utter contempt relegate his work to a mere commonality, they are endangered of hell. Friend, blaspheming the Spirit of Grace will endanger any man in any day to hell. This is what the writer meant by “Sinning willingfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth”, who is Christ. (John 14:6- “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me”). Brethren, to reject with disdain the son of God and to esteem the blood of the covenant a mere triviality will put the believer in danger of hell because it is the sin unto death. When a believer comes to that lace in his walk with Christ and gains a heart persuasion that he does not need Christ anymore, he commits the sin that can lead him to hell if he does not repent. It is called the sin that leads to death because it transports the believer from the estate of life in Christ back into sin and death which is the estate of the unbeliever. Thus, the scriptures do not support a “once saved, forever saved” perspective of the work of salvation. We receive life and gain entry into the kingdom of God by means of our confession of the Lordship of Jesus. The only means by which we lose our salvation is by denouncing the Lordship of the Lord Jesus. Proverbs 12:14 accordingly says, “A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth.” The believer remains saved as long as he continues in the faith, and is settled and grounded in it. Thus, since you are saved by belief in the heart and confession of the Lordship of Jesus, you ought to maintain that confession if you are to remain saved. Remember, the gracious gift of salvation is attained through faith and confession and not by works or any human effort. Thus, Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.” “And you hath he quickened, who were death in trespasses and sins; wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lust of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, he hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places with Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:1-6). Gleaming from this scripture, it is apparent that the believer is one who has been enlivened by being brought into vital relationship with God out of death. Once a person becomes saved, the element of sin and death is eliminated and replaced with the life of God; the root of sin is no longer a fabric of his nature. Thus, 1 John 3:9 states emphatically, “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.” Hence, to one who is born again, sin is an option because he has been brought from sin and death into life. He is longer a slave to sin. This leads us to talk about the sin that does not lead to death. The sin that does not lead to death is any sin that does not constitute to denouncing the Lordship of Jesus over your life as a believer. 1 John 1:7 says, “…if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin”. This scripture makes reference to the sin that does not lead to death. The blood of Christ is always in automatic gear over the head of the believer, ready to handle “all sin”, that is, any sin of the believer which does not lead to death. Thus, the subsequent verse says, “If we [believers] confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Hence, should the believer sin, all he has to do is to confess his sin. The word “confess” is “homologeo” which means “to say in accent or not acknowledge,” that is, to name the sin which has been committed. This rules out the notion, popular in most churches, in praying for forgiveness about known and unknown sins (sins of commission and omission). The blood of Jesus as aforementioned is always in constant motioned to take care of all sin. The believer therefore only confesses (name and acknowledge) the sin he is aware or conscious he has committed. This principle is seen in type in the Old Testament. God commanded his people in Leviticus 5:5 saying, “And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these things, that he shall confess that he hath sinned in that thing: and he shall bring his trespass offering unto the Lord for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats, for a sin offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his sin.” The offender was to confess only “that thing” in particular wherein he has erred. More so, according to the scripture, the believer must not ask or beg or ask for forgiveness rather, he receives forgiveness. Acts 26:18 says, “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith is in me”. God has made provision for taking away of sin. Thus when confession is made, and forgiveness is received, the believer stands clean. Therefore, if you are a believer, you must be afraid of hell. This is because you have been translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God’s dear son (1 Peter 2:9) and also, God is faithful to forgive your trespasses (1 John 1:9). Once scripture has said it, God will be unfaithful if he decides not to forgive you. From scripture, we therefore realize that the only thing that can send a believer to hell is if he commits the sin that leads to death – denouncing the Lordship of Jesus; blaspheming the Spirit of Grace! Moreover, 1 John 2:1 informs us that, “…IF any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: and he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the world.” The usage of the word “IF” suggests that a believer can go through the walk of life without sinning. Beloved, it is possible not to sin because you have the seed of God deposited in your spirit. What wars against this however is your soul. The believer must constantly work on his soul through the constant renewal of his mind by the word of God. This is because the seat of the soul is the mind and as you engage the word daily, your soul is being renewed after the image of God – “And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him;” (Colossians 3:10). Apostle Paul therefore says in Romans 12:2: “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Beloved of God, sin is not an issue for God because of his grace. What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? Certainly not (Romans 6:15)! It is unwise to think that since God has the remedy, then you have the license to sin. Bear in mind that you would be delaying your own progress in faith for as your fellows thrive and constantly advance in the Lord, you will be in the state of stagnation. This Implies that your eternal rewards and crowns will be at stake. In conclusion, brethren, the answer to the question whether a believer who sins will go to hell or not, is contingent on the type of sin in question; whether it is that which is unto death or that which is not unto death. The scriptures to the highest degree confirm this truth. Shalom! From CCI SHOFAR.
Posted on: Fri, 15 Aug 2014 10:49:06 +0000
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