The Two Dangerous Sins which a Reformed Christian can Face

All Christians are sinners. Bible says, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. (1Jo 1:8)”. Yet there are two particular sins which are notoriously common with people adherent to ‘Doctrines of Grace’ which is also called ‘Calvinism’. Though these sins can be there among Christians belonging to other denominations, yet a wrong understanding of Calvinistic theology can make these sins very obvious.  I will address both of these and write a rebuttal for the same from Scripture. I am not writing this with a ‘holier than thou’ attitude, but I know these things because I have also committed these sins after starting to believe in Calvinism. So let me address these primarily as a means to admonish Calvinistic believers:

1)      Pride of  our Theological knowledge:

Honestly speaking, of all the denominations in protestant Christianity, most number of Christian works are written by Calvinistic preachers and teachers. People like John Calvin, Jonathan Edwards and other puritans have written so many great works in Christian faith which is a treasure house and a shining gem of Christianity. When a Christian discovers these great truths of Calvinism from Scripture, he would be overjoyed and glad about the greatness and magnificence of God’s wisdom. But sometimes, these ‘new’ Calvinists, tend to compare their theological knowledge with believers who are theologically naïve and develop a sense of superiority complex, thinking that they know so much from Scripture. This would manifest in two ways:

a)      Not willing to learn further from Scripture or from other Christian works.

b)      Having ‘holier than thou’ attitude with Christians who are not as theologically mature as them.

I want to share two verses for these people.

"God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." (Jam 4:6)

Bible says it is God who reveals all the truths of Scripture to man, since naturally man is blind (Eph 1:4). When God is revealing to us more from Scripture, a true Calvinist would be more and more humble about the magnificence and greatness of God’s wisdom and knowledge rather than being proud of his theological superiority. A consistent reformed Christian would exclaim with Paul in pure humility:

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! "For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?" "Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?" For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. 

(Rom 11:33-36)

If you think you are rich in theology, consider again: God can take away all the theological knowledge from you anytime if you are proud since it is God who has given you wisdom to understand this and you did not 'choose' on your own.

So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. (Rev 3:16-17)

I want to clarify another important thing with regard to this. I am not in anyway encouraging theological ignorance and this should not be taken as an excuse to not to learn theology at all. A Christian should always be ready to listen to what God is speaking to us through Scripture and through the work of Godly teachers and preachers with an attitude which Samuel had to listen to Lord’s voice(1 Sam 3:10)

2)      Prayerlessness:

      It is one of the duties of a Christian to watch and pray daily. Prayer is a means of communication of our thankfulness and petition to God. When we are newly into reformed faith, sometime, we undermine the importance of prayer. We think, “Since God has predestined everything in my life, why should I have to pray? Anyway irrespective of whether I pray or not, God is not going to change what he has destined. So why should I pray?”

To answer this question simply:  “We have to pray because, God has commanded us to do so”.  Let me explain to you in detail. The duty of a Christian is to obey God and enjoy Him forever. One of the means of obedience is through pray. Bible gives ample amount of instructions for a Christian to pray. Our Lord taught us how to pray in Matthew 6. Yet if we are not praying, it means we are disobeying God. And Bible says that God hears our prayers and acts accordingly. Let me explain to you with this following verse:

At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison--

(Col 4:3)

Paul asks the believers to pray for his work. He says that God will hear their prayer to open the door for the word. Many Arminians think that God doesn’t know our future and only by our prayer that we can ‘remind’ God to act. But Paul knows that God has ordained everything what is going to happen in future. Paul would have known this verse: Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,' (Isa 46:9-10)”. Yet he is asking the believers to pray because:

a)      It is a commandment of God for Christians to pray.

b)      God chooses to act providentially through the means of our prayer. In that way, we are not believing in a fatalistic gods of Islam and Hinduism but to the God who listens to our prayer and rewards our efforts by His action, though all these are ordained already before the foundation of this world.

That was the reason why Paul is asking all the believers to pray regularly. Therefore let us all be living a prayerful life, consistent with what is taught in Scripture. I humbly write all these for the edification of fellow warriors of Christian faith so that we would be more and more sanctified in Christlikeness.

If you have liked this, you can also read Why I am not an Arminian?

Overcoming Habitual Sins

The word ‘sin’ when loosely defined from Scripture means ‘Transgression of God’s laws’. Though man was created in the image of God, yet because of his fall, sin came into this world. And all men are dead in their sins (Rom 3:10). Even after being regenerated by God, Christians commit sin. But we know that God is infinitely Holy and righteous. Even the least of the sins which we do, is considered as a serious violation in God’s laws. Yet there is a particular type of sin which is more dangerous than the rest of them. That is habitual sins. Habitual sins are the type of sins where we tend to do a sinful activity regularly without any willingness to come out of it. These sins can be anything like occasional lying, getting angry for no reason, lustful eyes, drunkenness or love of money. C H Spurgeon once said regarding Habitual sins like this: 

“Habitual sins are like holes in a ship. Even the small holes can sink a giant ship”.

Habitual sins are dangerous because,

1)     One may not think that he is sinning in the first place. He may become too hardened to repent and may not be quickened by the Spirit.

2)      Even if he realises that he is sinning, still he would be indulging in that because he would be under the deception that he will get the ultimate satisfaction only through that sin. For example, Alcoholic addicts most often would know the harmful effects of it, yet they sin because of this deception.

What are the biblical ways of overcoming habitual sins?

1)      Repentance and Godly Sorrow:

For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. (2Co 7:10)

Both believers and unbelievers commit sin. But the only difference between them is the genuine grief and sorrow which a believer will have for the sins which he has committed. This may look too basic for a believer. You could have been in the Lord for a long time. Still this is the primary step in overcoming habitual sin. Bible says, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. (Psa 51:17)”. So first we need to repent of the sins which we are committing habitually.

2)      Prayer:

Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. (Mat 26:41)          

We cannot overcome habitual sins without prayer. Only by the power of God, we can overcome. Prayer is a means in which we can communicate to God our inability to be holy and blameless by ourselves. It is the way to show that we are only dependant on God for our salvation and our sanctification and denying of our own self. And Jesus promised this: And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith." (Mat 21:22). God will teach us specific ways to overcome these sins.

3)      Meditation of God’s word:

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. (Psa 1:1-2)

The only way we can overcome sin is to think of whatever things which are praiseworthy and honourable (Phi 4:8). We can be victorious over our sins only if we know the precepts of God. Bible says “God’s people are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hos 4:6)”. If we read Proverbs, the wise men are differentiated from foolish people not because of their IQ but because of their righteousness. So we need to think biblically all the time to overcome sins. Apart from our daily meditation of Scripture, we should be reading the word of God during our leisure time too. I find listening to audio Bible while having dinner very edifying instead of watch TV or a movie. Likewise each of us can find a way in which we can meditate Scripture.

4)      Fear of God:

"And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, (Deu 10:12)

The main reason why we sin is because we don’t have the fear of God. We don’t understand His attributes. We tend to take him for granted. We are not victims of habitual addictions but rather we are sinning because of our own wickedness. We forget that, “And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. “(Heb 4:13). If we truly remember God as he is, then we would never do those ‘trivial’ sins which can cost our eternity. We should actively strive to think more about God’s character and His Holiness so that we would truly fear him and obey his commands.

5)      Discipline:

Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. (1Co 9:25-27)

We may have to redefine our lives to overcome habitual sins. We should make changes in such a way that the sin which we do regularly, should be made difficult to commit. If you expose your sin to light, then it would not do that again. If you are addicted to alcohol, you can start by doing simple things like not going through the street where they sell liquor. If internet is distracting you to commit lust, then it is better to cancel your internet connection or keep your computer in a common place. We should remember that it is better to enter into heaven without having used internet in our life, rather than going to hell because of it.

6)      Pleasure of doing God’s will:

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psa 16:11)

The reason why habitual sins thrive in our lives is because we tend to believe the time-tested lie of Satan that obedience to God will not satisfy our soul. But Bible says in so many places that only if we seek to obey God’s will, we would have ultimate happiness. John Piper puts that beautifully here: “God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in Him”.  We should learn to trust more in God and be content in the pleasure which He gives us willingly if we obey His will.

7)      Love thy Neighbour:

Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these." (Mar 12:29-31)

When we are sinning, we are actually not loving God and also our neighbour. If you are habitually angry with your wife, the reason is because you are not loving your wife and you are not honouring God. If we love God and love others, we can truly overcome sin.

Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. (1Pe 4:8)

8)      Accountability partner:

Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! (Ecc 4:9-10)

It is always good if you can have an accountability partner, who can help us in overcoming the sins we are struggling with. It should be preferably a mature believer who can be trustworthy and who truly cares for your wellbeing.

Finally let us remember that the Blood of Christ is sufficient to overcome all sins. Even though we may fall now, God is gracious and merciful because if He has regenerated you, He has promised that we would be sanctified and glorified to become like Christ.

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order 

that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. (Rom 8:29-30)

So if God has chosen us for eternity, “Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. “(Rom 8:33). Thus let us trust in God for doing His work of salvation in our lives since the God whom we believe in is faithful and mighty to save.

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