May 6, 1990
Before we become children of God, we are by nature children of the devil and enslaved to sin. Alistair Begg explains that only Christ’s death on the cross has the power to destroy the devil’s work, free us from sin’s stronghold, and set us apart to God. The freedom that is ours in Christ should fuel a life of purity and a passion to proclaim the power of the Gospel with even greater zeal.
4Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; jsin is lawlessness. 5You know that khe appeared in order to ltake away sins, and min him there is no sin. 6No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; nno one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. 7Little children, olet no one deceive you. pWhoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. 8qWhoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was rto destroy the works of the devil. 9sNo one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's2 seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, tnor is the one who udoes not love his brother.
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Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.