Episode Details

(Photo by Raimond Klavins on Unsplash. Berean Standard Bible.)

Welcome to the Hope Bible School verse-by-verse Bible study of 1 John. This is Jeff M Newman. Get a new lesson every other week on Mondays at 12:00 PM Pacific.

In Lesson 92, we are going to study the third part of 1 John 3:9.

Let’s read this part of the verse:

1 John 3:9...they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.

Let’s go over the definitions of the words.

They cannot (3756. ou, ouk, ouch) (1410. dunamai) — means they absolutely are not able or do not have the power to. It refers to ability, not merely a decision or permission.

Go on sinning (264. hamartanó) — means to sin, to miss God’s mark, to violate His will, or act contrary to His righteous standard. The present tense indicates continual or habitual action, referring to an ongoing pattern or practice of sin rather than an isolated act.

Because (3754. hoti) — introduces the reason or explanation for what has just been stated.

They have been born (1080. gennaó) of (1537. ek or ex) God (2316. theos) — means to have been spiritually born or brought forth by God. The perfect tense describes a completed act with continuing results. It refers to the new birth God has accomplished in the believer, resulting in a new nature and an ongoing relationship with Him as a child of God.

In other words, those who have been born of God are absolutely unable to continue living in an ongoing pattern or practice of sin because they have been spiritually born of God, receiving a new nature and entering into an ongoing relationship with Him.

In this part of the verse, John is not saying that if you are a believer, you will never commit another sin. Rather, he is teaching that you cannot continue living in a habitual pattern of sin. This is because the new birth has fundamentally changed who you are.

John is not teaching sinless perfection. Earlier in the letter he makes it clear that, as a believer, you will still sin (1 John 1:8)(Lesson 17), you must confess your sins (1 John 1:9)(Lesson 18), and Jesus Christ is your Advocate when you do sin (1 John 2:1)(Lesson 20).

There is no contradiction. John is distinguishing between occasional acts of sin and a life characterized by the continual practice of sin.

When you place your faith in Jesus Christ, God gives you new spiritual life. Instead of living a life characterized by sin, you now live as one whose identity is rooted in being a child of God. Your relationship to sin has fundamentally changed because your relationship to God has fundamentally changed.

Being born of God is a permanent work with continuing results. The new birth permanently changes who you are. Your old