The Weblog of Trenton & Nichole Adams

Sinless Perfection Part 2

Since my last blog entry on Sinless Perfection, a huge discussion appeared on RevivalSchool.com, about sinless perfection. What an interesting coincidence. You can read the entire thread if you like. Take note that I am LarryC. Basically it started out with a Detroit holiness preacher writing an article on The Fatal Trap of Holiness Preaching. After that, all hell broke loose to try and destroy it. No doubt that the devil was angry.

Seeing that I touched on Sinless Perfection in another blog entry. I don't want to spend too much time on trying to refute the Sinless Perfection doctrine, as we most certainly should put some focus on holiness as well. Especially considering that a person is not even saved if they do not have a regenerated heart, which automatically desires to be Holy. However, considering that it is so dangerous, I will continue with some more arguments from scripture, that make it clear that we will not be sinlessly perfect, until The Day Of The Lord.

Many times it's quite clear that people that believe in Sinless Perfection are using man's wisdom, and man's logic to try and hash out a spiritual truth. We need to do that to some degree, as we do have a God given brain, but the Word has two sides to this issue, as it does for mostly every issue. But, some people decide to pick a side, rather than receive the spiritual truth by the Holy Spirit. Paul is fairly straightforward in the following scripture.

1 Corinthians 15:42-44,50-54 (KJV) So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: 43It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: 44It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
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50Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. 51Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

In my last article, I touched on Romans 7:19-25. Since then, my wife brought something up about that passage. Specifically, Romans 7:22 specifically says that Paul delights after the law of God after the inward man. What's interesting is that the inward man does not rejoice over the law of God, UNLESS, he has been regenerated.

Some sinless perfection preachers argue that God would not ask us to do things that we are unable to do, or that He is unable to give us. As an example, He asks that we be holy as He is holy. They also say, if we ask God to expose all sin in our lives, then He is bound by our prayer to do it, because He desires that we are Holy.

1. Well doesn't God desire that we be in heaven with Him? But why aren't we?
2. Isn't it His will that Jerusalem is at peace, but is it?
3. And isn't God allowed to do things the way He wants, so that He gets the glory? As it is written, do you depise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth us to repentance(Romans 1:4)?
4. And doesn't the bible indicate that the unanswered prayers of the saints ascend before God, at the end?
5. How is God always bound to answer our prayers? What if our prayers are to heap it upon our own lusts? What if our desire to be holy is a selfish one?
   1. Should God answer our selfish prayer: the kind where the only reason we want to be holy is to look good to others?
   2. Or should He chastise us for our wicked desire to be holy for an unholy reason, by leaving us as we are? After all, a regenerate heart cannot stand the sin that they have, so leaving us as we are only bring us to the end of ourselves, by crucifying our flesh, pride, and arrogance.

Also, there's very much an immediate danger for a Sinless Perfectionist. If they are not open to there being sin in their lives, they will not submit to the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and in the end they will perish because they fight against God continually. This state of mind requires absolute rebellion against God, which God cannot tolerate. This is the very reason that Yashua told us that we needed to be MORE righteous than the Scribes and the Pharisees.

Matthew 5:20 (KJV) For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

His statements didn't have so much to do with outward righteousness, as much as they did inward righteousness. After all, the Pharisees and Scribes obeyed the LAW very well, right down to the letter.

Matthew 23:23 (KJV) Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

So, Yashua was clearly speaking of something else, other than outward righteousness. He was speaking of more righteous in the sense that we submit to the quickening, chastisement, and conviction of the Holy Spirit. That we love our neighbour, and judge righteous jugdment. He also said that He did not come to save the righteous, but the sinners.

Matthew 9:11-13 (KJV) And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners? 12But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. 13But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

In saying that he desires mercy, and not sacrifice, he very clearly, is eluding to what I showed earlier, in Matthew 23:23. He doesn't desire unwavering obedience to the LAW as much as He desires righteous judgment, mercy, and faith. That is why the whole law is summed up in two commandments: to love the Lord our God with all of our hearts, and to love our neighbours as ourselves. And in saying that He is not calling the righteous to repentance, He shows that the righteous (self-righteous) cannot be saved, because they will not come to repentance. This goes back to what I said earlier, about Sinless Perfection advocates not being able to submit to the conviction of the Holy Spirit. How can you submit to conviction, when you think you have no sin? He knew very well that the Pharisees could not understand why he was eating with publicans and sinners, and as we have already seen, He expects us to be more righteous than the Pharisees and Scribes, IN HEART.

Lastly, all of this comes to a head when we see how he views a Pharisee and a sinner, coming up to the temple to pray.

Luke 18:9-11 (KJV) And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. 13And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14I tell you, this man (the publican) went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

And we all know that those who trust in their own righteousness, CANNOT be justified in any way, shape, or form. If they make one mistake, they SHALL FALL.

Ezekiel 33:13 (KJV) When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it.

Now, go and seek righteousness, seek holiness, and let Him write His ways upon your heart that you may do them.