Sin and Sanctification: How should a believer deal with them?
Sin and sanctification Survey
Teleios evaluated how a believer should deal with sin. This is a big question and plagues each of us some time in our lives.
To develop a proper perspective of sin, based in scripture, is important to our mental health and relationship with God. The good news is that many young Christians believe that salvation is by grace. They’re secure in their salvation and are attempting to be obedient in their Christian lives.
Nonetheless, the survey also demonstrates some confusion in terms of the knowledge of salvation, eternal security and how to handle sin. We should think in a healthy and true fashion, realizing the benefits of scripture, by knowing accurately what the Bible teaches.
Sin and Sanctification Survey Summary
How should a believer deal with sin and sanctification? This is a big question and plagues each of us some time in our lives. To develop a proper perspective of sin, based in scripture, is important to our mental health and relationship with God.
The last several weeks we dealt with guilt and that the New Testament doesn’t provide a provision for this emotion in the believer. Therefore, don’t do it!
However, sin is a different issue and how do we handle it? Teleios just completed a multiple-choice survey on two Instagram sites frequented by teenagers and millennials, one evangelical (godsholyscriptures) and one Catholic (catholic_teen_posts). We asked participants about handling sin in their lives. Over the next two weeks we will examine their responses as a group, and then we will divide them out between Catholic and Protestant evangelicals.
We had 516 participants of whom 61% were less than 18, and 32% were between 19-30 years. Two-thirds indicated they were evangelical and almost 50% Catholic.
Almost half stated they would go to heaven because Christ had forgiven them for their sins through faith, whereas 21% said they would go to heaven based on good works or sacraments from the church. Another 20% were unsure.
Further, 30% believed they were secure in their salvation because of Christ’s sufficient sacrifice on the cross, whereas almost 50% said they had to make Jesus Lord of their life to maintain salvation. In contrast, 20-25% indicated, for each of the following choices, they could lose their salvation by: not following scripture, or committing the unpardonable sin, a heinous sin, or the same sin too many times.
However, 57% stated there was no sin that Christ’s gracious sacrifice on the cross could not cover.
How did respondents handle sin? Most commonly:
- 90% asked for forgiveness
- 45% indicated they would recognize the sin and be obedient
- 37% would ask for absolution from a priest
- 47% would feel guilty
However, 54% recognized that sin did not block their prayers to God although almost 2/3 recognized it could negatively affect how they pray.
The participants properly identified the biblical elements of a Christian life including: prayer, praise, fellowship, Bible study and reachout (approximately 70-80% for each answer). However, important minorities thought that:
- They should follow the rules and sacraments of the church – 67%
- They should obey the pope – 37%
- They should feel guilty – 30%
- They worry about their salvation – 20%
What can we learn from the above information?
The good news is that many young Christians believe that salvation is by grace. They’re secure in their salvation and are attempting to be obedient in their Christian lives. Teleios has shown in past surveys that such a Christian has better wellbeing and serves more in their community and church than those who do not adhere to biblical beliefs.
Nonetheless, the survey also demonstrates some confusion in terms of the knowledge of salvation, eternal security and how to handle sin. Indeed, this data points to the need of capable teachers to instruct the next generation, especially regarding the elements of the gospel, the meaning of Christ’s precious sacrifice, believers’ secure position before God, and dealing with sin following salvation.
We should think in a healthy and true fashion, realizing the benefits of scripture, by knowing accurately what the Bible teaches.
Sanctification Survey
We received 516 responses. Below are some key biblical explanations
Question 9 – When I die I will go to heaven?
When you are confident in your salvation you can know you will go to heaven! You are saved from your sins by faith alone in the forgiveness provided by Jesus’ death on the cross (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Question 10 – I can lose my salvation due to:
Salvation is by faith alone (Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 3:19-26) and cannot be lost (2 Peter 1:4-5; John 10:27-30; Romans 8:28-39). When we believe, we are irrevocably changed into new people by the Holy Spirit who regenerates us (Romans 6:2-9; Titus 3:5). Further, the Spirit seals us until Christ’s coming (Ephesians 1:13-14).
Question 11 – Are there any sins you can commit that Christ’s death on the cross was not sufficient to cover?
Christ is a sufficient sacrifice for our sins as He is perfect, holy and without sin (Romans 3:25, Hebrews 7:26; 2 Corinthians 5:21). Therefore, Christ was a sufficient sacrifice to satisfy God’s judgment. Accordingly, He died once for all sin, for all time. (Hebrews 6:1-14; Hebrews 10:10-18). There is no sin so horrendous for which Christ’s precious sacrifice did not atone. Once we believe that Christ’s sacrifice was for our sins, we are secure in our position before God.
Question 12 – After His resurrection and ascension, Christ sat down at the right hand of God. What does this signify?
Christ’s glorious ascension to heaven and sitting down at the right hand of God the Father indicates He had finished His work of salvation to cover all our sins once and for all (Ephesians 2:6; Hebrews 10-14). Graciously, we sit at his right hand and the work of salvation is finished and our lives as well.
Questions 13 and 14 – As a Christian what should your attitude be when you commit a sin and how does sin affect our prayers?
Our biblical response to sin should be the following:
- Realize we are forgiven through Christ (Romans 3:23-25; Hebrews 10:18)
- Obey (Romans 6:10-16)
- Go to Him in prayer for all your needs (Hebrews 4:14-16; Hebrews 10:18-22)
Christ’s wonderful sacrifice for us was sufficient to cover all our sins. As Hebrews 10 notes, Christ’s death on the cross ripped the veil of the Jewish temple so we could have free access to him in prayer always through Him, our merciful high priest. Only we ourselves can impede our approach to God. He wants us to simply serve Him and obey.
Note – In Romans 6 we are a new person in Christ and based on this we are able to resist sin, and should obey.
Questions 15 and 16 – As Christians, how should we act and how often?
Acts 2:42 and 47 describe the activities involved in the Christian walk within the early church. They are repeated throughout the Epistles. At Teleios we designate them the ‘5 tools to maturity’. These activities most easily can be summarized as: praise, prayer, fellowship, outreach and Bible study.
We hope the results were interesting and the biblical answers informative.
You can find the complete data for this survey here.
