Most of the time we remain in the realm of good and evil. We do good things not by the spirit but by our natural being. But God does not want us to remain in the realm, in the field, of good and evil by using our soul to do good and to reject evil. God wants us to deny our natural being and use our spirit. When we use only our spirit, we are out of the field, the realm, of good and evil. Then we are in the realm of life. When we are not using our mind, emotion, will, and fallen body, we are using our spirit. Then we touch only life. The spirit touches nothing except life.

First John reveals that our regenerated spirit, which is born of God, does not practice sin (3:9; John 3:6b), but this does not mean that we do not sin or are without sin (1 John 1:8—2:1). Some teach wrongly that a regenerated person does not sin and cannot sin. They teach the eradication of sin, saying that sin is altogether eradicated from a regenerated person. Of course, there is not such a thing.

Many years ago in Shanghai, there was a preacher who strongly taught the heresy of the eradication of sin. One day he and some of his followers went to a park which required them to purchase tickets in order to be admitted. He bought three or four tickets to be used by a total of five persons. Some of them entered the park with the tickets, and then one of them came out with the tickets and gave them to the others for them to enter. That preacher brought his young followers into that park in a sinful way. As a result of this, one of the young men began to doubt about the teaching of eradication. He went to the preacher and asked him if this was a sin. The preacher responded by saying that it was not a sin but a little weakness. But regardless of what term you use, sin is sin, and we are sinners. Although you may call it another name, it remains sin nonetheless. We should never accept a teaching which says that we have become so spiritual that it is impossible for us to sin.

However, even though we are still fallen, our regenerated spirit cannot practice sin. Fallen man has a spirit which is reserved for God Himself. To repent involves the conscience, and the conscience is a part of man's spirit (Rom. 9:1; cf. 8:16). For God's own purpose, He preserved a part of man for Himself, that is, man's spirit. Our spirit is precious. Only our regenerated spirit does not sin, so we have to live in our spirit.