Verse 10 says, “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” Verse 8 proves that after regeneration we still have sin inwardly. Verse 10 proves further that we even still sin outwardly, though not habitually. We still sin outwardly in our conduct because we still have sin inwardly in our nature. Both verses confirm our sinful condition after regeneration. In speaking of such a condition, the apostle uses the pronoun “we.” This indicates that he does not exclude himself.
The “word” in verse 10 is the word of God’s revelation, which is the word of reality (Eph. 1:13; John 17:17) and which conveys the contents of God’s New Testament economy. It is synonymous with truth in verse 8. In this word God exposes our true sinful condition both before and after regeneration. If we say that we have not sinned after regeneration, we make Him a liar and deny the word of His revelation.
We have pointed out that verse 8 refers to indwelling sin and that verse 10 refers to the act of sinning. Indwelling sin is the sin we inherited through our natural birth. This sin came into mankind through Adam, and now it dwells in our nature. Even after we have been saved and regenerated, sin remains in our fallen flesh. This is the reason our body needs to be redeemed at the time of the Lord’s coming back. When the Lord Jesus comes back, our body will be redeemed, transfigured, by the Lord’s power (Phil. 3:21). This means that the Lord’s power will change our body into a glorious body. Then indwelling sin will no longer be a part of us, for there will be no sin in our transfigured body. In verse 8 John says that if we say that, after we have been regenerated, we no longer have indwelling sin, we are deceived.
In verse 10 John tells us that if we say that, after we have been regenerated, we have not sinned, we make God a liar. The reason we make God a liar if we say that we have not sinned is that in His word of revelation, the Bible, He tells us clearly that we can still sin after we have been regenerated. But if we say that we have not sinned after we have been regenerated, we make God a liar. This means that the word of His revelation is not in us.
These verses indicate clearly that after regeneration we still have indwelling sin, and it is still possible for us to sin. We need to admit these facts. First, we must admit that, even though we have been regenerated, we still have sin dwelling in our flesh. If we neglect this fact, we shall be deceived and misled. As a result, we may indulge in sin.
In the past I heard of certain Christians who claimed that after they received the baptism in the Spirit and spoke in tongues, they no longer had sin within them. Yet in their experience they became involved in very sinful situations. They were deceived in thinking that because they had experienced the baptism of the Spirit they no longer had sin dwelling within them.
Even if you experience the baptism in the Holy Spirit and speak in tongues, the sinful nature is still within you. We should never believe that this nature has been eradicated. The sinful nature will remain in our flesh until the Lord Jesus comes back and by His divine power transfigures our fallen body.
We all need to admit that we have a sinful nature. I can testify that, as one who has been a Christian for more than fifty years, I have the deep conviction, the deep inner sense, that my sinful nature still remains. No matter how spiritual a believer may be, he still has indwelling sin in the flesh. We all need to realize this and admit it. This will keep us from being misled.
In the past certain Christians have taught that a believer can reach the state of sinless perfection. I would not say that this teaching is heretical; however, this teaching is surely mistaken. Some who teach perfectionism use the Lord’s word in Matthew 5:48 about being perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. They also may misapply such verses as Hebrews 6:1 and 1 Corinthians 2:6. In these two verses the word “perfect” actually means mature or full-grown.
It is not correct to teach that we Christians may have a so-called second blessing and thereafter become sinlessly perfect. If we ever reach such a condition, we can maintain it only temporarily. Suppose one day you have a rich experience of the Lord early in the morning. As a result, for a few hours you may be sinlessly perfect. But then you may become careless again and fail the Lord.
Certain verses in the New Testament indicate that we can be perfect. The Lord’s word in Matthew 5:48 about being perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect indicates that we can be perfect in this way. Otherwise, the Lord never would have spoken this word. However, it is a mistake to think that if we reach a state of perfection, we can remain in that state forever. Some believers have either exaggerated their experience of perfection or have gone too far in describing what they experienced. The point we are making here is that we should not think that we can reach a permanent state of perfection. We may be perfect today, but we may fall tomorrow. Before the Lord Jesus comes back to transfigure our body, we cannot be permanently in a condition of sinless perfection.