You have climbed the Eight Steps to Christian Perfection. In the eyes of God you are perfect while climbing this road. To understand this concept better, I’ll draw it out for you.
At the first position, faith, you are still controlled by the wicked habits you had before the cross. The only difference is Justification. The only change at this point is:
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- a) the will,
- b) the perspective.
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Your will has now been put on the side of righteousness. It is your desire to join the battle of the righteous, to fight against sin and wickedness.
In this first position, you are justified and Jesus no longer sees you in your wicked state. Jesus now sees you in His righteousness as it is wrapped around you. (The circle that surrounds the baby.) You need this wrap because you still have habits that are sinful.
Keep in mind, sins you do not know about are not counted against you. Only sins you continue to do willingly. So, at this point, you have stopped doing all the “known” sins, but have unknown sins and habits to change. That is why we need the wrap of Jesus’ perfection at this time.
The second position begins immediately and will continue in greater and greater measure as you walk the righteous life. The surrounding robe of Christ’s righteousness and perfection will not be needed as much as you develop His righteousness and perfection within you.
As you clean up your temple and sweep out the garbage of sin and sinful practices, you are developing righteousness through righteous practices and habits. The righteousness of Christ now becomes yours. You are coming back into oneness with God. Back to the original state as desired for Adam and Eve in the beginning. You will have the same perfect character as Adam had before he sinned. The perfection we attain is living without “known” sin. That means:
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When the Spirit of God reveals an unknown sin in our lives, we stop it
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When sin is tempting, we resist it
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The third position is the achievement of that Goal. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13. We must believe that perfection, sinlessness, is attainable now, in this life. We must believe the promises of God that all things are possible. To change from sinner to the position where there is nothing “in him to make him stumble.” 1 John 2:10. To believe in “Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy.” Jude 24. “Great peace have they who love Your law, and nothing can make them stumble.” Psalm 119:165.
You can live the victorious, sin free life, right now, in the Power of Christ. Increasing measure does this, “For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For if you do these things, you will never fall.” 2 Peter 1:8, 10.
You no longer need to be controlled by sin. You can be set free. The burdens that were so heavy for you and caused you so much trouble can be removed and destroyed in Christ. Your temple house can be swept cleaner and cleaner each day until you come to possess the perfection of Jesus Christ. But the only way it can happen is to continually “submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” James 4:7, 8.
Another text that brings trouble to some people is found in 1 John 1:8. “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” See, they say, You can’t live without sin. We are always going to be sinners. But that is not what the text says. It doesn’t say, “See, you will always be sinners.” It says “If we claim to be without sin.” Big difference.
I can never claim to have been without sin. I have been a sinner. “All have sinned.” But the concept is always past tense. At one time I was a sinner, but through the power of Christ I am no longer a sinner.
If it were impossible for us to live the Christ-like life, then Christ died in vain. If He has no power to conquer sin, He is not a God. If my sin and my “flesh” are stronger than God; that makes me God. But I am not God. My “flesh” is not stronger than God. God can conquer sin in my life and He can give me the power to live the sinless, perfect life of Jesus. I can do all things through Christ!
Now it is time to put these principles to work. The following information will provide a practical method of working with the promises of God in your life. You have finished the initial Eight Steps to Christian Perfection. The above information will get you started on a new life. A born again experience that will take you right up through eternity.
The following information is presented to continue your walk in truth. Remember, if we do not walk in the truth, we cannot be set free. To be completely free it is imperative to continue your learning of truth. Using what you have learned, write down some of your thoughts for later use. As you read the following information, put it to the test of Jesus’ teaching. He is the truth and not your church, pastor or teacher.