Tag: sin

Following the Maker’s Design

On By Robert W. PeckIn Christian6 Comments

Part 5 in the series “Knowing the Truth About Sin Will Set You Free”


In previous lessons on “Knowing the Truth About Sin,” Elder Bob Peck has taught us that we are forgiven of sin, that there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ, and that the Old Testament law system has been abolished. If you have understood those lessons correctly, it should leave you asking “Then why not sin?” If your only goal is to miss hell and make heaven, then abstinence from sin is no longer required. On the other hand, if you want to prosper and have success in this life, then observing and following your maker’s design for your life is essential to avoiding a breakdown that leaves you stranded on the side of the road of life.

Message presented to ZChurch.life June 22, 2024

Review

  1. In Part 1 we learned that Christ offered one sacrifice (Hebrews 10:12) that so thoroughly atoned for all sins forever that there is no longer anything that can condemn anyone who is in Christ (Romans 8:1).
  2. In Part 2 we learned that the old covenant has been made obsolete (Hebrews 8:13), it’s handwriting wiped out when God nailed it to the cross of Christ (Colossians 2:14). For those in Christ, there is no longer a performance-based system of dos and don’ts to be judged by or condemned under.
  3. In Part 3 we learned that for the New Testament believer, sin is no longer the state of being without a share in the divine nature. For the New Testament believer, sin is no longer the act of violating the rules of a performance-based system. For the New Testament believer, sin is the act of missing the mark and there’s no law against that and therefore no condemnation for it.
Continue reading “Following the Maker’s Design” →

Unraveling Sin’s New Testament Definition!

On By Robert W. PeckIn Blog, Christian5 Comments

Part 3 in the series “Knowing the Truth About Sin Will Set You Free”

In previous messages in the series, “Sin: Knowing the Truth About It Will Set You Free,” we have learned that there is no longer any condemnation for sin and that the Old Testament law system has been abolished. Yet the term sin is found in the New Testament and even before the giving of the Old Testament law sin existed. So if sin isn’t the infraction of a law system, what is it and where did it come from?

Find a New Testament definition of sin and learn how to live free from its destructive effects by living the new covenant, kingdom way.

Message presented to ZChurch.life April 27, 2024

Review of previous messages

  • All sin has been paid for for all time by the one sacrifice of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 10:12).
  • Since all sin is paid for, there is no act of human conduct that can condemn us if we are in Christ (Romans 8:1, John 3:18).
  • The Old Testament law system has been abolished, nailed to the cross, and made obsolete (Ephesians 2:15, Colossians 2:14, Hebrews 8:13).

The primary point of this message is to get us to stop hearing the word “sin” as meaning individual infractions of law in a works-based system and the associated condemnation for failure.

We need to understand the different meanings of the word “sin,” and when, where, and how to apply them.

Continue reading “Unraveling Sin’s New Testament Definition!” →

Getting a New Covenant Perspective

On By Robert W. PeckIn Blog, Christian5 Comments

Part 2 in the series “Knowing the Truth About Sin Will Set You Free”

Message delivered by Robert Peck to ZChurch (https://zchurch.life), February 24, 2024

Imagine yourself in a time of prayer in the presence of God. Now imagine that in the middle of fellowshipping with Him, you discover you’re currently committing a sin. Would you suddenly feel condemned? Would you cringe and turn away from His face? Would you fear being separated from your heavenly Father’s love? If so, then you don’t have a full revelation of what happened at the cross and have not thoroughly grasped the realities of the new covenant. It’s time to drive a stake through the heart of old testament, works-based thinking, and get a new covenant perspective.

OUTLINE

Introduction

People struggle to understand sin and forgiveness.

We seem to think that we got saved by grace, but stay saved by works and not sinning again.

My breakthrough began when I realized the difference between the Old Testament and the new.

My big breakthrough came when I realized I could sin while standing right in the presence of God, fellowshipping with him, and not be separated from his love for a single moment.

The primary point of this message is to break the stronghold of Old Testament, works-based thinking that brings into bondage and condemnation.

Continue reading “Getting a New Covenant Perspective” →

No Condemnation for Sin

On By Robert W. PeckIn Blog, Christian5 Comments

Part 1 in the series “Knowing the Truth About Sin Will Set You Free”

Message delivered to ZChurch.life June 10, 2023

“You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Knowing the truth about sin will make you free – free from condemnation for sin and free from bondage to sin. First, we need to know the truth of what sin really is. Sin isn’t just a list of dos and don’ts; our spiritual standing with God isn’t just a balance sheet of credits and debits. All your debts have been paid, and nothing more can ever be laid to your charge. But that’s only where the story of life in Christ begins.

Message Outline

WHAT IS SIN?

Is it a system of dos and don’t? If so, is it just the top ten? But there’s a bunch of other commandments in the Bible. Then there’s all the things that our religious traditions have taught us to think are sin. There ends up being more dos and don’ts than a person can keep track of, so how do you identify what’s sin and what isn’t?

Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

One definition for the word translated sin is “to miss the mark.” The mark is the glory of God. Anything outside the circle of God’s perfect glory in the center of the target is sin.

If you want to live by a system of dos and don’ts, then the do is to do all the fullness of the glory of God, and the don’t is don’t do anything inconsistent with the perfect glory of God.

Continue reading “No Condemnation for Sin” →

Why Do People Fight to Justify Sin?

On By Robert W. PeckIn Articles, Blog, Christian1 Comment

FightPeople can usually have a polite discussion about differences of opinion on issues that are of a nonmoral nature (what color to paint the house, should the new highway be two lanes or four), but when the conversation turns to a topic that is of an inherently moral nature (right vs wrong, something that must be labeled as either “moral” or “immoral”), one party usually becomes inflamed and will go on the offensive attempting to justify their chosen conduct. The current attempts to justify, and even normalize, homosexual conduct is a prime example.

Why do people feel the need to justify their conduct? If they really believe that what they’re doing isn’t wrong, then why care what other people think? Well, they do it for the same reason that a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar makes up excuses to justify what they’re doing – a guilty conscience. The heart (inner-man, or spirit-man) knows that what they’re doing is wrong and is condemning them. However, their natural man (flesh, or outer man of body, mind, emotions) likes what they’re doing and is determined to do it anyway. The natural man tries to shout down the voice of the spirit so they don’t have to admit that what they’re doing is wrong, so they can even excuse, or justify, the acts in their own mind, and continue their conduct in a state of self-deception. Continue reading “Why Do People Fight to Justify Sin?” →