A bit confused about sin

[Gentile]

I hope someone can help me out here.
If a Christian commits a sin, what do they do next?
Do they just ask God to forgive them and try to avoid sinning again in the future?
I mean, we're all human, right? And that means were are not perfect, sinless beings, even when saved.
Have I got this right?

 

[CShephard53]

1 John 1:9:
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We repent- admit to God we're wrong and stop sinning. How? By the power of the Holy Spirit. Does that mean we will never sin? No, it means we will not be held captive by sin- we will be able to resist it on a continual basis rather than continually sinning.

 

[HappyDude]

Of course no one is perfect.
1Jn 1:8-10
(8) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
(9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
(10) If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

You might also want to have a good read of Romans. Do you have access to a study Bible or commentary?

Basically you are right. Sometimes I get angry, even though I know it is wrong. Some people can't help but get angry, maybe due to illness.

Gal 5:19-21
(19) Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
(20) Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
(21) Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

That can sound quite unettling to a new, or potential, Christian. Some people think Christians should be perfect. Some people are very happy when Christian's are caught out.
But don't worry too much. The more you read your Bible and come to understand what God wants from you the less you will sin. I can tell you that from my own experience and I suspect others would tell you exactly the same thing.

The main thing is that you are thinking about this. But I should say that you might want to think about salvation as well. Being as sinless as you can will not get you into heaven. You must understand the basic problem with being unsaved and you must do something about it ASAP.

 

[SolomonVII]

I hope someone can help me out here.
If a Christian commits a sin, what do they do next?
Do they just ask God to forgive them and try to avoid sinning again in the future?
I mean, we're all human, right? And that means were are not perfect, sinless beings, even when saved.
Have I got this right?

The sin is committed.

Then, understanding the action to be sin, one's faith calls on one to acknowledge the sin as indeed being a sin, harmful to both oneself and to others- and ultimately to God who in effect becomes crucified by our sins.

Then, one acknowledges the sin to God, and prays to Him for forgiveness. Forgiveness is granted to the sinner by God, seventy times even times, if need be.

The final stage of the process would be atoning for the sin. The damage that the sin does to both oneself and those affected must be atoned for, and repaired. In terms of both justice and healing, the effects of the sin must still be dealt with.

Without this stage, certainly the sin is forgiven by an ever-loving and ever merciful God, but full reconciliation is nevertheless imcomplete. The full benefits of penance do not become fully realized unless the sinner performs the necessary penance, and justice is thereby restored, and the healing process becomes fully enabled.

God's forgivness and salvivic grace do not depend on the act of penance, to be sure, but it is in our acts of penance that we are doing God's world and becoming active particpants in renewing the world as it was created to be.

 

[Emmy]

Dear Gentile. You had some good replies, and I can only agree. May I point out one more thing? Jesus taught us to pray, and we do that daily. Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be your Name, Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done on earth, as in Heaven. Give us today our daily bread, forgive us our sin, as we forgive those who sin against us, etc. Jesus has lived among us for 33 years, He knows our temptations, and our weakneses, and he is telling us to love God with all our being, and to love each other, as we love ourselves. Jesus knows that is hard for us, he promised to help and guide us, and that we sin every day, in Deed, in Word, in in Thought. We must love and forgive, and help each other with hearts and hands. We have many years to become perfect, as God is perfect. The wonderful truth about this is, once we start, we will find that it becomes easier, and easier. I say this with humility and love, Gentile, and send greetings. Emmy, your sister in Christ.

 

[qwertyBoy]

I hope someone can help me out here.
If a Christian commits a sin, what do they do next?
Do they just ask God to forgive them and try to avoid sinning again in the future?
I mean, we're all human, right? And that means were are not perfect, sinless beings, even when saved.
Have I got this right?

Look at your present condition. You sin, but you do not know it as sin. It is just the norm for you. Pre-marital sex? Everybody does it, right? It's just the norm. (NOTE! I'm not saying you do that, I'm just using it as an example).
When you have read (at least) the gospels and the Ten Commandments, you know what sin is. If God determines that you will be saved, you accept this message and turn to Jesus. You accept your present, wretched condition of being totally lost and utterly helpless and you turn to God and get on your knees and pray that He will forgive you of your sins. Of course, He will do that, because He loves you. Then you will know sin and will do all you can to avoid it. But the flesh is weak, and you will sin again. On these occasions you will now recognise what you have done and will, out of love and fear of God, pray for forgiveness and repent.
If you put your mind to it, you will be amazed as to how easy it is to avoid much of the sin in this filthy world we live in. Of course, if you are a truly Bible-believing Christian, you will have the Holy Spirit to help you on your journey.
It is good that you ask these questions. But could I ask you to ask yourself a few questions? How, or why, did you come to these forums? I see that your faith icon indicates a seeker. Do you think you are holding back from accepting God? Do you keep wanting just a little bit more explanation? The Bible has everything you need, but it can take time to read and understand (actually, more time than any of us have in this life). It is important that you understand the need for your salvation first (and soon). The details fo the Christian life will come after that.
I can wholeheartedly recommend a little book called "All Of Grace" by C.H.Spurgeon. It is also available for free download at a 'Free Christian Audio Books' website so you can listen to it I can't post the exact link as I don't have enough posts yet). If you wish to buy the book, it is inexpensive. It is a wonderful book written by a wonderful man of God. It should help you a great deal.

 

[tapero]

I hope someone can help me out here.
If a Christian commits a sin, what do they do next?
Do they just ask God to forgive them and try to avoid sinning again in the future?
I mean, we're all human, right? And that means were are not perfect, sinless beings, even when saved.
Have I got this right?

Hi, When Christ died for the sins, all sins were forgiven, past, present, and future. However, only those who believe in Christ and the resurrection will benefit from that forgivenss.

When I sin, I tell God, but I am already forgiven. I also tell a friend, as that helps with spiritual growth.

Many times I continue in that same sin, and what happens to a person when they do that, is if they continue to sin, a hardening of the heart occurs, and sometimes the person will begin to justify themselves.

This I don't do. I never justify myself over sin. But the hardening of the heart does occur and when ready to give up the sin, God will purify us from unrighteousness in that area. However as we stand in Christ we are now righteous in His eyes.

There is sin in our heart which is deeply rooted, some recognized some unrecognzied. We either allow God in those areas or not, and He will help us to get rid of that sin as we turn it over to Him. However we will die with sin still in our heart as we are not perfect, and because we are in this body we have sin.

Blessings,
tapero