Shall We Continue in Sin? — Craig Strain

Hello, this is Brother Denny. Welcome to Charity Ministries. Our desire is that your life would be blessed and changed by this message. This message is not copyrighted and is not to be bought or sold.

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It is certainly a privilege to gather together as children of God and hear from the Lord Jesus Christ. We are blessed in this land to have the opportunity to gather together like this and hear from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Turning Our Eyes Upon Jesus

I trust that each one of you this evening have come to hear from the Lord Jesus, not from me, but from the One who can give you help. I love those words that the Lord Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life.

In light of that, if you will stand with me, I would like to sing one chorus if we could. Turn your eyes upon Jesus. It is a chorus that I like a lot. And then we will pray and commit our few short moments to the Lord.

And when I pray, you pray in your hearts that the Lord Jesus would touch your heart this evening. He is here. Turn in heaven. I am so glad that your children can come to you, Lord, through the Holy Spirit, Father.

For through Him we both have access by one Spirit under the Father. And I am grateful, Lord, that your children can in all confidence come to you. And this evening, Father, I do ask that you would feed your people, Lord, through these lips, Lord.

I do ask, Father, that you would take away the blinders from the unbelievers, Lord, to where they can see the Lord Jesus Christ. To where they can see He is the Son of God and the answer for them. Do you have the answers this evening?

Oh, God, do you have the answers this evening? Lord, I am not here, Lord, just trying to get emotional. I want truth, Lord, to come forth this evening. Father, it is the truth that will set a man free.

And we know that the Lord Jesus is truth. So, Father, I just beg you this evening that you would help me share, Lord, the message you have put in my heart to share. Help me to share it plainly, Lord. Very easy to understand, Lord.

Help every one of the hearers to listen diligently to your words and receive them into their soul, Lord. It is in that precious name we pray, Father. Amen. For as by one man's disobedience you can be seated, for as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, we find at the end of the book of Romans, chapter 5, these verses, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound, but where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6 and Freedom From Sin

What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid we that are dead to sin live any longer. Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death?

Therefore, we are buried with Him by baptism into death, that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin, for he that is dead is freed from sin.

Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more. Death hath no more dominion over Him, for in that He died, He died unto sin once, but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God.

Likewise, reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lust thereof.

Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid! Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, His servants ye are, to whom ye obey, whether of sin and of death, or of obedience and of righteousness?

Would God be thanked that ye were the servants of sin? But ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh. For as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity and to iniquity, even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

For when ye were the servants of sin, you were free from righteousness. What fruit? What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Paul says in the book of Galatians chapter 2, verse 20, I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live.

Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. If you'll turn to the book of Romans chapter 5 this evening, starting in verse 19, I want to share something that I've been thinking on a long time.

I've read a lot. In Romans 5, Romans 6, I want to preach this evening a message entitled, Shall we continue in sin? Shall we continue in sin? Let's start reading in verse 19, Romans chapter 5,. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

Praise God. Moreover, the law entered that the offense or the sin might abound and it might increase. But where sin abounded, where sin increased, grace did much more abound. It increased even... that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

And we'll read the first three verses in Romans chapter 6. What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein?

The Apostle Paul is sharing. Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ, were baptized into His death? Shall we continue in sin? You know, if there's one thing that plagues the church of God, it's sin.

You know, I believe there's some of us that we hear about words like righteousness and justification and all these things and some of us have a limited understanding of what they are. At least the depths of them.

I believe that there's some Christians like that and even sin. We use the word sin a lot. But you know, I want to take a moment and just share what is sin? What is sin? In the book of 1 John, when Brother Denny was sharing this morning, I was like, yeah, the Lord's bringing these messages together.

It's the type of God we serve. 1 John chapter 3 verse 4, it says, Whosoever committeth sin, the Apostle John speaking, whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law. For sin is the transgression of the law.

For sin is the transgression of the law. Sin, you know that thing called sin? You know, I want to bring things really down practical to us this evening. Those of us that are children of God, you know when the Holy Spirit says, go talk to that person about Jesus and we don't go.

That's sin. We've disobeyed the law and who is the law? Jesus Christ. We've got the law in us. He is the law. You know, the Holy Spirit whispers to you and says, turn your interest upon the Lord Jesus.

Turn them off the things of this life. Switch your affection to things of God, not to things of the earth. And we go on with our affections. Law. Law. We sin. Remember, sin is the transgression of the law.

The law is in us. Right, Christians? My brothers and sisters, they're written in our hearts. Also in God's precious words. I hope you love the word. Sin. The Bible also says, therefore to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

Sin. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good and doeth it not, to him it is sin. You know what's precious? These words. These words give us an understanding. You know, that is the thing that is plaguing many Christians' lives, that sin.

Sin going on in their life. And they sit there and wonder why they don't have the joy of the Lord in their heart. You know, that joy that just gives you strength. It puts a spring in your step. Because many of us let sin go on in our heart.

And we're going to, in a few moments, we're going to look at five people who live in sin, who continue in sin. And we're going to look at one person that doesn't. We live in days and an age where if we're not walking close to the Lord Jesus, I'm going to assure you something, you're going to lose out.

I don't know if we see the seriousness of what's about us and what's going on. A lot of gadgets. A lot of unnecessary things. And I have no problem preaching that because the Lord asks me to preach it.

We've got our affections too much on these things. And they've deceived us. You know, sin is deceitful. You read the book of Hebrews, you'll find that out. It talks about that. It's deceived some of you here this evening.

It's deceived you. You may think, what do you mean slaying me? I'm healthy. But you're lean in your soul. Shall we continue in sin, my brother and sister? Shall we continue in sin? Well, we want to take a few moments this evening and look, I said five, six, excuse me.

Jesus Saves His People From Their Sins

We want to look at six people who continue in sin. And we're going to look at one that doesn't. And I believe the Lord has something here for us. I believe the Lord has got some truth here to show clearly why some live in sin.

I'm going to read a verse to you in Matthew chapter 1. You don't have to turn there. I'm not going to be there long. You can if you want. Verses 20 and 21. It says, But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus. For he shall save his people from their sins. And the apostle John in 1 John chapter 3, starting in verse 70, says, Little children, let no man deceive you.

He that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil, for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.

Whosoever is born of God, listen to the apostle John, whosoever is born of God does not commit active sin. He doesn't live in sin. And I can preach that that's what John is saying, because if we had time, we could go back and look earlier in the second chapter.

He that committeth sin is of the devil, for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever is born of God does not commit sin, for his seed remaineth in him.

And he cannot live in sin. Isn't that what the apostle John is saying? I believe that's what he's saying. He's not saying that he cannot sin at all. He's saying that he cannot live in sin. Why? Because he is born of God.

Do you believe that? 1 John 5 v. 4. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world. And this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. One person that lives in sin, that continues on in sin, is the one person that's never been a servant to sin.

Not to the Lord Jesus. Not to the Lord Jesus, but a servant of sin. You know, when an individual comes to see their need of Jesus Christ, God's Spirit comes upon them and convinces them that they're a sinner.

And they acknowledge their sin to God and they willingly receive the Lord Jesus Christ into their heart. Willing to forsake all for Him, including their sins, they become born of God. And those of us who have been born of the Spirit, we're not living in sin.

We're not practicing sin. The Church of Jesus Christ needs to wake up and get out of their sin and let the Lord Jesus Christ have His way. Sin is deceitful. I don't murder. I don't commit adultery. But do you set your affection on things of below?

Now, the Holy Spirit at this very moment may be showing somebody, yes, you do. Yes, you do. Those who are not born of God, they don't have power to be free from their sin. They have no power, no faith to help them overcome their sin.

And they go on day after day, year after year, month after month in that same born of God. This salvation to me is very dear. This salvation that God brought through Jesus Christ is lovely! It's precious!

You only become born of the Spirit of God one time. Let this salvation be dear to our hearts, brothers and sisters. Why do we love the things of this life so much when we wonder why we're not excited about those eternal things?

I am. And some of you are also. In the book of Hebrews 3, I want to read a few verses there. I like the book of Hebrews. Wonderful, wonderful book. A book to be memorized. Starting in verse 12, Hebrews 3, Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God.

But exhort one another daily while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin that's happened to some of you. For we are made partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end while it is said today, if you will hear His voice, harden not your hearts as in the provocation.

For some, when they had heard, did provoke, albeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. But with whom was He grieved forty years? Was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness?

And to whom swear He that they should not enter into His rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. And I want to share with you that one word that we could place there, the very last word in Hebrews 3, verse 19, we could very, very correctly put disobedience there.

Look that word up yourself sometime. So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief or disobedience. You know, another individual that walks in sin, that is not able to find victory over sin, is that one that walks in unbelief.

They walk in unbelief. You cannot separate these two things. You know, earlier in the book of Romans, chapter 6, it says, but God be thanked that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart.

Easily could be put there, but ye have believed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. But in the King James Version, we find obeyed there. But there would be nothing wrong. We can say in our hearts, believe.

You cannot separate true faith and obedience. And you cannot separate unbelief and disobedience. It will not happen. You can't. Saved by works? No. Saved by grace through faith. But true faith, my brother and sister, produces obedience.

Hebrews 11, verses 5 and 6, we find written there, by faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death and was not found because God had translated him. For before his translation, he had this testimony that he pleased God by faith.

But without faith, it is impossible to please Him. For he that cometh to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. Now keep those verses in mind while I read one in Romans 8.

Romans 8, verse 8 says,. So then, they that are in the flesh cannot please God. So we find this conclusion that unbelief is of the flesh. It's not of the Holy Ghost. It's of the flesh. And those who walk in unbelief, this is their testimony, this is their testimony, victorious over trend.

They live in sin. They've almost given up on that sin that they've walked in for the last four years. They've given up and they've said, I'm just going to go ahead and go with it. I might as well, it's something I can't get rid of, so I'll carry it.

No, I don't understand that. That's not the salvation I know. That's not the salvation I know, brother and sister. If that's it, if that's the salvation that's true, is God truly holy? Those that walk in unbelief, you see those Israelites, you read in 1 Corinthians 10, it goes down a list there talking about lusting.

They lusted. They murmured. 3 in 20 ,000 fell in one day because of lusting, I believe. They murmured, complained. They were disobedient, weren't they? And we find in Hebrews that it says that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

Do you see? Unbelief and disobedience go together. That's right. They couldn't enter in because of unbelief. They couldn't enter in because they were disobedient. They disobeyed the Word of God. And if you go on in Hebrews 4, you see that message clearly there.

We're not going into that, but it's there. They disobeyed the Word of God. Unbelief. Are you walking in disobedience? You're walking in unbelief. Are you walking in unbelief? You're walking in disobedience.

And if we're walking in disobedience, we're certainly not dwelling in the presence of God in my brothers and sisters. Where else is there to dwell but in the presence of God? And do you know what? The grace of God is sufficient for it to be!

You know, it's not just for the person down the road. It's for you. Do you really want it? Romans 7, verses 24 and 25 say, O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death? This body of death?

I thank God. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin. We serve sin when we're in the flesh. And the result of sin is death.

Romans 8, verse 13 says, For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die. Galatians chapter 5, starting in verse 14,. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another. This I say then, walk in the flesh, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. You know that third individual, who lives on in sin, is that one that walks after the flesh.

Walking After the Flesh

You know my brothers and sisters, there's only two walks for us. We either walk in the Holy Ghost, who is God. I worship Him as God. Or we walk in the flesh. Is there any more really? You walk in the spirit or you walk in the flesh?

And those that are unbelieving, you only have one walk. It's in the flesh. Because you don't have God in you. Those who walk after the flesh, are those that are a slave to sin. They're a slave. You know what a slave is?

A slave is one, he serves another master. He's a slave. He's in bondage. To this or that. And those who walk after the flesh, are bound to serve sin. Paul said, for in me that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing.

For the will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not. You know when you walk in the flesh, as a believer in Jesus Christ, as one born of the Spirit of God, you know, you can't find victory.

No victory. You won't find victory in the flesh. You'll find it through the Spirit of God. See, God has given us, He's shown great favor towards us. You know, I love to look at grace this way. Grace to me goes beyond the heavens, my brothers and sisters.

It goes beyond the heavens! There's nobody here that can perfectly understand it. It's not precious. But grace to me is God's favor towards me. The grace of God certainly can be interpreted as God's favor towards you.

And God has shown the believers in Jesus Christ favor in that He's given them the Holy Ghost. The Holy Spirit's referred to in the book of Hebrews as the Spirit of God. Walking in the flesh. When we serve ourself, we walk in the flesh.

When we let our desires go out towards those toys, we walk in the flesh. When we have nothing else better to do but just to get on that cell phone and call somebody else just to talk because we have nothing else to do!

No reason to call! You believe it? I'm not concerned if I'm popular for that. I want to preach the truth. And that is the truth. When we get on that computer and play in those games, I've heard somebody told me get practical today.

Well, let's get practical in everyday life. It's not just this hour here. It's every day! 24 -7! Oh, I love the Lord Jesus! And He is Lord. And we should refer to Him as Lord Jesus. We get on that computer and play those games and give ourself to playing to them more than we should.

You're walking in the flesh. I'm telling you something, whether you see it or not. You know, in ages past, they've had their problems, their things to work through. But in this age, I'm telling you what is overtaking Christians, it's gadgets.

Yes, the computer, the cell phones, and listen, I have a cell phone. They have their place. But I'm telling you what, if we're a servant to it, if our affection is towards it, something's wrong. And I understand some of you have businesses on that.

I'm not condemning you. I'm glad that you have work, and I mean that. So, perhaps if somebody will try to think that I'm totally against them, that's not what I'm saying. Understand my heart. Walking in the flesh.

Confession, Forsaking Sin, and Mercy

Proverbs 28. Verse 13. We find written there, he that covereth his sins shall not prosper. But whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. And in the book of 1 John, I'm in John too, Brother Denny.

1 John 1 verse 9. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Do you know another individual that lives on in sin? Now listen closely to this.

It's the individual that's no longer called their sin a sin. They call it a weakness. And they don't call it a sin. And because they call it a weakness, they go on in sin. Because it's just something to work on.

Those who call their sin a weakness and not a sin, these people are the people that go on in their sin. You know, it's something I need to work on. It's my downfall, you know. It's just my nature. It's how I am, you know.

I run people down, you know. It's just me. Hey, it's just me, you know. Come on, we know that guy. Just me. Just my weakness. Let's call it what it is. You call it sin. You acknowledge it as sin. And I pray that the Spirit of God will cut every heart that has a sin in their life who just is calling it a weakness.

You know, when we see sin as exceeding sinful, we're putting ourselves in a very good place. Do you look at sin that way? Are you really serious about God? Oh, sin is exceeding sinful. Do you know the Lord Jesus, He gave His life.

He gave His life! Jesus Christ who is God, the Word that was made flesh and dwelled among us. Not us, but others. He paid the penalty for our sin. Ought we not to lay aside ours by the grace of God? By the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ?

For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ. For it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth. To the Jew first and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith to faith to faith.

Faith in the Gospel will bring deliverance from our sins. It's happened to me. It's happened to many of you. Galatians 5, verse 24, we find written there, and they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

Wrong Desires and Crucifying the Flesh

You know, another individual who goes on living in sin, who continues in sin, who walks in sin, is the individual who lets live wrong desires. Did you catch that? They let live wrong desires. Listen to what James has to say.

James 1, starting in verse 13. Some men say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God. For God cannot be tempted with evil. Neither tempteth He any man. But every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed.

Then, when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin. And sin bringeth forth death. Do not err, my beloved brethren. Those who let live wrong desires are those who live in sin. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

Listen to what Paul is saying. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh apart from Him, with Him. Nevertheless, I live. Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. The life which I now live in what?

The flesh. I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me. For me! Let that become personal. For you! Jesus Christ gave His life for you. For you! You know, that wrong desire, that desire, young man, that unlawful desire for another woman rises up.

For a woman. It rises up in the heart. And we don't crucify it. We let it live. And death manifests itself in the soul in this way. No life of God. Sister, unmarried sister, that desire, that desire for marriage arises and that desire in and of itself is not wrong.

But when we let that desire become unlawful, when we can't lay it down, let it live in an unlawful state, we walk. We sin. And if we let that desire accumulate and abound and increase and have its way in our life to where it's not right before God, we're walking in sin.

See, I think we need to see sin as sin is. And some of us don't. We see things as weaknesses, brothers and sisters. And there are weaknesses. Likewise, the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities, our weaknesses.

But some of us classify our sins as weaknesses. And it's true. And we wonder why we don't prosper. Romans 6, verse 16 says, Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, His servants ye are to whom ye obey, whether of sin and of death or of obedience and of righteousness.

Yielding Ourselves to Sin or to God

You know, the sixth person that I have down here that lives in sin is the one who yields themselves to sin. They yield their self as a servant to sin. They present their self. They give their self to sin.

I want to share something very practical to you, how we can yield ourselves to be a servant to sin. Those of us who are born again, you get out of the Word, you stop praying not to pray to try to please God, but we want to pray because we love God.

But when we get out of prayer and out of the Word, and start setting our focus and our hearts and our mind down low, low I mean the earth, the things of this life, you know what happens? Our hearts turn from God.

And they turn to the world, and they turn to this earth, and you know what we're doing? And we may have never thought of it before, we're saying, we're presenting our self to be a servant of sin. We're yielding our self to be a servant to sin.

You see, we need to be watchful, wakeful Christians in the soul. And when we're not wakeful, and when we're not watchful, we turn from God, and they turn to this earth. And our heart turns from God to this earth, our affections become upon the things of this life, and we open our self up to being a servant to sin.

And if we don't, by the grace of God, quickly turn those affections, we will end up being a servant to sin. But I want to look at the one person this evening that does not live in sin. Yes, we know it's the one that's born of God.

But what I have down here is I read through the Romans. Like I said, I've been reading a while. And I've come to Romans 6, verse 11. And it says, That one that does not live in sin is that one who walks by faith.

They live by faith. And because they walk by faith, they have access to the grace of God that causes them to stand and be strong and be victorious over sin. You find in Romans 5, verse 1,. Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand.

Some of us don't have access to the grace of God because we don't walk by faith. And brothers and sisters, the faith I'm talking about this evening is not a faith in the head. I'm talking about a faith that we find in Hebrews 11.

And that faith we find in Hebrews 11 is they were convinced and their hearts faded that what God had promised He was able also to perform. They had a faith that was alive in the heart. Words can't help me to fully describe what I'm talking about.