Your salvation has rescued you from your sin, but it has not made you free from sin. We will not be free from sin until it is cast into the lake of fire with its master, Satan, at the final judgement. Until that time sin will be a part of us, and we will have to struggle against it. In fact, becoming saved actually increases our adversity to sin, and thereby makes it even more difficult to overcome. Nonbelievers live in concert with sin, and do not have to struggle against it or try to overcome it. When you accepted Christ as your savior, you allowed the Holy Spirit to enter your life, and immediately put your spirit at odds with sin. So, although you are expected to resist sin, at some point, due to your imperfection, you will slip. Satan will succeed at tempting you to sin, but what should you do then?

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2nd Chronicles 7:14

When sin occurs, you must seek God's forgiveness by confessing your sin to Him, and then repenting from it. God promised that He would forgive your sin if you do this, but confession without repentance is a lie. The Holy Spirit, If He is in you, will warn you prior to the act of sin; then you have to choose whether to listen to Him or to go your own way. It is this decision that constitutes the responsibility of sin. Satan is guilty of temptation and deception, but not the act of your sin; and the Holy Spirit will speak to your heart, but He will not force your heart one way or the other. You alone decide to choose sin instead of the way out that God will allow. It is this willingness to act against God's will that you must repent, and you can not fool God. He knows your heart, and it cannot be hidden from Him. But what if you just say you're sorry and then keep on sinning?

"No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God" 1st John 3:9

You do not fool God if you continually sin; you only fool yourself. A person who chooses constant sin, and who persists in working in concert with Satan (who is against God and mocks God through you), is not really a child of God. You may think you're saved, but salvation consists of an acceptance of the Holy Spirit, and a change of heart. Search your heart, has it changed? If not, then perhaps you weren't serious when you thought you became saved. The words alone are not what constitutes salvation. It is the acceptance of your personal savior, Jesus Christ, and your belief in His sacrifice on the cross for the redemption of your sins, that constitutes salvation. You come to the cross with only your sins and your hopelessness, and that is where you repent of your sins to remove your hopelessness. You should walk away from the cross with Jesus and a new life, but if you leave the cross without repentance (with an unchanged heart) you do not leave with Jesus, you leave with only the sins and hopelessness you arrived with.

"The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did." 1st John 2:4-6

How can you become saved and not become more like Christ? It is simply impossible to come to such a life changing decision, without causing a life changing effect. Jesus said that you couldn't serve two masters. You either serve God, or you serve Satan; there really is no in-between. And if you truly love God, you would not love sin; you would despise it. It should be repulsive to you, and if it is not, than you need to take a serious step back and re-evaluate your relationship with God, before it's too late. Jesus promised that you cannot loose your salvation once you are saved, but there is no where to hide the truth of your salvation except in your heart, and God knows your heart.

What's in your heart?

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives." 1st John 1:9

It is just as bad, if not worse, to deny your sins. Again you fool no one, especially God, and as the Bible says, you actually make God out to be a liar. No one is free from sin, and if you don't confess your sins when they occur they'll become buried in your heart, where they will fester and grow, until they totally consume you. God has been aware of sin since the beginning of time, and He has been acutely aware of our sinful nature since Adam's fall. So what is there to deny? You may think it's too hard to admit your sins to God because it would make you feel too inadequate. Well here's a little secret...You are inadequate! That's why you need a savior. The day you feel adequate to face God is the day you have a real problem! Talk to God. He already knows what you've done; He just wants to hear it from you. He wants you to repent.

"Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon." Isaiah 55:7

Confess your sin, and release it. God not only forgives your sins, but He has promised to forget them as well, and if He can forget them so can you. A pardon is to overlook a penalty, and God pardon's freely those who ask and then repent. You have the power, through God's word, to overcome sin. The Bible says to hide God's word in your heart so that you might not sin. It will never be easy, but with the Holy Spirit and the Word, it will never be impossible either.

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