What happens to the individual who becomes a Christian? Is
there an instant cessation of sinning? Is there mastery of addictions? What of
the effects of sin – are they erased? John Frame in his excellent presentation
on Presuppositional Apologetics (213) provides us with an excellent insight on
the issue at hand. He says “No. Becoming a Christian does not immediately erase
all sin and its effects”. You see, God forgives our sins, but we will not be
perfect till we get to heaven. Christians will sin. But we can choose not to:
8 If we say 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 we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:8-9)
The journey is a lifetime of pursuing Christ and His
righteousness. We still struggle to overcome temptations and we still commit
sin, both with the mind and the body. It is God who deals with all sin as He “forgives
our noetic sins in Christ” (the nature of unbelief that affects our reasoning
and knowledge, disobedience to God’s words). Frame describes the Christian as “regenerate,
born again and a new creation: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new
creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians
5:17). So how is the believer different from the unbeliever?
