In a ladies Bible study this week, someone exclaimed that we must always realize that we are sinners... not able to be perfect... and that we shouldn't bemoan the fact, because it makes us able to relate to non-believers.     I thought about this long and hard, and turned to 1John 3:9-10, and read it aloud. 
 
"9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God."
 
This is a hard word to understand in Scripture!   How can it say that I (someone who IS born of God) do not sin, when I struggle with my human nature all the time?   It is imperative to understand the makeup of our persons.    We are born flesh, and have a soul... but when we are born into the Kingdom of God, our spirit comes alive and is now able to commune with God.     My SPIRIT is sinless... and it wars with the flesh.     This war is one that we MUST win, if we are to be overcomers.   Our soul is in the middle, trying to decide who to follow.. the flesh or the spirit.    As Paul says in Romans 7:22-23: "For I joyfully concur with the law of God in my inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind..." (Click on "Read More" in the border below)
If we feed our spirit with the Word of God, and walk by sensing what the Spirit of God is saying to us, then we are strong in the spirit, and are no longer under the Law - but are free ... as Galatians 5:18 says.    But if we feed the flesh, by neglecting the spirit, or being outright fleshly ( Galatians 5:19-21 ) , AND if we "practice" these things regularly, then it just shows that maybe we are not of those who will push on to inherit the Kingdom of God.
 
 
"For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace."  Roman 8:6
 
And, as Ryker says in his studies all the time, the Kingdom of God is personal spiritual dominion over my world and my circumstances.   It is taking up the authority we were given, by the power of Jesus blood (and by Him granting it to us when He left).     If we are "practicing" sin, then we are in bondage to darkness for that length of time we choose... and are not capable of moving forward in faith to the glories that await us.
 
The reality that my REAL self (my spirit) is sinless was very freeing to me, when I first understood this concept.  It made everything so much clearer, for I realized that the Lord really can love me, for I am loveable!    I am not a filthy, sinful being... but have been made righteous in Jesus Christ!    This was "key" for me to move on, after I had come to grips with the horrible depth of my sin... and confessed it. ( 1John 1:9 )     It then became a challenge to overcome this body of sin and death that I am linked with until the day I get my new body.    And the more we overcome, the greater the glories that await us... both here on earth and in the Kingdom to come!
 
So, press on my brothers!  Let us know if you have questions, or need encouragement!
 
-Belle