“The Wicked One”

“Digging Deeper”
An opportunity for you to continue your study of God’s Word throughout the week…

THURSDAY
“The Wicked One”

1 John 5:18-19
“We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.”

When we place our faith in Christ, there is a new nature that is created inside us. Although we still struggle with our old sinful nature, the new nature is inherently sinless. Part of growing in Christ (sanctification) is realizing the freedom that we have from both our old nature and the power of sin in our lives.

The “wicked one” in these verses is Satan who is described as having the whole world under his influence. However, this is only a temporary condition as Christ is coming back to rule. In the meantime, we can stand securely in the truth that our new nature in Christ is not subject to the controlling influence of Satan in human society.

When a Christian walks in close fellowship with God, he does not sin because sin can never be a part of the experience of abiding in Christ. For the believer, sin is abnormal and unnatural; his whole way of life should be bent away from sin. There should be no compromise in our lives when it comes to sin despite the “wicked ones” desire to tempt us.

THOUGHT: We are not sinless… but we should sin less.