The Incompatibility of Sin

Intro:

Last week we were reminded that as followers of Christ, we’re called to live with a clear identity. John showed us that God doesn’t leave us guessing about who we are — we are His children, loved, adopted, and being shaped into the likeness of His Son.

And because of that identity, we saw that the Christian life isn’t built on confusion or uncertainty… it’s built on the reality of what God is doing in us right now.

John made it clear: God doesn’t just claim us — He changes us. He is actively at work conforming us to the image of Christ.

That means our desires begin to shift, our habits begin to change, and the direction of our life starts pointing toward holiness instead of sin.

Illustration: I want you to imagine trying to mix two things that simply don’t go together. Think about trying to mix oil and water. You can shake that bottle as hard as you want — you can agitate it, stir it, twist it — but eventually, no matter how hard you try, they always separate... Why?

Because at their core, they are fundamentally different in nature. They don’t blend. They don’t share the same properties. They are naturally incompatible.

In the same way, John wants us to understand that when God makes us His children, He gives us a new nature — one that simply cannot blend with the old life of sin.

You can shake the bottle. You can stir it up with temptation. But the new life God places inside of us refuses to mix with the old ways we once lived in.

Which brings us to our passage today… John is going to press this truth even deeper…

Because we are children of God — because He is conforming us to the image of Christ — because He’s building in us a desire for purity and holiness…

we are now incompatible with sin.

(Read 1 John 3:4–9)

Meat:

If you’ve been here for any of the Sunday’s that we have been going through this series, you should know by now that John isn’t vague, soft, or casual when he talks about sin… He doesn’t treat it like a minor flaw or a small spiritual issue… He gets right to the heart of it.

And that’s where we need to begin today — with the definition of sin.

Before we can talk about why Christians are incompatible with sin…

before we can understand what Christ came to deal with…

before we can appreciate what Salvation has done in us…

we have to understand what sin really is.

And John doesn’t leave any room for confusion. - He doesn’t call sin a slip-up. - He doesn’t call it a mistake. - He doesn’t call it a weakness.

He calls it lawlessness — open rebellion against the rule and authority of God.

So that’s where we are going to start…

Sin...

1. Rebels Against God’s Law

1 John 3:4 “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.”

If you’ve raised kids, you’ve seen this. You draw a line… You say “Don’t go past this.” They look at you… They look at the line… And then they put one toe over the line.

It’s not confusion. It’s not misunderstanding. It’s the child testing authority — seeing who’s really in charge.

That’s what sin does. Sin doesn’t just cross the line; it challenges the One who drew it.

And John says that’s the nature of sin: it is lawlessness.

So many people try to soften their sin. They call it a mistake, a weak moment, an accident, or even a struggle. Those words sound more gentle… They make sin feel smaller and less serious.

But John doesn’t use any of those words…

He uses a word that cuts through all the excuses…

He says, “Sin is lawlessness.” Not a slip. Not a misstep. Not a misunderstanding.

Lawlessness… … and the best way to describe lawlessness is…

1.1 Lawlessness = Willful Disobedience

It means rejecting God’s authority and choosing our own way. It’s the attitude that says,

“I know what God says… but I’m going to do what I want.”

“My desires matter more than God’s commands.”

“My rule is better than His rule.”

The writer of Judges explains it this way…

Judges 21:25 NKJV

25 … everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

The Apostle Paul says in…

Romans 8:7 ESV

7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.

And James, the half brother of Jesus, says…

James 4:17 ESV

17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

Sin is active rebellion against the God who made us.

This is why sin is incompatible with the Christian life. Because when God saved us, He didn’t just forgive our mistakes — He broke the ruling power of rebellion in our hearts.

Instead of being people who resist God’s authority, He made us people who love His authority.

As Children of God we cannot shrug at sin — we grieve sin!… … because we recognize it for what it really is… … open rebellion against the One who redeemed us.

John wants us to understand that if we’re going to take holiness seriously, we must start by calling sin what God calls it — lawlessness…

This sin… this rebellion against God’s Law… This lawlessness… is…

1.2 Seeking Total Control

Sin is not satisfied with a small corner of your heart. It is seeking total control of your life!

Sin never stays small. Sin never stays contained. Sin never remains “just a little thing.”

Sin always wants more.

It begins as a quiet suggestion… then becomes a tolerated habit… then grows into a dominating power.

Jesus warned us in John 8:34,

“Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.” Not a casual participant — a slave. Because sin’s goal is always the same: total control.

Sin doesn’t ask permission. It doesn’t negotiate. It doesn’t compromise. It pushes, it widens, it deepens, and eventually it tries to take over the throne of your heart.

This is why Paul says in Romans 6:12,

“Do not let sin reign in your mortal body.” He uses the word reign — like a king on a throne. Because sin is always trying to rule.

Sin whispers,

“Just this once…”

“No one will notice…”

“You deserve this…”

“You can control it…”

But once it gets a foothold, it begins issuing commands. Sin is never content with influence — it wants authority.

A.W. Tozer put it like this:

“Sin will have its will, and it is always a tyrant.”

Meaning that…

It promises freedom, but it delivers slavery.

It promises pleasure, but it brings bondage.

It promises satisfaction, but it produces emptiness.

It Demands Obedience

Gives no rest

Takes more than it gives

and will punish you when you try to break free…

That’s why sin is incompatible with the life of a Follower of Christ… Because God did not save us to share the throne with our flesh.… He saved us so that Christ alone sits on that throne.

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 NASB95

19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20 For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.

Romans 6:14 NKJV

14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

Colossians 3:1–3 NKJV

1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

A couple of weeks ago, as we were finishing up chapter 2, we talked about what it means to abide in Christ…

we were reminded that the Christian life isn’t built on momentary religious moments — it’s built on daily relationship. John called us to abide in Christ — to stay rooted in Him, to remain connected to Him, to draw strength, direction, and identity from Him.

We said then that abiding is more than believing facts about Jesus. It’s living close to Him. It’s walking with Him. It’s depending on Him. It’s choosing His voice over the world’s lies.

We are to abide in His Word, abide in His love, and abide in His presence, because who you stay close to shapes who you become.

And abiding in Christ changes everything:

It calms our fears.

It strengthens our faith.

It guards us from deception.

It keeps us anchored in truth.

But John also makes something else clear today:

Abiding in Christ doesn’t only keep us in the truth — it keeps us out of sin.

Sin, which rebels against God’s Laws, is in fact…

1.3 The Opposite of Abiding

When John says “Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness...” He is describing continual, habitual, unbroken patterns of sin.

A true Christian can sin—but not comfortably, not continually, and not without repentance.

If a person lives in persistent sin with no repentance and no desire for righteousness, the text says they are not truly born of God.

Look at v.6…

1 John 3:6 “Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.”

John says “Whoever abides in Him does not sin...”

Meaning: does not keep on living in sin as a pattern, a lifestyle, or a settled direction.

A Christian may fall, but a Christian cannot remain fallen. A Christian may stumble, but a Christian cannot walk in rebellion. A Christian may sin, but a Christian cannot be comfortable in sin.

Why? Because abiding in Christ changes everything:

It changes what you want.

It changes what you pursue.

It changes what you can tolerate.

It changes the whole direction of your life.

The closer you walk with Christ, the more uncomfortable sin becomes…

The more you abide in Him, the less room rebellion finds in your heart.

Jesus said in John 15:5

John 15:5 NKJV

5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

Fruit and rebellion cannot grow on the same branch…

This is why sin is incompatible with the believer’s life — because Jesus doesn’t just forgive sinners… He transforms them.

Which leads to the 2nd reason we are incompatible with sin…

Sin…

2. Rejects Christ’s Purpose

Now that John has established what Sin is… Rebellion against God’s Law and the Godly principles we find in Scripture… He now tells us exactly what Jesus came to do about it…

He gives us to main purposes of Jesus’ mission while He was here on Earth…

The first one is found in verse 5…

1 John 3:5 “And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.”

That word manifested means

to make something crystal clear,

to bring it out into the open,

to reveal it beyond question.

John is saying Jesus didn’t come quietly or vaguely. He came with a mission so clear that no one can mistake it…

First of all, Jesus came…

2.1 To Take Away Sin

“He was manifested to take away our sins...”

This is exactly what John the Baptist declared when He saw Jesus show up for a baptismal service…

John 1:29 NKJV

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

Jesus didn’t come to:

help us manage sin

normalize sin

excuse sin

or negotiate with sin

He came to take it away — to lift it off us, remove its stain, cancel its debt, and break its power.

The writer of Hebrews says...

Hebrews 9:26 NKJV

26… He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

So often, people try to justify their sin… they try to minimize it… they try to make people be ok with it…

But Jesus did not leave heaven, to manifest Himself on earth, in order to make sin more comfortable.

He came to remove it.

So if sin is rebellion… and Christ came to remove rebellion… … then a life of ongoing rebellion rejects His very mission.

This is why sin is incompatible with the believer’s life…

John gives a second purpose of Christ that sin rejects… and that is…

2.2 To Destroy Satan’s Work

This one is found in v.8…

1 John 3:8 “He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”

Think about that word: destroy. It means to break apart, to dismantle, to undo, to nullify.

The “works of the devil” refer to the spread of sin.

Temptation

Deception

Bondage

Accusation

Corruption

All of these are the fruits of Satan’s kingdom.

But Jesus didn’t come to coexist with Satan’s works — He came to undo them… to Destroy them…

Col. 2:15 says…

Colossians 2:15 NASB95

15 … He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.

The writer of Hebrews says…

Hebrews 2:14 ESV

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, He himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,

Christ came to break chains of sin, not polish them…

This is why, when you read the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John), you see a surge of demonic activity…

Several Bible Scholars have pointed out that the kingdom of darkness had operated quietly for centuries, dominating hearts and minds without much challenge.

But when Jesus stepped onto the scene, when Jesus makes an appearance on their (so called) domain, all of hell was stirred as The Light of the world exposed what had been hiding in the shadows.

To paraphrase John MacArthur… : “When Jesus came into the world, the demons went on high alert (they panicked). Their visible activity was a desperate response to the invasion of God’s Son..”

Their long-held grip on humanity was being broken, and they knew it.… Christ didn’t come to negotiate with the enemy… He came to overthrow him.

This means that

you cannot claim to follow the Jesus who breaks sin’s chains… while holding onto the chains He broke.

You cannot serve the Savior who destroys the devil’s works… while unrepentantly participating in the works He came to destroy.

Because to continue in Sin, is to reject the purpose of Christ’s appearing.

Last week we finished by reminding ourselves that we are called to live a life of purity — not as a burden, but as the natural expression of a heart that belongs to Christ.

Purity isn’t something we work up; it’s something God works out in us because we’ve been born of Him.

And that’s exactly what John is pressing on again here at the end of our passage today. He wants us to see that sin doesn’t fit the believer’s life because it doesn’t fit the believer’s identity.

Sin…

3. Contradicts Our Identity

Remember, we are Children of God, being conformed into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ…

Look at what John says in v.7…

1 John 3:7 “Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.”

and then v.9…

1 John 3:9 “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.”

Our Identity, as Children of God, is…

3.1 To Live Like Christ

John is giving us a bit of a fatherly warning here…

“Little children, let no one deceive you...”

He knows there will always be voices trying to blur the lines— False teachers who…

minimize sin,

excuse sin,

or redefine righteousness.

So he says, “Don’t be deceived.”

And then he says… “He who practices righteousness is righteous…”

This is talking about a life that is pointed toward obedience… one who is progressing and growing in the walk and relationship with Christ on a daily basis…

Again, he’s not saying believers never stumble… because every believer battles the flesh, and we all fall short at times. Even Paul said in Romans 7 that he wrestled with sin…

If we could achieve sinlessness on our own, then we wouldn’t need an advocate, and Christ would have died for nothing… that is not what he is saying here…

But he is saying that the dominant direction of your life should be moving…

toward Christ,

toward holiness,

toward obedience,

toward righteousness.

He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous.”

Christ is not only our Savior — He is our pattern, our model… He is our example to live by.

John makes a bold claim in v.9… “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.”

As soon as we put our faith and trust in Jesus as our Lord and Savior… God immediately indwells us with His Holy Spirit, which results in…

new desires

new appetites

new direction

new convictions

new loves

new hates

This is why sin no longer feels natural. - It feels foreign. - It feels wrong. - It feels against who we are.

When John says that the believer, the Child of God, “Cannot Sin”… Again, this is not sinless perfection… But He is saying the believer cannot practice sin… We cannot live in it, remain in it, or make peace with it.

Why?

Because our salvation makes sin incompatible with our new identity.

You cannot live comfortably in what God has delivered you from.

Closing:

John has made it unmistakably clear — sin is not a light matter. It is not a small thing. It is not a private issue.

Sin is rebellion against God’s law.

Sin is a rejection of Christ’s Purpose and mission.

and Sin is a contradiction to our identity.

So the question we have to ask ourselves as we close is simple but also very serious: - Does my life agree with my identity? - Does my walk match my claim of being a Child of God? - And Does my behavior reflect the One whose name I bear?

If there is sin you’ve been excusing… sin you’ve been hiding… sin you’ve been tolerating… sin you’ve been “managing”… today is the day to bring it into the light.

As Paul said in Romans 13:14 “… put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”

Remember…

Whoever practices righteousness is righteous…

and whoever is born of God does not continue in sin

So today — choose righteousness. Choose purity. Choose obedience. Choose the identity God has given you.

And may our lives declare to the world… I am a child of God — and my life is no longer compatible with sin.

Prayer: