I Fell Back Into Sin: Am I A Christian?

Why Did I Fall Back Into Old Sin If I Am Saved?

"I am not sure if I am saved because I fell back into sin." This is a statement I hear often because of the women I deal with and being in the online space. I have seen it happen in person as well. If this is something you are struggling with, this post is for you. My name is Ma'Nika Bishop and I help women who come out of false belief systems reorient their thoughts, behavior, and beliefs back to Scripture. Sin is a life-wrecker and a home-wrecker, but it can be come back from. It can wreck our progress when we fall back into sin. There is Hope!

The Proclamation of the Gospel

Let's start with the Gospel. You may be tempted to skip this, but please don't. "The Gospel is the proclamation – proclamation is important; almost every time the term gospel is used in the New Testament it is used with regards to a proclamation, with a word that is spoken. The gospel is the proclamation of the benefits that Jesus Christ has secured for his people who come to him by faith. The gospel is the proclamation of the benefits that Jesus Christ has secured for his people who come to him by faith. So, this is my summary then of the gospel; there is the work of Jesus Christ and there are the benefits for his people.

Here is the work of Jesus Christ; Jesus Christ lived a perfect life. In Romans 5:19 it says, “For as by the one man’s disobedience [speaking of Adam] the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” This is a statement that Jesus Christ in his life was perfect; he never sinned. We know this from places like Hebrews chapter 4. In his life he was sinless; Jesus lived a perfect life. That is the first element we can summarize about the gospel as it relates to the work of Jesus Christ.

Second, Jesus died a brutal death. In a passage like 1 Peter 2:24 it says, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” So, Jesus’ perfect life earns for Him the ability to be pinned to the cross and bear the sins of every guilty person who would believe. Jesus lived a perfect life, he died a brutal death, and then he rose and ascended to heaven, resurrection and ascension. If you look in Ephesians 1:19-22, Paul is praying that we would know,

…what is the immeasurable greatness of his [God’s] power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

This is a statement of the power of God at work in Jesus to lift him off of the ground through the heavens and install Him on a throne as King of kings and Lord of lords; resurrected and ascended. Jesus lived a perfect life, he died a brutal death, and he rose from the grave and ascended into heaven where He reigns this moment as King of kings and Lord of lords.

All of that is a summary of the work of Jesus Christ. But then there are the benefits for his people. I want to talk about three benefits for his people.

The first benefit is forgiveness. Ephesians 1:7 says, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace…” Because Jesus lived, died, and rose we are forgiven for our sins.

The second benefit is that we have power. We have power to live the Christian life and power to be obedient. Romans 6:1-4 says,

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

Jesus lived, died, rose and as you are in him you can walk in newness of life; you have power to obey the commands of God.

Then the third benefit is comfort and hope. 1 Peter 1:3-7 says,

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

This is a text that teaches us that we have comfort now in the midst of our pain because we have hope on the other side of the pain. There is no promise in the Bible that we are offered ease and comfort in our life now, but in fact, there is a promise that there will be trouble, pain, and refinement. However, on the other side of that you have hope, and because of that hope you have comfort. We minister comfort to people and that comfort comes because of the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ."

If you have proclaimed the Gospel, we can move forward.

Some Reasons One Fell Back Into Sin

Now that we have established you have proclaimed the Gospel, have confidence in that! Have confidence in what Jesus did. Ask Yahweh to increase your faith as the disciples did with Jesus (Luke 17:5-6.) So, why does one slip back into sin? There can be several reasons for this. I will lay out a few reasons here.

1. Sinful Nature We were all born with a sinful nature that makes us rebellious towards the Lord. If you have an unexplained inclination to sin or like the darkness, this is why. We have Adam to thank for this. This comes natural for humanity. If you have children, you have certainly seen this. You can read more on this here.

2. Quenching the Holy Spirit One of the main ways I see this in our culture as Christians is by seeking sources outside of Scripture to help us with our issues. Sometimes it can be out of ignorance. When we go to anyone or anything outside of Scripture for emotional healing, we are saying Scripture is insufficient. That Chiropractor or reiki healer who helped your emotions, it was temporary. How is this quenching the Holy Spirit? It is despising prophesy. This is what is being spoken of in 1 Thessalonians 5:19. This will be a foreign concept to most who read this and I understand that, as it was for me too. You can read more on this here.

3. Grieving the Holy Spirit This is another one I see a lot, typically in women who have spouses who are not on the same maturity level spiritually. They ignore the fire that has been put in them to obey and serve the Lord!! Remember the Holy Spirit is your Comforter and Teacher, among many things. So, when you do this, those things are being quenched.

4. Temptation This is another big one. You don't have a temptation plan. In other words, you do no have a plan for when temptation strikes. Do you know your weaknesses? Have a plan in place. The Lord says He gives a way out of temptation, so make sure you plan for your weaknesses. We are still in our flesh until we die.

5. Fear of Man External influences or "peer pressure" as some would call it is another big one. Galatians 1:10 says, "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." The Bible also teaches that bad company ruins good morals. Be careful who you hang around with.

6. Failure to Seek Guidance/Counsel Not having accountability from spiritual leaders or mentors when you know you have major weaknesses like addiction can leave one very vulnerable. We are to bear one another's burdens in Christ (Galatians 6:2.) Not doing this typically comes from a place of pride or lack of trust. Both of those are dangerous places to be as a Christian when you know you are vulnerable to sin.

7. Dishonesty I have seen this too. When people are not honest with themselves, their mentors, or even the Lord about where they are, they fall back into sin.

Now What?

Do you know which of those you fell into? More than one? There is another reason. Whatever it is, there is hope in Christ!! 1 John 1:9:

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

• Confess your sins to our Heavenly Father. He is just to forgive. Live a life of confession. Examine your hearts. Did you hurt someone in the process? Oftentimes when we sin, Yahweh is not the only one who gets hurt in the crossfire. Matthew 5:23-24 says,

Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift."

• Seek reconciliation with your brothers and sisters and Christ. We are to be reconciliation-minded as Christians.

• Find someone to be accountable to! If you are not in a biblically sound church, that is top priority!! We can help you with this. Just let us know. Here is a guide to find a church home.

Remember, you are a child of God made in His image. He loves you and we do too! If this article has helped you, please be sure to share it with others you think it would help.

Resources Cited:

https://biblicalcounseling.com/resource-library/articles/the-centrality-of-the-gospel-in-counseling/?srsltid=AfmBOopvEtlRbCqG3SafhTi7E_trlhViHStwPIkBZs1A4mmSdggdQkII