Knowledge – BT9:  Sin is the result of missing God’s target of genuinely knowing Him

 

 

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Sin (harmatia) simply means to “miss the mark or target.”  Traditionally from the OT, this has meant to “miss the target of obeying God’s commandments,” thus to “abar/parabaino ‘deliberately step-over the line of’ or transgress the Torah Law of conditional-favor” of 613 commandments per Daniel 9:11, but Paul in the New Testament (NT) now defines “whatever that [is] absolutely-in-fact-NOT out-from trusting-relying-faith presently/ongoing, actually sin” (a), just as so many Old Testament (OT) terms are redefined by Jesus and the NT writers for the completely different-in-kind New Covenant.  If you look deeper into the meaning of pistis trusting-relying-faith, you will find that this can only occur when you are experientially, relationally ginosko knowing God in relationship with Him.  It’s a relationship word!  Therefore, Paul is saying that sin is indeed “missing the target” of having this intimate relationship kind-of knowledge with God.  Peter says that NOT being “koinonia partakers in the divine nature” results in “escaping the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire” (b). <Notes> a) Romans 14:23, b) 2 Peter 1:3-4.

 

Sin is a result of not having this divine-nature “godliness,” for this only comes “dia thru-the-realizing-channel-of genuine, full, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge of God.”  Thus “divine-nature godliness” flows through the channel of this koinonia intimate-partaking-relationship type of knowledge.  But how does “divine-nature godliness” get from God to us in order to defeat sin?  Peter says in 2 Peter 1:3 that “His divine dunamis enabling-power has granted to us ALL things that pertain to zoe genuine-life and/coupled godliness dia thru-the-realizing-channel-of genuine, full, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge of God.” We know from the NT that this refers to Spirit-Power.  Peter refers to “sanctification/holiness of/belonging-to [singular] Spirit” (a).  God’s entire plan of salvation is about restoring/reconciling the intimate fellowship that He enjoyed with Adam and Eve in the garden, when God would walk through the garden and routinely talk with them (b).  <Notes> a) 1 Peter 1:2, b) Genesis 3:8.

 

Paul talks in Romans 1:21-28 about the fall of mankind into mental depravity leading to every type of physical depravity, exactly because “although they were having experientially, relationally ginosko knowing of God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him. . . exchanging The Truth about God for a lie, worshipping and serving created things instead of the Creator . . . and since they did absolutely-in-fact-NOT investigate-to-prove-as-genuine (a) to have/hold/possess God by-the-means-of genuine, full, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge, God gave them over (b) to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.”  That’s exactly my point!  If you don’t “wholeheartedly seek God in order to find and hold by the means/instrument of by-the-means-of genuine, full, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge” Him, then God will simply let you go on doing your own thing toward all kinds of sin!  <Notes> a) dokimazo: test, examine, or discern to demonstrate or prove something is acceptable, genuine, approved, good, and approved.  For more about discernment – see New Covenant Ways – BT16 , b) paradidomi:  give or turn over from close-beside, personally deliver.

 

I and many others have asked, “Why doesn’t God refuse to let go of us?  Why doesn’t He force us to hold on and stay close-beside Him?”  Doesn’t He say “I will never leave or forsake you” (a)?  The Answer:  Because this would violate our free will and simply make us slaves of God, much like the angels are.  The members of the Triune-Godhead have free will, but they said they created us “in Our image, after Our likeness” (b).  How could they then take our free will away from us?  <Notes> a) Hebrews 13:5, b) Genesis 1:26, c) 1 John 4:8, 16, d) according to the Greek scholars of Galatians 5:22-23, the list of nouns act as adjective-nouns further describing the singular-fruit of the unconditional-love just as Paul does in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

 

But more importantly this would violate His essentially infinite unconditionally-loving nature (a), which infinite gentleness is a key characteristic or “flavor” of (b). God is infinitely gentle just as He is “without measure” (c) in all His qualities (d), just as Jesus is infinitely gentle (e), just as is His Spirit (f).  That’s the reason we should be gentle, as followers of Christ (g), especially if you are going to be in ministry (h) – see the Be Gentle With Yourself as You Learn video.  <Notes> a) 1 John 4:8, 16, b) according to the Greek scholars of Galatians 5:22-23, the list of nouns act as adjective-nouns further describing the singular-fruit of the unconditional-love just as Paul does in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, c) John 3:34, d) 2 Samuel 22:36; Psalms 18:35, e) Jeremiah 11:19; Matthew 11:29; 2 Corinthians 10:1, f) Galatians 5:22-23, 6:1; 1 Corinthians 4:21, g) Ephesians 4:2; Titus 3:2; James 3:17; 1 Peter 2:18, 3:4, 15, h) 1 Thessalonians 2:7; 1 Timothy 3:3, 6:11; 2 Timothy 2:25.

 

Furthermore Paul says, the “godless nations/people” are NOT “in control of their own bodies” but are in “the passion of their own lust,” linking/coupling this to his next statement in 1 Thessalonians 4:4-5: “they have NOT already, with ongoing results, eido mentally ‘seen’ to perceive/know God.”  They had their religious books but that didn’t help them!  They didn’t even worship the One true God!

 

 

 

But even knowing ABOUT the One true God through the OT scriptures didn’t help the Jews either. In Hosea 4:1-2, God accused the Jews of “not having da’ath/epignosis genuine, full, experiential, relational knowledge of Him” and links this by progressive poetic stanzas to “they did evil without bounds (b), worshipped idols, without faithfulness, without steadfast unconditional-love, abandoning the Lord, and provoked Him to anger and judgment, causing Him to turn them over to be plundered by their enemies.” One things leads to another, but the downhill slide started with NOT having “da’ath/epignosis genuine, full, experiential, relational knowledge of Him.”  <Notes> a) daath: perceptive, discerning, awareness, prophetic insight, moral and understanding or wisdom, skillfulness in workmanship or creativity, knowledge; epignosis:  genuine, experiential, relational knowledge, b) swearing, lying, murder, stealing, adultery, etc.

 

Like the Jews did, if you think that “Knowing God” has anything to do with trying hard to keep the commandments of the Torah Law of conditional-favor, think again based on what Paul says in an example of the commandment not to covet: “But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness.  For apart from the Torah Law of conditional-favor, sin lies dead/lifeless” (a). Therefore, “the enabling-power of sin is the Torah Law of conditional-favor” (b). It’s called “the Torah Law of conditional-favor of sin and death” (c) for a reason!  Trying harder just won’t work. Haven’t all of us experienced Paul’s struggle with sin: “For we know the Torah Law of conditional-favor is Spirit-kind-of, but I am flesh-kind-of, sold-into-slavery under-the-dominion-of sin.  For I do not understand my own actions.  For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. . . . For I have the desire to do what is right, but NOT the ability to carry it out.  For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing” (d).  <Notes> a) Roman 7:8, b) 1 Corinthians 15:56, c) Romans 8:2, d) Romans 7:14-19.

 

We have to come to the same conclusion Paul came to – we are not going to win this battle!  “O Wretched man that I am!  WHO will ‘snatch-up to deliver to the deliverer’ me from this body of death? Thanks be to God – thru-the-realizing-channel-of Jesus Christ our Lord” (a)!  How we are “measuring up” to God’s Torah Law of holiness is what most Christians think of when you ask them: “How are doing with God?”  They list off the things they are or are NOT doing – the are stuck in ergon “DOing,” which is the same as “works,” as if they were still under the old covenant.  Very few people will answer, “Lately, I’m feeling my koinonia intimate relationship with the Lord is ________.”  This is so sad, because this is the essence of the completely different-in-kind New Covenant!  <Notes> a) Romans 7:24-25.

 

John really nails it: “If we say we have koinonia fellowship (a) with Him while we routinely/habitually walk-all-around/living in darkness, we lie and do not practice The Truth” (b), and “absolutely no one who routinely/habitually meno remains-connected-to/dwells in Him (Jesus) ongoingly sins (c); absolutely no one who routinely/habitually sins has already [with ongoing results] either horao observed/perceived-known/discerned Him or already [with ongoing results] experientially, relationally ginosko known Him.  Little children, let no one deceive you.  Whoever routinely/habitually does righteousness is righteous, as He (Jesus) is righteous.  Whoever routinely/habitually sins is of the devil, for the devil has been ongoingly sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to definitively/wholly destroy the works of the devil.  No one having already been born/begotten [with ongoing results] of God ongoingly sins, for God’s [singular] sperma Seed ongoingly meno remains-connected-to/dwells in him; and/subsequently he is not ongoingly able to ongoingly sin, because he has already been [with ongoing results] born/begotten of God (d).”  See A 11-21-2021 Vision about Meno abiding. <Notes> a) koinonia: communication, communion, partnership, b) 1 John 1:6, c) see John 15:4-7, d) 1 John 3:6-9.

 

However, later John says:  “We know that ‘whosoever’ has already been [with ongoing results] born/begotten of God ongoingly sins not, but instead The One (a) who was definitively/wholly born/begotten of God ongoingly tereo ‘watches carefully to maintain/keep’ him (the ‘whosoever’) and/thus the wicked one (Satan) ongoingly attaches/adheres (b) himself NOT to him (the ‘whosoever’)” (c).  <Notes> a) Jesus:  John 1:17; Acts 13:33; Hebrews 1:5, 5:5, b) haptomai: touches in way that so influences the thing that it changes, modifies, impacts, or alters it, c) 1 John 5:18.

 

Routine lifestyle sin simply proves that you are not remaining-connected-to/dwelling with Jesus. That’s exactly what Jesus warned of in John 15:4-5, “As the branch can absolutely-in-fact-NOT bear/carry fruit by itself, unless it ongoingly meno remains-connect-to/dwells in the vine, absolutely-in-fact neither can you, unless you ongoingly meno remain-connect-to/dwell in Me . . . for apart from Me you can absolutely-in-fact can do anything.” That’s why Paul also warns so-called Christians practicing sin to NOT be deceived – they simply won’t make it to heaven (a), even warning Christians that “bad company can ruin them, too” (b). <Notes> a) 1 Corinthians 6:9; Galatians 5:21, 6:7, b) 1 Corinthians 15:32-34.

 

Clearly the answer to breaking the cycle of sin isn’t trying harder to do the commandments of the Torah Law of conditional-favor, because this will just cause sin to explode, but only “horao observing/perceiving-knowing/discerning Jesus or experientially, relationally ginosko knowing Him” (a).  Compare this to katoptrizomai gazing with wide-open eyes as we behold the Lord, [this] transforming us’ (b).  Compare this to aphorao ‘routinely observing/perceiving-knowing/discerning eis ‘toward and reaching the goal/purpose of’ Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our trusting-relying-faith” (c) – see also Prophetic-Rhema for discussion about prophetic visions and dreams.  Even uneducated, little children can do this – see Least Among You – BT7.  We will also explore this prophetic “seeing” knowledge more in the next BLOG. <Notes> a) 1 John 3:6, b) 2 Corinthians 3:18, c) Hebrews 12:2.

 

We must embrace what Jesus said in John 15:4-5, “[I strongly urge you] meno remain-connected-to/dwell in Me . . .the branch can NOT bear/carry fruit by itself – only if it meno remains-connected-to/dwells in the vine, so neither can you, unless you meno remain-connected-to/dwell in Me. I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever meno remains-connected-to/dwell in Me and I in him, he it is that bears/carries much fruit, for apart from Me you can do absolutely nothing.”

 

Reflections:

 

As Christian musicians, “falling short of the target of God’s glory” is really the definition of sin per Romans 3:23 but so is “anything not of trusting-relying-faith.”  Every time we are not in intimate relationship with God, our trust in Him and His protective Spirit-covering is at risk.  Then sin from Satan, the demonic realm, the world, and our flesh – aroused by the commandments of the Old Testament – will quickly try to enslave us, take control, and have dominion over us.  If you don’t “wholeheartedly seek God in order to find and hold by the means/instrument of intimately knowing Him, then God will simply let go of His protective hold on you” to follow our own free-will towards all kinds of mental and physical depravity!  His infinite gentleness will not force us against our own will.  What looks like God’s judgment of sin here on earth, is really letting us go when we pull away from Him.  Without His protective hold, Satan’s hoards of angels & demons come in to “steal, destroy, and kill.”  We get what we deserve – we reap what we have sown.

 

If we want to see habitual sin brought under control by the Holy Spirit, there are absolutely NO rules, ordinances, precepts, regulations, commandments, or disciplines that can help us “curb the indulgence of the flesh, no matter how wise they seem,” Paul says!  Every religion of “works” on the planet promises this, whether it’s Jewish or Gentile!  The Old Testament “Law of sin and death” will not help us, but neither will 1500 commandments that the internet says are in the New Testament!  There is only 1 thing that works – intimate koinonia fellowship, epignosis genuine, full, experiential, relational knowledge to partake in the divine nature of holiness!  Only God working in us can make us “godly.”  Only the Holy Spirit working in us can make us “holy.”  A Holy God is in heaven; we are stuck on earth.  For His kingdom and will to come to earth IN us, we must “routinely/habitually ask, seek, and knock for the God-like good gift of the Holy Spirit.”  This takes only 1 thing from us – “obedience of trusting-relying-faith – “the only thing that counts is trusting-relying-faith working thru-the-realizing-channel-of unconditional-love.”  Faith and Love are the only 2 entole, official, universally-binding commandments in the completely-different-in-kind New Covenant and they really are just 2 compound-parts of 1 commandment from the Triune-Godhead per 1 John 3:23!

 

Our whole Christian life comes down to 1 thing – “obedience of trusting-relying-faith, for the righteous ones shall live by faith to faith – one step of faith to another,” Paul said.  We must get routinely/habitually Spirit-baptized or “filled to completion with the abundant-fullness of God by the means/instrument of the Spirit” over and over and over – drinking from the “river of living water” so we “no longer are desperately-thirst,” eating “our daily bread” of Christ so that we are “no longer desperately-hungry.”  If we don’t, we will look to the world or the flesh to satisfy our “desperate hunger and thirst” and we will “miss the target of an intimate relationship with God, that His will for us,” and the result is sin!  If we meno remain-connected-to/dwell in/by/with the Vine of Christ, we will indeed bear/carry much fruit for the glory of God, but every time we disconnect, we dry up, wither, and produce nothing!

 

Now the real question is how do I “remain-connected-to/dwell in Christ so that the anointing [of the Holy Spirit] teaches us ALL things so we have absolutely in fact no need that any man teach us,” as 1 John 2:20, 27 promises?  Again the answer is so simple that even uneducated, mentally and physically handicapped, and the poor “least among us” can easily do it!  Only 1 thing is required of us – A.S.K. – Routinely/habitually Ask until it is given, Seek until you find, Knock until the door is opened.  This is exactly why proseuchomai conversational-praying or proserchomai drawing near/beside to God is where we do this deesis supplication of asking and then we wait patiently while we watch and listen for God “to draw near/beside to us and to be a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him out!”  Yes, this takes surrender/submission to those “obedient steps of faith” but anybody can do this if they really want to – even “the least among us.”

 

Everything else we need for “genuine-life and godliness” is IN Christ and flows down from heaven to earth en pneumati – by the means/instrument of the Holy Spirit.  Then we become God’s workmanship and He gets all the credit so that nobody can boast!  And so we can “tremble with reverential awe as we then exercise-out so great a salvation.”

 

 

 

 

Spiritual Education, Knowledge of God and His Will, Sin is result of not genuinely know God, Sin redefined in New Testament as anything outside of The Faith, Faith is a relationship of dependence on Jesus, Sin comes from not partaking of God’s godliness, godliness comes only thru epignosis experiential relational knowledge of God by the Holy Spirit, Sin is the result of NOT seeking God, Free Will doesn’t force us to seek God, God’s love is gentle, Sin comes from NOT eido mentally ‘seeing’ to know God, Trying harder to obey commandments defeats us because it isn’t knowing God, knowledge of commandments explodes sin, We have to surrender to Jesus to deliver us from sin, Then we have to surrender to Jesus’ Spirit to grow in holiness, Jesus will destroy the works of the devil in us if we stay connected to Him, Routine sin proves we are disconnected from Jesus, Fruit comes from abiding in the Vine of Christ, Holiness comes from intimate fellowship with Christ’s Spirit of holiness, Prophetic seeing of Jesus is how we get to know Him not bible-study