## Sin in the Life of a Believer

## Psalm 51:1-15

A saved person can never be lost! The Lord keeps those that He saves. That is His promise and we have His Word on it. We never have to wonder, because He has made it clear enough for a child to understand.

(John 10:27-28) "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: {28} And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand."

(Phil 1:6) "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:"

Praise the Lord ? once we are truly born again, we're kept by the power of God. Because we believe that, some people think that we have God behind the eight?ball. We can sin all we want and it doesn't make any difference. But the grace of God is not a license for us to live any way we please. Just because a Christian cannot lose his salvation by sinning; doesn't mean a Christian has nothing to lose.

If a Christian sins, he always suffers. A child of God may sin, but no child of God can sin and not suffer for it. Consider with me this morning what sin does in the life of a believer.

I. It Affects Him Spiritually. v1?2

A. Wash me and cleanse me

1. Why do we need to be washed?

2. Why do we need to be cleansed?

3. Because sin will soil our soul!

4. It will effect the child of God spiritually and will make him feel dirty and unclean.

B. There is a difference between hogs and sheep!

1. A sheep may fall into a mud puddle but it will get out ASAP.

2. Hogs fall into the mud and love it!

C. There is a difference between a child of God and a child of the devil

1. A child of God may lapse into sin and then loathes it

2. A child of the devil leaps into sin and loves it.

II. It Affects Us Mentally v3

A. A child of God cannot sin and forget it

B. Our minds will be saturated by the sin and we will not be able to put it aside.

C. When were unsaved we could, and did, sin and never give it another thought.

D. But that is not the case for a child of God "My sin is ever before me"

1. Sin is often the cause for a believer having mental problems.

2. It is why some Christians are nervous and have no peace.

3. When God saved us he didn't fix it so we could never sin but…

4. He did fix it so we could never sin and enjoy it!

5. A child of God who has un-confessed sin in their life is the most miserable person on earth.

III. It Affects Our Conscience v4

A. David is conscience stricken

1. He realizes that his sin was not just against

a. himself

b. his kingdom

c. his wife

d. Bathsheba

e. Uriah

2. He realized that his sin was against God

B. David's sin has created a barrier between he and God.

1. Difference between a slave and a son

a. A slave fears the master's whip

b. A son fears the father's displeasure

2. David isn't just focusing on the chastisement…

3. David realizes that he has hurt God

a. When we sin we not only break God's law

b. But we also break God's heart

C. David realized that-his sin was "in thy sight."

1. Oh, to come to terms with the fact that God sees all!

2. David has committed adultery with Bathsheba.

3. He now understands that this took place in God's full view

4. We only fool ourselves if we think our sins are hidden and unknown to God

IV. Sin Affects Our Hearts v8, 12

A. David was an unhappy man

1. He couldn't lose his salvation but…

2. He could and did lose the joy of his salvation

3. Christians today who have no joy in their lives have hearts that have been saddened by sin.

4. Sin and lack of joy are inseparable just as purity and joy are inseparable

B. Joy is the flag that is flown from the castle of the heart when the king is in residence.

C. Story is told of a Christian who was placed in prison and the king wanted to punish him, so he called for advice.

1. Confiscate his goods, no he has few material possessions and continually speaks of his riches in Christ and we cannot get hold of them.

2. Solitary confinement - no he claims he has a friend that sticketh closer than a brother who will go with him even in the dungeons.

3. Behead him! - no, he says for him to live is Christ and to die is gain - he says he would go straight to heaven

4. How can we make him suffer? - get him to sin then he will suffer greatly!

D. Take the joy test - sin will take the joy out of our life

V. Sin Affects Us Physically v8

A. God's hand was so heavily upon David that he felt crushed

1. A man cannot take much of that type of pressure without it affecting your body

2. Many people suffer physically because of sin.

3. Psychosomatic illness - means that the mind can make the body sick

(1 Cor 11:30) "For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep."

4. The cause was SIN!

B. Sin will cause us to suffer

1. Proverbs 17:22, "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine..."

2. "...but a broken spirit drieth the bones"

3. I do not say that all suffering is a result of sin, but sin will result in our suffering

VI. Sin Affects Our Spirit v10

A. When a person is not right with God he will have a wrong spirit.

1. Critical spirit

2. Harsh and fault finding

3. No dish on the table looks good if you have a sour stomach

4. A person who is not right with God will be one of the most critical individuals around

B. Illustrated by David 2 Sam 12:1-6

1. David was quick to criticize sin in the lives of others

2. He was quick to judge

3. The problem was in his own heart

VII. Sin Affects Our Witness v14-15

A. David lost his song

B. David lost his testimony

C. Sin will dry up praise

D. That is why many will not witness and testify for God

Do we find ourselves here this morning? Sin affects the life of a believer in all these ways and more. Is there any hope? Confession and repentance brings cleansing and forgiveness.

(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."

Perhaps you are here this morning, and you are not a Christian, you have never placed your faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on Calvary. You can trust Him today! Right now, you can come to Christ by faith.

(Acts 16:31) "…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…"