There are no sinful believers, but only unbelieving transgressors.

[ATG]

The reason there is confusion about being a righteous or sinful believer, is because that's only a debate among men, but not with God.

With Scripture of God there is only His righteous believers in Jesus Christ, and the unrighteous unbelievers in Jesus Christ.

With the death, burial, and resurrection fo Jesus Christ, God no longer acknowledges transgressors as His people.

In the OT, the natural covenant people of Israel also included both the righteous and the transgressors, seeing that partaking of the covenant was by natural birth and circumcsion.

But in the NT, only with the wholly newbirt of the Spirit, are the holy saints of God amde partakers of His divine nature, and Jesus' holy nation and people.

2Pe 1:3
According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue. Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

The OT national Israel had both righteous saints keeping His commandment, and unrighteous transgressors. In the NT nation of Jesus Christ, He only now has His holy believers that keep His commandments,

Rev 14:12
Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
2Ti 2:19
Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

A simple reading of the Old Covenant shows the LORD speaking of His people as sometimes being disobedient and sinners like the unbelieving heathen. But in the New Testament, Scripture never speaks of His justified people being transgressors and sinners like the unbelievers of the world.

1Jo 2:1
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

We righteous believers can sin and transgress by forsaking the faith of Jesus and falling from His grace, but not as a faithful member of His body in the light and holiness of God. If we do transgress, then we are become as the unbelievers of the world, for whom Christ also died and advocates to repent and be forgiven.

Only the sanctified righteous bleievers in Jesus Christ can walk with Him as He walked in righteousness and true holiness. And no man can walk with Jesus by grace, while also sinning and transgressing against Him.

And so, there are only righteous believers in Jesus Christ doing His righteousness, and only sinful believers in Jesus Christ doing unrighteousness against Him.

No believer in Jesus Christ is a sinner and transgressor, and no sinner and transgressor is a believer in Jesus Christ.

Mar 3:33
And he answered them, saying, Who is my mother, or my brethren? And he looked round about on them which sat about him, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall be doing the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother.

Mat 7:22
Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

 

[ATG]

1Co 10:1
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.


But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.

Here we see that all the children of Israel passed through the sea and drank of Christ by faith, but not all lived by their faith and perished in the wilderness.

Heb 3:17
But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

Why did they fall? By unbelief. And yet they were believers, when departing from Egypt by the hand of God. How then were they judged unbelievers? By disobedience and transgression against their spiritual Rock Christ.

Them that had obeyed by faith through the sea and the cloud, fell by disobedience in unbelief.

Faith is made unbelief by disobedience, and the believers are made unbelievers, the same as they that lusted and fell by transgression in the wilderness and perished.

 

[ATG]

Heb 10:26
For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
And so, we see that if we sin with the world, there remains no more sacrifice for us, the same as the unbelievers.

Only believers have the sacrifice and Passover Lamb of God, not the unbelievers.

Therefore, if we believers also sin against the Lamb of God, like the unbelievers, then we no more remain believers with the Lamb of God, but only unbelievers with the world.

Faith in Jesus Christ is made unbelief by transgression. Even as the believers in the wilderness, who lusted and fell in unbelief by disobedience, so also we shall fall by disobedience of unbelief.

Heb{5:8}
Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;

Only the obedient believers have eternal salvation of the Son Jesus Christ the righteous.

The disobedient have no salvation by grace through faith, for their disobedience is unbelief in His eternal salvation from sin and transgression against God.

 

[ATG]

Are there no sinful Christians also, but only righteous Christians?

No, because even as the natural children of Israel were sometimes obedient and disobedient, so also Christians can be both obedient and disobedience.

The former were called the children of Israel by natural birth alone, and the latter are called Christians by naming Christ alone.

But only the obedient are called and chosen to be made partakers of the divine nature, and members of Jesus' holy body, temple, and nation on earth.

And so, in the Christian religion of sinners and saints, they are all members of congregations in the name of Christ. But in the pure religion of Jesus Christ, there are only the righteous members of Jesus Christ:

Jas 1:27
Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
As in the Jews religion, there were both keepers of the commandments, and transgressors, so also today in the Christians religion. But not in the eternal kingdom of God and His Christ:

2 pet 1:4
And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

 

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