1 John 1:8, says, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." It is important to understand that God, through the Apostle John, wrote this to saved born again Christians. The next verse gives us how we are to deal with sin that we commit.

Verse 9, says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Thus, when a Christian sins, God tells him to immediately confess the sin to God and ask for forgiveness. God says he has already forgiven all our sins when He saves us, but by confessing our sins, when we commit them, God helps us to put sin our of our lives and overcome them. The process of confessing our sins to God shows we acknowledge our wrong doing and God works in our lives to keep us from committing the sin again.

This does not mean that God condones sin in a believer's life.

Romans 6:2-6 explains this: "God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin."

Surely, God is telling the believer that he should live for Christ and not allow sin in his life.

1 John 1:6 says, "If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not the truth." In other words, when a believer sins his relationship or fellowship with God is weaken or broken. It is like a son or daughter who disobeys their parents. If a child sins against his parents it does not change the fact that he/she is still a child of their parents. You are the son of your parents and that cannot be changed. In the same way when a person believes and received Jesus Christ as their Savior they become a child of God. They are born into the family of God forever. When God saves a person he gives them "eternal" or "everlasting" life ( John 3:16, 36). Thus the saved person remains eternally a child of God and will go to heaven when they die.

However, as stated above we can and will sin. 1 Cor. 10:13 tells us, "There hath no temptation taken you, but such as is common to man:, but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."

God is saying when a Christian is tempted to sin, that at the same time God helps him and provides a way that the believer need not to sin. However, there are times of weakness that we willingly go head and sin anyway.

In James 1:14, God again is talking to Christians and says, "But every man is tempted, when is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin when it is finished, bringeth forth death." Clearly, God is saying that a Christian can sin if he yields to his lust. But God, the Holy Spirit is there in the believer's life giving him the means to overcome temptation so he does not have to sin.

Every Christian when be is saved gets a new nature (2 Cor. 5:17). Getting this new nature is what Jesus was talking about in John 3:3. This new nature is the nature of God, and comes when the Holy Spirit of God indwells us at the time of our salvation. This new nature, which is the nature of God, makes us not want to sin. It draws us to God and makes us want to live godly righteous lives. It also gives us the ability to resist sin and live for God.

Thus, a believer has two natures. They have the old carnal nature they were born with (Romans 6:6) that all men have and when they were saved they received the new nature that only born again Christians have.

Note how Paul talks about this conflict that a believer has in his life between the new nature of God and the old sinful nature.

"For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin." (Romans 7:18-25)

Do you see the problem? Christians have two natures and they are at war with each other. The one we yield to is the one that controls us. But the answer is to give in to God's nature by obedience to God. As we obey God and fight sin we overcome it and sin less and less.

I have gone to some detail about this because so many have misunderstood the Bible and thus are teaching people false things. 1 John 1:8,10 clearly says this: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. . .If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."

The true believer hates sin and realized how destructive it is in his life and in the world. Further he understands that Jesus Christ had to suffer for every sin that you and I commit. Thus the one who has truly accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior will fight sin daily and if he fails confess it to the Lord, asking for forgiveness and strength to overcome all sin in their life.