SINLESS PERFECTION: TRUE OR FALSE?

Pastor Art Watkins of Coden Bible Church (Coden, Alabama)

May 3, 2018

Galatians 3:3 Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

Sinless perfection is the teaching that Christians gain perfection after they are saved by keeping certain laws and ordinances of men. Those who believe this do not believe that salvation makes you perfect and complete. They believe you gain sinless perfection by the works of the flesh. And many of those who believe this think and act like they are on a higher spiritual plane than others.

Some of these people believe that you get saved by grace, but are made perfect by the works of the flesh such as the laws of; touch not, taste not and handle not that Paul warned about in Colossians 2:21. Paul wrote the epistle of Colossians to show the saints in the church that perfection does not come by such laws and ordinances, because they were already complete as they would ever be, by faith alone in Christ. In Colossians 2:10 he told them: And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.

There are others who believe you are saved by works and are perfected by works. This was the doctrine of the Pharisee's. They preached salvation by faith and works according to Acts 15:1-5 and perfection by the works of the law according to Galatians 3:3. The Galatians were deceived by the doctrine of the Pharisees and Paul wrote Galatians to show the saints in the church that neither salvation nor perfection is gained by the works of the law or works of any kind.

Those who preach the perfectionism heresy do not understand three important Bible doctrines. They do not understand salvation by grace, the two natures of the believer or the difference between a Christian's standing and state.

FIRST, in true salvation by grace we are saved and are kept saved the same way. We were saved by grace through faith without works and we are kept saved by grace through faith without works. In true salvation by grace our salvation cannot be improved upon or perfected by the works of the flesh. Those who are saved by the true grace of God are perfected by grace also. In salvation by grace God does all the work leaving us nothing to do but to repent and believe the gospel. Salvation by grace eliminates any work on the part of sinners to get saved or to stay saved. By the grace of God you are as saved as you will ever be. By the grace of God you are complete and perfect in Christ as you will ever be. Under grace, salvation and perfection is the work of God not men. This is what Paul meant when he wrote: And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.

SECOND, by the New Birth the Christian's spirit is born of God's Spirit (John 3:6) and then we are given a new nature. Our new nature is called the divine nature in 2 Peter 1:4. It’s called divine because the one who beget him is Divine. Every child inherits the nature of the one who beget him. Our flesh was begotten by our physical father. Being begotten by him we inherit his nature. Because our earthly father has a corrupt sinful nature our flesh or old nature is corrupt and sinful. But our spirit is begotten of God's Spirit and because he is holy, pure and perfect, our new nature is holy, pure and perfect. We have gained perfection by being born of the Spirit, not by the works of the flesh. If you have been born again by the Spirit of God you have a perfect nature in you who is free from sin because the one who beget him is perfect and free from sin. Perfection does not come by the works of the flesh but by being born again by the Spirit of God.

The perfection we have is spiritual not physical. There is no way we can gain physical perfection. The flesh cannot be improved or made perfect. Jesus said the flesh profiteth nothing (John 6:63) and Paul said that in his flesh dwelt no good thing (Rom. 7:18). You cannot change the flesh the old nature for the better. You can educate it and make it religious but you cannot change it from what it is. It is sinful, corrupt, evil, dying and condemned and will remain that way till you die. But the inward man is perfect, holy, and pure. Christians do not gain perfection; they already have it by being born again.

By the new birth we have already gained spiritual perfection and that is the only kind of perfection any one can gain in this life. Don't waste your time trying to gain what you already have. Don't be deceived into thinking that you can improve the flesh either. The flesh, the old nature cannot be improved by laws and ordinances of touch not, taste not, handle not. Instead recognize him for what he is and reckon yourself to be dead to him. Don't allow him to control your life or deceive you into thinking you can improve him.

THIRD, every believer has a perfect standing in Christ. Our standing is how God sees us spiritually in Christ. God put us in Christ and now sees us spiritually in him. Being in Christ we become identified with Christ so that anything true of him is true of us. If he is holy so are we. If he is pure so are we. If he is perfect so are we. This is what Colossians 2:10 is all about.

Our state is how God sees us as we are in the flesh in the world. God sees us both ways. He sees us spiritually in Christ, but he also sees us as we really are in the flesh. Our standing is in Christ but our state is in the flesh. Our salvation is based upon our standing. Blessings and rewards are based upon our state. Our standing depends upon Christ's work and obedience. Our state depends upon our work and obedience. Our standing is perfect because Christ is perfect. Our state is not perfect because we are not perfect in the flesh.

The problem with most Christians is failing to see both their standing and state. Many Christians see their standing in Christ only and ignore their state in the world. They believe the only way God sees them is in Christ. That is why many don't believe God sees their sins and that is why some do not even confess their sins or believe in chastisement. If the only way that God saw you was in Christ then they would be right for when he sees us in Christ he sees no sin.

On the other side of the issue there are many who see their state only. They don't see the perfection they already have in Christ. That is why they place themselves under stringent laws and ordinances to gain perfection. They fail to see the standing a Christian has in Christ. They don't realize that God sees the believer spiritually in Christ and when he sees us spiritually in Christ all he sees is perfection.