3 Reasons Christianity is Not a Free Pass to Sin

Let's say an unbeliever reads a book/article/blog post or hears a sermon/speech and feels convicted. So they start talking to people, reading more about it, looking for answers...and they come to the conclusion that Christianity is the truth. So they pray, committing their lives to God from this day forward and become a believer.

This person's life has just changed immensely. But at first glance, it might not seem that way...you pray and then you just keep living, right?

Not quite.

Christianity is Not a Free Pass to Sin
Some people might look at Christianity and think that Christians can do whatever they want because God will always forgive them. Not really. The lifestyle of an unbeliever is not going to cut it; here's why.

1. Believers are called to live as children of the light and witnesses to the world. This means that we should stand out from those in darkness, because our hearts have been changed. If unbelievers see Christians acting in a way no different from themselves, it won't reflect well on the faith.
2. The believer's heart is changed to want to please God. If you are a Christian, you now have a desire to live in a way that makes God proud, and you feel sorry when you mess up and anxious to make things right.
3. If you confess your sin and ask God to help you stop sinning, and then turn around and do the same thing again because "God will forgive you", that doesn't really reflect a repentant attitude in the first place. If you are truly repentant, you will want to stop sinning in that way.

Father and Children
Think of it as the relationship between a person and a family member they look up to. That person will ultimately never stop loving them, no matter what. But when they do something that makes that person upset, for a little while they may not speak to each other. Since they look up to this person, they are anxious to do whatever they can to make things right.

The relationship with God is kind of like that. He never stops loving us, but when we sin he it displeases Him. We lose His favor. Because we want to please God, we feel sorry and want to confess and repent to restore favor and communion with Him.


What do you think? Have you believed the lie that Christians can live however they want to? Which of the reasons above seems most important to you? How can you strive to better live as a "child of the light"?