What does it mean to be a Christian?  You might say one has to obey the gospel by believing in Jesus, repenting of sins, and being baptized into Christ (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; Galatians 3:27; 1 Peter 3:21), and you would be right, but there is more to being a Christian than that.

A true Christian is one who is following the steps of Christ.  Christians do their very best to imitate the behavior that Jesus demonstrated when He was here on earth.  With this in mind, I want us to focus this week on being true Christians who are imitating Christ in our daily living. I will begin by looking at the personal purity of our Savior.

We know that Jesus lived a perfect life.  The Bible is clear about the sinlessness of Christ.  Paul said that Jesus knew no sin (2 Corinthians 5:21), while Peter said that He committed no sin ( 1 Peter 2:22).  The Hebrews writer said that Christ was tempted as we are, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15).  The purity of Christ has never been called into question by those who believe in the Word of God.  The question is, “what about us?”

None of us are perfect like our Savior.  We all fall short from time to time (Romans 3:23).  Still, it can be our goal to live like Jesus, doing our best every day to refrain from sin.

1 John 2:1 (ESV)
¹  My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.

Thankfully, when we do sin, there is hope for us, thanks to our advocate, Jesus Christ.  Nevertheless, we do not want to try to take advantage of this blessing by carelessly sinning.  That would show that we are not like Jesus at all.  We should listen to John and strive to walk in the light every day, maintaining our fellowship with God (1 John 1:7).

Sin is the greatest threat to the salvation of our souls.  It is the only thing that can separate us from God (Isaiah 59:1-2).  It was not an accident that Jesus never sinned; it was His fixed purpose not to do so, and we must make it our fixed purpose as well.  How can we avoid sin in our lives?

One thing we can do is make a habit of reading God’s Word.  Fill your heart with the Word of God, and you will be able to resist the assaults of the devil.  The Psalmist took this approach.  “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11). 

Another thing you can do is control your environment.  Be careful not to put yourselves in positions where sin is the dominating force.  It surprises me to see members of the Lord’s church who want to frequent places where they are surrounded by open, unabashed sin.  If you are trying your best to be like Jesus and live a life of purity, do not make friends of the world (James 4:4).  Avoid going to places and associating with people that make sinning easier.  The Psalmist once again gave us sound advice along these lines.

 Psalm 1:1-2 (ESV)
¹  Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; ²  but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.