How Do We Avoid Sin Like Christ?

(By Raymond Isbell)

Question: How did Jesus endure the Cross and be firm with men in His ministry without sinning? How do I show love while remaining firm as I deal with difficult people (or difficult situations) without sinning?

Answer: Your question has two parts. Let’s look first at how Jesus deals with challenges without sinning. The short answer lies in His character. Jesus Christ is fully God, and therefore, He is perfectly righteous and cannot sin, regardless of the situation. Even when he is judging the unrighteous, He does so righteously. Psalm 9:8 – “And he shall judge the world in righteousness, He shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness.”

Regarding enduring the Cross, Scripture discloses that He had joy knowing that He was making salvation available to many. Heb. 12:2 reads, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” He was also providing the ultimate demonstration of the Grace of God. Eph. 2:7 reads, “That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.” God wants to demonstrate grace and show its richness to all of the Universe, both to men and angels. I think that His focus on these two accomplishments enabled Him to endure the Cross without ill will toward those who were inflicting His pain and humiliation. Indeed, He even asked the Father to forgive them.

As for being firm with men, it is true that God spoke harshly to unbelievers such as the Pharisees and others who rejected Him. For them, He was providing a righteous rebuke that is appropriate for their level of hardness of heart. But Jesus was perfectly righteous in doing so (Ps. 9:8). When it comes to dealing with believers, including His disciples, what we see is perfect parenting. Administering discipline to a child by a parent may seem harsh to an outsider, but when God disciplines, He has all the facts, and combined with His foreknowledge, He can mete out the exact amount and type of discipline that will be effective in bringing His erring child back into fellowship with Him. He does this without sinning because His motive is love, and His method is righteous.

The second part of your question asks how you, as a believer, can deal firmly with opposition without sinning. The answer, of course, is “very carefully!” We have a sin nature that is prone to quick and less than thoughtful (even sinful) responses when dealing with difficult people. If we had the character and integrity of Jesus Christ, we would be able keep from sinning just as He is able. Fortunately, God provides a means for you to grow spiritually where you are, “transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom. 12:2). This growth will enable you to see the world as Jesus Christ sees it. Phil. 2:5 tells us, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” It speaks of Jesus’ attitude toward the world and encourages us to adopt the same. As we learn scripture, we grow and begin to think as He thinks. When we think as Jesus Christ thinks, we adopt His values as our own. Being so equipped, we will do well and honor Him as we deal with others.

In summary, God is perfectly righteous, and cannot sin because of His character and integrity. Through spiritual growth, we learn to allow His thinking and values to become our own, and when that happens we will likely do well as we are challenged with difficult people.