Useful Bible Studies > Hebrews Commentary > chapter 10

Why are Christians not perfect?

Hebrews 10:14

Christ has defeated his enemies: sin (evil deeds), the devil and death. He did it by his own death, on the cross.

His complete success is already clear in heaven, where he sits at the right side of God the Father. And in the future, it will be clear on earth too, when Christ returns to rule.

But we must not imagine that Christ’s work is only for heaven, or only for the future. His success is also clear in the lives of his people, now on earth. They are the people who have confessed their sin to him. They have invited him into their lives, and they trust him. Their lives are clear and powerful evidence of the work that Christ did on the cross.

Christ often spoke about ‘God’s kingdom,’ that is, his rule. Sometimes that phrase means ‘heaven, where God always rules’. Sometimes it means ‘God’s future rule on this earth’. But often the meaning is ‘the lives of people who allow God to rule their lives’. All three are part of God’s kingdom.

And so we can see evidence in the lives of those people. That evidence shows us that Christ’s death on the cross really was successful.

That evidence is the way that God is sanctifying his people. That means that he is making his people holy. He is separating them so that they belong to him. He is helping them to overcome sin in their own lives. He leads and guides them by his Holy Spirit. He helps them to love him with their whole hearts. He teaches them to show love for other people. They live differently because God is in their lives (Galatians 5:19-23).

They are not yet perfect. But Christ has already done the work to make them perfect. And they are learning and developing, as Christians should (Hebrews 6:1).

Next part: The Bible’s evidence that Christ has defeated the devil, sin and death (Hebrews 10:15-16)

 

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© 2014, Keith Simons.