Bible Question:

Is it possible for a man or woman to go 24 hours without committing a sin? I say no, for we are sinful by nature. My sister says, yes, because with God all things are possible. Please give us scripture to read that would point us to the right answer.

Bible Answer:

Scripture does not give us the answer to your question. However, it is doubtful that one can go 24 hours without sinning since we are all sinners (Rom 5:19). Yes, God tells us that when we believe in Jesus Christ and trust Him to forgive our sins, we are no longer slaves to sin and have become free (Rom. 7:6-7) for the first time in our lives to do righteousness. But we still struggle with sin. Even the apostle admits in Romans 7 that he still struggled with sin. The apostle Paul said that there is nothing good in the flesh of even a Christian. The flesh wants to sin and does.

For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. Rom 7:18-19 (NAS95S)

We do not practice the holiness that we desire. Instead we commit the sins that we do not want to do even though we are freed from sin.

. . . knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin. Rom 6:6-7 (NAS95S)

God has revealed some of the things that He considers sins. But He has not revealed everything. So He has given us the Holy Spirit who convicts us of sin and encourages us to do the correct things (John 16:8-10). He gives us a sense that we did wrong and we should respond accordingly. In James 4:17 we are told to be sensitive and flee sin,

Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin. James 4:17 (NAS95S)

Yet, Christians still sin because sin deceives us (Rom. 7:11). Sin is deceitful (Heb 3:13). When a Christian sins, he or she needs to confess his or her sin to God (1 John 1:9). Only then can we restore our relationship with Him.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 (NAS95S)

Conclusion:

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, all of our past, current, and future sins are forgiven. But we still sin. How often do we sin? We sin so much that we do not know when we sin. We commit sins that we do not know about; but the Holy Spirit does, and He will convict us. Then we need to confess them in order to restore our relationship with God. 1 John 1:9 says that God forgives even those sins we do not know about.

Related Links:

The Rescue!
Are a Christian’s future sins already forgiven?
Christians cannot sin or can they?
Should we continually mourn over sin?
Power Living
Healing Starts Here
Blessed are the mourners
Searching For God