Lesson 24 — How to Get Rid of Sin and Sickness

1. 1 HOW TO GET RID OF SIN AND SICKNESS

HOW TO GET RID OF SIN AND SICKNESS

In our last lesson we have fully set forth the Bible doctrine of sin. In this lesson we will deal with man’s redemption from sin and sickness. The following points show clearly how to get rid of both sin and sickness.

The first thing to do if one wants to rid himself of all sin and sickness is to recognize that he is a sinner and guilty of eternal punishment. He is sick because of sin, not necessarily because of personal sin, but always and in every case because of the fall of man and because he lives in a fallen and corrupt world. However, he should recognize that Christ died to save him from sins and sicknesses and deliver him from all the works of the devil. Then he should go to God for sure deliverance by faith in the atonement and in the name of Jesus, as he would go to his earthly father to get what had been provided and promised to him.

If man does not believe he is a fallen creature he naturally would not believe in redemption from the Fall. So first of all a true understanding of the Fall and of redemption is necessary before any deliverance can be received. In Lesson Nine, Points IV, VII, and VIII we have made clear the doctrine of the fall of man. In Lesson Twenty-three we have defined sin and have shown the awful guilt that every man is under.

If you are not convinced by now that you are a sinner and need to be saved there is something vitally wrong with you. The thing to do is to lay aside all this rebellion and unbelief in God and His Word and acknowledge your guilt and be sorry for sin 2 Corinthians 7:9-11. You must do this before you can be saved. In order to see God you must be saved from sin Matthew 1:21Hebrews 12:14. You must be born-again and become a new creature in order to be saved John 3:1-82 Corinthians 5:17. You must be quickened from death in trespasses and sins to a new life Ephesians 2:1-10Colossians 2:13. You must cooperate with God to be cleansed from all sin Isaiah 1:16-18John 1:12Ephesians 4:20-25Ephesians 5:13-14Colossians 3:9-17. You must confess all sin and repent of being a sinner and turn from Satan to God and from darkness to light and from sin to a life of holiness in order to be born-again 1 John 1:9Luke 13:1-5Acts 26:18. You must have faith in Christ and in the atonement Romans 3:24-25. You must identify yourself with Christ in His death, burial, resurrection, and manifestation of a new life Romans 6:1-13. These are “musts” that have to be done by everyone who wants to be saved. There are many other things one must do after he has been saved, but before he is saved he should not be concerned with these duties.

II. Two Necessary Things to Do to Be Saved or Born-Again

There are two things necessary for one to be saved from all sin, and only two. It is taken for granted, however, that one recognizes that he is a sinner and that Christ died to save him from his sins. This being understood, there are only two things that must be done and they are:

1. 1 CONFESSION OF SIN OR TRUE REPENTANCE

   There are some ultragrace people who claim that they have discovered a super-grace that will free man of all responsibility of doing anything to be saved, except perhaps one act of faith. They claim when one believes one time, that is all that is ever necessary. The responsibility for eternal salvation passes from the sinner to God and if he is ever lost God will be to blame. They claim that not even confession of sins is necessary to be saved; that man is incapable of repenting; that no man can repent of all of his sins; that if one had to confess all his sins he would never be saved; that prayer is not necessary to be saved; that it is an error to require repentance in this age; that no Scripture requires confession of sin as a condition of salvation since the cross; that salvation is not conditioned upon asking, seeking, or praying to God; that this was all right for Israel before the cross but that it is not now required; that Israel only was commanded to seek the Lord, pray, and repent; and that all Gentiles must do to be saved is to believe and accept Christ.

The Bible does not teach any of these claims. It teaches that men not only can repent but that they must repent to be saved; that men must confess their sins before they can be forgiven; that one must continue to have faith after he is saved; that one must walk in the light of God’s Word to continue to be cleansed from all sin; and that there are many things one must continue to do if he wants to please God and live as God demands of all men.

The word “repent” is used more times in the New Testament than in the Old Testament. There is no authority for teaching that salvation before the cross was any different from what it is now as far as seeking God, repenting, praying, and confessing sins are concerned. There is no authority for saying that there is any difference in how Jews and Gentiles are saved. The Scriptures always have and always will demand that all men must be saved by repentance and faith in God. The Bible does not teach that men are not to repent since the cross and that this was only the duty of the Jews before the cross. Such is a clear manifestation of ignorance, and willful ignorance at that, for no man can teach these things if he desires to teach what the Bible says on these points. There is no excuse for not knowing what the Bible says, for it is clear, as can be seen by anyone who will investigate the truth.

True repentance includes “the sense of personal guilt” Psalms 51:1-71 Timothy 1:13; “godly sorrow for sin” 2 Corinthians 7:9-11; “an apprehension of God’s mercy through Christ” Isaiah 53:4-6Luke 1:76-78; and “a turning away from sin to be free from further guilt” Acts 26:18Jeremiah 7:3Jeremiah 18:11Ezekiel 18:30Ezekiel 33:10-20. It is definitely stated that if men do not repent they will perish, so repentance is necessary Matthew 11:20-22Luke 13:1-5Romans 2:5.

In the New Testament, repentance is mentioned thirty-seven times in passages since the cross and only twenty-five times before the cross. The word “repent” with its various endings is used sixty-four times in the New Testament and only forty-six times in the Old Testament, so it is a New Testament teaching as well as an Old Testament one. In no one passage do we find that men are not to repent, pray, confess, or seek God since the cross. The idea is purely a lie of the devil and a doctrine promulgated by ultra-graceists in order to furnish some foundation for their false theories.

In Mt. 28:19-20 the apostles were commanded to make disciples of all nations and to teach men in all of this age that they were to observe all things Christ had commanded them. This proves that all passages on repentance, praying, confessing sins, and meeting other requirements of salvation that were commanded before the cross by Christ were to be taught to all nations since the cross and throughout this age.

BEFORE THE CROSS Christ and others commanded all men to “repent and believe the gospel” Mark 1:15Mark 6:12; to “bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance” Matthew 3:8Luke 3:8; and “except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish” Luke 13:3-5. Christ repeatedly said that He came to call “sinners to repentance” Matthew 9:13Mark 2:17Luke 5:32; and that there was more rejoicing in Heaven over one sinner that repented than ninety-nine just persons that needed no repentance Luke 15:1-7.

SINCE THE CROSS Christ again commanded the disciples “that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” Luke 24:46-48. At Pentecost, Peter commanded Jews and Gentile proselytes to “Repent, and be baptized every one of you [not just the Jews] in the name of Jesus Christ for [because of] the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For [because] the promise is unto you [Jews and Gentiles of that generation], and to your children [Jews and Gentiles of the new generation], and to all that are afar off [Jews and Gentiles of all generations], even as many as the Lord our God shall call” Acts 2:38-39. In other sermons since the cross Peter demanded men to repent Acts 3:19Acts 5:31Acts 8:22. The whole group of the apostles recognized that God demanded of Gentiles to repent in order to get saved Acts 11:18. Peter many years later wrote in his epistles that both Jews and Gentiles had to repent to be saved 2 Peter 3:9.

Paul taught that both Jews and Gentiles had to repent to be saved Acts 17:30-31Acts 20:21Acts 26:20Romans 2:42 Corinthians 7:8-102 Timothy 2:25Hebrews 6:1, 6. Jesus commanded men to repent as late as 96 a.d. when the last book of the Bible was written Revelation 2:5, 16Revelation 3:3, 19Revelation 9:20-21Revelation 16:9-11.

Men of both Testaments were also commanded to confess their sins to be saved Leviticus 5:5Leviticus 16:21Leviticus 26:40Proverbs 28:13Romans 10:9-10Romans 14:111 John 1:9. Men in both Testaments were saved by confessing sins Psalms 32:5Nehemiah 9:2-3Matthew 2:6Mark 1:5Acts 19:18.

The use of prayer in getting forgiveness is commanded Luke 11:4Acts 8:22. Prayer brought salvation to men in both Testaments Luke 18:10-14Acts 9:11Acts 22:16. Men are promised salvation through prayer and by calling upon the name of the Lord Acts 2:21Romans 10:9-14. Men are also to seek God in order to find Him Luke 12:31Luke 13:24Acts 15:17Acts 17:27Romans 2:7Romans 3:11Hebrews 11:6Matthew 6:33Matthew 7:7-11Galatians 2:17Colossians 3:1.

No one should try to get right with God who refuses to repent, confess, pray, seek, turn from sin, forsake all, and believe the gospel. When one truly turns to God he does all these things and more. Imagine one trying to do all these things by just one act of faith and nothing else. To teach that men do not have to do these things in this age, or that Jews must do these things and Gentiles are not required to do them, is to demonstrate ignorance of the Bible. God has the same standards for one man that He has for another. All men must meet the same conditions to be saved and to stay saved, “For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” Romans 10:9-13. Before the law Abraham was saved by faith and grace. During the law David and others were saved the same way Romans 4:1-8. Since the law men are saved in the same way, by faith and grace Ephesians 2:1-10.

Confession of sins and true repentance includes prayer, turning away from sin, forsaking sin, turning to God with godly sorrow, seeking God, asking God, believing God, and having faith in the atonement of Christ. All this is necessary to be saved from sin.

1. 1 THE SECOND THING TO DO TO BE SAVED AFTER ONE KNOWS HE IS A SINNER AND HAS CONFESSED HIS SINS TO GOD IS TO BELIEVE THAT GOD HAS FORGIVEN HIM

   “Without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” Hebrews 11:6; “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” Ephesians 2:8-9; “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” John 3:16.

God has promised to forgive if men confess. Regardless of feelings one must believe that he is forgiven 1 John 1:9. It must be faith in the right thing—the blood of Jesus Romans 3:24-25. Faith in water baptism, church membership, or certain religious rituals will never save the soul. It must be faith in the sacrifice of Christ and in Jesus as a personal Saviour. Nothing else will bring peace to the soul or give any man the least degree of assurance of eternal life. It must be faith from the heart and not simply mental faith or assent to a fact. It must be a faith of surrender to the whole will of God. Paul said, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” Romans 10:9-13. This one passage states both of the necessary things that one must do to be saved—confess sins or repent, and believe the gospel.

When one believes from the heart, he gives up all for Christ and wholeheartedly serves God and righteousness. He renounces sin and all things that would hinder his new life of faith. Jesus said, “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also he cannot be my disciple . . . So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple” Luke 14:26, 33. The word “hate” is a Greek idiom of preference. The idea is that unless you prefer Christ to all else in life you cannot be saved. This is the same as the first commandment of loving the Lord God with all the heart, all the soul, all the mind, and all the strength Matthew 22:37.

III. How to Get Healed

The same two things that are necessary to save the soul are necessary to heal the body of sicknesses. One must recognize the sickness, the source of it, and then pray and ask God to heal and then believe that it is done. Faith is just as much necessary to heal the body as to save the soul. The law of faith is, “According to your faith be it unto you” Matthew 9:29. If you believe that you are healed, you are healed. If you doubt or wonder whether you are healed or not, it will not be done. One cannot be healed without unwavering faith that he is healed. James said, “And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him” James 5:14-16.

In other words, healing comes on the same basis as forgiveness of sins, the atonement Matthew 8:171 Peter 2:24. Jesus had power on Earth to do both and He did heal when prayer and faith were manifest on the part of man Matthew 9:1-7. Since Christ has been given “All power in heaven and in earth” he certainly has as much power now as when He was on Earth. If He has such power today He will freely use it as much as ever before to deliver men from the works of the devil. Paul said, “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever” Hebrews 13:8.

The only thing that stands between the healing of any man by God is his own personal failure to get together with God through Christ. If this is all that stands in the way of healing and health, it would seem that any person in need would put forth the greatest effort possible to be healed. God promises it. Jesus died for it. The Holy Spirit is here to enable man to get it. Faith in the atonement will bring it. This is the truth in a few words.

Anyone who wants healing should first go to the Bible to see if these things are true. If they are and he finds them plainly written in Scripture, then he should deal with himself and bring himself to the terms plainly stated in the promises, and there will be no question about the results. Man can by this method get rid of both sin and sickness and stay rid of them. The means that are used to get rid of these enemies will also keep one rid of them. Prayer and faith and complete surrender of the life to God daily will bring the desired results to every child of God. Every person should thank God daily for forgiveness and healing and God will honor this daily faith and keep him saved and healed.

IV. Identification With Christ

The chief secret of all redemptive benefits is man’s identification with Christ in His work for fallen man. By identification with Christ we mean our union with Him in all phases of His redemptive work. Everyone who believes in Christ must become identified with Him in every phase of His life, death, burial, resurrection, and manifestation. Believers are spoken of as being identified with Christ in:

1. His sufferings Romans 8:171 Peter 4:1-2John 15:20John 16:2-3Matthew 10:25.

2. His work Mark 16:20John 14:12-15Hebrews 2:3-4Acts 1:1-2Matthew 28:19-20.

3. His crucifixion Romans 6:6Romans 8:12-13Galatians 2:20Colossians 3:5-17.

4. His death Romans 6:3-11Romans 8:171 Peter 4:1-2Colossians 3:3.

5. His burial Romans 6:4Colossians 2:12.

6. His resurrection Romans 6:5Colossians 2:12Colossians 3:1Ephesians 2:5-6.

7. His exaltation and glory Romans 8:17Colossians 3:4Ephesians 2:5-6.

8. His security Colossians 3:1-41 Thessalonians 4:16-17.

Christ identified Himself with man and became sin for him that he might become the righteousness of God in Christ 2 Corinthians 5:21. He became man’s substitute and died in his place. He died to make him live, to make him well and healthy; to make him strong and victorious over all his enemies; to make him happy and prosperous; and to take him to Heaven to live forever with Himself and God.

Union with Christ means that we are crucified to the world and the world to us Galatians 2:20Galatians 6:14; that there is nothing in us that the world desires or that we desire of the world; that we are free from sin and Satan and from sickness and failure; and that we are sons of God with power capable of representing God and exercising the full power of attorney according to the gospel.

Not only did Christ become sin for us but He became sick for us that we might be made well. The literal rendering of the Hebrew in Isa. 53:3-5 reads, “He was despised, and forsaken of men; a man of pains [or anguish], and acquainted with sickness: and as one from whom men hide their face he was despised [or scorned]; and we esteemed [or regarded] him not. Surely he hath borne our sicknesses, and carried our pains; yet we did esteem him violently beaten, slain of God, and degraded. But he was slain for our crimes, he was beat to pieces [or maimed] for our guilt; the corrections of our peace was upon him; and with his wounds [or bruises] we are healed.” In Isa. 53:10 the Hebrew text reads, “Yet it pleased Jehovah to beat him to pieces; he hath made him sick: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin.”

These are hard statements to comprehend; that is, it is hard to understand how a human being could have suffered this much but it is true. Isaiah further speaks of Christ in such sufferings as being so marred that He was hardly recognizable as a man Isaiah 52:14. The literal translation of this verse is, “Just as many were dumbfounded at Him, for deformed was His appearance so as not to be human, or His figure no more resembled man.”

We have no true conception of how He suffered in taking in His own body the beatings and insults of the mob and the sins and sicknesses of the whole world. Who can be so hard-hearted and ungrateful to Him for His sufferings for him that he can go on in sin and rebellion against Him? It shocks us to know that all these sufferings were heaped upon Him and that it pleased God to cause Him such agonies so that all creation could be redeemed. He was so sinful and sick during this period and was so forsaken by God who detested the sins and sicknesses of the whole world concentrated in His body until He cried, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

If every seeking sinner could see that he died with Christ on the cross and that his sins and sicknesses were borne away at that time it would be easy for him to accept both forgiveness and healing from God. Such teaching is not even a known doctrine to the average church member much less a reality to his soul; therefore is it any wonder that so few attain to the full benefits for which Christ died? Christ not only bore sins and sicknesses and pains, but they were laid upon Him so that He could do away with them. The whole person of Christ was involved in this sacrifice. The body, soul, and spirit of Christ took part and suffered this agony. Every man was nailed to the cross with Christ and every sin and sickness and pain that any man ever had or ever will have was put upon Him.

When we as believers recognize this fact and believe and identify ourselves with Christ we will get the benefits that were made possible by this sacrifice. If He bore our sins no longer are we required to have them or be bound by them; if He bore our sicknesses no longer must we suffer them. Satan has no legal right to put any sin or sickness upon us and we have redemptive rights to reject such works of the devil in our lives.

The Scriptures are clear that neither sin nor sickness shall have dominion over the ones who are delivered from sin and who are filled with the divine life of God. Since Satan has been defeated he cannot put sickness upon us unless we give consent and fail to resist him in faith. We are new creations and the Spirit of God dwells in us. If this be true, and if we believe it, the Spirit will quicken our mortal bodies because He dwells in us Romans 8:9-13. If Christ put away sin and sickness we do not have to tolerate such in our lives. With all of our sins and sicknesses, we were nailed to the cross. If we will cease all struggle and exercise a true faith and reckon that we have already died with Christ; that we are buried with Him; that we were resurrected with Him to walk in newness of life, and we are raised together with Him and are now sitting together with Him in heavenly places, we will know in reality the power of His life in us. We were freed from sin when He was freed from the sins He atoned for on the cross. We were healed with Him when He was healed after taking our sicknesses on the cross. As we identify ourselves with Him in His new freedom from sin and sickness, we are made free from them. Let us all take our place in Him and identify ourselves with Him in His freedom from both sin and sickness and fully realize the benefits of Calvary.

If we have to suffer the sins, pains, and sicknesses that Christ bore in our place, His substitutionary work for us avails nothing. Through the death of Christ we are made alive. It was our sin that caused Him to die. When death slew Him it destroyed itself. When sin conquered Him it was conquered by Him. When disease conquered Him it was conquered by Him. When He put away our sins He also put away our diseases. By His stripes we were healed. We partake of His righteousness and healing when we accept His work for us. Just as our identification or union with sin, sickness, and Satan brought defeat, so our union with Christ brings victory over these things. We were crucified with Christ and if we believe we live with Him by resurrected power, He is our perfect Saviour, Healer, Provider, and all we need in this life, as well as in the one to come.

Just as Christ conquered sin, sickness, and Satan, we can conquer them in Him by proper identification with Him. His victory was our victory. He was victor in our place and we are victors in Him. We were there when the devil was defeated. We were identified with Him when He rose from the dead a master over all Hell. We are masters of these same powers through Christ. We are the ones who must carry on the work of God that Jesus started. There can be no defeat or failure. We are free now if we will only accept freedom in Christ. We have salvation and healing now if we will take it. We must refuse to have either sin or sickness. We must take our rightful place in Christ and conquer in His name. We have the power of attorney, and all we need to do is to use it to get what we want and what is rightfully ours in Christ. We have the power of God as sons of God. We have God’s Word abiding in us. We have the name of Jesus. We have the Holy Spirit. We have faith, knowledge and wisdom. We have the righteousness of God and the experience of a true new creature. We have all that we need to get what we want, so let us cooperate with God and the means of grace and we cannot fail to succeed in what we undertake in Christ.