I John 5:18 ... "We know that no one who is born of God sins; but He who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him."
How does a person come to be "born of God"? This spiritual rebirth is certainly an incomparable state for one to desire since it will not tolerate the presence of sin in one's life and excludes the blighting touch of Satan. The answer to this important question is given in I Pet. 1:23, "You have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God." When the incorruptible seed of God's eternal word is sown in a heart that is receptive and reasonable, it takes root and brings forth that person as a newborn child of God. The implanted word, however, must be obeyed in order for it to regenerate an individual, for I Pet. 1:21b-22a lays the foundation for the above-quoted verse in these words, "Your faith and hope are in God, since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls." The apostle here makes it clear that one's soul is purified, (i.e., cleansed of sin), by means of obedience to the truth that comes to us through the Holy Spirit. The purification of the soul makes it fertile ground from which faith in God and hope for His promises can grow abundantly.
The nature of this natal experience is outlined by Jesus in His statement in John 3:5, "Unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." In other words, being "born of God" involves the instrumentality of water, (i.e., baptism as in Mrk. 16:16, Rom. 6:14-17, Rom. 6:4-5). Therefore, anyone who receives in faith the word of truth, the medium through which the Spirit of God operates upon the soul and conscience of man, and responds to it by obedience unto baptism, he is thereby begotten of God (or "born of God).
As a result, our leading text says that he does not sin. The doctrine based on these words, that a Christian cannot commit sin, is in total ignorance of the Greek original so translated. The verb is constructed in the present tense, which in Greek emphasizes continuity of action rather than the duration of time. That is, the Scripture is saying that one who is "born of God" will not continue in a sin that he might commit. Every Christian will occasionally commit sin, as I John 1:8 and10 affirms, but rather than accept it, incorporate it into his character, and become its submissive pawn, he will immediately repudiate it and confess it to God with assurance of His promise to forgive it under these conditions, (cf. I John 1:9).
The struggle against sin never ceases in this life, but those who are "born of God" never permit it to gain a foothold in their redeemed, sanctified lives. The apostle says that they "keep" themselves,* using the verb têreo, which means to "guard" or to "withhold oneself from something." Christians are aware that they are engaged in spiritual warfare and cannot afford to let down their defense. At all times they must be vigilant to detect the action of evil in their proximity, (I Pet. 5:8), and restrain themselves from involvement in anything which can draw them out into a vulnerable position, (I Ths. 5:22). Vigilance and self-restraint will enable Christians to preserve their purity and sanctity unto the glory of God. The apostle then adds that "the evil one does not touch him." The literal meaning is that the devil cannot get a hold on him. Satan cannot stand up against any child of God who has the will to resist him, (Jas. 4:7), because God always grants the victory to His children who keep up the struggle, (I Cor. 15:57). He will never permit Satan to subject them to temptations too severe to be repelled, (I Cor. 10:13), or so powerful as to separate them from His love, (Rom. 8:35-39). It is wonderful to know that as Christians our lives are temples of God's Spirit, (I Cor. 6:19), who therefore dwells within us. And "greater is He who is in you than he (Satan) who is in the world," (I John 4:4). With His aid, we can indeed keep ourselves from sin.
(*Here I differ with the NASB and favor the KJV reading that the pronoun "he" refers to the Christian rather than to Christ. The NASB capitalizes H in "he" when reference is to Christ. I favor that practice as being more reverential. But in the oldest manuscripts, all letters are capitals. I am persuaded that the meaning here is that it is the duty of a Christian to "keep himself" and not rely on Christ to do it for him. Of course, a Christian can only succeed in that because Christ supports him. But the initiative is the Christian's, and then Christ will support him as much as needed.)
