Doth Not

1 John 3:9 "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God."

Doth not commit sin. That is a hard sentence to take in. And sadly, it is a demonstration of how much we miss by not being able to read God's Word in its original language. Greek words have so much nuance that is literally lost in translation. That is why studying, not just reading, God's Word is so vital. Nowhere is this more prominently demonstrated than in the book of 1 John.

The key word here is actually "doth". A careful look reveals this tiny word's depth of meaning. Vine's dictionary lays it out this way, "to do, make," is used of spending a time or tarrying, in a place..." The word carries the connotation of continuation. With this in mind, we could read the verse thus, "Whosoever is born of God, having His new nature within, does not continue, or tarry in violation of God's law."

God is omniscient. He knows all. Therefore, He knows our lack of perfection better than we do. Even with His new nature in us, we will still sin at times. Yet it will be our occasional disaster, not our happy habit. One commentator compared the Christian to a compass - the needle may at times be bumped from true north, yet its constant drive and pull is back to where it belongs.

Do I feel God's new nature pulling me back to righteousness after each occasional disaster? Or is sin a happy habit for me?