Well, in our fight against sin, do we focus our attention on Christ, or do we focus our

attention on ourselves?

It's a very tangible question today from a listener.

Mr. John, hello.

My name is Matthew, a Christian college student in Colorado.

I just listened to the recent episode fight sin like a victor, not a victim.

That's APJ 1559.

And it brought up a question from you that I've been struggling with for the past few

years.

In that episode, you say, and I'm paraphrasing, that having the verdict of not guilty on

the basis of Christ's sacrifice on my behalf is the key to overcoming sin.

From books like James and verse John, I also see that obedience to God is the necessary

evidence that we have saving faith.

There is a great confusion for me with these two truths.

This confusion keeps me from joy and gets my eyes on myself instead of Christ.

The following question is the source of my confusion.

How can I rest in being justified if I need obedience as the evidence to truly know that

I am justified?

In other words, how can I rest in the verdict of not guilty?

If in reality, the verdict could be guilty unless I see obedience in my life.

This circular reasoning inevitably puts the focus back on myself instead of Christ, the

opposite of what it is intended to do.

...