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“Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.”

— 1 John 3:6

Can you lose your salvation if you sin? It's an age-old question that has sparked debate, split churches, and sent people into mental health facilities. We know that we're saved by grace through faith and not by works, but some seem to think you might lose your salvation by works. Or they at least want you to believe you are not truly saved if you sin.

For the record, sin is bad. Sin sows death into your life, it hardens your heart to God, it destroys marriages, erodes culture, and the list goes on. Don't sin! But if you do sin as a Christian, don’t forget you’re forgiven.

What does it mean if you sin as a Christian? Does it mean you have never met God? Or does it mean you are not presently experiencing Him?

Let's remind ourselves of a few key points already addressed in 1 John to make sure we understand John's thoughts on salvation and forgiveness.

He's writing so you'll know your sins are forgiven because of Jesus. 1 John 2:12
He instructs us to not sin, but if we do, to remember that Jesus is our advocate. 1 John 2:1 (more on that point here)
He's writing so that we would know we're saved and have eternal life, not to make us question our salvation. 1 John 5:13
He instructs us to confess our sin, admitting that Christians may commit sins. 1 John 1:9

These are just a few points to keep in mind when seeking to understand 1 John 3:6. Let's dig into this passage a bit further to make sure we understand 1 John 3:6.

Verb Tenses Matter

If we think through this passage at face value, there are two possibilities.

If you sin, maybe you're not truly saved.
If you sin, you're not presently experiencing God.

Point #2 takes a bit more investigation.

Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. 1 John 3:6

Seen means “to perceive” as with the eyes of your heart. And known means “to understand” or “have knowledge of.”

"Has neither" and "known" are both perfect tense.

The basic thought of the perfect tense is that the progress of an action has been completed and the results of the action are continuing on, in full effect. In other words, the progress of the action has reached its culmination and the finished results are now in existence. Unlike the English perfect, which indicates a completed past action, the Greek perfect tense indicates the continuation and present state of a completed past action. (From http://www.ntgreek.org/learn_nt_greek/verbs1.htm)

Based on the verb tenses of seen and known, we can say this; if one sins as a Christian, it doesn't mean they have never known him, it means they are not presently knowing him.

From Enduring Word Commentary
https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/1-john-3
It is very important to understand what the Bible means – and what it does not mean – when it says does not sin. According to the verb tense John uses, does not sin means “does not live a life style of habitual sin.” John has already told us in 1 John 1:8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. In 1 John 1:8, the grammar indicates John is speaking about occasional acts of sin. The grammar of 1 John 3:6 indicates that John is speaking of a settled, continued lifestyle of sin. John is not teaching here the possibility of sinless perfection.

This is where English fails us. The Greek language has seven verb tenses, whereas English only has three. It's difficult for the Western mind to grasp the concept of a past action being effectual or ineffectual in the present. It can actually go back and forth. Meaning something that happened in the past can either be continuing to have an impact on your now or not, and it can change.

In this verse, the present effectuation of a past action (knowing God) is dependent on whether or not you are walking in the light, otherwise known as walking in love.

John wants to drive the point home of the importance of walking in love toward our brothers and sisters in Christ, he ties it to whether or not you are presently experiencing God (abiding in Him).

His point is this; if you are allowing God to abide in you or influence you at the moment, the evidence will be the keeping of Christ's commandments, which are loving God and loving people. It’s kind of a big deal to John.

What Are You Abiding In?

If you sin as a Christian, the completed results of seeing and knowing him are not presently continuing in you, because you are not currently abiding in him. You must be abiding in something else, ie, the flesh (all that's in the world is…).

When you put together the definition's specific application with the tense, as well as the context "whoever abides in Him does not sin," you get a more full picture that shows that we're talking about an ongoing experience rather than a single action in the past.

If you're presently experiencing God or knowing God, or abiding in Him, you will not have hate in your heart for your brothers, and you will not go back to your former way of life, as he describes in the rest of chapter 3. But if you do commit a sin, we still have 1 John 2:1-1.

Can We Trust the Bible?

So is the Bible flawed? No, it just wasn’t written in English, and we don't have seven different verb tenses in English. It can be challenging to grasp the proper understanding. We have to dig a bit more.

A legalistic mindset will always gravitate toward works-righteousness. A finished work mindset will always gravitate to matters of the heart.

We are complete in our spirit, but we still must subdue the desires of the flesh and not yield our members (bodies) to sin. Our eternal self is in Him, safe and secure, but we can still commit acts of sin when we're drawn away by the lust of the flesh, but that doesn't mean we're not saved.

Rest in your salvation that's secure in Jesus, and be intentional to keep your heart open to God so you will not be lured by temptation into sin. And for John, the best way to abide in God, and make sure you're continuing to allow God to abide in you, is to love your brothers in Christ.

How Do I Love?

Here's a list of the attributes of love. Read through this list and see if the Holy Spirit gives you any instructions. Now is the time to commit to walking in love. Jesus commands it. Our brothers and sisters in Christ need to feel it from us. And the world needs to see it from Christ’s body.

From 1 Corinthians 13:1-8