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The "Power of Sin" Is Not the Sin Nature
by Bill Gillham
I wrote an article entitled THE POWER OF SIN in our May, 1988 Ministry Letter. In it I pointed out
that the word "sin" appears forty-one times in Romans 5-8, forty times as a noun, once as a verb. That is
one of the most astounding revelations I have ever received from the Holy Spirit. I believe that most
people who read this section of Romans interpret the word SIN as a verb, or if they do see it as a noun,
they either interpret it as a single sin which was committed or as their sin nature.
As most of you know by now, GMI teaches that Christians do not battle against themselves, but
against the power of sin, an agent of the devil which works through the flesh (old ways) to try to control
the soul (personality). When we lose this battle, we "do the thing we do not wish" and fail to "do the thing
we wish." We do not "wish" to sin, and yet we sin.
The power of sin is what its name implies, a power to entice you into sin. It dwells in you (Rom.
7:21), yet it is not you any more than a gold tooth that dwells in your mouth is you. Sin's goal is to
deceive saints into living to get their needs (though good and godly) met by sinning rather than by using
the Matthew 6:33 method; that is, "seeking Christ first."
The power of sin is not your sin nature. Your sin nature is a synonym for old man or old self. That
"old you" was crucified in Christ (Rom. 6:6). Before you were saved, it was as normal for your old nature
to rebel against God's authority as it is for a fish to swim. However, with salvation the new you hates sin
(Rom. 7:15a, 19, 22). That's why the Bible addresses Christians 56 times as "saints" (holy ones) rather
than sinners saved by grace like we've erroneously believed. Even the Corinthians, the most carnal church
in the epistles, are called "sanctified" and "saints" (1 Cor. 1:2).
Yet the POWER OF SIN is alive and well IN you, saint. It indwells your body (Rom. 7:23). On page
1055 of W. E. Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, Vine states that SIN is, "a
governing principle of power" that is "personified" in the following passages. He then lists sixteen verses
in which this holds true. The term personified means "represented as a person." The power of sin can
represent itself as a personage.
You have heard us teach that the power of sin's key tactic is to personify itself as your sin nature, the
old man or the old you who was crucified with Christ. It accomplishes this by sending thoughts into your
sound mind, the "mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16), with first person singular pronouns in order to deceive
you into believing that the old you has somehow jumped off the cross to "do the very thing you do not
wish." Hey, nobody but Jesus can come down from a cross. Let's examine a few of the sixteen verses
where Vine says the word HAMARTIA, the Greek noun translated "sin," is personified. "Therefore, do
not let SIN reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts" (Rom. 6:12). Since sin is personified,
let's call it "Mr. Sin" so we won't confuse it with the verb. Mr. Sin tries to control you, to make you live to
satisfy your bodily needs.
"But, thanks be to God that though you were slaves to Mr. Sin, you became obedient FROM THE
[new] HEART...and having been freed from Mr. Sin, you became slaves of righteousness" (Rom. 6:17-
18). In both instances above, sin is a noun, It doesn't say, "you were freed from sinning (verb)"; rather, it
teaches that you have been freed from being controlled by the power of sin, which results in sinning.
There's a tremendous difference. The first would be robotical sinless perfection; the second would require
a moment by moment appropriation of your freedom from being controlled by Mr. Sin.
"But, if I am doing the very thing I do not wish, I am no longer the one doing it, but Mr. Sin which
dwells in me (is somehow doing it)" (Rom. 7:20). This verse can really be a puzzler if you interpret the
word "sin" as a verb. But it's a noun, and Vine says it is personified (represented as a person). How is the
power of sin involved in your sinning? The same way wind is involved in a windmill, electricity in a light
by Bill Gillham
I wrote an article entitled THE POWER OF SIN in our May, 1988 Ministry Letter. In it I pointed out
that the word "sin" appears forty-one times in Romans 5-8, forty times as a noun, once as a verb. That is
one of the most astounding revelations I have ever received from the Holy Spirit. I believe that most
people who read this section of Romans interpret the word SIN as a verb, or if they do see it as a noun,
they either interpret it as a single sin which was committed or as their sin nature.
As most of you know by now, GMI teaches that Christians do not battle against themselves, but
against the power of sin, an agent of the devil which works through the flesh (old ways) to try to control
the soul (personality). When we lose this battle, we "do the thing we do not wish" and fail to "do the thing
we wish." We do not "wish" to sin, and yet we sin.
The power of sin is what its name implies, a power to entice you into sin. It dwells in you (Rom.
7:21), yet it is not you any more than a gold tooth that dwells in your mouth is you. Sin's goal is to
deceive saints into living to get their needs (though good and godly) met by sinning rather than by using
the Matthew 6:33 method; that is, "seeking Christ first."
The power of sin is not your sin nature. Your sin nature is a synonym for old man or old self. That
"old you" was crucified in Christ (Rom. 6:6). Before you were saved, it was as normal for your old nature
to rebel against God's authority as it is for a fish to swim. However, with salvation the new you hates sin
(Rom. 7:15a, 19, 22). That's why the Bible addresses Christians 56 times as "saints" (holy ones) rather
than sinners saved by grace like we've erroneously believed. Even the Corinthians, the most carnal church
in the epistles, are called "sanctified" and "saints" (1 Cor. 1:2).
Yet the POWER OF SIN is alive and well IN you, saint. It indwells your body (Rom. 7:23). On page
1055 of W. E. Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, Vine states that SIN is, "a
governing principle of power" that is "personified" in the following passages. He then lists sixteen verses
in which this holds true. The term personified means "represented as a person." The power of sin can
represent itself as a personage.
You have heard us teach that the power of sin's key tactic is to personify itself as your sin nature, the
old man or the old you who was crucified with Christ. It accomplishes this by sending thoughts into your
sound mind, the "mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16), with first person singular pronouns in order to deceive
you into believing that the old you has somehow jumped off the cross to "do the very thing you do not
wish." Hey, nobody but Jesus can come down from a cross. Let's examine a few of the sixteen verses
where Vine says the word HAMARTIA, the Greek noun translated "sin," is personified. "Therefore, do
not let SIN reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts" (Rom. 6:12). Since sin is personified,
let's call it "Mr. Sin" so we won't confuse it with the verb. Mr. Sin tries to control you, to make you live to
satisfy your bodily needs.
"But, thanks be to God that though you were slaves to Mr. Sin, you became obedient FROM THE
[new] HEART...and having been freed from Mr. Sin, you became slaves of righteousness" (Rom. 6:17-
18). In both instances above, sin is a noun, It doesn't say, "you were freed from sinning (verb)"; rather, it
teaches that you have been freed from being controlled by the power of sin, which results in sinning.
There's a tremendous difference. The first would be robotical sinless perfection; the second would require
a moment by moment appropriation of your freedom from being controlled by Mr. Sin.
"But, if I am doing the very thing I do not wish, I am no longer the one doing it, but Mr. Sin which
dwells in me (is somehow doing it)" (Rom. 7:20). This verse can really be a puzzler if you interpret the
word "sin" as a verb. But it's a noun, and Vine says it is personified (represented as a person). How is the
power of sin involved in your sinning? The same way wind is involved in a windmill, electricity in a light
