Utakatifu, Utakaso na Ukamilifu wa Kikristo — Sehemu ya 2: Utakaso wa Mwanzo na Mapambano Yanayoendelea na DhambiHoliness, Sanctification, and Christian Perfection — Unit 2: Initial Sanctification and the Continuing Struggle with Sin

Mstari MkuuKey Verse

"Na baadhi yenu mlikuwa hivyo; lakini mlikwisha kuoshwa, lakini mlikwisha kutakaswa, lakini mlikwisha kuhesabiwa haki, katika jina la Bwana Yesu Kristo, na katika Roho wa Mungu wetu." (1 Wakorintho 6:11, SUV)"And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God." (1 Corinthians 6:11, NKJV)

Malengo ya KujifunzaLearning Objectives

Utakapomaliza kipindi hiki, unapaswa kuweza:When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

1. Kueleza fundisho la Wesley kwamba kuhesabiwa haki ni yale Mungu analotufanyia, na utakaso ni yale Mungu analofanya ndani yetu.1. Explain Wesley's teaching that justification is what God does for us and sanctification is what God does in us.

2. Kueleza kinachobadilika wakati wa kuzaliwa upya, ikiwa ni pamoja na uhuru kutoka katika utawala wa dhambi.2. Describe what changes at the new birth, including freedom from the rule of sin.

3. Kueleza Wesley alimaanisha nini kwa "dhambi ndani ya waumini," na tofauti kati ya dhambi inayobaki na dhambi inayotawala.3. Explain what Wesley meant by "sin in believers," and the difference between sin that remains and sin that reigns.

4. Kueleza mitazamo mikuu juu ya Warumi 7 na 1 Yohana 1:8, na kutoa jibu la Wesley kwa pingamizi kwamba waumini hawawezi kuwa huru kutoka katika dhambi.4. State the main views of Romans 7 and 1 John 1:8, and give the Wesleyan answer to the objection that believers cannot be free from sin.

5. Kumshauri mwamini aliyeanguka katika dhambi, kwa kutumia Maandiko na mafundisho ya Wesley.5. Counsel a believer who has fallen into sin, using Scripture and Wesleyan teaching.

Sauti ya Kipindi HikiThe Voice of This Unit

Kipindi hiki kimeandikwa kutoka ndani ya mapokeo ya Wesley, kwa ajili ya wanafunzi wa Wesley. Ni cha kihafidhina kitheolojia: Biblia ni Neno la Mungu lililopuliziwa na ndiyo mamlaka yetu ya mwisho. Wakristo wengine waaminifu husoma vifungu vya kipindi hiki kwa njia tofauti, na tunaeleza mitazamo yao kwa uadilifu kabla ya kutoa jibu letu. Kozi 2 ilishughulikia njia ya wokovu kwa ujumla. Hapa tunatazama kwa makini sehemu ya kwanza ya utakaso, sehemu inayoanza mtu anapozaliwa upya, na mapambano na dhambi ambayo kila mwamini huyajua.This unit is written from inside the Wesleyan tradition, for Wesleyan students. It is theologically conservative: the Bible is God's inspired Word and our final authority. Other faithful Christians read the passages in this unit differently, and we state their views fairly before we answer. Course 2 treated the way of salvation as a whole. Here we look closely at the first part of sanctification, the part that begins when a person is born again, and at the struggle with sin that every believer knows.

Maneno Mawili: Kuhesabiwa Haki na KutakaswaTwo Words: Justified and Sanctified

Mstari wetu mkuu unaweka pamoja mambo matatu ambayo Mungu amewafanyia waumini wa Korintho. Walioshwa, walitakaswa na walihesabiwa haki. Orodha ya Paulo inaonyesha kwamba maisha mapya yana upande zaidi ya mmoja.Our key verse puts together three things God has done for the Corinthian believers. They were washed, sanctified and justified. Paul's list shows that the new life has more than one side.

John Wesley aliweka jambo hili kwa njia rahisi. Kuhesabiwa haki ni yale Mungu analotufanyia kupitia Mwanawe. Anatusamehe dhambi zetu, na anatuhesabu kuwa wanyofu mbele zake. Utakaso ni yale Mungu analofanya ndani yetu kupitia Roho wake. Anatufanya upya katika mfano wake na kutufanya watakatifu. Wesley alifundisha kwamba mambo hayo mawili hutokea pamoja mwanzoni. Mtu anapohesabiwa haki, huzaliwa upya pia, na katika kuzaliwa upya kazi ya utakaso huanza. Wesley aliona kuzaliwa upya kuwa mwanzo wa utakatifu. Wakristo wengi wengine wamechora mstari kama huo kati ya badiliko la hadhi yetu na badiliko la asili yetu.John Wesley put the matter in a simple way. Justification is what God does for us through His Son. He forgives our sins, and He counts us as right with Him. Sanctification is what God does in us through His Spirit. He renews us in His image and makes us holy. Wesley taught that the two happen together at the beginning. When a person is justified, he is also born again, and in the new birth the work of sanctification begins. Wesley saw the new birth as the beginning of holiness. Many other Christians have drawn a similar line between a change in our standing and a change in our nature.

Hili liko wazi katika Maandiko. Paulo anaandika kwamba Mungu alituokoa "kwa kuoshwa kwa kuzaliwa kwa pili na kufanywa upya na Roho Mtakatifu" (Tito 3:5). Anaandika, "Basi, mtu akiwa ndani ya Kristo amekuwa kiumbe kipya; mambo ya kale yamepita; angalia, yamekuwa mapya" (2 Wakorintho 5:17). Yesu alimwambia Nikodemo kwamba hakuna awezaye kuuona ufalme wa Mungu asipozaliwa mara ya pili (Yohana 3:3, 5). Kuzaliwa upya si lebo mpya tu. Ni zawadi ya uzima mpya.This is clear in Scripture. Paul writes that God saved us "through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5). He writes, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). Jesus told Nicodemus that no one can see the kingdom of God without being born again (John 3:3, 5). The new birth is not only a new label. It is the gift of new life.

Tunaita mwanzo huu "utakaso wa mwanzo." Ni utakatifu wa kweli, lakini ni mwanzo wa safari, si mwisho wake. Agano Jipya hutumia neno "watakatifu" kwa waumini wote, hata kwa kanisa lililokuwa na matatizo la Korintho (1 Wakorintho 1:2). Walikuwa watakatifu kwa sababu walikuwa wa Mungu, na waliitwa kuwa watakatifu katika mwenendo.We call this beginning "initial sanctification." It is real holiness, but it is the start of a road, not the end. The New Testament uses the word "saints," that is, "holy ones," for all believers, even for the troubled church at Corinth (1 Corinthians 1:2). They were holy because they belonged to God, and they were called to become holy in conduct.

Kinachobadilika Wakati wa Kuzaliwa UpyaWhat Changes at the New Birth

Paulo anafundisha katika Warumi 6 kwamba mwamini amekufa kwa utawala wa dhambi. Anauliza, "Tudumu katika dhambi, ili neema izidi?" na anajibu, "Hasha!" (Warumi 6:1-2). Anasema kwamba utu wetu wa kale ulisulubiwa pamoja na Kristo ili mwili wa dhambi ubatilike, na kwamba tusiwe watumwa wa dhambi tena (Warumi 6:6). Kisha anatoa ahadi: "Kwa maana dhambi haitakuwa na mamlaka juu yenu; kwa sababu hamko chini ya sheria, bali chini ya neema" (Warumi 6:14). Mahali pengine anasema kwamba walio wa Kristo wameusulibisha mwili pamoja na mapenzi yake na tamaa zake (Wagalatia 5:24).Paul teaches in Romans 6 that the believer has died to sin's rule. He asks, "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?" and answers, "Certainly not!" (Romans 6:1-2). He says that our old man was crucified with Christ so that the body of sin might be done away with, and that we should no longer be slaves of sin (Romans 6:6). He then gives a promise: "For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace" (Romans 6:14). In another place he says that those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires (Galatians 5:24).

Yohana anasema vivyo hivyo. "Kila mtu aliyezaliwa na Mungu hatendi dhambi" (1 Yohana 3:9). Pia anasema kwamba yeye aliyezaliwa na Mungu hujilinda, wala yule mwovu hamgusi (1 Yohana 5:18). Tukisoma mistari hii peke yake, Mkristo anaweza kudhani kwamba hakuna mwamini anayetenda dhambi kamwe. Lakini Yohana pia anaandika kuhusu dhambi na msamaha katika barua hiyohiyo, kama tutakavyoona. Wesley alihubiri mahubiri kuhusu jambo hili, "The Great Privilege of Those That Are Born of God" (Fursa Kuu ya Wale Waliozaliwa na Mungu). Alieleza kwamba maneno ya Yohana yanaeleza maisha ya mwamini kwa ujumla. Mtoto wa kweli wa Mungu haishi katika dhambi ya makusudi, wala hadumu katika dhambi kama mtindo wa maisha. Wafasiri wengi wanabainisha kwamba Yohana anatumia katika mistari hii umbo la kitenzi linaloashiria kitendo kinachoendelea. Mwamini anaweza kujikwaa. Harudii dhambi kama bwana wake.John says the same. "Whoever has been born of God does not sin" (1 John 3:9). He also says that the one born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him (1 John 5:18). If we read these verses alone, a Christian might think that no believer ever sins. But John also writes about sin and forgiveness in the same letter, as we will see. Wesley preached a sermon on this subject, "The Great Privilege of Those That Are Born of God." He explained that John's words describe the believer's life as a whole. A true child of God does not live in willful sin, and does not go on in sin as a way of life. Many interpreters note that John uses a verb form in these verses that suggests a continuing action. A believer may stumble. He does not return to sin as his master.

Hili ni jambo kubwa. Mtu ambaye hapo awali alikuwa mtumwa wa ulevi, chuki, tamaa mbaya au choyo, anawekwa huru kwa neema ya Mungu. Haishii kuhisi majuto tu. Anapokea nguvu. Kila mchungaji ameona mabadiliko kama hayo, na huo ndio utukufu wa injili. Mapokeo ya Wesley daima yamesisitiza kwamba injili inaahidi uhuru wa kweli kutoka katika utawala wa dhambi sasa, si baada ya kifo tu.This is a large thing. A person who was once a slave of drunkenness, hatred, lust or greed is, by the grace of God, set free. He does not simply feel sorry. He receives power. Every pastor has seen such changes, and it is the glory of the gospel. The Wesleyan tradition has always insisted that the gospel promises real freedom from the rule of sin now, not only after death.

Mapambano Yanayoendelea: Dhambi ndani ya WauminiThe Continuing Struggle: Sin in Believers

Hata hivyo kila mwamini mwaminifu anajua upande mwingine. Baada ya kuongoka, tamaa za zamani hazitoweki mara moja kila wakati. Paulo anawaandikia Wagalatia kwamba mwili hutamani mambo yaliyo kinyume cha Roho, na Roho hutamani yaliyo kinyume cha mwili, na haya hupingana (Wagalatia 5:17). Anawaambia waumini wa Roma kwamba wakiishi kwa kufuata mwili watakufa, lakini kwa Roho wakiyafisha matendo ya mwili wataishi (Warumi 8:13). Anawaita Wakorintho "watoto wachanga katika Kristo" na anasema bado ni watu wa mwili kwa sababu ya wivu na ugomvi (1 Wakorintho 3:1-3). Mwandishi wa Waebrania anawaambia waumini waweke kando dhambi ile ituzingayo kwa upesi (Waebrania 12:1).Yet every honest believer knows another side. After conversion the old desires do not always disappear at once. Paul writes to the Galatians that the flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh, and they are contrary to one another (Galatians 5:17). He tells believers in Rome that if they live according to the flesh they will die, but if by the Spirit they put to death the deeds of the body, they will live (Romans 8:13). He calls the Corinthians "babes in Christ" and says they are still carnal because of envy and strife (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). The writer to the Hebrews tells believers to lay aside the sin that so easily ensnares us (Hebrews 12:1).

Wesley alizichukulia aya hizi kwa uzito mkubwa. Alihubiri juu yake katika mahubiri mawili: "On Sin in Believers" (Juu ya Dhambi ndani ya Waumini) (1763), na "The Repentance of Believers" (Toba ya Waumini) (1767). Katika la kwanza, alipinga mtazamo uliokuwa unashikiliwa na baadhi ya marafiki zake Wamoravian, ambao alipenda na kuwaheshimu, kwamba mtu anayehesabiwa haki husafishwa mara moja kutoka dhambi zote. Wesley alisema kwamba huu si fundisho la Biblia, na si yale ambayo Wakristo huyapata ndani yao wenyewe. Mwamini, alisema, anaweza kuwa hana dhambi ya nje na bado akahisi ndani mwelekeo wa kiburi, hasira, kujitakia mapenzi yake mwenyewe au kutokuamini. Alitumia lugha ya "mwili" na "dhambi ya ndani iliyozaliwa nayo" kwa ajili ya mwelekeo huu wa ndani.Wesley took these texts very seriously. He preached about them in two sermons: "On Sin in Believers" (1763), and "The Repentance of Believers" (1767). In the first, he argued against a view held by some of his Moravian friends, whom he loved and respected, that a person who is justified is at once cleansed from all sin. Wesley said this is not what the Bible teaches, and it is not what Christians find in themselves. A believer, he said, may have no outward sin and yet still feel an inward tendency to pride, anger, self-will or unbelief. He used the language of "the flesh" and "inbred sin" for this inward tendency.

Kisha Wesley alichora tofauti inayoondoa mkanganyiko mwingi. Kuna tofauti kati ya dhambi inayotawala na dhambi inayobaki. Kwa asiyeamini dhambi hutawala: inatawala, naye huitii. Kwa mwamini dhambi haitawali, lakini inabaki kama mwelekeo wa ndani anaopaswa kuupinga kwa nguvu za Roho. Kwa sababu haitawali, mwamini hayuko chini ya hukumu. Paulo anasema, "Basi, sasa hakuna hukumu juu ya wale walio ndani ya Kristo Yesu, wasioenenda kwa kufuata mwili, bali kwa kufuata Roho" (Warumi 8:1). Jaribu linalotokea ndani bado si dhambi iliyotendwa, mradi tu mwamini hakubali. Wesley alitaka waumini wasiwe wazembe wala wasikate tamaa.Wesley then drew a distinction that clears much confusion. There is a difference between sin that reigns and sin that remains. In the unbeliever sin reigns: it rules, and he obeys it. In the believer sin does not reign, but it remains as an inward tendency that he must resist by the power of the Spirit. Because it does not reign, the believer is not under condemnation. Paul says, "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit" (Romans 8:1). A temptation that arises within is not yet a sin that has been committed, so long as the believer does not consent to it. Wesley wanted believers to be neither careless nor in despair.

Hapa mapokeo ya Wesley yanashikilia kweli mbili kwa wakati mmoja. Kwanza, mwamini ni huru kweli kutoka katika utawala wa dhambi na ana nguvu ya kusema hapana. Pili, mwamini bado ana udhaifu wa ndani unaohitaji uponyaji zaidi, na lazima akeshe na kuomba. Mafundisho ya Vipindi 3 hadi 5 kuhusu ukamilifu wa Kikristo yanaanzia hapa: wafuasi wa Wesley wanaamini kwamba Mungu anaahidi kushughulikia udhaifu huo wa ndani unaobaki na kuujaza moyo kwa upendo.Here the Wesleyan tradition holds two truths at the same time. First, a believer is truly free from the rule of sin and has power to say no. Second, a believer still has an inward weakness that needs further healing, and he must watch and pray. The teaching of Units 3 to 5 about Christian perfection begins from this point: Wesleyans believe that God promises to deal with that remaining inward weakness and to fill the heart with love.

Mjadala Mkuu: Warumi 7The Great Debate: Romans 7

Wanafunzi wengi huuliza kuhusu Warumi 7:14-25. Paulo anasema huko, "Maana lile nitendalo siliafikii; kwa kuwa nisilolipenda ndilo nilitendalo, bali nilichukialo ndilo nilifanyalo." Anamalizia kwa kilio, "Ole wangu, maskini mimi! Ni nani atakayeniokoa na mwili huu wa mauti?" Je, Paulo anasema juu ya Mkristo?Many students ask about Romans 7:14-25. Paul says there, "For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do." He ends with the cry, "O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" Is Paul speaking of a Christian?

Mitazamo mikuu mitatu ipo, na mwalimu mwadilifu huieleza yote. Waandishi wengi wa Kikristo wa mapema waliozungumza Kigiriki walidhani Paulo anaeleza mtu aliye chini ya sheria ambaye ameamshwa kuona dhambi yake lakini bado hajawa huru. Augustino katika maandishi yake ya baadaye, na Wanamatengenezo baada yake, walilichukulia kifungu hicho kuwa uzoefu wa mwamini aliyekomaa. Baadhi ya wafasiri wa kisasa wanafikiri Paulo anasema kwa mtindo wa kifasihi, kwa niaba ya Israeli au ya wanadamu chini ya sheria, na si kwa niaba yake mwenyewe.Three main views exist, and a fair teacher states them all. Many early Greek-speaking Christian writers took Paul to be describing a person under the law who is awakened to his sin but not yet free. Augustine in his later writings, and the Reformers after him, took the passage as the experience of a mature believer. Some modern interpreters think Paul is speaking in a literary way, for Israel or for humanity under the law, and not for himself.

Wesley alishikilia kwamba Warumi 7 inaeleza mtu aliye chini ya sheria na ambaye bado hajaokolewa, ingawa ameamshwa na sheria. Sisi tunafuata usomaji huu. Sababu zetu ni kwamba Paulo anasema katika kifungu hicho hicho kwamba "ameuzwa chini ya dhambi" (7:14), ilhali katika 6:18 anasema kwamba waumini "mmekuwa huru mkitoka katika dhambi"; na kwamba kilio cha kuomba ukombozi katika 7:24 kinajibiwa katika Warumi 8:2: sheria ya Roho wa uzima ndani ya Kristo Yesu imeniacha huru mbali na sheria ya dhambi na mauti. Wale wanaosoma kifungu hicho kama uzoefu wa Mkristo wanasema kwamba Paulo anatumia wakati uliopo, na kwamba mtu huyo anaipenda sheria ya Mungu "katika mtu wa ndani" (7:22). Tunajibu kwamba mtu aliyeamshwa chini ya sheria anaweza kuifurahia sheria, na kwamba Paulo anaweza kuwa anatumia mtindo wa picha hai kueleza yale aliyoyapitia. Mchungaji mwenye hekima hahitaji kushinda mjadala huu. Usomaji wowote ukishikiliwa, Warumi 8 inasimama kama jibu: maisha ya Kikristo ni maisha katika nguvu za Roho.Wesley held that Romans 7 describes a person who is under the law and not yet delivered, though awakened by the law. We follow this reading. Our reasons are that Paul says in the same passage that he is "sold under sin" (7:14), while in 6:18 he says that believers have been "set free from sin"; and that the cry for deliverance in 7:24 is answered in Romans 8:2: the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. Those who read the passage as a Christian's experience point out that Paul speaks in the present tense, and that the person delights in God's law "according to the inward man" (7:22). We reply that an awakened person under the law can delight in the law, and that Paul may be using a vivid style to describe what he lived through. A wise pastor does not need to win this argument. Whichever reading is held, Romans 8 stands as the answer: the Christian life is a life in the power of the Spirit.

Pingamizi Kutoka 1 Yohana 1:8The Objection from 1 John 1:8

Pingamizi la kawaida zaidi dhidi ya mafundisho ya Wesley inapatikana katika 1 Yohana 1:8: "Tukisema kwamba hatuna dhambi, twajidanganya wenyewe, wala kweli haimo mwetu." Walimu wa Kireformed, wakikumbuka msemo wa Matengenezo, simul justus et peccator, "wakati mmoja mwenye haki na mwenye dhambi," wanasema kwamba mwamini daima ni vyote viwili. Wanaongeza kwamba yeyote anayedai kuwa huru kutoka katika dhambi amedanganyika.The most common objection to Wesleyan teaching is found in 1 John 1:8: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." Reformed teachers, remembering a phrase of the Reformation, simul justus et peccator, "at once righteous and a sinner," say that the believer is always both. They add that anyone who claims freedom from sin is deceived.

Jibu letu. Tunakubaliana na Yohana. Mwamini anayesema kwamba hana dhambi anajidanganya. Katika kipindi hiki tumesema kwamba dhambi hubaki ndani ya waumini, na Wesley alisema hivyo pia. Pia tunakubali kwamba waumini wote daima wanategemea rehema ya Kristo, na kwamba hakuna anayehesabiwa haki kwa wema wake mwenyewe. Lakini Yohana haishii 1:8. Anaendelea: "Tukiziungama dhambi zetu, yeye ni mwaminifu na mwenye haki hata atuondolee dhambi zetu, na kutusafisha na udhalimu wote" (1:9). Kisha anasema, "Watoto wangu, haya nawaandikia ili msitende dhambi. Tena mtu awaye yote akitenda dhambi, tunaye Mwombezi kwa Baba, Yesu Kristo, mwenye haki" (2:1). Lengo la injili ni kwamba tusitende dhambi, na utoaji wa Mungu kwa ajili ya kushindwa ni msamaha. Yohana hasemi kwamba dhambi ni lazima. Anasema kwamba dhambi haipaswi kuvumiliwa kwa visingizio, na kwamba Kristo anaweza kusafisha. Jibu la Kireformed ni la kweli moyoni na limewafundisha wengi kumtegemea Kristo peke yake. Sisi tunasema tu kwamba Maandiko yanatoa zaidi: kusafishwa, si msamaha tu.Our answer. We agree with John. A believer who says he has no sin deceives himself. In this unit we have said that sin remains in believers, and Wesley said it too. We also agree that all believers always depend on the mercy of Christ, and that no one is justified by his own goodness. But John does not stop at 1:8. He goes on: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1:9). Then he says, "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (2:1). The aim of the gospel is that we not sin, and the provision for failure is forgiveness. John does not say that sin is necessary. He says that sin is not to be excused, and that Christ is able to cleanse. The Reformed answer is sincere and has taught many to trust Christ alone. We simply say that Scripture offers more: cleansing, not only forgiveness.

Mwamini AnapoangukaWhen a Believer Falls

Je, itakuwaje basi kwa mwamini anayeanguka katika dhambi? Mahubiri ya Wesley "The Repentance of Believers" yanafundisha kwamba toba haiishii wakati wa kuongoka. Waumini wanahitaji kutubu wanapogundua dhambi mioyoni mwao au wanapoanguka katika maisha yao, na kumwamini Kristo upya. Hii si kurudi kwenye toba ya kwanza iliyoleta kuhesabiwa haki. Ni unyofu wa unyenyekevu wa mtoto ambaye tayari yumo ndani ya familia.What then of the believer who falls into sin? Wesley's sermon "The Repentance of Believers" teaches that repentance does not end at conversion. Believers need to repent when they find sin in their hearts or have fallen in their lives, and to trust Christ afresh. This is not a return to the first repentance, which led to justification. It is the humble honesty of a child who is already in the family.

Hata hivyo, mapokeo ya Wesley pia yanafundisha kwamba dhambi isichukuliwe kwa wepesi. Mwamini anaweza kuanguka katika dhambi ya makusudi na, kama akidumu ndani yake na katika kutokuamini, anaweza kupoteza uzima aliopewa. Hili ni fundisho la usalama wenye masharti, ambalo Kozi 2, Kipindi 9 lilishughulikia kikamilifu. Hapa tunabainisha tu kwamba Maandiko yale yanayotoa Mwombezi pia yanawaonya wazembe. Mwamini anayeanguka anapaswa kutubu haraka, kuungama, na kurudi kwa Kristo, na kanisa linapaswa kumsaidia kurejeshwa (Wagalatia 6:1).The Wesleyan tradition, however, also teaches that sin must not be taken lightly. A believer can fall into willful sin and, if he persists in it and in unbelief, can lose the life he was given. This is the doctrine of conditional security, which Course 2, Unit 9 treated in full. We note here only that the same Scripture that offers an Advocate also warns the careless. A believer who falls should repent quickly, confess, and return to Christ, and the church should help him to be restored (Galatians 6:1).

Njia za neema ni njia za kawaida za Mungu za kutusaidia kusimama: maombi, kusoma na kusikia Maandiko, Meza ya Bwana, kufunga na ushirika na waumini wengine. Kipindi 7 kinazisoma kwa undani. Kwa sasa, kumbuka kwamba kukua katika utakatifu si jambo la juhudi peke yake. Ni Mungu anayefanya kazi, kupitia njia alizotupa.The means of grace are God's ordinary ways of helping us stand: prayer, the reading and hearing of Scripture, the Lord's Supper, fasting and fellowship with other believers. Unit 7 studies them in detail. For now, remember that growth in holiness is not a matter of effort alone. It is God who works, through the channels He has given.

Matumizi ya KichungajiPastoral Application

Mtu mmoja katika kusanyiko lako aliongoka mwaka mmoja uliopita. Hapo awali alikuwa mlevi sana, na kwa miezi mingi alikuwa huru. Mwishoni mwa juma moja alimkasirikia kaka yake na akanywa tena. Jumapili anaketi nyuma na haji madhabahuni. Anakuambia, "Nilidhani nimebadilika. Sasa nadhani sikuwahi kuokoka."A man in your congregation was converted a year ago. He had been a heavy drinker, and for months he was free. One weekend he became angry with his brother and drank again. On Sunday he sits at the back and does not come to the altar. He says to you, "I thought I was changed. Now I think I was never saved."

Hukemei, wala huseme "si kitu." Kwanza unamsaidia kuona kwamba huzuni yake ni ishara kwamba Roho anafanya kazi ndani yake. Unasoma 1 Yohana 1:9 na 2:1 pamoja naye, na unamwomba amwungamie Mungu aliyoyafanya. Unamkumbusha Warumi 6:14: dhambi haitakuwa na mamlaka juu yake. Unamsaidia aone kwamba kushindwa kwake si njia ya maisha aliyopewa na Mungu, na kwamba Mungu ana nguvu kwa ajili yake. Unamwomba akutane nawe kila juma na ajiunge na kikundi kidogo. Unamwomba aombe, asome Biblia, na aepuke mahali na watu wanaompotosha. Mwishowe, unamwambia kwamba Mungu anaahidi kushughulikia udhaifu wa ndani uliomfanya aanguke, na kwamba hili ndilo tumaini la vipindi vijavyo.You do not scold him, and you do not say "it is nothing." You first help him see that his sorrow is itself a sign that the Spirit is working in him. You read 1 John 1:9 and 2:1 with him, and you ask him to confess to God what he did. You remind him of Romans 6:14: sin shall not have dominion over him. You help him see that his failure is not the way of life God gave him, and that God has power for him. You ask him to meet with you each week and to join a small group. You ask him to pray, read the Bible, and avoid the places and people that lead him astray. Finally, you tell him that God promises to deal with the inward weakness that made him fall, and that this is the hope of the next units.

MuhtasariSummary

Wesley alifundisha kwamba kuhesabiwa haki ni yale Mungu analotufanyia na utakaso ni yale Mungu analofanya ndani yetu, na kwamba mambo hayo mawili huanza pamoja wakati wa kuzaliwa upya. Wakati wa kuzaliwa upya mwamini hubadilishwa kweli na kuwekwa huru kutoka katika utawala wa dhambi (Warumi 6; 1 Yohana 3:9). Hata hivyo dhambi hubaki kama mwelekeo wa ndani (Wagalatia 5:17; 1 Wakorintho 3:1-3), na Wesley alifundisha tofauti kati ya dhambi inayotawala na dhambi inayobaki. Warumi 7 husomwa kwa njia tatu, na Wesley aliona inaeleza mtu aliye chini ya sheria. Dhidi ya pingamizi kutoka 1 Yohana 1:8 tunajibu kwamba Yohana pia anaahidi kusafishwa na msamaha, na kwamba anaandika ili tusitende dhambi. Mwamini anayeanguka anapaswa kutubu na kumwamini Kristo tena, na kanisa linapaswa kusaidia kumrejesha. Udhaifu wa ndani unaobaki unaelekeza kwenye ahadi ya ukamilifu wa Kikristo, inayosomwa katika vipindi vijavyo.Wesley taught that justification is what God does for us and sanctification is what God does in us, and that the two begin together at the new birth. At the new birth the believer is truly changed and freed from the rule of sin (Romans 6; 1 John 3:9). Yet sin remains as an inward tendency (Galatians 5:17; 1 Corinthians 3:1-3), and Wesley taught the difference between sin that reigns and sin that remains. Romans 7 is read in three ways, and Wesley took it to describe the person under the law. Against the objection from 1 John 1:8 we reply that John also promises cleansing and forgiveness, and that he writes so that we may not sin. A believer who falls should repent and trust Christ again, and the church should help restore him. The remaining inward weakness leads to the promise of Christian perfection, studied in the next units.

Usomaji ZaidiFurther Reading

• John Wesley, "On Sin in Believers" (Juu ya Dhambi ndani ya Waumini), "The Repentance of Believers" (Toba ya Waumini), "The Great Privilege of Those That Are Born of God" (Fursa Kuu ya Wale Waliozaliwa na Mungu), na "The New Birth" (Kuzaliwa Upya), katika Sermons (Mahubiri) yake.• John Wesley, "On Sin in Believers," "The Repentance of Believers," "The Great Privilege of Those That Are Born of God," and "The New Birth," in his Sermons.

• John Wesley, Notes on the New Testament (Maelezo juu ya Agano Jipya), juu ya Warumi 6-8 na 1 Yohana.• John Wesley, Notes on the New Testament, on Romans 6-8 and 1 John.

• John Wesley, A Plain Account of Christian Perfection (Maelezo Mafupi ya Ukamilifu wa Kikristo) (1766).• John Wesley, A Plain Account of Christian Perfection (1766).

• The Methodist Articles of Religion (Makala za Imani za Kimethodisti) (1784), kuhusu dhambi baada ya kuhesabiwa haki.• The Methodist Articles of Religion (1784), on sin after justification.

• Charles Wesley, nyimbo kuhusu kuzaliwa upya na mapambano na dhambi.• Charles Wesley, hymns on the new birth and on the struggle with sin.

• Holiness Through the Ages (Utakatifu Katika Karne Zote) (Coleman, Danielson na Parry), kitabu cha kiada cha Shahada ya Uzamili kwa kozi hii.• Holiness Through the Ages (Coleman, Danielson and Parry), the Master's textbook for this course.

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