Romans 8 - No Condemnation

 

Previously in Romans 7, we saw how believers are dead to and set free from the law. We are no longer under its condemnation. It does not give us the power to say no to sin; however, it is still good because it reveals the sin that is already there. We also saw Paul’s struggle with sin as a Christian, and how is only hope was faith in Jesus Christ.

In light of what he said in chapter 7, Paul continues, “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.” As I mentioned before, if the devil cannot succeed in keeping us from getting saved, he will do his best to make us ineffective for the kingdom by getting us caught up in sin. He then hits us with condemnation, which if we yield to, will only pull us down further. He will try to get us to a point where we don’t think we can even come to God for forgiveness. One of the ways we can tell the difference between the conviction of the Holy Spirit and the condemnation of the devil is that the Holy Spirit’s conviction draws us to the Lord for forgiveness and restoration, while the devil’s condemnation draws us away from the Lord into isolation and further sin.

Many scholars believe the latter part of verse one should not be in the text, but I see no conflict either way. If there were, then we would have the same problem with verse four. There is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. Remember, we are counted righteous and justified by faith and faith alone, and therefore cannot be condemned because our faith is in Jesus who was not condemned. Walking after the Spirit merely characterizes those who are already in Christ Jesus, and walking in the flesh characterizes those who are not. Again, we have been set free from the guilt and punishment of sin.

The law of the Spirit of life (law of the life-giving Spirit) in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death. It’s been likened to the law of gravity: the law of gravity affects all of us; however, under the right circumstances, gravity can be overcome. The life of the Spirit has overcome sin and death (we have been set free from the power of sin). Praise the Lord!

God sent His Son to do what the law could not do. The law detects our sin, but cannot deliver us from its guilt, punishment, or power. Jesus, coming in the likeness of sinful flesh, did all three. He came because of sin and condemned sin in the flesh on the cross. Because Jesus kept the law perfectly, now the righteous requirements of the law are fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

Continuing his contrast of the life of the flesh with the life of the Spirit, Paul states those who live according to the flesh, set their minds on the things of the flesh, while those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. Whatever they are doing outwardly, they have already been thinking inwardly, and whatever they are thinking inwardly, it is according to their nature. To be carnally minded leads to death, but to be spiritually minded brings life and peace. The carnal mind is at enmity with (hostile toward) God. It is not obedient to the law of God, and, in fact, cannot be. So then, those who are in the flesh are not pleasing to God. This is the plight of the nonbeliever.

On the other hand, a believer is under the control of the Spirit because the Spirit of God dwells in them. Here we see Paul’s focus turn to the role of the Holy Spirit. Some within the Church attempt to downplay the role of the Holy Spirit, but the Christian life would be impossible without Him. Jesus told His disciples, “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.” (Jn 14:16-18) For the believer, the Spirit dwells in them, giving them a new nature. Paul told the Ephesians that once they believed, they were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise who is the guarantee of their inheritance. Sealed means to be stamped for security or preservation, and earnest refers to money or property given for a down-payment as security for the final purchase. So then, the Holy Spirit has stamped or marked us for security and preservation from Satan in this life and the wrath of God that is to come. He also is our down-payment of our inheritance of eternal life that God has promised to all believers. Going back to verse two, it is the Holy Spirit that has set us free from the law of sin and death. It is through His power that we can live a victorious Christian life.

If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ (the Holy Spirit) dwelling in him, he does not belong to Christ. If Christ is in us, our bodies are dead because of sin (we will all die one day), but the Spirit of God dwells in us, bringing us life because of the righteousness of Jesus. However, since the same Spirit of God that raised Jesus from the dead lives in us, He will also give life to our mortal bodies. It is the Spirit of Christ who can bring healing to our physical bodies, and the same Spirit who later will resurrect those same bodies. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory.’”

Because of all the Lord has done for us, we are debtors, not to live after the flesh, for they that live after the flesh will die. Rather, we are to, through the power of the Holy Spirit, put to death the deeds of our body and live. The Holy Spirit leads believers into righteousness, and the proof that an individual(s) are children of God is that they follow His leading.

Believers have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear. The belief that a believer is still in bondage to the law and fearful of God’s wrath is not biblical. John wrote in his first epistle: “Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” (1 Jn 4:17-18) Believers needn’t walk in slavery to sin or fear God’s judgment because they have been set free by the Spirit of God and are loved by Him.

We have received the Spirit of adoption. This idea of adoption into the Kingdom is an interesting one, and bears significant implications for believers. As David Guzek writes, “Under Roman adoption, the life and standing of the adopted child changed completely. The adopted son lost all rights in his old family and gained all new rights in his new family; the old life of the adopted son was completely wiped out, with all debts being canceled, with nothing from his past counting against him any more.” A believer’s old life has been completely wiped out, and their debt of sin has been canceled. Nothing from their past is counted against them, and they have obtained all the rights of inheritance of the family of God.

By this Spirit of adoption we can cry out, “Abba, Father.” This phrase appears three times in the NT, once by Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane in Mark 14:36, here in Romans, and in Gal 4:1-7. The word Abba is akin to a child calling his or her father Daddy, a term of endearment. So, just like Jesus, we can confidently approach our heavenly Father with a closeness and an intimacy because we have been adopted into the family of God.

Paul tells us that the Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. Again, John writes, “Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.” (1 Jn 3:24) We know when the Holy Spirit dwells in us because we have a new nature and we have a desire to keep His commandments. If we are children, then we are heirs. We are heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus. He repeats a similar thing in his letter to the Galatians, “Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.” (Gal 4:1-7)

In ending this section, Paul says that we are joint-heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, if we suffer with Him that we may also be glorified together. Many turn their backs on Christ, counting the sufferings of this life not to be worth it. Paul told Timothy, “This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.” (2 Tim 2:11-13) We must be willing to suffer and endure the hardships that accompany being a Christian, not denying Him, for our reward is the inheritance of eternal life. In the remainder of the chapter Paul will continue his discussion on the suffering that we encounter in this life, and how believers have hope in this suffering.

Romans 7 - Dead to the Law

 

Last time in Romans, we saw how believers are dead to sin. Our old man has been crucified (put to death) with Christ, and our sin nature has been rendered powerless. We have been freed from sins power because we are under grace. We are no longer slaves to sin, but have become slaves to God through faith. In this chapter, Paul will explain how believers are also set free from the law, but how it is there as a reminder of our sinful state.

He begins with a similar phrase of that in chapter 6, “Or do you not know,” again, meaning what he was about to say was familiar to them. He continued, “brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives?” He was returning back to what he said in 6:14 that sin no longer had dominion over them because they were not under law but under grace. Now, he will explain this in greater detail.

He illustrates his point with marriage, another topic they would be familiar with. Under Old Testament law, a woman was bound to her husband until death, and if she divorced and remarried prior to his death, she was considered an adulterous. However, if he died, she was free to remarry. In like manner, Old Testament believers were not permitted to divorce themselves from the law, because that was what God had ordained until Christ. Now that Christ has died and risen again, believers have become dead to the law by the body of Christ that they can become married to Him who was raised from the dead. In the Scriptures, the Church is described as the bride of Christ (2 Co 11:2, Eph 5:25-27, and Rev 19:6-9). It is in the betrothal stage now, but will go through the marriage and marriage supper after the rapture during the 7-year tribulation.

Just as believers have died to sin and are set free from it, they have also died to the law and are set free from it. Paul also wrote to the Galatians, “For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God.” This, again, took place at the cross. God’s purpose in this is so that we should bear fruit unto Him. Jesus told His disciples, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” (Jn 15:5)

Now Paul begins to include himself with his readers. When they were controlled or dominated by the sin nature, the prohibitions of the law aroused their sinful desires. The very fact that it says not to do something makes people want to do it. Paul reminds us that following sinful passions leads to death. However, believers have been delivered from the law by dying to it, that they can serve in the newness of the Spirit rather than in the oldness of the letter. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” (2 Co 3:6) The old covenant was based on obedience to the written law, and brought condemnation. The new covenant is based on faith in the blood of Jesus, and is sealed by the Holy Spirit.

So, if the law arouses man’s sinful passions and leads to death, “Is the Law sin?” Paul asks. He answers, again, “Certainly not!” He said he (referring to his own experience now) would not have known sin if it were not for the law. Sin here refers to the sin nature referenced in chapter 6:6 (the body of sin). He would not have known lust if it hadn’t been for the law that said not to covet. It’s been likened to an Xray machine: It’s not to blame for what it exposes, it only reveals what is already there. He picks the tenth commandment of coveting which is a sin of the heart. People like to focus on the outward actions, but the Lord is looking at the heart because this is where it always starts.

Sin took opportunity by the commandment to produce in him all manner of evil desire. Again, the law incites man’s sinful passions. There’s something in man when he is told not to do something that makes him want to do it more. It’s like the sign that says “don’t walk on the grass,” and then you see people walking on the grass. However, if you remove the sign, the problem largely disappears. The law reveals the rebellious heart of man toward God.

Without the law, sin was dead. Again, Paul is referring to his relationship with sin prior to coming to Christ, and here he is probably referring to when he was a child before the age of accountability. Sin was still present, but he was not aware of it. However, when the commandment came (he learned right from wrong), he became aware of sin, and of his own spiritual death.

The Commandment which Paul thought would bring him life, actually brought him death. Sin took the opportunity by the commandment to deceive him, and then to kill him. It was Paul’s sin nature that rebelled against the commandment and led him astray. The law was not the problem; Paul’s sin was the problem. The law is holy, and the commandment is holy, just and good. It was not the law that actually brought his death, but the sin that the law revealed. The law showed him how exceedingly (undeniably) sinful he really was. As one commentator put it, “The Christian life isn’t difficult; it is impossible.” It is impossible if we are going to be righteous by keeping the law in our own efforts.

Next, Paul changes from the past to the present tense to describe his current struggles with sin, and how even that proves the law to be good. He states that the law is spiritual, but he is carnal, sold under sin. The law, although good as it is, cannot deliver a person from the power of sin. Paul admits that he has a carnal or fleshly nature that he has to contend with. It’s not that a believer no longer has to battle sin, but the proof he has a new nature is that he does battle it. Martin Luther said on V 14, “That is the proof of the spiritual and wise man. He knows that he is carnal, and he is displeased with himself; indeed, he hates himself and praises the Law of God, which he recognizes because he is spiritual. But the proof of a foolish, carnal man is this, that he regards himself as spiritual and is pleased with himself.”

Paul continues that he does not understand what he is doing. What he wants to do he does not do, and what he hates, he keeps on doing. The fact that he had this struggle proves that the law is good. Even though believers are no longer under the sentence and condemnation of the law, it still serves the purpose to reveal their sin. He also acknowledges that it is no longer him who does it, but the sin (sin nature) that dwells in him. It’s not that believers are not responsible for their sin, but that it is not part of their new nature in Christ. Paul was no longer Paul the old unregenerate man, but a man who had been born again and counted righteous through faith in Jesus Christ.

He stated that in him (in his flesh) dwelt no good thing. If we ever find ourselves shocked or horrified that we said, did, or even thought something, it may be an indicator we have an elevated view of ourselves. We don’t have a full understanding of how sinful we really are. If we choose to walk in the flesh, there really is no limit to the depths we can go, unfortunately. Paul said he wanted to do what was right, but he could not find the power to carry it out.

He repeats himself by saying the good he wanted to do he didn’t do, and the evil he didn’t want to do, he practiced. If he did what he didn’t want to do, it was no longer him that did it, but the sin nature that dwelt in him. Again, he was not identifying as Paul the sinner, but as Paul the justified child of God.

Paul found a law (principle) that, although he wanted to do good, evil was still present with him. He delighted in the law after the inward man (the new man created in Christ Jesus), but there was another principle in his members warring against the law of his mind to bring him into captivity to the law of sin. The new nature is called the law of the mind because the mind has the ability to understand and make moral judgments. The sin nature is constantly warring against our new nature to try to bring us back into slavery again.

He closes by saying, O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” Again, this is written in the present tense, so Paul viewed himself this way at the time of the writing of this epistle. And if Paul, the author of almost half the New Testament books, viewed himself this way, believers would be hard pressed to think themselves any better. This is because the law declares them to be so. Again, believers can focus on the outward actions, but when they get down to the sins of the heart, all their thoughts, feelings, and motivations are called into question. This does not mean they are not free to say no to sin, because they are truly free. However, the law is a mirror that gives them a reality check of where they are in the sanctification process (James 1:22-25).

Paul was not the only one who thought this way. Isaiah, when he saw the glory of the Lord, said, “Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:5) Job, a man whom the Bible refers to as being perfect and upright, said the following after the Lord spoke to Him out of the whirlwind, “I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee.  Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:5-6) The closer believers draw to the Lord, the more aware they become of their own sin.

Paul’s answer to his question is, “I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Jesus is the answer, folks! Believers, despite their best efforts and intentions, cannot walk in victory over their sin nature. It is only through faith in Jesus Christ who kept the law perfectly that victory can be realized.

If we are honest, as believers, we can all relate to Paul in his struggles with sin. Although we are truly free, we lack the faith (or fail to exercise it) at times to walk it out. We find ourselves not doing what we should, and doing the things we hate. We may be like Paul who said he didn’t understand why he was doing the things he was doing. We need to remember that just like we have died and have been set free from sin, we have died to and have been set free from the law. We don’t identify as the old you or me, an unregenerate sinner, but as a justified child of God. We don’t get to identify this way just because we want to as is popular today, but we identify as a child of God because it is actually true. The law is not there to set us free from the power of sin, but to remind us that sin is there. That should drive us, like Paul, to say “Oh wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death? This is when we turn to Jesus who is our victory. Believers are justified by faith, but “The just shall live by his faith.? It’s by faith the whole way! In the next chapter we will see the role the Holy Spirit plays in our justification and sanctification.

Romans 6 - Set Free from Sin!

In the previous chapter of Romans, Paul ended by comparing sin and death through Adam with the grace of God and eternal life through Jesus Christ. He said that where sin abounded, grace abounded much more. God’s unearned favor is limitless to those who come to Him by faith.

So far, Paul has clearly laid out the Gospel in the first five chapters of Romans, ultimately concluding that a person must be justified by faith. However, that’s not the end of the story. If we recall, he said in chapter 1, “The just shall live by faith.” There’s more to the Christian life than just getting our fire insurance. Many Churches and ministries get the Gospel message down solid, but fail to disciple believers on how to walk a victorious Christian life. If the devil cannot keep us from salvation, he will try to side-line us as believers by getting us caught up in sin. In the next three chapters Paul is going to explain that our faith in the Lord and what He did on the cross for us is also key in our walking in victory over sin.

Picking up on this idea of grace abounding much more than sin from chapter 5, Paul writes, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?” The temptation for some is to say that since we are saved by grace through faith, apart from works, we can just live it up because God’s grace will cover it even more so. The tense of the verb “continue” means to habitually practice sin. To the professing believer who thinks they can practice sin, you have to question whether or not they have received the real Gospel? Only the Lord truly knows, but this demonstrates there has not been a real heart change. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Co 6:9-10) So important is this idea that Paul repeats it three times, here in 1 Corinthians, in Galatians 5, and in Ephesians 5. Those who habitually practice sin will not inherit the kingdom of God. In contrast, true believers have been given a new nature, and will no longer want to practice sin.

This is where repentance comes in. Implicit in the Gospel message is the understanding that we have been living in a way that is not pleasing to the Lord, and that He wants us to turn from our sins. There is a tendency in the church to shy away from the topic of repentance, but Jesus did not. After His temptation in the wilderness, He went to Galilee, and began preaching, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Mat 4:17) “That was just for Jesus,” some might say, “He is the Son of God.” However, the apostles also preached repentance. On the day of Pentecost, Peter told the people, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38) And again after the healing of the lame man, “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.” (Acts 3:19) So, repentance is something we should be preaching as well.

To help illustrate the idea of repentance, suppose my wife and I adopted a child, at a certain point after bringing them into our home, we would have a conversation with them about what our expectations for them are as a member of the family. We would also at some point have a conversation with them about what the consequences might be if they do not meet those expectations. Nothing they do or don’t do will affect their status as a member of our family, but it can affect what type of relationship they have with us. When we get saved, we are adopted into the family of God. Nothing we do or don’t do will affect our status as a child of God, but the Lord has a different way for us to live.

Paul’s answer to his original question of whether or not we should continue in sin is, “Certainly not,” or some of your translations say “God forbid!” As believers, there has been a permanent change in our relationship to sin. Before we were saved, we were dead in our sin, but now we are dead to it. If we have died to sin, why would we want to live in it any longer?

Paul says , “Do you not know,” implying what he was about to say should be common knowledge for the believer. At salvation, we are baptized (immersed) into the body of Christ by the Holy Spirit (1 Co 12:13), and are baptized into His death. We were buried with Him through baptism into death, and just as He was raised to life by the glory of the Father, we are also raised to walk in newness of life. We are united together with Him in the likeness of His death, as well as in the likeness of His resurrection. “United together” is a close union, and is used to explain the process by which a graft becomes united with the life of the tree. We are united with Christ, and receive our life from Him.

This re-birth into the life of the Spirit is one in which the old you and the old me dies, and we are raised a new creation in Christ. Water baptism, where we are immersed in water, signifies what has already taken place on the inside. Much like circumcision for the Old Testament believer, it is an outward sign of an inward faith.

So far, Paul has shown how we have been freed from the guilt and punishment of sin, and now he will explain how we are also free from its power. Most of us as Bible-believing Christians are not using the grace of God as a license to sin, but so often we walk in defeat because we do not believe we are really free. We all have those sins that we struggle with in which it feels like that sin has power over us, but the battle over sin is not primarily a power encounter. Rather, it is a truth encounter. Jesus said, “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (Jn 8:32)

Next, Paul directly addresses the old man. He says, “knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. Our old man represents who we were before coming to Christ, like Adam who was in rebellion to God. It is part of man’s nature to try to reform himself, but the Lord says he’s got to die. He died on the cross with Jesus. Crucifixion was an automatic death sentence, and was a death of the worst kind. The body of sin, also called the flesh or sin nature, is that part of us that is still affected by sin. It is why we are still tempted and feel the pull toward sinful behavior. Paul stated it has been done away with (rendered powerless). I’ve heard it said that it is like a quadriplegic, he can yell, scream, and sound intimidating to you or me, but he cannot make us do anything because he has been stripped of his power. Since we died with Christ, we are freed (justified) from sin.

Paul restates this to the Galatians, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” I have been crucified with Jesus on the cross, therefore, my old self is dead. However, Jesus now lives in me, and the life I live in the body I live by faith in Him who died for me.

Now, if we (our old man) died with Christ, we believe we will also live with Him. Christ has been raised from the dead, and does not need to die anymore. Death no longer has dominion over Him. He has died to sin once for us all, and He now lives to God. The sacrifice of Himself for our sins is sufficient.

Paul continues, “Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The word reckon does not mean “I guess,” as if to say, “I reckon I’ll have Texas barbecue for lunch.” It is the same word Paul used in chapter 4 when speaking of God’s imputed righteousness. Again, it is an accounting term that, in this context, means to count it as so. The Strong’s dictionary states the following: “This word deals with reality. If I ‘logizomai’ or reckon that my bank book has $25 in it, it has $25 in it. Otherwise, I am deceiving myself. This word refers to facts not suppositions.” In other words, it’s just math, folks! God says we’re dead to sin and alive unto God, we are to believe it, and that settles it.

For this reason we are to not let sin reign in our mortal bodies, to obey its lusts. We are not to present our members as instruments of unrighteousness, but rather as instruments of righteousness unto God. We are alive from the dead, so we should act like it by presenting ourselves before God in obedience.

Next, Paul states that sin shall not have dominion over us, for we are not under law, but under grace. Part of God’s divine unearned favor is that we have been set free from sin. The law could not free us, but only condemn us. The grace of God on the other hand, has truly set us free. We are free not to sin. At any given point that I am tempted to sin, I can say, no, through the power of Christ working in me. This may sound like the power of positive thinking, hoping to become something we are not. However, as Chuck Missler writes, “The Christian life is not trying to become what you are not. The Christian life is experiencing what you are—in Christ.”

Similar to his question at the beginning of the chapter, Paul asks if we should sin since we are not under the law but under grace? If you have ever had to confront someone on sin, one of the classic lines people use is that grace covers it (or something to that effect). With that mindset, we can justify anything we want. However, as we have already seen, grace is not the freedom to sin, but the freedom from sin.

Paul answers his own question the same way, “Certainly not!” Again, as if it should be common knowledge for the believer, he asks, “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” It’s worth noting at this point, since Christ has set us free, it is a willing servitude (I sin because I want to). If we obey our appetites, we will become slaves to it. It’s amazing how quickly we can become enslaved to things, and how strong those addictions can become. Although we are technically still free, it certainly doesn’t feel like it. There are the physical and psychological addictions, as well as the spiritual forces that keep trying to pull us back to that particular sin(s). If we continue to serve sin, it will lead to death. However, if we are slaves to obedience, it leads to righteousness. It comes down to a choice: who are we gonna serve? The instant we choose the Lord and His ways; the freedom is there available to us if we reckon it so by faith.

Paul thanked the Lord that though they were (past tense) slaves to sin, they obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which they were entrusted. They responded to the conviction of the Holy Spirit and the call of God and believed the Gospel message. As a result, they were set free from sin, and became slaves to righteousness. I’m reminded of the words of Jesus, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore, “if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” Jesus has made us free, folks!

Paul was using the imagery of slavery because it would have been common to the reader, and painted an accurate picture of either our relationship to sin or to Christ. Just as they had presented their members as instruments of uncleanness and lawlessness, leading to more lawlessness, now they were to present their members as slaves for holiness (sanctification). They had been counted righteous by faith, now God wanted to make them righteous practically. When they were slaves to sin, they were free from the concerns of being righteous. However, Paul asked them what fruit did they have in those things for which they were now ashamed? The obvious answer is, none. There is never good fruit that comes out of sin. It only leads to death. In Galatians it states, “For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” (Gal 6:8) But, since they had been set free from sin and become slaves to God, they had their fruit to holiness which leads to everlasting life. If we work for sin we will be paid with death, but on the contrary, God’s free gift to us is eternal life In Jesus Christ our Lord.

So, we have established that we are free from sin, but are we so free that we have arrived and no longer sin at all? Theologians call this sinless perfection, the belief that we can reach a point in our Christian Walk where we never sin anymore. A passage that immediately comes to mind in relation to this topic is in 1 John where it states, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” (1 Jn 1:8-10) Because we have been set free from sin, we can, day-by-day, moment-by-moment, say no to sin because of what the Lord has done for us on the cross. Not only can we say no, we are called to do so. However, in the grand picture, God knows we won’t do this perfectly this side of Heaven, and later in Romans, Paul will describe his own struggles with sin.

In summary, we have been baptized into the body of Christ, and are united with Him in His death and resurrection, receiving our life from Him. Our old self is dead, and our sin nature no longer has power over us. We are to count ourselves dead to sin, but alive in Jesus Christ. Sin no longer has control over us because we are under grace. We have been set free from our slavery to sin, and are now slaves to righteousness. We have been given the free gift of eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord. These are quite simple concepts that are really revolutionary for us as believers. As I stated earlier, it’s just math. We take God at His word and stand on it. However, there are times when we lack the faith to walk this out. We shouldn’t, but for whatever reason, we do. Paul will speak to this in the following chapter.

Reader, are you habitually practicing sin today? The Scriptures are clear, those who practice sin will not inherit the kingdom of Heaven. This is the evidence you have not had a true heart change; you are not born again. The Scriptures say to examine ourselves to see whether or not we are in the faith. Are you trusting in the Jesus of the Bible, and are you coming to Him on the basis of faith alone? If not, you need to do so today. Then the Lord will give you a new heart, you will be born again, and you will want to serve and obey Him.

In what ways are we allowing ourselves to be slaves to sin? Remember, the just shall live by faith, and its our faith in the Lord that we reckon ourselves to be dead to sin and alive to Him. It’s our faith in Him that places us under His grace rather than the law’s dominion. It’s our faith in Jesus that has made us free from sin. Whom the Son sets free is free indeed! Let’s walk in that freedom!