ROMANS 7:1-6 Law and Grace

 

THE ARGUMENT SO FAR IN PAUL’S LETTER TO THE ROMANS

 1.       1:1-17 Introduction

2.      1:18 - 3:20   Here Paul shows us how the whole world is guilty before God.  All of us have sinned.  All of us are sinful by nature and sinful in practice.  “There is no-one righteous, no not one” (3:10). We all have belittled His glory (3:23). We all have exchanged His glory for the things that He has made. All of us are idolaters. All of us treasure the things made by God more than we treasure God (1:23).  Therefore, a holy, just, good God is now revealing His wrath against this substitution of His glory. This leads to God’s righteous “wrath and fury” (2:8).   This is  where we all are heading. This is the bad news!

3.       In 3:21 we find a radical announcement, and from here to the end of Romans 5 Paul shows us that there is a way to get right with God.  It is called justification by faith. We are taught to look by faith to Jesus, whom God put forward (on the cross) as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.  All our guilt is absorbed in Christ's suffering and death (3:24-25). Those who look by faith to Him are justified. All it takes is to look and believe. Nothing more! No law of works needed (3:28). We receive our salvation as a free gift (5:17-19). This is the doctrine of free grace. Jesus plus nothing is everything!

4.      In Romans 6:1 & 6:15 this doctrine of free grace raises a great objection: "What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may abound?"(6:1) Someone was arguing, "If I, sinful being that I am, am justified simply by looking to Jesus – an act of sheer grace – well then let me  go on sinning. Does your doctrine of free grace not imply that the more I sin, the greater the grace of God will appear to be?“  The same reasoning is found again in Romans 6:15:  Paul shows us that this is warped logic. His response to this objection is both times, “No!“ [1]  Why not? Because people who are justified (freed from sin) have died to sin (6:10). That means that they will not continue in sin! “Sin will not have dominion over you, since you are not under law, but under grace.“ (6:14).

5.      Romans 6:2-23: The fruit of free grace (trusting in Christ) are superior:   they lead to sanctification and ultimately eternal life. The fruit of trusting in the law is that the law will not be able to make you righteous. The purpose of the law is not to save you. It can at best only expose you and shame you  for who you are – and this leads to death (6:23)

 Romans 7

We are now going to learn that living under grace provides us  with  far greater power and  motives for abstaining from sin, than  we can obtain from living under the law.  

Our relationship to the law should now be clear. We are free from the law in the sense that we do not need to keep it to be saved from the wrath of God. That does not mean that we can now ignore the law. We can’t! It remains God’s holy law, and the 10 commandments remain God’s holy standard. And if  you love Jesus, you will keep His commandments.  

But, thank God, you will not have to rely on your keeping of the law to make it to heaven.   And now Paul explains a little more about the Christian’s new relationship to the law. He does that by using an illustration from marriage.  

Paul is still essentially answering the objection found in Romans 6:15 -”Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace?"

In Romans 7:1-3 he uses marriage as an illustration. When two people are married they make a legal vow before God. 

• As long as they live that married couple is bound by the law to remain together.
• When a spouse dies, that law is no longer binding.Their partner is free from that vow.
• They are free to remarry if they so choose. Their remarriage will not be considered adultery (7:3). 

7:1-3  can be summarized like this:  legal obligation ends with death.  Before Christ took us as His own, we were bound to the law. The law held us accountable before God. It was the standard by which God was judging us. Breaking that law is  sin, and here are the consequences:  the wages of sin is death” (6:23). 

In  Romans 7:4ff  we read of another death: “you have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you belong to Him who has been raised from the dead…”. Now, if you become a believer in Christ you die to the law. You die to your old life regulated by the law; you now live under Christ.   And so we  read in 7:4:  "Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God."  

Death to the law happened when you were joined to Christ. The old contract or legal obligation is over.  The moment you  meet Christ you die to the law and you enter into  another marriage. Christ is, so to speak your new "husband".  

In the Bible He is frequently  spoken of as the bridegroom (Mk 2:19-20; Jn 3:29; Matt 25:1-13; Rev 21:2, 9-10).

And the aim of this "marriage" (as is true of any marriage) is that you "bear fruit for God." (7:4). There it is. That means that when you are converted you have new desires, a new attitude, you make new choices, and your actions produce God glorifying fruit!  It is inevitable!  You have been planted in new soil, and you must produce fruit in keeping with your repentance. 

So, being set free from the law does not mean that we can do as we please. Yes, we  were released from legalistic, joyless service, but we  were not released from service!   

7:6 says that we now serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.

 In this way Paul answers  the objection posed in   Romans 6:15. 

So then we find that it is impossible for those that are under grace to love lawlessness!  

Also, the indwelling Holy Spirit renewing you through His sanctifying power cannot produce bad fruit in you.  What is inside must come out.  You must bear fruit for God to prove your attachment to Christ. Spiritual fruit prove that you are a Spirit filled Christian.

And we shall see, as we make progress through Romans 7 that this does not mean that Christians won’t sin. We will, but it does not make us happy. Paul will confess that he does struggle with sin. This is something that makes him unhappy, when it happens.  But thank God that his salvation is not grounded in his perfect keeping of the law, but it is grounded in Jesus’ finished work on the cross.  And for that Paul is eternally grateful. And he loves the Lord Jesus because of that, and he serves them with a full heart because of that, notwithstanding his faults, sins and shortcomings

A further illustration[2] 

This  illustration will help us to clarify the relationship between law and grace, between our former life under the law and our present life under Christ:  

There one was a man, a bachelor, to whom all his domestic chores became very tedious. So, he decided to employ a housekeeper. In her work contract he drew up a long list of rules   and expectations and to make a point, he stuck his rules to the kitchen wall, as a perpetual reminder to her :  

·       Meals are to be served at eight, at one and at six

·       Dishes were to be done immediately after each meal

·       The house was to be kept spotlessly clean at all times

·        Linen was to be changed once a week  

·       He even went into minutest details:  don’t pour tea leaves or coffee grains down the kitchen sink        Etc.

Needless to say, the housekeeper didn’t always stick to his rules. In fact, she soon began to resent them, and the more she thought about all the rules the more resentful she became, because she knew that she wasn’t that perfect someone. And to be spiteful, and in sometimes in rebellion   she even  secretly poured the tea leaves or coffee grain down the kitchen sink…

She knew that there was precious little point about challenging him for all his rules, for he was after all her employer, and he was a strict man. 

And then, after some time, the unthinkable happened … he asked her to marry him!

And things became very different from that time. She grew to love him. He even took down the rules from the kitchen wall. She became his bride- the queen of the home. Their relationship  had changed drastically. Because she loved him, she wanted to do that which she knew he would appreciate. She did it freely and willingly. And he loved her because of  her love for him – and not because she did things always perfectly.  There was a distinct difference between her past and her present experience  

This illustrates the believer’s relationship with the law.

The law in itself, though it is fair and just, it doesn’t please us. 

We know that we are not perfectly inclined to keep it, and because of that we begin to resent it. And often we are discouraged because of that.  

But when we are converted, we love the One who has taken our burden caused by the law away.

We love Him because He has given us new life, new hope and a new destiny.

And we do not find his commandments burdensome (1 John 5:3).

There is a different quality about this relationship – and it comes from the heart (6:17).

The former comes from a sense of coercion, but there is no joy in it.  The latter  comes  from a heart of love.

And now let me ask you … why do you do the things that you do ?

Because you feel you have to?

Or because you love Him?

 

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[1] Gr. mē genoito  (μη γενοιτο)  - may it not be!  – Vocative;  [Romans 3:4; 3:6; 3:31; 6:2; 6:15; 7:7; 7:13; 9:14; 11:1; 11:11]

[2] I have adapted this story from Stuart Olyott’s commentary on Romans, p.65ff

ROMANS 1:16,17 DO WE NEED ANOTHER REFORMATION?

 

The world changed on October 31, 1517.  Martin Luther[1], a Roman Catholic monk and a teacher at an Augustinian seminary had had enough.  He was greatly disturbed by the sale of indulgences. Let me explain.   

A Catholic bishop, Albert of Mainz (1490 – 1545) was the overseer of two bishoprics, but he wanted even more power and influence. He desired an additional archbishopric over Mainz. At that time the practise of buying of such bishoprics[2] was the done thing. It was actually against church law to have more than one bishopric, but money talks. And greedy pope Leo X (who needed money to build St. Peter’s basilica in Rome) allowed him to do this against the payment of a huge sum. Albert borrowed the money from a wealthy man[3].  He obtained the electorate of Mainz in 1514.  But how was he going to pay back for this?  He procured the services of a Dominican monk, Johan Tetzel, who was known for granting indulgences on behalf of the Catholic Church in exchange for money. Indulgences were guarantees underwritten by the pope that sins committed could be forgiven by means of a payment into the church coffers.  

This spiritual abuse made Martin Luther angry. He had to speak out, and so he took his pen and began to write his famous 95 theses. He posted them on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg. The theses or protests were designed to spark a debate,  but it did far more. It started a huge fire in the church, community and country, and soon it spilled over into other countries around Germany. 

The corruption of the church had been named and exposed for what it was. The common people saw that clearly. And the 95 Theses revealed that the church was corrupt, greedy and in dire need of a thorough going reformation.  

The 62^nd Thesis of Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses powerfully declares, “The Church’s true treasure is the gospel of Jesus Christ.”  The Roman church of Luther’s day had lost sight of the gospel of Jesus. Just as in the days of Jesus and the Pharisees, the Catholic church of Luther’s day had obscured and replaced the simple gospel of Jesus with manmade traditions and a system of self-righteous works and performance. I remind you that the Gospel does not focus on performance, but on reliance in Jesus ALONE. The gospel teaches us to rest in Jesus and His work of the cross.

Reformation Day celebrates the liberating gospel of Jesus Christ. Christ plus nothing is everything! The 1517 event set off a spark which ignited the hearts of many – men like Martin Luther, John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, Menno Simmons, John Knox, and so many other preachers. They were like matches ignited  by  God,  who used them in in turn  to ignore   the thirsty souls of the people  who  had  for so long walked in darkness – a repeat of Isaiah 9:2:  

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.”  

They directed the people’s attention to the gospel of Jesus. They showed their people that what they needed most was the gospel of Jesus. They needed that great Word from the true Shepherd more than they needed words of popes, bishops and  priests.  

The Reformation started a gospel preaching, missionary movement which spread like wildfire. It brought renewal to the church. The church started singing songs of praise to God. Luther loved singing. He taught the church to sing. New hymns were written.  Sermons were preached from the Bible and in the language of the people. People were converted, changed and renewed by the Word of God.   

We celebrate Reformation Day,  even 508 years  later. We remember the  day  the gospel was given back to the church, after many years of darkness, in  a similar way in which the Jews celebrate  Hanukkah[4] (Festival of lights),  commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem and subsequent rededication of the Second Temple at the beginning of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd century BC.

Martin Luther’s Conversion

Luther’s encounter with the gospel was a journey – like yours and mine! The actual date of Martin Luther's conversion is disputed. Some think that it is before the posting of the Ninety-Five Theses. It seems more likely however, that Luther’s conversion happened in 1519. In reading the Ninety-Five Theses, it is clear that Luther still held on to a number of formative Roman Catholic doctrines. At that point, he tried to correct the church from the corruptions.  But Luther’s own testimony tells us that his conversion happened while he was lecturing through the Psalms a second time in the early months of 1519.  Shortly before his death, Luther reflected on his conversion,  and  in 1545 he said this:  

“Meanwhile, I had already during that year returned to interpret the Psalter anew. I had confidence in the fact that I was more skilful, after I had lectured in the university on St. Paul’s epistles to the Romans, to the Galatians, and the one to the Hebrews. I had indeed been captivated with an extraordinary ardour for understanding Paul in the Epistle to the Romans…  a single word in (Romans)  Chapter 1, “In it the righteousness of God is revealed”… had stood in my way. For I hated that word “righteousness of God,” which, according to the use and custom of all the teachers, I had been taught to understand philosophically regarding the formal or active righteousness, as they call it, with which God is righteous and punishes the unrighteous sinner.

Though I lived as a monk without reproach, I felt that I was a sinner before God with an extremely disturbed conscience. I could not believe that he was placated by my satisfaction. I did not love, yes, I hated the righteous God who punishes sinners, and secretly… I was angry with God, and said, As if, indeed, it is not enough, that miserable sinners, eternally lost through original sin, are crushed by every kind of calamity by the law of the decalogue, without having God add pain to pain by the gospel and also by the gospel threatening us with his righteousness and wrath!” Thus I raged with a fierce and troubled conscience.

Nevertheless, I … most ardently desired to know what St. Paul wanted. At last, by the mercy of God, meditating day and night, I gave heed to the context of the words, namely, “In it the righteousness of God is revealed, as it is written, ‘He who through faith is righteous shall live.’” There I began to understand that the righteousness of God is that by which the righteous lives by a gift of God, namely by faith. And this is the meaning: the righteousness of God is revealed by the gospel, namely, the passive righteousness with which merciful God justifies us by faith, as it is written, “He who through faith is righteous shall live.” Here I felt that I was altogether born again and had entered paradise itself through open gates. There a totally other face of the entire Scripture showed itself to me….Thus that place in Paul was for me truly the gate to paradise.

Romans 1:16,17

This is the text that finally settled it for Luther. A little background to the letter is needed. 

Paul writes this letter to the Romans, probably from Corinth. When he wrote this letter he believed that he had fulfilled his ministry in the eastern Mediterranean region (15:17-23). From there he had hoped to go west, even as far as Spain (15:24), and he hoped to visit the Roman Christians (1:10), whose faith was reported upon (1:8), fulfilling a promise to them, and perhaps to solicit their help as a supporting church (15:24). The Roman church was probably born as a result of Pentecost, when Jews were present in Jerusalem  at the feast of Pentecost (Acts 2:10). There the Holy Spirit touched the lives of many, and subsequently the many returned back to their homes carrying the good news of the gospel with them, giving rise to gospel communities – churches, everywhere as they went. Within a few hundred years (and after much suffering) the Christian gospel would conquer the Roman empire and Europe, and the east, and North Africa. These early Christians were the matches that the Holy Spirit used to light fires everywhere. The gospel was the fuel which they carried. The gospel is God’s solution to save the world from itself, and most of all, to save it from His terrible wrath (see Romans 1:18ff).

Pray now that the gospel will save the world of our day, as our world currently heads into big trouble. There is no healing in sight for the many angry nations now at each other’s throats.   Our world has no power whatsoever to save itself. The world needs real salvation, and the gospel of God is given ALONE to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of Jesus’s Name among all the nations (1:5). That  was Paul’s mission – the gospel for  a perishing  world: 

“I am  under obligation to both Greeks and to Barbarians…”  (1:14). 

Paul’s great confidence for the world is the gospel of God (1:1,15,16). Is it your confidence, or are you still thinking that we can fix this world simply through politics and diplomacy, through education and replacing  Christianity with  all sorts of cheap  and useless philosophies? Let me ask again?

·       How was the world changed in Paul’s day?

·       How does the gospel work to change society?

·       How did it change Luther and Germany and so many other nations?

Look at 1:16,17.  Paul says, 

“for I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also to the Greek”… and then he gives the punch line, “For in it (i.e. the gospel) the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written (in Hab.2:4),  ‘The righteous shall live by faith’”.

What is it in the gospel that makes the difference in the world? It is the righteousness of God. Luther struggled with this, because he constantly thought of self - righteousness, when in truth that thought is furthest here. He hated God, because He knew that in himself he could not attain to that standard. But Paul speaks here not of self- righteousness as a means  for being justified  before God. No! He speaks of an alien righteousness, a righteousness imputed or given from the outside.  It is the righteousness of God, freely given to sinners who believe  on the merits of  the death of His Son who died for sin, so that whoever looks to Him is not condemned (i.e. is justified). By this righteousness imputed, I am counted righteous and I receive the power to be righteous.  It is THAT which Martin Luther finally understood, and this changed EVERYTHING. This is the Gospel!

How do I receive that righteousness? 

Answer: By faith. 

What is faith? 

Faith is believing the gospel of God! That means that you believe and receive  all that is there in the gospel for you: Jesus  died for your sin and He exchanges His  righteous life for your unrighteousness.  

DO YOU BELIEVE THAT? When you stop trusting in yourself , stop looking at yourself , and when you look to Jesus and all that He is for you, then the Holy Spirit  does that great work  which happened at Pentecost  in a large scale , and again at the Reformation. 

Do we need another Reformation? 

Don’t you see that what our churches and our world lack  most at this time  is that God centred perspective? We are  all so focussed on human solutions. We are caught up in secular philosophical thought systems that contradict and deny the power of the gospel.   Repentance and believing the gospel is the ONLY cure for the world. Right now we need  fundamental change within  and the gospel of Jesus alone contains the cure for that.   If not, we will soon destroy ourselves in this generation.

The church must not forget the lessons learned during the Reformation. 

We cannot forget what happens when the gospel is obscured and distorted and replaced by false cures procured from the devil’s medicine box. 

We need a new Reformation because everything else has failed and is failing. Humanism and its allies are bankrupt. 

We need God's help to reform our world again! 

We need Holy Spirit anointed preachers that radically believe in God and His word and preach it fearlessly and care little for public opinion. 

We need the truth as it is in Jesus. May God have mercy on us!

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[1] Martin Luther :  10 November 1483  – 18 February 1546

[2] Simony  is the act of selling church offices and sacred things. It is named after Simon Magus, who is described in the Acts of the Apostles as having offered two disciples of Jesus payment in exchange for their empowering him to impart the power of the Holy Spirit to anyone on whom he would place his hands. The term extends to other forms of trafficking for money in "spiritual things”

[3] Jacob Fugger -  a major German merchant, mining entrepreneur, and banker.

[4] Occurs roughly around the same time as Christmas

ROMANS 6:15-23 - “Obedience from the Heart“

 

Having  previously considered  Romans 6:1-14 we  consider  now  6:15-23. By way of a reminder  we remember that,     

1. Romans 3- 5 reminds us that our   acceptance with God is grounded in the gospel of His free grace.

2. Romans 6 teaches us that this grace truly changes, recreates us. Rom. 6:1   began with a question: 

“Are we to continue to sin in order that grace may abound?”   

The answer is No! 

The reason given is that our baptism into Christ – into His death, burial and resurrection  has shown the world that we are enabled to walk “in newness of life” (6:4).  Conversion is a powerful experience.  No matter how you were converted, what is indisputable is that your desires, your attitudes, your time, your interests are new. You are converted from being a God- hater to a God- lover.  That which He loves is now important to you. That which He hates you hate.   You are alive to God and dead to sin (6:11). Therefore, sin cannot rule your mind and body. While it is possible for any Christian to lapse into sin (see Rom 7:15ff) the sign of a  regenerated heart is that  it  will be  brought  to repentance  upon conviction of sin.  The most powerful evidence for being a Christian is this constant desire to want to live a godly life.   

Our text deals with a vital distinction relating to the question: What ultimately defines a true believer?  We shall see that the lines are finally drawn along the line of what sort of fruit people bear (cf. 6:20-23)

Let us follow Paul’s logic…

1.  6:15  begins with a similar question to 6:1,  “What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace “?  Again, we have a similar response to 6:1 … “By no means … do you not know…?  

In context, this question is precipitated by a statement which Paul makes in 6:14,

“For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace …”

As soon as Paul says this, he realizes that this statement will be misrepresented, misunderstood and misused by someone. 

There will be people who will use an ungodly logic and come to false conclusions about this wonderful doctrine of the free grace of God.   The sad thing about their warped logic is that it takes them  away from the gospel by chasing red herrings. But thankfully Paul retains his composure and   captures the red herring and forces his hearers  back to his essential point.

Remember then , that Paul is talking here about the wonderful freedom that becomes ours when we are liberated by Christ from the bondage of sin. We saw this especially in Rom. 5:1-11. There we find the great list of freedoms we enjoy under Christ:

•    we are justified by faith (5:1a)
•    we have peace with God (5:1b)
•    we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand (5:2a)
•    we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God (5:2b)
•    Even our sufferings are filled with meaning. Our sufferings produce more       than we think -  endurance, character, hope! (5:3-4)
•    Above all, God’s love is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit! (5:5) 

All this is produced under  the influences of God's grace. And embracing this all produces a freedom that law itself cannot give.  Sadly,  some people can very easily miss the point and come to conclusions that are not warranted, such as, 

• Let us sin that grace may abound (6:1) 
• Let us sin, because we are not under law (6:15)

2. Therefore, Paul has to put this now very bluntly in 6:16 :  

“Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience which leads to righteousness?”  

So, those who say, “Let us sin that grace may increase”  have missed the point badly. In reality  they are people who are still slaves of sin.

A slave is a person ‘under’ the authority of someone.

Paul thinks here of two categories of slaves : 

• slaves of sin, which leads to death or 
• “slaves of obedience which lead to righteousness” (Notice that  in 1:1 Paul identifies as a slave of Jesus).  Either way  we have to serve  somebody. To be a Christian  does not mean that you are  free to  think and act as you please.

 3. And then in 6:17-18, Paul  tells them what he knows to be true of them:

17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

What characterizes a true Christian – a slave of righteousness?

• A true Christian will not play with sin to show off the grace which they have received.
• A true Christian understands that sin is offensive to God.  
•  A true Christian  is aware that sin is the very thing for which Christ was nailed to the cross.
•  A true Christian is one who has moved away from under the slavery of sin to become a slave of Christ.
• But the ultimate proof of being a true Christian is this:  A true Christian obeys God from the heart!  Oh, the great difference between a religion that is driven by law (and mere external compliance) versus that faith that is driven by the heart. This difference is seen clearly between Simon the Pharisee and the sinful woman in Luke 7:36-50.   
• The true Christian is characterized by the mark of the new covenant, which is the receiving of a new heart - a heart that relates to God, loves God and obeys God.  (Jeremiah 31) 
• The true Christian’s obedient heart is instructed by “the standard of teaching to which they are committed” (6:17 Gr. tupon didaches)  -  This is the Word of God that we have now in our hands, which testifies to the character of God and of Christ whom we are called to follow and to imitate.                              

4. 6:19-23 Having explained that nature of biblical Christianity, he then goes on in the rest of the chapter to show us the very different fruit borne by being either  slaves of sin or  slaves of righteousness (Christ)

•  6:19a He begins with the recognition of our natural sluggishness/ inability to grasp doctrine -  “I am speaking in human terms because of your natural limitations” (you are weak in your natural selves). This   fact, combined with personal laziness in getting to know the message of the Bible, frequently contributes to us falling prey to  the temptations offered to us by false teachers and coming to false conclusions, such as ‘let us sin that grace may increase or let us sin because we are not under law but under grace”. 
•  6:19b He helps us to recognise the respective  trajectories of (i) past inclinations (as slaves of sin) which lead us on to a slippery downward slope (lawlessness leading to more lawlessness), and (ii) by way of contrast  our present inclinations (as obedient slaves of righteousness) leading to sanctification – i.e. becoming more like Jesus.
• 6:20-22 He helps us to understand the fruit of our respective trajectories:  

1.          Recognising that the former way of life (i.e. that former life of being slaves of sin, and ‘free from righteousness’’ - note the sarcasm) was a time in which we were bearing fruit of which we would now be ashamed of – and which led to death (5:21). 
2. Thankfully now, that we have been set free from sin, and have become slaves of God, the fruit we now bear are pleasant fruit that lead to sanctification (growing in the knowledge and the grace of God), and best of all, the promise of eternal life.

5. 6:23  His summary statement:    

•       Living as slaves of sin = the wages of sin is death; 
•       Living as slaves of righteousness = eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 THIS IS WHERE WE WANT TO FIND OURSELVES

 5:17 “you… have become obedient from the heart…” . We want to live as slaves of righteousness.  Obedience from the heart - this is the ultimate MARK of Christian faith and behaviour.

Our primary motive for not sinning does not come from obeying the law or rules. It comes from a far higher motive.  It comes from the heart. It is heartfelt. It is moved by a love for the Saviour who so deeply loves us.

It comes from the indwelling work of the grace of the Holy Spirit in us (Rom. 5:5).  We can obey because we have been enabled to obey from the heart.

When I become a Christian I have a new master: Jesus Christ. I am now a slave in His service. He owns me. And I follow Him with a thankful heart, knowing that I have been redeemed from the power of sin.  I have received power to say NO to ungodliness. I bear spiritual fruit.  I await eternal life.

And I do not test the Lord by asking stupid questions such as "shall I sin that your grace may look more glorious"?

 

ROMANS 6:1-7 Can we continue in sin, so that Grace may increase?

 

 

                           

As we now come to Romans 6 we find that the apostle Paul continues a thought begun in Chapter 5. There we learned something about the extensive consequences of the fall: In Adam’s fall we sinned all! Adam’s one disobedience affected us all.

To be human is to share in Adam’s fallen nature. This constitutes the doctrine of original sin.

We also learned that the one act obedience of Jesus brought about a right standing with God (justification) for many – i.e. all who believe in Him.

And now we want to focus on the connecting thought which leads us into the 6^th chapter. Paul has shown us the consequences of Adam’s fall as a result of one man’s disobedience. Adam trespassed against the only law given by His Creator in Genesis 2:17. The trespass of that law caused death and spiritual alienation from God. The breaking of that one law had devastating consequences for all of us.

That was long before Moses received the law from God.

But now in 5:20 Paul adds this thought, “the law came in to increase the trespass“. This is the law of Moses which came afterwards and which was much more detailed and specific in terms of what God’s will for His people is.  It makes us much more aware of the depth of sin, and in that sense, it increases the trespass – our sense of guilt.

And then Paul makes this astonishing statement: “…but where sin increased grace abounded all the more” … etc.     The light breaks through into our darkness!

Paul says that grace is greater than all our sin.

The work of Christ is greater than that which Adam and Adam’s race did.  

 1.  6:1-7   THE  DILEMMA BETWEEN  SIN AND GRACE

Paul now imagines some people saying, What do you mean, Paul? You hear their minds ticking and you hear them saying in Romans 6:1, “If you say that where sin increases, grace will increase all the more … well then, let us continue in sin so that grace may increase! “The thought goes, “if what Paul says is true …surely the more sin there is, the more grace or forgiveness there is.  The more sin there is, the greater the act of forgiveness will look like!”  Do you see that line of reasoning? This would open the door to careless living and indifference to holiness! This is where grace teaching potentially opens the door to rampant sinning.

This is the conclusion that Paul anticipates from some weak minds, and to this he now responds.   

 6:2 Paul’s answer: "May it never be!" 

Paul immediately takes such a thought captive: By no means! We cannot possibly entertain the thought that we continue in sin so that grace might increase!” 

Why not?   

He gives   3 answers in 6:1-7

 (i)   6:1-2  You cannot go on sinning so that grace may increase because you have died to sin.  What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?

To be a Christian means to be dead to sin.  That means that if you should choose to continue in sin that would be a contradiction of who you are.  Why did Christ die?   He died because of sin! If this is true then we cannot use sin to make God’s grace look greater.  That is twisted thinking.  So, put this thought out of your mind.   

 (ii)   6:3-4 You cannot go on sinning that grace may increase because of the implications of your baptism into Christ. “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life”. 

Baptism is a powerful illustration. In baptism we illustrate our identification with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection.  Those three words are used in 6:3-4.  In our baptism we tell the world that we have died with Christ, who died for sin. Our sin lies buried with Christ in the grave. His holy death broke the power of my sin, and not my sin only, but the sin of every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is what baptism signifies.  

In my baptism I have   declared that I have died with Christ to sin!   So then, how can I sin so that grace may increase? I can’t!  I am saved from my former life of sin  and I am saved to walk in the newness of life (6:4).  

 (iii) 6:5-7 You cannot   go on sinning so that grace may increase because of the decisive change brought about in your life by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: “For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old self  was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For one who has died has been set free from sin”.

Here Paul reminds us that our lives do not simply end with a death to the old things. There is more! Christ did not only die. He rose!  He did not only die for our sins, but He rose to give us life!  He rose to give us present power to live victoriously.  So, Paul is here not only speaking about the resurrection to come. He is speaking about resurrection power NOW. This means that we are no longer enslaved to sin. We have  power to overcome sin.  And the question comes back to us one more time: “Are we to continue in sin that grace may be abound? “And again, the answer is NO! It is contrary to your new nature. 

Being a recipient of grace does not give us a license to sin. Paul makes it clear that we cannot make God’s grace more glorious by continuing to sin. In a nutshell: You can’t go on sinning because 

(i) you have died to sin 

(ii) Your baptism shows it 

(iii) the power of the resurrection at work in you will refute that.   

So that argument is dead!

In what sense then  is   God’s grace  made abundant  to us  in a world where we are so very aware of sin around us and in us ?

 2. 6: 8-13   THE RESURRECTION POWER AT WORK IN YOU DOES THIS ….

We have seen that our union with Christ in His death is linked to a resurrection which gives us new life, not only in the future when He comes again, but right now. That is very encouraging!  

Our resurrection in Christ begins at the new birth, not only at the second coming. New life in Christ starts the moment you have been born again. God is working His grace in us right now. Paul’s strong point here is that our old nature has been crucified with Christ, and not only crucified, but also raised with Christ (see also Col. 2:12-15). The direct result is that we are no longer slaves to sin. We live in the presence of sin, but we are no longer under the slavish power of sin.  This does not mean that Christians cannot sin, but it does mean that we have been set free from the power of sin; we now have the power to say “no!” to ungodliness (Titus 2:12).

With that in mind and with God’s power at work within us we now must take note of the following in 6:11-13:

“So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. 13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.

Here are four commands (imperatives) which we are able to obey, because of Christ’s resurrection power and grace are at work in us:   

a.      6:11 Consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.   Why does he say this? He knows that Christians do struggle with sin (see Romans 7).  But they also need to know that they are not slaves to sin (6:6). We must remember whose children we are, and what power is at work within us to overcome that sin. 

b.      6:12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body. Here is the second imperative – this is who you are (6:11) – now behave like who you claim to be! Take charge of your thought life, and your emotions and your passions and rule over them in the power that God has given you.  Our thoughts (which come out of the desires of our heart) ultimately determine our actions. That is why Paul in 2 Cor. 10:5 speaks about taking our thoughts captive and making them obedient to Christ. Remember  again - You are not under the dominion of sin. Your life is not characterized by the addictive, controlling bondage of the desires of sin. It does not mean that you do not struggle with sin, but if you do, you have been given grace / power to overcome! 

c.       6:13a  Do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness.  This is an extension of the last point.  Don’t let any part of your body be used as a tool for sin. Watch your body – your eyes, your ears, your hands, your feet – these can lead you to all sorts of sins: jealousy, covetousness, adultery, hate etc.

d.      6:13b Present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life.  Here is a positive command. Give your body to God.  The best way to deal with negative habits is to substitute them with positive habits. See Ephesians 5:22-29 as  an example!

3. 6:14  AN ENCOURAGEMENT - LIVE BY GRACE

“For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.” Paul is  saying this one more time:  The law does not have the power to enable you to do  to be righteous and to live righteously. That does not make the law bad. It remains God’s holy law. But the problem is that you do not have the power to keep it. The law tells you what you should do, but it doesn’t have the power to help you to do what you should do.

But grace is different.  Grace is God’s gift to you. And in every trial and temptation He says to you, Do not look to the law to help you. Ask me to give you grace for your moments of trial.  This is a strong invitation  to trust God  in every situation  you encounter

This is the power of your justification

This is the resurrection power of Christ’s finished work in you

Rejoice and believe. Trust Him to help you !

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