Romans 6:1-4 ESV
“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 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.”
We who are believing in Jesus Christ with God-given faith
have died with Christ to sin that we might live to Christ and to his
righteousness. Therefore, how can we live in sin any longer? For when we shared
with Christ in his baptism into death, it was so that we might walk in newness
of life in him.
For, Jesus died on that cross that we might no longer live
for ourselves but for him who gave his life up for us. And he shed his blood
for us on that cross to buy us back for God (to redeem us) so that we would now
be God’s possession, and so we would now honor God with our bodies.
So, our new lives in Christ Jesus aren’t supposed to be like
our old lives. For, we should have made a spiritual U-Turn when we believed in
Jesus Christ to be Lord (owner-master) and Savior of our lives. We were going
one direction, and now we should be going the opposite direction.
Romans 6:6-8 ESV
“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. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.”
This is the reason Jesus died for us on that cross, and it
is what should occur when we believe in Jesus Christ with God-given faith. Our
old lives of living for sin and self should have died with Christ so that we no
longer live in the way we did before, but so we now walk in the way of the
Spirit.
For, by faith in Jesus Christ we were set free from our
slavery (bondage, addiction) to sin so that sin would no longer have dominion
over our lives, so that it would no longer be our master. Sin should have no
more sway in our lives, but our lives should now be under the control of the
Holy Spirit.
But this is not a one-time event which takes place in our
lives, then we live our lives, and then when we die, we get to go to heaven. This
dying with Christ to sin is to be daily and ongoing, and we are to be walking
in the ways of the Lord, obeying his commands, doing what he says to do.
Romans 6:15-16 ESV
“What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?”
God’s grace to us is not freedom to continue living in sin,
only now without guilt or punishment. God’s grace delivers us from our bondage
to sin and it empowers us to live holy lives. For it trains us to say “No!” to
ungodliness and fleshly lusts and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly
lives.
For, we are slaves of the one whom we obey, either of sin,
which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness and to
sanctification and its end is eternal life. So, if we are addicted to sin, it
ends in death, not in eternal life with God. A walk of holiness ends in eternal
life.
So, do you see what this is saying? Our salvation from sin
and our eternal life with God are conditional upon the conditions stated for us
in Scripture. If we are obeying the flesh, as a matter of practice, and we are
not obeying righteousness, as our life course, we will not inherit eternal life
with God.
Romans 6:20-23 ESV
“For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
We were all slaves of sin before we believed in Jesus
Christ, if indeed we are believing in him with genuine faith. We were under the
control of sin and Satan, and we walked according to the flesh and not
according to the Spirit. But if we have died with Christ to sin, that should no
longer be our practice.
So, if after we confess faith in Jesus Christ, we continue
in deliberate and habitual and premeditated sin and rebellion against our Lord,
and against his commands, those things end in death. They do not end in eternal
life with God unless we repent of our sins, and turn, and follow Jesus in
obedience.
So, please take note of this that this is what the
Scriptures teach, for many people are being lied to, and they are being
convinced that faith in Jesus Christ makes no requirements of them – no repentance,
no obedience, and no submission to Christ as Lord. But that lie will end you in
hell, not heaven.
So, if we are truly set free from our bondage to sin, and
thus from the punishment of sin, we should be becoming slaves of God and of his
righteousness. For, this is the U-Turn I am speaking of. We once lived in sin
and for self, and now we live for Christ and his righteousness.
And what is the fruit (the result, the outgrowth) of a life
that is free from bondage to sin and is now a slave of God and of his
righteousness? It is a lifestyle, and conduct, thinking, speaking, and behaving
which are transformed of the Spirit of God, and it is holy living, pleasing to
God.
And the end result of such holy and righteous living, in the
power of God’s Spirit, as a result of a life committed to Jesus Christ, is
sanctification (being made holy), and it is eternal life with God. For the
wages of living in sin, making it our practice, is death, but the gift of God, his
grace, which delivers us from slavery to sin, and which empowers us to live
righteously, is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.
The
Lord’s Anointed
An
Original Work / December 16, 2011
Based
off Isaiah 61
The Spirit of the Sov’reign Lord on me;
Anointed to preach the Good News;
Sent me to bind up the brokenhearted;
Proclaim freedom for the captives.
He sent me to preach release for pris’ners
Who are walking in sin’s darkness;
Proclaim God’s grace to all men who’ll listen;
And tell them about God’s judgments;
Comfort all who mourn;
Give crowns of beauty;
Oil of gladness and thanksgiving.
They will be called oaks of God’s righteousness,
A planting of our Savior, God,
For the display of our Lord’s splendor, and
They will rebuild God’s holy church.
God will renew them, and will restore them,
And you’ll be called priests of the Lord.
You will be ministers of our God, and
You will rejoice in salvation.
The Lord loves justice;
He is faithful to
Reward those who are seeking Him.
I delight greatly in the Lord;
My soul rejoices in my Savior, God.
He has clothed me with His salvation,
And in a robe of His righteousness.
He has given me priestly garments to wear,
As the bride of Jesus Christ.
As the garden of our Lord and Savior,
He causes us to grow in Him.
He makes righteousness,
Praise, and thanksgiving
Spring up before all the nations.
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