Romans 6
1 Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace?2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it?3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death?4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.
5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was.6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin.8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him.9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him.10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God.11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
12 Do not let sin control the way you live;* do not give in to sinful desires.13 Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God.14 Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God's grace.
15 Well then, since God's grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not!16 Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.17 Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you.18 Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.
19 Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now you must give yourselves to be slaves to righteous living so that you will become holy.
20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right.21 And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom.22 But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life.23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
I could blog about this one chapter for months, and enjoy it.
Paul starts off with a question. He wants us to answer, and then he includes the answer that we should respond with.
Paul does this because the answer is obvious.
Implications of our Partnership
When you join a team, whether in the workplace or sports, you want to have the same goal as your partners and teammates. You want to own the same work ethics and habits.
As followers of Christ, we have been granted the privilege of being His partners. As a partner of Christ, we need to have the same goals and values as Jesus. We need the same uniform, code of conduct, and time sheet as Christ.
UNIFORM:
A football team wears the same uniforms so that they may look united. We are to be the same way with Christ. It should be obvious that we are on the same team as Christ.
Verse 6 speaks of being crucified with Christ. This was not a soft, gentle, and harmless death. They didn't velcro or thumb-tack Jesus to the cross, but he was nailed. Being nailed, beaten, and pressed upon beyond imagination leaves scars. It leaves marks. Now if we have been crucified as well, won't we have the same scars, and marks? These marks do not only show that we have died, but that we live through the blood of Jesus Christ.
Are you dressed like the King? Are you wearing His righteousness?
CODE OF CONDUCT:
Jesus was not religious. But, He was sinless. It was not about a list of rules, but about pleasing His Father in heaven. His code of conduct seemed to be like this:
1. If it pleases God, do it.
2. If it doesn't please God, Don't do it.
3. Glorify God.
Jesus never failed to please God. Jesus never fell to sin. Jesus always gave glory to Himself and His Father.
We are to live by these same guidelines. We cannot please God with sin. Sin displeases God. And God is not glorified by sin. So why sin?
If our goal is to please God, and to glorify Him, why do the very thing that He hates. We are to live for Christ, and live against sin.
CLOCKING IN:
Jesus never missed an appointment. Jesus never runs out of time, and Jesus is never Late. But, just as important: JESUS NEVER CLOCKS OUT.
If Jesus never quits being Lord and Savior, then why should we ever quit following Him as Lord and Savior? Does this make since? True beilievers of Christ, follow around the clock?
Do you clock out when you get around your friends? Do you take a break when you are at work? Do you sit down on the job when no one is looking?
Slaves
Paul teaches here that we are either a slave to sin or a slave to Jesus. That we have one master. A slave follows the commands of his Master. Who do you answer to? Who are you listening to? Who is your master?
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
FACT: We have all sinned. Jesus can free us from sin. If He frees us from our sin, there is no reason to walk in it.
LUKE 9:62
62 But Jesus told him, "Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God."
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