Thursday, June 25, 2015

Reading through Romans-license to sin?

sin
Romans 6:15 "What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!"
Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Paul has convinced us that a lifestyle of habitual sin is not compatible with one whose life is changed by grace. But what about an occasional sin here and there? If we are under grace, not law, must we be so concerned about a little sin here and there?
Shall we sin: Again, the verb tense of the ancient Greek word sin is important (the aorist active tense). It indicates dabbling in sin, not a continual habitual sin described in the question of Romans 6:1.
Free forgiveness! What does that mean? Freedom to sin? Far from it. That were to return into the old slavery. To yield to sin is to be the servant or slave of sin with its consequence—death. Happily you have escaped from sin, and taken service with righteousness. You found that sin brought you no pay from your master but death. Now you are started upon a road that leads to sanctification and eternal life. This will be given you, not as wages, but as the free gift of God in Christ.
(15) The Apostle returns to a difficulty very similar to that which presented itself at the beginning of the chapter. The answer is couched under a slightly different metaphor. It is no longer death to the one, life to the other, but freedom from the one, service to the other. These are correlative terms. Freedom from sin implies service to God, just as freedom from God means service to sin. The same idea of service and freedom will be found worked out in John 8:32-34John 8:36, and in Galatians 5:1.
Dear Holy and Loving God, Thank you for changing my heart from one that loves to serve myself (and sin) to one that is new in You and passionate to serve you!

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