Link to today’s reading in Romans 6: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans%206&version=51
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. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. 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. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:19-23)
In Romans 6, Paul is reminding believers that Christ’s death not only frees us from the penalty of sin, it also frees us from the power of sin. Now we are free to follow God and serve Him and not just live a sinful lifestyle, serving our flesh and feeding its appetites.
These last verses in Romans 6 caught my attention this morning. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. What does Paul mean? Obviously he does not mean that before we were saved, we were not obligated by God to do right. God’s standards never change. He is speaking from a human perspective. Before I was saved, I not only did not have the power to do right but I did not have any motivation to do so either. I could live any way I wanted and do anything I wanted. On the surface, that sounds pretty good. It is the #1 attraction to sin and a sinful lifestyle. In fact, it is the theme behind every beer commercial shown on TV.
But Paul is quick to say, And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. Paul’s point is that sin always looks attractive but it is ultimately destructive. It brings shame, guilt, bondage, destroyed relationships, destroyed lives, and ultimately eternal doom. Since we have been set free from this, why would we go back? Since we have been freed from the slavery of Egypt and set on the road to the Promised Land, why would we turn back? Yet the lure of sin is always present with us and within us. And just like the Israelites, when the road to the Promised Land gets rocky, we start pondering a return to Egypt. Paul says ”don’t do it!” Following and serving God leads to holiness and holiness leads to life. Our joy and peace will always be found in the Promised Land not in Egypt so keep your eyes straight ahead and your feet walking toward Him.
Lord, preserve me from the allure of sin. Remind me that the consequences of sin are never worth the momentary pleasure of sin. Remind me that true joy, peace, and pleasure are found in Your presence and in following Your ways.