Good morning and welcome in. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture from Romans 6.
Through Christ we have innumerable amounts of grace and forgiveness available to us. When we become a Christian, all of our past sins are washed away through Holy baptism. If we make a mistake in our Christian walk, we can come boldly to the throne of grace in time of need so that we can get it right. Our God is a God of mercy and He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins, but just because we have access to God’s forgiveness and grace, does that mean we should continue to sin? Well, absolutely not.
Romans 6:1-6
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
The Christian life is about overcoming the desires of the carnal nature, whatever they may be. God gives a gift of his grace but you certainly don’t want to misuse it. Grace from God is the greatest treasure one could ever possess, but you want to take care of that gift. Can you imagine your dad giving you a brand new car as a gift? How would you treat it, would you take care of it, or would you beat it down the back roads only to get all scratched up and full of mud. God’s mercy is an incredible gift, one than needs to be respected. God gives us grace to grow into maturity, not to continue to live in sin as we did in the past.
Hebrews 6:1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works,….
When Paul preached forgiveness through Christ, certain people were twisting his message around. The Apostles taught the church to turn from sin, not to live in flesh. Grace is not given to sin, but to change.
Romans 3:8 And not rather, (as we be slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say,) Let us do evil, that good may come? whose damnation is just.
Grace is given to wash away dead works, so we can serve Him through a loving obedient heart.
Hebrews 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
When you continue doing something it means it never stops, it repeats itself over and over again. Think about someone who makes a quilt by using a repetitive pattern over and over again. In the church we are to display a continuing pattern of good works, not evil ones. Shall we continue in sin and keep doing it over and over and over again because we can get forgiven for it and then do it again? He says, God forbid. God gives us grace to produce results. Paul warned over and over about fruitless living.
2 Corinthians 6:1 We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.
Imagine giving a beautiful new bike to someone as a gift so they could get around town when they needed to, but it just sat in the garage unused. It never served the purpose for which it was originally given. Receiving God’s grace in vain is to get forgiven, but it never results in the attempt to do what is right, and to amend sinful living. We are taught to go and sin no more.
1 John 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not…..
When you sin, it hurts. We have a wood cook stove and sometimes if you load firewood into it too quickly, you can accidentally touch your hand to the loading area and burn yourself. After a few times you eventually learn your lesson and begin to learn to wear a glove or keep your hand away. The quicker you learn, the less painful experiences can arise out of foolishness.
John 8:11 ….Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.
When we realize the error and pain of the past, why would you want to repeat it over again. Why would you choose to live any longer like that anymore? When you do something wrong, a parent sometimes will ask you if you learned your lesson. Can you think of something in your life that you’ve done that was wrong that you hope you would never repeat again in the future?
Romans 6:11. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
As a believer, when we understand that we’re dead to our sins, and we look back at our past and realize from what we’ve come out from, why would you want to live anymore like that? Knowing the suffering, pain and the agony it causes in one’s heart. Why would you want to return to that life all over again? We have a new life in Christ. Why go back to living the way you did before?
Christians are baptized into the death of Christ. He died to put sin away through the sacrifice of himself. Just knowing what he did, why would you want to continue down the wide road?
2 Corinthians 5:15. And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.
Out of love for God we must come out of that carnal lifestyle, yielding ourselves to His purpose and calling for us.
Romans 6:13. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
The Apostles wanted the church to serve Christ, becoming faithful obedient children.
Romans 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
Henceforth means for now on, you shouldn’t serve sin. To serve means to do the wish or will of another. Through Holy Baptism we die and are buried under the water through submersion, forgiven for our past misdeeds and risen up from the grave to begin a new life in service to Christ Jesus.
1 John 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
God is doing a transformation and a change in our hearts and our minds but it happens through faith and the acceptance of biblical truth.
Romans 6:12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
God wants to show us a better way and it comes by following Jesus. It’s a better path to take. It’s a narrow path. Not many people are on it, but it is a better road. There’s nothing good that can come from following your sinful nature because it is a path that only leads to pain and suffering.
God gives us grace, but its for a purpose, to go and sin no more. Today I ask you, did you,
….learn your lesson?
Let’s think about these things for today and Lord willing, we can talk some more tomorrow. Till then, bye-bye everybody.,💟
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