September 21, 2020 THE CHOICE IS OURS
Romans 6:4b, 6-7, 11-12 “so we too might walk in newness of life.” “ knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin; for he who died is freed from sin.” “Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lust,”
Its real simple; but we have made it complicated. The common perspective among what I think is the majority of professing believers is that we are sinners save by grace (still ‘sinners’)-that our sin nature is alive and well-that we are constantly drawn to sin-that we cannot live very long without sinning, and etc. If I’m right-and I think I am-that is a huge problem for the body of believers in our day. That viewpoint is in conflict with the teachings of scripture. The alarming thing is that that perspective has been taught in the seminaries and preached from the pulpits for several generations. Misunderstanding Romans 7 has caused many to come to the conclusion that they cannot help but sin on a regular basis. Briefly, Romans 7 is not Paul’s testimony, but is describing life lived according to the flesh. Living according to the flesh led to Paul cry out in verse 24 “Who will set me free from this body of death”, and he then begins his next sentence with “Thanks be to God….” When you read the writings of Paul, it becomes crystal clear that we no longer have to live under the power of sin; the glorious good news of the gospel is that we have been set free from the power of sin! We no longer have to sin! 1 Corinthians is a refreshing, often overlooked verse: “Become sober minded as you ought, and stop sinning;” How simple-stop sinning. Viewing our self as one who is prone to sin is an indicator that we do not yet know our true identity in the Lord-that we have been made new and given a new heart, mind, and spirit and we no longer desire to sin-our disposition changes. The point is not that we get to a place of ‘sinless perfection.’ However, if we walk according to the Spirit, we will not fulfil the desire of the flesh. If and when we sin, the Holy Spirit quickly convicts us, we confess the sin, turn from it and continue to walk in the Spirit. (See 1 John 2:1) The main point is that we do not have to live being prone to sin; we are no longer ‘sinners’ but are sons and daughters of God who have been made new and set free from the power of sin. Knowing the truth about who God says we are and knowing that sin no longer has power over us is a life changer! Satan would have us believe that we are sinners, not sons and daughters of God and he would keep us ignorant of the fact that Jesus broke the power of sin over believers. In summary, we must know that we can choose to walk according to the Spirit and not sin, or we can choose to walk according to the flesh and sin-it’s that simple. The choice is ours. When we read the New Testament with the understanding that we have been set free from the power of sin, we then begin to see that we have indeed been set free to live according to the ways of our Father. Ephesians 4 begins with the admonition for us to walk in a way worthy of the Lord. The good news is that we can do just that! (Read the entire chapter of Ephesians 4 with the view that the power of sin has been broken.)
Romans 6:12 “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lust.”
Ephesians 4:22-24 “that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is be corrupted in accordance with the lust of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which is in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.”
Blessings, Buddy
RSS Feed