UNDER GRACE

One lazy afternoon day a turtle was swimming happily along a lake. As the turtle was nearing land he heard a scorpion hail it from the muddy shore. A scorpion, being a very poor swimmer, asked the turtle if he would carry him on his back across the lake. The turtle thought it was the craziest thing he ever heard, “Why would I carry you on my back?” he boomed, ‘You’ll sting me while I’m swimming and I’ll drown.”

“My dear turtle friend,” laughed the scorpion, “if I were to sting you, you would drown and I would go down with you and drown as well. Now where is the logic in that?”

The turtle pondered this for a moment, and eventually saw the logic in the scorpion’s statement. “You’re right!” said the turtle with a smile. “Hop on!” So the scorpion climbed aboard and the turtle paddled his big fins in the water. Halfway across the lake the scorpion gave the turtle a big sting, and he started to drown. As they both sank into the water the turtle turned to the scorpion with a tear in his eye. “My dear scorpion friend, why did you sting me? Now we are both going to drown…” the turtle was gasping for air. “Where is the… logic in that?”

“It has nothing to do with logic” the scorpion sadly replied, “it’s just my nature.”

Sin is a deadly force that can be easy to let aboard our lives. It comes natural to our natural self. But for the child of God, they cannot continue on living with sins stings.

This is exactly what Paul addresses in Romans 6. The question is simple but piercing: If we are under grace, should we just keep on sinning? Paul’s answer thunders off the page: “By no means!” You’ve died to sin. You’ve been raised to new life. You don’t have to keep wearing chains Christ has already broken.

This morning, we’re going to look at what it means to live under grace.

1. Know You can be Free in Christ

Romans 6:1–10 ESV

1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For one who has died has been set free from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. 10 For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.

EXPLANATION

VERSES 1-2

Paul’s concern that the church would take his focus on the grace we have received from Jesus as reason to live in sin is clear. He asks a question proactively. “Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?

The answer comes immediately, “BY NO MEANS!” This isn’t simply a statement. It is a passionate declarative, by no means!

The mere idea that people would willingly enter into sinful behavior is appalling to Paul. And more specifically to God.

Paul asks, “How can we who died to sin still live in it?”

This is an important statement. When we are saved through faith in Christ alone. We are no longer alive to our sin. We are made alive in Christ. Our flesh put to death and our spirit is brought to life!

VERSE 3-4

Paul notes that, All believers have been saved have been baptized into Jesus death.

He then explains this dynamic. He says that “we were buried...with him by baptism into death.” When we have believers baptism. We communicate this dynamic that has already transpired in the heart of the true believer. When the person goes under the water, we say “buried with Christ in Baptism.” This is the old self that is put to death. The person who rejects God who is at war with God. The sin and flesh are being put to death so that we might be transformed. Notice the second half of verse 4, he says it is so that, “we too might walk in newness of life.” The key is that Jesus Christ was first to be raised from the dead. His resurrection is what gives us the new life. If Christ had merely died and stayed dead, then none of us would have salvation. We would all be cursed to die. Yet, it is by the glory of the Father that Jesus was risen from the grave so that we too might be like him and made alive with a new life!

VERSE 5

“We have been united with him in death like his...united with him in a resurrection like his.”

In this verse we see Paul drive home that if we were put to death with Christ then we too will experience resurrection just like Christ. In other words, Christ went before us and died for us so that we can have life eternal! That we do not simply die but we also live with Christ.

You can rest assured that if you have trusted in Christ alone for your salvation, that your flesh was buried with Christ and now you have a glorious hope of a future resurrection where death cannot touch you nor can sin!

VERSE 6

Paul doubles down on this language saying that “our old self was crucified with him” and the purpose of this is “in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing. Paul further clarifies that it is so that “we would no longer be enslaved to sin.”

Two things are true according the the Lord.

1. Apart from saving faith you and I are slaves to our flesh. We live out the desires of sinful nature and it leads us to living openly in sin. Whether it be pride, greed, selfishness, or prioritizing our own hobbies over the Lord in our lives. We will choose what we want rather than God’s will for our lives every time if left to our own fleshly desires.

2. With Christ’s redemptive work in our lives, our slavery to sin is killed at the cross and we have been set free from it’s compulsion.

VERSE 7

Look at this verse

Romans 6:7 ESV

7 For one who has died has been set free from sin.

To experience freedom, we must die. Then we are truly free from sin! Child of God, you have freedom that has been purchased with Jesus Christ death.

Verse 8

Here’s the thing if we have died with Christ, it does not end there because we are united with Christ we also live with Him!

While there is definitely a future resurrection that we long for there is also the immediacy of salvation’s work and the freedom we have experienced with Christ. Paul’s message is that we do not keep on sinning. This encouragement concerning the freedom from sin and life in Christ is also for the present. You have been freed from sin’s snares so you do not have to be ruled by it’s deadly poison.

Keeping in mind that we are not perfect but we are striving to honor Christ with our entire lives! When we sin we repent, we do not enjoy it but flee from it! We call it out in our own lives and seek the Lord to give us victory so that we can live a pure and holy life before the Lord.

VERSES 9-10

Christ’s resurrection ensures that he will not die again. He has gone to be with the Father reigning in Heaven. As Paul says, death no longer has dominion over him. He cannot die twice. He is alive forever!

Paul further explains that the death Jesus died was to sin. Even though Jesus was sinless, he died to sin. Yet, his life that he lives now “he lives to God.” Another way of understanding this statement is that Christ has set the example to us. Jesus who has always lived according to the Father’s will. Everything that Jesus did is an example to us so that we can live faithful lives according to God’s will for us.

APPLICATION

Paul’s message to the church is that they cannot fall prey to the idea that they can keep on sinning. They have been called to a higher and new life where sin is not their master instead it is the Lord through the life transformation they have experienced in Jesus Christ.

Every time you choose to look at pornography, you choose to place sins shackles on your wrists even though they have been broken in saving faith in Jesus.

Every time you choose to gossip, you choose to return sins ball and chain tying it’s broken chain around your ankle.

When you are quarrelsome with someone, you choose to, throw yourself in the dungeon of sins influence.

Instead, enjoy the freedom that is found in Christ through his death and resurrection!

Illustration:

Every time we allow sin to rule us, it is like an alcoholic who went through recovery and through God’s grace experienced sobriety. After a few years passed, they decide to go to a trash can and pull out an empty bottle of liquor. Pretending that it owns them again. Only for a few days to go by and they decide to drink a one glass, and then they find themselves right back into the state of being an alcoholic again.

Every Christian who allows sin to creep back in and take a hold of their life is just like that alcoholic. They have given what they have been freed from power to rule their life again even though it has no authority or power over the believer who has been freed from it!

Not only do we see that you can know that you can be free in Christ. Also, there is a need to:

2. Consider Your Freedom in Christ

Romans 6:11 ESV

11 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Notice the state of the statement. Paul says they “must consider yourselves” The NKJV says reckon while the NIV says count. Essentially, the message is we are not to think of ourselves as alive to sin at all. But instead declare yourself dead to sin. But not only dead to sin, we are also to reckon, consider, count ourselves alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Paul has taken his time to drive home the message that Jesus Christ has not only demonstrated but walked before us and we are united to him in every regard. When we are saved, our old self is put to death. Sin our sinful passions are to be crucified with Christ and buried with him. We are then raised with Christ! We are made a new creature. With a new master and nature. We are spiritually alive!

Yet, many Christians allow sin to have far more influence in their life than the Lord. We see this play out through they way they live their life.

Listen up. I am not saying that any of the following are necessarily bad in of themselves but that the priority they have in the believer becomes the issue.

Are you one who spends more time watching Fox News or CNN because you are worried about what is happening or might happen rather than running to Jesus through reading your Bible, spending time in prayer?

Are you one who is more concerned about enjoying the pleasures of life rather than spending time sharing Jesus with others?

Are you more mindful of your attire rather than your heart when it comes to worship?

Do you tend to allow sin to live with you rather than nailing it to the cross to die there?

Do you play around with the line of sin?

When I was a kid, Phil Newberry, one of my student pastors once said to us that flirting with the line of sin only allows us to cross the line more easily.

That line stuck with me. Growing up, on long road trips we used to draw imaginary lines in the car to keep us on our sides of the vehicle. On more than one occasion, we all would flirt with that line. It might be just pointing at the other brother. Or making faces at them. Or maybe, taking something like a toy and pushing it just barely over the line but not crossing it ourselves. But without fail, the annoyed brother would scream MOM, he is crossing the line! Followed with I didn’t cross it, I merely pushed something over it. Much to the frustration of our parents. But here’s the thing, the more we flirted with crossing it, the closer and bolder we got until we crossed it entirely. Which led to consequences.

When we flirt with sin, we will allow it rule our lives and we will suffer the consequences. Do not forget you have been set free from it’s bondage. Do not forget that freedom. If you are a Christian and you have allowed sin to have a stronghold in your life. It doesn’t have to stay that way. You can live according to your freedom in Christ.

We have seen that you can be free in Christ, and that those that are free should consider their freedom in Christ. Now lets see how you can,

3. Live According to Your Freedom in Christ.

Romans 6:12–14 ESV

12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. 13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. 14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

VERSE 12

Because we have been set free through Christ, Paul tells them with a command, to “Let not sin reign in your mortal body!” As Christians when sin reigns or rules our life. It is because we have given the enemy permission to reign in our lives! Here’s the thing. We have to grant sin permission to rule us.

Let me explain: this is not talking about specifically momentary moments where we still sin. It is talking about regular and habitual sin that rules our lives. We are all prone to specific sins because of our past history with sin as non-believers in Jesus and also sins that we gave permission to rule in our lives.

We are all going to have moments where our flesh causes us to stumble. But it does not have the authority to reign over our lives. We have been freed from that evil kingdom and set free to live in the kingdom of Jesus Christ.

That is why he says to not allow your mortal body to make you obey its passions!

We have authority from Jesus to rule over our ungodly passions because there were buried with Christ giving us life!

VERSE 13

Look at what he says here in verse 13

“Do not present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness.”

Paul is really pushing the people to see that when they willfully submit themselves to sinful behavior that they are allowing themselves to be instruments of unrighteousness. To put it another way, you are weapons being used for the kingdom of Satan rather than God’s kingdom work. Our fight against allowing sin to reign in our life is ever present in this life. It does not stop until we breath our last or Christ returns.

Instead you are to

“present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.”

Are you making yourself available to God? In other words, are you actively seeking the Lord’s will in your life, growing in Christ likeness, and testifying of God’s goodness through both your actions and words?

Our actions whether it is willful sin or living confessed and holy lives, either makes us instruments for Satan’s use or for God’s use.

And here’s the thing, none of us can say that we cannot be useful for God’s kingdom because Christ’s work on the cross has set us free from the dominion of sin. Look at verse 14

VERSE 14

For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

Paul brings back full circle the reality that the law is there to remind us of what sin is and it cannot save us only Jesus can save us. And because Jesus has saved us from our sin, Sin cannot and will not ever have authority to have dominion over us as children of God. We only give it permission to pretend that it does when we give into the flesh of our mortal bodies. When we willingly plunge ourselves into sin and shame we give it permission to be a resident. It is not a ruler of our lives. Christ now reigns supreme.

ILLUSTATION - C.S. Lewis—The Screwtape Letters

If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend you read it. It is about the letters between Screwtape and Wormwood. They are two demons who have no real dominion over the believer. They go back and forth on how to tempt and get permission to influence and harm Believers. But here’s the thing. Their influence is more parasitic than anything. They only have power over our lives when we give them permission because we have been set free by Jesus!

Have you given the enemy permission to rule in your life? Maybe this morning you need to ask God to give you victory in areas of your life that you have surrendered to the enemy. That you need to confess specific sins you have allowed to rule your life. For others, this morning has been a good reminder that you have victory and freedom over sin thanks to the work of Jesus and you have been moved to praise the Lord.

Yet, there are others. That you did not realize that you can be free in Christ. This morning, you are longing to be free from the bondage of sin. This morning I want to encourage you to trust in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation. That means that you are going to allow your sinful self to die with Christ so that you can be made new with life from Christ.

With every head bowed and eye closed.

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