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Grace is Greater
Romans 6:1-2
Introduction
Antinomianism- they believe that sin is not that big of a deal, because Grace is a big deal.
This belief system says sin does not matter because God’s grace is available.
Very few of us would fall into this belief system.
The truth is however, that the church has in its membership people who believe exactly like this.
They may be in pulpits, Sunday school classes, and choirs.
The problem is they live no different than the world.
They dress, talk, purchase, walk joke, work and play with the same impulses as the non-believer.
Here is the problem, the greater influence these people have in the church, the more like the world the church becomes.
Antinomians are people who believe that Grace is an excuse for their sin
(ESV)
6 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?
Have you ever had the thought, “I know what I am doing is a sin, but, if it were not for God’s Grace I would be in trouble”.
In one way you would be right, we are all sinners, if it were not for God’s grace we would all be in trouble.
But in another way, you would be wrong.
Let’s look at today’s text and see why.
Grace- are we free from sin or free to sin?
I want to look at a question and then ask that God really speak to you today as you are honest with your answer to this question.
Here is the question.
Is Grace an excuse to sin?
Every church since the founding of the church some 200 years ago has had to answer this question.
Look at verse 1
What shall we say then?
Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?
This verse could read, what do you say about that?
This verse points us right back to chapter 5 verse 20.
…where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.
Or, where sin increased and increased, grace increased even more.
Sin grew higher, but grace even higher.
Great sin, greater grace…
Paul anticipated what they were going to say.
In verse 1 he says “I guess we can continue to sin so that grace can continue to grow” … that’s the word we were talking about earlier…antinomianism.
Since God is glorified when his attributes are expressed, then let’s sin even more and God can really show us how he is.
Listen, it doesn’t work like that.
Ex…One of the most famous antinomians in history is a man named Rasputin.
That’s a nickname given to him by local villagers.
It means “debauchery, immorality”.
When he was 22 he made a spiritual pilgrimage to Greece.
He sat under the influence of an antinomian sect known as the flagellants.
They believed sinning was necessary for salvation.
- the more you sinned the more secure your salvation was.
2 years later, Rasputin went back to Russia as a holy man.
He loved immorality and had an unusual ability to cure the sick.
He believed that a person should become physically exhausted from immorality, and drunkenness, and it was in that state a person would receive God’s grace.
Eventually he traveled to Petersburg, met the imperial family, Czar Nicholas, and his wife Alexandra.
Their son had an incurable disease.
It seemed like just having Rasputin there helped their sons condition, so he was welcomed in the family.
Even after the royal family found out about Rasputin’s immoral lifestyle, Alexandra defended him and would not do anything about it.
That’s when the rumors started to fly that there was something going on between the two.
When WW1 broke out Czar Nicholas took personal command over the army leaving Rasputin and Alexandra alone.
They were given great power.
Economy started to fail, public moral reached an all-time low.
eventually rioting erupted.
Government officials plotted to kill Rasputin, and the finally killed him.
The Czar lost all credibility along with Queen Alexandra.
A revolution started the Czar and his family were over thrown and killed.
The Royal head was filled with a leader named Lenin, who brought in communism.
One historian wrote that if there had been no Rasputin, there would not have been a Lenin, if no Lenin, there would have been no propagation of Communism.
Listen, false theology, which deceived one man and then the royal family and then a society ultimately opened the way for nearly 100 years of communism to dominate about a billion people.
Mainline churches in America have already abandoned biblical theology.
If antinomianism can deceive one man, influence a government and deceive so many, then it is probably a danger to us too.
So, Does the presence of grace excuse the practice of sin? Do we have freedom to sin, or freedom from sin?
Paul asks in , are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?
Look at his response in verse 2… By no means!
Some versions say, “God forbid”, “Certainly not”, the John Phillips version says “what a ghastly thought”.
We could even pull out our parents words to us as kids…” don’t even think about it”
3 questions about Gods grace.
The 2nd part of says…
…How can we who died to sin still live in it?
There are 3 questions in this one phrase…these 3 questions should stop us in our tracks from ever going down a path that destroys the meaning of Grace.
Have you forgotten what happened to you?
Have you forgotten who you are?
Have you forgotten where you belong?
Have you forgotten what happened to you?
How can we who died to sin still live in it?
In other words, have you forgotten that you have died to sin.
You don’t want o continue sinning the way you have in the past you died to sin.
Paul uses that expression over and over.
V3…baptized into his death
V4…buried with him through baptism into death
V5…united with him in a death like his
V7…For one who has died has been set free.
V8…Now if we have died with Christ
V11…Consider yourselves dead to sin
Over and over he sues that expression, we have died to sin.
Now there are 5 thoughts about being dead to sin.
We still struggle with sin, and how can we struggle with something that is dead?
There are 5 thoughts on this, 4 of them are errors in thinking that are common.
1. Believers die to the attraction of sin.
This can easily be proven wrong by simply reading Paul’s letters to believers who were converted to Christ and are still tempted.
(ESV)
19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.
20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.
(ESV)
24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
No, you hear me, we are dead to sin, if we are alive in Christ, but our fleshly body still gives us trouble…
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