From Slavery to Slavery - Obligated to Obey

The Text:

English Standard Version Chapter 6

15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The natural state of man is slavery to sin

this is something that Paul has already addressed, namely in Romans 1-3, in which he indicts all men, both the Greek and the Jew for their lawlessness. Ultimately he concludes with “None is righteous, no, not one…no one seeks for God…there is no fear of God before their eyes” (3:10, 11, 18). This is the implication in Rom. 1-3, he addresses it more explicitly in Romans 6

v16 says that we are either slaves to sin or obedience which leads to righteousness. Because he is writing to the church at Rome, he addresses them as FORMER SLAVES of sin who are now slaves to righteousness.

Just as they once were slaves to sin and offered their obedience to lawlessness, so he implores the Christians in Rome to present themselves as slaves to righteousness.

There are a couple key things here. First, we have to understand that not all slavery in the ancient world was akin to the evils of the Transatlantic slave trade - though there was certainly the abuse and evil in Rome’s system of slavery. I think that we actually get a good look at what Paul has in mind, when we look back at the Old Testament, for he is a Jew, and a Christian, who was speaking to Christian, some of whom were Jews. They would have been familiar with God’s instructions regarding the enslavement of their fellow Hebrews. What we must realize that What God describes is indentured servitude - one in which a person could voluntarily enter slavery for their own well-being in times of great personal hardship.

So when Paul is talking about presenting our members as slaves to righteousness, I think he is drawing on the concept of this kind of chosen slavery - it is something the slave desires. But if we look at what God prescribes we will see that the Hebrew now owed his obedience, his work to his master even though slavery was his chosen state. So it is when we hear the Gospel, recognize our sinfulness, and cry out to God for forgiveness and deliverance from our old master: sin. But now we have a new Master: the Triune God of the Bible, and he demands our obedience, though we willingly entered into slavery.

So there are a couple questions we ought to ponder today:

Am I a slave to righteousness or a slave to sin?

Well, let me describe one who is a slave to sin

Do you run to the bottle every night, drinking to cope with your life? Maybe even drinking during the day just to get through it? This is one manifestation of slavery to sin.

Do you look at pornography, visit strip clubs, or engage prostitutes? Do you partake in other unbiblical sexual behaviors like homosexuality? These are manifestations of slavery to sin.

Do you steal? This is a manifestation of slavery to sin.

Do you engage in occultic practices such as the use of oijia boards, seances, divination, or drug-induced spiritual ceremonies? These are examples of being slaves to sin.

Need I mention murders, idolatry, rising up to strike mother or father? These too are examples of slavery to sin.

Perhaps you are feeling pretty good right now, thinking “I don’t do any of those things, but Frankie does, he really needs to hear this sermon, he really needs to knock that off.” And perhaps this fictional Frankie does need to hear this sermon. But before you start feeling too comfortable, let me give some more examples.

Do you ever tell a lie, maybe even just a small one, and when pressed, you have to tell another to cover it up, and another, and another, even if its to protect the feelings of another person? Perhaps you are in slavery to sin.

Do you tend to think of yourself as better and more holy than others. Does this affect how you interact with others? Perhaps you are enslaved to the sin of self-righteousness and false piety.

Do you have to know everyone else’s business? Do you talk about it with others, spreading what you know to others who have no business knowing? Perhaps you are enslaved to being a busy-body and a gossip, rather than being a slave to righteousness.

Perhaps you are so stingy with your money that you do not give to the church or help those in need. So perhaps you are enslaved to the love of money, rather than being a slave to righteousness

Now, the list could go on much longer, and if you want a good look at the kinds of sin that Paul likely has in mind, I would recommend that you but I do not think that is necessary for my message today. What I want everyone to think about is that there are so many ways in which we do not walk in obedience to God, some which are easy to spot, some which are much easier to hide in the shadows. We cannot think that we are better than others simply because our sins are hidden from view. I understand this well, for I grew up in the Church and I knew how to put on a good show. I was nice. I obeyed my teachers and pastors. I knew the right answers to Bible questions and some trivia. But when I was home, I was rude to my parents, lacking grace toward my sister, and I was angry, particularly inside. And according to Jesus, that anger made me a murderer in my heart, even though I had not commited the physical act of murder. I truly do believe that I was a repentant Christian, at least as I entered my teenage years, but I, just like the church at Rome, and maybe many of you, needed the admonition to offer myself as a slave to righteousness - to be obedient to God.

So that leads me to the second question: Are you a slave of righteousness?

Do you love your neighbor? Do you give to those in need. Do you gather for worship? Do you speak without crude language? Do you work hard? Do you read the Bible? Do you work hard for your boss? Do you honor and respect your family members? Do you pray? Do you fast? Do you treat Pastor Kenny and the Elders with respect, as they watch over your souls? Do you not retaliate when someone wrongs you? If you do these things, then perhaps you are a slave of righteousness.

As I mentioned moments earlier, a lack of outward sin, and perhaps even having outward obedience does not necessarily indicate that one is a slave to righteousness. According to Jesus, it is a matter of the heart. Do you desire to honor God? Do you desire to leave behind your disobedience to God? Then perhaps you are a slave to righteousness.

But what if your obedience is imperfect? Well, I think Paul addresses that at the end of Verse 19, when he says, “so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.” What he is talking about here is the lifelong process by which we become more obedient to God. Through the reading of Scripture, prayer, fellowship with brothers and sisters in the faith, and many other Godly activities, we are transformed into the likeness of Jesus, who is perfectly obedient and holy. This does not mean that you will not struggle against sin to some degree - otherwise, why would Paul have given this admonition to the church at rome?

If we did not struggle with sin at all, why would the Apostle John tell us in his letter that the one who loves God does not sin, but if he does, he has an advocate with Jesus, saying “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness?”

Being a slave to righteousness means that we offer our obedience to God. And that obedience increases over time, just as our love for God and his people will increase with time.

Now, as we saw earlier, we are either slaves of sin, or slaves of righteousness. Your spiritual father is either the devil, or it is God, and your father will have your obedience. It is owed. So, when we evangelize non-Christians, we will hear them say things like, “I don’t want to be a Christian, the Bible is a book full of oppressive rules.” While they are in some senses mistaken, they are correct in a sense - God demands obedience. He has standards of conduct. But what they fail to see is the fact that they are already enslaved. What they fail to see is that to be a slave to righteousness is paradoxically freedom.

When we turn to God, asking for forgiveness for our disobedience to him, he grants us a new heart which has new desires, namely to obey God and make him happy. We are now free to act in obedience to God. We are now free to say “no” to sin. We are now on a path that leads to eternal life

If this seems like a lot of “do’s and “don’ts”, in a sense you are right - because commands to do things and not do things is inherent in obedience. But please understand me. Paul is not saying that we are made right before God because of our obedience. He destroyed that idea in Romans 3 and 4. He said “For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.” He also said “What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” 4 Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. 5 And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”

We can never be right with God on the basis of works, but being right with God will result in a life of obedience and holiness. Being justified by faith will not fail to produce obedience. This is what our text is about. And this is also taught in the book of James.

A faith with no works is dead, that is, it is merely intellectual assent and has not resulted in justification before God, just like the demons.

We must understand that what James is saying here is effectively split between Romans 3 and 4 and Romans 6, with repeated denunciations of putting aside God’s law.

Ultimately, when we look at Romans 3-6, we see that the only thing we can earn is death. We cannot earn righteousness before God, but once it is given to us we owe our obedience to him.

So, for those of you who are striving to obey, out of a love for God, even if you feel discouraged, be of Good cheer, for you are a slave of righteousness. Be of good cheer, for God is pleased with you, even as your obedience is imperfect - for your heart is right and you have been clothed in the righteousness of Jesus.

For those of who who are obeying outwardly, but there is secret rebellion, turn away from it, ask God for forgiveness and he will be faithful to forgive you. Then obey with gratitude, lest you be like white-washed tombs, looking beautiful on the outside, but filled with dead men’s bones.

And for those who are enslaved to their sin, and it is obvious, understand that today, you are a child of wrath. You are under condemnation for your disobedience, but there is a way of escape. Admit the fact that you are in rebellion against God. Admit that you deserve judgment from God for your disobedience. Ask him to forgive you and spare you because Jesus, who was God, took on human flesh, lived a life of perfect obedience and love. He took the wrath of God on himself so that we might be spared judgement if we would ask him and turn from our rebellion.

“For the Wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Slavery to sin leads to eternal punishment. Slavery to righteousness is true freedom and leads to eternal life with God. My hope is that today, some were convicted, some were encouraged, and perhaps some might be reconciled to God. Let’s pray.