Who Is Your Master?

15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19 I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.

The question that Paul asks in verse 15 is an echo of verse 1. essentially the same issue is being raised which is wether or not Paul’s message of grace condones or even encourages sin. However, there is a slight shift in the motive behind the sin in verse 15 from verse 1. The question in verse 1 was based on Paul’s statement 5:20

Romans 5:20 NKJV

20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more,

Romans 6:1 NKJV

1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?

The motive here is that grace might abound.

Paul argues that instead of continuing in sin we must not let sin reign in our mortal body because we have been united with Christ in baptism so that when He died on the cross we died to sin and as He rose from the dead we also must walk in newness of life. We could see how that spiritually the work is done in us and now physically it must be manifest in our mortal bodies.

The question in verse 15 is based on Paul’s statement in verse 14

Romans 6:14 NKJV

14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

Romans 6:15 NKJV

15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!

After all Paul, you said that sin is not imputed when there is no law.

Realise these objections are not coming from those who have truly received the grace of God but rather from people who object to the gospel and are trying to poke holes in it.

Luke 18:9–14 NKJV

9 Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13 And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Luke 18:

The one who, knows of his sin and beats on his chest crying out God, be merciful to me a sinner is not the one who says ‘great! I’m no longer under the law, I’m under grace so I can sin as much as I like. No, it’s the pharisee that says, “see Paul, you’ve just given the publicans a license to keep on sinning because they have no consequences to keep them from it.

I think it’s important to keep this in mind as we read if we are to keep in in context. Paul’s primary objective is to defend grace and his secondary objective is to give instruction to those who have received it.

So in answer to the question “should we sin because we are not under the law but under grace?” Paul makes an analogy using an image which was very common at this time, slavery.

1. Slaves Serve Their Masters

Romans 6:16 NKJV

16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?

Rom 6:

When we think of slavery we immediately think of involuntary slavery. Slaves who were capture in war or bought and sold. However, a very common practice in the roman empire was for those who were very poor to offer themselves up for slavery voluntarily and in return they would be fed and given shelter and clothing. It is this voluntary slavery that Paul has in mind.

He says you know how that if you offer yourselves as slaves then you must obey your master because you are his slave.

Now as Paul sees it there are only two types of people in the world and both types are slaves.

One is a slave to sin leading to death. this is not just physical death, we all face that, this is separation from God the opposite of eternal life which is to know and be with God. You are either a slave to sin unto death or you are a slave of obedience leading to righteousness. The word “obedience” here, as we will see is a reference to obedience of faith.

This is similar to the Lord’s own teaching

Matthew 6:24 NKJV

24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

matt 6:24

So if there are only two options you either are a slave serving sin or you are a slave serving God through the obedience of faith, then who do you serve? who is your master? We are all born under Adam as slaves to sin. So really the question is have you been transferred from being a slave to sin to being a slave to God?

Paul give thanks to God for the conversion of the Romans reinforcing the reality of their conversion telling them...

2. You Have Become Slaves of God

Paul gives us a very unique and insightful look at conversion here.

Romans 6:17–18 NKJV

17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.

So the obedience of faith is when a person obeys from the heart the teaching that has been entrusted to them. That teaching, or doctrine is the teaching of Christ our Lord which was taught to the apostle and then entrusted to us through the scriptures.

They were slave of sin

They obeyed from the heart

They were set free from slavery to sin

They became slaves of Righteous (which Paul seems to use interchangeably with obedience and God.

So in Paul’s understanding of conversion believing in Christ is believing in his teaching as well. It is believing that I must repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand, it’s believing that unless my righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and pharisees then I cannot enter the Kingdom, it is to acknowledge that there in none that are good except the Father. It is to know that Jesus is the way the truth and the life and that know one can come to the Father but by Him. And to believe in Jesus is also to be freed from slavery to sin so that I might become a slave to my new Master, God. To believe in Jesus is to be obedient to this teaching so there is no easy believism where I just say I believe and I’m saved or repeat a prayer and you will have eternal life. No, it is a total transfer of ownership from sin to God. Christ must become your Lord and Master otherwise you are still lost and a slave to sin which leads to death.

So if you have had this conversion and you are now a slave of God what must you do?

3. Present Your Members As Slaves of Righteousness

This is the same instruction given in

Romans 6:12–13 NKJV

12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.

So just as in the first half of the chapter, Paul gives the spiritual reality of the believer then give instruction in regards to this mortal body or our members. We must bring mortal body in line with our spiritual reality. You are dead to sin, sin no longer has dominion over you because you have been set free from the slavery of sin and have submitted to God as your new master. These are spiritual truths, facts of the life of the believer. So now bring your mortal body and its members into this truth. Reckon these things to be true and press towards your sanctification.

Romans 6:19 NKJV

19 I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.

Rom

Serve your new Master yield you member your eyes, your ears, your hands, your feet as slaves to righteousness for your sanctification.

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