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Set free for God (Romans 5-8) Part 3

Chapter 6

The conflict within us

As mentioned in the introduction, it is not enough to have forgiveness of sins to go to heaven. We also need a new nature. Since conversion, the believer has two natures: the new life and the flesh. The Lord said to Nicodemus: "That which is born of the Spirit is spirit" - that is the new life brought about by the Spirit - "and that which is born of the flesh is flesh" (John 3:6). Because we have both natures in us, this leads to conflicts in our lives. The new nature does not degenerate; it always remains at the same level. It always wants what is good. But the old nature does not change either. It is incorrigible. It always wants evil. We are operating in this area of conflict.

Now, the question is: Which source do we allow to bubble up within us, the old or the new nature? 

This is not the same. The head concerns our lineage, but one lord has dominion over us. This dominion is either of the Spirit or sin. And the question is again: to whom do we give dominion? 

The blood of Christ is the remedy for our sins. But we also need a remedy for the sin within us—and that, as we will now see, is the death of Christ.

How can we be freed from the power of sin to live happily? Because if we are constantly doing what we don't want to do, we are not happy. This is how the person described in Romans 7 behaves: "For I do not practice the good I want, but the evil I do not want, that I do" (7:19). Do you know this too? You do something that you know is evil. You no longer want to do it, yet you keep doing it.

Attempts to resolve the conflict

How can we be freed from the power of sin? A lot has already been tried:

  • Fight: Since you fail the first and second time, you must fight it even longer. Wait and see, you'll get there eventually. - But you'll never make it!
  • Asceticism and monasticism: Nuns and monks went to monasteries because they thought they could isolate themselves from sin and evil influences there. However, this did not solve the problem because they took the sin that dwelled within them with them behind the monastery walls.
  • Self-deception: Some argue that we no longer have any sin in us. But John writes: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8). We do indeed still have sin in us!
  • Trivialization: Some people try to convince themselves that sin shouldn't be taken so seriously. Just become a little more superficial! Everyone does what you do! Don't be so strict, don't be so squeamish! - This is not a solution that will stand up to God.
  • Taking advantage of grace: Even worse are those who sin at the expense of grace. They say: If grace abounds (Rom 5:20), let us persevere in sin so that grace may abound! (Rom 6:1). This is blasphemous speech. "Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace?" (V. 15).

Paul now takes up the fight against such an argument, as the last point shows. He stands in the way of the blasphemers and refutes their claims. How does he do this? He does not simply say to them: "You are making ungodly claims," but returns to the beginning of the Christian way. The words "Should we continue in sin so that grace may abound?" (v. 1) reveal the whole wickedness of the human heart. Would it be conceivable for a son to constantly and recklessly hurt the feelings of his parents just so that they would have more opportunity to forgive him? Paul firmly condemns such an attitude and says: "Far be it from you!" Incidentally, we don't just have to think of gross sins here. "Remaining in sin" means living in sin and not "living to God" (cf. v. 11). It means to live in self-will - to live for oneself.

Dead to sin

"We who have died to sin, how shall we live in it?" (V. 2). We need to examine this statement more closely because it is the key to understanding the whole passage.

Who are these "we"? They are all believers and not just mature old brothers. This is not about our practice (in this, by the way, older believers have the same problems as young converts! God says so, and we must believe that all those born again have died to sin without exception. It does not say that we should have died to sin or would no longer sin, but that we have died to sin. Grammatically, this is the "dative of relationship". Died to what? Dead to sin means that you no longer have a relationship with it. There is an expression that says: this person "has died to me." We don't want to use it, of course, but it helps us to understand what is meant here. It means that the existing relationship has been dissolved. In the same way, we are now "dead to sin."

If we want to know how God has achieved this with us, we must look at verse 10. It says that the Lord Jesus also "died to sin." This is a wonderful explanation of the whole passage. Although He had never sinned and could never sin, the Lord Jesus died to sin. In what way? The Lord dealt with sin continuously on earth. He came into contact with sin throughout His entire life. He saw the consequences of sin at every turn. He groaned under it, He was moved inwardly, He wept over the consequences of sin, and finally, He was made sin on the cross. This scene of sin, which accompanied Him throughout His life, He finally left through death - and only through death! When He died, He "died to sin"; that is, He left the area where He had to deal with sin.

And now comes the wonderful thing: since I died with Him, I too - like Him - have left the realm of sin in which I found myself as a descendant of Adam. I am one with Him - and that solves my problem! His way is my way; His position is my position. Once you have understood this, you will understand many other difficult passages in the Bible. We see ourselves far too little in Him but mostly detached from Him. Paul says: "For as he died, he died to sin once for all ... So you too ..." (V. 10.11). His part is also my part. I am one with Him. This thought runs through the whole passage: "co-crucified" (v. 6), "died with Christ" (v. 8), "buried with him" (v. 4), "live with him" (v. 8), "so do we" (v. 4), "so will we" (v. 5), "so will you" (v. 11). We should think much more about this.

Two other passages make the term "dead to sin" even clearer. The first is in Colossians: "If you have died with Christ to the elements of the world..." (Col 2:20). So again, "died with Christ" - from the "elements of the world" (literally). I quote the second passage from Hebrews: "... so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear the second time without sin to those who are waiting for him, for their salvation" (Heb 9:28). Instead of "without sin,” we can also say "separate from sin" or "without relationship to sin,” that is, "his coming for his own has nothing more to do with sin."

I can cast off inclinations or habits, but I cannot cast off my life except through death. And that is precisely the meaning of the expression "dead to sin.” You can also say: having left the state of the natural man, having been taken out of the realm of sin, no longer having a relationship with it. Whoever remains in the realm of sin is eternally lost and must meet God as a child of Adam in this state. But whoever believes in the Lord Jesus has died with Christ and is thus freed from the power of sin.

Taking God at his word

Now, it is impossible to be alive and to have died at the same time. That is not possible. I cannot die to something and then still want to live with it. The apostle makes this clear here (Rom 6:2). In Galatians, he expresses it similarly concerning his own person: "... through whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world" (Gal 6:14). Now you say: "That's not true for me, it doesn't correspond to my experience." But God says: "It is true!" There is only one thing for you to do: you must believe God! That is the only way. Just as you believed the substitutionary sacrifice for your sins, you must also believe this truth. God sees it this way: old Karl-Heinz (or whatever is our name) is dead. That's the way it is. I must not lean on my experiences that try to prove me wrong every day.

The foundation for a happy life of faith is the word of God. Faith sees things the way God sees them. I have left the state in which I was dominated by sin through death. I am no longer under the dominion of sin because I have died with Christ. I would like to illustrate this with a somewhat macabre but nevertheless very apt example: imagine a corpse. You can do whatever you want with it: you can pinch it or shout at it; you can put the temptations of sin in front of it, and it won't react. Nothing tempts him anymore. He is dead. This is precisely our position with regard to the sin that dwells within us. This is what the apostle wants to show us here.

Our responsibility

Now comes an appeal to our hearts: "We who have died to sin, how shall we live in it any longer?" (V. 2). Yes, how could I still live in the sin that would have separated me eternally from God and for which the Savior had to suffer so immensely? Wouldn't that be a mockery of the Lord's work on Calvary? 

But how can I manage to stop living in sin? I would like to offer some help: When sin tempts - and it will tempt! -When temptation comes to you, just get on your knees and say: "Lord, thank you that I no longer have to sin. Thank you that I no longer have to give in to this temptation." Of course, you can also pray silently for yourself on the street, in the car, or anywhere else. If you do this every time a temptation comes, you will experience that the Savior helps you. You don't have to sin anymore! You have died to sin! You must have understood this principle - although the power for a victorious Christian life is only shown in chapter 8.

Baptism unto his death

In verse 3, Paul reminds us that we have already confessed the truth of verses 1 and 2 when we were baptized. We may not have understood this then, but it is still true. "Or do you not know that we, as many as were baptized into Christ Jesus, were baptized into his death?" (V. 3). Baptism always has to do with death. It is a burial. The water is a picture of death and a picture of the judgment that God brings upon sin. But we have not been baptized into our death, but into his death. He, the Lord Jesus, went into death. All the water, the flood of God's judgment, broke over Him. "All your waves and your billows have gone over me" (Psalm 42:8). That happened on Golgotha! And now we confess in baptism: That was my place! That was where I belonged. I deserved this death. But another, my Lord, was in this judgment for me - and I with Him. Now, I make myself one with Him in the likeness of His death. That is why we have been baptized into His death. We have died to sin with Him and, like Him, have stepped out of the realm of sin. The Red Sea is an apt image of this. Incidentally, we could never have been united with Christ if He had not died. The Lord Jesus says, "Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24). We had to be united with a Christ who died.

"We have therefore been buried with him through baptism into death" (v. 4). Anyone who is buried is dead because only the dead are buried. The dead person then becomes invisible to the world. So we, too, have disappeared from the world, as it were. We also understand now that the world can no longer do anything with us if we realize what we have confessed in baptism.

Change into newness of life

Then comes the conclusion: "... so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life" (v. 4). The baptized person does not remain in the water. Just as the Lord did not remain in death, neither do we remain in the water. He rose from the dead - and we with Him. Is that what it says here? No, that is the truth of the letters to the Ephesians and the Colossians.  The letter to the Romans does not go that far. It only hints at this truth, and because it is not part of the doctrine of baptism, it does not develop it further. It is nice to see how "orderly" it is in God's Word! - The letter to the Romans still sees us walking "in the desert.” Therefore, Paul does not say here that we are raised with Him (which would figuratively place us in the land of Canaan), but only draws the practical conclusion: "... so we also walk in newness of life".

To understand what this means, we must first examine the extent to which the Lord Jesus has been "raised by the glory of the Father.” This is an expression that only occurs here. It means that the whole glory of the Father entered into the means to raise Him from the dead. We can also say that the Father owed it, as it were, to the work of the Lord Jesus and His own glory to raise the One who glorified Him so infinitely (cf. Jn 17:4, 5). So the Lord is now in a new position; in this, He is the pattern of the life in which we now live God. The life of the Lord in the resurrection world also characterizes us. Our life should be a practical reflection of the glory of the Lord in heaven. We walk "in newness of life". We now live in a completely new position and in a completely new way in the "wilderness,” in the power of his resurrection life. We now have completely different interests, affections, motives, goals, a different way of thinking - in other words, a completely new way of living. This is not an exhortation but simply a statement of a new way of life.

One with Him in His resurrection

From verse 5 onwards, we now find several conclusions from the fact that we have been "made one with Him" or "have grown together with Him.” Yes, we are so closely united with Him that Scripture sees us as having grown together with Him. We have been "made one with him ... in the likeness of his death". This is an established fact that happened in the past and that we confessed in baptism. And if there is this making one in death, then we will also be one with Him in the likeness of His resurrection. The apostle draws this compelling conclusion without further developing its truth. We have seen that Paul does not say in Romans that we have already been resurrected with Christ but sees it as future. Because the Lord Jesus is risen, when the time comes, we too will be resurrected or - if we are still alive when he comes - transformed and caught up. This is the future prospect for us who have died with Him. And again, we see that His way is also our way. He is risen - we will be one with Him in the likeness of His resurrection. When that happens, we will not only be free from the dominion of sin but also from sin itself! That goes even further; that is even more powerful. But faith already sees itself connected to Him here. In faith, you can already bring His resurrection into your life today. 

Our old man crucified

"Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him..." (V. 6). We have the term "old man" three times in the Bible. Here, it says that he was co-crucified; in Colossians 3:8, it says that we have put him off, and in Ephesians 4:22, we have put him away. What is our old man? This is our state before our conversion as sinners before God. In this state, we could not help but sin. It is the embodiment of all evil in a person. That is why it is called our old man. God had to judge this old corrupt state. When did that happen? Not only at our conversion but when Christ was judged on the cross when He died. This is how the old man came to an end. The believer gratefully claims this fact for himself. 

Crucifying is a strong expression; it is more than dying. Crucifying involves the judgment of God on sin, on this principle of sin in us. Thus, the old man is crucified and can no longer be held accountable; he belongs to the past. When we have done something bad, we sometimes say: That was my old man. But that is not quite correct. The old man is crucified. What we can say is: That was sin, the old nature in me. It did not die. But my old man, the embodiment of all evil in me, has been judicially removed.

God's goal here is: "...that the body of sin may be put away, that we may no longer serve sin" (v. 6). The body of sin is not our body but the system or organism of sin in man. The body becomes an instrument of Satan. Sin rules us like a slave master. This system is abolished, that is, rendered ineffective (not destroyed). This is God's goal with us, which is why we had to die with Christ. Even if our experiences speak against it: Our old man is co-crucified so that the body of sin may be done away with! God says so, and we simply believe Him. We also no longer serve sin as we did before our conversion; it no longer has any power over us. We no longer have to sin. 

Acquitted from sin

In verse 7, we come to another conclusion: "For he who has died is acquitted from sin." Here, we see judicial deliverance. Acquittal is a judgment. We are not free from sin (cf. 1 John 1:8) - only the Lord was, we will only be so in heaven - but we are not condemned for it. A dead person cannot be condemned. He is no longer bound to sin. His depraved self-will and his evil desires are no longer active. Sinning is no longer an option for him. A dead person cannot be accused of sin. We learn that here: "He who has died is absolved from sin.” Isn't that a powerful statement? We no longer have anything to do with sin; it can no longer be held against us; its claim to power has been extinguished. That is my position as having died with Christ.

Life with Christ

In verse 8, there is another conclusion: "But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him." So, it is a fact that we have died with Christ. Therefore, we believe - and this is not a vague hope, not a mere wish, but an assurance of faith - that we will live with Him. This has two meanings: Firstly, we know we will live with Him forever. That is why the future tense "will live" is used here. 1 Thessalonians 5:10 says the same: "... so that we ... may live together with Him." That is heaven. This is a description of our eternal state. Second, it also refers to verse 4, where it says at the end that we walk in newness of life. That is a present result - we are already doing that now. 

Christ lives for God - so do we

Verse 9 repeats some of what we already know: "... knowing this, that Christ being raised from the dead dies no more; death no longer reigns over him." After He has been raised from the dead, He will never again have anything to do with sin (cf. Heb 9:28), and He will no longer die. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For a short time, it reigned over Him, and it seemed as if death had conquered the Lord. He had died and was laid in a tomb. He was dead. But here it is said: "Death no longer reigns over Him." The Lord Jesus did not remain in death. He was resurrected in the power of an indissoluble life. And just as death no longer reigns over Him, it no longer reigns over us. Here again, we see our oneness with Him. This oneness with Him is indeed the basis of all these teachings.

"For what he died, he died to sin once for all" (verse 10). This means - as already explained in verse 2 - that through death, He has left the scene of sin forever. "But what he lives, he lives to God" (verse 10). Now you might ask: didn't He live to God before His death on the cross? Yes, of course, He always did, but He had to deal with sin at every turn during this time. That is now over, and He can devote Himself to His God without any obstacles. His life knows nothing but God. This is exactly what He also wants to give us: To walk in newness of life, only for God - to have only this purpose. We are one with Christ and already live by faith in the resurrection world of the Lord Jesus.

Believing to be dead to sin

The first exhortation in this passage comes: "So you also, make sure that you are dead to sin" (v. 11). This exhortation presupposes that sin is still in us. Otherwise, we would not have to consider ourselves dead to it. But note that it does not say: Feel dead to sin. You can't feel that. Nor can you feel that you have forgiveness of sins. It would be fatal if our security and position depended on our feelings and emotions. We need the firm certainty that we are dead to sin. We only get this certainty by believing in the truth of verses 3-10, namely that we are one with Christ in every respect. That is why the verse begins again with the words: "So you too ..." By accepting this truth in faith and placing our foot on it, we hold that we are dead to sin. That is the meaning of this verse and the starting point for a godly life: Living in Christ Jesus God as He does.

In this context, one more comment is in order. Again and again, we hear the statement: "We must keep sin in death." But this expression is simply wrong! We cannot keep sin in death. It is there, as daily experience teaches us. But I must keep myself dead to sin. That is the teaching here. The old man is also crucified; I am dead, not sin. But the Lord died for it; he died for this root that is in me that only wants to bring forth evil fruit. Because this is the case, I must not be indifferent to sin under any circumstances, but grace does give me a share and says: "You may accept this truth, that you have died, in faith." If it does happen that I sin, then I know that my Savior died for it. Sin, the predator, is in me, and if I open the door to this predator, it will certainly hurt me. But it no longer has power over me, which is the crucial point. It is no longer "myself".

Brother Heijkoop once illustrated this: An old captain had his own ship. One day, he sold this ship to another captain on the condition that he kept a cabin on this ship in which he could always travel. The contract was signed, and the ship was given a new captain. He was in command from now on, but the old captain was still in his cabin. He no longer had any say but was allowed to go along for the ride. But it wasn't long before the old captain returned and tried to bring the ship back under his control. - That is the predator, the sin in us. But just like the old captain, sin has neither the right nor the power to take the lead in our lives. That belongs to the new captain, i.e., the new Lord, the Spirit, the new life in us, and no longer to sin.

It is also not that we still have to constantly die to sin or that we have to do something to reach this state (that would be the principle of the law), but we have come to this state and now hold that we are dead to sin. And this, of course, has practical implications for our behavior. You can compare it with Ephesians 5:1: It says that we are beloved children of God and should walk in love. So we do not walk in love to become beloved children of God (that would be law: doing something to achieve something), but because we are beloved children of God (that is a gift), we walk in love. And because we have died to sin, we behave accordingly. 

Another example may illustrate this: A long time ago, a miner named Christian worked in a shaft that was not yet as safe as it is today. Every time he entered the mine, a few stones would fall behind him, causing him and his colleagues to curse terribly. One day, however, he converted. When the stones fell on him and the others as usual (not everything gets better when we are converted!), everyone started swearing - but he remained silent. From then on, he didn't swear anymore. And if anger did want to rise in him, he would say to himself: "Christian, you're dead! Christian, you're dead!" He practically lived out this verse: "Make sure you are dead to sin!" 

The verses under consideration can be rendered in simple language: Don't act as if you no longer have sin, but think about it the way God thinks: it is judged, and you are dead to it. If you think about it in the same way as God, then something glorious happens: then you have, so to speak, fellowship with God about your sin. That is something very powerful. That is the positional liberation from the power of sin. We only find the power to practice this in chapter 8, but here, we are already called upon to hold on to this in faith and to walk according to this position. That alone makes us happy!

No longer subject to sin

Based on this truth, practical exhortations are now given in verses 12-14: "So let not sin reign in your mortal body to obey its desires.” So sin has by no means died; otherwise, it could not reign over us. No, the old nature has not been removed; sin is still in us, and we still have sinful desires. Even those who have recognized that they have died to sin with Christ can still sin. Otherwise, there would be no need for the admonitions of these verses. But such a person is no longer under the power of sin; he is no longer subject to it. Sin no longer has any claim on him; its power is broken. He can still sin, but he no longer has to, not even in his thoughts. Before our conversion, we had to sin; we could not help it; it was our condition, our old man. That is why it actually says here (literally translated): "So sin no longer reigns in your mortal body," or "no longer as before.” The same applies to verse 13: "No longer present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness." God gives us these admonitions because, unfortunately, it is still possible for us to sin - if we are not vigilant! It should also be emphasized that sin can only reign in our mortal body, not our renewed inner man. Moreover, this biblical passage shows that mortality only refers to the body. 

To whom do we present our members?

Then we read in verse 13: "Neither present [any longer] your members unto sin.” I would first like to say something about the word "present" because we find this term five times in verses 13-19. It means "to make available" or " ready for something.” The word also occurs in Ephesians 5:27, which says that the Lord Jesus will "present his assembly to himself" in the future. This means that the assembly will then only be there for Him. From this, we learn what “ presenting “ means: all our capacities are no longer devoted to unrighteousness, but to righteousness, with all that we are - with all our abilities in spirit, soul, and body. We no longer place ourselves at the disposal of sin but of God.

In the past, we presented our members to sin "as instruments of unrighteousness.” We can read what this means in chapter 3, which is initially about our mouths: "'Their mouth is an open grave; with their tongues they have dealt deceitfully. 'Snake venom is under their lips. 'Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.’" Then the feet are described: "'Their feet are swift to shed blood; desolation and misery are in their paths.'" Finally, the eyes are also mentioned: "'There is no fear of God before their eyes'" (chap. 3:13-18). This used to be the case, but now it has changed. Our hearts have been purified by faith, and we enter the sanctuary with a true heart as priests. The heart now has a completely new orientation. That is why our members, the instruments, also behave differently. A passage from the book of Proverbs shows what they now do. "Incline your ear to my words" (Prov 4:20). The ear now listens to the word of God. It used to listen to all sorts of things: perhaps rock and pop music, perhaps unbiblical teachings, or the views of famous stars. Then the heart is mentioned: "Guard your heart more than all that is to be guarded" (Prov 4:23) - because it is now filled with a new object. Also, "the deceitfulness of the mouth" and "the perverseness of the lips" are rejected (Prov 4:24). The eyes now "look straight ahead" (Prov 4:25). They delight in the things of God. You no longer look at all dirt and filth - do you? What do you look at on the internet, for example? The danger is especially great when you are alone in your room. One click and evil in its highest form appears before your eyes - and already two limbs, your hand and your eyes, have become instruments of unrighteousness. Isaiah 33 also mentions almost the same limbs as in Proverbs 4: "He who walks in righteousness [that is the feet] and speaks uprightness [that is the mouth], who shakes his hands so as not to accept a bribe; who stops his ear so as not to hear of deeds of blood, and shuts his eyes so as not to see evil, he will dwell on high places, rock fortresses are his stronghold" (Isaiah 33:15). 

But doesn't our heart have a completely different content now? Our hands are skilled in the work of God; our feet spread peace, and our mouths speak words of grace! God has taken the place of Satan, and righteousness has taken the place of sin. We used to be slaves to Satan, but now we present ourselves to God voluntarily. That is a difference. Before conversion, we had to sin, but now we want to present ourselves to God. The power of grace brought this change, giving us the strength to realize this position.

We present ourselves to God. It is not enough to do the right thing dutifully, but God is now my motive. This is the fruit for God. He sees my motives and wants to take pleasure in them. Under the law, you could also do the right thing, but God was not really the motive. Later, the apostle says something very similar: "I exhort you therefore ... to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God" (chapter 12:1). And to the Corinthians, he writes: "Glorify God therefore in your bodies" (1 Cor 6:20). So it is not simply a matter of doing something right, but God wants us to do it to honor Him, to glorify Him and to give ourselves to Him as a sacrifice, as it were. We are able to do this because we are seen "as living from the dead" (v. 13). This is the mystery: although we have died to sin, we still live, and we live in the Risen One. Again, our close connection with Him is seen here. His position is my position, and so I now live in the power of this life and present my "members to God as instruments of righteousness" and no longer "to sin ... as instruments of unrighteousness" (v. 13).

No longer under the dominion of sin

Verse 14 does not now contain an exhortation but a fact. In a way, it already hints at the theme of chapter 7: "Sin will not reign over you." That is certain - and yet my experience is often different. The reason why sin will not reign is: "For you are not under law, but under grace." This means that if you were still under law, sin would reign over you. But since you are now under grace, it no longer rules over you.

But if I voluntarily place myself under a law again (which I have died to) and make it the standard for my life again by committing to keep it, then I am "under law" again and sin rules over me again. "The power of sin is the law" (1 Cor 15:56). That is why it is extremely serious when you place yourself under a law. The law does not give life - we all know that - nor does it give strength to keep it. There is also no object for the heart that makes you happy. It draws a line, and whoever crosses it will be punished without mercy. Now, we are not under law but under grace, which means we are free to give ourselves completely to God. Grace gives life through the new birth. It makes us able and willing to do what God wants us to do beyond the measure of the law. And it gives an object for the heart: Christ, now and forever! That is true Christian freedom.

So, it is about the question of power, especially in chapter 7. After we are dead in position, we need power. A source of strength is necessary to defeat sin. But I don't have it in me; I only get it through grace. Grace forgives, and it gives everything I need, so sin no longer rules over me.

Sin under grace? 

The first question in this chapter was: "Should we persevere in sin so that grace may abound?" (V. 1). It was answered in verses 2-12. Now, the apostle raises a second question, which he answers in verses 16-23. Again, we sense his anger: "What, then, should we sin because we are not under law but under grace?" The previous statements may give rise to this question for some. But the question reveals an evil disposition. This is not the way to speak! Jude mentions those who "turn the grace of our God into debauchery" (Jude 4). It is not a sign of love for Christ if you think you are allowed to sin because you are no longer under law but under grace. Brother William Kelly writes that this would deny the death of the Lord. For through the Lord's death, we have passed from the domain of sin into the domain of grace. He goes on to say that this would also deny the resurrection of the Lord because verse 4 says: "... just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also walk in newness of life." This possibility of walking in newness of life only exists because of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And now someone here says: "I want to go back. I want to keep on sinning." That would explain the resurrection of the Lord Jesus as unnecessary. He says: "I don't want to walk in newness of life at all. I want to go back to this old state." But the apostle firmly rejects this. It would be a voluntary return under the power of sin. It is impossible to imagine anything more terrible.

We are not under law but under grace. You make a contract with servants and set conditions for them to obey. You don't do that with children. Children are obedient out of love. They are not under law but under grace. I would like to illustrate this with an example: an English widower still had a housekeeper after the death of his wife. He gave her a written list of what she had to observe when looking after the children and running the household. The rules were very clear. It was "under the law". Over time, a relationship developed between them, and the widower married this woman. And what was the first thing he did? He tore up the note. Now, she was no longer under the law. But she didn't say: "Now I'm free and don't have to do anything anymore." No, but out of love for her husband, she carried out all these tasks with particular care and did even more than what was previously written on the note. That is an illustration of this passage. We do not even think of sinning at the expense of grace, but on the contrary, we do everything that pleases our Lord. Nothing promotes our holy walk for Christ more than the awareness of the grace given to us.

Who do we obey?

There is no middle ground, no confusion between law and grace. "Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves as slaves to obey, you are slaves to whom you obey: either to sin unto death or to obedience unto righteousness?" (V. 16). You could also give this verse the title: Either law or grace. And the question is: to whom do we want to present ourselves now? Once, we were slaves to sin, but now, in our freedom before God, we want to serve Him. A grateful heart welcomes this, and love - as the above example shows - desires nothing else. The result of these two alternatives is obvious. In the first case, when we are slaves to sin, death is the result. God is dishonored, and we are unhappy. In the second case, if we have become slaves of righteousness to obedience, this leads to righteousness. It is the way of obedience that the Lord Jesus walked in perfection. On the path of obedience, only righteousness came forth in Him. Righteousness means leading a walk that is in accordance with God.

The term slave occurs frequently in this section (verses 16-22). Two areas are addressed: 

1. 'slaves to sin,’ 'slaves to impurity,’ 'slaves to lawlessness.'

2. "slaves to obedience,” "slaves to righteousness,” "slaves to God."

Now the question arises: have we gone from one slavery to another? Have we come from the realm of Satan's slavery, to which we were subject and against which we could not defend ourselves at all, to another slavery? Have we been helped at all? We are now slaves again!

I would like to answer this question using an example: when slavery was abolished in many countries due to the influence of Christianity, the following situation often arose: a believing slave was released into freedom by his slave owner, who had also become a believer. Previously, both had been unbelievers, and the unbelieving slave had moaned and groaned under the pressure of slavery. He had to work hard and could not help it because he belonged body and soul to the slave owner. He had no rights at all. But now, this slave was given freedom. And what did he do? He wanted to remain with his now completely different, believing master - but as a voluntary servant! So we, too, have now been given a different master, and we serve him voluntarily as a servant or slave. That is now our position. So, we have now become slaves of obedience.

When we look at these verses, we must remember that the apostle wants to make it clear to us that a believer can only answer the question in verse 15 with a "no.” Paul asks, as it were, "Do you want to return to your old state? Do you really want to put yourselves back under the power of sin? You know that from back then!" You have to repeatedly say, "No, no, I don't want that!"

Obedient to the form of teaching

"But thanks be to God that you were slaves to sin" (v. 17). This is nothing other than thanksgiving for the liberation we have experienced. We were slaves to sin, and through conversion, we are no longer slaves to sin. Before our conversion, we had to sin, but now we have "become obedient from the heart ... to the form of teaching". That is a stark contrast. We could overwrite these verses with the words: What we were and what we are. We had to be obedient to sin back then, but now we are believers who have voluntarily and wholeheartedly surrendered to the image of doctrine. Faith and decisions of the heart were necessary for this change.

What is the “form of teaching”? It is Christ as He has been revealed in the gospel. When the word doctrine is used, some believers feel a certain aversion, but this only shows that they have not grasped the content of every Christian doctrine: it is Christ! Once this is understood, doctrine becomes beautiful. Then, we recognize in Christ the whole radiance of Christian teaching. We have now been handed over to this form. There is no more perfect form than that God presents to us in Christ. The human heart needs an object; it is not sufficient unto itself. And grace gives it an object: Christ! Dear young friend, Is your heart filled with Christ? Is it surrendered to the form of teaching? And is it completely surrendered to Him, or are there parts of it that you give to someone else? I ask myself this question: please ask yourself, too. You are not happy if your heart needs other things to be happy. John Nelson Darby once said: "When the world realizes that we need its things to be happy, all witnessing power for Christ is lost." Is that the case with me or with you? Do you still need the things of the world to be happy?

Slave of righteousness to holiness

"But made free from sin" (v. 18) means we no longer need to sin. And surely we don't want to return to this state, where we were under the heel of sin? Do we want to sin again just because we are no longer under the law? The Lord Jesus says: "You cannot serve two masters" (Mt 6:24). If we are set free from sin, we belong to a different master. We have become "slaves of righteousness." This verse says that, on the one hand, we are completely free from sin, and on the other hand, we are voluntary servants. If we have understood how valuable this person to whom we belong is, then we are willingly and voluntarily those who only want to live for Christ and God. The new life wants nothing else. Being a slave to righteousness means devoting oneself body and soul to righteousness. Freedom is therefore not abused to sin again, but as a slave to righteousness, we do what the law demands (but could never produce) - and more!

When the apostle begins verse 19 with the words: "I speak humanly,” he is saying that he is speaking to us in a very simple way that we can easily understand. He wants to say that he only uses the term "slave of righteousness" to emphasize the difference to the real slavery of sin. That is why he uses the word slave both times, but only in the first case is it about a slave in the negative sense. In other words, he says: "Please do not think that you are now under slavery as you were then when you had to obey without wanting to. No, now you obey voluntarily."

 "For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity ..." (V. 19). Back then, we loved sin. We loved impurity and did our own will. That is lawlessness. But now we are freed from this slavery. But being free does not mean simply doing what you want. It means wanting to serve righteousness. "... so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness" (v. 19). In both cases, we recognize a certain progression: Lawlessness leads to further and increasing lawlessness, i.e., distance from God in arrogance and self-will; righteousness, on the other hand, leads to (practical) holiness, i.e., separation for God in humility and obedience. In the first case, the natural man loves sin and hates the light. The spiritual man, on the other hand, loves the light and hates evil. 

We attain practical holiness through steadfastness of faith, in that our heart has a point of attraction that is more valuable to it than anything Satan can offer. However, it may also be necessary for God to use discipline to bring about this holiness in us. This is what we read in Hebrews 12:10: God chastens us "for our benefit, that we may share in his holiness.” I believe that some of the painful chastening paths He leads us on have precisely this purpose. And if this is the case, we also want to accept this loving chastisement.

Two paths - two goals

In verses 20-21 we now have the fruit in the life of an unbeliever and his end as a warning for us, and in verse 22 we find the fruit and the end of a believer as an encouragement for us. It says in verse 20: "For when you were slaves of sin, you were free from righteousness." What does it mean to be free from righteousness? It means nothing other than that we had no connection to righteousness. We did not want to live righteously but in unrighteousness. That was the case when we were sinners. The fruit of this unrighteous walk is shame, sorrow, and death (v. 21). Do you want to return to that? That would be the consequence if you sinned by taking advantage of grace.

In contrast, we are now "set free from sin and made slaves to God" (v. 22). It's important to note that it doesn't say we were previously set free from righteousness because then it would be something God would have done - and that's unthinkable. But He has set us free from sin so that we no longer have any connection to sin. Instead, we have become slaves to God. This statement represents a certain climax in this passage. We now have the most intimate relationship with the great God. We consecrate all the powers of body and soul to him. There is no longer a list of commandments. Through the Holy Spirit, we know his will, and through grace, we love to do this will. This obedience knows no bounds. The law, on the other hand, sets limits. In John 8:29, we read that the Lord Jesus always did what pleased the Father. That is the mark of a true servant of God!

Previously, under the law, we did not bear fruit for God, but now we have "fruit unto holiness,” this fruit of the Spirit in its ninefold effect (cf. Gal 5:22). This is not about the holiness we possess in terms of position but in terms of practice. We must be practically sanctified. How is this achieved? We can occupy ourselves with the Lord Jesus as He was on earth and as He is now in heaven. If we look at Philippians 2, we see the attitude that characterized Him here as a man on earth. His life and sufferings warm our hearts for Him; they awaken our affections and capture our hearts for Him. This is how we bear fruit. And our preoccupation with the glorified Lord in heaven gives us strength and energy to live our lives in practical holiness. "Seek what is above, where Christ is" (Col 3:1, cf. also Phil 3). Then what Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 3:18 will happen: "But we all, with unveiled face beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Lord the Spirit." This also gives us insight into the thoughts of God, for "the secret of the LORD is for those who fear him" (Ps 25:14). A life in the fear of God gives us knowledge of God's thoughts. For example, this was the case with Abraham, but we see the opposite with Lot.

To do this, however, we need the right food. We can either nourish the new or the old nature. An example: An eagle and a wild dog are chained together. The dog - according to its nature - wants to dig in the dirt, but the eagle - also according to its nature - wants to fly. Now, it depends on who is stronger. If the eagle is well-fed, it can compete with the dog and take it to the skies. Otherwise, it has to follow the dog's inclinations. It is the same with us. Our old nature, the wild dog, wants to "dig in the dirt,” and the new nature, the eagle, wants to fly. Which of the two do we feed? We must nourish the eagle and deprive the dog of food. Christ and his word strengthen the new nature, whereas the world and our preoccupation with it nourish the flesh. "All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not from the Father" (1 John 2:16). The things of the world feed the flesh. But occupation with Christ nourishes the new man, and then we bear fruit and "fly.”

At present, on earth, we bear "fruit unto holiness," and in the future, we have "as the end but eternal life." A holy life is easy to live; it is not about spectacular things. For example, when young people walk their path in purity, this is the fruit of holiness. Such a path of holiness ends in heaven, in eternal life. That is typical of Paul. He almost always sees eternal life as a future realm into which we will enter and in which this life can fully unfold. The Lord Jesus will "transform our lowly body ... into conformity to his glorious body" (Phil 3:21).

In verse 23, the two results are contrasted: Death and life. For the natural man, it is death: "For the wages of sin is death.” This includes the eternal separation of the soul from God. Each of us deserves this; it is the wages of sin. But the result on God's part is a gift. It is not earned. It is "the gift of God's grace,” eternal life. God has given us this gift by grace, even today. Here, in contrast to verse 22, Paul sees eternal life as a present possession. This is also how it is described in John: "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life" (1 John 5:12). We have the Son and therefore also life, even today. This life is a prerequisite for us to have fellowship with our God and Father right now. "Life has been revealed [in Christ], and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you eternal life, ... so that you also may have fellowship with us [the apostles]; that is, our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ" (1 John 1:2, 3). The present possession of eternal life is a prerequisite for enjoying fellowship with divine persons. It is our portion now, and that is nothing other than having Christ, who is eternal life (1 John 5:20). Because eternal life is in Christ, it is irrevocable and can never be taken from us.

Here we have the connection to chapter 5:21: "so that ... grace may reign through righteousness to eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord." Death as the wages of sin is no longer our portion, but eternal life! Who would want to voluntarily place themselves under the power of sin, which only results in death? We can only say to the apostle Paul: "Far be it from you!

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