Romans – Page 8 – Be Still…

Romans 7:1-6 – The Law is Powerless to Save

Being under God’s grace and not under the law does NOT give us the go-ahead to sin. We have seen this in the last two days as Paul warns his readers. But this grace does give us freedom from the bondage of sin and the propensity to sin. We are given a new beginning, a fresh slate, and we can now be mindful of our sinfulness.

Romans 6:15-23 – A Slave to What?

Read Romans 6:15-23

These people really want to go on sinning, don’t they? Paul’s answer is the same as it was in yesterday’s text. Is it okay? “Of course not!” We will be a slave to something, whether it be sin or righteousness. Paul uses that analogy to help us understand the relationship. We can become a slave to whatever we choose to obey. Our freedom gives us that choice.

What do you picture when you think about being a slave? You are not your own. You belong to someone else. As humans, we have weaknesses. What areas in your life do you feel weak? It is in those moments or areas of our life where sin can infiltrate despite our freedom from it.

Romans 6:1-14 – Set Free

Read Romans 6:1-14

There is so much to digest in today’s passage. I don’t even know where to begin. How many times have you heard people say, “well if God forgives me for my sins, then I guess I can keep sinning.” (And, if you haven’t audibly heard anyone say this, then you can certainly watch their behaviors and figure that’s what they must be thinking.)

It’s not a new thought, and Paul calls it out! “Of course not!” He says. Such an attitude is taking advantage of God and his gift to us. He’s not saying we won’t sin, because we will, but we shouldn’t sin on purpose. That would surely show we don’t understand the seriousness of sin in our lives and how precious God’s forgiveness is – Jesus had to die!

Romans 5:12-21 – Adam vs. Jesus

Read Romans 5:12-21

I would not want to be compared to Jesus, I would fall flat on my face. Even though I try every day to be more and more like him. As we all should. Then there’s Adam. He really messed up. Thanks to him, we all have the curse of sin on our heads.

Although, in Adam, we have a good example of what not to do. We know from watching Adam’s faux pas that we should listen to God. God has the best plan for us. We mess things up when we try to make our way without God. When we listen to the lies of the world (Satan) we are just setting ourselves up for failure and sin.

Romans 5:1-11 – Friends of God

Read Romans 5:1-11

I don’t know about you, but I sure feel privileged to be chosen by God and to have been made right with him because of my faith in Jesus. It’s so incredible, how can it be true? In life, when opportunities that seem too good to be true come along we tend to be wary and run the other way. Not so with the love of God.

I want to bask in that love and feel the peace of God course through my veins. There is enough struggle and stress in this world, but walking through it with the peace of God is so much better. Calling Jesus friend because of the relationship we are building is also quite a privilege.