Introduction

In the previous passage (Romans 6:1-11), Paul teaches us that we have been set free from sin (v. 7). He uses imagery of baptism in which we identify with Jesus in his death and resurrection (v. 3-5). When Paul says that we are set free from sin, he is describing our Christian position. In today’s passage, Paul teaches us how to stay free from sin. Staying free from sin is our Christian practice. As Christians, we often find ourselves wrestling with the tension between position and practice. We know we have been set free from sin, and yet we still struggle with the desire to sin every day. We know our position, but we haven’t learned how to put it into practice. Paul’s heart in writing this passage is to help us move from position to practice, living in the fullness of freedom that has been purchased for us by Jesus.

Freed from Sin, Not Freed to Sin (v. 14-16)

• God paid the highest price, the life of his son Jesus, to purchase freedom for us (Rom 8:1-4; Gal 5:1; Jn 8:36).
• Worldly freedom is using our free will to “do whatever I want whenever I want” without any authority, to have full control of our lives, to be our own God = freedom to sin.
• Christian freedom is not using our free will to continue sinning, but using our free will to love and serve God = freedom from sin.
• Paul is clarifying for the Roman Christians that they are freed from sin, not freed to sin. (Rom 6:1-2, 15; Gal 5:13; 1 Pet 2:16; 1 Cor 6:12)
• We are always serving someone. There is no option to be in our own authority or have full control, we are either serving sin or serving God.

Staying Free: Resist and Replace (v. 12-13; 16-20)

• Paul is saying that in order to stay free from sin, we must present ourselves to God as “instruments of righteousness”.
• The word “instrument” in the original Greek translates to “tool” or “weapon”. Tools are designed for a specific purpose. Alone, they are powerless and useless. A tool’s effectiveness and purpose depends entirely on whose hands it is in.
• Before we put our faith in Jesus, we were in the hands of sin. But when we put our faith in Jesus we were transferred from the hands of sin into the hands of God (Col 1:13). In order to be used effectively for the Kingdom, we must be careful to not place ourselves back in the hands of sin, where we would be used for destruction and evil. Instead, we must continually place ourselves in the hands of the creator who knows our design and our purpose and can use us to build the Kingdom in a way we can!
• Paul tells us that staying in our creator’s hands requires both a defensive and offensive stance. Defensively, we must stop presenting ourselves as instruments of sin (RESIST), and offensively we must present ourselves as instruments of righteousness (REPLACE).
o James 4:7 Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
• RESIST the devil and sin. We must die to self every day. (1 Cor 15:31)
o Notice the early signs/whispers of sin (usually seem innocent and harmless) and practice resisting early (1 Pet 5:8)
o Accountability in areas that you are vulnerable in (sponsor, mentor, friend, etc)
o Set boundaries to avoid temptation (environments, communities, etc)
• REPLACE sin with righteousness. We must walk but the spirit (Gal 5:16-18)
o Spiritual disciplines (feeding/strengthening the spirit): Word, worship, prayer, stillness/solitude, fasting
o Daily prayer of surrender: “Good morning, Lord! I submit my body, mind, heart and will to you today. Holy Spirit, have your way.”
o Rom 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
o Community and church: we need to surround ourselves with people who are encouraging us, challenging us, and walking alongside us in our faith. We can’t do it alone!
• This daily practice of resisting and replacing is what strengthens our spirit and starves our flesh. The more we resist sin and replace it with righteousness, the more we desire righteousness.

The Fruit of Freedom: Sanctification and Eternal Life (v. 19-23)

• Sanctification is the process of becoming more holy, healed, whole and “perfect” every day.
• As we continually choose to resist and replace, the Holy Spirit sanctifies us and the fruit of the Spirit begins to grow in us. We embody and experience the fruit of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal 5:22-23).
• We will look more and more like Jesus in the unique way we are designed to reflect him. We will become a more effective tool in growing the Kingdom every day we are in the hands of our creator.
• Sanctification is a messy process… we need God’s grace. The expectation isn’t to be sinless, but to receive the already purchased gift of grace when you stumble.
• Our flesh is strong… we need the Holy Spirit who is stronger (Gal 3:3). We can not destroy flesh with the flesh. Instead of trying to resist and replace with our own strength and power, we must humbly rely on the HS’s power in us.
• We must trust that God will finish what he started in us! (Phil 1:6; Heb 12:2)
• As Christians, we have a living hope of an eternity where we experience the fullness of freedom. We can look forward to a day when we will be in perfect peace, joy and life with God. But we don’t have to wait for eternity to taste this freedom. Sanctification, moving from position to practice, is living in our eternity now.

Conclusion

Today, God is inviting us to move from position to practice. He is reminding us that since we have been set free from the authority of sin through Christ, we must now choose to surrender to his perfect, loving authority so that we can stay free. By continually resisting sin and replacing it with righteousness, we can experience the beautiful and messy journey of sanctification, becoming more healed, whole, and free every day. True freedom is humbly placing ourselves in the hands of our creator, trusting him to use us powerfully and purposefully to build his Kingdom. This is living in our eternity now.