July 29 I Thursday

Psalms 49-50

Romans 1

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”   —Romans 6:23 

What is the power of sin? We would agree that sin can wreak havoc in our lives and the lives of those around us, especially persistent sin, which leads to moral and spiritual bankruptcy. But what does our sin do to God? Anger may seem like a foreign trait to a God of love, but God does get angry. Our sin hurts Him, grieves Him and can even provoke His wrath. Ultimately, the consequence of sin is death and we are all sinners, as Paul says, “There is no one righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10) and “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).

      As Christians, we are united to Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. Paul writes, “For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we will certainly also be united with Him in a resurrection like His. For we know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who has died has been set free from sin” (Romans 6:5-7). Sin is not going to destroy us because it has already been destroyed through the death of the Jesus Christ. The power of sin has been broken and the death that was its consequence has already been paid.

      Though the wages of our sin has been paid for on the cross, we can still become slaves to sin with how we choose to live. If we tolerate any particular sin today, in the course of time, sin will grow, develop, enslave and eventually master us. This is why confession is essential; every time we bring our sin to the cross of Jesus Christ in confession, we grow stronger. Our battle with sin is ongoing and we are not promised victory every time, but coming to the cross keeps us humble and dependent upon God.

      As there is an ever-increasing wickedness if we yield to sin, there is an ever-increasing governance of God as we yield to obedience. Paul encourages us, “Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness” (Romans 6:19). Paul continues, “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life” (Romans 6:22). In Christ, we are not only freed from sin’s power, but as we live daily in dependence on Him and obedience to Him, we experience the freedom and hope of eternal life with God.

Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank You for conquering the power of sin by dying on the cross and for being the source of strength and power in my life. Help me to walk in obedience. Amen!