20 No Longer Slaves

The apostle Paul, had concluded the first portion of Romans chapter 6, by maintaining that believers are not only consider ourselves as dead to sin, but also alive to God in Christ:

Romans 6:11

Paul would continue in the next part of the chapter, by continuing show, why sin should not dominate a believer’s life. However, even that is greatly determined upon which direction we will yield:

1 Yielding

Romans 6:12-14

As verse 12 begins with “Therefore” we immediately see that it’s connected to what Paul had most recently been discussing in verse 11.

Paul desired to show that it’s not enough for believers to have been freed from sin’s dominion in their lives, but they most live as one who had been freed.

In verse 13, Pau; speaks of how the believer must keep their body from yielding to sin:

Romans 6:13a

Paul used the term “members” in speaking of parts of the human body.

These were parts of the body, such as, the eyes, ears, mouths, hands, feet and even minds.

Each of these “members” can be used to sin, and therefore draw the Christian away from the Lord.

In his epistle, James spoke of the dangers of the tongue, as a frequent cause of sin in a believer’s life:

James 3:6

Rather than yielding to the desires of the flesh (unrighteousness), the believer is yield to the Lord, thus causing are “members” to become instruments of righteousness:

Romans 13b

Paul was making the point, the we as believers, we don’t automatically live righteously, but it requires a deliberate act of submission to Christ, and that submission must take place in every area of our life.

Paul addressed the issue again, later in the epistle:

Romans 12:1-2

In verse 14, Paul joined together several of the points he’d made earlier in the letter, with more recent ones.

2 No Longer Slaves to Sin

The section begins similarly as did some of Paul’s prior words, but a closer examination will reveal an important distinction:

Romans 6:15-19

And the previous words:

Romans 6:1-2

The problems lie when we simply view both verses in English. Yet, vast difference is seen, based upon the verb tense used in the original ancient Greek writings.

Verse 1 in the ancient Greek, uses the aorist present subjunctive tense. In that case, the verb form speaks of a continuous lifestyle of sin, therefore the sin become one’s manner of living.

On the other hand, in verse 15, the aorist subjective verb form is used, which always refers to a single act, therefore the sin would not be considered as the individual’s lifestyle.

Yet in both instances, Paul was emphatic that the believer shouldn’t engage in either type of sin. In both instances, he used the Greek word <mē genoito> which means “absolutely not”.

In verse 16, Paul uses the phrase “Do you not know” – which in the original Greek can be understood as meaning “to perceive something intuitively”. Paul is therefore saying, that is should be self-evident, that one is in slavery to whomever (or whatever) they feel obligated to obey.

Jesus spoke of how no one can serve two masters, but must choose which one they wish to follow:

Matthew 6:24

In verse 17, Paul then thanked God for those who had turned from a life of sin to following the Lord. He spoke of them as having “obeyed from heart”, which is an apt description, since it shows how a believer is someone who has surrendered their heart to Christ.

Paul also spoke of their obedience as being related to “that form of doctrine”. The idea of “form” speaks of how the Lord desires to shape of “form” us according to correct belief (doctrine).

In verse 18, the apostle then states that the believer has been set free from sin, and has become a slave of righteousness:

Romans 6:18

While some might be troubled by seeing “slave” used in connection with righteousness, once again, we must look to the idea of slavery under the Greek culture.

To the Greeks, a slave was one who:

• Born into the condition of slavery
• Whose will is controlled by the will of another
• Who is bound to the master, which only can be broken by death
• Who serves his master to the disregard of his own interests

With that understanding, it becomes easier to see how the believer is now a slave of righteousness for holiness:

• We have been born from above, having been born into righteousness
• Our lives should be controlled not by our own will, but the Lord’s
• We are bound to Christ eternally, and not even death may break that bond
• We are to serve the Lord and His interests, and not our own.