By No Means!
Ten times. Ten times in eleven verses Paul uses the word “sin” in this passage of Romans. Sin holds dominion over us, sin makes us instruments of wickedness, we are, according to Paul, slaves to sin. And sin is something we must be freed from by the gift of God in Jesus Christ.
I don’t disagree with Paul. But you may have noticed by now that sin is not a topic I tend to preach on very often. By its very nature, sin is a negative word. It’s something to be avoided. To be rejected. We repent of our sin; we do not (or we are not supposed to) embrace it.
So all of our reactions to sin are things we are supposed to not do. It’s a very negative way to approach life – here’s what not to do.
And so, typically when I preach, I tend more towards the things we should do – the actions we can take. To love each other, to share our blessings, to honor our God in prayer, praise, and Sabbath. Here’s what we should do.
But I would be a poor preacher indeed if I only touched on those topics I liked, and skipped over the things I didn’t. Sin, by it’s very nature, is unpleasant. It’s not a warm and fuzzy topic.
We know that sin separates us from God. We know it manifests itself when we fail to love. When we give in to hatred, fear, and loathing. We know that sin abounds when we turn away from kindness and understanding and retreat to spite and selfishness.
Yet what Paul is talking about here isn’t any particular sin. He’s not talking about greed or pride or envy. He’s not talking about any particular commandment – warning us against theft, adultery, or murder. Instead, it seems that Paul is talking about the general state of sin – Sin as a condition of being.
Paul is instructive in his letter here in his use of the word, “slave.”
It’s not necessarily a slave kept in chains and beaten, or confined to the fields or pulling the oars on a Roman galley.
Instead, the word Paul uses is doulos, which means slave. But also servant. And also one who is indebted or obliged to another person. And also one who is obedient to another.
So the question that’s really before us when we talk about sin is, “Who are we obedient to?”
We know that God forgives. That God shows grace and mercy and kindness even to the most wicked and wretched of people. So in the sense that sin means that we’ve done something wrong, we know that God will forgive us – that actually, God already has forgiven us through the blood of Jesus Christ.
Yet that’s not the sin that Paul is talking about here.
Paul is asking us, who do we owe our obedience to?
Which is both a very complex and very simple question. Because we’re sitting in a church, and you’re listening to a pastor, at this moment all of our minds are very fixed on God, and so in this context, we can all say, quite confidently and correctly, that our obedience is to God and God alone. And if that’s your answer, hooray, full marks, well done!
But what happens when we leave the church? What happens when we’re a day or two or three away from our last meditation on God’s word? When we let our prayer regimen slip? When the rest of life gets in the way?
Who do we owe our obedience to on a Thursday afternoon, when we’re not sitting in church, listening to a pastor, having just heard or read from the Bible?
We may say we’re obedient to our bosses or supervisors – even if we wouldn’t necessarily use the word, “obedient.” We may say we “answer to” them. Or to our spouses. Or to our country. Or to a coach or mentor. Or to our political party within our country. Some of us may say we’re obedient to no one but our own selves. And in various contexts each of those answers may have some truth to them. Because we live lives in competing loyalties, each of us being pulled in different directions, because we all have people we’re responsible for and responsible to… people we’re trying to impress or who are trying to impress us… people we care about, and who care about us. And so each of us may identify with who our families are, what our occupations are, what our ideologies are, and who we associate with, and we may find ourselves in 4 or 5 or 6 or 7 competing “tribes” that we consider ourselves to be a part of, and those are just the ones we’re aware of.
And so the question of obedience comes before us.
And we are in church on a Sunday morning and so we have our minds fixed on the right answer. But we also know all too well what happens by Wednesday or Thursday (or sooner) when we let our minds slip. And our other obediences come into the picture.
Now. This is not to say that our other obediences are wrong. Or that they are unnatural. Or that we shouldn’t have them. Because we should be obedient to the good of our families. We should be obedient to the things that make us productive and successful in our personal and professional lives. We should be obedient to the country and the values that not only give us opportunities, but share those opportunities with what Jesus called, “the least of these.”
Those aren’t wrong or unnatural to have. But they are secondary.
We know we enjoy God’s grace. We know we are promised forgiveness in Jesus Christ. And so Paul asks the question: knowing of grace, and being assured of forgiveness, does that give us permission to continue in sin? To be slaves, to be obedient, to things other than God? And his answer is, “By no means!”
We are not given permission to sin. We are not given permission to put any other competing obedience above God. Even if we know that we are ultimately forgiven for the times that we do.
Instead, we are called to be what Paul calls “slaves of righteousness.” To put God at the front and center of our lives, all day every day. That whether it’s a Sunday morning or a Thursday afternoon (and I really don’t mean to pick on Thursdays – it’s a wonderful day), that we put God first in all things.
Can we be good mothers or fathers, husbands or wives, sons or daughters, if we put God first in our lives? Absolutely, we can.
Can we be good workers, craftsmen, students, or bosses, if God comes before all else? I certainly believe that to be the case.
Can we be good citizens, good stewards of the Republic, good Americans, if we honor God above our own country? I should very much say so!
Yet, can we be good and faithful people; good servants of God, good Christians, if we put anything else above our love and trust in our Lord Jesus Christ?
By no means.
We show our faith in our obedience to God and our aspirations to put God’s will above all else; even our own desires. And we won’t also get it right. We won’t be perfect. We will make mistakes. And God will forgive us our shortcomings. Yet we are still called to righteous obedience. And so the sin in our lives comes when we fail to try.
Let us endeavor to live as fully in the faith of our Lord Jesus every day of the week as we do right here, right now, in God’s house on Sunday morning. And this is for God’s glory and not our own. Amen.
Let us pray together.
Most holy and righteous God, we look to you this morning for the grace and kindness that you have poured into our lives. We know that none of us are perfect and we all stumble and stray. Yet we trust that it pleases you that we look to return to your path and follow your guidance. Help us as we struggle to overcome competing attentions and obediences in our lives, and put you as the focal point for our every want and desire, each and every day. We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, through whom all mercy is assured. Amen.
Ten times. Ten times in eleven verses Paul uses the word “sin” in this passage of Romans. Sin holds dominion over us, sin makes us instruments of wickedness, we are, according to Paul, slaves to sin. And sin is something we must be freed from by the gift of God in Jesus Christ.
I don’t disagree with Paul. But you may have noticed by now that sin is not a topic I tend to preach on very often. By its very nature, sin is a negative word. It’s something to be avoided. To be rejected. We repent of our sin; we do not (or we are not supposed to) embrace it.
So all of our reactions to sin are things we are supposed to not do. It’s a very negative way to approach life – here’s what not to do.
And so, typically when I preach, I tend more towards the things we should do – the actions we can take. To love each other, to share our blessings, to honor our God in prayer, praise, and Sabbath. Here’s what we should do.
But I would be a poor preacher indeed if I only touched on those topics I liked, and skipped over the things I didn’t. Sin, by it’s very nature, is unpleasant. It’s not a warm and fuzzy topic.
We know that sin separates us from God. We know it manifests itself when we fail to love. When we give in to hatred, fear, and loathing. We know that sin abounds when we turn away from kindness and understanding and retreat to spite and selfishness.
Yet what Paul is talking about here isn’t any particular sin. He’s not talking about greed or pride or envy. He’s not talking about any particular commandment – warning us against theft, adultery, or murder. Instead, it seems that Paul is talking about the general state of sin – Sin as a condition of being.
Paul is instructive in his letter here in his use of the word, “slave.”
It’s not necessarily a slave kept in chains and beaten, or confined to the fields or pulling the oars on a Roman galley.
Instead, the word Paul uses is doulos, which means slave. But also servant. And also one who is indebted or obliged to another person. And also one who is obedient to another.
So the question that’s really before us when we talk about sin is, “Who are we obedient to?”
We know that God forgives. That God shows grace and mercy and kindness even to the most wicked and wretched of people. So in the sense that sin means that we’ve done something wrong, we know that God will forgive us – that actually, God already has forgiven us through the blood of Jesus Christ.
Yet that’s not the sin that Paul is talking about here.
Paul is asking us, who do we owe our obedience to?
Which is both a very complex and very simple question. Because we’re sitting in a church, and you’re listening to a pastor, at this moment all of our minds are very fixed on God, and so in this context, we can all say, quite confidently and correctly, that our obedience is to God and God alone. And if that’s your answer, hooray, full marks, well done!
But what happens when we leave the church? What happens when we’re a day or two or three away from our last meditation on God’s word? When we let our prayer regimen slip? When the rest of life gets in the way?
Who do we owe our obedience to on a Thursday afternoon, when we’re not sitting in church, listening to a pastor, having just heard or read from the Bible?
We may say we’re obedient to our bosses or supervisors – even if we wouldn’t necessarily use the word, “obedient.” We may say we “answer to” them. Or to our spouses. Or to our country. Or to a coach or mentor. Or to our political party within our country. Some of us may say we’re obedient to no one but our own selves. And in various contexts each of those answers may have some truth to them. Because we live lives in competing loyalties, each of us being pulled in different directions, because we all have people we’re responsible for and responsible to… people we’re trying to impress or who are trying to impress us… people we care about, and who care about us. And so each of us may identify with who our families are, what our occupations are, what our ideologies are, and who we associate with, and we may find ourselves in 4 or 5 or 6 or 7 competing “tribes” that we consider ourselves to be a part of, and those are just the ones we’re aware of.
And so the question of obedience comes before us.
And we are in church on a Sunday morning and so we have our minds fixed on the right answer. But we also know all too well what happens by Wednesday or Thursday (or sooner) when we let our minds slip. And our other obediences come into the picture.
Now. This is not to say that our other obediences are wrong. Or that they are unnatural. Or that we shouldn’t have them. Because we should be obedient to the good of our families. We should be obedient to the things that make us productive and successful in our personal and professional lives. We should be obedient to the country and the values that not only give us opportunities, but share those opportunities with what Jesus called, “the least of these.”
Those aren’t wrong or unnatural to have. But they are secondary.
We know we enjoy God’s grace. We know we are promised forgiveness in Jesus Christ. And so Paul asks the question: knowing of grace, and being assured of forgiveness, does that give us permission to continue in sin? To be slaves, to be obedient, to things other than God? And his answer is, “By no means!”
We are not given permission to sin. We are not given permission to put any other competing obedience above God. Even if we know that we are ultimately forgiven for the times that we do.
Instead, we are called to be what Paul calls “slaves of righteousness.” To put God at the front and center of our lives, all day every day. That whether it’s a Sunday morning or a Thursday afternoon (and I really don’t mean to pick on Thursdays – it’s a wonderful day), that we put God first in all things.
Can we be good mothers or fathers, husbands or wives, sons or daughters, if we put God first in our lives? Absolutely, we can.
Can we be good workers, craftsmen, students, or bosses, if God comes before all else? I certainly believe that to be the case.
Can we be good citizens, good stewards of the Republic, good Americans, if we honor God above our own country? I should very much say so!
Yet, can we be good and faithful people; good servants of God, good Christians, if we put anything else above our love and trust in our Lord Jesus Christ?
By no means.
We show our faith in our obedience to God and our aspirations to put God’s will above all else; even our own desires. And we won’t also get it right. We won’t be perfect. We will make mistakes. And God will forgive us our shortcomings. Yet we are still called to righteous obedience. And so the sin in our lives comes when we fail to try.
Let us endeavor to live as fully in the faith of our Lord Jesus every day of the week as we do right here, right now, in God’s house on Sunday morning. And this is for God’s glory and not our own. Amen.
Let us pray together.
Most holy and righteous God, we look to you this morning for the grace and kindness that you have poured into our lives. We know that none of us are perfect and we all stumble and stray. Yet we trust that it pleases you that we look to return to your path and follow your guidance. Help us as we struggle to overcome competing attentions and obediences in our lives, and put you as the focal point for our every want and desire, each and every day. We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, through whom all mercy is assured. Amen.