Category Archives: Sin

Bible, Disobedience, Kingdom, Kings, Obedience, Power, Scripture, Sin

A NEW KING

ROMANS 6:12

“Therefore sin is not to reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts,”

Every year we see new champions emerge in various sports. I am a huge college football fan, so I will be watching to see who wins this year’s national championship. Will Ohio State, the current “king,” repeat or will there be a new “king”? Of course, I am hoping my Georgia Bulldogs pull it out again. In the end, though, whatever team wins the title, it won’t have an eternal value. It’s just football.

In contrast, the new king in our life as followers of Christ means a huge eternal value for us. Up until we surrendered to Christ, sin was the king of our life. It ruled and reigned. But…when Christ came into our lives, sin’s dominion was over. I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating. Paul is telling us plainly that we have a new king – King Jesus. He now reigns in us and has filled us with His Holy Spirit.

APPLICATION

The Topical Lexicon says this about the Greek word for “reign,” “The verb frames redemption as a transfer of government—from the tyrannical rule of sin and death to the liberating sovereignty of grace.” One commentator noted that Paul did NOT say that sin would not still be present. That’s a fact we have to live with until we go to heaven. But we are to not allow it to reign anymore.

Do you remember playing “King of the Mountain” when you were little? A group of kids find a small hill and take turns being “the king” on top while the others try to push him/her off and take their place. Man, I can remember the feeling of being on top and successfully defending my “throne.” However, when a bunch of them teamed up, they were able to “dethrone” me.

When we make Jesus King of our lives, I promise you the demons of hell will team up to try to dethrone Him in your life. Of course, they can’t do that, but they can make your life miserable if you pay them attention, if you allow them an inch of ground. Do not let sin reign in your body. It has no power over you as a follower of Christ. Yield to Christ’s reign and trust His power in your life.

Thank You, Lord, for putting King Jesus in my life.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Bible, Christ, Death, Eternity, Family, Scripture, Sin

YOU TOO

ROMANS 6:11

“So you too, consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

Have you ever been with a group of people who you just met and they said, “Hey, why don’t you join us this weekend for a roadtrip?”? I mean, you had just met them and were already being invited to be a part of the group. The weekend promised to allow you to get to know them better and develop some deeper friendships. What fun!

Similarly, we are invited, through our decision to follow Christ, to join Him for eternity. Now, that’s fun! Look at the verse. Paul says, “So you too…” The Greek literally reads, “So also you.” In other words, you are included in all that Paul has been talking about for the past several verses (go back and read verses 1-10). All that Christ did was to allow us to be a part of His family. What a great promise from the Father.

APPLICATION

The Expositor’s Greek Testament says this about today’s verse, “In this verse the application is made of all that precedes. The death with Christ, the life with Christ, are real, yet to be realised. The truth of being a Christian is contained in them, yet the calling of the Christian is to live up to them. We may forget what we should be; we may also (and this is how Paul puts it) forget what we are. We are dead to sin in Christ’s death; we are alive to God in Christ’s resurrection; let us regard ourselves as such in Christ Jesus.”

Don’t you just love that? I love the last phrase above that says, “let us regard ourselves as such in Christ Jesus.” All that we are promised is only possible because of Jesus. He paid the ultimate price for our sins. He was sinless but gave His blood to pay the ransom for our sins. Can you ever truly ever get over the fact that He has invited you to come along with Him? I sure can’t.

The Greek word translated as “alive” is zao which means “to live, experience God’s gift of life.” (HELPS Word-studies) It is actually better translated as “living.” We should be living to God, as we talked about in yesterday’s blog. We are to be constantly striving to be more and more like Him. I want my life to be a shining example of my walk with Jesus. Don’t you? Then walk with Him daily. You are dead to sin and alive in Him. Celebrate that.

O Lord, I give You thanks for “bringing me along” on a journey with You.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Bible, Death, Eternity, Freedom, Salvation, Scripture, Sin

TRUE FREEDOM

ROMANS 6:7

“for the one who has died is freed from sin.”

Why do we, as followers of Christ, get so sad and upset at the passing of another believer? Yes, there are emotions involved. Yes, we will miss that family member or friend. But if we stop and think about it, that fellow believer is now in the presence of our Savior and is truly free from sin. Wow! That is really something to celebrate. I don’t want my family and friends to grieve when I’m gone. Have a party! Celebrate my homegoing. I will not want to return here, I promise. Neither would you.

Paul states very clearly and unequivocably the truth of our salvation. There’s not a hidden truth here. It’s right there in plain sight. Paul isn’t talking about our physical death. He’s referring to our spiritual death to sin. Our old master no longer has power over us. We who were slaves to sin are now free. Hallelujah! Praise Jesus! The shackles have fallen off.

APPLICATION

In 2000 Mary Mary recorded a song entitled “Shackles (Praise You). I love the chorus of this song which says:

Take the shackles off my feet so I can dance
I just wanna praise You (what’cha wanna do?)
I just wanna praise You (yeah, yeah)
You broke the chains, now I can lift my hands (uh, feel me?)
And I’m gonna praise You (what’cha gon’ do?)
I’m gonna praise You

When we become freed from the sins that so easily entangle us, we do want to dance. Am I right? The power of sin is gone. Sure, we are still in its presence. We see that every day. But the control it had on our lives is finished. 1 Peter 4:1 comes to mind. “Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because the one who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,” Isn’t that awesome?

What is holding you down right now spiritually? Cast it aside in Jesus’ name. Claim victory right now over the temptations that bombard you. It may be greed, gluttony, immorality, anger… You know your poison, don’t you? Do not let it have mastery over you anymore. You are indeed free because you have died with Christ and were buried with Him. But don’t forget that you were also resurrected through Him to walk in newness of life. Now, go do that.

Father God, I praise You for breaking the shackles of sin in my life and allowing me to walk in victory!

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Bible, Power, Powerless, Scripture, Sin, Victors

DONE AWAY WITH

ROMANS 6:6

“knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;”

When I was growing up, my dad had an old step-side Chevrolet pickup with three-on-the-tree. Do you know what that is? That’s a 3 speed manual transmission that you shift on the side of the steering column. I loved that old truck. I learned to drive in that truck. The only thing wrong with that truck was occasionally the second gear would hang up when we tried to shift from first to second. When that happened, the truck would be in neutral or in between gears which made it powerless.  We would have to coast to the side of the road, raise the hood and jiggle the shifter loose. Those were the good old days, lol.

Paul uses a word in today’s verse that gives that same picture. The phrase “done away with” is the Greek word katargéō, and it  means “to make completely inoperative or to put out of use.” (TDNT) Paul is telling us here that because we have been crucified with Christ sin no longer has power over us. Our old sinful body is essentially thrown into neutral. We are freed from the bonds of sin.

APPLICATION

This word is used 27 times in the New Testament, all but two by Paul. In Hebrews 2:14, the writer says that Christ through His death “might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil.” Christ threw the devil into neutral regarding his power over us in regard to sin. Because of Christ’s victory over death, the devil is powerless to exercise his control over us. Hallelujah!

The other time this word is used other than by Paul is in Luke 13:7 when Jesus was telling the parable about the unproductive fig tree. He said, “‘Why does it even use up the ground?’” The tree was making the soil unproductive or powerless. I want us to zero in on this thought. We have been given the promise of power over sin, but just like I did when I jumped out of my dad’s truck to throw that truck back into gear, we have the choice to throw sin back into our lives, giving it power over us. This robs the good soil from producing fruit in our lives.

I’ve known many people who came to Christ and gained victory over sin and then turned back to it. Drug addicts have a tendency to do that. They get clean, get saved and then make the terrible choice to sin again. Those drugs have no power over them unless they choose to give it. You need to choose today what you will do when you face that temptation. Will you throw sin back into gear and give it power over you or will you refuse to yield to it, making it powerless? The choice is yours. Choose wisely.

Lord God, I only want Your power in my life, not the ugly power of sin.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Bible, Continue, Grace, Persistence, Scripture, Sin

WHAT SHALL WE SAY??

ROMANS 6:1

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase?” 

Continuing down a one-way street the wrong way will not get you where you want to go. In fact, it will probably land you in jail or at least with a hefty fine. We can’t claim ignorance when all the signs say “Wrong Way” or “One-Way Street.” You not only endanger your own life but also the lives of others who are trying to drive in the correct direction on the street.

I love how Paul prepares this verse and the next one. If he had been speaking directly to the people, he probably would have asked for a verbal response. I do that sometimes when I preach. I will say, “Can I get an Amen?” Or I may ask them, “Are you with me? Are you listening?” Paul asks these two questions while knowing the answer. He is trying to get the readers to answer these questions themselves. This letter may have been read aloud to an audience. I can just hear them replying, “No, Paul. You’ve taught us better than that.”

APPLICATION

The key word in this verse is the verb “to continue.” Paul never considered the fact that we could be sinless. As long as we have breath we will sin. Paul even called himself the chief of sinners. Sin happens. But this verb is epiménō which comes “(from epí, ‘on, fitting,’ which intensifies ménō, ‘remain, persist’) – properly, continue on with persistence that suits the objective.” (HELPS Word-studies) The point Paul is making is that we should never continue in our sin. Sin for a Christian should be an accident, not a premeditated event.

The same word is used in Acts 12:16 to describe Peter’s actions when he had been released from jail by the angel and was at the door of Mary’s (the mother of John Mark) house. It says, “But Peter continued knocking;…” He wasn’t about to stop until someone opened that door. Persistence. That was good then. Not so much in our verse. We should never have persistent sin.

Paul uses the word in Colossians 1:23 when he writes, “if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast…” Again, this is a positive use of the word. Bottom line – be persistent in your godly lifestyle. Be persistent if your faith. Do NOT be persistent in your sin. God doesn’t want you to sin so He can give you more grace. We’ll see more on that in the next verse.

Father, I praise You that You have given me the ability to continue choosing the right and not the wrong. Help my persistence in this.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Bible, Death, Eternal Life, Eternity, Grace, Righteousness, Scripture, Sin

GRACE WOULD REIGN

ROMANS 5:21

“so that, as sin reigned in death, so also grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

If you have ever seen two skilled lawyers argue their cases against each other in court, it is really a sight to behold. Both are convinced their side is the right side. Both are fighting for their clients, whether that be the defendant or the government. Jabs are thrown at each other. Objections are raised at the other’s comments or questions. But in the end, there is only one truth.

Paul has been showing both sides of mankind’s situation. One side is arguing for death. Our sins demand it. Satan demands it. Evil wants to keep us in its grip. But Jesus came to loose that grip and give us live. In today’s verse, Paul says it well when he writes, “so also grace would reign.” He goes on to tell us how grace will reign, “through righteousness.” And then he tells us why grace will reign, “to eternal life through Jesus Christ.” You see, there’s a purpose behind the reign of grace.

APPLICATION

The Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary explains this reign of grace so well. “and of Grace, the grace which originated the scheme of salvation, the grace which ‘sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world,’ the grace which ‘made Him to be sin for us who knew no sin,’ the grace which ‘makes us to be the righteousness of God in Him,’ so that ‘we who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness do reign in life by One, Jesus Christ!’” That’s quite a synopsis of what Paul has been saying.

Can I get technical for just a second? The verb “would reign” is in the Aorist Subjunctive Active. This is not something that just might happen. This verb is described as conveying a simple, discrete action that has not happened yet but is seen as a single, completed event. Did I lose you? What this means is our eternal life with Christ has not happened yet, but it will and it will be the result of the reign of grace that defeated death once and for all at the cross of Jesus and that empty tomb. You should be shouting about now!

As we end chapter five today, let me encourage you to go back and reread all my blogs on 5:1-21 in one sitting. See the flow of thought that is in Paul’s words, not mine. We are about to start one of the most central chapters in the whole Bible. Paul had to set this up by laying out the battlefield between sin and grace, between death and life. Get ready for Romans 6!

Lord, I thank You that grace reigns and one day I will be with You in Glory!

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Bible, Grace, Jesus, Law, Salvation, Scripture, Sin

BAD NEWS AND GOOD NEWS

ROMANS 5:20

“The Law came in so that the offense would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more,”

Have you gone into an old house that has been closed up for a while and turned on the lights in the kitchen? What is that scurrying all around on the counters and floors? It’s none other than those nasty cockroaches that can survive forever and wherever. The light exposes them, and they run for cover. They were there all the time, but you couldn’t see them until the light was turned on.

Paul describes a similar situation today in our verse when he says, “The Law came in so that the offense would increase;…” This does not mean that the law caused sin to become more. It means the law showed us our sinful state. We were already sinning before the law (just like the cockroaches were already in that kitchen). It just showed our filthiness and ungodliness. Light exposes things.

APPLICATION

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges says this about today’s verse. The phrase “[that the offence might abound] Q. d., ‘that the disease might be brought to the surface.’” That’s exactly what our sin is – a disease. It has been passed down to every generation from Adam and Eve. There is no cure besides Jesus and His shed blood on Calvary. All other attempts (religions) fall short of giving us freedom from these sins.

But… Don’t you just love that word in Scripture? Paul goes on to write in today’s verse, “but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.” Look at what Albert Barnes says about this. “Did much more abound – Superabounded. The word is used nowhere else in the New Testament, except in 2 Corinthians 7:4. It means that the pardoning mercy of the gospel greatly triumphed over sin, even over the sins of the Jews, though those sins were greatly aggravated by the light which they enjoyed under the advantages of divine revelation.”

Isn’t that great news? In 2 Corinthians 7:4 Paul uses this same word to say, “…I am overflowing with joy in all our affliction.” Shouldn’t that be the same for us? Because of the good news of the abundance of grace in our lives, we should be overflowing with joy even if our life circumstances say different. Choose the good news today, not the bad. Sin is still present in this world, and we must deal with it. But grace is bigger and better.

Father God, I praise You for the gift of grace that superabounds over sin.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Obedience, Bible, Scripture, Righteousness, Sin, Unrighteousness, Self-righteousness, Disobedience

DISOBEDIENCE VS OBEDIENCE

ROMANS 5:19

“For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.”

I think I was a pretty obedient child until… In my preteen and teenage years, I became pretty disobedient. I don’t need to elaborate on my disobedience. You can probably figure it out. I was a teen in the 70’s when things were getting pretty crazy on the drug scene. I knew the right thing to do. I just chose not to do it. I wanted to do what I wanted to do and didn’t think too much about the consequences. That’s just plain sin. Thankfully, all that is under the blood.

In today’s verse Paul uses two different Greek words to describe disobedience and obedience. They are both built on the same Greek word akoúō but have different prefixes which drastically changes their meanings. Let’s take a look at these two words and as we do, think how you are responding to what you have heard the Master say.

APPLICATION

The first word used by Paul is parakoḗ. It is “(from pará, ‘contrary by close comparison’ and akoúō, ‘hear’) – properly, contrary-hearing, i.e. disobedience which springs from a negative (opposing) attitude, i.e. the refusal to listen properly.” (HELPS Word-studies) This word has the idea of just plain refusing to listen and refusing to comply. This implies a bad attitude that does not want to obey.

It’s only found two other times in the New Testament. In Hebrews 2:2 we read, “For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every violation and act of disobedience received a just punishment,…” Then over in 2 Corinthians 10:6 it is used when it says, “and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.”

Then we come to the word Paul uses for obedience. It is hypakoḗ “(from hypó, ‘beneath’ and akoúō, ‘to hear’) i.e. obedience – literally, ‘submission to what is heard’, i.e. obedience as the response to someone speaking. This refers both to an earthly voice and the Lord’s voice.” (HELPS Word-studies) It is used 15 times in the New Testament (7 in Romans) 1 Pet 1:2 uses this word. “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you.”

Isn’t that the bottom line – obedience to Christ? Nothing else really matters. We can obey others but not be obedient to Christ. It’s been said you will serve a master in one way or the other. Do you choose to obey your own master or The Master? One brings death and the other brings righteousness (Romans 6:16). Choose wisely.

O Lord, I want to obey You and none other.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Bible, Death, Eternal Life, Jesus, Life, Scripture, Sin

CONTAGIONS

ROMANS 5:12

“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind, because all sinned—”

How could we ever forget Covid-19? It was a worldwide epidemic that cost many lives. It doesn’t matter which side of the vaccine mandate you were on, we all knew people who lost their battle with this flu-like disease. It was very contagious and easily passed from person to person. Masks were mandated everywhere. Churches emptied, many of which held online services only. It was a scary time for many.

Paul tells us in today’s verse just how contagious sin is. Because of Adam’s and Eve’s original sin, all mankind was “infected.” The end result of that infection is death. It’s a terminal disease. The only cure is Jesus (we’ll see that later in this chapter). The Greek word translated “spread” is dierchomai. The Topical Lexicon gives this picture. “The entrance of death is pictured as a relentless traveler moving through humanity.”

APPLICATION

The same word is used in Hebrews 4:14 to describe Christ’s movement into the heavens. “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let’s hold firmly to our confession.” Of course, Christ’s passing through the heavens is a lot better than sin passing to us, isn’t it?

The word is even used by Jesus to describe the movements of unclean spirits (demonic spirits). In Matthew 12:43 we read, “‘Now when the unclean spirit comes out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest and does not find it.’” We need to know how to stop this movement, don’t we? Well, we must be born again by the Holy Spirit. Where the Spirit dwells, evil cannot. The Holy Spirit fills us completely. We can be oppressed and fall under the influence of demonic forces, but they can never indwell us again.

Listen, your sin is contagious. Your actions have ripple effects. Fathers, your sins will affect your children. Mothers, your sins will also. We are not held responsible for our father’s or mother’s sins, but we can feel the consequences of them. That is why we must be very careful to guard our hearts and our lives. Let’s pass on the good stuff, not the bad.

Lord, keep me spiritually sanitized from the strains of sin that so easily comes against me.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard
Bible, Danger, Protection, Scripture, Sin, Transgressions

GUARDRAILS

ROMANS 4:15

“for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation.”

I live in Tennessee and often drive on roads that have guardrails that protect cars from steering into a gulley or drop off. Those guardrails are meant to protect, but you can still go over them if you are driving recklessly or at a high rate of speed. The best guardrails can’t protect you from your own stupidity. Pay attention to them.

Paul points out in today’s verse that the law played the role much like a guardrail. The word translated as “violation” is “parábasis (from pará, ‘contrary’ and bainō, ‘go) – properly, an ‘overstepping’; a deliberate going over ‘the line.’ parábasis  (‘a stepping over the line’) in the NT refers to the willful disregard (breaking) of God’s law which defies His drawn-lines (boundaries); an arrogant ‘over-stepping.’” (HELPS Word-studies)

APPLICATION

That’s the same picture as going over the guardrail. Listen, God gave the law to guide men towards Him, knowing they would buck against it. What happens when you tell a two-year-old not to touch something? He touches it, right? The guardrails of the law pointed us towards God, but since it was given to Moses men have rebelled against it.

Now, you can go over the guardrails accidentally. You may get knocked over by someone else. That’s where my analogy ends. (By the way, no analogy is perfect) But with the law, men have deliberately chosen to jump the rail. They have chosen the pathway of sin. Instead of staying on the road prepared by the Lord, they decide to take the route most traveled by other sinners, one in which there are major potholes and pitfalls.

1 Timothy 6:9 warns us of one particular problem men face. “But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge people into ruin and destruction.” The guardrail of reliance on God for our provision instead of chasing wealth is there for a reason. God knows what lies on the other side – ruin and destruction. He is protecting us against such transgressions.

The next time you see a guardrail on the highway, think about this verse and thank God for His guardrails He has given us to walk in. Thank Him for Jesus.

O Father, keep me inside the guardrails and away from danger.

If the Lord should lead you to support our ministry, check out our ministry page at Trans World Radio (www.twr.org/carl-willis). 

Standard