Privilege of grace

Romans 6:1-4 (NLT)
1 Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? 3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.

The apostle, speaking to Christians, informed them just because they received grace from sin was not a reason to continue sinning. Some felt to keep sinning was to keep obtaining more grace, but they missed the reason for the grace; it was to give them freedom from sin so they could live new lives.



In the last days of the Civil War, the Confederate capital, Richmond, Virginia, fell to the Union army. Abraham Lincoln insisted on visiting the city. Even though no one knew he was coming, slaves recognized him immediately and thronged around him. He had liberated them by the Emancipation Proclamation, and now Lincoln's army had set them free. According to Admiral David Porter, an eyewitness, Lincoln spoke to the throng around him: "My poor friends, you are free—free as air. You can cast off the name of slave and trample upon it …. Liberty is your birthright." But Lincoln also warned them not to abuse their freedom, saying, "Let the world see that you merit your freedom. Don't let your joy carry you into excesses. Learn the laws and obey them." [James L. Swanson, Bloody Crimes (William Morrow, 2010), p.46;]

The apostle in Romans 6:1-4 conveys a similar message - Jesus has liberated us and set us free from sin. However our freedom is not an excuse to disobey God. Freedom from sin was intended as our birthright and Christ gave it back to us. We should let the world see how we value the privilege of grace.