Free to Do What Is Right
For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.
This week we have seen that we need to continually overcome sin and endure. We do this through continually looking to God and Christ for help and doing our part as much as humanly possible.
Christ’s sacrifice gives repentant Christians liberty from sin, so why would we want to go back (Romans 6:22)? Sin is not love. Sin is characterized by selfishness, violence, greed, falsehoods. None of these traits describe love.
Therefore, we are no longer to be ruled by sin, but rather to rule over it and replace it with godly love. Though we will stumble and sin, we must not turn back to a sinful lifestyle. The danger of turning back to a lifestyle of willful and open sin is putting the sacrifice of Christ to “an open shame” (Hebrews 6:6).
“Coming under” the blood of Christ’s sacrifice at baptism purges us of past sins, and once purged, we are free from the penalty of sin and must strive to not commit sin anymore. Liberty refers to a new life in which we live by righteousness (Romans 6:4). Liberty is never an excuse for sin!
To learn more about the danger of falling away from God’s way, read our article “Unpardonable Sin.”
Tomorrow on the Daily Bible Verse Blog: “Whom God Regards.”
