IIT UBF - University Bible Fellowship at IIT

Daily Bread

The Gift of God: Eternal Life

Date: Apr. 24, 2023

Passage

Romans 6:15-23

Slaves to Righteousness

15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Daily Bread

Key Verse: Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Paul asks a second question similar to verse 1 in verse 15. If we are under God’s grace, and we’ll be forgiven every time we sin, why not just continue to sin? And again, he answers the same way: “By no means!” We can only serve one master, as Jesus says elsewhere (Mt 6:24). We can either be slaves to sin or slaves to obedience (to God). If one leads to death and the other to righteousness (and thus eternal life), it certainly makes sense to choose the latter! But we can’t decide who to serve on our own. Our sinful nature would dictate that we become slaves to sin. But thanks be to God, that through Jesus we have been set free from sin and are made slaves to righteousness!

How can we begin to offer ourselves as slaves to righteousness? Paul gives us an example. We can do it “just as” (Ro 8:19). “Just as” we used to offer ourselves as slaves to sin, now we can offer ourselves as slaves to righteousness. We know how to offer ourselves as slaves to sin. That’s easy! We have plenty of experience there. In the same way, we can offer ourselves as slaves of righteousness. What is the benefit? Eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord!

Prayer: Prayer: Father, I lived so much of my life as a slave to sin. But because of your son, who died on the cross for my sin, I have been set free and am now a slave to righteousness. Thank you for your gift.

One Word: One Word: God gives us his gift, eternal life

Daily Bread

God Stills the Conflict

Psalm 76:1-12

Key Verse: 76:6

At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
both rider and horse lay stunned.

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