“The Wages of Sin…”  (A Daily Meditation)

August 6, 2018

“The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life though (in) Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 NKJV)

This verse at the end of Romans, chapter 6, is preceded by several important verses:

20) “For when you were the servants of sin, you were free from righteousness.

21) What fruit had you then in those things of which you are now ashamed?  For the end of those things is death.

22) But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, you have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

23) For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

(Romans 6:20-23NKJV)

 Death in this passage of scripture carries several meanings.  First, it means literally we die when we sin.  The process of dying a literal death can take a long time.  But it begins the moment we sin.  In the moment in which we embrace sin to do it, at that moment we cut ourselves off from the living God in Jesus Christ.  Our fellowship with Christ in the Holy Spirit is broken.  We inflict damage upon our soul and our spirit by our desire to live our life in isolation from God, in an independent faith-less rather than a dependent faith-filled position.

The human condition is such that when we are born we are not born entirely innocent.  We are born already in sin, which we have inherited from Adam, what is called the Adamic sin nature.  This old sin nature is the root of our problem.  It manifests in the selfish “I”.   But the Adamic sin nature, our old sinful self, is slain in Jesus Christ!  Jesus Christ puts to death the old man.  As the Apostle Paul declares, “Christ Jesus was made sin for us [by God the Father] (2 Corinthians 5:21), “that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

In Jesus dying on the cross for us, an exchange of natures occurred.  The old nature is crucified in Christ.  The new nature given us in Christ is made alive in us, so we become the righteousness of God in Christ.  Baptism is the sign and seal of this death and burial (into the waters of our baptism), so that emerging from the baptismal waters we may arise from death and walk to the other side of the Jordan River and begin our new life in Jesus Christ, the Risen Lord.

This is essential for us to grasp by faith in Christ our new position in Christ, as we must continually crucify the old nature with its tendencies toward sin and death while at the same time resting in Christ our new life.  The continuous renewal of life in Christ through his Holy Spirit is what gives us our newness of life on a daily, continuing basis.  Jesus is and is becoming our Redeemer, leading us into the way of eternal life, Jesus’ own kind of life.

A born again Christian will often sin, just as a non-believer. As the scripture declares, “If we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (I John 1:8)  The difference for us now is that we are being continually cleansed and made whole through the cleansing blood (the life flow) of Jesus Christ.  As we hold onto Christ by faith we enjoy these benefits of continuous fellowship with him.  When we sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous One.  Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins.  Jesus Christ is the reason for our continuing hope and our faith in him!

Bill Wilson, servant of God by God’s gracious mercies.

Let all of God’s children says, “Amen!”

“Amen!  We praise you, Lord Jesus Christ!”