After a 4-year-old got into trouble at preschool, his mom asked him what he had done wrong. He explained, "I was angry with a playmate. But you told me that I should not hit anyone, so I asked my friend to do it for me!" Where does someone so young learn that? The Bible tells us he did not have to be taught - he was born with it! It is part of the fallen nature that all of us have at birth.
But the Christian does not have to respond according to his fallen nature. Paul reminds us that "our old man was crucified with [Christ], . . . that we should no longer be slaves of sin" (Rom. 6:6). We are "a new creation" (2 Cor. 5:17) and have been set free and have become "slaves of God" (Rom. 6:22). Yet, as Christians, we do still struggle with our flesh and its sinful desires (Rom. 7:18-19). But now that "we are alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord", we can respond in a God-honoring way (Rom. 6:11).
Instead of being like the young boy who tried to get revenge, we can obey the instructions of Romans 6:13, "Do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God. . . as instruments of righteousness. We gain the victory when we give up sin's pleasure in exchange of Christ's power. Be dead to sin. Be alive in Christ!
Amen
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