When the Lord Jesus Christ died on the Cross and rose again, He forever broke the power of sin over the believer. It means that every believer has the power through Christ to resist sin. The excuse “The Devil made me do it” can never truthfully be used again.

It also means that no sin can ever condemn you to Hell again – because Jesus paid for all your sin. His mercy and goodness, however, do not offer an excuse to sin, neither will He overlook it.

In the above verse, Paul points out that the believer is free from the law – but only in the sense that it can never condemn them again. But Paul, out of thankfulness to God, and realizing all the blessings that God wants to show him (and all believers today), says that he will not permit himself to become a servant of sin again.

It does not mean that he would never sin again, but that he chooses to not let sin of any kind rob him of the sweet fellowship with Christ that he so much enjoys. He also does not want to hurt the Savior that forgave him and called him to serve Him.

Christians today need to take the same attitude. If you are not free to serve God, and able, you are not free. Paul said this about the Roman believers, in Romans 6:17: “But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.”

Do you love the Lord that much, that you do not want to be under the power of any sin again? Are you still a servant (frequently commit the same one) of some sin? Do you really want victory over it?

Friends usually have something in common so that they attract each other. Whether it is sports, shopping, hobbies, games, hunting, church, etc., there will always be some common interest that draws them together.

The same is true with God. The verse today declares that God pays attention to those who seek to walk in righteousness. This means they put away known sin and seek to live lives that please God.

Unfortunately, many professing believers have little desire to live different than the world today. The believers who have had a tremendous impact on the world and in their churches are those who have put away the old way of life and fully embraced a new one.

In Amos 3:3, the prophet declared: “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” God cannot bless those who walk contrary to His will – whether they are His children or not. God’s love for righteousness has never changed, which is why He warns the wicked, in I Corinthians 6:9: “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God?”

To the believer, He says: “If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are” (I Corinthians 3:17). You cannot serve God and mammon.

Christian, make up your mind who you will serve. Walk with God or stop pretending to be one of God’s children. If you want His favor and blessing, get in His Book and walk accordingly, then He can be happy with you – and you will find it to be a life worth living.