Devotion #2: Choose Your Master
A slave: a person entirely under the domination of some influence or person. It is inconceivable to think of ourselves as slaves. However, if we have not accepted Christ Jesus as our Savior, that is exactly what we are: slaves to whatever we choose to serve.
Romans 6:12-14 (NLT) says, “Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.”
We all struggle with sin. I am sure my sin probably looks different than your sin, and odds are, your sin looks different than Paul’s sin. Yes, the Apostle Paul struggled with sin, too. He tells us that in Romans chapter 7. God used Paul to write thirteen (fourteen if he wrote Hebrews) books of the New Testament. Yet, in Romans 7:15-17, it says that Paul did not understand himself. Though he wanted to do right, he ended up doing the very thing he hated because he was giving into his fleshly desires. Do you just hate it when that happens in your own life? Unfortunately, submitting to our flesh is a part of our human curse.
When sin is our master, we are unable to control it. Nonetheless, sin is inevitable; it is in our nature; but as believers, we do not have to let sin run or ruin our lives. As we read in Romans 6:12-14, we were once controlled by our sin, but we can choose to do what is right for the glory of God. Author Randy Alcorn said, “Sin doesn’t make life interesting, it makes life empty.”
God commands us not to obey our lusts or let sin rule in our bodies. As believers, we are no longer slaves to our sin. However, if we are not diligent in denying our flesh, we end up volunteering our souls to the enemy and his destructive desires for us. As previously mentioned by Paul, Scripture tells us exactly what to do: Give ourselves completely to God and use our bodies as an instrument that allows us to live in the freedom of God’s grace.
Do not let your sin tell you what to do. Our flesh makes a poor master! Instead, live in the freeing truth that because of Christ’s sacrifice, you are free indeed.
Galatians 5:1 adds, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.”