17But thanks be to God that, ...

17But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance.

18You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

- P86

22But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.

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

- P87

Paul refutes the idea that being under grace means believers can indulge insin. People are slaves to the one they obey-either sin, which leads to death,
or obedience, which leads to righteousness.  - P87

Believers have been set free fromsin and become slaves to God. The result is holiness and eternal life. The wagesof sin is death, but God‘s gift is eternal life. - P87

Paul addresses the paradox of grace and obedience. His question, "What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace?" echoes the common misunderstanding that grace excuses continued rebellion in sin. - P88

Grace does not give us permission to sin; rather, it liberates us from sin’s bondage so that we can live lives that are pleasing to God. A heart that has truly experienced God’s grace is transformed. It no longer finds enjoyment in sin. This is what enables us, as those bought with the price of Christ’s life, to become "slaves to righteousness." - P88

Our freedom is not to do whatever we want but to fully live our new life, empowered by the Spirit, to genuinely honor God. - P88

Paul uses the shocking image of slavery to illustrate the spiritual realitythat our choices reveal. Our choices show whether we are enslaved to sinor to obedience to God‘s command. Sin promises short-term pleasure butultimately delivers death and despair. Serving God leads to freedom andlasting joy.  - P88

The wages of sin stand in contrast with the gift of God in Christ:salvation is unearned and freely given, yet it calls us into a transformed life.
- P88

We now live changed lives, not because we have to earn eternal life but be-cause we love the God who set us free from sin‘s power. We live Christ-likelives because this is the kind of life that the new heart within us produces. - P88

Gracious God, thank you for freeing me from sin’s slavery through Christ. - P89

Empower me by Your Spirit to live a life of righteousness and obedience that honors You. - P89

May my freedom glorify You and bring me lasting joy. In Jesus’ name, amen. - P89

Healing from these habits begins not with more effort but with recognizinga new truth: that freedom comes from surrendering to God‘s power andliving in alignment with His guidance.  - P89

Paul reminds believers that truefreedom in Christ means identifying with Him, dying to old sinful habitsand living a renewed life empowered by grace.  - P89

Like a recovering addict finding purpose and health through surrender to treatment and rehabilitation,
Christians experience real liberation when we serve God, not sin. - P-1

8Now if we died with Christ, ...

8Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

9For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.

10The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

- P82

13Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. - P83

14For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.

- P83

If believers die with Christ, they will also live with Him. Christ, raised from thedead, cannot die again. Death no longer has mastery over Him. In the sameway, believers are to count themselves dead to sin but alive to God.  - P83

Sin shouldnot rule in their bodies because they are under grace. - P83

Paul reminds us that just as Christ died and rose from the dead never to die again, we who are united with Him must consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God. Sin is no longer our master; we now live under grace, not under the Law. This does not mean we live irresponsibly. It means we live with the empowerment of God’s grace that enables us to say no to sin and yes to righteousness. - P84

We are empowered to live a life of active obedience: to offer every part of ourselves to God as instruments of righteousness. - P84

Grace empowers transformation so that we do not simply avoid sin but are fully alive to God’s purpose. - P84

"In worship, God invites us to join him in what he is already doing."- Bob Kauflin - P84

Lord Jesus, thank you that sin no longer rules over me. Teach me to live under Your grace, daily surrendering my thoughts, actions, and desires to You. - P85

Strengthen me to reject sin and walk in obedience and joy, reflecting Your righteousness in everything I do. In Your name, amen. - P85

Yet because we have been made alive in Christ, the new heart that He hasgiven us convicts us of our sinful desires. This is why, when we realize ourown sin, we become repentant and seek to turn away from that sin. That isthe beauty of what God does for those who believe in Him.  - P85

He gives thema new heart that is more and more inclined to follow Him, trust Him, andbelieve in Him. Because we are human, how we do this is far from perfect,
but over time, through reading God‘s Word, communing with other be-lievers, and being steadfast in prayer, the desires of our new hearts start toslowly reflect more of God‘s own. - P85

4We were therefore buried wit...

4We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

- P78

5For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his.

6For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—

7because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

- P79

Paul refutes the idea that believers can go on sinning so that grace may increase. He answers that those who are baptized into Christ are baptized intoHis death and just as Christ was raised from the dead, believers now live a newlife. Their old self is dead so that they are no longer slaves to sin. - P79

Dear Jesus, thank you for the new life we have through Your burial andresurrection.  - P81

Help us to truly live as people who have been set free from sin.
In Your name, amen. - P81

In response to the idea that God‘s grace could promote careless living,
Paul strongly affirms that believers in Christ are no longer slaves to sin.
Our union with Christ means that we have died to sin and are raised withChrist to live a new life. Baptism becomes a visible symbol of this inwardtransformation: We are buried with Christ in death and raised with Him inresurrection life.  - P80

Although we know the power of sin over us is broken, westill experience tensions as we battle its pull on our flesh. However, whilethe struggle with sin still exists, its power over us has been broken. This isnot merely a call to better behavior but to a new identity. Grace is not alicense to sin; it is the power to live in freedom and obedience to God. - P80

The Spirit you received does not make you slaves,
so that you live in fear again; rather,
the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.
And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." - P76

17For if, by the trespass of ...

17For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!



21so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

- P73

18Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people.

19For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

20The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, - P73

Sin entered the world through one man and death came through sin. Deathreigned even before the Law was given. But God‘s gift is not like Adam‘strespass.  - P73

Through one man‘s trespass, many died, but through one man‘srighteous act, many are made righteous. Just as sin reigned in death, gracenow reigns through righteousness to bring eternal life. - P73

Paul explains how sin and death entered the world through one man, Adam. Adam’s disobedience was not just a personal failure but a representative act with consequences for all humanity. He introduced death into the world through his sin, and people have been dying since, even before the Law stipulated penalties for sin. - P74

Because of Adam, all people are born into sin and are spiritually dead. Therefore, the need for salvation is universal, just as the rule of death is universal. But the story of humanity does not end with brokenness. - P74

Jesus Christ, the second Adam, introduced forgiveness, life, and restoration into the world through His sacrifice, and these are available to all who trust in Him. - P74

Paul contrasts Adam and Jesus Christ with regard to how their actionsaffected many. Adam‘s one act of disobedience brought sin, judgment, anddeath to all humanity. Jesus‘ act of obedience brought justification, grace,
and life. Adam represents the fallen, sinful humanity we are all born into.
- P74

Jesus, the second Adam, represents a new humanity: a redeemed peoplewho receive God‘s abundant grace and are given a life of righteousness. Theweight of Adam‘s failure is overwhelming, but God‘s grace is far greater.
- P74

Where sin increased, grace increased all the more. This is the heart of thegospel: that no matter how deep our sin, God‘s grace through Jesus Christalways goes deeper - P74

Lord Jesus, thank you for rescuing me from the grip of sin and death. I acknowledge my brokenness and need for Your saving grace. - P74

Help me to live in the light of Your righteousness, no longer defined by Adam’s fall, but by Your victory. In Your name I pray, amen. - P74

God converses with us primarily through His words in Scripture.
We can also use His words to respond to Him.
Use the following guide to pray through this week‘s memory verse.
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with Godthrough our Lord Jesus Christ. - Romans 5:1 - P75

Therefore, since we have been...

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.

3Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;

4perseverance, character; and character, hope.

- P68

5And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. - P68

9Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!

10For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!

11Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
- P69

6You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly - P69

Paul continues his teaching on faith with a reminder of what being justified by faith implies: that we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. This peace is more than the absence of conflict; it is a restored relationship with God along with the assurance, security, and joy it brings. Because of this new standing, believers can rejoice even in suffering. - P70

Suffering as a believer produces endurance, which shapes character, and from character springs hope. This hope is not wishful thinking but a deep, unshakable confidence in God’s love and future promises even when our circumstances say otherwise. - P70

Suffering is not the end of our story. It is part of how God matures us and deepens our trust in Him. - P70

Lord, thank you for giving up Your Son to rescue me even when You saw me at my worst. Thank you for the peace I have with You through Jesus Christ. Grant me endurance in my trials so that my hope may be unshakable. In Jesus’ name, amen. - P71

Being justified through faith brings peace with God. Believers boast in God‘sglory and also glory in suffering, which produces perseverance, character,
and hope. God‘s love is poured out into believers‘ hearts through the HolySpirit. Christ died for the ungodly at just the right time and believers are nowjustified by His blood and reconciled to God. - P69

When Christ died for us, we were enemies of God, ungodly and powerlessto do anything about our state. As Paul points out, it is rare to find anyonewilling to die for a righteous person, yet it was when we were at our worstthat Jesus gave His life for us.  - P70

Our salvation did not begin with our efforts,
goodness, or any kind of merit on our part. It is fully God-initiated androoted in His grace. Because of this, we can be fully assured of our salvationand the hope of eternal life. If God loved us when we were His enemies,
how much more will He complete His saving work now that we are reconciled to Him? - P70

"No one suffers well without a real and abiding hope in God." - Marshall Segal - P70

As Christians, our greatest and deepest hope should always be in Christ, inhow He has made our lives new and continues to mold our hearts to alignwith who He intended us to be. Nothing else and no one else was meantto be our deepest hope except for the Lord, and nothing else can fill theplace in our heart where the Lord was meant to be.  - P71

Therefore, when wefind ourselves tempted and frequently placing more of our hope in thingsor people other than the Lord, it is important to pray and ask God to helpus make Him the greatest and truest hope in our life. He is the only Onewho can withstand the weight of our hope. - P71