I haven't left myself much time for preaching. We try to emphasize when we come together as a body of believers, when we come together, the first thing we do is what? We read the Word of God. And then we pray. And what do we do? We read the Word of God. And then we preach from the Word of God. So one of the most important aspects of any worship service is the reading of the word, the reading of the word. And it's a blessing, it's a blessing to the Lord's children.

In Romans 6, I'm taking the title for the message in verse 23. Romans 6, verse 23. The wages, the wages of sin, the wages of sin is death. This is what we've earned. This is what we deserve. This is what we have merited. We have merited death. The wages of my sin is deserving of death. If God Almighty sent me to eternal condemnation, He'd do right. He'd do right. If He eternally condemned me, He would be doing right, because I'm a sinner. The wages of sin is death.

But, thank God for that little word, B-U-T, but, but, the gift of God The gift of God. God so loved that he gave us his only begotten son. This is the gift of his love. The gift of God, the gift of God to us, to us is eternal. Eternal life. He that hath the Son hath life, eternal life. This is eternal life, that they might know thee the only true God, Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. He that hath the Son. This is a record that God has given to us. Eternal life in this life is in His Son, in the Lord Jesus Christ. Salvation is in a person. Christ alone is our only, only Savior.

Now if we come back to Romans 6 verse 11, I think verse 11 is the key to understanding what's being taught here in Romans 6 and in Romans 7. Likewise, reckon it to be so. Reckon yourselves also to be dead, dead. How dead? Graveyard dead. Graveyard dead. To sin. but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord, dead to the condemning power of sin. And the reason being. Look at Romans chapter 8, verse 1. There is therefore now no condemnation, Romans 8, 1. There's no judgment to those who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh. They don't seek salvation by the deeds of the flesh, deeds of the law, but after the spirit. For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus had made me free, free. from the law of sin and death. All the law of God says, guilty, stop your mouth, you're guilty. The law of God condemns us, the law of God exposes us, but the law of God never removes sin, it exposes it. He made us free from the law of sin and death, but what the law could not do, what couldn't it do? Couldn't justify a vile sinner, and it was weak through the flesh. God sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit. after the spirit.

Likewise, reckon yourselves also to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto our Lord Jesus Christ. Believers are dead to sin, dead to the law through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and him crucified. The law of God has been honored. The penalty of the law has been satisfied. Christ has redeemed us from the curse and bondage and dominion of the law. The law has no claim on us. Because we're dead to the law through the body of Christ.

Now my friend, this is good news. This is good news. The law of God demands perfection in thought, word, deed, and motive. The law of God demands complete Eternal perfection. This flesh cannot produce it. It cannot produce it. But we enjoy that fully and completely in the Lord Jesus Christ. God who made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God. Get a hold of that. The righteousness of God in the Lord Jesus Christ. He honored every Precept of that law? How many precepts of that law are there? We know when we think about the Big Ten, don't we? But you know there's 800 of those precepts of that law. He honored every one of them in motive, thought, word, deed. Our Lord said, I didn't come to destroy the law and the prophets. I came to honor the law and prophets. His obedience unto death is the believer's righteousness before God.

Now, God says of our righteousness, filthy rags, right? The best we have is vanity, filthy rags. Would you grab hold of those filthy rags and hold on to that? Or lay hold upon the Lord Jesus Christ by faith, who is the Lord, our righteousness. Now, when believers are given true faith, they let go of this, counted as dung, ruin, and loss, that they may win Christ and be found in Him. Now that's what the gospel reveals unto us. Christ is our righteousness. He justifies us freely by His grace. Likewise, we're dead unto sin, but watch this, but we're alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Justified freely by His grace, the redeeming blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Turn back to Romans 8 again. Romans 8, verse 32. He that spared not his own son. Well, let's back up one verse. Romans 8, 31. Romans 8, 31. What shall we say then to these things? Whom he did predestinate, then he called. And whom he called, he justified. And whom he justified, he glorified. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his son. What shall we say to these things? Well, if God before us, Who can be against us? He that spared not his own son, but delivering up for us all. How shall he not with him also freely give us all thing?

Now here's a challenge. Who can lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It's God that justifies. Who is he that condemneth? It's Christ that died. He rather is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also, also makes intercession for us. He ever lived to intercede for us.

So likewise, verse 11 again, Romans 6. Likewise, reckon yourselves dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Now, that being so, let not sin Therefore, reign in your mortal body that you should obey the lusts thereof. Every believer has a conflict, ongoing conflict, the flesh against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. There is that battle, there is that conflict. Sin in the believer does not reign. Sin in the believer does remain because we are nothing but flesh. If this flesh was not sinful flesh, you'd never have another day of sickness. You'd never die. If you had perfect flesh, you'd never get sick. You'd never die. But sin does remain in this flesh. That which is born of the flesh, that's what it is. Flesh. Sick, weak, dying flesh. I preach to you as a dying man. but I preach to you who are dying. I preach as one who may never preach again. I'm a dying man, but I preach unto dying sinners.

Let sin Let it not reign in your mortal body, that you should obey the lust thereof. You see, it does not reign and it cannot reign in the believer's life because the believer is under the lordship of Jesus Christ. We are servants to Him. We're no longer, look at verse 13, neither yield your members, neither yield or present your members as instruments of unrighteousness. Arms or weapons unto sin that yield yourselves to God as those that are alive from the dead. You had the quickened who were dead and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. Serve him out of love. Love constrains us. Love constrains us.

Now turn to Romans 12. Let me show you something here. Romans chapter 12, that word yield is the same word over here and many other places is rendered present. Present your members unto God as being a servant unto God. Romans 12 verse 1, I beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of God that you present, same word, yield yourselves. that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. It's only reasonable for a believer to serve Him, is it not? And don't be conformed to this world, be you transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is good and acceptable and perfect, the perfect will of God. I say through the grace given to me to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. Faith looks to the Lord Jesus Christ alone for all of our salvation.

Verse 14. Verse 14, now, goodness, I'm going through these notes real fast. Verse 14, for, and that word could be rendered because, for sin, sin, that's what I am, born in sin, shaped in iniquity, all this flesh is is sin, sin, Shall not have dominion over you. Sin has not the lordship. And that word dominion has to do with lordship. Sin, the bondage and curse of the law. And sin, while it remains in us, it does not reign over us. For sin shall not have lordship over you. Not over a believer. For you're not under the law. You're not under the law. This do, this do, this do. Thou shalt, thou shalt, thou shalt not, thou shalt not. For sin shall not have dominion over you because you're not under the law. We're under grace. We're under grace. Sin no longer has the Lordship over us, because we're under the reign of grace. Remember we read that, Romans 5 verse 21, that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. We're under new management. He's our Lord. We bow to the Lordship and submit to the Lordship of the Lord Jesus Christ. Where sin shall not have dominion over you, under the law but under grace.

Now, he goes back to what he said in verse 1 and 2. What then? What then? Are you looking for an excuse to sin? Believers never look for an excuse to sin. We want to avoid sin at all costs. Avoid sin at all costs. What shall we say? What then? Shall we sin because we're not under the law, but under grace? What does he say? God forbid. God, God forbid. Believers never use salvation by grace alone for an excuse to commit sin. God forbid. We at all costs want to avoid any sin against God and bring honor to the Lord Jesus Christ by living unto His glory. That's our motive, is His glory. His glory.

Now, verse 16, Romans 6, know you not? that to whom you yield or present yourselves, servants who obey, his servants you are, to whom you obey, whether of sin unto death or obedience unto righteousness. Now, what a contrast here. To whom do we serve? To whom do we live? Are you servants? You are servants to the one to whom you yield and obey. Either sin unto death, that is seeking salvation by the deeds of the law, or your personal goodness, you're enslaved to self-righteousness and the bondage of the law. Our Lord said, except your righteousness exceed those of the scribes and Pharisees, you cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Do we have an exceeding righteousness? So, what he's saying here, sin unto death or obedience, unto righteousness. The only righteousness that the gospel of Christ reveals is the Lord Jesus Christ, our righteousness, or of obedience unto righteousness.

Now, I've jotted down by that verse, Romans 5, verse 19. Look back over there. Obedience. He was obedient unto death. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinner, so by the obedience of one, that is Jesus Christ, shall many be made, shall many be made, what does it say? Righteous in Christ. We have a perfect righteousness. Blessed is that man to whom the Lord imputeth righteousness without works. Now, if you ask most people, Do you know anything about what the Bible teaches about imputed righteousness? One old preacher of the past, John Wesley, an Armenian preacher, preached works. He said when someone asked him that question about imputed righteousness, he said, that's imputed nonsense. No, my friend, that's what the Bible teaches. Read Roman chapter 4. Imputation. Imputation. We see that imputation. Adam's sin imputed to us. Christ, His dying upon Calvary Street. We see our sin imputed to Him. And then we see that righteousness He brought in for us, everlasting righteousness, imputed unto us. I love it. That's the only righteousness a believer can enjoy, is that which is imputed to you without works. without works.

But thank God, verse 17, but thank God you were the servants of sin. You were, that's what we are by nature. Slaves is that word. We were slaves to sin. But you've obeyed from the heart. Salvation's a hard work. He's given us a new heart, a new mind, a new will, a new affection. We've obeyed from the heart, that is saving faith. What did we obey in our heart? What did we confess in our heart? The doctrine of Christ, which was delivered unto you, which delivered us. Turn to Romans 10. Look at Romans 10, verse 6. The righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise. Say not in thy heart who shall ascend into heaven, that is to bring Christ down from above, or who shall descend into the deep, that is to bring Christ again from the dead. But what saith it? The righteousness of faith now. Abraham believed God has counted him for righteousness. But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thine heart. That is the word of faith which we preach, that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, or Jesus to be Lord, and shalt believe in thine heart, God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scriptures say it, and we studied this last Wednesday night, Isaiah 28, 16, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. shall not be ashamed.

Back to Romans chapter 6, you've obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine. That's the gospel which delivered you from the wrath to come. Now verse 18, being made free, made free. He that is dead is freed from sin. Being made free from sin, you became the servants of Christ's righteousness. Christ alone, being made free from sin. He says that in verse 7. He that is dead is freed from sin. He says that again in verse 22. But now being made free from sin, you become servants to God. You have your fruit unto holiness. And in the end, everlasting life in the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank God. But thank God. Being made free. were made that way, made by His grace, made free. You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. Whom the Son sets free, He's free indeed. Paul writes in Galatians 5, stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free.

Being then made free from sin, the condemning power of sin, were redeemed from the curse of the law, you became servants, slaves to Christ. He is our righteousness. Verse 19, I speak after the manner of men, because of the weakness, the infirmity, the frailty of your flesh, or as you have yielded or presented your members, servants to uncleanness and to iniquity, unto iniquity, even so now yield your members, servants, to righteousness and holiness, righteousness unto holiness, unto holiness. Yield yourself, present yourself as servants to the Lord Jesus Christ. His servants we are if we obey Him and love Him.

Verse 20, for when you were the servants of sin, You were freed from a justifying righteousness. Before you were a believer, when you were the servants and slaves of sin, going about to establish a righteousness of your own, you were free from the righteousness of God revealed in the Gospel. Verse 20. You were free from that. You didn't know anything about that until it was revealed unto you.

What fruit had you then in those things whereof you're now ashamed? Well, the end of those things, going about to establish a righteousness of your own, the end of those things, the end of establishing a righteousness of your own doing, the end of those things is death, judgment, wrath, and condemnation. The end of those things.

My friend, don't go about. Now, I'm all in on morality. We ought to be a good neighbor, a good citizen, a good wife, a good husband, a good neighbor. We ought to do all these things that are right and lawful. Be upright, pay your bills, don't cheat, don't lie, don't do any of those things. Be upright and good and all that stuff. I'm all in on that. But you know what? That's nothing but sin. Because it connected with you. Everything you do is sinful. The only hope this sinner has is that I'm found in Christ and His righteousness, His obedience alone.

Don't ever mistake... I had a preacher call me up one time. He said, did I hear you correctly say? Did I hear you correctly say that morality is not righteousness? I said, you heard me right. Your morality is nothing but filthy rags. Don't cling to it. Don't hold to it. Don't find comfort in it. Don't find assurance in it. It'll drag you down. Look to Christ. That's what saving faith does. Saving faith looks to the Lord Jesus Christ alone.

Well, you know, I've been a good mother. I've been a good father. I've worked hard. I've provided for my children. Dung. Dung. In God's sight, in God's sight, and that's who we have to deal with. He's the judge. He's the judge. I'm ashamed of those things, going about to establish a righteousness of my own. I'm ashamed of that. I cut my teeth on works religion. for the end of those things is death.

Now verse 22, he says this the third time, but now being made free from sin. Have you got it? Have you heard it? There is no condemnation to those who are in Christ. Free! You remember that song I used to quote? Run, run, the law demands. but gives me neither feet nor hands. The gospel bids a sweeter song. It bids me fly and gives me wings. That's the good news of the gospel.

But now being made free from sin, you've become servants to Christ. We're bond servants out of love to the Lord Jesus Christ. bond servants to God, and you have fruit, fruit unto holiness, and in the end, everlasting life. Now what is this fruit? It's called the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of the flesh. Read in Galatians chapter 5, it gives a list of the fruit of the flesh. It's a gruesome list. It describes what we really are. And then it says, but the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, temperance, faith. Galatians 5.22. That's the fruit he's talking about. Christ in you, the hope of glory. It's God who works in us both to will and to do His good pleasure. God who has begun the good work in you shall finish it. It's not me, it's Him. This fruit's Him.

But now being made free from sin, you become servants to God. You have your fruit on the holiness. And in the end, what's the end? The end of sin is death. What's the end of this righteousness in the Gospel? Life. Life. Everlasting life.

Verse 23, in closing, The wages of sin, we know what that is. Did you get a paycheck this week? Why did they give you a paycheck? Why did they give you a paycheck at work? You worked all week and your paycheck was your reward for your work. The wages of sin is death. Death. Eternal death. The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. The gift of God. He's the gift of God. The gift of God is eternal life. It's a gift that keeps on giving. The law is given by Moses. Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. Of his fullness have we all received grace. for grace, grace for grace. The reason for grace is grace, grace for grace.