He says after that exhortation,
for sin shall not have dominion over you, for you're not under
the law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because
we're not under the law and under grace? God forbid. Know ye not that to whom ye yield
yourselves servants to obey, his servants, literally slaves,
ye are to whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death or of obedience
unto righteousness. But God bethank that you were
the servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that
form of sound, that form of doctrine which was delivered unto you. Being then made free from sin,
you became the servants of righteousness. I speak after the manner of men,
because of the infirmity of your flesh. For as many as have yielded
your members servants to uncleanliness and to iniquity unto iniquity,
even so now yield your members servants of righteousness unto
holiness. For when we were the servants
of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit then had you in those
things, whereof ye are now ashamed? For the end of those things is
death. And why? Because the wages of
sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Now, that's our text today, particularly
verse 14 and verse 15, and then we make application of that. So just real quickly, by way
of review, and to return ourselves into the train of thought that
we were following in our first study of the last Lord's Day,
the apostle, I think, it cannot be denied. It is beyond denial. that in verse 1 and in verse
14 and verse 15 is cutting off the unfounded logic and objection
that some make against the doctrine of free and gratuitous grace. Paul knows that. Paul understands
the argument and the perversion and the denial that might be
made of the doctrine that he is teaching, and that doctrine
is justification by grace apart from the works of the law. Now,
as a footnote, and one of the most important arguments of Paul
along this line is taking up the entire fourth chapter of
the book of Romans. In that chapter, Romans chapter
four, Paul showed that Abraham was justified, number one, before
he received the seal of circumcision. And that's one thing that you
strictly strongly trusted in. And not only that, he was also
justified before the law was ever given. So before receiving
circumcision and before the law was ever given, which are those
two things that the Jew mightily trusted in, therefore Abraham
was before God a justified man and he said in Romans 4 and verse
1 he raises the question what shall we say then that Abraham
our father according under the flesh is has found. That is,
how was it with Abraham and the doctrine of justification? Abraham was a justified man. How then was he justified? Now surely every Jew believed
and we believe that Abraham was a justified man. That Abraham
was justified before the Lord God. But the question is, number
one, how was Abraham justified? And number two, when was Abraham
justified before God? And the answer is, he was justified
by faith and righteousness was imputed unto him before he was
circumcised and even before the law was ever given. Now that
means something. These two things can be excluded
as having a part in our justification and our righteousness before
Almighty God. Now, not only Abraham, but also
believing elect Gentiles are justified without circumcision
and without the works of the law unless they have become a
proselyte along the way and have put themselves under these things
for the sake of the Jew. Now in our first study we looked
at dead under the law and we found the Apostle Paul saying
that free grace will not lead to an excessiveness of sinning. And that because the justified
ones are dead unto sin. They died to sin, is the tense,
rather, in Romans chapter 6, 1 and 2. They died with sin,
being crucified with the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We saw in verse 7 of our last
study that he that is dead from sin is justified from sin. He that has died to sin has been
freed or the word is justified. We died to sin through the grace
of God that was in the Lord Jesus Christ, who by his death, according
to the will of God, made God propitious toward the elect,
and still the calm of wrath and indignation that was against
us because of our transgression, then causing that justification
to take effect by the gift of regeneration, quickening to life
those that were in Jesus Christ and that he died for. Now, as
to this grace, Paul says it has out-abounded sin. We saw that in the end of chapter
5. It has out-abounded sin, and
it rains on the weak. And let's catch every word. It
reigns unto righteousness and unto eternal life by the Lord
Jesus Christ. That caused me to think that
we are not justified by law or by any other works. that someone
said, it is a force, it is a farce rather, said Calvin, to conclude
that that which abolishes sin, that is the grace of God, at
the same time will turn around and give it strength. It is ridiculous
to say that that which has put away our sin will therefore bring
us again under sin. So it will not aid, it will not
abet sin to be saved by the grace of God. On the other hand, that
caused me to think, how can the law, which is the strength of
sin, lend any help unto our justification or our sanctification? That's an important statement.
in 1 Corinthians 15 and verse 56 when Paul said, the strength
of sin is the law. Let's illustrate that. As a medicine
does not strengthen or awaken the disease that it is formulated
to cure. When you take that medicine formulated
for a certain disease or sickness, it does not strengthen that sickness
and make it stronger. Neither will that grace that
is given unto us in Jesus Christ before the foundation of the
world give any strength unto sin, for grace reigns unto righteousness
and eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. Coming then to verse
14 and our principal focus of study for today, and we take
notice, if we might, of the opening word conjunction is it the word
far and this gives us the place to look back and to make a connection
for the word far suggested what is suggested by the word far
so often used in the scripture of make some connection, it draws
some conclusion from something that has gone before, it literally
ties one thing together with another, or connects a series
of words together, and that is the word far. While we are at
it, we might take notice that there are two fars, F-O-R-S,
in verse 14 of our subject for today. We'll consider that a
little bit later on. Also notice something else, and
that is the word therefore looking back under verse 12. It also
is a word making a reference or a connection or a conclusion
and would have the meaning for that reason, or we could say
consequently, therefore, or consequently. The word also has the meaning
of according, or then, and wherefore, or certainly. And these little
words that we sometimes skim over might overlook, or points
of emphasis and connection in the Word of God as we study. So the far, F-O-R, in the opening
of verse 13, 14 rather, has some connection or reference to something
that that has been said or that goes before, and I suggest that
the reference is back to verse 12 and verse 13. May we read
them again? Verse 12, verse 13, Romans chapter
6. Let not sin therefore reign in
your mortal body, that you should obey in it the lust thereof. Neither yield ye your members
as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but yield yourself
unto God as those that are alive from the dead, and your instrument,
or rather, yes, your members, as instruments of righteousness
unto God. Now, these exhortations are based
upon the premise and the promise In verse 14, sin shall not have
dominion over you. It shall not lord it over you. It shall not act as your master
or your lord, and you shall not be its slave. Sin shall not be
able to to regain its former mastery over you, and that because
of the blessed fact in the last half of verse 14. Don't let sin
reign. Don't let sin reign in your mortal
body. Don't obey the desires of it. Don't yield your members to unrighteousness,
but to righteousness as those that are alive from the dead
in and with the Lord Jesus Christ. Then dropping back to the therefore,
in verse 12, which also considers what goes before it as well,
which is their vital union with the Lord Jesus Christ, whereby
they were co-crucified in and with Christ. And in and with
his death, they died to the guilt and to the condemnation of sin. Verse 11, they are to reckon,
they are to count, they are to consider themselves dead indeed
unto sin, for they were crucified in and with Christ. Therefore
they and all of them that are in union with Christ being regenerate,
because you see, there is neither the ability or the desire to
serve God acceptably apart from the new life that God imparts
or instills in his people. And there's so many in the church
pass over. They take Christianity or conversion
to be simply some act that they perform. They went forward, they
joined the church, they kneeled at an altar, they signed a card
or whatever. But it is the new life. from God Almighty in and through
us that leads us in what Paul is exhorting here. They are exhorted
to practice a life of sanctification, and that because they are justified
in Christ. They died to sin by and in the
death of the Lord. Therefore, sin cannot condemn
them. and being brought under the reign
of the grace of God, being made free from the reign of sin that
formerly held them, they have the grace to not yield themselves
as servants of sin, but as servants of righteousness unto God. I hope you remember in the first
study how we mentioned the twofold effect that sin had upon Adam
and upon his children. I'll quickly give them. Number
one, guilt and condemnation came upon us by our connection and
being descendants of Adam. Number two, depraved nature and
the practical, personal, dominion and practice of sin passed upon
every member of the human family. How is it that it reigned unto
death? Reigned as does a king, for that
is the vision. that is in our mind, a king upon
a throne with abject power ruling over his subject. That's the
picture of our former life under sin. The word reign, R-E-I-G-N-E-D,
in relationship unto a king, according unto James Fraser,
who wrote extensively and spiritually on these passages, means simply
to act as the king, or to act or play the part of a king. It is expressive of a king. And when we look back in chapter
5, in verse 14, in verse 21 again, You find that word reigned, reigned
as a king. It also lorded it over all in
that it dominated our life. Before we were converted, sin
dominated our life. All that we did and all that
we longed for was geared toward the practice of sin. But no more, says Paul, according
to Romans 6 and 14, sin shall not have dominion over you. And this is from the word of
that means supreme, our controller. It is used many times in the
New Testament referring to the Lord Jesus Christ. While the word in verse 14, dominion,
is at least seven times in the New Testament. Four of them from
Paul this Roman epistle that we are studying. Twice more we
have it from his pen and In 2nd Corinthians 1 and verse 24 have
dominion over our faith. 1st Timothy 6 and verse 15 is
a marvelous verse extolling the power of our blessed Lord where
he calls in that text the Lord's Christ, the blessed and only
potentate or literally sovereign, the king of the ones reigning,
the Lord of the ones ruling our Lord Jesus Christ is the king
of them that are reigning as king and is the Lord of them
that are ruling as Lord you have the word again in Luke chapter
22 and 25 rendered like this exercise lordship over. That's the translation of the
word. That is, the kings of the Gentile
exercise lordship over them. Now, let's notice two more places
where Paul uses this word in the context of our present study. Romans 6 verse 9. Concerning
Christ, listen, death hath no more dominion over him. Same word that we have in verse
14. Death hath no more dominion over
him. It's no longer his master. It no longer has rule over him. And why? Because Paul's answer
is he died unto sin once. Death hath no more dominion.
Never again will our Lord go down into death. He is alive
evermore that he might live under God and do the work of a mediator. Then again, we have it in Romans
7 and verse 1. How Paul says, the law, you know,
has dominion over a man so long as he is alive. So long as he
is alive and no longer. The law can lord it over him
while he's alive. It can rule him. It can punish
him. It can oblige him to obey its
precepts. It can collect taxes and fees
from him only so long as he is alive, while he lives. But if
he dies, he dies to the law's dominion over him. What can the law do unto a dead
man? We'll get to that when we come
to chapter 7. But the apostle is not ashamed,
nor should we be, of the doctrine of reigning grace. that the grace
of God reigning unto eternal life in salvation, and far from
it giving any license to sin, far from it encouraging one to
sin, because they're under the grace of God, the apostle has
declared that grace reigns through righteousness. Back in chapter
5 and verse 21. Paul is very careful here to
show that the reign of grace is a sanctifying influence upon
them that are in Christ and them that are dead unto sin and free
from the law through the Lord Jesus Christ and his death upon
the cross. How frequently he mentioned in
this section on sanctification to dispel any notion that grace
will open the door to sinning, to licentiousness, and to looseness
and carelessness, and disregard the heinousness of sin. that it will not happen because
of grace. Let's scan through this section
again. In chapter 6 and verse 6, the
aim of being crucified with Christ is twofold, or rather has twofold
effect. A, the body of sin is destroyed
thereby. The body of sin is destroyed. And B, that henceforth we should
not serve sin. Now that's our communion with
Christ. But then again, look at verse
13. Neither yield your members as instruments of unrighteousness
unto sin, but yield yourself unto God as those that are alive
from the dead. Look at verse 17 again. But God
be thanked that you were the servants of sin, but you have
obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered
unto you. Then verse 18, being then made
free from sin, ye become the servants of righteousness. Verse 19, and the last half of
the verse beginning with, even so now yield your members as
servants to righteousness unto holiness. Verse 22, but now being
made free from sin, and become servants to God, you have your
fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life. Pardon me,
but I'd like to jump over into chapter 7 and read also verse
5 and 6 along this line. For when we were in the flesh,
the motions of sin, watch this, which were by the law, the motions
of sin by the law, Paul, did work in our members to bring
forth fruit unto death. But now we are delivered from
the law, that being dead wherein we were held, that we should
serve in newness of spirit and not in the oldness of the letter. And for good measure, we cite
what Paul tells the Galatians in that epistle in chapter 5
and verse 1. In that verse he said, stand
fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made you free and
be not entangled again in the yoke of bondage. Now, this follows
Paul's great allegory in the end of chapter 4 of Galatians
21-31 that Abraham's true children are not children of the bondwoman
Hagar but are children of the free woman Sarah. Galatians 4 and 31. Then in Galatians chapter 5,
again saying stand fast in the liberty, don't put your neck
in a yoke of bondage, don't be overcome, don't yield up to all
of those who would bring you in bondage, Then in verse 13,
he adds a careful exhortation. For brethren, you have been called
unto liberty. Only use not liberty for an occasion
to the flesh. There is a check, there is a
caution. Paul is not saying we're free
from sinning, not that we're free from the principle of sin,
but from its guilt and its condemnation. In other words, we are justified
and are now practicing sanctification. And here he cautiously said,
do not turn your liberty into an occasion of the flesh. What could be clearer than that? Christ did not call us that we
might be enslaved again under the rudiments of the world, but
he called us to freedom and to liberty in the Lord Jesus Christ
and the grace of God. We are not children of the slave
wife, spiritually and figuratively. Paul exhorts, therefore, stand
firm in the liberty which Christ called us unto. For there are
always those, always, in every time and in every place who seek
to bring the children of God back under some kind of bondage. You see it in Galatians 2 and
verse 4, but I won't read it. Back to Romans 6 and verse 14,
and the reason that Paul gives why sin cannot make them or make
us or make any believer a slave again of sin. In the first half
of verse 14 is the fact. Sin shall not lord it over you. Sin shall not have dominion over
you. In the last half of verse 14
is the reason. For ye are not under the law,
but under grace. That is, you are not under law,
you are under grace. I want you to please note, Paul
uses these words twice. Once in verse 14, again in verse
15, immediately following. In verse 14, as a matter of fact,
he writes, sin shall not have dominion over you. You are not
under the law. You are under grace. In verse
15, Paul defends the reign of grace by a new form of reasoning,
which also would be opposed by many then and now, that what
Paul is teaching a reign of grace might lead to the conclusion
that such a teaching would surely be seized after by some as an
excuse or a reason to continue in sin. Now, hearing Paul say,
you're not under the law, but under grace, they would upgrade
the charge against the apostle. Now you have made it even worse,
Paul. They might say unto him, you
have made it worse by saying, Christians are not under law. And they might reason, the law
it is that best opposes and suppresses and punishes for sin. It visits with fearful judgment.
It puts fear in the heart of such as transgress it. Therefore,
they might argue, take away this and it will embolden many to
give themselves unto a life of sin and the indulgence of all
pleasure and say to any that question them, hey, I'm not under
law, I'm under the grace of God. What if we remind such as have
that view that all judgments in the old economy did not, except
temporarily, get that, those judgments that came on them under
the old economy did not, except temporarily, reform the people. It did not reform them. It did
not cause them to put away their sin and cease to be transgressors. There were some of them that
it never reformed. and other forms of rebellion,
they did work against God. But we should get the question,
what does Paul mean by saying under grace? We think we mean
it might appear simple at our first reading. What does he mean? You're under grace. What does
he mean? You're not under law. The word under having the emphasis
now. You're under grace, not under
law. Verse 14, under grace. Verse 15, under grace. Now, we ask the question, is
this one and the same thing in meaning? Is it one and the same
thing as the reign of grace in the end of chapter 5, that grace
has reigned through righteousness unto eternal life? And of course,
we ought not to divorce its meaning from the context in which it
is found here in the book of Romans. Many have, and they do,
understand that to have grace simply means to find or to have
favor with God, and this is most certainly true. One who has,
like Noah, found grace in the eyes of God. Grace is often defined,
described as the unmerited favor of God in the Lord Jesus Christ. And it always supposes that the
objects are to be completely unworthy of the grace and the
mercy and the salvation of God. In this sense, it is saving grace. Ephesians 2, 8 and 9. By grace
are you saved, that not of yourself, it is the gift of God. Romans
3, 24. being justified freely by His
grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Salvation is by grace and by
grace only and alone revealed unto faith at God's time. Noah found grace in the eyes
of the Lord. Genesis 6 verse 8, by the way,
a long time before the moral law was ever given. And Abraham,
by faith, believed in Genesis 15, 6 and Romans chapter 4. So that many living before and
under the Mosaic dispensation were saved by grace through faith. Noah being the first one mentioned,
and of course Abraham, not that they were the first mentioned
chronologically. But is this all that is meant
by Paul when he declares them to be, quote, under grace? unquote. None could dispute the
fact that salvation is by and only by the grace of God, and
that grace therefore is the major factor in salvation, and that
it is the gift of God, that it is bestowed and conveyed by and
through the Lord Jesus Christ. But then many come and try to
mingle grace and law, or grace and works, or grace and faith,
or grace and sincerity, and such like. Now I'm in agreement with
those writers, James Frazier, John Gill, and there were others. that we cannot dismiss that Paul
has in mind when he says you are under grace, that he has
in mind the covenant of grace, the gospel dispensation. that came to fuller manifestation
with the appearing of the incarnate Son of God wearing the likeness
of our flesh. Perhaps we shall again remember
the contrast we have in Galatians, or rather in Romans 5 and 17
through 21, but particularly in verse 21. Sin reigned under
death, Grace reigns unto eternal life. It's no slip of the pen
when the Apostle Paul writes 2 Corinthians chapter 3 and verse
7 and calls the law, quote, the ministration of death, unquote,
or the ministry of death. Again, when he writes in verse
9, of that same chapter, he calls it, quote, the ministration of
condemnation, or the ministry of condemnation. Here he is comparing
the law and the gospel, or the old covenant and the new, and
he says that the old, though it was glorious, practically
has no glory because of that in the new which outshines it.
But let's consider a word that Paul uses a lot in his writing. We just mentioned it. That is
the word under. Under some 13 times here in the
Roman epistle, and I think the word might be hupu, under, beneath,
below, the three words by which it is most often translated in
the New Testament dozens and dozens of times. That word is
translated either under or by or of, O-F. Those three words are the principle
way that that Greek word translated under is in the New Testament. And in Romans 6, 14 and 15 you
are not under law You are under grace again not under law Under
grace is what he tells him now something else we notice here
in our King James Particularly you don't have the word grace
The, T-H-E, either time before law in these two verses, verse
14 and verse 15. So it is not the law with the
article, but law. You are under grace, you are
not under law. And it looks to be the same in
chapter 5 and verse 20. Law entered. Wherefore law entered. that the offense might abound,
meaning the one offensive item so frequently mentioned in Romans
chapter 5, 15 through 20. The law entered, the law came,
the law was given, it entered in alongside, if we may say it,
the offense abounded and this was on purpose law entered that
the offense might abound or that the transgression might increase
but Paul said where sin abounded Grace did much more abound or
out-abounded. Now, would we expect the coming
of the law to have the opposite effect? Rather than make sin
abound and increase, we might expect that the law coming would
actually restrain it or reduce sin in great number. Paul says
again, in Galatians 3 in verse 19, he asks the question, since
the law can't justify, why then was it given? What's the purpose
of the law? He answers this, it was added
because of transgression till the seed should come. But back
to Romans 6, a person under law, can never be better than a slave
to sin. A person under law is a slave
to sin, yea he will be as long as they are under law, because
the law cannot excuse sin, cannot overlook it, certainly cannot
pardon or justify a sinner. That while the law cannot justify
even the most civil of sinners that one might find, it cannot
justify even the most civil sinner. On the other hand, Neither can
the law condemn the weakest one that is in Jesus Christ. It is because believers are under
grace and not under law that they are because of grace enabled
to yield themselves up as servants unto God and servants unto righteousness,
and obedience according unto the word, to be obedient to that
sound teaching and doctrine that is delivered unto them in the
preaching of the word of God and the gospel. For being made
free from sin, their fetters being cut off of them, and being
made free from sin, they become the servants. They become another
slave. They become a slave of righteousness. That is, they once yielded themselves
up, servants unto uncleanness and iniquity. Now they yield
their members up, servants unto righteousness and holiness. They now, being under the grace
of God, yield up their members unto God and unto Christ. They've been freed from the stern
pedagogue that had oversight and dominion over them. They
have been freed from that stern pedigogue that they might wear
the gentle yoke of Christ, which is easy and is light, as he said
in Matthew chapter 11. And when we were the slaves of
sin, we were free from righteousness. For none can be both at one and
the same time. Neither can be a slave of sin
and a slave of righteousness at one and the same time. Cannot be under the law and under
grace. as a covenant at one and the
same time. I'd like for us to look at verse
22 again. I might have skipped it in reading
chapter 6, but now being made free from sin and become the
servants to God, you have your fruit on the holiness and the
end everlasting life. Look at verse 16 again. knowing
ye not that ye to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey his
servants ye are to whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death or
of obedience unto righteousness. Now I close this study with what
our Lord said in John chapter 8. There having a set to with
some of the Pharisees, our Lord said this to those that heard
and were present. Whosoever commits sin is the
slave of sin. John 8 verse 34. Nothing could
be clearer. Whosoever commits sin is the
slave of sin. He that the Son sets free is
free indeed. And freedom involves the element
of truth. For truth it is that frees the
conscience, frees from the heresy and the traditions of men, frees
from the slavish fear imposed by the law. He that the Son makes
free is free indeed. And Paul gives, in verse 23,
a summary or a contrast. For the wages of sin is death,
while the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Grace is in no wise an influence
And I think where the mistake is made is mistaking that there
must be an inward work of God before one can serve God, know
God, have a heart for righteousness, and have an abhorrence of sin.
And just to join the church won't do that. Just to read the Bible
now and then won't do that. And to make a profession and
to be baptized won't do that inward work. There must be an
inward work. It's called the new birth. It's
called regeneration. And that is the key. from passing
to the one state in experience to the other, dead in sin, quickened
with and by the Lord Jesus Christ. No, grace is not a license to
sin and it will not lead to sin. In fact, it's the only thing
that would teach us to live godly and righteously is the grace
of God in the heart.