Rev. Aaron Long: From Slavery to Freedom
Rev. Aaron Long
Imagine two masters standing before you. One offers you chains, exhaustion, and eventual death. The other offers you purpose, dignity, and eternal life. Which would you choose? This is the choice Paul lays before us in Romans 6:19-23 — a choice between slavery to sin and slavery to righteousness.
The Reality of Slavery (v.19) Paul uses slavery as a relatable image for his audience’s cultural context. He is not endorsing slavery but illustrating total allegiance and control. Sin is not just an action; it’s a master that demands obedience. Sin leads to ever-increasing wickedness — sin never stays static; it grows. What “masters” have I been obeying in my thoughts, habits, and desires? Sin promises freedom but delivers bondage. Sin offers complete joy in this world but it takes our soul as payment for the pleasure we find in this world.
The Call to a New Master (v.19b-20) Salvation is not just being freed from sin — it’s being bound to Christ. Most modern Christians forget this, they see salvation simply as a ticket out of hell and an entrance into heaven. True freedom is found in serving the right Master. Holiness is the ultimate goal of the Christian life. Righteousness leads to sanctification, and sanctification is a progressive transformation into Christ’s likeness. Offer your mind, body, and will to God. Holiness is not optional; it’s the natural fruit of a new Master. Without holiness of life we can’t claim to be saved.
The Contrast of Outcomes (v.21-22) The Shame of the Old Life overwhelms some believers. Sin’s fruit is regret, brokenness, and spiritual death. Looking back, we see the emptiness of sin’s promises. The Fruit of the New Life works to fill in the holes in our life. Serving God produces holiness and ends in eternal life. The Christian life is not just about avoiding hell — it’s about enjoying God now and forever. Evaluate your “fruit”: Is it leading to life or death? Holiness is evidence of eternal life already at work in you. Can you prove you are saved. If someone were to look at your life would they see that you are a Christian?
The Eternal Principle (v.23) The eternal principle behind all of this is what we follow we become, what we do shapes us, in other words, you are what you eat. There are wages we are paid for our actions. What we earn by serving sin — death (physical, spiritual, eternal). What we receive by grace — eternal life through Christ. Sin pays what is due; God gives what we could never earn. Eternal life is not a paycheck — it’s a gift. Stop working for a master who will only pay you in death. Receive the gift — and live in gratitude and obedience.
Who is your master today? Will you keep collecting the wages of sin, or will you receive the gift of God? Surrender to Christ — not as a reluctant servant, but as a joyful bondslave to the One who died to set you free.
