“What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.” Romans 6:15-18 (ESV)
As fallen humans our idea of freedom is answering to no one and being able to do what we want, but really this is a false dichotomy. There are only two options; slavery to sin or slavery to righteousness. The reason why this is true is because righteousness is to be right with God, righteousness literally means right standing with God.
So, either we are right with God or we are not. All of mankind has sin, we are born into it and because we are fallen and corrupt, we continue to sin. We can’t help it because it is our nature so in a very real way, we are slaves to sin.
Here is an analogy that explains what I mean. When we are born, we are born into sin, we are slaves to sin and it is unavoidable. This is like being outside in a violent and heavy rainstorm and you are in an open field with nothing around for miles and miles except for one building. There is literally nothing you can do to avoid getting wet, you can lay down, stand up, run in circles, close your eyes but no matter what you do, as long as you are outside you will continue getting wet. The only way to stop getting rained on is to go inside the building. In the same way we are either slaves to sin or slaves to righteousness, you are either outside the building getting wet or inside the building drying off, there isn’t another option.
In the gospel we are pardoned from our sin because of what Christ did on the cross so we are free from the penalty of our past sin. But we have also been regenerated and given a new nature by which we are not only free from the penalty of past sin and future sin, which is death, we are also free from the sin nature which we were born with.
It doesn’t mean we are incapable of sinning; it merely means that now we have the capability to live a righteous life and as we are sanctified through the Spirit in Christ we will eventually and more and more bear fruit. Walking by the Spirit is about bearing fruit and over time being transformed into the image of Christ, our teacher and Master. Although the strength and life sustaining power of a tree is in its root system, the ultimate evidence of what kind of tree it is, is in its fruit.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” Galatians 5:22-25 (ESV)
Walking by the Spirit is living the life God has intended for us to live. When we look at the fruit of the Spirit as unregenerate people, we think we understand it. Words like love, joy and kindness are familiar to us but our understanding of these concepts and character traits are as corrupt as the sin nature we are born with.
Before Christ we think we know what love is and what joy and peace are but there really is no way to fully understand these things in a real way much less experience them disconnected from their source, who is God himself. It’s like trying to describe the beauty of a sunset when you have been blind your entire life. You can describe it based on what you have been told but your description will always lack because you haven’t ever really experienced it for yourself.
We might think we know what the love of God is based on what our fallen and human mind perceives but until we are in Christ and of the Spirit we could never really know, God defines what love is because He is love. The fruit of the Spirit is the evidence of our salvation that manifests itself in our lives. We bear the fruit of God because we are connected to God. It’s not acting like something or doing something; it's becoming something and being something. It all begins with the love of God that we perceive and receive in the gospel.
As we see God as holy and just we fear the Lord and we fear him all the more as we see ourselves in light of this. Our lives are not holy or good. Our sinful lives are deserving of condemnation and punishment from God. This is why when we truly see the grace of God in light of these things we get a glimpse of the magnitude of God’s love for us. We have done nothing but offend God but the scripture says this:
“But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (ESV)
Through this sacrificial and amazing love Christ atoned for our sin and gave us a new heart. Regeneration literally changes us. To harden your heart to the gospel is to harden your heart to the love of God. The fruit of the Spirit is the very character of God towards us and once we are born again it becomes our new nature and character. Not all at once but in a real way this new nature is born in us.
The love we receive from God in the gospel transforms us and changes us and because of this love, we are filled with joy, true joy—joy that is supernatural, something the world cannot give to you and the world could never take away.
And for the first time you know peace, real peace, a peace the Bible says is beyond human comprehension or understanding. A peace that understands that no matter what happens in this life we have the reward of eternal life with Christ and because of this can be assured, even in hardship and trial.
In Christ,
Pastor Joshua
Joshua West is a pastor, evangelist, and author. He is also director of the World Challenge Pastors Network.
