"Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?" How the Accuser tries to twist this question to keep people away from God's saving grace.

How the Accuser tries to twist this question to keep people away from God's saving grace.

Believers, please beware of Christ-professing but unbelieving establishments and preachers. The spirit of the anti-Christ is not anti-God. In fact, God can be central to their teaching but Christ and His finished work are usually not. You only find our Saviour in the "in Jesus name" at the end of each prayer point. YOU must do all the work required to be set free. There is no free indeed here, only lists of things to do and what not to do in order to receive from our heavenly Father who gives us all things freely with Christ (Romans 8:32) and in order to remain in right-standing with Him; a right-standing that Christ purchased for us with His blood (2 Corinthians 5:21).

These Christ professors are the ones that usually try to twist Paul's question in Romans 6:1 "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?" to make people continue to try to keep the law in order to get right with God, an effort in futility according to Romans 3:20; the way to get cut off from Christ and fall from God's grace according to Galatians 5:4 and the way to produce "a harvest of sinful deeds that result in death" according to Romans 7:5.

These people, many of them agents of the Accuser, will never give you the background to Romans 6:1 that is the whole of Romans 5 where we see how we are made righteous in Christ apart from works; how God's righteousness is a gift to all who believe in our Lord Jesus Christ; how "much more, those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ." Reign over sins, addictions, sickness, depression, lack and every earthly ill.

Paul's question was a rhetorical one, asked in order make a point rather than to get an answer. He answers this question in Romans 6 and all through his letters to the church.

PAUL ASKED THIS QUESTION BECAUSE PEOPLE WERE ACCUSING HIM OF PREACHING THAT IT IS OKAY TO CONTINUE IN SIN BECAUSE OF GRACE, just like their counterparts who try to twist his words are doing today. See his words in Romans 3:8-

"Why not say, “Let us sin that good will come from it.” (Some people have said I talk like this!) They will be punished as they should be."

See the MSG version: "And some people even slander us by claiming that we say, “The more we sin, the better it is!” Those who say such things deserve to be condemned."

In the question: "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?" Paul was asking:

“Do all these things I teach you, including the truth that God’s grace super-abounds when sins increase; that we are made righteous by “one Man’s obedience” and not our law-keeping; that we are made right with God because of His free gift even though we are guilty of many sins; do these things that I said mean that believers can just go and be sinning anyhow?”

Believers, this is why Paul asked this question. He didn’t ask it in the context in which many people bandy the verse about today – usually as a reason to go back under the law that Christ has already fulfilled for us through his death! He asked because he wanted to clarify that the gospel that he preached - righteousness by faith and not by law-keeping - is not a license to sin but the key to right living!

For this gospel of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that Paul preached (justification by faith and not by law-keeping,) HE WAS FALSELY ACCUSED BY THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS OF HIS DAY OF PREACHING THAT IT IS OKAY TO SIN BECAUSE "WE ARE UNDER GRACE." Sounds familiar?

Paul's question was a prelude to explaining why we will not continue to sin since Christ's death has freed us from sin and made us slaves of Righteousness which we see in Romans 6-7. Under grace, you cannot continue to sin. According to Romans 7:4, grace will make you produce "a harvest of good deeds for God."

Trying to keep the Law to get right with God on the other hand will get one to produce "a harvest of sinful deeds that result in death." Romans 7:5

Believers, we're under Grace not just so that we can go on sinning sprees. Under grace, we're married to our Saviour Jesus Christ so that we can can be righteous in God's sight and thus get to live a life of moral excellence. One that is sin-free. Grace is the Way out of sin.

God's grace is not a licence to sin. Never. Would you really give your own child a gift that has a slight chance of killing him or give him the liberty to be rebellious? How much more our loving Saviour in whom "we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence,"

Ephesians 1:7-8 here tells us His grace is showered on us with wisdom and prudence, not just anyhow that we could misuse it.

Those who are still wallowing in sin and saying it is okay because they are under Grace are under something else, definitely not grace. Yes there are some who try to replace the grace of our Lord with sheer license to sin. Notice replace, not mix or use. These people are not under grace but under the control of the devil.

Jude spoke of these scoundrels in Jude 1 and described them as spots in our love feasts, greedy and rebellious. These people are not of Christ and their behaviour should not make pastors and leaders try to “help God” by introducing the Law to keep New Covenant believers in check. Sarah (GRACE) did not need Hagar (LAW) to raise Isaac (The Church). Grace is enough. Cast out the bondwoman and her son!

See 1 Corinthians 3:16 "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?"

In Christ (under grace) we are the temple of God; a royal priesthood. In us, we carry the substance of Ark of the Covenant - our Lord Jesus Christ. Remember "no longer I who live but Christ that lives in me."

Let's not be like Uzzah who tried to steady the Ark with his hand. Never by human effort at law-keeping can the temple of God (today, Christians) be righted. Only by grace. By the way, Uzzah means Strength.

Pastors and leaders, there's no need to help the Holy Spirit to do His work of transforming believers to the image of the glory of the Lord by putting them under the Law again. This is death. Plus you can't. No human is that good a transformer:) 2 Corinthians 3:18 says the Spirit of the Lord transforms us to the image of His glory, not the Law, or you.

Point the people to God's Grace (unveil the love of Christ) and according to Titus 2, Grace (our Saviour Jesus Christ Himself) is the one that teaches us to shun ungodliness and worldly lusts, gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds, not you or I. In Christ, Grace (Christ Himself) is our Teacher. His Spirit teaches us all things.

Believe Right and you will Live Right.