Sanctification

Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?

1 Τί οὖν ἐροῦμεν; ἐπιμένωμεν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, ἵνα ἡ χάρις πλεονάσῃ; 2  μὴ γένοιτο. οἵτινες ἀπεθάνομεν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, πῶς ἔτι ζήσομεν ἐν αὐτῇ;

The trouble with going through Romans is that I feel like these passages are so overdone and over-commented upon.  However, that's because they are so good.  Like any good pastor, Paul anticipates the objections of his audience and addresses them.  This is such a huge one for so many of us.  Should we remain in sin so that God is glorified in His grace toward us?  μὴ γένοιτο!  That's a little phrase you see Paul use and it means very literally, "may it never be."  It's extremely emphatic.

So what do we do with this?  The first thing is to remember that repentance and sanctification are a part of salvation.  I'm not sure why exactly, but I've noticed a lot of ink in the blogosphere lately about Charles Finney and his methods.  I guess it's because they are still alive and well in many churches today.  We have him to thank for the altar call.  Now I'm all for challenging people to make a response to the gospel.  However, I also am for explaining the whole gospel to people.

The gospel is not about moralism or keeping rules.  Nor is it about living however we want.  Our changed lives are a response to God's grace.  Once we really understand what we've been saved from (sin and death) and what we've been saved to (holiness and life) then how can we do anything but live in a way that is according to His Word?  Of course we'll fail from time to time, but shouldn't that be the desire of our hearts?  I sure hope so.