Why Not Choose Sin
Most kids dream of having unlimited access to junk food. However, if you have ever significantly altered your diet for the better, then you know the feeling of choosing long-term energy, stamina, and a clear mind over the fleeting taste of junk. Yes, our bodies have grace and can compensate and survive on junk food…for a little while, at least. But for someone who has lived on a healthy diet, junk foods have little to no appeal. Why don’t they go back to subsisting on food that is nutritionally empty? Not because it doesn’t sometimes smell or look good, but because they already know something better; the feeling of having what is vital for your body to function as its best. Paul knew this truth as well, in a spiritual sense. In Romans 6:1, after acknowledging God's great grace, he asks a rhetorical question: “Should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace?”
As we grow and mature in the faith by putting down deep roots of communion with God, our understanding of making life-giving choices grows. We have all witnessed and experienced the destruction sin causes in our lives in various ways, from own choices to external factors. Just as we know what types of foods we should eat as we mature from children into adults, maturing Christians can witness to godly choices and the results they produce. True life comes from making choices that help us operate in community, not those based on cravings and short-term gratification.
In baptism, we died to the power of sin and, in our new identity, agreed to operate in response to the direction of God’s voice. This isn’t just an act. This is a real, spiritual movement of the Holy Spirit that has consequences in our environment. And we bear witness to the results! Any home or environment in which the members have a grasp of the basic truths written in the Bible and want to move toward right standing in “The glorious power of the father” (Romans 6:4) will have outward and visible signs of Holy Spirit activity:
There will be less cheap, fleeting, ‘survival’ stimulation
There will be more connection than correction
There will be joy and laughter
There will be freedom and safety for people to share and be honest without fear
There will be open communication between members, as well as clear roles and boundaries
There will be less chaos and a more healthy balance of energy and rest
There will be less bitterness and more love
So why not chose sin? Because the list above describes an environment we want to be a part of and live in. I know I do. That’s why Paul asks the rhetorical question, “Since God has so much grace, should we just keep on sinning?” “Of course not!” Not one of us is able to respond perfectly and say no to every sinful temptation. But the grace of God gives us the chance to move toward him, even in our shortcomings, and to see what vitality we have when we move in the path He has laid out for us.