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"Do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin..."

Text: Romans 6:13

WHY DOES SIN SEEM SO POWERFUL?

Paul was correct in his understanding of how the Lord Jesus dealt with the problem of sin. He dealt a death blow to sin. However, the problem of sin seems to be as real and as intense for many. Why does this seem to be the case? How may we effectively deal with the problem of sin? Part of the answer may lie in the following text.

“Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body,
That you should obey it in its lusts.
And do not present your members as instruments
of unrighteousness to sin…”
Romans 6:12-13a

Let us enumerate the reasons why sin seems to have such a grip on us.

1. We have allowed sin to reign in our mortal body:

a) Sin’s original seat of power was in “our old man”.

b) Sin’s attack was now through the (weak) human body.

i) The sinful nature has been crucified with Christ.

However, there is still the human body.

ii) It can still respond to the influence of sin.

c) Sin can reign only if we allow it to reign.

d) Sin will reign if we obey its influences.

2. We have presented our “members” to sin:

a) The word “member” is a reference to the many parts that make up a human being.

b) The mind is one member.

c) The will is another member.

d) The emotions make up a third member (and so on).

3. Instruments of unrighteousness to sin

Paul minced no words when he write this phrase! When we yield to sin, we yield ourselves as “instruments of unrighteousness to sin”. There is only one effective way to deal with sin- we have to resist and reject all its influences!