Does it matter how you live? (1 Kings 1; 1 Chr 26-28; Rom 6)

If we are made right with God by trusting in Jesus, does it matter how you live? Sometimes people object to being saved by faith in Jesus’ finished work on the cross because they say it means people can live how they want. If we are saved by grace then why not just sin more so that there will be more grace? The apostle Paul answers this anticipated question in Romans 6. He answers with just a couple of words “by no means”!

It’s understandable that someone might think like this, the gospel is so amazing, Jesus has done everything for us! But when you understand the gospel, you start wanting to live God’s way rather than seeing it as “get out of jail free” card. Paul says that when you believe the gospel you die to sin. This doesn’t mean that a believer never sins (see chapters 7-8), but it does mean that the direction of our lives changes. Sin stops being our master, we are united to Christ and are able to say ‘no’ to sin in a way that we couldn’t before.

When you don’t belong to Jesus, sin is natural, you don’t even realise that you are sinning, but when Jesus works in your life, you start being aware of sin and wanting to live differently, sin becomes unnatural to you.

Paul says you have died to sin and been united to Christ. Yes it’s all about what Jesus has done for you, and one day he will totally transform you, but until that day, we don’t use grace as an excuse to sin, but rather as a reason not to sin.

I think it was John Stott who said that when you trust Jesus you are set free from the penalty of sin, you are being set free from the power of sin, and one day you will be set free from the presence of sin. That is very helpful.

Paul ends the chapter by addressing the objection from a different angle. His first answer is that sin is not appropriate because you died to sin with Christ. And his second answer is that we have a new master (v16). Having a new master, we live a new way.

So it does matter how we live. The gospel leads us to live holy lives because we have been united to Christ and He is now our master. So when you are tempted to sin, say to yourself, I have died to that way of life, and ask God for His help to live with Jesus as your master.

I love the way Paul ends the chapter (v23). He reminds us where sin leads – to death, and then he reminds us that salvation is a gift, even though he’s been telling us that it matters how we live, he reminds us at the end of the wonderful gospel, salvation is a free gift! It’s all been paid for, and when you realise this, you will want to live differently because you belong to Jesus.