<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Romans 6;20-20<div><br></div><div><b>20. &nbsp;When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.</b></div><div><b>21. &nbsp;But then, what return did you get from the things of which you are now ashamed? The end of those things is death.</b></div><div><b>22. &nbsp;But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the return you get is sanctification and its end, eternal life.</b></div><div><b>23. &nbsp;For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord.<br></b><br>With these words, Paul sets forth the proposition&nbsp;that:&nbsp;<u>‘We are all</u><u>&nbsp;slaves to some master,</u>&nbsp;either slaves to sin, or slaves of God.’ &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>The devil wants Christians to hate the word <i>“slave”</i>. &nbsp;He wants to deceive&nbsp;those who&nbsp;Believe in Jesus to believe they&nbsp;are not slaves any more, but ‘free, independent forgiven children’. &nbsp;Children who are free to ‘make their&nbsp;own independent&nbsp;choices’. &nbsp;‘What is wrong with that?’ you may ask. &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>In answer consider this: &nbsp;‘Did Jesus <u>ever</u>&nbsp;say or do <u>anything,</u>&nbsp;that was his own independent choice?</div><div>The answer is most assuredly, ‘NO’. &nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div><i>“Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son&nbsp;can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever he does, that the Son&nbsp;does likewise.’ “&nbsp;&nbsp;</i><span>(John 5;</span><span>19).&nbsp;</span></div><div><span><i>“ For I have not spoken on my own authority; the Father who sent me has himself given me commandment what to say and what to speak.” &nbsp;</i>(John 12;49)</span></div><div><span><i>“ For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will&nbsp;&nbsp;of him who sent me;”&nbsp;</i></span><span>(John 6;38)</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Scripture teaches us that, <i>“We have the Mind of Christ.” &nbsp;</i>(1 Corinthians 2;16b) &nbsp;The perfect&nbsp;Mind of Christ, is the mind of the sacrificially devoted Slave who loves the Will of the Father. &nbsp;He loves the Father’s will&nbsp;more than His own will,&nbsp;and&nbsp;even His own life.&nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>When we think of&nbsp;ourselves as ‘free and independent’, so that we think&nbsp;can&nbsp;make judgements and choose to do or say what <u>we</u>&nbsp;think or feel is right, we are <u>NOT</u>&nbsp;‘in our <u>right</u>(ous)&nbsp;</span><span>mind.’ &nbsp; We are spiritually insane.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>By our baptism into Christ, we have been set free from our selfish mind. &nbsp;We have&nbsp;died to&nbsp;our&nbsp;<i>“old self”</i>&nbsp;who considers himself free to choose. &nbsp;</span><span>By our baptism into Christ we have been given the Mind of Christ, which is&nbsp;the Mind of the sacrificial suffering Slave of God. &nbsp;In Christ, our only desire is now to&nbsp;obey</span><span>&nbsp;the Father’s will.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>The wages&nbsp;for being slaves of sin is death, physical and eternal. &nbsp;The gift of God is to be a Slave&nbsp;of the Father’s will with Jesus, (not our own independent little masters)&nbsp;and in Jesus&nbsp;eternal life.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>This is why abiding in God’s living&nbsp;Word is essential for being His slave with Jesus. &nbsp;The Word of God reveals the Will of God. &nbsp;Remember, Jesus is, <i>“the Word made flesh., dwelling among us, full of grace and truth.” &nbsp; </i>(John 1;14)</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>By believing Christ the Slave,&nbsp;is living by the Holy Spirit within us, and by abiding in God’s Word, we become <i>“partakers of the divine nature.” </i>(2 Peter1;4) &nbsp;We seek to&nbsp;fulfill our calling to <i>“make disciples.”</i>&nbsp; We,&nbsp;as the Body of Christ, (presented to God as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to God), share in God’s love for this dying, sin-sick world. &nbsp;We, with Jesus become messengers of light and life. &nbsp;We fulfill&nbsp;what we are,<i>”destined and appointed”&nbsp;&nbsp;</i>for,</span><i>&nbsp;“to live for the praise of his glory.” &nbsp;</i><span>(Ephesians 1;12)</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, we praise you for giving us the Mind (heart and will) of Christ the Slave of Righteousness. &nbsp; Bless us to by faith&nbsp;live in our ‘right’ Mind, and&nbsp;be Your own faithful, dedicated, sacrificial slaves. &nbsp;Deliver us from despising Your Word ignorant of Your will,&nbsp;we pray&nbsp;In Jesus we pray, Amen.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Love,</span></div><div><span>Dad/Baba/Eric/Grandpa Pickle Pastor</span></div><div><span>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in God’s living Word. &nbsp;God’s Word is our habitation, and we, broken-hearted, contrite, yielded, forgiven, believing children, are His.”</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><div><a href="https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&amp;c=Global_Acquisition_YMktg_315_Internal_EmailSignature&amp;af_sub1=Acquisition&amp;af_sub2=Global_YMktg&amp;af_sub3=&amp;af_sub4=100000604&amp;af_sub5=EmailSignature__Static_" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Romans 6;20-20
20.  When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.21.  But then, what return did you get from the things of which you are now ashamed? The end of those things is death.22.  But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the return you get is sanctification and its end, eternal life.23.  For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord.

With these words, Paul sets forth the proposition that: ‘We are all slaves to some master, either slaves to sin, or slaves of God.’  
The devil wants Christians to hate the word “slave”.  He wants to deceive those who Believe in Jesus to believe they are not slaves any more, but ‘free, independent forgiven children’.  Children who are free to ‘make their own independent choices’.  ‘What is wrong with that?’ you may ask.  
In answer consider this:  ‘Did Jesus ever say or do anything, that was his own independent choice?The answer is most assuredly, ‘NO’.   
“Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever he does, that the Son does likewise.’ “  (John 5;19). “ For I have not spoken on my own authority; the Father who sent me has himself given me commandment what to say and what to speak.”  (John 12;49)“ For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will  of him who sent me;” (John 6;38)
Scripture teaches us that, “We have the Mind of Christ.”  (1 Corinthians 2;16b)  The perfect Mind of Christ, is the mind of the sacrificially devoted Slave who loves the Will of the Father.  He loves the Father’s will more than His own will, and even His own life. 
When we think of ourselves as ‘free and independent’, so that we think can make judgements and choose to do or say what we think or feel is right, we are NOT ‘in our right(ous) mind.’   We are spiritually insane.
By our baptism into Christ, we have been set free from our selfish mind.  We have died to our “old self” who considers himself free to choose.  By our baptism into Christ we have been given the Mind of Christ, which is the Mind of the sacrificial suffering Slave of God.  In Christ, our only desire is now to obey the Father’s will.
The wages for being slaves of sin is death, physical and eternal.  The gift of God is to be a Slave of the Father’s will with Jesus, (not our own independent little masters) and in Jesus eternal life.
This is why abiding in God’s living Word is essential for being His slave with Jesus.  The Word of God reveals the Will of God.  Remember, Jesus is, “the Word made flesh., dwelling among us, full of grace and truth.”   (John 1;14)
By believing Christ the Slave, is living by the Holy Spirit within us, and by abiding in God’s Word, we become “partakers of the divine nature.” (2 Peter1;4)  We seek to fulfill our calling to “make disciples.”  We, as the Body of Christ, (presented to God as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to God), share in God’s love for this dying, sin-sick world.  We, with Jesus become messengers of light and life.  We fulfill what we are,”destined and appointed”  for, “to live for the praise of his glory.”  (Ephesians 1;12)
Prayer:  Merciful Father, we praise you for giving us the Mind (heart and will) of Christ the Slave of Righteousness.   Bless us to by faith live in our ‘right’ Mind, and be Your own faithful, dedicated, sacrificial slaves.  Deliver us from despising Your Word ignorant of Your will, we pray In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Love,Dad/Baba/Eric/Grandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in God’s living Word.  God’s Word is our habitation, and we, broken-hearted, contrite, yielded, forgiven, believing children, are His.”









Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPad
