“What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of?….For the wages of sin is death…”Romans 6:21-23
As you can see, I’m still pondering January’s theme. Beth Ann’s post about abortion made me think of this verse. Not just because abortion kills babies, but also because as Beth Ann said, a piece of her died also. When we disobey God, we harm others, and we also harm ourselves. Sin may look pretty, or easy, or feel good for the moment, but it has consequences that are not good for anyone. We’ve all experienced this.
Guess what else I notice in this verse. We earn the consequences of our sin. It is the wage we receive for the things we do. It’s not foisted upon us; it doesn’t just happen–we work at it! In case you have any thought like, “I haven’t done anything too awful, so this doesn’t apply to me” listen to this:
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23
Not some of us, or most of us, but ALL of us are sinners.
Fortunately, I haven’t given you the full story. Here’s how Romans 6:23 ends:
“…but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
And Romans 3:23:
“…and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
God gave us a way out of our sin. We don’t earn this; it is a free gift. We don’t choose our salvation, but we can choose how we live in view of it.
“…I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him.” Deuteronomy 30:19
Choose obedience. Choose life.
Lutheran Ladies Connection 