Paul, in Chapter Six of Romans, exhorts us to give all diligence to serving righteousness. We must serve righteousness. The serving of righteousness leads to holiness, and the outcome of righteous and holy personality and behavior is eternal life. The outcome of serving sin, on the part of the believer, is spiritual death.

Our answer to Paul is, "No, Paul, we of the twentieth century do not understand whom we Christians are to serve or that if we who are called to be saints practice sin we will die spiritually. Neither do we understand that true righteousness and eternal life come only to those who walk in obedience to God.

"We have been taught that righteousness and eternal life are given to us solely on the basis of a profession of belief in Christ and that our behavior in the flesh is unrelated to eternal life. We see little or no connection between eternal life and our behavior."

In this we are wresting Paul's teachings to our destruction.

Again, Paul shows us the relationship between our behavior and the gaining of eternal life:

But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. (Romans 6:22)

"You have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." "And the end everlasting life." The end of holiness, not correct doctrine, not faith, not belief, not confession, but holiness, is everlasting life. The end of holiness!

Compare:

Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (II Corinthians 7:1)

If we Christians, having been found without condemnation through faith in the blood of the cross, and having been baptized in water as a testimony that we have died to sin and the world and have risen with Christ to walk in newness of life, then continue to serve sin, we will die spiritually. We will not attain the resurrection to eternal life.

For the wages of sin [on the part of the believer in Christ, for that is the person to whom the text is addressed] is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23)

It is not the gift of life, as of an undemanding gift, but the gift of the opportunity to attain life, according to the context of Romans, Chapter Six. The gift of the authority and power to attain eternal life is not in the possession of the individual who is not part of Christ, so we conclude that the text is not addressed to the unbeliever. Therefore the warning concerning the wages of sin is addressed to the believer.

Eternal life was lost to Adam and Eve because of their disobedience. God has given man the opportunity to regain eternal life through Christ by obeying Christ, not merely by announcing that Christ is the Son of God, the sin-bearer, the Lord that has been raised from the dead. It is in obedience to Christ as He leads us away from sin that we reap eternal life.

To be continued.