You Gotta Serve Somebody
A few folks asked for my notes from Sunday's sermon. Here they are with a few side helpings of what we will call, "Sunday Leftovers". These leftovers are extra thoughts, quotes, and recommended readings to consider. Please enjoy!
TITLE: YOU GOTTA SERVE SOMEBODY
Theme: Grace is not a license to sin, but the empowering freedom to become slaves of God.
I. The Critical Question: Does Grace EXCUSE SIN? (v. 15)
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be!
Shall we sin -aorist tense…in essence: Can I Sin occasionally?
Illustration: Thomas Watson once compared the antinomian (the one who uses grace to sin) to a person who uses a physician’s medicine not to cure their fever, but to allow them to indulge in the very behaviors that caused the sickness.
Just as a man rescued from drowning doesn’t jump back into the sea to test his rescuer's strength, a Christian rescued from the depth of sin does not dive back in to test the depths of God’s grace.
II. The Universal Reality: Everyone SERVES A MASTER (v. 16)
16 Do you not know that when you go on presenting yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?
Every small act of "private" sin is an act of bowing the knee to the old master.
We are not our own; we are either slaves of the sin tyrant or slaves of the King.
Illustration: John Flavel used the "Tributary Stream" analogy. He noted that every stream must flow into an ocean. If your life’s daily habits flow toward worldliness, you are a tributary of the Kingdom of Darkness.
There is no "neutral" stream that leads nowhere.
“Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.” (J 8:34)
III. The Heart of Transformation: FROM-TO (vv. 17–18)
17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching to which you were given over, 18 and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
I once was lost BUT now I am found…Christianity is more than believing facts; it is being "melted down" by the Holy Spirit and "poured into" the mold of the Scriptures until your character matches the Word.
Illustration: The "Seal and the Wax." The Puritans often spoke of the heart as wax and the Gospel as a heavy metal seal. To be "delivered to the pattern of teaching" (v. 17) is like hot wax being pressed by the seal. The wax doesn't just "follow" the seal; it takes on its very image, its letters, and its shape.
IV. The Practical Command: OFFER YOURSELF to Righteousness (v. 19)
19 I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, leading to further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, leading to sanctification.
•Illustration: Paul notes how we once served sin with "ever-increasing" intensity. Thomas Watson would point to the zeal of a worldling—how a greedy man loses sleep for gold or a drunkard walks miles for a drink—and ask: “Shall the fire of lust burn hotter than the fire of our devotion?”
Sanctification requires at least the same level of energy you once used to rebel against God. If you were an "expert" at sin, labor now to be an "expert" at holiness.
Concluding Application: The "Evidence of New Ownership"
Paul has shown us that there is no "neutral" existence. If you are not actively presenting your life to God, you are, by default, drifting back into the service of your old, cruel master.
This week, be challenged to audit your allegiance using these two practical steps:
1. Audit the "SHOP SIGN" of Your Life
John Flavel once said, "The soul is the shop, but the life is the sign". If a neighbor or coworker looked at the "sign" of your daily conduct this week—your reactions to stress, your integrity in small things, your speech behind closed doors—whose name would be on the door?
•Action: Identify one area (perhaps your "tongue" or your "temper") and consciously "hand the keys" of that shop over to Christ tomorrow morning.
2. Embrace the "Magnificent OBSESSION"
The Puritans called this the "expulsive power of a new affection." You don't stop serving sin by trying harder to be "free"; you stop serving sin by becoming obsessed with your new Master.
As Thomas Watson put it, "The Word is a glass to show us our spots," but we must look at the glass of the Gospel to see the beauty of the One who bought us.
•Action: Spend five minutes each morning this week reading Romans 6:22–23 aloud. Remind yourself: "I am no longer a slave to what I feel; I am a bondservant of the One who loves me.".
PRAYER:
Lord, we confess that we often try to "serve ourselves," only to find we have become slaves to our own lusts again. We thank You that through Christ, the contract with our old master has been shredded. Help us this week to not just talk about grace, but to walk in the joyful slavery of righteousness. In Jesus' name, Amen.
For Further Study
For further study on the doctrine of sanctification in Romans 6:15–19, these resources offer a blend of deep Puritan reflection and solid modern scholarship from a Reformed perspective.
•Thomas Watson, A Body of Practical Divinity
In the section "Of Sanctification," Watson provides a comprehensive treatment of how holiness is an "extensive thing" that spreads to the whole person. He famously argues that without sanctification, there is no evidence of our justification.
•John Flavel, The Method of Grace
Flavel outlines how the Holy Spirit applies the benefits of Christ’s death to the believer’s heart. His chapters on "
•John Flavel, Keeping the Heart
While focused on Proverbs 4:23, this is the definitive Puritan manual on the "heart work" mentioned in Romans 6:17—how to maintain a heart that is "obedient from the heart".
•John Owen, Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers
A dense but essential work that explains how the Spirit enables the believer to put to death the "members" of the body once offered to sin.
Puritan Quotes to Consider:
•"We borrow all our holiness from God. As the lights of the sanctuary were lighted from the middle lamp, so all the holiness of believers is lighted from Heaven: 'I am the Lord who sanctifies you.'" — Thomas Watson, Puritan Gems.
•"A heart that is truly set upon God will not be satisfied with anything less than God."— John Flavel.
•"Sin is a cruel master, but Christ is a sweet Master." — John Flavel (adapted).
•"Godliness is a spiritual queen, and whoever marries her, is sure of a large dowry with her." — Thomas Watson, The Godly Man's Picture.
THINGS TO CONSIDER:
•Remember that this section is about sanctification, not justification.
•Obedience does not earn salvation; it proves it.
•Grace does not abolish the need for holiness; it provides the power for it.
•Note the heart-level desire to obey (v. 17) rather than mere legalistic rule-following.
•Trust in the finished work of Christ (Justification) and commit to the daily walk of obedience (Sanctification).
•You will serve a master. Sin pays in death, but God rewards with holiness and eternal life.
•Grace is not just the forgiveness of the past; it is the freedom to serve God in the present.
TITLE: YOU GOTTA SERVE SOMEBODY
Theme: Grace is not a license to sin, but the empowering freedom to become slaves of God.
I. The Critical Question: Does Grace EXCUSE SIN? (v. 15)
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be!
Shall we sin -aorist tense…in essence: Can I Sin occasionally?
Illustration: Thomas Watson once compared the antinomian (the one who uses grace to sin) to a person who uses a physician’s medicine not to cure their fever, but to allow them to indulge in the very behaviors that caused the sickness.
Just as a man rescued from drowning doesn’t jump back into the sea to test his rescuer's strength, a Christian rescued from the depth of sin does not dive back in to test the depths of God’s grace.
II. The Universal Reality: Everyone SERVES A MASTER (v. 16)
16 Do you not know that when you go on presenting yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?
Every small act of "private" sin is an act of bowing the knee to the old master.
We are not our own; we are either slaves of the sin tyrant or slaves of the King.
Illustration: John Flavel used the "Tributary Stream" analogy. He noted that every stream must flow into an ocean. If your life’s daily habits flow toward worldliness, you are a tributary of the Kingdom of Darkness.
There is no "neutral" stream that leads nowhere.
- YOU WILL GET ENSLAVED.
“Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.” (J 8:34)
- SIN PAYS AWFUL DIVIDENDS
- SIN LEADS TO DEATH
III. The Heart of Transformation: FROM-TO (vv. 17–18)
17 But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching to which you were given over, 18 and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.
I once was lost BUT now I am found…Christianity is more than believing facts; it is being "melted down" by the Holy Spirit and "poured into" the mold of the Scriptures until your character matches the Word.
Illustration: The "Seal and the Wax." The Puritans often spoke of the heart as wax and the Gospel as a heavy metal seal. To be "delivered to the pattern of teaching" (v. 17) is like hot wax being pressed by the seal. The wax doesn't just "follow" the seal; it takes on its very image, its letters, and its shape.
IV. The Practical Command: OFFER YOURSELF to Righteousness (v. 19)
19 I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, leading to further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, leading to sanctification.
•Illustration: Paul notes how we once served sin with "ever-increasing" intensity. Thomas Watson would point to the zeal of a worldling—how a greedy man loses sleep for gold or a drunkard walks miles for a drink—and ask: “Shall the fire of lust burn hotter than the fire of our devotion?”
Sanctification requires at least the same level of energy you once used to rebel against God. If you were an "expert" at sin, labor now to be an "expert" at holiness.
Concluding Application: The "Evidence of New Ownership"
Paul has shown us that there is no "neutral" existence. If you are not actively presenting your life to God, you are, by default, drifting back into the service of your old, cruel master.
This week, be challenged to audit your allegiance using these two practical steps:
1. Audit the "SHOP SIGN" of Your Life
John Flavel once said, "The soul is the shop, but the life is the sign". If a neighbor or coworker looked at the "sign" of your daily conduct this week—your reactions to stress, your integrity in small things, your speech behind closed doors—whose name would be on the door?
•Action: Identify one area (perhaps your "tongue" or your "temper") and consciously "hand the keys" of that shop over to Christ tomorrow morning.
2. Embrace the "Magnificent OBSESSION"
The Puritans called this the "expulsive power of a new affection." You don't stop serving sin by trying harder to be "free"; you stop serving sin by becoming obsessed with your new Master.
As Thomas Watson put it, "The Word is a glass to show us our spots," but we must look at the glass of the Gospel to see the beauty of the One who bought us.
•Action: Spend five minutes each morning this week reading Romans 6:22–23 aloud. Remind yourself: "I am no longer a slave to what I feel; I am a bondservant of the One who loves me.".
PRAYER:
Lord, we confess that we often try to "serve ourselves," only to find we have become slaves to our own lusts again. We thank You that through Christ, the contract with our old master has been shredded. Help us this week to not just talk about grace, but to walk in the joyful slavery of righteousness. In Jesus' name, Amen.
For Further Study
For further study on the doctrine of sanctification in Romans 6:15–19, these resources offer a blend of deep Puritan reflection and solid modern scholarship from a Reformed perspective.
•Thomas Watson, A Body of Practical Divinity
In the section "Of Sanctification," Watson provides a comprehensive treatment of how holiness is an "extensive thing" that spreads to the whole person. He famously argues that without sanctification, there is no evidence of our justification.
•John Flavel, The Method of Grace
Flavel outlines how the Holy Spirit applies the benefits of Christ’s death to the believer’s heart. His chapters on "
•John Flavel, Keeping the Heart
While focused on Proverbs 4:23, this is the definitive Puritan manual on the "heart work" mentioned in Romans 6:17—how to maintain a heart that is "obedient from the heart".
•John Owen, Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers
A dense but essential work that explains how the Spirit enables the believer to put to death the "members" of the body once offered to sin.
Puritan Quotes to Consider:
•"We borrow all our holiness from God. As the lights of the sanctuary were lighted from the middle lamp, so all the holiness of believers is lighted from Heaven: 'I am the Lord who sanctifies you.'" — Thomas Watson, Puritan Gems.
•"A heart that is truly set upon God will not be satisfied with anything less than God."— John Flavel.
•"Sin is a cruel master, but Christ is a sweet Master." — John Flavel (adapted).
•"Godliness is a spiritual queen, and whoever marries her, is sure of a large dowry with her." — Thomas Watson, The Godly Man's Picture.
THINGS TO CONSIDER:
•Remember that this section is about sanctification, not justification.
•Obedience does not earn salvation; it proves it.
•Grace does not abolish the need for holiness; it provides the power for it.
•Note the heart-level desire to obey (v. 17) rather than mere legalistic rule-following.
•Trust in the finished work of Christ (Justification) and commit to the daily walk of obedience (Sanctification).
•You will serve a master. Sin pays in death, but God rewards with holiness and eternal life.
•Grace is not just the forgiveness of the past; it is the freedom to serve God in the present.
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