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Romans 6
17 But thanks be to God that you, having once been slaves of sin, have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted, 18 and that you, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

Buckle up, because I am about to slam ya with something awesome ...

"righteousness" and "sin" are often taught as if these were action words / verbs in this context. Paul, however, is using NOUNS, because he isn't describing behavior. Paul isn't saying that you once could do nothing but sin, and now you are likewise slaves that you had better always do good things. Rather then even talking about trespasses or honorable deeds, Paul is referring to a PLACE, not deeds at all.

You were trapped in a cell that you could not escape called "sin." In this cell, you could do nice things, or naughty things, and guess what ... you did not have any hope of escape. No matter what you did ... you were stuck as a slave in a place called "sin." Therein, your destiny was to be a "sinner" no matter how many good things you do.

Then came a prisoner transfer ... from one cell to another. From Sin to Righteousness.

Now, as a slave to righteousness, you find yourself in a new cell. Like the old one "righteousness" describes a place, not action. And you are a slave, stuck in Righteousness by the blood shed from our precious Savior and Lord Jesus Christ for you. And now, the predicament is similar in this way ... no matter what your behavior, you remain a prisoner of this new cell called righteousness. Perform well, or perform poorly, and look around, you are no longer a sinner. You are the very righteousness of Christ, made so by the work of Another, even the Lord Jesus.

Of course, you would expect sin out of a sinner, and righteous behavior out of a saint, but that is a result of WHERE they are ... which cell-block they find themselves in. Someone claiming to be a "slave of righteousness" and sinning up a storm will naturally bring up suspicion that they ever got the cell-transfer ... but, honestly, I would be hard pressed to think of a good example of this.

Letting someone know that you love them "no matter what," does not inspire rebellion. Rather, such love inspires radical devotion. Tell your spouse that you love them "no matter what," if you are afraid they are loosing interest, and you will spark a romance! The same is true of the lover of our souls. He knows what effect this new slavery will have, and there is no risk in His wisdom in making us slaves of righteousness.

Titus 2
11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.
12 It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,

• License to sin
• Being, Whom You Have Become
• Today's Christ is Tomorrow's Worms
• God is love