1 What then shall we say? Shall we continue in sin so that grace may increase?

2 Certainly not! How can we who died to sin live in it any longer?

9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, He cannot die again; death no longer has dominion over Him.

10 The death He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life He lives, He lives to God.

11 So you too must count yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its desires.

13 Do not present the parts of your body to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and present the parts of your body to Him as instruments of righteousness.

14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.

22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the fruit you reap leads to holiness, and the outcome is eternal life.

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

— Romans 6:1-2; 9-14; 22-23

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and love from Christ to you.

The power of Christ’s grace challenges us to live differently. Redemption isn’t just about being freed from sin. It’s about being freed for a purpose. Through God‘s grace we’re called to live as new creations bearing His love to a world in desperate need of it. Christ’s grace empowers us to let go of anger, to forgive as we have been forgiven and to live with joy. Even in hardship, grace doesn’t lead to complacency. It leads to transformation. And then Paul goes on to explain that grace doesn’t mean that sin has no consequences or that we should live carelessly.

In Roman 6:1-2, Paul poses a question many people still ask today. Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin. How can we live in it any longer? Grace isn’t an excuse for sin. It’s the reason we have the strength to overcome it. It’s an invitation to rise above our old ways and embrace a life marked by gratitude, humility, and holiness. So how do we respond to this amazing grace? We respond by embracing the freedom and forgiveness that God offers by living each day with a heart of gratitude, and by extending that same grace to others.