“But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed” (Romans 6:17)

Part of the Apostle Paul’s ministry was to ensure believers had a proper perspective about the gospel of grace. There were converts to the Christian faith that held on to the Law, believing salvation required something more than the blood of Christ. On the other hand, there were some who thought the gospel Paul preached (the gospel of grace) meant that obedience was optional. Paul addressed both of these issues in Romans. In Romans 7, he addressed those who thought they needed to add to what Christ had done on the cross. In Romans 6, he addressed those who thought grace was a license to sin. Before Christ we were all slaves to sin, but with Christ in us, we are now slaves to righteousness, committed to a new lifestyle that grace produces and the Holy Spirit enables.

Obedience to God’s will is our “thank you” for His grace. It’s not how we earn salvation or make God love us more, it’s a genuine desire of the heart that results from salvation. Though we never obey perfectly, obedience to the will of God should be our greatest goal. God’s will is laid out in His Word. It’s through the Scriptures that the Holy Spirit speaks it into our lives. The Bible doesn’t hide the fact that we still sin, but it also doesn’t hide the truth that the essence of genuine belief is a pattern of life that desires to obey God in all things. Let us seek God in His Word each day. And let us pray that His will would always be our hearts desire.