Today we are meditating on Romans 6:1-7

It is interesting to see that the Today’s Word speaks various times about sin. But why? Because our fight against sin is not easy, and God knows our weakness, he knows how difficult it is to remain with Him.

Today, Paul wants to show us that, when we are in Christ, we have new life and we cannot collude with sin. He tells us that we are baptized after the death of Jesus, with the action of the Holy Spirit in our life; and with His death, the old man that is in us dies too.

“What do we say then? We should remain in sin in order that there may be an abundance of grace?” Paul  speaks this, because, when we are in sin, God does all to take us from it. His love is so great that He remains all the time at our side bestowing His grace in order that we may leave from this old life. But how can we know to discern what the Lord is doing in us, we remain in small sin, this, gradually envelopes us until we become slaves of it. Then we leave from God and play outside all that He does for us. Or still, through vanity, we continue in sin in order that each time more, the Lord may intercede for us, to tempt us  to leave what is bad.

Only that we cannot think in this way, because the Lord remains sad when we are in sin. He loves us a lot. How much more are we far from Him, the more He is close to us. Therefore, Paul speak so much of sin and says: “No Way! Once we have died to sin, how can we still live in it?”

Jesus was crucified, died and buried in order He may free us from our sins. He resurrected and is at the Father’s side in order that we may have a new life. We that love Him we cannot maltreat Him remaining in sin, we have to have the strength of will and each day, seek the holiness that we may go to Heaven.

And Paul continues: “If we remain completely united to Christ, with death similar to Him, we all remain with the Resurrection similar to His.” That we may live as Christ does, we have to carry our cross daily. We praise God for this cross in our life believing that it will be our salvation.

Paul ends saying “We know very well that our old man was crucified with Christ in order that the body of sin may be destroyed and thus, we may no longer be slaves of evil. In fact, who is dead is free from sin.”

Jesus gives us the opportunity of freeing ourselves from our sins, In the moment in which we are baptized, we become saints, but the sin is present in our lives and it is each day that we have to fight to remain far from it.

Today, Paul comes to say to us: “Flee from sin, you do not need this life. If the cross comes, do not exchange it for sin, carry it and fight daily for your salvation.”

We have to each day seek our holiness. In Heaven, dirt does not enter and if our place is there, we have to be always clean to hope of the coming of the Lord. Amen.

Wellington Silva Jardim (Eto)

Cofounder and missionary of the Canção Nova Community

translated from Portuguese

Portuguese transcription and adaptation: Débora Ferreira