Tuesday Reading: Romans 6:11:16
Key Verse: Romans 6:16
16 Do you not know that to whom you yield yourselves as slaves for obedience, you are slaves to him whom you obey; whether it is of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness.
Devotion:
Have you ever wondered why people have said that you should be dead and alive as a Christian? As you read through the book of Romans you will get to know quite a big difference between our lives as people of this world and our lives as children of God. As long as we continue to live for the things around us we will continue to live a life that is fully influenced by the things around us; as long as our minds are focused on things of this world, we continue to live in this world and continue to give in to the temptations that surround us all.
How then can we escape from these temptations? Have you ever tried to talk to someone who was asleep? You don’t tend to get much out of them and you will soon stop trying to talk to them. If we present ourselves as asleep or dead to our earthly surroundings that do not glorify God, then they too will be faced with no response and will back off. We don’t actually mean that we have to physically die to escape but just to present ourselves as if we were dead; in other words don’t give in to all those temptations.
That in itself is going to be a bit of an impossibility unless we get outside help. Have you ever tried to convince someone that you are asleep when you are not? Unless you are a very good actor then you will not be able to convince anyone because our bodies act very differently when they are actually asleep. That is why we need to be alive in Christ. When we present ourselves as awake and attentive to Christ, He is willing and able to continue teaching us and using us. There is no better person to work for you than one who always comes back for more after completing each task willingly. In doing that for Christ we gain the support, strength and wisdom needed to be dead to the world. Then we are dead to this world and alive in Christ!
Points to Ponder:
Are you seen as alive or dead?
Are you living your life for Christ?
