Do I Really Have to Keep Sinning? Understanding Freedom in Christ from Romans 6

If you’re new to our church family here in Brooklyn, welcome.

We’re a simple church with a simple vision:

• To see home groups in every neighborhood, from Bay Ridge to Bed-Stuy.
• To invest deeply in the next generation, including praying about starting a Calvary Bible Institute here in New York.

We’ve been journeying through the book of Romans, chapter by chapter, verse by verse. Our series theme is: “How To Be Right With God.”

In Romans 1–5, Paul has walked us through:
The wrath of God (we really are under sin on our own) (Romans 2-3)
The righteousness of God (we really can be made right with Him by faith) (Romans 4-5)

We’ve seen that:

• We are justified by faith (Romans 5:1)
• We are reconciled by faith (Romans 5:10–11)
• We have peace with God by faith (Romans 5:1)
• We stand in grace by faith (Romans 5:2)

In other words, if you have put your faith in Jesus, your position before God has radically changed—even if you don’t feel different yet.

Now, in Romans 6–8, Paul moves from position to practice. 
If God has really changed your position in Christ… what should your life start to look like?

That’s where Romans 6 comes in.

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?
 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?
 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 
Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father,
even so we also should walk in newness of life.”

Paul anticipates a dangerous misunderstanding about grace. After all, in Romans 5 he said:
“But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more…” (Romans 5:20, NKJV)

So some of us might think:
“If grace covers all my sin, then why not sin more so grace can shine even brighter?”

Paul answers that immediately:
“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?
Certainly not!” (Romans 6:1–2, NKJV)

In modern language: Absolutely not. No way. That’s not how this works.

When Did I “Die to Sin”?
Paul continues:
“How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” (Romans 6:2, NKJV)
You might think, “Die to sin? Because it sure feels alive in me. I was impatient this morning. I was irritated on the train. I still feel temptation.”

So Paul explains:
“Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?” (Romans 6:3, NKJV)

He uses that phrase: “Do you not know?”
Why? Because your nature has already changed in Christ, but your mind is still catching up.

At the moment you put your faith in Jesus:

• You were identified with His death
• You were identified with His burial
• You were identified with His resurrection

Baptism is the picture of that:
Going under the water = being buried with Christ
Coming up out of the water = being raised with Christ to a new life

“Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death,
that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father,
even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4, NKJV)

Corpses Don’t Sin
Think of it this way:
How many physical corpses do you see walking around Brooklyn? None.

Corpses don’t:

• Open jars
• Answer emails
• Scroll Instagram
• They have no power, no desire, no ability.

Paul wants you to see yourself that way in relation to sin. 
In Christ, you are positionally dead to sin:

• Sin is not your ruler anymore.
• Sin is not your identity anymore.
• Sin is not your master anymore.

Do you still feel temptation? Yes. But that’s not the same as still being under the reign of sin.

Paul moves from the symbol of baptism to the reality behind it:
“For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death,
certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection.” (Romans 6:5, NKJV)

You can’t skip straight to resurrection life and joy while refusing to die to sin. Many of us try:
We want the peace and joy of Jesus
Without the repentance, denial of self, and turning from sin

But Jesus said:
“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” (Luke 9:23, NKJV)

Three Key Words in Romans 6: Know, Reckon, Present

Paul gives us three big verbs in Romans 6:

• Know
• Reckon
• Present

1. Know – Understand What Has Already Happened
“Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him,
that the body of sin might be done away with,
that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
For he who has died has been freed from sin.” (Romans 6:6–7, NKJV)

Notice the tense:

• “was crucified”
  
• “has been freed”

Not “will be,” not “is being little by little.”
mAt the moment of faith in Christ, your old self was crucified with Him, and you have been set free from sin’s dominion.

Before Jesus, you had no choice but to sin.
  After Jesus, you can choose not to sin, because you now have a new Master and a new power source.

2. Reckon – Be Fully Convinced in Your Mind
“Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin,
but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:11, NKJV)

“Reckon” means:
To count it as true
To be fully persuaded

This is where many of us stumble. We allow our feelings and experiences to override what God says is true.

You feel tempted, so you think: “I must still be a slave.”
You feel weak, so you think: “I can’t help myself.”

But Paul says: Reckon yourself dead indeed to sin.
Even if the desires still show up like phantom pain after an amputation, your old nature really has been crucified.

3. Present – Stop Offering Your Body to Sin
“Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.
And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin,
but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.” (Romans 6:12–13, NKJV)

This is so practical:
“Do not let…” means if sin is reigning, it’s because we’re allowing it.
“Do not present…” means we can choose what we offer our eyes, mind, hands, and bodies to.

We often focus only on the negative:
“I can’t do this.”
“I shouldn’t watch that.”
“I should stop gossiping, stop lying, stop sleeping around.”

But Paul doesn’t just say “stop.” He says, “start”:
Present yourself to God.
Use your body as an instrument of righteousness.
Fill your life so much with following Jesus that you’re too tired to sin.

Paul then zooms out and talks about who we’re actually serving:
“Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey,
you are that one’s slaves whom you obey,
whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?” (Romans 6:16, NKJV)

Everyone is a slave of something:

• Sin or Righteousness
• The flesh or Jesus
• The world Or God

There is no neutral ground.
But then Paul gives us hope:
“But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin,
yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered.
And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” (Romans 6:17–18, NKJV)

Notice again: “were” and “having been set free.”
Your position has changed. You used to be a slave of sin. Now you are a slave of righteousness.

A New Mold, A New Form
That word “form” in verse 17 is like a mold.
 Before Christ, your life had no godly shape—it was like water, formless and chaotic. When you believed, God poured your life into a new mold: Christ Himself.

Your life is now being shaped into His image, not your old one.

1. Stop Saying “I Can’t Help It”
If you are in Christ, that’s simply not true anymore.
You may sin, but you do not have to sin.
The next time you’re tempted to blow up at someone on the subway: remember, “Sin shall not have dominion over you.” (Romans 6:14)

The next time you’re about to click on that site, send that DM, or go back to that toxic relationship: remember, you are not a slave anymore.

2. Make Real Choices to Walk Away from Sin
For some of you in Brooklyn, that might mean:
Ending a relationship that’s pulling you into sexual sin.
Leaving a job that constantly pressures you to cheat, lie, or compromise.

Changing your routine so you’re not always in the same environment where you fall.
I’ve had to do this myself. I quit a job that was drawing me away from the Lord. It didn’t make sense on paper. I didn’t know how bills would get paid. But as I gave myself to serving at the church, the Lord opened doors I couldn’t have planned—even leading to me being hired in ministry.

Holiness will cost you something. But God’s grace meets you in that obedience.

3. Fill Your Life With “Presenting Yourself to God”
If you’re in Brooklyn and looking for a church, or a home group, or a community to grow with:
Join a local Bible-teaching church.

Plug into a home group in your neighborhood—whether you’re in Sunset Park, Crown Heights, or Flatbush.

Serve. Read. Pray. Worship. Present yourself to God.
You weren’t just freed from sin. You were freed for God.

SAVED TO SERVE

Ashamed of your past.
Discouraged by your present struggles.
Confused because you don’t “feel” new.

Romans 6 is God’s invitation to you:
Know what Jesus has already done for you.
Reckon it as true—even when you don’t feel it.
Present yourself to God today and walk in the newness of life.

Let’s pray:
Father,
Thank You that in Christ we have died to sin and been raised to new life.
 Thank You that sin no longer has dominion over us and that we are under grace, not law.
Lord, renew our minds. Help us to truly know and reckon these truths as real in our own lives.
 Give us courage to turn away from sin, to make hard choices, to break with old patterns,
and to present our bodies to You as instruments of righteousness.
 For those in Brooklyn and beyond who feel trapped, show them that the cage is already unlocked, 
the chains already broken at the cross.
Help us to walk in the newness of life You bought for us.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.


Yes. Paul says, “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!” (Romans 6:1–2). Grace doesn’t just forgive; it frees and transforms.

Feelings and temptations don’t change your position. Your old nature has been crucified (Romans 6:6), but your mind is still being renewed. Think of it like phantom pain after an amputation—the limb is gone, but the sensations linger.

Not necessarily. Your position is based on Christ’s work, not your performance. But repeated compromise is a sign that you are still presenting yourself to sin (Romans 6:13). Confess, repent, and seek help in community.

Baptism is the outward sign of an inward reality. You are united with Christ by faith; baptism is the public symbol of that union (Romans 6:3–4).

Find a Christ-centered church, join a local small group or home group, open your Bible daily, pray honestly, and intentionally choose obedience in the small things. Holiness is worked out step by step, right where you live.

Don't have a church community to explore spirituality, explore faith, visit us at Calvary Life Brooklyn.