I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. Romans 6:19 ESV
Paul has been spent a significant amount of time explaining the importance of not giving ourselves over to a lifestyle that freely embraces sin, but rather to purse a lifestyle of righteousness. The reason we do this is because it's the proper response to God's grace, which Paul discussed at the end of chapter 5. Our motive in pursuing righteousness is not to gain freedom from sin, but because we have already been set free from the law and the condemnation of sin.
Both of those Truths, God's grace and being set free from the law, are wonderful, deep, life changing promises. BUT, they can be abused, as we can see by the questions Paul asked to begin chapter 6: What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? and in chapter 6 verse 15: What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace?
Because Paul knows the human nature, and the desire of the flesh to embrace sin, he knew that some time needed to spent explaining not only God's grace and our freedom, but thoroughly the proper response to God's grace, and the proper motive behind our response.
Yet, sometimes, we have to take a step back and look at the big picture in broader terms to get our perspective right. Sometimes starting with a more simple view allows us to dig in with the proper foundation. Paul's purpose in chapter 6, in the midst of the powerful, deep, doctrinal Truth he has revealed, is refuting the idea that a lifestyle embracing sin...any sin...is completely wrong.
In chapter 6, Paul has talked about God's grace, being baptized with Christ, being set free from sin, set free from the law, dying with Christ, being made alive with Christ, becoming obedient from the heart, and more. Paul seems to pause here in verse 19, though, and recap what he has been explaining since verses 12 and 13, where he stated: Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.
In verse 19, Paul starts by explaining why he is basically summing up what he has been saying concerning our proper motive and response to God's grace and justification:
I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations.
I believe there are very real natural limitations that we must recognize, which make it important to start or refocus with a more simple view of God's Truth at times. Depth is good, and we must always be learning the depths of God's Truths, because they will always be changing us on so many levels. However, we don't want to miss the forest for the trees, as the saying goes. We don't want to be so consumed with certain deep Truths (God's grace for example), that we miss the point.
This is one of our human limitations: we live with and battle the flesh on a daily basis...flesh that is constantly trying to justify and embrace sin. This means that, as we dig in to God's Word full of Truth, the flesh will constantly attempt to twist certain things in order to prevent us from realizing how sinful we really are. To keep this from distracting us, sometimes we need to look at the broader picture to recenter ourselves.
The other natural limitation we live with is our basic inability to grasp who God is. This doesn't mean that we don't attempt to draw close to God, to pursue a deep, intimate relationship with Him. However, it does mean that sometimes we need to take a look at the broader picture of who God is and what that means about everything and everyone else.
So, how does Paul paint a more simple picture? He uses very broad strokes to sum up what he has been talking about:
For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness
What is Paul saying here? You used to be slaves of sin, willingly presenting yourselves to a lifestyle that fully embraced sin, which is impurity and lawlessness. What is the guaranteed result of a lifestyle that embraces sin? More sin, plain and simple. There is no sin that can be justified because of a greater good...all sin will by default give way to more sin if not dealt with.
While there is definitely some depth that can be found here, Paul is reminding us (as he has laid out in detail throughout Romans) that we are sinful creatures with a very sinful, ugly past.
Then, Paul talks about how God's children ought to respond to His grace:
so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.
Just like we used to embrace sin, we ought now to embrace a life of righteousness! Righteousness...this requires us to give ourselves over to God so that He can work through us. This is the polar opposite of embracing a sinful lifestyle driven by pride and selfishness!
God follows with a promise: embrace a life of doing what's right according to the Word (which includes proper motive) and you will experience sanctification, or purification. This is Christian growth and maturity as we draw close to God. As we experience God on a greater level, we begin to experience His promises on a greater level - this is sanctification: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22,23.
To sum it up, Paul is explaining in basic terms so that we can recenter and refocus: don't embrace sin like you used to, sin will only lead to more sin, no sin is ok. Instead, as God's children, purge sin fom your life and embrace righteousness, pursue what's right in God's eyes, which begins with drawing close to Him, and let the power of sanctification take place...the reward is unparalleled!
