In his Letter to the Romans Paul says that the gospel is so wonderful that God's grace is seen at its best where sin is at its worst (5.20).
If we grasp this, a question readily arises in a believer's heart. 'If I am not saved by being good, why should I bother to be good now I am a Christian? In fact since God's grace is seen best when sin is at its worst, why not go on sinning so that the grace of God might be more apparent?' That is the question which our verses address: 'Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?' (6.1).
This is not just a personal question for a Christian. It is also especially relevant to the church in our day. Probably the most important question facing Christians in Britain for the last 20 or 30 years has been, whether, surrounded by a permissive, decadent culture, we are going to live holy lives? Our response, sadly, is still not clear. There are many pressures on the church to compromise. If we draw a line in the sand over any matter of Christian behaviour almost immediately we are called 'judgmental'. Then others, in an echo of the sentiments of 6.1, would say that relaxing requirements for church membership, making the church more 'inclusive' - accepting easy divorce, gay relationships etc. - actually better reflects the love and grace of God.
The re-emergence of heavy shepherds
What would you think if you received a letter from your church leaders that read like this? ‘Are church members …