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
The Bible clearly teaches that those who have not been saved [redeemed, converted, born again, become followers of Christ] are slaves of sin. That doesn’t mean that the unsaved are as sinful as they can possibly be. Thank God for that. They still have the freedom to choose to what degree they will sin. The truth be told, however, when they are less sinful, it is because of the restraining grace of God. Being a slave to sin means one cannot stop sinning altogether.
When we are saved, the bondage to sin is broken by God in Christ. We still sin, but we are no longer slaves to sin, but we willingly obey an evil master (sin) who, because of Christ, no longer has jurisdiction over us. Instead of being slaves to sin, God saves us to become slaves of righteousness. When we were slaves of sin, we had the liberty regarding the degree to which we sinned. As slaves of righteousness, we have responsibility to choose how devotedly we obey our new master: Christ and righteousness.
Why do we who are Christians still wrestle with sin as we do? Because we are used to sinning. Because temptation still abounds. Because at times, temptation deceives us into thinking, and then acting, as though disobedience will be more rewarding than obedience. It never is.
How do we gain victory over these lingering patterns of sin? (1) Remind ourselves over and over again, and then believe what God’s Word says about no longer being slaves to sin, but to righteousness. (2) Allow what we believe to dictate what we do. (3) When we are aware that we have sinned, confess and repent immediately. (4) Trust in God’s grace based on Christ’ performance—not on our works based on our performance. (5) Praise God for grace!