There is a school of thought many of us adopt. It goes something like this: my flesh really wants to pursue my appetites, but that is not pleasing to God; yet when I do it, He forgives me, accepts me, and invites me into right standing with Him. So, why not do it. And, why not do it more so His forgiveness is more powerful, more meaningful, more substantial.
Many of us adopt this as a perspective and as a lifestyle, even if we don’t really have the language for it.
We are not alone. Paul encountered this faulty reasoning and endeavors to set the record straight in the sixth chapter of Romans.
The problem with this line of thought is that it is built on a faulty foundation. It adopts the perspective that what our flesh tells us, those superficial appetites, are what we really want and what we are truly after. They aren’t.
God’s ways are not stuffy obligations we ought to do in spite of ourselves. They are the key to truly being ourselves. When we “die to sin”, we are setting our foundation on a new perspective: that the love of God is not only what is best; it is what is best for us.
Our perspective determines our behavior. And if the basis of our foundation is how-much-can-I-get-away-with, it will pervert and twist how we think and what we do. If our perspective is rooted in reality, in truth, we will see that to be risen with Christ and to be crucified with Christ is all in our best interest, because intimacy with Christ is our heart’s desire.