Romans 6:20-22 (NIV) When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.

When someone is acting crazy or behaving in a way that is not rational, we say that they are "out of control." But out of the control of what, is the question. What is it that controls a person? It may be some of their character traits, such as their temper, their feelings or the wisdom of self-preservation. After all, if you are out of control in many of life's situations, it can cost you. Try losing it with your boss at work and you may find yourself out of a job.

It's interesting that the start of the passage of scripture above talks about being out of the control of righteousness when we were slaves to sin. Being a slave to sin means that you are in the control of sin, which the Apostle Paul talks about in Romans chapter seven. He talks about the struggle of wanting to good but not being able to do it. The good that he wants to do, he does not do but the evil that he does not want to do, that he keeps doing. He points to the sin living in him as the cause of this dilemma (Romans 7:15-20). That is how it is with everyone who has not submitted themselves to God through Christ Jesus.

So if being out of the control of righteousness means that you are a slave to sin, then there is a way of living where you are in the control of righteousness. Let's think about that for a moment. How would it be if what was controlling you was the irresistible compulsion to do what was right day after day? What would your life look like then? If you had lived that way earlier in your life, what troubles, pain, heartaches and disasters could you have avoided? Though there is nothing that we can do about the past, there is certainly something that we can do now and for the rest of our days, and that is to make sure that what is controlling us is righteousness. What that really means is that you are in control of the Holy Spirit who lives in you, if you indeed belong to Christ. The Word of God tells us that if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ (Romans 8:9). If you do have the Spirit of Christ, then the result should be that you are in the control of righteousness. The only way that this would not be the result is if you have not submitted yourself completely to Jesus or if you are living in disobedience. Then, of course, you would be in the control of your flesh again, which is being in the control of sin.

Living under the control of righteousness is not only awesome, but it comes with rich rewards such as holiness, which leads to eternal life. How awesome would it be to have no choice but to do right things and live the right way! That leads to the peace of God, the joy of the Lord and His blessings in your life. Cede control to righteousness through the Holy Spirit. The fruit will be love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Just imagine that in your life!

Pastor Joey Vazquez