20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:20-23
Today, Paul brings the whole argument to a head. He lays out the contrast in plain terms: when I was a slave to sin, I was free from righteousness. That’s a haunting line. It means I didn’t feel the pull toward holiness because I was bound to something else; even more scary is that what I was bound to was “evil”. And what did that life produce? Shame, lawlessness, and death. Sin always promises freedom but delivers bondage. It offers pleasure but ends in destruction.
But now, having been set free from sin and become a slave to God, the fruit is different. It’s sanctification. It’s right living. It’s life. It’s growth. It’s the slow, steady transformation that leads to eternal life. Paul isn’t just talking about heaven—he’s talking about the kind of life that starts now and stretches into eternity.
Then he drops the line we all know: the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. That’s the summary. Sin pays out death. Grace gives life. One is earned, the other is gifted.
APPLICATION
So today, I remember that I’m not working for sin anymore. I don’t owe it anything. I’m not collecting its wages. I’ve been hired into a new kingdom, and the fruit of that work is life. That means I don’t just resist sin—I pursue sanctification. I lean into the process, even when it’s slow or hard. Because I know where it leads. And I know who I belong to. I’m not free to do whatever I want—I’m free to live as I was meant to. That’s the kind of freedom that bears fruit. That’s the kind of freedom I want.