The profound truth of Romans 6 opened through the insights of C.S. Lewis. Discover the gospel of grace through Pastor Jang Jaehyung’s message on justification and sanctification—and the glorious calling to live as weapons of righteousness.
C.S.
Lewis—widely regarded as one of the twentieth century’s greatest Christian
apologists and a scholar of English literature—offers a striking image in his
classic Mere Christianity. He compares the way God works on our
souls to renovating a house. We want our lives to be nothing more
than a modest cottage—no leaks, no drafts, just “good enough” to live in. But
the great God does not settle for patchwork repairs. He tears down the old
structure and rebuilds it into a vast and glorious palace—a
dwelling fit for the Creator Himself. This process often involves pain that
feels like chiseling bone; it pushes against our old nature and habits. Yet
therein lies the astonishing paradox of grace: God is not making us merely
“decently good people,” but shaping us into something fundamentally new—new
creations.
Few
passages declare this radical transformation with the grandeur and completeness
of Romans 6, written by the apostle Paul. Through the deep biblical
meditation and expository preaching of Pastor David Jang(founder of Olivet
University), we are led to see how the once-for-all event of the cross two
thousand years ago becomes a powerful, living gospel that continues to shake
and re-form our remaining years today.
A
New Identity Rising from the Grave of Sin: The Mystery of Justification
At
the opening of Romans 6, Paul makes an explosive, unequivocal
declaration: “We died to sin.” This is not a temporary
emotional comfort or a thin moral regret. It is a cosmic announcement that our
soul’s registry—our spiritual citizenship—has been transferred completely and
permanently.
At
this point, Pastor David Jangexposes the essence of salvation with sharp
theological clarity. Justification is not a cheap pardon that
simply covers over our ugliness with a spiritual “bandage.” Rather, it is a
legal declaration grounded in our union with Christ—through baptism into His
death and resurrection—proclaiming that the old self has been buried.
In Christ, the former identity that belonged to sin has been put into the
grave.
Many
believers living in the harshness of modern life stumble repeatedly, despair
over their weakness, and fall into deep doubt: “Am I truly saved?” But
the truth of justification lowers an unshakable anchor into the very bottom of
our souls. Whatever my present condition may be, whatever my emotions may
fluctuate like, by the merit of Jesus Christ’s cross I have already received a
firm identity: I have been declared righteous. Sin no longer has
legal authority to rule or condemn us. We have been moved wholly into the
system of grace.
This
astonishing news becomes the great turning point that resets the foundation of
life. As Paul proclaims, the fact that grace abounds where sin increased can
never be an excuse for moral looseness. It is the revelation of God’s noble
purpose: that we would walk in newness of life.
A
Fierce and Holy Spiritual Battle over the Mortal Body
And
yet, even if our status has changed—into God’s holy palace, into children of
light—there remain within us the lingering shadows of the old cottage: decayed
habits and remnants of sin. This is why Paul explicitly speaks of our “mortal
body” and warns us strongly not to let sin reign in it.
Through
many sermons, Pastor David Janginsists that salvation is not the start of a
fragile greenhouse life where pain disappears and heaven arrives instantly. It
is, rather, the beginning of a relentless spiritual battle—a daily
fight to grow toward the full stature of Christ, “even to the point of shedding
blood.”
This
battle can never be won by our small willpower or self-driven resolve. We gain
true strength to restrain the desires of the flesh only when we fully recognize
that we are under grace, and when we abide in the living truth.
Satan will constantly mock our failures and try to deceive us into believing we
are still slaves under sin’s miserable ownership. But this is nothing more than
the illegal squatting of one who has already lost his claim.
In
the breathless routines of everyday life, we must declare again and again that
the sovereignty of our lives belongs wholly to Jesus Christ. We must discipline
our bodies through repeated obedience and training that depends on the Holy
Spirit. This is the only path that ascends toward the summit of sanctification.
It is not trembling under the condemnation of the law, but practicing holiness
freely and willingly beneath the wings of grace.
From
Instruments of Unrighteousness to Weapons of Righteousness that Give Life
Furthermore,
the sanctification Paul describes does not stop at a defensive posture—simply
trying not to sin—or at private moral self-improvement. Romans 6:13 commands us
to present our members decisively to God as “weapons of righteousness.” Pastor
David Jangemphasizes that our hands and feet, our gaze and speech, our time and
talents—what they are surrendered to—determine the eternal direction of our
lives. The body is an exquisitely crafted instrument; it cannot remain in a
neutral zone without a master.
If
our flesh is exposed to old lusts and worldly temptations, it becomes an
instrument of unrighteousness that destroys others and ourselves—and it
receives the dreadful wages of death. But when it is willingly
offered to God in voluntary love, our weak bodies are transformed into powerful
weapons of righteousness that revive the world and birth life.
The
exhausting wages earned by living as slaves of sin are only death. But for
those who become servants of God with joy, the glorious gift of heaven—eternal
life—is granted freely. Therefore, the true life of a saint is the holy and
overwhelming process of offering our bodies and hearts, moment by moment, into
the armory of light.
A
Great Calling Beyond the Self: The Mission of Community toward the World
This
heart-pounding declaration of Paul must never end merely in individual ethical
training or private devotion hidden in a quiet room. The ultimate reason God
has sharpened us into weapons of righteousness by the blood of Jesus Christ is
that we would boldly enter this dark and wounded world, fulfill the role of
light and salt, and build the living reality of the Kingdom of God.
Pastor
David Jangcontinually reminds us that this holy calling must bear rich and
tangible fruit within the unity of the church community. We must beware of an
ego-centered faith that says, “I alone am saved,” as though salvation were a
private possession.
When
we go beyond merely guarding our personal spiritual purity—when we serve the
poor and suffering at our side, wipe the tears of the vulnerable standing at
the edge, and proclaim the gospel of the cross to wandering souls who do not
know the truth—only then do we function fully as weapons of
righteousness.
There
is no time left to remain bound by past failures or heavy guilt, lamenting
ourselves. We have already crossed the dark river of death and received
glorious new life. Therefore, we possess a heavenly freedom that is not chained
by shallow fears or perishable desires.
May
the Lord grant you the joy of living within this great drama of salvation—a
mighty story that ends the era ruled by sin’s wages, begins at the cross, and
stretches into eternity—offering yourselves day by day as holy living
sacrifices and as weapons of righteousness that transform the world.
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