Welcome Friends
Come as you are and let’s walk away a little different.
Let’s prosper and find the joy in every season we are in today.
Let’s spend today building each up
I remember back in the day when I found a scared baby squirrel in the back yard and another one nearby lying lifeless with a cat lurking around.
I wrapped the poor squirrel in a towel and brought him inside.
I took care of him until the following spring.
With the front door open, he was free-time to go be a squirrel.
Time to go live a new life.
nope…to scared….it took a while before he finally got the courage up to venture
beyond the door and get his true freedom of becoming wild animal and not a pet
Romans chapter 6-relates to my own life and the life of the squirrel
Freedom in Christ-how does this relate to my squirrel story and myself?
I will sum it up in the end
Jesus died on the cross for all of us and when we give our life to him,
Jesus freed us from sin and we are no longer a slave to sin
Romans 6: 22- you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God
Being free from sin does not mean that we are free to live as we please
It means that we have been set free from being a slave to sin
We are now free to be enslaved to God-free to serve God and live righteously
Instead of being enslaved to sin, we are now devoted to God and His righteousness
True freedom is not living for ourselves but living for God
Romans 6:18– “You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.”
As believers, we have been rescued from the bondage of sin and placed into the
freedom of serving Jesus.
We are no longer under sin’s control
Sin no longer has dominion over us
Our old self died
We have died to sin and it has no power over us now
Romans 6:6-“For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,
that we should no longer be slaves to sin.”
We don’t have to serve sin anymore but we do have to continually recognize that we are dead to sin.
Romans 6:12 “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.”
In Romes chapter 6- Paul is saying that the prison gates have been open and we can
come out and walk in freedom and a newness of life.
Squirrel- the door is open, your free to go live your new life of being a squirrel.
yes, my squirrel eventually went outside but still came back inside from time to time.
yes, we will all still sin -we will never be able to get rid of sin as we are of the flesh
“Let not sin reign” → Sin should not be the ruler of our life
nothing can make us sin, we can say no to sin
we are not a slave to sin.
I am no longer holding my squirrel back to his freedom- sin should not holding us back either
from our freedom to do righteous
It’s not a burden to serve the Lord—it’s a privilege!
We don’t have to serve Him
We get to serve Him
We can still be tempted and pulled into sin but what Paul is saying in romans 6-
is that the prison gates have been open and we can come out and walk in freedom and a newness of life
Romans 6:7 :”For he that is dead is freed from sin.”
Stop believing that sin still has power over us—it doesn’t.
Instead, we must recognize that Jesus lives in us, and the Spirit of God dwells within us.
Sin is dead, removed, and gone.
It no longer resides in us but lurks outside, trying to tempt us.
God’s nature now fills us from within, shaping our lives in His righteousness
My battle is not with you, or you or even you
The battle I struggle with is within myself. I am the problem, I am broken
My problem is the lack of revelation and how to not let sin in.
This isn’t about perfection but learning, growing, recognizing and changing,
Just as I don’t want to let my squirrel back inside, he needs to go learn
to be a squirrel.
If we want to change our circumstances, change starts within us first
True obedience flows from the heart not just a response to sin
Christ now lives in me, and through Him, I find my strength.
I refuse to be like my squirrel trapped inside a house,
He has been set free and so have I.
Now, I am fully devoted to God—enslaved to Him alone and free to walk in righteousness.
1 Peter 3:11-“They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it.”
Don’t wait for others to change.
Don’t wait for your circumstances to shift—peace starts with you.
If you want peace in your life, you need to be willing to make the change yourself
and not for everyone around you to change or your circumstance to change.
The first step is yours to take, not God’s.
Seek it, pursue it, and allow Him to transform your heart.
The issue isn’t them—it’s me. I am the one who must change first
If the squirrel truly wants freedom, he must take that first step, leave the house
and embrace the life he was meant for.
No one can do it for him.
Recap-
Romans-
verse 6- know.…your no longer slaves to sin
verse 11- consider…yourself dead to sin
verse 13- present… yourself to God as instruments of righteousness
verse 17- obedient…..become obedient
know, consider, present and obey
Romans 8:12 -“Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it.
i owe the flesh nothing as it is paid if full by Christ
It is not easy but it is rewarding
We often wait for others or our circumstances to change before we pursue peace.
But real transformation begins with us.
If we want to be free, to live fully, we must take that first step and allow God to change our hearts
Thank You, Lord, for Your love and patience with me.
Teach me to grow, for I desire a humble and teachable heart.
Guide me in making wise choices that bring peace around me and glorify You.
Remind me that sin no longer has power over me, and through You, I have the strength I need
In Jesus’ name I pray
Amen
I invite you to join me on this journey
Let’s allow God to transform our hearts.
True change starts from within, and when He changes us, we can better impact the world around us
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