Romans 6:12-14
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. 13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. 14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.
Adrift at sea for 47 days, Louis Zampeini knew better than to drink sea water. It would only fuel his thirst for more and spell his ultimate doom. Addictions are like that: whether it’s alcohol, drugs, sex, or electronic devices, they end up taking life from us, even as we yearn for more of the false-thrill they bring.
Paul warns here against letting sin reign in our bodies, bringing us under the sway of its compulsions. Specifically he seems to be pointing toward sexual sins and addictions. But the reality of sin’s entrapment is something to be avoided. The reason for this, however, is not simply because of the harm that such addictions bring. We have been redeemed, brought out of the terrible dungeon of slavery, and into the freedom of grace. We do not work our way out of this bondage by our law-keeping. It is God’s gift to us. We could never rescue ourselves.
We are free. We are under grace. We need not put out to sea in a flimsy life raft without food and water. We need not abandon the place of God’s grace and redemption in favor of the squalor of unrighteousness. So our hands reach out to those in need, with kindness, and food, and shelter. Our body parts are used to listen to the discouraged, to speak words of forgiveness to the penitent, and to stand shoulder to shoulder with those who seek to protect innocent lives.
We are no longer slaves to sin. Any number of years – or even days – in such slavery is too many.
David Bahn - Reflections 
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