While a home in heaven and the enjoyment of eternal life are the ultimate blessings that come from being justified by faith, the immediate benefit is freedom from Satan and sin.  In the sixth chapter of Romans, Paul says a lot about our freedom in Christ.

Romans 6:17-18 (ESV)
¹⁷  But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, ¹⁸  and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

Paul emphasizes important things in these two verses, beginning with how we should be thankful to God for our freedom in Christ.  While we should not live in the past, it is helpful to visit there from time to time. It is good to remember where and what we were in the world compared to where and what we are now in Christ.  We used to be servants of sin, but now we are free.  We should always be mindful of the fact that this freedom came at a high price paid by our Savior, Jesus Christ.

When is this freedom achieved?  It is when one obeys from the heart the standard of teaching (the KJV says “form of doctrine”) that Paul refers to at the beginning of the chapter.  There Paul referred to the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, which makes up the heart of the gospel.

1 Corinthians 15:1-4 (ESV)
¹  Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, ²  and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. ³  For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, ⁴  that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

This is the form of doctrine that we obeyed when we became Christians.

Romans 6:2-4 (ESV)
²  By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? ³  Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴  We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

We died to sin, were buried in baptism, and raised to walk in the newness of life.  What happened to us at that time?  We were set free from Satan and sin.   That is the standard of teaching committed to us by the Word of God.

Dying to sin and being raised to walk in the newness of life does not bother too many people, but being buried in baptism is most often ignored.  However, that part of the doctrine is critical.  When properly reading ver. 4, one can see how essential being buried in baptism is.  When removing the portion of Paul’s words that are simply explanatory, Paul said this: “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that…we too might walk in the newness of life.”   Paul knew why he was being baptized, and we should as well.  Without it, we cannot walk in the newness of life.  Why not?  Because it is in baptism that our sins are forgiven (Acts 2:38).

It is a wonderful blessing to be free from sin.  It means we enjoy fellowship with God now and will live forever in His presence in heaven at the appointed time.  It also means we do not have to worry about the terrible consequences of sin, that is, separation from God in this life and eternal destruction in eternity (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9).  If you have not obeyed the form of doctrine delivered by Paul, why are you waiting?  Obey the gospel as soon as possible and be set free.

As you wind down for the night, think about these things