In today’s reading from the Letter to the Romans, St. Paul reminds us that sin must no longer reign in our mortal bodies. He is writing to a community surrounded by vice and temptation—a world not unlike our own. The struggle was not only against the culture around them, but also within their own hearts.
St. John Chrysostom once preached, “Our body stands between vice and virtue…The soldier who fights to defend his country uses the same weapons as the criminal who makes an attempt on the life of his fellow citizens. And so the body can be an instrument of good or evil depending on what the soul chooses.”
Each of us faces the same daily choice: to offer ourselves to sin as slaves of death or to righteousness as servants of God. Our life in Christ involves the whole person—body and soul—working together in love and obedience. This transformation is impossible on our own. We need the grace of the Lord, given through His Word, the Eucharist, and the living community of the Church. The Lord stands ready to strengthen us; it is up to each of us to accept His help and live in the freedom of His love.
Living in Love with God 
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