In our verse by verse study of Romans last time we finished our Expanded Translation of Rom 6:16; "Do you not know, that to whom you put yourselves under orders as slaves for the purpose of obedience, you are slaves to the one you habitually render obedience; either to the sin nature resulting in death, or obedience (to God) resulting in experiential righteousness."
This is telling us that the believers have the option of placing themselves under orders to God or not after salvation. Those who do adjust to God's justice after salvation and those who do not fail to adjust to God's justice after salvation.
Rom 6:17; "But now thanks be to the God" the postpositive conjunctive particle de (but) here is " but now," indicating that by the time we reach this verse we have something to be thankful for so at this point the believer has capacity to express appreciation to God for His grace.
Next is the nominative singular of exclamation, the noun "charis" (grace). When an idea with great distinctiveness is in focus the nominative is used without the verb as part of an idiom.
In the Greek it is literally, "But now grace." While "charis" (grace) means grace it also has the connotation of expressing thanks or gratitude. Plus the dative singular indirect object from "Theos" (God) with the definite article "ho" (the) referring specifically to God the Father.
It literally means, "But now grace belongs to the God." It is an idiom for expressing gratitude. At the point the people who have followed through and have learned all the lessons recognize that grace belongs to God the Father but the idiom is "But now thanks to the God."
The basis for thanksgiving is being the recipient of grace that starts at salvation. Then comes the conjunction "hoti" (that, because or though). It is used to express the reason for or the purpose for the gratitude.
"though you were the slaves of the sin" from the imperfect active indicative of "eimi" (the verb to be that is translated were).
The imperfect tense that is used here is unusual. The imperfect differs from the aorist in representing a process rather than a concept of aktionsart. The aorist is aktionsart in past time; the imperfect tense is also past but it also expresses linear aktionsart in past time.
The imperfect tense differs from the perfect in representing a process with no sense of being completed. The imperfect represents a process that is not completed. So what we have here is known as the inceptive imperfect that describes linear aktionsart in the sense of 'you kept on being' without any timeframe for its completion.
Positional completion occurs at salvation in a moment of time; experiential completion may never happen. After salvation most believers go on living in slavery to the old sin nature because of their ignorance of Bible doctrine so they never advance to spiritual maturity.
The active voice: unbelievers produce the action of the verb, and sometimes believers after salvation also produce the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative for the reality of slavery to the old sin nature, beginning at physical birth.
The word "slaves" is the predicate nominative plural from "doulos" (slave). Plus the genitive singular of the noun "hamartia" (sin) in the singular here with the definite article "ho" (the) making it monadic referring to the old sin nature.
This represents the true status quo of all unbelievers that is caused by the two imputations at physical birth: the imputation of human life to the soul and Adam's original sin to the genetically formed old sin nature. "But now thanks to the God that though you kept on being slaves of the sin nature."
"de" (but) is the change; the postpositive conjunctive particle "de" (but) is used to connect two contrasting clauses "you have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine that was delivered to you."
The phrase "now you kept on being slaves to the sin nature" is not the predicate for thanksgiving. The predicate for thanksgiving is "Now thanks be to God that you have obeyed."
Thanksgiving goes with the phrase "you have obeyed," the aorist active indicative of "hupakouo" (obey). The thanksgiving is related to their obedience.
The aorist tense is a constantive aorist, that views the action of the verb in its entirety. Believers obey the Lord Jesus Christ with their daily intake of Bible doctrine. It takes the daily function of GASP and regardless of its extent or how long it lasts the aorist tense gathers it up into one event.
The constantive aorist is the fact and action of the inculcation of Bible doctrine through the consistent function of GASP. The active voice: the believer produces the action. The declarative indicative is for the reality of the daily function of GASP that results in maturity adjustment to God's justice after salvation.
Remember that Paul is addressing this phrase to the Roman believers who formed the pivot that preserved the Roman Empire in the days of Nero. There was a large pivot of mature believers who had reached spiritual maturity and Paul is thanking God for this large pivot.
There was a large pivot and a relatively small spin-off of reversionistic apostate believers in Nero's day so the Roman empire was preserved and would go on to greater things in the period of the Antonine Caesars that was the greatest period that Rome would ever experience, and it was based on the pivot of mature believers that was in the process of being formed by their persistent and consistent daily PMA of God's Word of truth under God's GASP system.
"from the heart" "ek" (from) plus the ablative of "kardia" (heart), the right lobe of the soul where Bible doctrine must be stored as "epignosis" (spirit taught doctrine).
This is the ablative of means. The ablative is not the usual case for expressing means but whenever the means includes the concept of its origin the ablative case is used instead of the instrumental case.
That is why the translation here is "but by means of the "kardia" (heart). Note that believers do not obey the Lord Jesus Christ, by means of works. It says by means of their thinking, not by means of their works.
"that form of doctrine" - the accusative singular direct object from "tupos" (form), meaning the form of a pattern, a figure, a mold or a stamp. It is the Greek verb that means to make an impression or stamp with a hammer and a die.
It refers to an impression that is made by a blow, so that what is formed or what is left is an impression is called "tupos" (form). The English word typewriter comes from this word.
We will translate it as "pattern." With it is the possessive genitive singular from "didache" (teaching or instruction) which refers to the fact that the believer through the function of GASP possesses Bible doctrine. So we can call it a pattern of teaching or a doctrinal system.
"which was given to you" from the prepositional phrase "eis" (into) plus the accusative singular from the relative pronoun "hos" (what or which). It can be translated "into which system of doctrine..."
Plus the aorist passive indicative from the verb "paradidomi " (you were given or what was delivered or handed over to you). After salvation believers are handed over into a system of doctrinal teaching.
This is the most important thing after salvation because it is what God hands believers over to after salvation. This can also be translated "you were committed to doctrine." In other words, the believer after salvation is committed to a system of doctrine for the glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ, and manumission from the tyranny of the old sin nature.
This is a constantive aorist tense referring to a fact or action that is extended over a lifetime in time on earth. From the moment of salvation until the end of your life on this earth, whether it is by the exit resurrection of the Church or by physical death. The constantive aorist gathers up into one entirety the system of doctrine that you have to learn that is the most important thing in life.
The passive voice: the believer receives the action of the verb after salvation by being handed over to a system of doctrinal teaching for growth and glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ. The declarative indicative is a dogmatic statement of fact. The believer is handed over to doctrine for maturity adjustment to God's justice that results in blessings from God's justice.
Expanded Translation Rom 6:17; "Now thanks to the God that you were (kept on being) slaves to the sin nature, but (this is what is new) now you have obeyed by means of the right lobe of the soul a doctrinal system (pattern of teaching) into which (he doctrinal system) you were committed."
We see from this that salvation has impact on both temporal and eternal life. In this context the emphasis is on the fact that after salvation God has delivered us over to a doctrinal system that is only means of advance to spiritual maturity, and the only way to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ.
The fact that God has delivered us over to a doctrinal system emphasizes the principle that we should exercise our option for the perception of doctrine every day. We please Jesus Christ with our consistent intake of Bible doctrine.
Since learning doctrine is the most important thing that we do in this life we should demonstrate positive volition toward God's plan by the daily function of GASP. We must be determined to learn the doctrine that is the sine que non of the Christian life.
Committal to Christ means receiving the delivery of Bible doctrine as taught by one's right pastor-teacher. This verse emphasizes our former status as unbelievers in terms of the old sin nature rather than personal sin.
We see here that obedience comes from doctrine in the thinking rather than by emotion or influence from some persuasive person.
This doctrinal system must be resident and circulating in the right lobe of our soul for us to obey Jesus Christ. This doctrinal system is the means by which we fulfill the command of verse 13-to put ourselves under the command of God and to place our members under His command.
This system of doctrine is handed over or delivered, to the believer. This delivery of doctrine is the only way that the believer can advance spiritually it is the only way the believer can glorify the Lord Jesus Christ, and it is the only system for living the Christian life.
Nothing in Christianity can ever be separated from Bible doctrine that is the thinking of Christ. Rejection of and ignorance of Bible doctrine are the worst offences that a believer can do against our Lord Jesus Christ.