Commentaries:
We are seen here as the servant of the one we obey; we are under its authority. If man is the source of the morality we submit to, then man is our sovereign. As long as this sovereign agrees with God's standards, then idolatry is no problem. If we broaden this to include the state, whether democratic or socialistic, then the state is the sovereign. But in broadening the scope, the chance that idolatry will enter the equation also increases.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The First Commandment (1997)
The Old Covenant could not free a person from sin; there was no mechanism to remove sin (see Hebrews 10:4). All it could do, therefore, was to continue the people's prevailing bondage to sin. However, those under the New Covenant can be made free from sin.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part Twenty-Seven)
As God sees things, we are in fact Christ's slaves and more, and the way God sees things is what matters. Technically, we are no longer working to advance our own interests. We are to fulfill our labors at all times and in all cases to Christ and to our human employer with energy, enthusiasm, and above all, service.
The world denigrates Christian works as being valueless, and they do this partly because they misunderstand Paul's statement that a person cannot earn salvation by means of works. We have become slaves of Christ. Our redemption has made us so tightly identified with Him that He sees us as members of His own Body. Our reality is that we are working for Him regardless of our day-to-day job, whether as a housewife, welder, salesman, or corporate administrator.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Ecclesiastes and Christian Living (Part Two): Works
Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Romans 6:18:
Ezekiel 20:23-26
Romans 7:19-23
Romans 9:19-24
Galatians 4:7
2 Timothy 2:26
Revelation 2:14-15