Daily Thoughts from Romans: Dead to Sin (6:1-11)

Daily Thoughts from Romans: Dead to Sin

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 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.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.  (Romans 6:1-11 ESV)

Paul picks up and develops his answer to the objector who would say if grace outstrips sin then we ought to sin all the more to highlight God’s grace all the more.  But it can’t work that way.  When Jesus died on the cross and then rose again, we were spiritually viewed as being in him.  We died to sin and rose to new life with him.  When we were baptized this spiritual reality was symbolized.  Our old self or way of life was crucified and is gone, set free from sin by death. But then we were given new life when he rose and conquered death’s dominion.

We can no longer continue in sin, therefore, and we must instead consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God, because that is where things stand now that we have been justified by faith.  There is a new life in us that lives for God and wants to be like Christ.  This doesn’t mean there isn’t in us a desire to sin, as well, but we now have the Law of God written on our hearts (Jeremiah 31:31ff, the new covenant blessing) and we will find ourselves moving toward holiness bit by bit as we reckon ourselves dead to sin and alive to Him.

We are not enslaved to sin any longer but are set free from it.  We may feel enslaved at times.  It may seem impossible for us to overcome sin in our lives.  But Jesus is setting us free.  When we focus on our ability to stop sinning, willing ourselves to stop, we often experience failure because it is not that our wills have been strengthened to resist sin.  We have died to sin and are alive to God.  As those alive to God we are looking to Him to teach us obedience.  As we focus on Him we find release from sin’s power over us.  He uses the Body of Christ in a large part to teach us and hold us accountable.  He disciplines us when we need it.  He makes us grow.