HE BREAKS THE POWER OF CANCELLED SIN

ROMANS 6:1-14

By David Woodbury

1 Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? 3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death?4 For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. 5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.  (Romans 6:1-6 - NLT)

Here again, Paul is having one of his imaginary debates in which he discusses the proposition that if we keep on sinning grace will be multiplied. He concludes that such a proposition is intolerable in the life of the Christian who has died to the power of sin in their lives. His discussion here is about a chosen lifestyle; a lifestyle dominated by sin and sinful desires and actions or the kingdom lifestyle lived under the power and influence of Christ.

When we handed our lives over to Jesus we were joined with him and, in essence, commenced a very new and different lifestyle. The old sinful lifestyle, dominated by sin, has died and Paul uses the symbolism of baptism to make his point. This new lifestyle is the outcome of the redemptive death and resurrection of Jesus. Just as he died and was raised to life again, so may we die to our old sinful lifestyle and be raised to a new lifestyle; the kingdom lifestyle in which, through the influence of the Holy Spirit, We are no longer slaves to sin, but are able to live in a right standing with God, redeemed and pure in his sight and set free from the power of sin. As the songwriter has written;

Lo, a new creation dawning!
Lo, I rise to life divine!
In my soul an Easter morning;
I am Christ's and Christ is mine.

This action of being dead to our old sinful lifestyle and being joined to Jesus in a new lifestyle is a process and not an event. The ongoing kingdom lifestyle of the Christian is one of continually and intentionally dealing with those things which would lead us back to our old lifestyle. There is no sense here of some sort of instant perfection, but rather an intentional process of continually living as one who has been set free from the power of sin. Note the translation here in the NLT; We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. There is no reference to the idea that that sin has lost its power in our lives, but rather that sin might lose its power in our lives. There is the idea here of something that is in process rather than something that has been achieved.

7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. 9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him.10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus. (Romans 6:7-11 - NLT)

For the Christian, there is a need to live in the belief that we are set free and no longer under the power and influence of sin. In the resurrection of Jesus victory over the power of death is demonstrated, a power that is available to all who have chosen to live the kingdom lifestyle. Those who have chosen to place their faith in Jesus Christ have been made right with God (justified) and as such have been given access to resurrection power in their lives. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, He has ended the power of sin and paid the sinner’s debt and we are sure of this as a self-evident truth based on the promises of God.

The Christian must adopt a mindset that comprehends that we are dead to sin and alive in Christ. The NLT translates verse 11 as: So you also should consider (contemplate, realise and accept) yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus. There is a sense here of a considered and intentional thought process where we reflect deeply on the subject and instil the concept into our mindset. We need to get away from the idea that God the Holy Spirit does all the work for us. The reality is that our spiritual life is a partnership with the Holy Spirit where we must contribute our part through rational thinking and thought processes. God will not do for us that which we can do for ourselves. Not only must we instill into our mindset the reality that we are dead to the power of sin, but we must also implement a mindset that acknowledges and instils the belief that we are alive to God through Christ Jesus.

12 Do not let sin control the way you live] do not give in to sinful desires. 13 Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. 14 Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. (Romans 6:12-14 - NLT)

Having explained how the Christian should live the kingdom lifestyle, dead to sin and alive in resurrection power, Paul goes on to offer advice as to the mindset and lifestyle of the believer. The reality is that sin and sinful temptation will always encroach on the life of the Christian and need to be managed. His advice is to not allow these sinful temptations to control the way we live nor give in to sinful desires; events that we control by our thought processes and actions. His counsel is to offer ourselves to God as a decisive act as those who are alive and been raised from the dead to a new life through resurrection power. As such all of our talents and abilities are sanctified; i.e. set apart, as channels of righteousness given over to God.

When Paul speaks of sin having dominion over us he is referring to that which is the central and controlling hub of our lives; that which occupies the focus of our thoughts and actions. Since we are now in a right standing with God (justified) through Jesus, the whole focus of our thoughts and actions have changed as we are no longer slaves to sin the law but recipients of God’s grace, favour and mercy.