Romans 6:1-4. 1What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4We 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.
In the book of Romans, Paul spends chapters 3-5 teaching the Roman believers what Christ has done FOR them. Jesus died FOR them (and us). Jesus took their sins (and ours) FOR them. But this forgiveness of sins is only the beginning of the gospel message, and it is not enough to bring about the change our salvation both requires and makes possible. Forgiveness deals with the consequence of sin, but it does not deal with the indwelling sin, the flesh, that lives inside us all. The flesh that would even dare to ask, Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?
Sins are forgiven because Jesus died FOR us, but we are transformed because we died WITH Jesus. More than that, we were buried and rose WITH Christ. This is union with Christ. And living from our identity in our union with Christ is the only way to really overcome sin and the flesh.
Christian, your union with the death of Christ, the burial of Christ, and the resurrection of Christ has not only dealt with what you have done, but also with what you are. We are moving beyond our verdict before God, forgiven, into a whole new identity. A newness of life. This is true deliverance from both sins (the ones we’ve committed), and Sin (the power inside of us). If the gospel only deals with sins and not Sin, we are forgiven but not new. And if we are not new we are doomed to live forever fighting the horrors of sin in our lives.
Our identity as sinners came to us by birth, therefore, the only thing that can change that identity is death. And then of course, new birth. This is what Romans 6:1-4 is beginning to explain to us – all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death.
Baptism here is not the water baptism you did in the river or the church tub (or if you were sprinkled or poured over). This is the baptism of the Spirit whereby you were placed into Christ. Placed into his death and resurrection. This happened when you, by faith, trusted in his life and death alone for the forgiveness of your sins and were justified.
What this means is that YOUR SIN HAS BEEN DEALT WITH AND WILL ONLY BE DEALT WITH IN CHRIST. Sorry, I don’t mean to yell, but we must understand this greatest of truths. No penance. No pay backs. No confessions. No amount of weeping. No commitments. No re-dedications. None of this has any effect on your sin. Only death will do. Only the death of Christ and your death with him, and this has already happened once for all time.
Romans 6:10. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all.
And the good news keeps coming. God didn’t leave you dead. He gave you newness of life. Christ’s life. His eternal zoe life in God. This is not simply a new “way of life” empowered by your old mindsets and efforts, your psyche. It’s not a plan for good living, how to have your best life now, or basic instructions before leaving earth (b-i-b-l-e). It’s a whole new life that never existed before Christ – resurrection life.
So what does living in the newness of life look like?
First and foremost, it looks like actively embracing your new identity as WITH Christ. IN Christ. THROUGH Christ. I have everything Christ has, every one of his spiritual blessings is mine too (more on this tomorrow).
It looks like abandoning, by God’s grace, the old life source that we hold so tightly to – our self-righteous pride and self-salvation schemes. All of these can go away without any risk to you. You have a whole new operating system, therefore, you can throw out those old “floppy disks.” You don’t need any “updates” to this new system the God has given you. You have all the power, mercy, and wisdom you are ever going to get in Christ. Defending yourself, vengeance, grudges, co-dependency, controlling, worrying, and fear – these don’t compute. They don’t run the systems of your new life in Christ. And it should be becoming more and more obvious that these things are “out of date” and obsolete.
Finally, newness of life looks like embracing the sacrificial life of Christ, his pattern of death and resurrection. This will lead to a whole new way of thinking, relating, emoting, choosing, and acting. A new instinctual way of life. The supernatural way of Jesus becomes second nature to you the more you trust it and let it take over your heart. Newness of life means your dreams are different, your desires are different, your thoughts are different. Everything in your life has been transformed by Jesus.
And each day is a growing experience of this new infinite life of Christ in us.
You: In what ways do you deal with your sin and try to change your life that are NOT from faith in your newness of life?
You in Christ: Can you explain the difference between “Jesus died for us,” and “we died with Jesus?”
Christ in you: In what ways are you experiencing newness of life?
Prayer: Father, the new life you have given to me through Jesus is something I want to trust in and live from more and more each day. Help me to embrace it and to reject all my self-salvation schemes and old operating systems. Amen.
To Live is Christ 