Romans 6

New Life In Christ

This has been a difficult week for me. This past Wednesday, a very dear friend of mine died suddenly. She had been battling cancer and was facing a long involved treatment program. Then late one afternoon, she collapsed of an apparent heart attack. It was sudden and unexpected. We were not prepared for it. I take comfort in the fact that she was a strong believer and is now in the presence of God. This makes Romans, verses 6:8-9 even more significant to me – Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with Him, because we know that Christ, having been raised from the dead, will not die again. Death no longer rules over Him. Yes, we will all die one day – it is inevitable – but, if we have faith in the grace that God has given us through Christ, we will live once again. It is the reason I can grieve and hope at the same time. As we look at our new life in Christ, let’s see what it means to really die to sin and death.

Vs 1-11 What should we say then? Should we continue in sin so that grace may multiply? Absolutely not! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Or are you unaware that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in a new way of life. For if we have been joined with Him in the likeness of His death, we will certainly also be in the likeness of His resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that sin’s dominion over the body may be abolished, so that we may no longer be enslaved to sin, since a person who has died is freed from sin’s claims. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with Him, because we know that Christ, having been raised from the dead, will not die again. Death no longer rules over Him. For in light of the fact that He died, He died to sin once for all; but in light of the fact that He lives, He lives to God. So, you too consider yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

In order to walk as one who has new life in Christ, we must first die to sin. In the previous chapter, Paul wrote: “The law came along to multiply the trespass. But where sin multiplied, grace multiplied even more”, Romans 5:20. So as to not be misunderstood, Paul clarifies some things. What should we say then? Should we continue in sin so that grace may multiply? Absolutely not! The Greek word for absolutely not is me ginomai, which mean “not come into being”. So Paul is saying – this can’t even exist in our mind, hearts or lives. In the early 20^th century there was a Russian mystic and self proclaimed holy man by the name of Grigori Rasputin. He came to fame by befriending Nicolas II and family. He espoused the belief that one should sin more and more so you can enjoy more and more of God’s grace. This is an extreme example of what Paul is speaking against. Yes, God does give grace to those who repent and come to Him for forgiveness. It is freely given. But no, sinning more so you can get more grace is not the point. Just as Christ died for our sins and was raised to life – we too must die to our sins so we can be raised to walk in a new way of life. Paul explains: For if we have been joined with Him in the likeness of His death, we will certainly also be in the likeness of His resurrection. The whole point is that sin no longer has it’s grip on us. We walk anew with Christ. The fact is, our walk with Christ actually changes our relationship to sin. Before we were actually dead in sin – now we are dead to sin. Because of this, Paul says:

Vs 12-14 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, so that you obey its desires. And do not offer any parts of it to sin as weapons for unrighteousness. But as those who are alive from the dead, offer yourselves to God, and all the parts of yourselves to God as weapons for righteousness. For sin will not rule over you, because you are not under law but under grace.

With this in mind, we need to walk in that life – walk in grace. We can’t let sin have even a foothold in our life. When we do allow sin to continue to take hold in us, Satan will just use it to his advantage. He will hold it over us and lie to us, telling us we can’t really live a worthy enough life. He will lie and say we really can’t deny ourselves because we are powerless to resist. But Paul expels these lies! He says, For sin will not rule over you, because you are not under law but under grace. God’s holy and perfect law exposed our sin and our lack of ability to be holy. We cannot live under that kind of law. So, God gave us the gift of grace through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He did the work for us and gave us His Holy Spirit to live in us so we can have the power to resist sin.

Vs 15-20 What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Absolutely not! Don’t you know that if you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of that one you obey—either of sin leading to death or of obedience leading to righteousness? But thank God that, although you used to be slaves of sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching you were transferred to, and having been liberated from sin, you became enslaved to righteousness. I am using a human analogy because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you offered the parts of yourselves as slaves to moral impurity, and to greater and greater lawlessness, so now offer them as slaves to righteousness, which results in sanctification. For when you were slaves of sin, you were free from allegiance to righteousness.

Paul, once again, strikes down the argument of “If we live under grace, we can continue to sin without repercussion,” with me ginomai – Absolutely Not! The fact is, we are going serve someone. We either serve the evil one and sin, or we serve God. That’s all the choices we get. Bob Dylan wrote a song on his Slow Train Coming Album in 1979 called Gotta Serve Somebody. In it, he goes through various diverse things you might be, from a preacher to a state trooper to a businessman… No matter what you are, or what you do, the chorus is always the same: But you’re gonna have to serve somebody. Yes, you’re gonna have to serve somebody. Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord. But you’re gonna have to serve somebody. Bob is right. No matter what, you are going to have to serve somebody. There is no sitting on the fence. Fence sitters don’t fair to well according to Revelation 3:15-16: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am going to vomit you out of My mouth.” Not an appealing position. The fact is, you are either a slave to sin, or you choose grace and willingly become a slave of righteousness.

Vs 21-23  So what fruit was produced then from the things you are now ashamed of? For the end of those things is death. But now, since you have been liberated from sin and have become enslaved to God, you have your fruit, which results in sanctification—and the end is eternal life! For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It’s all about the fruit. John the Baptist said in Matthew 3:7-8,10:  When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to the place of his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Therefore produce fruit consistent with repentance… Even now the ax is ready to strike the root of the trees! Therefore, every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. In His sermon on the mount, Jesus said in Matthew 7:15-20: Beware of false prophets…  You’ll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So you’ll recognize them by their fruit. In the parable of the Sower, Jesus reminds us; But the seed in the good ground—these are the ones who, having heard the word with an honest and good heart, hold on to it and by enduring, bear fruit. Luke 8:15. If the fruit we bear is bad fruit, it comes from a plant that is not rooted where it should be. Paul says, For the end of those things is death. Only when we are rooted in Christ can we produce the good fruit that leads to sanctification – a setting apart unto holiness.

Paul ends this passage with one of the most famous of scriptures: For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Sin is going to produce the fruit of death. Satan can lie all he wants, but, in the end, he will claim you for death. But, God has a better path for you. It is a new life in Christ – and this new life is eternal. You gotta serve somebody – make sure the one you serve is the One who offers life.