Romans 6:1-14 The Gospel - Gods freedom from the grasp of sin

Theological Proposition/Focus: The resurrection of Christ is an invitation to live a life free from the bonds of sin. Through Christ's resurrection, believers have been given a new life, which empowers them to live free from the dominion of sin.

Christ Focus: In the context of the whole Bible, the resurrection of Christ is central to God's redemptive plan. It signifies victory over sin and death and provides the foundation for our hope of resurrection and eternal life. By connecting this passage to Christ's work, we see that our identity is rooted in His victory and not our past failures.

Homiletical Proposition/Application: This message can encourage Christians to reflect on their identities as new creations in Christ, empowering them to reject sin and embrace a life characterized by righteousness and grace. It offers hope that, despite their struggles, they can experience genuine freedom through the transformative power of the resurrection.

Introduction

Image: When freed slaves become anything but freedmen.

History is complicated, but I want to briefly ask you to consider a period in American history known as Reconstruction.

The Reconstruction era (1865-1877) was a turbulent period in American history following the Civil War, aimed at reintegrating the Southern states into the Union and securing rights for newly freed African Americans. During this time, the federal government passed landmark legislation, including the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, which abolished slavery, granted citizenship, and protected voting rights. However, Reconstruction faced fierce resistance, and the implementation of Black Codes and later Jim Crow laws sought to maintain something as close to the slavery of the past as could be done.

History is complicated, and there are abundant stories. Stories of fierce oppression of freed men and stories of freed men returning to a life of essentially slavery because they didn't know anything else, and the system was set up to push them back into slavery.

The Emancipation Proclamation officially freed people, but the change in status did not mean that the average person lived a life of freedom.

Unfortunately, I think the same can be said for many Christians. The cross officially freed us from slavery to sin, but that doesn't mean that sin stops trying to oppress, and it certainly doesn't mean that we don't fall back into sin.

Setting the Stage:

In Romans 5, Paul argued that the one who has entered into a saving relationship with Jesus enjoys peace and reconciliation with God.

However, Romans 5:17 states, "For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!" This hints at an important reality. We have not arrived; we will one day be perfectively sanctified, but what about this time now? The answer we know from experience and the clear teaching of Scripture is that we must strive to live life in a manner that is Christ-like.

Body

Dead to sin, Alive in Christ — The death and resurrection of Christ are not only efficacious but also symbolic (1-4).

Baptism symbolizes our union with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection. This point suggests that baptism is not just a ritual but a declaration of freedom from the bondage of sin and entrance into a resurrected life with Christ that comes with salvation. Believers should be encouraged to walk in this new identity.

Following Jesus demands that we despise our sin (1-2a)!

Paul begins with a rhetorical question.

If we accept the reality that the Law cannot make one righteous, then someone might throw out the law since it does not do what they thought it would. With the Law eliminated, there is no basis for ethical behavior, right? Wrong!

Someone might respond, "Okay, how about this? Since the presence of sin created the opportunity for grace, and in fact, according to Romans 5:20, 'The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more,' the increase of sin resulted in more grace; we should just go all the way, right? Sin and celebrate because that allows grace to abound." Again, wrong!

Following Jesus means we must identify with His death (2-3).

Earlier in Romans, Paul argued that the death of Jesus paid the price of sin. Now Paul connects even further, demonstrating that to follow Jesus means to identify with His death.

When we choose to follow Christ, we die to sin. Obviously, this is not a reference to physical death but rather a rejection of a previous way of life. The idea here is really a rejection of self-centered focus on the fallen way of life.

Our Translation Choices Sometimes come back to bite us!

One of the biggest mistakes we have made is the transliteration of βαπτίζω instead of the translation of the word. If we were to translate the word, we would translate it as something like "plunge." This is probably how Paul's readers would have thought about the word, and in the background, they would have had the picture of baptism in their minds. Let me try this:

Or don't you know that all of us who were plunged into Christ Jesus were plunged into His death?

And then in the background, you remember the symbolic identification of Christ that happens at baptism. Here is the picture: you are plunged into the sphere of Christ. The person who plunges into a pool expects to be surrounded by water. Halfway in, halfway out is not plunged.

Following Jesus is a call to new life (4-5).

Paul argues here that Christ's death was a necessary precursor to the resurrection. This argument is important for Paul in that he uses it to argue that death to sin paves the way for something qualitatively better: new life.

Here is the step of faith to which the Christian is called. The Christian is called to die to self, die to sin, that they might live to Christ. This is the point of verse 5. For the believer, death to sin is not just connected to Christ's death, but life after death to sin is connected to Christ's resurrection.

But here is the thing: we have not yet arrived. We are still growing and will continue to do so until the day when Christ perfectively sanctifies each of us.

The word for united (συμφυτοί) is a fun word in Greek. It is only used here in the New Testament, but in other extant literature, we can gain further insight into the word. The word carries the idea of things being organically united. For example, a thick forest. In fact, in Antiquities of the Jews, 8.84, written by Josephus, he uses the word to describe ornate furniture where the pieces of the furniture are joined together in such a way that you cannot figure out where one piece begins and the other ends.

Free from sin — Death to sin brings about a freedom from sin (6-7).

Being united with Christ in His death also unites us in His resurrection. This section suggests that, as we share in Christ's victory over sin through His resurrection, believers are empowered to live as new creations. Freedom from sin is not just a future hope but a present reality made possible through Christ's resurrection.

Prior to salvation we are all slaves to sin (6).

The Body of Sin is not embodied sin but susceptibility to sin.

Paul uses the phrase "body of sin." What he is referring to is not an existence that is sinful because it is embodied, but rather a state of susceptibility to sin. The idea here is that as individuals who have a sin nature without Christ, we are subject to sin. We cannot help ourselves; we are going to sin. This doesn't excuse sin, but it does explain sin.

Think of it this way: A mosquito is going to bite you; it is simply what it does. It doesn't make it okay, and I dare say you are not going to stand around and let mosquitoes bite you for the good of the mosquito, but at the same time, you won't be surprised when it does bite you. It is simply what it does.

Prior to Christ, we are subject to sin, ruled by sin as the text states. However, through Christ, the power of sin is broken, and our body of sin is rendered powerless. We are no longer slaves to sin. That does not mean we don't sin, but rather that we are no longer bound to sin. Sin is no longer inevitable.

The co-death of salvation brings freedom from sin (7).

Paul does not fully explain everything at once, but we can infer a lot from his argument. From the moment of conception, each of us becomes subject to sin. That subjection to sin can only be broken through death. Jesus died, and so in identifying with Christ's death, we are released from subjection to sin.

Free to live — The resurrection is the promise of real life (8-10).

The assurance believers have in their eventual resurrection is rooted in the reality that Christ has died for us and triumphed over death. Our identity in Christ guarantees that death no longer has dominion over us, which offers an eternal perspective on the impermanence of our earthly struggles.

Identification with the death of Christ guarantees a future of life with Christ (8).

In identifying with the death of Christ, we are given life with Christ.

I think there are times when we fail to really think about what it means to live with Christ. Sure, we talk about resurrection, we talk about new bodies, we talk about worship, but take a second and consider this: We are told that in identifying with the death of Christ, we are given life with Christ.

Image: What would it be like to live in the White House?

Take a second and think about this for a minute. Have you ever imagined what it would be like to live in the White House? I mean, yeah, there would be a lot of stress, sure, but imagine that you could live in the White House without the stress—just living there, having all the space, not having a responsibility for cleaning it. Perhaps it is the food that gets your attention.

When Emily and I visited the White House, we had the opportunity to see the Navy Mess Hall. The Navy has assigned their best culinary specialists to provide food service at the White House. I don't know what your interest is—maybe it is the swimming pool, tennis court, bowling alley, movie theater, or even the jogging track. I don't know, but what I do know is that without the stress, you would probably find a lot to enjoy about living in the White House.

What I am reminded of here is that we are invited into life with Christ. I think we should expect something significant—real life enjoyed with our Savior. What we have in front of us is better than an invitation to the White House; we have an invitation to life lived alongside the God of the universe.

But it doesn't end there.

Christ's resurrection was more than resuscitation but the actual defeat of death (9-10).

Christ is not the first or only person to rise from the dead.

Old Testament Resurrections

• The Widow of Zarephath's Son — The prophet Elijah raised the son of a widow in Zarephath back to life (1 Kings 17:17-24).

• The Shunammite Woman's Son - The prophet Elisha resurrected a young boy in Shunem (2 Kings 4:18-37).

• A Man Raised from Elisha's Tomb - After Elisha died, a dead man's body was thrown into his tomb. When the body touched Elisha's bones, the man came back to life (2 Kings 13:20-21).

New Testament Resurrections

• Jesus Raises Jairus' Daughter - A synagogue leader named Jairus sought Jesus to heal his dying daughter. Jesus later raised her from the dead (Mark 5:35-43; Luke 8:49-56).

• The Widow of Nain's Son - Jesus interrupted a funeral procession and raised a widow's only son (Luke 7:11-17).

• Lazarus - Jesus raised Lazarus, who had been dead for four days (John 11:1-44).

• Saints in Jerusalem - After Jesus' resurrection, many dead believers were raised and appeared to people in Jerusalem (Matthew 27:50-53).

Resurrections in the Early Church

• Tabitha (Dorcas) - Peter prayed over a woman named Tabitha, also called Dorcas, and she was raised from the dead (Acts 9:36-42).

• Eutychus - A young man named Eutychus fell from a third-story window and died, but Paul brought him back to life (Acts 20:7-12).

Christ's resurrection is unique in that Christ was raised in an immortal body, never again to die. Christ was the firstfruits, as discussed in 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, of the resurrection He purchased for all believers.

Never go back — Life on this side of salvation should be marked by victory (11-14).

Believers should actively present themselves to God as instruments of righteousness, fully alive in Christ. This practical application of faith underscores our calling to reject sin and demonstrates that the resurrection empowers us not just spiritually but practically empowers us for daily righteous living.

We must accept the truth (11).

Much of what we have been talking about is future. Specifically, our perfective sanctification is a future event. However, that does not mean there is nothing for us here and now. In light of the fact that we anticipate a future resurrection, we should live like it now.

The reclassification of λογίζεσθε, which we translate as "count."

Paul again brings into view the Greek word λογίζεσθε, which we translate as "count." This word, recall, carries the idea of reclassification. We are to consider, classify ourselves as dead to sin and alive to God. In other words, don't just wait for Heaven to live for Christ, but rather start now.

Don't give up ground that has already been won (12).

Reality: you (empowered by the Holy Spirit) have the power to resist those impulses.

The call of the post-cross life is a call to restrain one's evil desires and keep focused on life lived for Christ.

The picture that Paul chooses to use is one of a king. We are not to allow sin to be our king. The call we have is to live with Jesus as our King. We are called not to submit to the reign of sin, which brings with it nothing short of evil desires.

Furthermore, we have the command.

Don't allow Christ's purchase to be used for sin (13).

Most people understand the concept of something being sacred.

Image: Would you do it at church?

I venture that most people would not want to watch certain movies at the church or have particular parties at the church. We have an innate respect for the sacred. But here Paul goes and makes it personal, reminding us that our bodies are sacred, and so when we submit to the reign of sin, we are presenting that which is sacred to be used for something evil.

Make sure you are serving the right master (14).

I am not sure what else to say here. The command is pretty simple: don't let sin master you!

MTR: Ask yourself, "Where am I allowing myself to be used as an instrument for wickedness, and where can I offer myself as an instrument for righteousness?"

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