Words for the Wise, Romans 6 , The Believers Dead to Sin, Alive to Salvation

Romans 6

New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Dead to sin, alive in Christ

6 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning, so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin – 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. 14 For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.

Slaves to righteousness

15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! 16 Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey – whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. 18 You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

19 I am using an example from everyday life because of your human limitations. Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness. 20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. 21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[b] Christ Jesus our Lord.

Footnotes:

Romans 6:6 Or be rendered powerless

Romans 6:23 Or through

2324 Jesus Christ, as Saviour

God’s work of salvation is accomplished supremely through the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through faith, the believer is able to share in all the saving benefits won by Jesus Christ through his obedience to God.

Jesus Christ is the Saviour

Jesus Christ is called Saviour Tit 1:4 See also Lk 2:11; Tit 3:6; 2Pe 1:1; 2Pe 3:2,18

Jesus Christ is the promised Saviour Ac 13:23 See also Lk 1:69-75; Lk 2:28-30

Jesus Christ’s purpose is to save Lk 19:10 See also Mt 1:21; 1Ti 1:15

Jesus Christ’s qualities as Saviour

Jesus Christ is the unique Saviour Ac 4:12 See also Jn 6:68-69; Jn 10:9; Jn 14:6; Ac 10:42-43

Jesus Christ is the complete Saviour Heb 7:25 See also Jn 19:30; Php 3:21; Col 1:19-20; Heb 5:9; Heb 9:26-28; 1Jn 1:9; Jude 24

Jesus Christ is the Saviour of the world Jn 4:42 See also Lk 2:30-32; 1Ti 2:5-6; 1Ti 4:10; 1Jn 4:14

Jesus Christ saves through his grace

Ac 15:11 See also Ro 3:24; Eph 5:23-27; Tit 3:4-5

Jesus Christ saves by his mighty acts

Jesus Christ saves by his death 1Pe 1:18-19 See also Mt 20:28 pp Mk 10:45; Lk 24:45-47; Jn 1:29,36; Jn 10:15,17-18; 1Co 1:18; Rev 7:10

Jesus Christ saves by his resurrection life 1Pe 3:21 See also Ro 5:10; 2Ti 1:10

Jesus Christ saves by his coming again Php 3:20 See also Tit 2:13; Heb 9:28; 1Pe 1:5

Jesus Christ saves by defeating Satan 1Jn 3:8 See also Jn 13:31; Jn 16:11; Heb 2:14; Rev 2:10-11

Jesus Christ saves from all forms of evil

Jesus Christ saves from physical danger Mt 8:25-26 pp Mk 4:38-39 pp Lk 8:24-25; Ac 26:17; 2Co 1:10; 2Ti 4:18

Jesus Christ saves from the power of sin 1Jn 1:7 See also Ac 5:31; Ro 3:25-26; Ro 5:18-19; Ro 6:6-7; Gal 1:4; Rev 1:5-6

Jesus Christ saves from the condemnation of law Gal 3:13 See also Ac 13:38-39; Ro 8:1-4; Gal 4:4-5; Eph 2:15

Jesus Christ saves from God’s wrath 1Th 1:10 See also Ro 5:9; 1Th 5:9; Rev 11:17-18

Jesus Christ saves from the power of death 2Ti 1:10 See also 1Co 15:55-57; Heb 2:15; Rev 20:6; Rev 21:4

Jesus Christ saves from Satan’s power Ac 26:18 See also Lk 10:18-19; Lk 13:16; Col 1:13; 1Jn 3:8

Jesus Christ saves to bring people to God

Jesus Christ saves for eternal life Jn 6:40 See also Jn 3:14-16,36; Jn 5:24-25; Ro 6:23

Jesus Christ saves so that people may live for God 1Jn 4:9 See also Ro 6:8-11; Ro 7:21-25; Gal 2:20; 2Ti 1:9; Heb 9:14-15; 1Pe 2:24; 1Jn 3:5-6; 1Jn 5:18

Jesus Christ’s salvation is received through faith

Ac 16:30-31 See also Ac 2:21; Ro 10:13; Joel 2:32; Ro 1:16; Ro 10:9; 2Th 2:13; 2Ti 3:15

6028 sin, God’s deliverance from

The gospel reveals the purpose and power of God to deal with sin and all of its effects. Scripture uses a range of images to express the comprehensiveness of salvation.

God’s removal of sin

Atonement for sin Isa 6:7 See also Ex 32:30; Lev 4:27-31; Pr 16:6; Ro 3:25; Heb 2:17

Forgiveness of sin Mic 7:18; Ac 13:38 See also 1Ki 8:35-36; 2Ch 30:18-20; Ps 103:2-3; Isa 33:24; Isa 55:7; Joel 3:21; Mt 26:27-28; Lk 24:46-47; Eph 1:7; 1Jn 1:9

Cancellation of a debt Mt 6:12 See also Mt 18:21-35; Lk 7:41-50

A covering over of sin 1Pe 4:8 There is a close relation between “covering over sin” and “atoning for sin”. See also Ps 32:1; Ps 85:2; Jas 5:20

The taking away of sin Ps 103:12 See also 2Sa 12:13; Isa 6:6-7; Zec 3:4; Jn 1:29; Heb 9:28; 1Jn 3:5

Remembering sin no more Isa 43:25 See also Ps 25:7; Jer 31:33-34; 2Co 5:19

God’s deliverance for the sinner

The salvation of the sinner 1Ti 1:15 See also Ps 28:8-9; Mt 1:21; Lk 19:9-10; Jn 3:17; Heb 7:25

The image of healing Lk 5:31-32 pp Mt 9:12 pp Mk 2:17 See also 2Ch 7:14; Isa 53:5; Isa 57:18-19; Hos 14:4; 1Pe 2:24

The image of cleansing Ps 51:2 See also Lev 16:30; Eze 36:25; Jn 13:1-11; Ac 22:16; Heb 10:22; 1Jn 1:9

Redemption by God Ps 130:8 See also Isa 44:22; Tit 2:14; 1Pe 1:18-19

Justification before God Gal 2:16 See also Isa 53:11; Ro 3:24-26; Ro 4:5,25; Ro 5:16-19; Ro 8:33

Freedom from condemnation Ro 8:1 See also Jn 3:18; Jn 8:3-11; Ro 8:34

Peace with God Ro 5:1 See also Isa 53:5; Lk 2:14; Eph 2:17

Reconciliation with God 2Co 5:18 See also Ro 5:9-11; Col 1:19-20

Sanctification to God Heb 10:10 See also 1Co 6:11; Eph 5:25-26; Col 1:22

Freedom from sin and the sinful nature Ro 7:24; 1Pe 2:24 See also Ro 6:1-18; Ro 8:1-9; Gal 5:24

A transition from death to life Col 2:13 See also Lk 15:22-24; Eph 2:4-5

Receiving eternal life Ro 6:23 See also Jn 3:16,36; Jn 5:24

The Bible Panorama

Romans 6

V 1–4: CONTINUE SINNING? Paul picks on the objections of some by asking if we are already justified, shall we sin more to show how great that justification is? He exclaims dogmatically, ‘Certainly not!’ Spiritually we were buried into Christ in His death. His resurrection life has become ours. If we are truly born again, we will want to walk in newness of life. Baptism echoes that meaning.

# V 5–7: CRUCIFIED SELF Just as we share in Christ’s resurrection, we share in His crucifixion. Our position, as those risen with Christ, is therefore that our ‘old man’ (our unsaved self) is crucified with Christ. I cannot claim the one without the other.

 V 8–14: CALCULATED SEQUENCE We are to reckon ourselves to be ‘dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord’. That reckoning is based upon the knowledge that we are both crucified with Christ and also risen with Him in our status before God. God never asks us to make false calculations! This reckoning results in the sequence of logic and holiness that if we are dead to sin and alive to Christ we must not let sin reign in our bodies, but we must present our bodies as alive from the dead to be instruments of righteousness to God. We are no longer under the dominion of sin and death caused by the law, but we are under God’s grace.

V 15–19: CONSECRATED SLAVES We are not now the slaves of the broken law, fearing judgement and death, but we present ourselves as slaves of ‘righteousness for holiness’ having been set free from one tyrannical master, and become the willing slaves of another Master who is gracious.

 V 20–23: CHRIST’S SALVATION Previously, we faced death and produced fruit of which we were ashamed. Now we have God’s gift of ‘eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord’ and, as joyfully consecrated slaves, seek to produce holy fruit for our loving Master who has saved us.

The Bible Panorama. Copyright © 2005 Day One Publications.

Yours by His Grace

Blair Humphreys

Southport

8^th January 2014