1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
Commentary
Vs. 1 Having declared in Rom 5:20 that "where sins abounds grace abounds much more". The Apostle Paul's opening question here of whether we should continue in sin so that grace might abound, is by any reasonable estimation simply to guard us from those who would turn God's grace into a "licence" for sin (consider Jude 4). Yet it will also serve as a wonderful introduction for some very profound truths on every believers victory over sin that we have because of Jesus Christ's Crucifixion death and Resurrection life, and thus our being completely united (or joined) to His Person through all of of His Redemptive work.
Vs. 2 And so here the Apostle answers his own question from verse one on our continuing on in sin that grace might abound with a resounding no! or as translated, certainly not! (lit. "by no means!"). Because as Paul will go on to say, we who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ have died with the Lord Jesus Christ, and thus we have died to both sin (discussed here in chapter six), and Law (discussed in chapter seven).
Vs. 3 "Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?"
Thus the Apostle Paul here begins to unfold the profound change that has taken place in us all who believe in Christ's Crucifixion and Resurrection and how this has removed sins dominion from being over our persons and lives. Now the baptism being referred too here is not the baptism of water immersion, (though that can wonderfully demonstrate the particular truths being declared here, and thus it can serve that purpose in many ways). Nonetheless water baptism does not bring anyone into a Spiritual unity or oneness with Christ; in either His death, or in His life. And so what is being referred to here is what happens at the time of salvation, when one is born-again by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ through the Spirit of God. Therefore the "baptism" being referred to here is that of the Holy Spirit" (1 Cor 12:13), who regenerates us and unites us with Christ in every aspect of His Redemptive Work, the moment we believe in His Person (Eph. 1:13-14). Thus it is said here that as many of us who were baptized into Christ were baptized into His death. Therefore when Jesus died on the cross for all our sins, we who believe in Him likewise have died with Him too sin. That is the point being made here by the Apostle Paul. Through our faith in Jesus Christ our whole being has been baptized into His death. Thus whatever strongholds sin once held in our lives we have now been set free from through our co-death with Jesus Christ. Is then sin dead in us? No, sin is never said to be dead in a believer. But we have died to it, and thus we are no longer slaves of it. Christ's death bought our liberty, and because of our faith in Jesus Christ's Person, God's Spirit has baptized us into Christ's death, so that our old nature is effectively dead and buried, but our new nature is very much alive and well In Christ (consider 2 Cor 5:17).
Vs. 4 "Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."
Therefore we have not only died with Christ, but we were buried with Him. The implication being that our old sin nature is not only dead, it is effectively "dead and buried." Therefore just as Christ was raised from the dead by (or through) the glory of the Father, even so we should walk in newness of life with Him (Italics mine). And so we have been buried with Jesus Christ through baptism into His death, so that our sinful nature having been effectively dealt with, we can now walk in newness of life. No longer as slaves of sin, but rather as free men and women in Christ. Which is self-evident proof too everyone of the power of God's salvation to both save and transform anyone through and for the glory of God the Father, which is now actively at work in every believers life, changing us all from one glory to another (consider 2 Cor 3:18; Phil 1:6).
Vs. 5-7 5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.
And so just as we have been united with Jesus Christ in His death, most certainly we shall be in the likeness of His Resurrection (vs. 5; also see Col 2:12; 2 Tim. 2:11). Thus no longer dead in our sins and transgressions, we having been released from them, are now Spiritually alive with Christ and thus we are being now made (or better remade) to bear the likeness of Christ's Resurrection glory, in every aspect of it. Though here the emphasis is on our moral transformation (vs. 6-7), for a Christian living in sin is an oxymoron. Yet this transformation of our persons goes far beyond that to the complete and total transformation of every aspect of our persons, which will not see completion until we are in God's Presence in heaven, bodily with Christ (1 Cor 15:46-49). And so for now the primary focus here and now is on our character, (on our inward person), so that we bear the righteousness, godliness, holiness etc. outwardly that is Jesus Christ's Person, in our persons, here and now. But we do this without forsaking God's love, mercy, justice, kindness etc. in the process. Therefore too forward that end in our lives, the Apostle Paul here reveals another very powerful truth about each and every believers position In Christ which is not only effective for thwarting temptation, but also is necessary if we are too have any lasting success in overcoming sin in our lives (consider 1 Cor 10:13; 2 Cor 10:3-4). Now this most crucial truth is stated in verses six and seven as: 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.
And so we have not only died with Christ, we have been crucified with Him. That is our old sinful nature has been crucified with Christ so that the body of sin; that is this mortal body and all of it's sinful and ungodly lusts might be done away with; that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For through Jesus Christ's Crucifixion death we being crucified with Him have also died with Him to sin, and thus we have been set free from being slaves to sin. For again God did not strip sin of it's power in this world. Instead He stripped it of it's power in us all who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is what the Lord Jesus Christ's Crucifixion death has done for us all who believe in Him. Not only redeemed our persons from going to hell, and thus the wrath to come, but He has also through His Crucifixion death and Resurrection from the dead delivered us from the power of sin in our daily lives. Thus our freedom from sin and death comes to us directly through Christ's cross. Do then believers become sinless in this life? Obviously not, for if we did then we would no longer be in need of the grace (consider 1 John 1:6-10, 2:1-2; 2 Peter 3:17-18), nor the Spirit of God who again is transforming us from one glory, to another glory. And so our liberty from sin and death came at a very high price, a price which we ourselves could not pay, nor would God have us pay. Instead He paid it all through Christ's Crucifixion death and Resurrection from the dead so that we all who believe in Him now have freedom from sin and fullness of life (everlasting life) with Him and through Him
Vs. 8-11 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Having died with Christ we shall also live with Him. A profound truth that serves as a backdrop for our victory over sin and death. Thus having had our old natures crucified with Christ we are raised too life with Christ, so that we now have victory over sin and death through His Risen life. For just as Jesus first died and then was raised from the dead, thus He dies no more, death has no more dominion over Him, so too sin has no more dominion over us all who believe in Him (vs. 8-9). And so the death Jesus died, He died to sin once and for all (meaning He will never have to die again for our redemption from sin, specifically here too grant us our liberty from sin), for He died to sin once for all. But the life that He lives, He lives to God (vs. 10). And so just as Jesus having risen from dead, lives to God, separate from sin So too we having been raised from the dead with Him must also live our new lives to God by keeping ourselves from our old sinful desires. Therefore through Christ's Crucifixion death and Resurrection life we having died to sin with Him, have also been raised to new and everlasting life with Himself. Therefore, "we are to reckon ourselves dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Vs. 12-14 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
Having died to sin (and thus it's power over our persons) we are not let it reign in or mortal bodies that we should obey it in it's lusts (vs. 12). The implication being that one can bring themselves back into sin's bondage if after salvation one returns to its clasps. For salvation from sin is not an immunity to it. Therefore we are not to present our bodies as instruments of sin, which only harms oneself and others. Rather we are to present ourselves to God as people who are alive from the dead (see Eph. 2:1-10) and whose members are now instruments of righteousness to God (also see Rom 12:1-2). Thus instead of serving sin, and the sinful desires of ones flesh which only ends in death (Rom 6:23), we are now to serve God as liberated people, and thus in every positive and healthy way. For truly serving God by doing good with with your person and life not only testifies to Christ's life within us, but brings peace to your person and life and those lives you will touch with your new life In Christ. Now we who believe In Christ can do this because we are no longer under the law, and thus sin can have no more dominion over us, for we have been released from both as the Apostle Paul says, "For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace." vs. 14 Thus in being delivered from sin, we have also been delivered from the Law, and thus sins power which was drawn from it can no longer enslave us who have been set free from it. For living under the Law is not the means to liberty from sin for anyone. Indeed the Law is the strength of sin (see 1 Cor 15:56). Therefore it is only by living by faith through the grace of God, that comes to us all through the Gospel of God, that a person finds his or her life and liberty In Christ, and God ultimately fulfills His purposes for them.
Scripture Quotation
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.
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