Romans 6:1-14 (NIV)
1What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4We 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.
5For 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. 6For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—7because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.
8Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.
11In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13Do 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. 14For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.
Reflection
Once when being taught about baptism, a four year old responded, “I know what baptism is, I get baptized everyday in my bathtub.” While there is an aspect of cleansing that takes place in baptism, the experience is richer as we see in this passage. Baptism is placed parallel to Christ’s death and resurrection and captures not just a being made clean from sin, but a complete dying and separation from sin and old ways. With Christ we are raised to a new life that is no longer under the same control. Not that we are no longer able to sin, but the power that sin once had has been broken. Sin is completely out of place and unfitting for those in Christ. And by the power and grace of God it is something that we can leave behind.
Responding to the Transmission
This is all possible because Christ went first, in death and in resurrection. We can be united with Him in both, dead to the old and lifted up out of the water into the new. We are now free to live in the grace of God. Our old sinful living has been crucified with Christ, so that we are no longer slaves to sin. So, let’s not stay in the old. Let’s pray that we would experience this grace daily in our lives. Let’s pray that God would be glorified as we live in resurrection power. Let’s pray that would be instruments of His righteousness on our campuses, in our communities and cities.
