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Text: Romans 6
Jesus Christ justifies the sin that offended the Father. He provides a way for the Father to excuse sin. This is a wonderful truth! But critics get a hold of this truth and accuse Jesus Christ, and now Paul, of encouraging sin. So you’re saying people can just hate and kill others and God doesn’t care because of Jesus Christ? Why not just continue in sin and say, Yeah but Jesus justifies me. Paul says that’s not how Christianity works.
Shouldn’t we just sin then? You’ll see this question show up twice in this chapter; in verse 1 and verse 15.
Should we sin? (vss 1-14)
- The first criticism of Christianity is that grace apparently abounded where sin was, so why not just sin so we can prove how gracious God is.
- Martin Luther seemed to believe this. If these are real quotes by him, then his understanding of Christianity was more a reaction against his feelings of guilt within the Roman Catholic Church, but they weren’t biblical beliefs. Some things associated with him are:
- Be a sinner and sin boldly, but believe and rejoice in Christ even more boldly.
- Being a Christian means to be dead to sin. (Dead means unaffected and unmoved by sin.) (vss 1-7)
- Don’t sin because a Christian is associated with the death of Jesus Christ where all selfish drives are crucified by submitting to the will of the Father.
- Matthew 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
- Paul applied this to a congregation in Corinth in 1 Corinthians 11:23-29.
- Baptized into this Christian doctrine (vss 3-4)
- Some say spiritual baptism, and some say physical baptism. I wouldn’t argue about either because both “baptisms” whether spiritual through teaching or physically in the water, both are expressions of the same doctrine – dead to sin and alive to Christ.
- The newness is the new man (Ephesians 4:24) created in righteousness and true holiness.
And the new creature (Colossians 3:10) renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
- Planted into this Christian doctrine (vss 5-7)
- This part is certainly spiritual because it deals with the mind of Christ. Or the Christian perspective of this life which is opposition to sin.
- You’re not physically crucified with Christ. If you’re a Christian, you identify with that crucifixion in the same way mentioned by Jesus and Paul and every other apostle. You reckon yourself dead to sin.
- Your life is hidden with Christ. You set your affections on things above.
- John 12:23-26 And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. 24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. 25 He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. 26 If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.
- Being a Christian means to be alive to God through Jesus Christ (vss 8-14)
- Jesus Christ has victory over sin and death, therefore following Jesus Christ in faith is the victory for the Christian.
- Jesus Christ died to sin one time. The author of Hebrews says this over and over again. Hebrews 9:27-28 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
- The application of Christianity is the opposite of what the critics say. They say you make it so that it doesn’t matter if you sin or not. And if your theology makes sin inconsequential, that’s not Christianity. Christianity is dead to sin through Christ and alive to God through Christ. So sin is not the master.
- A true Christian has escaped the law through justification. Which leads to the next criticism!
Should we sin? (vss 15-23)
- The second time someone justifies sin by accusing Paul of teaching lawlessness. They say since you’re not under the law you can just live lawlessly. This is a terrible misunderstanding of grace.
- Grace of God in Jesus Christ is the thing that teaches you to reckon yourself dead to sin.
- Titus 2:11-12 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
- Grace isn’t permission to frustrate the Father. Grace is the ability to please God.
- Jude 4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. Jude would say these are the people fitted for destruction.
- Jesus Christ is the Christian’s master
- Jesus asked, How am I your master if you don’t do the things I say?
- Paul said here that whoever you obey, that’s your master. If you obey sin to death or obey Jesus Christ unto life.
- The fruit of what’s planted in Christianity is holiness and ultimately eternal physical life.
- The famous Romans 6:23 is a summary of the entire arguments Paul just made.
The critic says I can do anything I want to do! Jesus Christ says, no, you can now do anything God wants you to do.
