Amen. Well, please take your Bibles and let's open them up this morning to the book of Romans.
The book of Romans. This is week three, the final week in our mini-series on the resurrection. We'll be back in Genesis, Lord willing, next Sunday.
But for this week, we're in Romans, in Romans chapter 6, verses 1 through 14.
Romans 6, 1 through 14. And when you found it, let's stand in honor of the reading of God's Word this morning.
Amen.
What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means. How can we who have died to sin still live in it?
Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?
We were buried, therefore, with Him by baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His.
We know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.
For one who has died has been set free from sin.
Now, if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with Him.
We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again.
Death no longer has dominion over Him.
For the death He died, He died to sin once for all, but the life He lives, He lives to God.
So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Let not sin, therefore, reign in your mortal body to make you obey its passions.
Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life,
and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.
For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law, but under grace.
This is the word of the Lord.
Father, we thank You for this word.
We thank You for freedom in Christ.
We thank You, Lord, that for those who are in Christ, sin no longer enslaves us, no longer rules us.
That there is freedom, truly, and power.
By the power of Your resurrection, there's power to walk in newness of life.
We pray, Lord, that we would see it, take hold of it by faith this morning.
We pray in Jesus' name.
Amen.
You may be seated.
Again, this is week three of our series here on the resurrection.
Our final week looking at the resurrection and its implications for us.
Week one was Easter Sunday.
We looked at Jesus' resurrection.
We saw how His resurrection shapes our faith.
Because Christ, in fact, has been raised from the dead.
We are not in our sins.
Our faith is not futile.
We're not worthy of pity.
His resurrection changes everything.
That was Easter Sunday.
Last week we saw how His resurrection shapes our future.
We look ahead and see that because He is risen, we too, who are united to Him by faith,
we too will be risen, resurrected to be with Him and like Him.
We will be raised up with new, glorified, resurrected, perfected bodies,
made fit for eternity with Him.
This week, today, as we look here to Romans chapter 6,
we get to look at the implications of His resurrection for life in the in-between.
Right now.
And we get to see how His resurrection shapes our fight with sin.
In other words, church, His resurrection, it matters for us right now in our fight with sin.
Because Jesus Christ has raised from the dead,
those who are united to Him by faith are also raised to walk in newness of life.
Because Jesus Christ is raised from the dead,
then those who are united to Him by faith are right now empowered to live right now in resurrection power.
Victory over sin.
Now, I assume that you recognize that we are in a war with sin here and now.
Do we understand this?
J.C. Ryle, the bishop, J.C. Ryle, he says,
We must not conceal from ourselves that true Christianity brings with it a daily cross in this life,
while it offers us a crown of glory in the life to come.
The flesh must be daily crucified.
The devil must be daily resisted.
The world must be daily overcome.
There is a warfare to be waged and a battle to be fought.
And all this is the inseparable accompaniment of true religion.
Heaven is not to be won without it.
Never was there a truer word spoken than the old saying,
No cross, no crown.
If we never found this out by experience, our souls are in a poorer condition.
He goes on.
The true Christian is called to be a soldier and must behave as such from the day of his conversion to the day of his death.
He is not meant to live a life of religious ease, laziness, and security.
He must never imagine for a moment that he can sleep and doze along the way to heaven,
like on traveling in an easy carriage.
If the Bible is the rule of his faith and practice,
he will find his course laid down very plainly in this matter.
He must fight.
So this morning, as we look to Paul in Romans chapter 6,
we get to see how we are to fight.
And we'll see three ways that the resurrection shapes our fight with sin.
This will be our outline this morning if you're taking notes.
There's three ways that the resurrection of Jesus shapes our fight with sin.
First, we see the resurrection of Jesus gives us a new identity.
The resurrection of Jesus gives us a new identity.
Look, they're starting in verse 1.
Paul says in chapter 6, verse 1, he says,
What shall we say then?
Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?
Now, obviously, I need to give a little bit of context here
because we're jumping into the middle of a book,
in the middle of an argument.
Paul, in the first five chapters of Romans,
has been laying out the riches of the gospel of Jesus Christ
in these first five chapters.
And he has just finished insisting that we are saved,
not by our works, not by our effort,
and not by our birthright, not by anything in us,
but sheerly by God's grace through faith in Jesus Christ.
We are justified, declared righteous in the sight of God,
not by our goodness, not by our effort,
not by our law-keeping,
not by our cultural identity, as the Jews insisted,
but rather, Paul's been saying here,
we are declared righteous in the sight of God
apart from anything in us,
completely apart from our own obedience,
separate from it.
We are declared righteous in the sight of God
simply by receiving Christ's righteousness in our place.
So then the objection that he anticipates
to such free grace is this.
Well, if that's how this whole thing works, Paul,
then I guess I can just keep on sinning.
In fact, Paul, if grace is the whole deal,
if grace is what magnifies the glory of God,
if God is so eager to show sinners grace,
why don't we just keep on sinning
so that God can be gracious to us,
and then He gets the glory?
Why not just walk in sin if we're so covered by grace?
You see the issue here.
How does Paul respond?
By no means.
No.
Absolutely not.
That's not how Christians ought to think.
That's not how Christians ought to live
or how they ought to act.
We don't just keep on living in sin.
Why?
Because if you are united to Christ by faith,
then you have been given a new identity in Christ.
That used to be who you were who walked in sin,
but now, if you're in Christ,
that's you no longer.
In fact, he says in verse 2,
the new you is now dead to sin.
There in verse 2.
How can we who have died to sin still live in it?
In other words, it doesn't add up here.
It doesn't make any sense.
Paul says there is something fundamentally off,
something fundamentally inconsistent
with somebody who claims to be a Christian
and yet lives in unrepentant, persistent sin.
Why?
Because that old person who once lived in unrepentant,
persistent sin, who walked in it,
that old person is dead.
We've died to it.
We no longer live to sin.
We no longer live for sin.
That's what it means to be a Christian.
That you have died to sin.
Now, let me be clear because I want you to notice
what I said and what I did not say.
I did not say that if you're a Christian,
you will never sin again.
Raise your hand if you've known that to be true
in your own life.
That's every one of us.
Clearly, Christians still sin.
You're looking at a Christian who still sins.
In fact, the more I walk with the Lord,
the closer I walk with Him,
the more I see His holiness,
the more I see the depth of my sin in my life.
Every single week, I mean, my goodness,
I see my attitudes to be sinful.
The way I respond to my wife and my children
is often sinful.
I see the depth of my selfishness,
the way I allocate my time.
I am a sinful, sinful person.
I am not without sin and neither are you.
Paul is not demanding perfection here.
Okay, I want to be clear.
There is a difference, though,
between battling with sin
and living in sin.
Do we see the difference?
There is a difference between wrestling with your sin
and walking in sin.
There is a difference between recognizing sin in your life
by the grace of God
and repenting of it
and grieving it when you see it
and saying,
Lord, I need your help with it
and saying,
well, this is just who I am.
You have your own flaws.
I have mine.
Nothing to see here.
I can do what I want.
I can live what I want.
I'm covered by grace
because I can live however I want
because I prayed a prayer at VBS
when I was six years old.
I can live however I want
because 20 years ago,
I walked down an aisle
and said,
I want to be a Christian.
Paul says,
if you are in Christ,
if that's genuine,
then you have died to sin
as a power over you.
It doesn't reign over you any longer
if you're in Christ.
In fact, he says,
don't you know that your baptism
is a picture of this new life?
Look at verse 3.
Do you not know,
verse 3,
do you not know
that all of us
who have been baptized
into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?
We were buried with him,
therefore,
by baptism into death
in order that,
just as Christ was raised
from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
we too might walk
in newness of life.
Now,
I can't miss this opportunity
to teach a little bit
about baptism.
Okay,
so we're going to divert here
just for a second.
We'll come back.
Notice here
that he just assumes
that everybody
in the church of Rome,
every member of the church
in Rome
has been baptized.
That's the assumption.
Now,
what is baptism?
Baptism is the public initiation
into the church community.
It's marking you off
from once belonging
to the world,
now to belonging
to Christ.
And not just to Christ,
but it's affirmed
by a community
of believers
to say,
you belong to this
local body of Christ
here in this place.
Also notice
that clearly
these Romans
have been baptized
as believers.
This isn't a children's book.
These people,
these Christians,
are capable
of understanding
this teaching.
By the grace of God,
they're capable
by the power
of the Holy Spirit
in them
of walking
in newness of life.
They are capable
by the grace of God
and the Holy Spirit
in them
to look back
on their baptism
and reflect
on the meaning
and the message
of what it means
for them in Christ.
So what does it mean?
He says,
look back
on your baptism
and remember
your identity
in Jesus.
Remember,
you're going down
into the water.
That's symbolic
of Jesus' death
and not just
Jesus' death
but your death
in Him.
You were buried
with Him
by baptism
but you didn't
stay down
in the water,
did you?
Praise God.
I haven't lost one yet.
We brought every one
of them up.
They don't stay
dead down
in the water.
They are raised
up to walk
and newness
of life.
Just as Jesus Christ
didn't stay
in the grave
but was raised
and resurrected
by the power
of God
just as Jesus Christ
has now victory
over sin,
victory over the grave,
Paul says,
you believer
in Him
share His victory
over the grave.
He says,
Christian,
remember what
your baptism
represents.
It's just like
a married man
might look down
at his wedding ring
and see
in this physical
visible sign
a picture
of his union
with his wife.
It's a reminder
of the vows
that they've made
to each other.
It's a reminder
that his identity
now is I am
a married man.
That's who I am.
So now the believer
looks back
on their baptism
as a picture
of their union
with Jesus Christ.
A reminder
of the vows
that are made
of Him
to us
and us to Him.
It's a picture
of their new identity
in Him.
Yes, Christian,
of course,
we will wrestle
with sin.
We will fall
into sin
and the more clearly
you see the holiness
of God,
the more clearly
you will see
your own sinfulness.
And yet,
Paul says,
if you are in Christ,
your identity
is no longer
sinner.
By the grace
of God,
you are no longer
sinner.
You are saint.
You're no longer
a child of the enemy.
You're no longer
a child of wrath.
You are,
by the grace of God,
a child of God.
By God's grace,
you are no longer
dead to God
and alive to sin.
By the grace of God,
you are now
dead to sin
and alive to God
in Christ.
That's your identity
in Him.
Paul says it like this
in Galatians 2,
verse 20.
He says,
I have been crucified
with Christ.
Therefore,
I no longer live.
But Jesus Christ
now lives in me.
The life I live
in the flesh,
I live by faith
in the Son of God.
who loved me
and gave Himself
for me.
The resurrection
of Jesus
gives us
a brand new
identity
in Christ.
Not only that,
but second,
second,
the resurrection
of Jesus
gives us
a new victory.
A new victory.
And that new identity
in Christ,
it comes with
a new position
in regards to sin.
it comes with
Christ's position
in regards to sin.
If you are in Christ,
you have a position
of victory
over sin.
Not just in the future.
Right now,
in the present,
you have a position
of victory
over sin.
Do you believe it?
Look there
to verse 5.
It says,
for if we have been
united with Him
in a death like His,
we shall certainly
be united with Him
in a resurrection
like His.
And we know
that our old self
was crucified with Him
in order that the body
of sin
might be brought
to nothing
so that we
would no longer
be enslaved
to sin.
One who has died
has been set free
from sin.
Now,
if we have died
with Christ,
we believe that we
will also live
with Him.
We know that
Christ being raised
from the dead
will never die again.
Death no longer
has dominion over Him.
For the death He died,
He died to sin
once for all.
But the life He lives,
He lives to God.
I want you to notice
there's two words here.
Two images
that give us a picture
of the power of sin
over the non-believer.
Did you see those?
He says in verse 6,
Christ has died
and risen
that by faith in Him
we may no longer
be enslaved
to sin.
That's the first word.
Enslaved to sin
outside of Christ.
The non-believer
is enslaved
to sin.
That's number one.
And then there's
another here
in verse 9.
Christ died
and rose from the grave
never to die again.
He is right now
in the present,
in this moment,
totally alive
to God.
Paul says
death no longer
has dominion
over Him.
That's the second word.
It's dominion.
Outside of Christ,
the non-believer
is under the dominion
of sin.
There is no
neutral territory
here in the spiritual realm.
There's no
Switzerland
in the spiritual realm.
Okay?
No neutrality.
And so,
Paul says it again
here in verse 14
to the believer.
He says,
sin will have
no dominion
over you
since you are not
under law
but under grace.
It's one or the other.
Let's just think
about these images
for a minute.
We should realize
here the way
Paul's talking
about sin
is not just
the bad things
we do.
Okay?
It's not just
isolated bad thoughts,
bad actions,
mean words,
bad things that we do,
isolated mistakes.
Paul says,
Paul describes it
as a power
over us.
He says,
sin enslaves people.
People walk in sin
because they are
slaves to sin.
Sinful actions,
they flow out
of a sinful condition.
They are the result
of sin
waging authority
over us.
We're not neutral here.
Outside of the freedom
of Christ,
we can't do anything
other than be a slave
to sin.
Why?
Because that enslaving
power of sin
has dominion
over us
if we're outside
of Christ.
Outside of Christ,
it has authority
over us.
If you're not in Christ,
you are in sin.
If you're not submitting
to Christ,
you are submitting
yourself to sin.
You have no power,
no freedom
in this situation.
You know,
people fool themselves
into thinking
that they're free
as they live in sin.
They say,
I'm free to live
and do
and act as I want.
How in the world
if I can do
whatever I want?
I can choose
to live
however I want.
How in the world
am I a slave?
I have the power here.
Friend,
that is a lie.
The Bible says
even your wants
are controlled
by sin.
Even your very desires
that are the impulses
that your actions
flow from,
that is under
the dominion of sin.
Sin is the master
and you are the slave.
He tells us later on
in verse 16,
you are slaves
of the one
whom you obey.
This is the natural state
of every single person
outside of Christ.
What they need
more than anything.
It isn't behavioral control.
It isn't moralism.
It's not
to hear somebody tell them
do this,
don't do that.
Stop doing that.
Try harder.
Be better.
Clean yourself up.
That's not going to help anybody.
What they need
more than anything
is to hear
the good news
of the gospel of Christ.
That Jesus Christ
has come
to set sinners
free
from the power
of sin.
And that is only
by coming to him
in faith
that one is set free
from the bondage of sin.
And so,
Paul tells us in Romans 10,
if you confess
with your mouth
that Jesus is Lord
and you believe
in your heart
that God raised him
from the dead,
you will be saved.
All who are outside
of Christ
are slaves
to sin.
But Paul
isn't talking
to non-believers here.
He's talking
to believers.
He's talking
to those
who are professing
to be in Christ.
And so,
he says,
don't you get it?
Christ has come
to set you free.
Don't you understand
what Jesus has done
for us?
That's who you used
to be.
You used to be
enslaved to sin.
You used to be
under his power
but no longer.
Christ died
to set you free
from the power
of sin.
Christ raised
from the grave
to give you
new life.
How can you
submit again
to the powers
of sin?
You're free
from it.
His victory
is your victory.
His life
is your life.
His death
to sin
is your death
to sin.
If you are united
to him by faith,
everything
he's earned
is yours.
Christian,
I wonder
if you realize,
Christian,
that you
can walk
in resurrection
victory
over sin
right now.
If you are
in Christ,
you can walk
in resurrection
victory
over sin.
This is
incredible grace
towards us
who believe,
isn't it?
Do you realize
that if you
are in Christ,
you have
all the
authority
over sin
that Christ
himself has
over sin.
I remember
when I first
realized this,
it was like,
the lights
went on.
You're telling
me I don't
have to,
I'm not
controlled by
this anymore.
You're telling
me I actually,
I can have
the freedom
to resist
this temptation?
You're telling
me I have
a position
of victory
over sin?
Paul says,
yes,
in Christ,
sin doesn't
rule you
anymore.
Yes,
you can choose
to slip
those chains
back on.
Those chains
leave grooves
on our hearts
and make it
too easy
to slip
right back
on.
You can
choose to
slip them
back on,
but you
don't have
to.
Christ
has purchased
freedom
and victory
for his
people.
One day,
Christ will
return or we
will go to
be with him
and we'll
be finally
done with
the fight,
but until
then,
Christian,
we fight
from a
position of
victory over
sin because
of his
victory at
the cross
in the
empty tomb.
So I want
to close
third point
this morning,
finally.
I just want
us to consider
some ways
practically we
put this
into practice.
So third,
let's see the
resurrection of
Jesus.
Jesus,
it gives us
a new
strategy.
Let's talk
strategy this
morning a little
bit.
How do we
actually put
this into
practice?
What can
we do
tomorrow,
this afternoon,
to fight
against sin
and resurrection
power?
So let's read
these final
verses one more
time and he
gives us three
keys here in
these final
verses for
fighting sin
and resurrection
power.
Paul says
verse 11,
in light of
Jesus' death
and resurrection,
he says,
so you also
must consider
yourselves dead
to sin and
alive to God
in Christ Jesus.
That's number
one.
Consider,
consider,
reckon
yourself dead
to sin and
alive to God
in Christ.
The battle
with sin,
it often
begins with
the mind.
So Paul
says,
fix your
mind daily
on the
glory of
God and
the gospel
of Christ.
Remember,
fix your
mind daily
on what that
means for you
as a Christian.
I can think
of no better
strategy to
give you this
morning for
fighting sin
than to
daily remember
the gospel
of Christ.
Every single
day,
remember the
gospel.
We're six
chapters into
this book.
I know we
didn't cover the
whole book this
morning,
but this is five
chapters of
gospel that's
leading to this
application this
morning.
Remember the
bad news that
yes,
all have sinned
and fallen short
of the glory of
God.
Remember the bad
news that yes,
you are deserving
of the wrath of
God.
But remember and
praise God for the
righteousness of
God through faith
in Jesus Christ
for all who
believe.
Remember and
praise God that
you are justified
by his grace as
a gift through
the redemption
that is in
Christ Jesus,
whom God put
forward as a
propitiation by
his blood to be
received by faith.
Remember and
praise God that
Christ was
delivered up for
our trespasses and
raised for our
justification.
Remember and
praise God that
God, since we
have been justified
by faith, we
have peace with
God through our
Lord Jesus Christ.
We have access
into the grace in
which we stand.
Remember and
praise God that
God's love has
been poured out
into our hearts
through his Holy
Spirit who's been
given to us.
Remember the
gospel.
Remember who we
are in Christ
and who we are
because of Christ.
Remember daily
that Christ has
lived and died
and risen from
the grave in
victory over sin
and death and
so you by faith
in him are also
dead to sin and
alive to God in
Christ.
That's number one.
Fix this in your
mind.
Remember that's
number one.
Second, second
strategy.
Refuse.
as one who is
dead to sin and
alive to God.
Verse 12.
He says, let not
sin therefore reign
in your mortal
body.
Don't let it.
Let not sin
therefore reign in
your mortal body to
make you obey its
passions.
Your body is no
longer under sin's
dominion if you're in
Christ.
But that doesn't
mean that it won't
try and take it back
under his control.
You know this.
Don't let it.
Let me ask you
something.
Imagine that you
were sitting at home
one night, sitting
there just relaxing,
watching TV, and you
look out the window
and you see somebody
pull up in your
driveway.
Now I already know
because I know you
guys, right?
We live out here in
the country.
You're on itch.
All right?
You're ready.
You're alert.
But imagine you see
this guy come up your
driveway.
He parks.
He turns off the
car.
He gets out.
He comes right up to
the front door
uninvited, unannounced.
You think, okay, it
might be nothing.
Probably nothing to
worry about.
Maybe my wife made
an Amazon purchase
and he's coming to
drop something off.
That's usually what it
is.
But now imagine he
starts letting
himself in.
What are you
thinking now?
I know you guys,
again, because we're
here and you're in
your right mind,
you're probably
reaching for the
gun or reaching for
the telephone,
call the police,
but say for some
reason this particular
evening you are
feeling unusually
welcoming that night
and so you let him
in.
He kicks off his
shoes, pushes you
aside, he goes and
sits in your chair.
He starts telling
you how he wants
the house set up.
He gives his order
to your wife for
dinner and then he
kisses her goodnight.
He starts to tell
you, I used to live
in this house, this
was my home.
I used to be the
king of this castle.
How would you
respond?
You would get that
guy out of there,
right?
Immediately.
He doesn't own the
home anymore.
Maybe he used to
take up residence
there, but now
that's your home.
You kick him out.
Paul says that is
exactly how we
ought to handle sin.
It used to reign
in your body, but
no more.
It doesn't belong
in your body
anymore.
If you are in
Christ, sin is an
unwelcome intruder
into Christ
occupied territory.
Christ reigns over
this body now,
not sin.
Chase it off the
porch.
Don't give it one
foot inside the
door.
You refuse it.
You reject it.
You stand your
ground.
You let it know
it's not welcome
here anymore.
Let not sin
therefore reign in
your mortal body to
make you obey its
passions.
It can't tell you
what to do anymore.
You tell it to get
lost.
Which means,
Christian, the
moment it comes
creeping into your
mind, and by God's
grace you see it,
you recognize it for
what it is, the
moment it comes into
your mind, that
lustful desire,
that jealousy,
that anger,
that pride, that
selfishness, whatever
it tends to be for you,
the moment you see
it, you say with
all the authority of
the risen Lord
Jesus, get out and
never come back.
I'm not serving you
anymore.
You don't own me
anymore.
The old me that
serves sin as a
slave is dead, and
the new me that
lives by faith in
Christ lives outside
of the dominion of
sin.
Refuse it.
And third, third
strategy, present.
Do not present your
members to sin as
instruments for
unrighteousness, but
present yourselves to
God as those who have
been brought from death
to life, and your
members to God as
instruments for
righteousness.
It is not enough to
just play defense.
Defense wins
championships.
But you've got to
move the ball up the
field, right?
You have to play
offense.
Stop offering your
members to sin as
instruments for
unrighteousness.
But now, positively
speaking, he says,
now present yourselves
to God.
And you know, I
looked into this this
week, and I've got to
admit I'm a little
confused by the way
it's translated here.
I don't know why it's
translated instruments.
Because that makes me
think of like a
piano.
Or a tool or
something.
But that's not what
the word means.
This word here for
instruments, it's
interesting.
It only shows up six
times in the New
Testament.
Everywhere else it
shows up, you know
what it's translated?
It is not instruments.
It's translated
weapons.
Or armor, one time.
Armor.
War.
This is war language.
Do not present your
members as weapons of
war used for evil, but
rather lend yourself as a
weapon in the hands of
almighty God, as weapons
of righteousness.
righteousness.
Let's just do an exercise
real quick.
Think with me just for a
minute about your last
week.
Sunday to Sunday.
Okay?
All your time at work, all
your time at home, all your
time in traffic.
Ask yourself, have I
offered my mind this week
as a weapon for
unrighteousness?
Or have I taken every
thought captive and made
it obedient to Christ?
How about our feet?
Where did your feet take
you this week?
Have we walked in the
counsel of the wicked or
stood in the way of
sinners or sat in the
seat of scoffers?
Or do we walk in newness
of life going as the Lord
leaves you in paths of
righteousness for his
name's sake?
How about your hands?
Have you offered up your
hands as weapons for
unrighteousness to tear
down and to destroy, to
harm or to assault, to
desecrate your body?
Or have they been offered
as weapons of
righteousness to build up
and to serve one
another and to be used to
love your neighbor as
yourself and used to help
and not to harm?
How about your mouth?
Have we offered up our
mouth as weapons of
unrighteousness?
Do we with the same
mouth bless our Lord and
Father and with it curse
people who are made in the
likeness of God?
Do we use it to gossip or
slander or insult?
Or do we use it to to
encourage one another and to
build one another up in
Christ and and to share the
good news of the gospel with
our our friends and our
neighbors and our co-workers
and our family members?
Paul says your body.
The members of your body
are our weapons in an
unseen spiritual war.
They can be lent to the
service of sin and fired
off in the direction of
unrighteousness or now that
you are in Christ.
They can be used.
They must be used as
weapons of righteousness in
the service of the Lord.
Paul says, Christian, we
must remember that we by the
grace of God have been
rescued from the enemy's
belonging.
You no longer belong to the
other side.
Don't give them guns and
ammo.
Offer yourselves up.
Join the fight.
as those who have been
brought from death to
life.
This is the strategy church
Paul gives us.
Remember your identity in
Christ.
Walk in his victory over
sin.
Reckon yourself dead to sin
and alive to God in
Christ.
Refuse even one inch of
territory to the enemy's
sin and join the fight.
Present your members as
weapons for righteousness
sake.
The Christian life is a
war.
We all know it.
We all experience it.
But we praise God that it
is a war that has already
been won.
Thomas Watson, the great
English Puritan, he says,
soon the battle will be
over.
It will not be long now
before the day will come
when Satan will no longer
trouble us.
There will be no more
domination, temptation,
accusation, or
confrontation.
Our warfare will be over
and our commander, Jesus
Christ, will call us away
from the battlefield to
receive the victor's
crown.
That day will come.
Soon and very soon,
church.
But until then,
Christian,
are we walking in
resurrection power
over sin?
Father, we praise you.
We praise you for the
victory Christ has won over
sin in the grave.
We are helpless in this
fight apart from your
strength,
apart from your spirit in
us.
Lord, we are helpless to put
sin to death, but because
of Christ and in Christ and
by the power of Christ,
Lord, we have victory over
sin.
So we pray we would walk in
it.
We pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.