WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.980 And here we are, as we continue on in Romans, we see that Paul, after making such a fantastic 00:00:07.980 --> 00:00:15.439 ! airtight case in chapter 1 to 3 about the sinfulness and unrighteousness of mankind, from 00:00:15.439 --> 00:00:23.359 ! the tail end of chapter 3 all the way to chapter 6, he makes this seem what seems to 00:00:23.359 --> 00:00:29.039 be like an over-the-top case for Christianity. He is describing it in the best, the highest, 00:00:29.039 --> 00:00:35.659 the most grandiose language. And I have to ask myself, if I'm being honest, and maybe 00:00:35.659 --> 00:00:45.179 you will as well, is Paul really, does he really believe what he's preaching? Is he over-promising 00:00:45.179 --> 00:00:53.259 only to under-deliver? Is Christianity too good to be true? You know, he is talking about Christianity 00:00:53.259 --> 00:01:00.859 being a free gift. God is giving us the very righteousness of Christ so that, not that we 00:01:00.859 --> 00:01:05.780 have to get into his presence, we don't have to work hard, we actually don't have to work 00:01:05.780 --> 00:01:12.239 at all, we just need to receive what he has given us. Is it that easy? Is this gift of 00:01:12.239 --> 00:01:20.560 grace so good and so powerful that we can just coast into eternity? And if that's the case, 00:01:21.019 --> 00:01:26.500 what's the point of dealing with sin? If sin, in fact, is the reason grace is given, why not 00:01:26.500 --> 00:01:33.840 continue to sin if it leads to even more grace? Is the gospel that Paul preaches a bit too good 00:01:33.840 --> 00:01:42.579 to be true? So, Paul actually answers, or he will pose this question as a questioner himself, 00:01:42.859 --> 00:01:48.300 and he will look to explain that that is actually not the case at all. So, in chapter 6, he's going 00:01:48.300 --> 00:01:54.140 to do this in two parts, 1 to 14 and 15 to the end of the chapter. We're just going to look at the 00:01:54.140 --> 00:02:03.460 first part, verses 1 to 14 this morning. And Paul will talk about how really, how it boils down to 00:02:03.459 --> 00:02:09.039 experience the gospel. Okay? He's explained why we need the gospel, he explains what the gospel is, 00:02:09.159 --> 00:02:15.620 and now he's going to explain how to experience the gospel, and especially how to experience it as 00:02:15.620 --> 00:02:22.659 people who live in this fallen world. So, we're going to break up the text into three points, and 00:02:22.659 --> 00:02:29.759 then there is quite a big application at the end, but this is how it's going to be broken down. 00:02:29.759 --> 00:02:35.639 First, Paul's going to talk about how we are dead to sin, verses 2 to 7. Then he's going to talk about 00:02:35.639 --> 00:02:41.979 how we are alive in Christ, verses 8 to 11. And then finally, he's going to talk about how this 00:02:41.979 --> 00:02:50.419 reality infuses, infuses our life with incredible purpose. So, turn with me, Scripture Journal again, 00:02:50.419 --> 00:02:54.439 we are on page 26. Read with me, verses 1 and 2. 00:02:56.299 --> 00:03:05.000 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means. How can we who 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:13.639 died to sin still live in it? If the gospel is a free gift of grace, the concept, or sorry, free gift 00:03:13.639 --> 00:03:21.519 of grace that abounds all the more in the sinful human heart. How do we treat sin? Are we to treat 00:03:21.519 --> 00:03:30.919 it lightly? Should we presume upon the grace of God? Paul says, God forbid. In the Greek, there is no more 00:03:30.919 --> 00:03:39.379 of an intense way of him to push back against this. He is saying, like, God forbid, heaven forbid, 00:03:39.379 --> 00:03:45.539 it's like he is invoking the highest form of pushback to this objection that he is looking to 00:03:45.539 --> 00:03:52.900 counter. Paul is going to essentially tell us that such a line of questioning fails to grasp the 00:03:52.900 --> 00:04:01.939 concept of grace itself, and also the gravity of sin. Yes, what we have in salvation, the righteousness 00:04:01.939 --> 00:04:08.099 of God, it is a free gift of grace. Yes, the only way to enjoy it is to receive it by faith. Paul is not 00:04:08.099 --> 00:04:14.639 contradicting the previous chapters at all. Yes, it is far greater than sin and leads to God himself, 00:04:15.199 --> 00:04:21.579 but Paul is going to say next. But it means also, and most importantly, that we have to die. 00:04:23.540 --> 00:04:30.159 You'll notice that verses two and four, Paul will use die, death, or dead four times. Look with me. 00:04:30.259 --> 00:04:35.879 We'll read it briefly. Verse two, by no means. How can we who died to sin still live in it? 00:04:35.879 --> 00:04:40.740 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his 00:04:40.740 --> 00:04:47.480 death? We were buried, therefore, with him by baptism into death, in order that just as Christ 00:04:47.480 --> 00:04:52.879 was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. Okay, so four 00:04:52.879 --> 00:04:59.339 times in the three verses. For the rest of our section, he will use it, death, or dead, or died, 00:04:59.339 --> 00:05:08.599 an additional 11 times. It's a big deal in this section. Talking again about the experience of 00:05:08.599 --> 00:05:17.159 what it means to live out this gospel. Paul says, you have to die. All of a sudden, it's not exactly 00:05:17.159 --> 00:05:22.519 seeming like the best news ever, but let's pause really quickly. 00:05:22.519 --> 00:05:30.219 Because we're going to have to really get a handle on what he means by this death, or this 00:05:30.219 --> 00:05:37.519 being dead to sin, or dying to sin. And really, it boils down to this. To be dead to sin, or to die in sin, 00:05:37.959 --> 00:05:44.879 is to no longer be under the reign and rule of sin. Sin no longer is the master, the ruler, the tyrant 00:05:44.879 --> 00:05:50.879 that we are under. So what Paul is saying by implication is that there was a time that we were under the 00:05:50.879 --> 00:05:57.399 dominion of sin. We are under the rule of sin. We were subjects to sin and subject to sin. 00:06:00.159 --> 00:06:05.480 Through the Bible, death and its connection to sin are often spoken of in almost a legal or 00:06:05.480 --> 00:06:10.560 transactional way. Those who are under the rule of sin are therefore both subject to death and 00:06:10.560 --> 00:06:19.079 subjects to death. Later in chapter 6, Paul will say that, in fact, death, there's a wage to pay for 00:06:19.079 --> 00:06:25.279 death. He will say that the wages of sin are death. That's how he'll end chapter 6. What he is saying is 00:06:25.279 --> 00:06:30.719 there's no getting around sin. There's no getting around death. In fact, it has dominion over us. 00:06:32.180 --> 00:06:33.599 Therefore, being dead to sin 00:06:33.599 --> 00:06:35.199 is 00:06:35.199 --> 00:06:40.439 this declaration that sin's reign has come to an end. 00:06:41.620 --> 00:06:43.399 It's really important, though, that we 00:06:43.399 --> 00:06:49.759 understand what Paul is not saying. Being dead to sin cannot mean that the Christian will never sin 00:06:49.759 --> 00:06:55.079 after conversion. Now, again, this is a letter. We're reading it in sections, but it would have been 00:06:55.079 --> 00:07:00.579 read in one sitting. There's no, in the original Greek, there's no chapter and verse. There's no page 00:07:00.579 --> 00:07:08.479 breaks. So in just a few paragraphs to come, chapter 7, Paul will make it very clear that sin continues 00:07:08.480 --> 00:07:13.200 after conversion. You'll make that very clear. We'll look at that in a couple of weeks. 00:07:14.660 --> 00:07:21.160 But it's important that we do understand that what it does mean is that we are no longer under the 00:07:21.160 --> 00:07:26.580 tyrannical rule of sin. We are not bound to it by guilt. It's not our ultimate end. It's no longer our 00:07:26.580 --> 00:07:34.840 destiny. It does not have an absolute power over us where we cannot push back against it. Sin is, 00:07:34.839 --> 00:07:38.799 it is kneecapped. It is a defeated foe. 00:07:41.000 --> 00:07:47.259 Paul says that this is our ultimate reality because we have been uncoupled from sin's rule over us. 00:07:47.519 --> 00:07:49.759 So a couple weeks ago, Matt preached last week 00:07:49.759 --> 00:07:54.559 on 1 Peter. The week before, we looked at 00:07:54.559 --> 00:07:58.159 chapter 5 where Paul talks about how we 00:07:58.159 --> 00:08:02.859 previously, before Christ, we were coupled 00:08:02.860 --> 00:08:04.840 to Adam. And that 00:08:04.840 --> 00:08:07.000 simply meant, I mean it's not simply, 00:08:07.360 --> 00:08:09.300 but simply meant for us this morning is that 00:08:09.300 --> 00:08:10.939 when we were coupled to Adam, 00:08:11.180 --> 00:08:12.680 we were subject to 00:08:12.680 --> 00:08:15.040 all of the results 00:08:15.040 --> 00:08:16.860 of sin and death that came 00:08:16.860 --> 00:08:19.100 through Adam because of what happened 00:08:19.100 --> 00:08:20.980 in the garden when he disobeyed God. 00:08:21.699 --> 00:08:22.900 Paul is saying is that 00:08:22.900 --> 00:08:24.800 we are no longer coupled to Adam 00:08:24.800 --> 00:08:26.879 and therefore no longer coupled to the 00:08:26.879 --> 00:08:28.520 power of sin that came through him. 00:08:28.860 --> 00:08:30.860 But now we are coupled to 00:08:30.860 --> 00:08:34.080 Christ. We are coupled to Christ. 00:08:37.019 --> 00:08:40.240 Christ who broke sin's power on the cross when he died. 00:08:41.500 --> 00:08:42.779 How does this come about? 00:08:43.340 --> 00:08:44.980 So we read verses 3 and 4. 00:08:45.159 --> 00:08:50.419 We'll read them again and then we'll take a little bit of time in them to explain how this comes about. 00:08:50.879 --> 00:08:52.060 Verses 3 and 4 again. 00:08:52.059 --> 00:08:58.059 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ were baptized into his death? 00:08:58.719 --> 00:09:09.239 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. 00:09:09.240 --> 00:09:15.240 Paul is saying that we have been also crucified. 00:09:15.240 --> 00:09:18.700 He will say that later on in verses 5 and 6. 00:09:19.320 --> 00:09:21.879 But he is essentially saying, hold on a second. 00:09:22.139 --> 00:09:23.200 You are actually dead. 00:09:23.840 --> 00:09:27.500 You cannot therefore live as if you are under the rule of sin. 00:09:27.700 --> 00:09:28.460 How do we know this? 00:09:28.620 --> 00:09:29.399 How does it come about? 00:09:29.580 --> 00:09:30.259 Through baptism. 00:09:31.720 --> 00:09:34.779 This is why baptism is indispensable to the Christian life. 00:09:34.779 --> 00:09:39.139 It is the means by which we identify with Christ in his death. 00:09:40.120 --> 00:09:43.179 We transfer our membership from sin to Christ. 00:09:43.279 --> 00:09:44.379 We uncouple from sin. 00:09:44.720 --> 00:09:46.100 We couple to Christ. 00:09:46.519 --> 00:09:48.299 But it's not merely a symbol. 00:09:48.959 --> 00:09:49.039 Okay? 00:09:50.539 --> 00:09:53.100 Paul says that it is a burial. 00:09:53.879 --> 00:09:58.699 And what he doesn't say, he doesn't say baptism is like a burial. 00:09:58.860 --> 00:10:01.139 He says it is a burial. 00:10:01.139 --> 00:10:10.360 Baptism is described in the New Testament as, it's used with many different kind of analogies and imagery. 00:10:10.919 --> 00:10:15.960 But in all occasions, it is described as having power, having efficacy. 00:10:17.139 --> 00:10:24.299 And to be clear, what I'm not saying, and I would push back against anybody who would read Paul saying this as well, 00:10:24.639 --> 00:10:26.139 that baptism doesn't save. 00:10:26.139 --> 00:10:26.699 Okay? 00:10:26.779 --> 00:10:30.899 It's not just that you get a child baptized, they're immediately going to heaven, or you're baptized, 00:10:31.120 --> 00:10:33.860 and therefore you are immediately going to heaven. 00:10:35.299 --> 00:10:40.580 However, through the waters of the baptism, we are buried with Christ. 00:10:41.039 --> 00:10:42.019 That's what Paul is saying. 00:10:42.399 --> 00:10:44.080 We are dying. 00:10:44.480 --> 00:10:45.899 We have died with him. 00:10:46.899 --> 00:10:52.939 We must be united to Christ by faith, which means we are united to him in his death as well. 00:10:52.940 --> 00:10:57.080 And baptism is this picture of that death. 00:10:58.440 --> 00:10:59.520 Why is this important? 00:11:01.180 --> 00:11:04.880 Because it ultimately means that we are freed from slavery. 00:11:05.560 --> 00:11:08.380 We are freed from this subjection to sin. 00:11:08.660 --> 00:11:11.780 And this will become much clearer in verses 5 to 7. 00:11:12.120 --> 00:11:12.720 Read with me. 00:11:12.720 --> 00:11:21.300 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. 00:11:21.940 --> 00:11:27.540 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, 00:11:28.139 --> 00:11:32.139 so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 00:11:32.279 --> 00:11:37.399 For, this is the key bit, for one who has died has been set free from sin. 00:11:37.399 --> 00:11:44.600 How do we know that we are no longer subjects, we are no longer slaves to sin, and that we have been set free from its rule? 00:11:45.779 --> 00:11:54.679 Is it that we no longer sin or that we will no longer struggle with our hang-ups, with our habits, with our habitual sin? 00:11:54.679 --> 00:12:02.479 That we will be nicer and kinder and more obedient to the will of God and to others? 00:12:03.459 --> 00:12:04.819 That's not what Paul is saying here. 00:12:05.239 --> 00:12:08.019 And it's actually very important that he is not saying that. 00:12:08.479 --> 00:12:12.620 For if that were the case, our salvation would be strictly experiential. 00:12:12.620 --> 00:12:21.299 And we could go on for a time, but ultimately, when, not if, but when, we fall back into the cycle of sin, 00:12:22.539 --> 00:12:28.779 our entire edifice, our entire structure of salvation will come crashing down upon us. 00:12:31.600 --> 00:12:33.460 Temptation and sin certainly have power. 00:12:33.879 --> 00:12:40.639 But what Paul is describing here is actually an objective reality that has happened to anybody who is in Christ. 00:12:40.639 --> 00:12:46.379 He is saying, again, in very clear terms, that sin is defeated. 00:12:47.199 --> 00:12:49.860 It can no longer hold us as slaves any longer. 00:12:51.419 --> 00:12:53.179 We have been crucified with Christ. 00:12:53.299 --> 00:12:54.819 We are no longer subjects of sin. 00:12:55.279 --> 00:13:01.840 And therefore, in rebellious opposition to God, we have been given a new identity, a new purpose, a new life. 00:13:03.799 --> 00:13:07.279 What does this resurrected life look like? 00:13:07.279 --> 00:13:10.259 And this will be a transition now to our second point. 00:13:10.639 --> 00:13:12.559 Being made alive in Christ. 00:13:12.639 --> 00:13:14.559 Look with me at verses 8 to 11. 00:13:14.939 --> 00:13:15.559 8 to 11. 00:13:17.199 --> 00:13:21.259 Now, if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 00:13:22.059 --> 00:13:25.559 We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again. 00:13:25.699 --> 00:13:27.539 Death no longer has dominion over him. 00:13:28.120 --> 00:13:30.580 For the death he died, he died to sin once for all. 00:13:30.620 --> 00:13:32.919 But the life he lives, he lives to God. 00:13:32.919 --> 00:13:39.299 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. 00:13:39.299 --> 00:13:43.439 See, the death that Christ died was a singular event. 00:13:43.440 --> 00:13:51.720 It occurred in history at a very specific time and place for a very specific and ultimate purpose. 00:13:52.500 --> 00:13:55.660 Verse 10 says that the death he died was once for all. 00:13:56.560 --> 00:14:00.020 He did not die as an example of how we ought to die. 00:14:00.120 --> 00:14:02.060 And therefore, we follow his example. 00:14:02.220 --> 00:14:03.820 But ultimately, we have to die. 00:14:03.820 --> 00:14:10.100 He's not some mere instructor that's demonstrating the process of salvation for us to then follow. 00:14:10.240 --> 00:14:14.260 Nor does he have to die continually for every person he wishes to save. 00:14:14.440 --> 00:14:21.980 As if he is some kind of tragic Greek figure who is subject to perpetual eternal agony. 00:14:22.300 --> 00:14:24.360 Over and over and over and over again. 00:14:25.900 --> 00:14:27.360 Paul says, no, he died once. 00:14:28.120 --> 00:14:29.440 And he dies for all. 00:14:29.440 --> 00:14:33.260 He pays the wages of sin, thereby breaking its power. 00:14:33.980 --> 00:14:36.840 And so being raised from the dead, not merely resuscitated. 00:14:37.940 --> 00:14:45.380 There's examples in Scripture like Lazarus who is resuscitated but would have ultimately died again. 00:14:45.480 --> 00:14:47.080 Christ is resurrected. 00:14:47.260 --> 00:14:48.020 There's a difference. 00:14:48.180 --> 00:14:49.740 He cannot die again. 00:14:49.820 --> 00:14:52.860 He's not subject to death again. 00:14:53.560 --> 00:14:56.340 So that when he rises, he lives to God. 00:14:57.280 --> 00:14:58.840 His life is imperfect. 00:14:59.740 --> 00:15:00.500 Harmonious. 00:15:01.340 --> 00:15:01.800 Intimate. 00:15:01.960 --> 00:15:02.520 Love-filled. 00:15:02.680 --> 00:15:03.340 Love-sharing. 00:15:03.520 --> 00:15:04.080 Unbroken. 00:15:04.380 --> 00:15:05.180 Unbreakable. 00:15:05.700 --> 00:15:08.780 Eternally blessed connection with the Father. 00:15:10.140 --> 00:15:16.460 And Paul says that if we are united to Christ in his death, we will be united to him in his resurrection. 00:15:16.900 --> 00:15:18.980 So that we will never die again. 00:15:18.980 --> 00:15:31.960 And so if Christ will enjoy a perfect, harmonious, intimate, love-filled, love-sharing, unbroken, unbreakable, eternally blessed connection with the Father, then we will too. 00:15:31.960 --> 00:15:33.759 That's what Paul is saying. 00:15:34.440 --> 00:15:36.519 That's what it means to be alive in Christ. 00:15:37.639 --> 00:15:43.460 Put another way, whatever is true of Christ, Paul says becomes true of us. 00:15:43.560 --> 00:15:43.780 Why? 00:15:44.100 --> 00:15:45.340 Because we are united to him. 00:15:45.340 --> 00:15:50.259 In his death, but also in his resurrection. 00:15:54.639 --> 00:15:57.960 Listen, there is a good chance that... 00:15:57.960 --> 00:16:00.139 Why is this a hopeful thing? 00:16:00.240 --> 00:16:01.300 Why is this a wonderful thing? 00:16:01.299 --> 00:16:10.959 By the end of 2026, there's a very good chance that we will, as a country, reach 100,000 deaths by legal assisted suicide. 00:16:12.339 --> 00:16:13.179 It's heartbreaking. 00:16:13.319 --> 00:16:14.679 It's gone on for 10 years now. 00:16:14.679 --> 00:16:21.639 People who suffer, whether physically or mentally, whether death appears imminent or suffering is intolerable. 00:16:22.819 --> 00:16:27.859 People, understandably, understandably, and we should have compassion on people that struggle with this, 00:16:28.639 --> 00:16:30.579 understandably want the pain to stop. 00:16:32.559 --> 00:16:36.359 There's real suffering, and it is a good thing to want pain to stop. 00:16:37.539 --> 00:16:41.659 They wish to no longer be subject to death and subjects of death. 00:16:41.659 --> 00:16:53.199 It's a remarkable thing that we get to witness that, in very real time, we see a segment of the population completely fed up with death and suffering and pain. 00:16:54.459 --> 00:16:56.620 The problem is, hope is absent. 00:16:58.659 --> 00:17:03.759 Because the only choice before them appears to be between life with suffering and death. 00:17:05.139 --> 00:17:09.220 But the offer in the gospel is infinitely more hopeful. 00:17:09.220 --> 00:17:16.339 If the only way to break from the reign of sin is death, and we saw that in verse 7, right? 00:17:16.460 --> 00:17:17.660 Verse 7, what does Paul say? 00:17:18.059 --> 00:17:20.740 For one who has died has been set free from sin. 00:17:22.339 --> 00:17:23.940 Then we must die to be free. 00:17:25.100 --> 00:17:30.279 But the problem with that is that when you die to be free from sin, then you're dead. 00:17:30.640 --> 00:17:31.319 And you can't live. 00:17:31.920 --> 00:17:32.140 Okay? 00:17:32.140 --> 00:17:35.180 So, you might be free from sin, but then you cease to live. 00:17:35.280 --> 00:17:37.120 You cease to enjoy life. 00:17:37.220 --> 00:17:40.540 And ultimately, is that not what we want to do, is to enjoy life? 00:17:40.539 --> 00:17:54.079 But if we are united to Christ, Paul says, in his death, that means we are also united to him in his resurrection, 00:17:54.960 --> 00:18:02.159 which means that we can, in a very, very, very, very real way, again, we're baptized into the death of Christ. 00:18:02.160 --> 00:18:11.140 We are freed from the slavery of sin, but then we don't stay dead. 00:18:11.440 --> 00:18:14.779 Because if Christ rose again, it means we get to rise with him. 00:18:15.259 --> 00:18:22.680 And therefore, we can be free from both slavery and the hopelessness of sin and the pain of suffering, 00:18:23.120 --> 00:18:27.259 and live forever, and enjoy life forever. 00:18:27.259 --> 00:18:34.220 Friends, this, if we can grasp it, is an incredibly transformative reality. 00:18:35.440 --> 00:18:37.900 An incredibly transformative gift that we are offered. 00:18:38.799 --> 00:18:43.599 It does not mean that there will be no suffering in this life, or that we will be fully free of sin. 00:18:44.180 --> 00:18:50.599 But it does mean that our life will be infused with eternal perspective and eternal purpose. 00:18:51.299 --> 00:18:54.420 And it's directly connected to the God of righteousness himself. 00:18:54.940 --> 00:18:57.200 And this will lead us to our third and final point. 00:18:57.759 --> 00:19:02.519 Verses 12 to 14, that the gospel infuses us with a life of purpose. 00:19:02.900 --> 00:19:04.559 Read with me verses 12 to 14. 00:19:05.559 --> 00:19:09.700 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body to make you obey its passions. 00:19:10.420 --> 00:19:14.160 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness. 00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:19.359 But present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life. 00:19:19.980 --> 00:19:22.460 And your members to God as instruments for righteousness. 00:19:22.460 --> 00:19:24.579 For sin will have no dominion over you. 00:19:25.079 --> 00:19:28.360 Since you are not under law, but under grace. 00:19:29.299 --> 00:19:36.840 Friends, if we have been united to Christ in his death and resurrection, coming under his godly rule and reign, 00:19:36.940 --> 00:19:43.259 we must be people that are actually serious about sin and obedience to the Lord. 00:19:43.259 --> 00:19:50.579 We are told here not to allow sin to reign in our mortal bodies, in our hearts, our minds, in our affections, 00:19:51.539 --> 00:19:53.900 and in all the things we spend our time and treasures on. 00:19:53.960 --> 00:19:57.900 We are called to be ruthless with evil and sin. 00:19:57.900 --> 00:20:02.740 Not to be saved, but because we are saved. 00:20:03.740 --> 00:20:07.540 We are not to present our bodies as vehicles or channels of sin any longer. 00:20:09.000 --> 00:20:12.920 Instead, we are told to present our bodies to God as instruments of righteousness. 00:20:13.820 --> 00:20:14.780 And how can we do that? 00:20:15.540 --> 00:20:18.340 Because we have been brought by Christ from death to life. 00:20:18.540 --> 00:20:21.220 Sin no longer has dominion over us. 00:20:21.220 --> 00:20:27.519 Now we can be used by God, not for unrighteousness, but for righteousness. 00:20:29.319 --> 00:20:37.960 It means that God, the uncreated creator who is infinitely bigger, more majestic than we could ever wrap our minds around, 00:20:39.279 --> 00:20:44.680 he will use us to do his will, to accomplish his will, 00:20:44.680 --> 00:20:49.960 to extend his loving kindness and care to the world around us. 00:20:51.220 --> 00:20:53.839 It's a remarkable thing to consider. 00:20:55.380 --> 00:20:59.339 Just consider what he is, the apostle is saying. 00:21:00.440 --> 00:21:06.200 We can be instruments either to death, so that we live selfishly and pridefully, 00:21:06.460 --> 00:21:08.940 and what will come about with this kind of living? 00:21:09.900 --> 00:21:15.180 Pain and sorrow and maybe even death that we bring upon others and ourselves. 00:21:16.740 --> 00:21:18.440 It's a life of wickedness. 00:21:18.440 --> 00:21:24.480 Or we can live lives that are instruments to life. 00:21:25.620 --> 00:21:30.100 And in service of Christ, we become the means by which his righteous rule is extended. 00:21:31.539 --> 00:21:33.740 We get to be used by the creator. 00:21:34.980 --> 00:21:37.580 But we also need to be real, okay? 00:21:37.660 --> 00:21:39.980 Because like I opened up at the beginning, 00:21:40.600 --> 00:21:44.740 this world, this reality is a tension that we live in, right? 00:21:44.740 --> 00:21:48.599 On one hand, we have died to the dominion of sin. 00:21:49.000 --> 00:21:50.519 We have been raised with Christ. 00:21:50.799 --> 00:21:51.460 Where is Christ? 00:21:51.539 --> 00:21:56.180 He is at the right hand of God in intimate fellowship, unbreakable, unbroken, 00:21:57.059 --> 00:21:59.339 blessed connection with God the Father. 00:21:59.839 --> 00:22:03.339 And yet, we experience something very different in this life, do we not? 00:22:03.339 --> 00:22:10.339 There's a civil war between our flesh and our soul, between unrighteousness and righteousness, 00:22:10.599 --> 00:22:13.139 life and death, sin and God. 00:22:13.899 --> 00:22:17.959 You know, there's this interesting bit, and I have it here, but for the sake of time, I won't read it. 00:22:18.299 --> 00:22:22.799 The second to last chapter in the return of the king, the ring is destroyed, 00:22:22.799 --> 00:22:26.579 the dark lord is defeated, and the hobbits go back to the shire, 00:22:26.779 --> 00:22:35.059 and the shire is under the rule and reign of the deposed Saruman. 00:22:36.779 --> 00:22:44.440 And there's this exchange at the very end where Frodo tells Saruman to leave, 00:22:45.379 --> 00:22:48.240 and Saruman says, like, not a chance, and the hobbits go to kill him. 00:22:49.200 --> 00:22:53.500 And Saruman says, if you do that, I will curse you, and death will be upon you. 00:22:53.559 --> 00:22:56.140 And Frodo says, actually, don't listen to him. 00:22:56.319 --> 00:22:57.779 His words don't have weight anymore. 00:22:58.960 --> 00:23:04.160 And yet, the fact is, the reality of sin was very, in darkness, 00:23:04.380 --> 00:23:06.339 and evil was very present in the shire. 00:23:06.759 --> 00:23:09.660 So too is it like with us in this life. 00:23:10.240 --> 00:23:16.319 Although sin is defeated, we are no longer under the power and the reign and the rule of sin. 00:23:16.319 --> 00:23:18.939 The effects of sin come at us hard. 00:23:20.019 --> 00:23:23.220 And this world is far from perfect, and we are far from perfect, 00:23:23.539 --> 00:23:28.799 and all of a sudden we realize that there is a civil war that we need to fight until kingdom come. 00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:34.559 Not by ourselves, by God's help, by the empowering of our Holy, 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:38.639 by the Holy Spirit, which resides in us, but still it's a battle. 00:23:38.640 --> 00:23:47.220 So then, how do we have victory when the tension between these forces is all too real? 00:23:48.140 --> 00:23:50.780 Even though sin is defeated, and it is defeated, 00:23:51.780 --> 00:23:54.480 it does not have dominion over us anymore, 00:23:54.600 --> 00:23:58.060 it can still seem so powerful, it's so overpowering, 00:23:58.200 --> 00:24:01.060 and it blasts these lies to us that say, 00:24:01.400 --> 00:24:02.880 defeating me is hopeless. 00:24:03.520 --> 00:24:04.060 Good luck. 00:24:04.059 --> 00:24:10.480 How do we then have victory and walk in obedience to the Lord? 00:24:10.519 --> 00:24:12.079 I think there's a clue, and this is how we'll end. 00:24:12.559 --> 00:24:15.980 There's a clue in verses 3, 6, 8, 9, and 11. 00:24:16.119 --> 00:24:16.960 See if you can pick it up. 00:24:17.000 --> 00:24:17.779 I'll read these verses. 00:24:19.679 --> 00:24:23.159 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ, 00:24:23.220 --> 00:24:24.019 and he continues on, 00:24:24.899 --> 00:24:25.679 we, verse 6, 00:24:25.759 --> 00:24:28.419 we know that our old self was crucified with him. 00:24:29.200 --> 00:24:29.839 Verse 8, 00:24:29.839 --> 00:24:31.720 Now, if we have died with Christ, 00:24:31.819 --> 00:24:34.619 we believe that we will also live with him. 00:24:34.679 --> 00:24:35.179 Verse 9, 00:24:35.259 --> 00:24:37.659 we know that Christ, being raised from the dead, 00:24:38.119 --> 00:24:39.240 will never die again. 00:24:39.379 --> 00:24:39.939 Verse 11, 00:24:40.099 --> 00:24:46.319 so you must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to Christ in Christ Jesus. 00:24:46.459 --> 00:24:47.079 Did you catch it? 00:24:49.000 --> 00:24:51.059 Know, believe, consider. 00:24:53.079 --> 00:24:54.419 Paul is telling us, listen, 00:24:54.579 --> 00:24:55.399 where is the battle? 00:24:55.559 --> 00:24:57.980 Ultimately, it's in our minds, it's in our hearts. 00:24:57.980 --> 00:25:04.620 And we must constantly remind ourselves and each other of our new reality in Christ. 00:25:05.539 --> 00:25:08.380 We must feed on the truth that we are united with Christ, 00:25:08.819 --> 00:25:11.039 uncoupled from sin, coupled to Jesus, 00:25:11.880 --> 00:25:16.319 and we need to encourage each other to never make treaties with sin. 00:25:17.519 --> 00:25:19.920 To encourage each other that sin is a defeated foe. 00:25:19.980 --> 00:25:21.460 To remind us of that. 00:25:21.460 --> 00:25:28.900 In the same way that Frodo, he reminded or told the shire that Sauron's a liar. 00:25:29.120 --> 00:25:30.380 His words hold no weight. 00:25:30.900 --> 00:25:32.279 We need to do that with one another. 00:25:33.019 --> 00:25:34.200 We need to do that with ourselves. 00:25:35.440 --> 00:25:37.980 Sin is a deposed tyrant. 00:25:38.299 --> 00:25:39.920 And at best, it's a guerrilla force. 00:25:40.920 --> 00:25:42.900 Guerrilla forces can do a lot of damage. 00:25:42.900 --> 00:25:45.920 But in this case, they are the rebels. 00:25:48.019 --> 00:25:50.960 They can't overrun Christ. 00:25:51.360 --> 00:25:53.000 Sin cannot overrun Christ. 00:25:53.519 --> 00:25:54.640 It can never regain the kingdom. 00:25:55.680 --> 00:26:03.200 We need to remind ourselves that we must abide in this wonderful delighting in Christ. 00:26:03.960 --> 00:26:07.080 We need to help each other to cherish Jesus. 00:26:07.079 --> 00:26:10.599 Knowing and being excited by his grace and love. 00:26:11.419 --> 00:26:14.559 Learning to love the things he loves and hate the things that he hates. 00:26:14.740 --> 00:26:24.740 And constantly asking him to use us as weak-willed as we are to exercise righteousness in the world that we are inhabiting. 00:26:24.740 --> 00:26:37.200 We ought to remind ourselves and to feast on the truth that we ought to love God's kingdom, but we need to love the king first. 00:26:40.900 --> 00:26:42.620 Paul sums this up in verse 11. 00:26:43.720 --> 00:26:49.420 So you must also consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to Christ in Christ Jesus. 00:26:49.420 --> 00:26:56.519 Paul is saying, listen, the gospel is the way by which we come into the faith, but we never leave it. 00:26:56.660 --> 00:26:58.160 We never graduate from the gospel. 00:26:58.820 --> 00:27:00.340 We must know it and know it deeper. 00:27:00.480 --> 00:27:02.980 We must believe it, but believe it stronger. 00:27:03.620 --> 00:27:07.220 We must consider it and consider it in greater depths. 00:27:07.720 --> 00:27:08.380 Act upon it. 00:27:08.500 --> 00:27:09.200 Embrace it. 00:27:09.620 --> 00:27:11.180 Friends, it's a life of faith. 00:27:12.900 --> 00:27:16.340 So returning to the opening question, is the gospel too good to be true? 00:27:16.700 --> 00:27:18.920 On the one hand, yes, it is. 00:27:18.920 --> 00:27:20.580 It's way too good to be true. 00:27:21.019 --> 00:27:28.600 In fact, it's a bit of a scandal to think that we could, as unworthy, unrighteous, sinful human beings, 00:27:28.740 --> 00:27:35.200 be in the presence of the uncreated creator who is love, who is righteousness. 00:27:35.420 --> 00:27:37.380 That is too good to be true. 00:27:37.480 --> 00:27:43.240 How can we truly grasp the grace of God that has been made available to us in Christ Jesus? 00:27:43.240 --> 00:27:49.700 And yet, it is not some fanciful or full of platitude type of faith that we are called to. 00:27:49.819 --> 00:27:50.140 Why? 00:27:50.420 --> 00:27:52.140 Because it will cost us our lives. 00:27:53.539 --> 00:27:54.620 It's a call to death. 00:27:54.619 --> 00:27:57.879 But not just a call to death. 00:27:57.959 --> 00:28:00.019 It's a call to resurrected life. 00:28:01.299 --> 00:28:07.339 Since we have died to Christ, we who are in him will be raised with him. 00:28:08.639 --> 00:28:10.500 Friends, in Christ you are a new creation. 00:28:11.319 --> 00:28:13.399 The old self with its sin is crucified. 00:28:13.619 --> 00:28:14.859 The new self is alive. 00:28:14.859 --> 00:28:19.359 For what is true of Christ is true of us also. 00:28:19.359 --> 00:28:49.339 The new self is alive.