No longer enslaved!
“we were buried with him by baptism into death in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life…. our old self was crucified with him… so that we may no longer be enslaved to sin… so, you too consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body… For sin will not rule over you, because you are not under law but under grace.” – Romans 6:4-14, CSB
We have a new life.
Can we legitimately and rightly consider ourselves dead to sin, no longer under its command, no longer its slaves? Absolutely. Our ‘old self’ was crucified and buried with Christ, and we have been raised to new life in Him so that we can now enjoy and walk in this new life with Him. Sin does not rule over us any longer because we now live a life empowered by the very grace of God! Because of this truth, and on this powerfully strong foundation, we are rightly instructed, “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body.”
You are not doomed to answer that door.
When sin comes knocking we do not need to answer, and we are not doomed to answer. When temptation demands our obedience, and even when the law demands our obedience – read more, pray more, do more, sacrifice more – we can instead walk freely in wonderful, life-giving relationship with God. We can make God-honoring decisions; we can resist and walk away from sin. Consider this. Think and meditate on this truth: When temptation comes, you can literally say, “I am dead to this. I do not have to submit to this. Sin is not inevitable here. I am free in Christ!”
Think:
Your baptism symbolizes the very real spiritual baptism that happened when you put your faith in Jesus. The ‘old you’ was buried with Christ into death and you were then raised to new life in Christ, enabled by God Himself to honor Him. Do you believe this?
What sins knock on your door, trying to convince you that you still belong to them? The next time one of them knocks, speak out what is true: “I am dead to this, and alive to God in Christ Jesus!” And then don’t open that door. You don’t have to.
“You are not under law, but under grace.” Do you believe God’s grace is powerful enough to work real transformation in your life? Consider this to be true as well, because it is! Grace is no small, cute thing; grace is the divine enablement of God Himself at work in you. Did you deserve this? Nope. Does He lavish His loving favor on you anyway, helping you walk out His divine design for your life? Yes! Believe it.
Prayer:
“Jesus, thank You for newness of life, a brand new life no longer enslaved to sin. Thank You for the death that Your Word declares I died with You. Please help me to conform my mindset to this truth! Thank You for the promise that sin will not rule over me, because I am not under law but under grace!”