Alive to God

Prayer

Know you have a new identification

Christians try to fight sin by preaching, “No, no, no.” Paul’s method was to teach, “Know, know, know.”

Romans 6:6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 

Romans 6:7 for he who has died is freed from sin.

Slavery was a cruel life. You were not your owe, you woke up when the master said. You worked when the master said. You ate when and if the master said.

Every moment of your life was controlled by the dictates of the master.

Imagine if you will. Four o’clock in the morning, the voice of the master breaking through your fitful sleep.

“To the fields,” He demands.

You stubble from your cot and head for the fields.

Your friend is too slow to wake and reach the field. He drags in behind the rest of you.

“Ten lashes will teach him to wake on time!” the master bellows.

You watch, helpless and hopelessly, as he is taken to the whipping tree.

You count the lashes, because everyone must attend the education of this slave.

The life of a slave is a cruel one.

The master always demands more of you.

That is how an addiction takes over ones life.

It begins with just fun, and brings a high, either emotional, or physical.

Then each time you experience it, it takes a little more to bring the same excitement.

As time passes, the highs come more often, and the amount needed increases.

Until, one day, the addiction is in control.

Imagine a person trapped in a dark room, unable to escape. Every time they try to leave, they are pulled back by invisible chains. This reflects our reality; sin ensnares us and we often feel powerless to resist. Yet, just as a light can pierce through darkness, Christ offers us a way out—He is the key that unlocks the chains of our sin.

But now, we are free. Because, he who is dead to sin, is free. The chains are broken. We are emancipated. We have been liberated from the slavery of sin and death.

Look up:

Romans 5:12

1 Corinthians 15:56-57

Romans 6:17-18

An army chaplain reported his amazement at the large number of Desert Storm soldiers who gave their hearts and lives to Jesus Christ, then asked if they could be baptized. To accommodate their requests, a wise pastor used the only “baptismal” available in the middle of the Saudi Arabian desert: a coffin—a potent and perfect symbol of the death, burial, and resurrection of which baptism is a picture.

We have a new identity.

We are no longer called slaves, we have been rescued from that fate.

Gone are our chains, we follow the path the Christ ordains.

The whip has been replaced, our past has been erased.

We are free, because Christ died on the tree.

We not only need to Know we have a new Identity.

We Know we have Liberation Through Jesus Christ.

Romans 6:6

Romans 6:6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;

As slaves, we had no freedom. We were captives with no hope of parole, or hope. Now we have liberation and emancipation.

When Jesus died on the Cross two thousand years ago, something incredible happened. My old sin nature was crucified with Him. I’m thankful that my failure to fully understand this concept doesn’t prevent me from being forever grateful for it.

Katargeo, the Greek word translated “destroyed” in this verse, means “rendered inactive” or “paralyzed.” It doesn’t mean “annihilated.” Therefore, when your old sin nature screams, “You’ve got to take that smoke, pour that drink, toy with that fantasy, lose your temper, or gossip”—Paul says that, although he can yell, he is powerless to act, since the Cross paralyzed him from the neck down.

2 Timothy 1:10

Romans 6:12

John 8:34-36

Chuck Colson tells of an event that took place when Russia was still very much closed to the gospel as a group of Christians meeting secretly in the basement of a home outside Kiev heard a knock on the door. Because they refused to answer the knock, suddenly the door was kicked in, and two armed KGB officers walked into the room. “This meeting is illegal,” they thundered. “If anyone wants to deny he’s a part of this Christian movement, he can leave right now. If you stay, however, you must be willing to pay the price and suffer the consequences.” With terror on their faces, two or three left the meeting, after which time, the KGB officers said, “Anyone else want to join those who left?” No one did. “Keep your hands up,” they said to those who remained, “and we’ll put our hands up and worship the Lord with you. You see, two weeks ago, we broke into a group like this one and we got saved. But as KGB officers, we know that if people are not fully committed to Christ, we cannot trust them in our company.”

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive B. The Enthronement of the Savior

Now, when you kick Satan out, you dethrone sin, then you enthrone Jesus. Nature abhors a vacuum. And you simply enthrone the Lord Jesus Christ

We not only need to Know we have a new Identity.

And We Know we have Liberation Through Jesus Christ.

We Know We have Eternal Life.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

John 10:28

1 John 2:25

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive B. The Enthronement of the Savior

There must be the dethronement of sin. But that’s not enough. There must be the enthronement of the Savior.

Prayer (Invite to the Altar.)