Romans 6

From Slavery to Freedom: Walking in New Life

Bible Passage: Romans 6:1-23

Summary: In Romans 6, Paul addresses the believers' transition from being slaves to sin to being alive in Christ, emphasizing that grace does not encourage sin but empowers us to live righteously.

Application: This message encourages Christians to reflect on the areas in their lives where they may not be fully living in the freedom Jesus provides. It offers hope that they can claim victory over sin and embrace their new identity in Christ.

Teaching: The sermon teaches that true salvation results in a radical transformation, where believers are no longer under the dominion of sin but are equipped to live a life empowered by God's grace.

How this passage could point to Christ: Christ fulfills the law and the sacrificial system, providing a way for believers to be dead to sin and alive in God through His death and resurrection, demonstrating the power of grace that brings liberation from sin.

Big Idea: Understanding our identity in Christ as being dead to sin and alive to God is essential for living in the freedom we have been given, transforming our daily walk and struggle against sin.

Recommended Study: You may want to explore the historical context of slavery in the Roman world as compared to modern understandings. Look into the Greek terms used for 'sin' and 'slavery' in order to unearth deeper meanings within Romans 6:1-23. Additionally, consider how Paul’s teachings on justification and sanctification intersect in this passage to positively impact the believer's experience, utilizing the resources available in your Logos library.

Intro

Brad Freeman

In Romans 5, Paul tells us that as our sin increases, our grace only increases more. Is that an excuse to sin? No!

It shows us that God’s power is always greater. Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross produces a grace that is always more powerful than our sin.

Now, Paul unpacks this profound truth and shows us exactly how its supposed to work.

We go from slaves to sin, to being willing servants of God… dead in our sin, but alive in Christ. Walking in new life, leaving our old behind.

Grace doesn’t allow us to stay in our sin, but brings us into a righteous living.

That righteous living means that we stop walking the way we used to walk, stop talking the way we used to talk. Everything changes.

How many of us are given new life while we still walk and talk like we used to?

1. Death's Declaration: End of Sin's Reign

Romans 6:1-7

Sin has a hold on our flesh. We can’t break free from it, so we must put our flesh to death as Christ was crucified and also in Christ be brought back to life.

In order to fight against sin, we must remember that our old selves were crucified with Christ.

vs 6 tells us that our old selves were 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. (paraphrased)

Our body of sin is like the temporary residence that we take while in this world. We will be given new, glorified bodies that don’t have the power of sin to fight against.

Here in this life, we have to figuratively pur our bodies to death by leaving the old behind… but we literally have to live in them. What does verse 6 say about what happens when our body of sin is done away with.

Its temping to think that it makes us stop sinning.

You might be someone who gets saved and is discouraged by what happens in your life right after.

You might be someone who gets baptized and is discouraged by the way it seems like sin wasn’t put to death.

We are still living in this world and we are still going to sin.

The result of our salvation and baptism is that we are no longer slaves to sin. It doesn’t mean that sin goes away.

We’ve been liberated.

You know that liberation requires you to walk out on the past.

Some of us are living in the past. Staying in the past. Planting ourselves in the past.

The past has to reign over us. Has no power over us.

We’ve been given a future, but we haven’t been placed in it, but instead have been given the power to walk toward it.

How can you stay in the past and ask God why the hope for your future isn’t here? He’s broken your chains, blown the lock off the prison cell and you’re sitting and asking for Him to come set you free.

2. Life's Liberation: Embrace Resurrection Power

Romans 6:8-14

You might have people in your life that always have your back… but it won’t always be like that.

With Jesus, we are connected in a way that is unlike any other. When we suffer, He takes that suffering. When we have joy its because He gave it to us.

But we’re connected in such a way that when Jesus suffered, that means we also should suffer willingly. But that also means that in His victory, we also have victory.

In His death, we also have death. In His life, we have abundant life.

We stand in a figurative death. Though we are still in our fleshly, sinful, body, we consider ourselves dead to sin.

When we’re found dead in our sin, we’re also standing alive in Christ Jesus. Why? Because His flesh died and then He was resurrected.

The power that is in the resurrection is living in us. We now share in His resurrection through the faith in Jesus that saves us.

We are in our flesh bodies that we use as instruments… tools… for righteousness.

Our flesh was once used for our sinful desires, but God turns that around with Jesus and we are now for righteousness.

3. Freedom's Fulfillment: Choose Righteousness

Romans 6:15-23

Freedom is a paradox.

We are not ever truly free. We are slaves to a master.

Before Christ, we were slaves to sin. We were free in sin to do what we wanted.

We’re offered freedom in Christ Jesus. The only true freedom where we’re set free from bondage, but we make ourselves willing slaves of Jesus.

In Jesus we find rest, we find comfort, we find that His yoke is easy like Pastor Frank was talking about last week.

If we give ourselves to sin, the results are death.

But when we give ourselves to the Lord, its Eternal Life.

Paul is trying to not just tell us that we’re free in Christ, but to proclaim it.

If I tell you today, “you are free,” what do you do different? Most likely nothing.

But if you seek out what it means to live free in Christ, your life will change.

In 1863, slaves in the United States were legally free. However, most slaves didn’t change a single thing about how they were living. All they knew was slavery.

The papers said “Slavery Legally Abolished!”

A lot of slaves had a lack of knowledge and understanding that an emancipator had set them free. Abraham Lincoln. Who had the power and authority set captives free.

Hearing that slavery is abolished wasn’t the same as knowing what it meant to live in freedom.

We, as slaves to sin might hear about the freedom in Christ, but we still walk around with chains to sin on.

Christians, do you know that you’ve been set free? And if you do, do you know how to live in that freedom?

To live in that freedom is to live as Christ lived and to die as Christ died.

Crucify the flesh and be raised to new life. Isn’t that our vision here? To see people rising to new life in Christ.

How do we know that its happening?

How can we look around and see people rising to new life? Or how can we see it for ourselves?

Can I tell you that its impossible to see it unless we view ourselves first as dead.

We can’t find new life until we first see our old lives dead.

Too often do we try to live our old life and add Christ isn’t it and call it freedom.

Staying in our old ways and calling ourselves free is like a slave being set free but still serving the master who enslaved him.

I am here today to tell you that you’re free, but also to tell you to shake those chains off and walk in freedom.

Closing

Big Idea: Understanding our identity in Christ as being dead to sin and alive to God is essential for living in the freedom we have been given, transforming our daily walk and struggle against sin.

Your salvation isn’t just a decision, but a transformation that starts when you accept Him. You might accept freedom this morning and not fully understand it…. thats okay.

He’s given you a helper to walk with you. His Holy Spirit that lives in us is the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. As you put your flesh to death today, that same Spirit will raise you to new life!