Romans 6:1-14 - In the Likeness of His Resurrection

Introduction

In 1 Corinthians 15, the Apostle Paul summarizes the basic facts of the Gospel that must be believed if one is to be saved from God’s wrath incited by his or her sinfulness. He writes in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4...

1 Corinthians 15:1–4 NASB95

1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures.

He was buried.

He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.

Those are the basic facts of the Gospel.

This is not all there is to be believed, but no less than this can be believed.

As Paul said, by belief in these historical Gospel facts, “you are saved,” (1 Cor. 15:2).

In the death of Christ, we died to sin.

We buried with Him by the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

And we were buried, so that we would be raised with Him to walk in newness of life.

It’s the newness of life that follows resurrection with Jesus, that Paul focuses on in Romans 6:1-14.

Context

The Apostle Paul was a persecutor of the early Christian church who was saved by God’s grace when the resurrected Jesus appeared to him as he traveled to Damascus (Acts 9). The scales fell off Paul’s spiritually blind eyes so he could see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (Acts 9:18-20; 2 Cor. 4:3-4).

Paul became the greatest missionary in church history, traveling all over the known world to preach Christ and Him crucified, start churches, and encourage fellow Christians. One place he longed to do those things was Rome, the capital city of the Roman Empire.

Eventually Paul would visit Rome to stand trial for preaching the resurrection of Jesus, but before then he sent this letter—the letter referred to in the New Testament as Romans.

Paul writes to believers in Jesus, those “beloved of God in Rome, called as saints” (Rom. 1:7). Paul is thankful for them, prays for them, and longs to come preach to them the Gospel—“the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16).

The gospel is the only hope for Gentile sinners (Rom. 1:18-32), for Jewish sinners (Rom. 2:1-3:8), and for human sinners in general (Rom. 3:9-20).

Because we are sinners, we are unrighteous; and we all need the righteousness that God supplies for us in the death of Jesus (Rom. 3:21-26)—a righteousness that can only be accessed by faith (Rom. 3:27-31) just as Abraham believed (i.e., had faith in) God and it was counted to him as righteousness (Rom. 4).

This justification before God by faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection gives us peace, hope, and exultation “because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us,” (Rom. 5:5).

The death and resurrection of Jesus has triumphed over Adam’s sin in the Garden of Eden (Rom. 5:12-21), and Jesus’ death and resurrection triumphs over the power of sin in our lives (Rom. 6:1-23).

Transition

Q: Where do you feel the pull of sin in your life? Are you prone to worry? To gossip? To lust? To lie?

Even if we don’t realize it, we tend to divide sins into two categories: acceptable and unacceptable. We might think of sins like worry and gossip as acceptable sins. We might think of sins like lust and lying as unacceptable. But there are no acceptable sins before God. Jesus’ death and resurrection broke the power of every sin that might trip us up.

Because we are united with Christ through faith, we are free to “walk in newness of life,” (Rom. 6:4).

In other words, if we have been joined with Jesus in His death and resurrection, we will walk in holiness.

This is the power of Jesus’ resurrection for all who have faith in Him.

Studying Romans 6:1-14

I. United with Him (Romans 6:1-4)

As we come to Romans 6, the Apostle Paul has been telling the Roman believers about the difference between God’s law and God’s grace. He says in Romans 5:20-21…

Romans 5:20–21 NASB95

20 The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

But some might have misunderstood, so Paul began Romans 6 like this...

Romans 6:1–4 NASB95

1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2 May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

Grace is indeed greater than all our sin, but grace is no reason to go on sinning. On the contrary, if we’ve experienced God’s grace in Jesus who died as the sacrifice for our sin, then in Him we too have died to sin. “How shall we who died to sin still live in it?” (Rom. 6:2)

Paul speaks of our union with Christ as a baptism. Water baptism symbolizes the baptism of the Holy Spirit that every believer experiences when he or she trusts Jesus as the sacrifice for sin and righteousness before God. By the grace of God, through application of the Holy Spirit, we who trust Jesus have been hidden in Christ. We have been baptized, immersed, submerged in Him—in His death to sin and resurrection to newness of life (Rom. 6:4).

The spiritual power of being united with Christ enables us to live a new life of obedience to God.

Last week in Sunday School we talked about Zaccheus, a rich chief tax collector who met Jesus in Jericho. In Zaccheus we see a good example of the before and after of being united with Christ.

Before being saved by Jesus, Zaccheus had likely gotten rich by over -taxing those he collected from on behalf of the Roman government.

But upon meeting Jesus, Zaccheus said in Luke 19:8…

Luke 19:8 NASB95

8 Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much.”

And Luke 19:9 says…

Luke 19:9 NASB95

9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham.

Joined to Jesus Zaccheus was saved and raised to walk in newness of life. He was empowered to repent of defrauding others and do the righteous thing—pay back with interest anything gained in an ill-gotten manner.

This repentance and obedience was proof of salvation, proof being united with Christ.

Q: Do you think it’s possible to be united with Christ and choose not to repent of sin? In other words, do you think Zaccheus could have trusted Jesus and yet decided not to pay back what he had taken by fraud?

It’s impossible for someone to have faith in, trust in, to be joined with Christ and choose not to repent of sin. This is clear not only here in Romans 6 but also in passages like 1 John 3:3, which says…

1 John 3:3 NASB95

3 And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

We are with Jesus. We hope in Him. We trust Him. We have faith in Him. We are baptized into His death and resurrection.

So, we purify ourselves just as He is pure.

II. Freed from Sin (Romans 6:5-7)

Romans 6:5–7 NASB95

5 For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 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; 7 for he who has died is freed from sin.

Who we were before trusting Jesus was crucified with Jesus when He died for us on the cross. Having trusted Him, the old us of sin and death is no more and the new us of righteousness and life abides.

We are no longer slaves to sin.

Q: What do you think Paul intends for us to picture when he writes, “so that we would no longer be slaves to sin”? What does that say about our past relationship with sin?

Obviously, Paul (and the Holy Spirit!) intends for us to understand that our former relationship with sin was not one of choice. We were slaves and sin was our master. Sin commanded and we obeyed. Sin beckoned and we gladly served.

Paul will continue to refer to existence before faith in Jesus as slavery to sin throughout the rest of Romans 6 (cf. Rom. 6:16, 17, 20). This is the teaching that Paul received from his Savior. Jesus said in John 8:34…

John 8:34 NASB95

34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.

But in Jesus we are “no longer slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin,” (Rom. 6:6-7). We have died with Christ, and we have been raised free from sin.

The shackles of sin that once restrained us have fallen off so that we can walk in newness of life; so that we can walk in obedience to Christ.

Once when Paul and his missionary coworker, Silas, were in prison for preaching the Gospel, they began to pray and sing hymns of praise to God (Acts 16:25). Suddenly there came a great earthquake and the foundations of the prison house were shaken. All the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened (Acts 16:26).

Paul and Silas were already Christians of course, but there experience in prison is a good picture of our existence before and after Christ.

Before Jesus, we were behind the iron bars of sin. We were chained to rebellion and wickedness.

But when the power of God to salvation came to us in Jesus, the doors of our enslavement were opened and the chains of rebellion and wickedness fell off.

We were free. We are free from sin.

III. Alive to God (Romans 6:8-11)

Romans 6:8–11 NASB95

8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Our old selves having died with Christ on the cross, our new selves now live with Him in His resurrection. Christ died as the once for all sacrifice for sin and now sin, the way of death, will no longer touch Him let alone have mastery over Him. Yes, He became sin on our behalf and died on the cross to pay the price for our sins, but now He has been raised in righteousness to make us right with God (2 Cor. 5:21).

The resurrection life He lives, He lives to God.

All those raised with Him do the same.

Q: What do you think most people would say the point of life is?

Perhaps most people would say the point of life is happiness or love or pleasure or money. The one who has been raised with Christ to walk in newness of life is not necessarily opposed to these things but understands all these things in relation to God.

Lasting happiness is only found in God.

True love is only found in God.

Pleasure that doesn’t spoil is only found in obeying God.

And money is to be used to bring glory to God.

We live all of life alive to God.

Q: Is there a part of your life that you’ve been holding back from God? A part of your life that hasn’t been alive to Him?

All those raised with Christ live every part of life alive to God.

Just as Jesus holds nothing back from His Father, neither do we hold anything back.

IV. Instruments of Righteousness (Romans 6:12-14)

Romans 6:12–14 NASB95

12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, 13 and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

Having been united with Christ, freed from sin, and made alive to God, we are now to put these new realities to work. This work involves stopping and starting.

We are to stop letting sin reign in our mortal bodies so that we obey its lusts (Rom. 6:12).

We are to stop presenting the members (i.e., the parts) of our body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness (Rom. 6:13a).

Sin is like an school bully who doesn’t realize that we have become bigger and stronger than him over the Summer break. When we show up to school, sin still tries to intimidate us and demand our lunch money, but in Christ we are bigger and stronger than sin. It can no longer bully us, intimidate us, or make any demands from us.

Jesus has defeated sin. Because we are in Him, it no longer has any power over us.

Therefore, we are to start presenting ourselves to God as those alive from the dead (Rom. 6:13a).

And we are to start presenting the members of our bodies as instruments of righteous to God (Rom. 6:13b).

Raised with Christ, our minds are presented to God for His use. Our hands are His instruments to be used for His glory. Our feet carry His good news to those who need to hear and our mouths tell it. Our eyes behold His grace in His Son Jesus. Our ears listen for His voice. Every part of us is now alive to Him, awakened to serve Him, awakened to His grace!

Q. Think about the parts of your own body. Is there a particular part that seems eager to serve as an instrument of righteousness to God?

Perhaps your hands are always doing some work for the Lord. Preparing a meal in His name for a neighbor, helping a neighbor with a car repair, or holding the hand of the hurting as they grieve—all those could be examples of your hands presented to God as an instrument of righteousness.

Maybe your ears are always presented to the Lord as an instrument of righteousness. You’re listening to Christ-exalting music and podcasts and audio books. Your ears delight to hear the Word of God and testimonies of God’s people.

If we see that some part of our mortal bodies are eager to serve God, let us thank Him for working that grace into us through Jesus.

Q. But now a scarier question. Is there a particular part of your body that seems bent on not serving God as instrument of righteousness?

Perhaps it’s your mind. Maybe your mind is constantly worried and anxious. Being united with Christ, freed from sin, and alive to God, you are empowered by the Holy Spirit within to take every thought captive to Christ; to cast upon Him all your cares for He cares for you.

Maybe it’s lazy hands that seldom serve, silent mouths that seldom tell, deaf ears that seldom listen, still feet that seldom go. Again, being united with Christ, freed from sin, and alive to God, all the members of your body can be presented to Him as instruments of righteousness.

Your hands can start serving Him today.

Your mouth can start telling others about Him today.

Your ears can start listening to Him today.

Your feet can start going to those who need Him today.

Conclusion

Romans 6:14 says...

Romans 6:14 NASB95

14 For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

The law shows us our sinfulness and shows us that we need Jesus. The grace of God sent Jesus for us. He died for our sins and rose as proof of our justification. In Him by God’s grace, we were dead and buried in our sins and trespasses and risen to walk in newness of life.

Let’s honor and live out the power of Jesus’ resurrection by walking in that newness of life.