Resurrection for Life
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When it comes to living the Christian life there are two significant errors that must be avoided. One is that of legalism…legalism is an approach to the Christian life that takes your personal convictions and seeks to make them as binding as direct Scriptural commands. It is insisting upon that which Scripture does not insist upon itself.
When we go down the path of legalism, it threatens our assurance, our relationships, and our joy as we will constantly be tempted to be critical of others and of ourselves, or else be so puffed up with pride and and filled with a sense of self-righteousness that we become unbearable to be around.
On the other hand, if the pendulum swings too far away from legalism, we end up with antinomianism. Antinomianism refers to being anti-law. This approach says that since Christ died for my sin, and since I trusted in Christ, then it does not matter how I live my life, I’m free to do whatever I want, and there is no such thing as a sin for me any more.
When we go down the path of antinomianism, we bring shame and reproach to the name of Christ, we become stumbling blocks to others, and we place our own souls in danger of eternal hell.
The solution to both errors is to embrace a proper understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Good News of the Gospel of the Jesus Christ declares to us that we are sinners deserving of God’s eternal judgment, but Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners so that who repent and accept by faith Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and his resurrections from the dead are promised forgiveness of sins, eternal life, adoption into the family of God, and entrance into the eternal Kingdom.
This necessarily rules out a legalistic approach, because it declares to us that, as sinners, we can do nothing to merit favor with God, either before or after salvation. You good works didn’t save you then, and they don’t keep you saved now. It is all of grace.
This necessarily rules out a an antinomian approach, because Christ died to free us from our sin. He died to make us his children. Why would we continue to walk in that sin? Why would God’s children continue to persist in that which is directly contrary to His revealed will?
The proper understanding of the Gospel is essential to avoiding the pitfalls of both legalism and antinomianism.
Today is Resurrection Sunday. It is the day that the church has traditionally set aside extra time to consider one of the crucial elements of the Gospel: The resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Historically there have been times when the reality of the resurrection was under sever attack. When we consider how atheists might approach the topic, we might think it is still under attack, but there was a time when it was under attack from within in church. Academic scholars with presuppositions against the miraculous cast doubt upon the resurrection and it was common that, as denominational churches drifted toward theological liberalism, the literal historical account of the resurrection was suppressed.
Scriptural speaking, we simply cannot afford to do that. Paul was unequivocally clear when he stated in 1 Cor 15:14
14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.
and again in 1 Cor 15:17
17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.
We cannot afford to set the resurrection aside.
We cannot afford to forget to stress the resurrection when it comes to presenting the Gospel to others.
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
Paul identifies this as central to the Gospel.
It was the reality of the significance of the resurrection that the early church began meeting on Sundays for worship. In a sense, every Sunday is resurrection Sunday, and it has been called “The Lord’s Day” since the first century.
If we were to trace the theme of the resurrection of Christ throughout the NT, we would find that it is simply everywhere. Whether you’re reading the book of acts, or epistles from Paul, Peter, or John, the reality of the resurrection is not only stressed, but applied!
The NT authors don’t view the resurrection as central only to the Gospel, as important as that is. They view the resurrection as central to EVERYTHING in the Christian life.
It is essential to our justification, Rom 4:25
25 who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
It is essential for our glorification
14 And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power.
But do you know that it is also essential for our sanctification, for our growing in holiness? Not only is the resurrection of Christ essential for our sanctification, but it is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead that is working within you to make you more like Christ.
16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,
The same power that worked in Christ to raise Him from the dead, that same power is at work toward us who believe.
This is the same theme that I want to continue to examine as we consider our primary passages for today.
Turn with me, if you will, to the book Romans, chapter 6, where we see three ways the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead impacts our lives.
As we work through this passage, it is clear that Paul makes numerous references to both the death and resurrection of Christ. I will be focusing more on the resurrection elements simply because of what today is. But this is not meant to ignore the other details, it’s simply a matter of using the time well.
1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 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.
The first way the Resurrection impacts us is that it Renders Sin irrational. The Resurrection Renders sin irrational.
The Resurrection Renders Sin Irrational
The Resurrection Renders Sin Irrational
Paul has ended chapter with a marvelous declaration of the grace of God!
Though sin entered into the world through one man, and death through sin, thus death spread to all mankind because all have sinned, and even though many died through one man’s trespass, the grace of God and free gift of the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many!
17 For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
And he concludes the chapter with these words Romans 5:20-21
20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The grace of God abounds as he saves sinners for His glory.
Paul wrote in 1 Tim 1:15-16
15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. 16 But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.
Grace is abounding as God saves even the worst of sinners! Praise him!
As Paul writes the book of Romans, he is frequently anticipating possible or real objections or responses to the information he present.
Some might respond to the ever abounding grace of God as a way to exploit what they might see as a loophole. Wait…if the abundance of sin only served to increase the abundance of God’s grace, then what if I just go on sinning all the more?? Wouldn’t that make the grace of God abound all the more and thus glorify God to a greater degree??
I don’t know if you’ve ever met anyone like this, who wants to exploit every loophole they can find. My dad would tell me the story of a man who used to pull up to every red light and stop. If there were no other cars and it was safe to proceed, he would run the red light and keep going. He would get pulled over for this constantly, but he always carried a copy of the rules of the road with him, and he showed the officers that it says you have to stop. It doesn’t say you have to wait for it to turn green until you can go again.
He found the loophole and exploited it. I don’t mind that when it comes to man-made laws, but there is something dangerous about always looking for ways to rules lawyer your way around everything.
If increased sin increases grace, then I should sin more that there might be more grace...
This might be the reasoning of some antinomians who want to turn the grace of God into an opportunity for licentiousness.
Paul’s response is swift and harsh: By no means! May it never be! This is one of the strongest possible ways to express this idea in the Greek. No no no no no no no no NO! God forbid!
Such reasoning is not not only flies in the face of the grace of God, but as Paul demonstrates, it is also irrational when we consider what has actually happened in the Gospel.
2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 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.
What Paul is saying is that the Gospel makes sin irrational. How can you who died to sin still live in it??
And then he explains what he means by that statement.
Do you not know....
He says that like its something we should know. It’s not a secret. It’s not hard to figure out.
All of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death.
What is Paul talking about here? Scholars have debated whether Paul is referring to Spirit baptism or water baptism. Water baptism is supposed to be that outward picture of an inward reality. We know that baptism doesn’t save, but it is a public declaration of our faith in Christ. It is supposed to symbolize our union with Christ.
Spirit baptism is invisible and occurs at the moment of conversion. The Holy Spirit baptizes us, not such that we speak in tongues or other such nonsense, but such that he places us into the body of Christ and joins to Christ.
Water baptism symbolizes that union. When we are placed under the water, that is a picture of us dying to our old selves, dying to sin. As we are raised up out of the water that shows us being raised with Christ and given new life.
When Paul says that those of us who were baptized were baptized into his death, that is what he speaks of. We were joined with him in death. He died so that we might die to ourselves and our sin. Our old self was crucified on the cross and our spirit baptism accomplishes that and our water baptism symbolizes it.
So Paul is saying to us....guys. You died with Christ to your sin. You died to it. Why would you keep living it?
But notice what Paul says next. He gives the purpose of us dying with Christ in verse four
4 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.
Not only did we die to sin, but we did so SO THAT or for the purpose of, or to the end that, just as Jesus was raised from the dead, we too would live holy lives.
And this makes sense.
Paul says in Eph 2:1-2
1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—
That was our prior condition.
If sin was part of what it meant to be dead, and you have now died to that sin, and even more were brought to life
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—
If sin is death, and we have died to it, then living is righteousness. Why would we not walk in that? Why would we not live according to this new life that we have?
It simply doesn’t make sense to live the same as we did before when the whole purpose of being given new life was so that we would grow in holiness.
When Jesus Christ rose from the dead, he did not secure for us the ability to live in sin and get off scott free. No. He secured for us the ability to walk in newness of life. Living any other way just doesn’t make sense.
The Resurrection renders sin irrational.
Second, The Resurrection results in our resurrection.
The Resurrection Results in our Resurrection
The Resurrection Results in our Resurrection
5 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. 6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For one who has died has been set free from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. 10 For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.
Paul reiterates his point, but expands on it. He look to the end of all things when we shall be resurrected and stand before the Lord. He recognizes that we will be resurrected and shall receive a glorified body just as he has. In that day there will be perfect righteousness. Let’s track his argument.
First, there is reiteration: If we are united to his death, we certainly will be united in his resurrection. Makes sense. Then he expands
Our old self was crucified with Christ in order end sins enslavement over us.
You can’t be a slave if you’re dead! If you have been crucified with Christ, if you have died to sin, that ends sin’s master over you. The reign of terror is over!
None of this means we live perfect lives, but it changes our entire outlook. We’re looking forward to the day that we will live just as Christ lives now.
Paul continues the comparison in the following verses:
If we died with him, we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.
Paul’s argument is that because we will share in the likeness of Christ’s future resurrection, we ought be living our lives in the same vein: dead to sin but alive to God.
And that brings us to the final point:
The Resurrection Results in Power Over Sin
The Resurrection Results in Power Over Sin
11 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. 13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. 14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.
Paul gives a series of commands here:
Consider yourselves dead to sin. This is the reality, so embrace it.
Consider yourselves alive to God. This is the reality, so embrace it.
Don’t let sin reign in your mortal body. It’s mastery over you has been broken! Sin is no longer your master!
We might ask, how do we do that, practically?
He gives a two fold command in verse 13 to answer that:
Do not present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.
This is a practical conscious choice we must make every day. Lord, I’m present myself to you to use as you will.
You’ve been brought from death to life, so live like it!
Now, this has the potential to weigh us down. Sometimes in our every day struggles leave us feeling defeated. I find it interesting that Paul’s audience seemed to struggle in the opposite way.
Well, if that’s how it is, let’s sin it up! Paul seems to be trying to pound some sense into them.
Nevertheless, there is this encouragement, this promise in verse 14:
14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.
Sin will have no dominion over you. All those in Christ, you will be sanctified. It will occur at different speeds and to different levels, and each of us will take a different path....but the resurrection of Jesus Christ secures your sanctification if you are in Christ.
Whatever sin you are struggling with, it don’t remain forever. Sin will not have dominion over you, because grace will have its work. He who began a good work in you will complete it!
This is what grace does! It purifies us! It changes us! It free us! Not to sin all the more, but to live lives in accordance with the life that we have in Christ, secured for us by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
I came across this quote this week:
A lot of people think that Christianity is you doing all the righteous things you hate and avoiding all the wicked things you love in order to go to heaven. No, that’s a lost man with religion. A Christian is a person whose heart has been changed; they have new affections.
This is what grace does. This is what the resurrection secured. We don’t have to live in sin because we have been set from from it’s dominion by the resurrection of Jesus Christ!
I hope that is an encouragement to you. I hope that you can look to the resurrection of Jesus Christ and not just see another holiday to celebrate, break out the Easter Ham, etc, but rather that you will look to Christ and rejoice knowing what he accomplished for you!
I hope it gives you new hope for your battle against sin. You might be struggling today. Grace will have its work, for sin will not have dominion over you. After all, Jesus rose from the dead, and you are not under law, but grace.
Let’s pray