Winning Over Sin Part 1

Living as God intended 

The Key to Winning over Sinning Romans 6:1-14

Faith – the key

(In 81 we were in UK and had a week in the Riviera ...
Peaceful, sunny BUT I was struggling with an inner battle → trying & struggling to live the Christian life but failing. I had taken a book with me to read – Watchman Nee “The Normal C Life”. It was a great help – it emphasised the need for faith to appropriate the victory  that is ours in Christ

Faith is the key!

1 John 5:4 “everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith”

Gal 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ ... I live by faith...”

What is the faith that enables us to win over sin?

1. Faith accepts what God has said v.2-10

“We KNOW…”! (What do we need to know???)
Salvation is all God’s doing (grace) – accept it by faith
Sanctification is also God’s doing – appr/ate it by faith

• We are united with Christ in His death to sin

v. 6 “We know that our old self was cru …”
v. 2 “You have died to sin”

You have died. You cannot therefore go on living in sin.

But sin seems to be very much alive in me!

In what sense have we died? And in what sense are we beyond sinning?

Note: We have “Died to sin” – not: we are dead to sin!

We know (& understand) - …died FOR us
We need to know – we died with Him (FAITH … God has said)

Christ did not only die for our sins, but our sin (our sin-nature)
Our death is because we are “In Christ” – (living vital union)

not meta … with (ingredients),
but ‘sun’ – mingled, bonded, (baked!)

Verse 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." = our union with Christ

Our ‘in-adamness’ has been terminated / we are now “In Christ”

The only way of getting out of being ‘in Adam’ is to die!

Our union / Adam … when he died, his death became my death.
Now / union / Christ’ … when He died, His death became my death

Verse 6 – Our old self was crucified … Aorist Pass. (done to/for us)

RESULT: freedom from sin’s domination
God sets us free from the dominion of sin, not by strengthening our old man but by crucifying him

The symbolism of baptism … death / resurrection

No such thing as…

v.3 “all of us who were … into (‘with respect to’) His
death”

“We were buried” = death has occurred

(Baptism is the external proof of death to sin,
just as burial is the external proof of physical death)

Dr Stephen Olford used to say: “Are you living the crucified life?”

• We are united with Christ in His resurrection to
  life

We know – Verse 4 - “raised to live a new life”
We know – Verse 5 – we have risen with him
You can't die with Christ and not be risen with Him
We know – Verse 8 “We believe that we will (continue to) live with Him” – pres. active … constantly holding to this belief!

We are alive in Christ

…murderer is executed, his life on earth / over (for us – resurrection!)
Gal 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ.., nevertheless I live, yet not I ...”

I had man flu – sick and feeling really grotty. I said: “Take me, Lord” Then the Lord inspired my thinking to ‘hear’ Him say: “OK, I will. … But now I give it back (but it still belongs to me)”

Christ did not come into your life to improve you …
replace you!

BUT, you say, this may be true, but it doesn’t seem to be real in my life

(Local pastor in a village church in Africa. Took a funeral and the body was lying in an open casket in the sun. As the service progressed, the muscles on the corpse began to shrink, and the body began to bend causing the dead man to gradually rise up from his waste. The people began to show astonishment and caused the pastor to look at the corpse. He realized and commanded: “Lie down Joe, you’re dead”!!

Our old nature might be dead, but it doesn’t want to lie down!

2. Faith applies what God has said v. 11

“Count (consider) yourselves …”!

Verse 11 “consider yourselves to have died to sin and are now alive to God in (union with) Christ Jesus”

* present tense – constantly look at yourself as a newly freed slave

(In his hand is a proclaimation – by faith he acts upon it)
(no longer need to obey / former master – wear different clothes, decide where to live / what to do)

Live out what is true

“Stretch forth your hand” / “Take up your bed and walk”

3. Faith acts on what God has said v.12-14

“Offer (yield) yourselves …”!

• Sin’s rule is to be refused
  

It means - to die to sin’s legal reign

Sin is seen as a usurper / throne - who demands obedience

Send the previous owners out – the title deed is in your hand

l. We are to make a conscious choice not to obey

Verse 12 “do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies”
It is not automatic – we are involved. Sin is a choice for us

ll. We have assurance of victory through God’s grace

Verse 14 – “For sin will have no dominion over you” – not an imper.

• Christ’s rule is to be established
  

Verse 13 – yield

(present, to put at someone’s disposal (often used in a military sense) your members = tool or weapon)

Victory is not me conquering sin, but Christ conquering me!