Romans

Romans Chapter 6

• Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

Here we see the intent of Paul's writing. He emphasizes the grace that saves and not the works of the law, good deeds or religious rituals. We are not saved by our own good works or our own self righteousness. Yet he emphasizes also that this grace bought and paid for by Jesus Christ and His death, is not given as a license to sin. He never taught that we can live in continual sin after we are saved. We are saved from sin, not saved to continue in sin and still be ok with God.

He says below, God forbid. We are dead to sin. Why would we even think of going back under the stuff Jesus died to save us from and still claim to be born again Christians? Jesus came not just to forgive sins but to remove, cleanse and sanctify us so we can be vessels of the Holy Spirit to be used to go and preach this good way to someone else. Praise God for this good way He made for all who believe.

• Romans 6:2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
• 3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
• 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

We are immersed in the spirit when we believe in Jesus Christ for salvation from the sin that once dwelled within us. We are baptized into the body of Christ the minute we believe. We are born again by God's spirit the moment we believe to the point of repenting of sin and turning to the Lord. We become dead to sin.

Water baptism represents what takes place in one who has been born again by the Holy Spirit. When we are buried under the water, it is a testimony that we have died to sin and are identifying with Jesus who died for our sins. When we come up out of the water it shows the resurrection of Jesus, and the newness life. We are made new creatures and are to live like we are new creatures.

When we are what we call, saved from sin, we become dead to sin as Paul writes.

• Romans 6:5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
• 6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

If our old man is crucified with Jesus then the body of sin is destroyed. We are to walk in the newness of life. We are to be without sin.

If we find ourselves having trouble with sin after our conversion to Jesus Christ, we must seek Him until we overcome what we have allowed to creep back in. That is why Jesus told His disciples to watch and pray that they enter not into temptation. We cannot live in holiness and overcome sin by our own will power. We must remember that Jesus paid the price for our sin with His death so that we can live without sin and be found not guilty at His coming.

We must learn to resist the devil and he will flee from us by drawing close to God constantly in prayer and the study of His word; always remembering that we are made new in Christ and are to go out and make disciples of others and see them made new in Christ.

We must constantly allow the Holy Spirit to flow within us and flow like a fountain on to others that the Lord may bring across our path. We are to be salt and light to the world around us and to watch and pray that we do not return to the old life we lived before Christ came into our lives. 

Sometimes a trap holiness people get into is to forget to share the gospel when they are striving for holiness. We must allow the Holy Spirit to bring us into holiness while we continue to share the gospel. We must not allow what we call holiness to turn into some legalistic set of rules that we begin to major on instead of the gospel which will save the soul. That is not holiness. 

True holiness comes from the Holy Spirit as He comes to dwell within us to give us the power to share the gospel, overcome the desire to sin, walk in love, and many other things He teaches us.  The fruits of the spirit and the gifts of the spirit are to dwell among us as believers. 

• Romans 6:7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.

A dead body cannot sin any longer. His spirit and soul have departed and it is impossible for the dead body to sin. We are to be dead to sin when we come to Christ for salvation. The old man is to be crucified with Christ. The new man is to be filled with God's spirit and live without sin in fruitfulness and holiness.

Some call this a second work of grace or sanctification. This should occur all at once when one is first saved from sin but some of us take longer and may need to be sanctified and have what we call the second blessing.

I believe personally that we are to be renewed in the spirit every time we pray and we can strive to overcome the works of the flesh every day. I want to be sanctified and baptized in the Holy Spirit every day, not just have a one time experience. 

When the gift of tongues accompanies being filled with the Holy Spirit, one can pray in tongues as well as one's natural language. Many times we read in Acts where the disciples would pray and be filled with the Spirit. It was never a one time event. Pray without ceasing means to never stop praying or go for long periods where we just don't pray. It doesn't mean we pray every second we are awake but simply don't stop praying or go a long time without praying and speaking to God. 

• Romans 6:8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

If we are not willing to forsake sin and become dead to sin by identifying with his death on the cross, we will not be able to live with Christ when He comes. Sin cannot enter the kingdom to come.

There is a great remedy for sin and that is the shed blood of Jesus and trusting in that shed blood of Jesus to cover our sins. We repent of sin by asking forgiveness from the Lord and then turning away from sin thereby trusting in Jesus to send His Holy Spirit to come within us and help us not to return to the old ways again.

• Romans 6:9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.
• 10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.
• 11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

It can't be explained much plainer than that. We are to be dead unto sin and alive unto God. This makes us ready to enter heaven.

We can't enter heaven and be saved from sin if we just mentally believe in a person called Jesus. We also can't enter heaven by just changing or turning from sin without trusting Jesus to save us from sin. We need to do both at the same time. Repent or turn from sin and believe in Jesus to save us from sin. If we merely "turn over a new leaf" or make a New Year's resolution not to sin, we would have no power to overcome sin.

• Romans 6:12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.

No where does Paul ever teach that grace gives us a license to sin and not be judged for that sin.

We know also that when God made a way for us to be forgiven of sin, He also made a way for us to be free from sin. We have the power to choose. We can yield to theHoly Spirit and overcome sin or we can yield to the flesh and return to sin after we have come to Christ.

• Romans 6:13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

Paul would not have written these words if we didn't have the power to yield or not yield one way or another. The thing we must do is be determined and choose to yield to the Holy Spirit. If we mess up and fail, do not give up and lose hope. Repent and turn back the right way. If we fall, get up and go again but never give up and allow sin to return completely causing us to return to unbelief and become dormant or unfruitful.

• Romans 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Under grace we actually have more power over sin than under the law for we have access to the Spirit of God to help us overcome and live in holiness. When under the law one had only his or her own will power to rely on. Just knowing what the law said, brought condemnation. Until Christ came, we had no power to overcome sin and walk in the Spirit. 

• Romans 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.

Unfortunately there are doctrines that teach just that. Some teach that since we are under grace, it doesn't matter what we do, we can never lose our salvation. This is not what Paul ever teaches. If Christ came to free us from sin, then it stands to reason that we are not to return to something He died to free us from.

• Romans 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

Sin will steal, kill and destroy us. We are servants to sin if we choose to yield to the flesh and return to those things Jesus saved us from .

• Romans 6:17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
• 18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
• 19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

Here we see of a surety that we are to live and walk in holiness without which we will not see the Lord.

So many are afraid of the holiness doctrine because of past legalism but we must return to true holiness that comes from the Holy Spirit. It is ours; let us not allow Satan to rob us of it.

If we find ourselves becoming harsh and judgmental toward a weaker brother, it is a sign that we may be into legalism rather than true holiness. Nevertheless, we must strive for holiness that comes from the Holy Spirit. When we find ourselves going one direction, the worst thing we can do is try to correct it by going too far in the other direction.

• Romans 6:20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.
• 21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
• 22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
• 23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Sin brings death, eternal separation from God and it dooms the soul to spend eternity with the one who hates all of God's creation. Satan.

The gift of God brought to us through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ will grant us freedom from sin, freedom from the condemnation of sin and grant us eternal life. When we receive this free gift of God, we must be determined to continue in the faith that was once given to us. -DC