Things a believer must know
Romans, Chapter 6, is the believer’s
first truths he must learn to fully
understand about his new life in
Christ.
1) You must learn that you have been baptized into Christ’s death. (See, Romans 6:3). Many believers have spent a lifetime trying to kill out their past sinful life.
This is an impossible thing for a human to do. Yet many in religion are working hard on something that took place in them the moment they were saved.
While it may not be known to a new convert that this happened, this is something God did instantly when a sinner is saved. This scripture says that a baptism takes place the moment a sinner believes on the Lord Jesus Christ.
This happens simultaneous when Jesus saves. Two wonderful things happened at once. The believing sinner was placed “in Christ” and his life of sin was killed out the moment he was saved. That is, all the sins of humanity were in Christ’s body when He hung on the cross and His death was also the death of the sinner’s old life, including the sin.
At that moment the sinner, saved by grace, was a new creature ready to live a new life.
2) The old life of the sinner is crucified, killed out, as far as God is concerned. (See, Romans 6:6). This verse says two things that happened when sinners were crucified with Christ.
First, the body of sin was destroyed. Your old self died on the cross with Christ. This means you do not have to do sinful things to be who you are. You see a new creature in Christ Jesus and the old way of living has passed.
Second, it says you don’t have to serve sin any longer. Now then, you say, why do I still want to sin. This verse has the answer, it says “knowing.”
Ah, you should see it now, knowing is a mind thing. You still have your old life holding on in your mind. The Apostle Paul says several times in his Epistles that you must renew your mind.
Your mind is still the old mind you have always had. You have to change it to fit your new life in Christ. You ask, why didn’t God save the mind when I got saved, it's simple. The mind is where the love affair with Christ takes place. Now that you are saved, you make the choice whether you love Jesus, and what He has done for you, more than you love yourself.
3) That Christ being raised from the dead can die no more. (See, Romans 6:9). Death has no more dominion over Him, and, because you are in Him, death has no dominion over you.
In the natural, death seems to be very real, but in the spirit you pass from one earthly position to a greater heavenly position. Once you are saved you are spiritually alive for evermore. The instant you were saved another wonderful thing happened. You came out of your death and your earthly existence, never to be bound by earthly things ever again.
You became an individual with Christ in you as your life and, as this verse says, He will never die again. You have eternal life in you now. Now you are a birthed child of God by the incorruptible, everlasting seed that was put into you. You have eternal life in you the instant you are saved.
4) Now to whom you yield yourself, whether to sin, to self, or to the Christ in you, you will be its servant.
(See, Romans 6:16). If your mind never becomes fixed to the new life within you, you obviously will hinder the glorious work God has done for you in His wonderful work of redeeming you.
This happens when you revert back to your old ways of living before Christ became your life.
This can be done automatically because your mind is not completely renewed.
The idea for on-going believers is to walk daily in the Scriptures, in praise and in prayer. Remember, you are already alive by the Christ in you. Let him be your only life. You will come to the blessed time where you are a true servant of Christ without any thought of your old life and old ways of before Christ became your life.
Romans, Chapter 6, is the believer’s
first truths he must learn to fully
understand about his new life in
Christ.
1) You must learn that you have been baptized into Christ’s death. (See, Romans 6:3). Many believers have spent a lifetime trying to kill out their past sinful life.
This is an impossible thing for a human to do. Yet many in religion are working hard on something that took place in them the moment they were saved.
While it may not be known to a new convert that this happened, this is something God did instantly when a sinner is saved. This scripture says that a baptism takes place the moment a sinner believes on the Lord Jesus Christ.
This happens simultaneous when Jesus saves. Two wonderful things happened at once. The believing sinner was placed “in Christ” and his life of sin was killed out the moment he was saved. That is, all the sins of humanity were in Christ’s body when He hung on the cross and His death was also the death of the sinner’s old life, including the sin.
At that moment the sinner, saved by grace, was a new creature ready to live a new life.
2) The old life of the sinner is crucified, killed out, as far as God is concerned. (See, Romans 6:6). This verse says two things that happened when sinners were crucified with Christ.
First, the body of sin was destroyed. Your old self died on the cross with Christ. This means you do not have to do sinful things to be who you are. You see a new creature in Christ Jesus and the old way of living has passed.
Second, it says you don’t have to serve sin any longer. Now then, you say, why do I still want to sin. This verse has the answer, it says “knowing.”
Ah, you should see it now, knowing is a mind thing. You still have your old life holding on in your mind. The Apostle Paul says several times in his Epistles that you must renew your mind.
Your mind is still the old mind you have always had. You have to change it to fit your new life in Christ. You ask, why didn’t God save the mind when I got saved, it's simple. The mind is where the love affair with Christ takes place. Now that you are saved, you make the choice whether you love Jesus, and what He has done for you, more than you love yourself.
3) That Christ being raised from the dead can die no more. (See, Romans 6:9). Death has no more dominion over Him, and, because you are in Him, death has no dominion over you.
In the natural, death seems to be very real, but in the spirit you pass from one earthly position to a greater heavenly position. Once you are saved you are spiritually alive for evermore. The instant you were saved another wonderful thing happened. You came out of your death and your earthly existence, never to be bound by earthly things ever again.
You became an individual with Christ in you as your life and, as this verse says, He will never die again. You have eternal life in you now. Now you are a birthed child of God by the incorruptible, everlasting seed that was put into you. You have eternal life in you the instant you are saved.
4) Now to whom you yield yourself, whether to sin, to self, or to the Christ in you, you will be its servant.
(See, Romans 6:16). If your mind never becomes fixed to the new life within you, you obviously will hinder the glorious work God has done for you in His wonderful work of redeeming you.
This happens when you revert back to your old ways of living before Christ became your life.
This can be done automatically because your mind is not completely renewed.
The idea for on-going believers is to walk daily in the Scriptures, in praise and in prayer. Remember, you are already alive by the Christ in you. Let him be your only life. You will come to the blessed time where you are a true servant of Christ without any thought of your old life and old ways of before Christ became your life.
