What Do You Know?

In Romans 6, Paul is discussing the question, "Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?" (Rom 6:1). He answers (almost incredulously) "How can we who died to sin still live in it??" (Rom 6:2). (The way he says it would suggest two question marks. He's really clear here that the answer is "No!") But Paul, as clear as he is here, suggests another possibility -- ignorance.

Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? (Rom 6:3)

Paul suggests that the only reason that those who have died to sin would continue in sin would be that they didn't know it. "Do you not know??" Assuming the best, then, Paul explains, in case they didn't know, in what sense we have "died to sin."

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. 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, 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; for he who has died is freed from sin. (Rom 6:4-7)

It is important, then, to know that we are dead to sin. By that, it means we are in Christ now and no longer in Adam (1 Cor 15:22). We are no longer ruled by the god of this world, but by Christ. We will still sin (as indicated by the original question, "Are we to continue in sin ...?"), but we are no longer ruled by it. Like John's "No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God" (1 John 3:9). That death to sin occurs when we are buried with Him through baptism. Now, mind you, "baptism" means, simply, "immersion" -- "to be whelmed." Generally it is whelmed in a liquid (they used it to refer to dipping fabrics in dye), but Paul also uses it when we are "baptized into one body" by the Spirit (1 Cor 12:13). Here, then, it is to be immersed into Christ, being identified with His death, burial, and resurrection. Our practice of water baptism is a physical, symbolic version of that spiritual reality when we come to Christ. We are buried with Him and raised to new life with Him when we place our trust in Him for salvation.

Notice in that text that he asks "do you not know" and later talks about what we ought to know -- "that our old self was crucified with Him." Later he says that we know "that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him" (Rom 6:9). We need to know this stuff. We need to know that we have died to sin. We need to know that we have been buried in Christ's likeness to be raised in Christ's likeness. We need to know this because it is incredibly practical. We are freed from sin!! We won't die again!! Our salvation is secured in Christ!! And we can (and, ultimately, will) defeat sin. It's a process. It's a long process. It won't be complete on this side of eternity, but it is a certainty. That's good to know.