Your Severed Relationship with Sin

Living the Christian Life, Lesson 1

Living the Christian Life is a Bible study series that explores Paul’s teaching about Christian growth and sanctification in Romans 6:1–8:17.

Introductory Thoughts

After a lengthy discussion of the need for and basis of justification by grace through faith in Christ (i.e., salvation or conversion), Paul now explains how this same truth should transform our mindset and lifestyle as Christians (i.e., sanctification or Christian growth). The believer’s close identification with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection places him or her in a new position. He is no longer a slave to sin but serves Jesus Christ instead.

Passage: Romans 6:1-4

In English (NKJV)

v.1      What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?

v.2      Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?

v.3      Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?

v.4      Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

In Greek

v.1      τι ουν ερουμεν επιμενουμεν τη αμαρτια ινα η χαρις πλεοναση

v.2      μη γενοιτο οιτινες απεθανομεν τη αμαρτια πως ετι ζησομεν εν αυτη

v.3      η αγνοειτε οτι οσοι εβαπτισθημεν εις χριστον ιησουν εις τον θανατον αυτου εβαπτισθημεν

v.4      συνεταφημεν ουν αυτω δια του βαπτισματος εις τον θανατον ινα ωσπερ ηγερθη χριστος εκ νεκρων δια της δοξης του πατρος ουτως και ημεις εν καινοτητι ζωης περιπατησωμεν

Key Words and Insights

Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2006) together with an interlinear Bible, like The NKJV Greek English Interlinear New Testament (Thomas Nelson, 1994) is an excellent way to get accurate definitions for your Bible study based upon Greek and Hebrew meanings.

• What then (τι ουν): this phrase asks the readers to offer the appropriate response to what Paul said previously (Rom 5:20-21).
• Continue in (ἐπιμένω): “to stay longer, prolong a stay, remain on, to persist in.” It speaks about continuing to do something in the future that you did in the past.
• Sin (ἁμαρτία): “error, offence, sin.” This refers to violations of God’s character and will which had characterized our lives before conversion.
• Abound (πλεονάζω): “to come into wider action, to be more widely spread.”
• Grace (χάρις): “God’s free (unearned) favor, free gift, gracious provision, gracious dealing.” It refers to the salvation God offers to sinners since they are unable to earn salvation by their own efforts.
• Certainly not! (μη γενοιτο): this phrase expresses an emphatic denial or rejection and appears three times in Romans (Rom 3:31; 6:2; 7:7). A literal translation would be something like, “May it never be!”
• Died (ἀποθνῄσκω): “to die to a thing by renunciation or utter separation.” This does not refer to physical death but refers to a death that believers (“we who”) have already experienced in a specific, limited sense (“with regard to sin”).
• Do you not know (ἀγνοέω): “you are ignorant, you don’t understand.” This word refers to a lack of information, but in this case, it assumes that the believers are not ignorant and do have the information they need to know.
• Baptized (βαπτίζω): “to dip, immerse.” In this case, it refers back to something that had happened previously to those who have “died to sin.”
• Buried with (συνθάπτω): “to bury with.” This also refers to something that had happened previously to those who have “died to sin.” They did not do this in their own capacity, but through a spiritual union with Christ when he died.
• Glory (δόξα): “a glorious manifestation, a glorious working.” This refers to the way that God the Father demonstrated his divine, glorious authority and ability by resurrecting Christ from the dead.
• Walk (περιπατέω): “to walk, to walk about, to maintain a certain walk of life and conduct.” Used in this way (as a metaphor), it refers to a person’s conduct, behavior, and lifestyle.
• Newness (καινότης): “new in nature or kind,” as in “different and better than before.”

Questions for Meditation and Reflection

What does Paul talk about in Rom 5:20-21 that prompts him to ask the opening question of Rom 6:1?

He said, “Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.” Based upon this fact, it was possible to logically conclude that the more sin the better, because more sin equals more grace. Therefore we should keep on sinning more and more

People accused Paul of encouraging this kind of libertarian (or licentious) behavior, supposing that his teaching about grace gave people a free license to sin. Paul adamantly denied this accusation.

What is the first doctrinal reason Paul offers for rejecting this logical accusation?

He reminds us that we have already died to sin. This means that we have been separated and cut off from the authority of sin over our lives. Since we know that this does not refer to our physical death (since Paul wrote to people who were still alive physically), then we realize that it refers to our spiritual rebirth when we believed on Christ for salvation.

What does it mean to “die to sin” (v.2)?

This refers to being cut off, separated, or released from the authority and power of sin over our lives. “As far as sin is concerned, we are dead” (Black). Therefore, it has no more authority over us. A parent cannot tell a deceased child what to do, just as lending agency cannot tell deceased borrower what to do and a supervisor cannot tell a deceased employee what to do.

Since sin is no longer an authority over us, why is the question of Romans 6:1 appealing to us?

Because our flesh and mind still desire to sin, and sometimes this desire is strong. We easily conflate the authority of sin and the desire to sin. The authority of sin has ended for those who have believed on Christ, but he desire to sin does not end until after we die physically. However, just because the desire to sin is strong does not mean that it is compulsory. This challenging experience that we face is the reason why we need to take the teaching of Romans 6:1–8:17 to heart.

What Christian ritual (or ordinance) does Paul use to illustrate how this happened?

He uses the practice of Christian baptism by immersion. The practice of being immersed under the water provides a visible, physical reenactment of the spiritual reality that occurred when we believed on Christ. When he died, we died with him in a real and spiritual sense. As a result, sin has no more authority over us than it has over Christ. On this basis, it makes no sense to continue in a life of sin because sin has no more role of authority over you.

What is the second doctrinal reason Paul offers for rejecting the opening question of Rom 6:1?

Though the compulsory authority of sin over our lives been severed through our spiritual death with Christ, we were not relegated to a dead existence. We have been resurrected with Jesus as well, which places us in an entirely new position. This new position is a new kind of life that relies on the glorious working of God on our behalf to be what he has called us to be and do what he has called us to do.

Not only is God become our new authority in a personal sense, but he also becomes our ability to say no to sin and yes to what is right. In other words, before your conversion you were obligated to sin – you had to sin because sin was your master. Now that you are converted, not only are you free from sin’s authority, but you are under a new authority, Jesus Christ with a new obligation (and ability) to do what is right. This is Paul’s second reason for arguing against the question in Rom 6:1.

Questions for Personal Application

1. In what way(s) do you (or are you tempted) to excuse your sin on the basis of God’s grace?
2. Do you have any recurring sins or strong desires in your life that feel like you have to give in and do them?
3. Give two reasons (according to Paul) that you should not succumb to these temptations.
4. Is this theological, doctrinal perspective a core influence in your mindset and approach to life?
5. Have you been baptized by immersion following your conversion?
6. What does that ceremony symbolize or represent?