Rev. David Holwick
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
March 31, 1991
Romans 6:1-11
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I. What Easter is all about.
A. Quaint legends that highlight noble themes.
1) Springtime. Easter bunnies.
2) Suffering on behalf of others.
B. Factual events in history.
1) Jesus really died on a cross.
2) Jesus really rose from the dead.
C. Best: Factual events that have an impact on us today.
1) Jesus really died and rose.
2) By believing this, something dramatic should happen in
our lives.
3) Easter has moral and spiritual implications for us.
II. Four aspects of dying and living to Christ in Romans 6.
A. "Judicial sense." (Law Court) [Positional Holiness]
1) We are dead and raised "in God's sight".
2) Christ died on the cross and was raised, for us.
3) This is a matter of God's decision. (Justification)
a) Best brought out in Colossians 3:1ff.
B. "Baptismal sense." Main emphasis in Romans 6.
1) Baptism signifies our acceptance of God's decision to save us.
2) Believer baptism (by immersion) is in view.
a) (Note Barclay's explanation that infant baptism doesn't
make sense here!)
b) Jewish heritage of baptism.
1> Baptism signified becoming a totally new person.
2> Theoretically, they could marry their sister or mother.
c) More than a ceremony - baptism symbolizes our total
identification with Jesus.
1> In a real sense we are dead people now. 6:3
A> When Jesus hung on cross, so did we.
2> In a real sense we are resurrected beings now. 6:4
A> When Jesus was raised, so were we.
C. "Moral sense." [Progressive Holiness]
1) Christians have the freedom to die daily and hourly to sin.
a) In one sense we are already dead to sin.
1> We don't have to be its slaves. 6:6
b) In another sense we have to keep killing our "old nature."
1> It is still there, defeating us.
A> Although we don't have to be slaves to sin,
so many people are.
2> The old self must be crucified.
A> It's a long, drawn-out death. 6:6
3> Many here can attest to the difficulty of reforming
your life.
c) Practical steps in killing bad habits.
(Reader's Digest, Sept 1989)
1. Plan ahead.
2. Adopt new habits.
3. Enlist your family and friends.
4. Avoid high-risk situations.
5. Set realistic goals.
6. Give yourself rewards.
7. Be honest with yourself.
8. Don't let a lapse become a relapse.
#1004
2) Christians also have the freedom to rise daily and hourly
to newness of life, in obedience to God.
a) We have a new nature given to us by God.
1> We are new creations! 2 Cor 5:17
2> It may not be always obvious, but it is possible.
b) But we have to work at experiencing new life in God.
1> We must "count ourselves" dead to sin and alive
to God. 6:11
2> Christians must work at being holy, not just wait
for God to shovel it on us.
D. "Prophetic, future sense." 6:5 [Prospective Holiness]
1) We die to sin finally and completely when we actually die.
a) Like Oz's "Wicked Witch of East": actually, totally,
physically, indisputably, undeniably dead.
b) Not just physical death - in Christ, our fight with
the old nature will be over. Jesus wins. 6:7
2) At Christ's coming we will be physically raised with new
bodies.
a) Our bodies will be glorious, just like Jesus' body.
1> They will be incapable of sinning. 6:7
b) If we are still alive when Christ comes, we won't even
have to die physically.
c) We will live with Jesus forever. 6:8
III. Have you died and been raised with Jesus?
A. The person who enters the Christian way is committed to a
different kind of life.
1) Should being a Christian make much of a difference?
2) It should make all the difference in the world.
B. There is more than a mere ethical change in a person's life
when they accept Christ.
1) There is a real identification with Christ.
2) Unless we are in Christ, and Christ is in us, we cannot
live the life of God.
Copyright © 2024 by Rev. David Holwick
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