S3E3: Sin Shall Not Reign
For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace (Romans 6:14).
Listen as Ed Underwood teaches on the book of Romans for our third season.
A person in Christ is a new person. He or she is not simply the old person worked over. That’s why Paul wrote, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Think of the miracle God performs when a person places faith in Christ. The believer has an entirely new power source and new possibilities.
Sanctification is about discovering and appropriating this power and these possibilities. Union with Christ is an essential discovery for believers desiring a fuller spiritual life. The foundational truth of our crucifixion with Christ is the basis of a Christian’s freedom from the power of sin. Unfortunately, this concept is often misunderstood, unbalanced in its presentation, and unused in its application.
Christ’s mighty work on the Cross sets His people free from the reign of sin and death (5:12-18). His mighty life provides the power to live the life they were set free to live (5:19-21). And His Holy Spirit unites them with Him through spiritual baptism (1 Corinthians 12:13). This concept of being united with Christ is developed chiefly by Paul. In Romans 6:1-10 he links union with Christ to victory over sin, teaching that believers are identified with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection:
The Spirit unites believers to Christ—dead to sin and alive to God!
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See the chart and download the notes below for further study.
