Galatians 2:19–20 For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me
Sin no longer rules us, the grace and mercy of God in Jesus frees us from its grip. We choose life or death. He died so that we are free to choose the power of Holy Spirit to be transformed, precept by precept, into the image of God’s only begotten Son in whom we live. Jesus died so that through Him the world could be saved. Carla
Romans 6:5-11
5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NKJV)
If the believer’s identification with Christ means being identified with His death, then it logically follows that the believer also identifies with Jesus’ resurrection. Having died and having been raised with Christ, the believer should live a new kind of life. Some say old man refers to part of us, namely our old nature, our sinful disposition. However, the word man does not refer to part of a person; instead, the word describes the entire inner person before conversion, the person connected to the sin nature of Adam. Simply put, a believer is not the same person he or she was before conversion; a believer is a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).
There are two reasons for crucifying the old man. First is that the body of sin might be done away with. The body of sin is either a reference to the physical body, that is, the body that is enslaved to sin, or the phrase is a figurative expression for the sin in a believer’s life. Colossians 2:11, a parallel passage, indicates that sin in a believer’s life is meant. The sinful nature of a believer is abolished when the old self is crucified with Christ. The second purpose is that we should no longer be slaves of sin. Believers are new people who are no longer enslaved to the old sinful nature.
Freed here translates the Greek word for “justification,” which is a legal term. The idea is that the believer no longer has any obligation to sin. Dying and living with Christ summarizes verses 3–7. Believe introduces a new idea. Christians must not only know that they have died to sin (verses 6–8) and have been made alive with Christ, they must also believe it.
Christ died for sin once for all. He is now alive at the right hand of God. Since believers have been joined to Christ and to His death and resurrection, they can now believe that they too are alive to God. Reckon is an accounting term that means “to take into account,” “calculate,” or “decide.” Verses 3–10 reveal the truth that believers have already died to sin because they have participated in Jesus’ death. Since believers have died with Christ and have also been raised with Him, Paul now urges Christians to consider themselves dead … to sin. Although before conversion they were still enslaved to the power of sin, now they are free to resist it. Though believers in Christ have died to sin, sin is still a problem. The sin principle is still present and can express itself through the mortal body, the body that is subject to death. The difference is that sin has no right to reign. Thus Paul admonishes the believer not to obey it. The NKJV Study Bible
Believers participate in Christ’s death, through which they experience freedom and separation from the power of sin. Believers experience the spiritual effects of the resurrection now, but they won’t be resurrected physically until Christ returns to earth. Our old self might refer to the previous era of humanity under the effects of Adam’s sin. Alternatively, it could refer to unregenerate or fallen human nature.
We were crucified together with him, this occurred either at the time of Christ’s crucifixion or at the time of the believer’s baptism.
The Greek phrase used here for body of sin, sōma tēs hamartias, refers to a person’s physical body or the whole person (sōma), which is still subject to sin. Paul does not mean that believers no longer sin, but that Christ’s death and resurrection have freed them from the rule of sin (verse 7). Believers are now called to use their freedom to pursue righteousness.
The Greek verb used here, dedikaiōtai, has been freed, can be translated in this instance as “justified” or “freed” (4:3). Believers are justified or acquitted from the consequences of sin. The Greek verb used here, syzēsomen for we will also live with him, is in the future tense; it may refer to an experience associated with the end times. In order to take part in this experience, believers must reject sin in the present life.
When God raised Jesus from the dead, He transformed His earthly body into a glorified human body that is no longer susceptible to death and decay. In this state, Christ represents the immortal life that awaits those who have faith in Him. The power and influence of sin manifested itself in death. Ironically, by submitting to death, Christ died to the power and influence of sin. Christ lives outside the realm of sin; though He submitted to death once, He will never do so again. Like Christ, believers live for God and are empowered to do His will. Do not let sin reign, Paul may have given this prohibition because the Roman believers were allowing sin to rule their lives. The Greek word used here, thnētos, for mortal refers to people’s regular, non-resurrected bodies, which are susceptible to death. Faithlife Study Bible
2 Corinthians 4:10
always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
Romans 6:2–4
Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death…
Galatians 5:24
And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
Philippians 3:10–11
that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
And yes, every one of us is afraid at times. Who knows all the reasons? But when it happens, we revert to a zero-sum view of the world. We believe that resources—including compassion, mercy, kindness, forgiveness, and generosity—are finite. We believe that life is short, and you get what you can. And if I don't know you, you are my enemy... or at the very least, someone to be mistrusted.
This week, my friends, let us remember the wardrobe—Paul’s invitation in his letter to the Colossians, “So; chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength and discipline. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.”
Those bearings that unlock mercy and passion and grace... and who knows, maybe even the possibility for healing and peacemaking. Sabbath Moments
