ETERNITY

[Ranb2khz]

Crucified, Buried, and Raised with Christ

Scripture Reading: Romans 6:1-14

Believers Are Dead to Sin, Alive to God

"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 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." (vv. 1-7)

"Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus." (vv. 8-11)

"Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace." (vv. 12-14)

Think back to when you received Christ as your Savior. You knew your life had changed but probably had no idea about everything that the salvation experience involved. You were declared righteous and sealed with the Holy Spirit, and God wrote your name in the Lamb's Book of Life. But that wasn't all. You were also crucified, buried, and raised with Christ.

This describes your position in God's eyes, but what does it all mean? Paul tells us that "our old self was crucified with [Christ]" (v. 6). The person you are today is not who you were before salvation. Your old sin nature has died with Christ, which means that its power over you has been broken. Paul isn't saying we'll never transgress again, but now we don't have to be enslaved to sin. Since we've been raised with Christ, He's living within us, giving us the power to live obediently.

Our Father's goal for us is that we become in practice what we are positionally. Many believers attempt to live the Christian life in their own strength by trying harder to overcome sin and live righteously. However, the crucified life is about a life replacement, not self-effort. Christ wants His life to flow through us so that we become living extensions of almighty God.

Every believer has been positionally identified with Christ's death and resurrection, but the only ones who will experience this in a daily manner are those who are willing to die to themselves and let Christ live through them. Jesus wants to be more than your Lord; He wants to be your very life.

http://www.intouch.org/magazine/content/topic/crucified_buried_and_raised_with_christ_devotional