June 22, 2010, Romans 6

Key Verse:

¹What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? ²By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? ³Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

(Romans 6:1-4)

Central Truth:
To live, is to die and to die is to gain. What Christ offers us requires much more than just a prayer and a dunk. Christ calls us to die to ourselves AND our sins for Him.

Where do YOU stand?

Ok...The whole book of Romans is just an incredible book. Prior to chapter 6 Paul is explaining to the Romans the Gospel. He tells them that their "law" and "rituals" don't save them (e.g. circumcision). They too are sinners and will be judged accordingly regardless of their obedience to the law or the amount of foreskin on their body. Paul also goes on to explain what dreadful, awful sinners we are. He even says that "all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory."

GOOOOOOOOD NEWS . . . . . .

We are saved by grace! Though we are undeserving and full of sin, God's grace is more than enough to cover us and make us right before him. But here is the problem! Many of us (and the the Romans did too) think that "well, if this grace is sooooo good, then i can go on sinning without going to Hell....because I'm covered." But Paul explains in Chapter 6 why that dog just won't hunt. Christ died for our sins, and once we choose Him, we choose to die to our sins as well. We cannot continue to go on living in our sin and think it's OK. Now granted, we are going to screw up. But Paul is talking about the blatant, continual sin that we have never relinquished to Christ. For example . . . if a man is having an affair on his wife and then comes to know the Lord for the first time, he must repent this to God, his wife, and his lover and move on . . . never to cheat again. He cannot continue to go on sinning and expect that things are OK. He never died to this sin, and therefore, He never died to Christ.

I don't believe you can lose your salvation, but I do believe there are many people who have never received it . . . simply because they never truly allowed God to consume their life; they never died to Him.

Have you?