Since
God's grace abounds where sin abounds, shall we then continue in sin that grace
may abound? God forbid. Being baptized into Christ means becoming a member of His body- 1 Cor.
12:13; Gal. 3:27. At that moment we are baptized into the death of Jesus,
meaning that spiritually we have died with Christ on the cross. Paul restated
that idea when he wrote, ''I am crucified with Christ''- Gal. 2:20.
The
spiritual death of unbelievers is eternal separation from God. The death of Jesus on the cross meant the destruction of
the power of sin, the believer dies to sin or is separated from a life of sin at
the time he accepts Jesus as his savior. His old relationship to sin is
severed. The believer not only dies with Christ, he is also buried with Him. He
is then raised to newness of life in Christ.
Paul
declared that our old man is crucified in order ''that the body of sin might be
destroyed''- Rom. 8:23. A second benefit derived from our having been crucified
with Christ is ''that henceforth we should not serve sin''. This is possible
because upon receiving Christ we die to sin and identify with Jesus on the
cross.
Evidences
of personal holiness or the lack of it are often seen in the deeds done in the
body. Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. Throughout the
history of the Christian church, two mistakes have been made in trying to
understand the believer's relation to sin. One is ''libertinism'' which says
that because Christ freed us, we are free to do whatever we please. Libertinism
misunderstands the teaching of the New Testament and says that since we are not
under the law, there should be no moral restraints upon believers. Paul warned
us against this when he said in Gal. 5:13, '' Use not liberty for an occasion
to the flesh''. The other error is ''legalism'' which teaches that the
Christian life consists of following a long list of regulations and that one's
salvation depends on his good works. Salvation cannot depend on one's
observance of the Law nor on one's performance of good works, for all have
sinned and will continue to sin. We are told to reckon ourselves to be dead to
sin- Rom. 6:11. God reckons our justification, but we are to reckon our
sanctification. It is important for a Christian to believe and accept what God
says has really taken place- that he died to sin when he was crucified with
Christ.
Sanctification
is also a progressive work in our lives. God's requirement is that there be a
progress in the way a Christian deals with sin, even though a state of sinless perfection
is not attainable in this life. There are two approaches to the doctrine of
sanctification with evangelical Christianity. One position holds that
sanctification is instantaneous and available for the believer who prays; the
other position hold that sanctification is a progressive experience as the believer
grows in his walk with God. We need to grow in our relationship with God and
press towards the mark.
As
Christians continue to rely on God's grace and not on the Law, sin shall not
have dominion over them. The Christian has only one Lord. Even though a true
believer may sin occasionally, this is different from his being dominated by
sin- 1 Jn. 2:1-2. A Christian is righteous in Christ, even though in his own
strength he is still a sinner. His only hope for righteous living is in the
grace and the forgiveness which God freely bestows.
Everyone is a spiritual
slave. The question is whether a person chooses to become a slave to sin or a
slave to the Lord. The first leads to spiritual death and further bondage while
the other leads to eternal life and freedom from sin. Every Christian desires
to live a more holy life but not all are willing to pay the price to achieve
that goal. First, prayer is important in achieving this, the study of the
bible, group worship, Christian fellowship and service in God's vineyard are
all required to achieve this dream
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