The Spirit of God dwells in the brand-new you, and because you are brand new, you no longer sin. This is simply because God’s light is constantly shinning on the new you, and there is no sin where the light of God is shinning. But the “soul realm” (mind, will and emotions) is still in the process of being transformed. This is the realm where we forget who we are and sin. God is in the process of renewing our minds into the reality of the kingdom of God. This is the realm where God is making us more like His Son Jesus. Once again, we can see why Paul drives home to us in Romans 12:2 that we are to renew our minds and to be transformed. This is why we do not have to keep dying but only to keep remembering who we are.
Since Christ cannot die again, and He died to sin once and for all, you do not have to keep dying. You are now living!
Now let’s take a look at the next couple of verses:
In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires (Romans 6:11-12 NIV). Christ died once and for all; He will never die again. The same is true for you. Continuing to die does not make sense because you are forever alive to Christ.
I Die Daily
Most of us have been taught the doctrine of dying daily to our flesh. This teaching is often based upon Paul’s words to the Corinthians: I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily (1 Cor. 15:31).
Teachers assert that if Paul died daily then we should as well. Let’s take a closer look at the context that Paul spoke these words in. The phrase “die daily” means, “everyday I am in the danger of death.” The Greek word for “die daily” is apothnesko. These words are speaking of natural death, not spiritual death or dying to self or the flesh. Paul was proclaiming that his physical life was on the line each and every day for the sake of the resurrection of Christ and all believers. Listen to Paul’s words just a few verses earlier:
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| My daughter Kara and her son Nathan |
Paul continues:
Now if there is no resurrection, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for them? And as for us, why do we endanger ourselves every hour? I face death every day—yes, just as surely as I boast about you in Christ Jesus our Lord. If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die (1 Corinthians 15:29-32 NIV).
If you want to agree with Paul that your physical life is on the line for the resurrection, go for it. Some people put their lives on the line for the gospel frequently, like those in countries like China, and in cities like Cairo, Egypt. And there may come a time when Americans will put their physical lives on the line as well. We cannot use, however, use First Corinthians 15:31 to theologically support why we are to die to self or to the flesh.
We Must Consider
The reason we Christians sin is due to the nature of our un-renewed minds, not because we have a sin nature. We must “count” or consider ourselves dead to sin. But again you say, “But I still sin!” You are focusing on the wrong issue. You must not focus on sin or be self-conscious. You must be God-conscious! If you sin and forget who you are, repent to God and don’t dwell on it.
The fact that you know you have sinned means that the power of sin is broken in your life. You simply forgot who you are. I have heard people say, “If I don’t focus on stopping my sin I am ignoring the truth that I still sin and I will continue to sin”. When the concentration is on trying to stop sinning, we have missed the mark. We are going to have to take God at His word and refocus our minds on Him, not on sin. After all, God reminds us: So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. (Galatians 5:16)
You are now living for God and sin is a foreign land for you. You may visit there, but you are an alien, a foreigner. You know where you live and that land is resurrection land. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace (Romans 6:13-14 NIV).
Verse 13 is a command. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness…. Since this is a command, God has also released His power to empower you to stop sinning. God would never give us a command that is not possible to carry out. Yet, without the Spirit’s presence in your life, you would not be able to even consider doing this. God has given each of us the choice to not sin. Since you are His child, I know you will choose life versus death and sin. Paul continues in verse 14 when he states that there is no law that can conquer sin, but God’s grace gives you the power to live victoriously.
What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness (Romans 6:15-18).
Verse 15 clearly tells us that we do not sin so that grace can come into our lives. That would be like becoming sick so you can take more medication. If you are not sick you do not need medication. Don’t you remember that you are living in a brand-new country called Grace?
Based upon verse 16, it seems to me that it is your choice as to whom you will serve. But then, the one that you serve will produce power and influence over your life. If you choose sin, it will dominate you and you will be its slave. If you choose obedience, then the power of the Spirit will dominate you and you will serve Him. The choice is yours. As a child of God, have you chosen to obey?
It would seem that you are destined to be a “slave.” It is just a matter of who will be your master. If you choose not to be a slave of Christ, then you are not free; you are simply a slave to the power of sin. But, since Christ raised you from the dead, you are free indeed and you can choose to obey Him. It only makes sense that you would! Listen to Paul’s comments:
But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted (Romans 6:17 NIV).
Because of who you are, give thanks to the one who has given you a brand-new name. The Hebrew word for Hephzibah in Isaiah 62:4 is “my delight is in her.” No longer will they call you Deserted, or name your land Desolate. But you will be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the LORD will take delight in you, and your land will be married. God is always delighted with you. You are a perfect bride for His Son. Listen to Paul carefully articulate this truth that they should be focused on God and God alone.
I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:19-23 NIV).
In these verses Paul is simply communicating that you cannot get life out of dead stuff! Notice that Paul is referring to the past as he writes to the Roman Christians, “Just as you used to…When you were slaves to sin…What benefit did you reap at that time from the things that you are now ashamed of?” All of those things brought about death because they are things of the flesh. And the flesh can only deliver death!
Then Paul speaks about the present and the future: “But now that you have been set free from sin….” Paul indicates that sin is no longer in control of our lives. We are now slaves to God. God has delivered us into life with Him. We have eternal life. The word eternal speaks not only of the future, but it also refers to the now; it is now and forevermore.
When we remember this truth, it will set us free. We are free to move in the power of miracles and signs and wonders. Evidence of this kind of power will provoke us to preach, proclaim, prophesy, and speak of His redeeming love to lost, hurting, and pain-filled people. These people are roaming the earth with no sense of direction or purpose. As we unite with God and we agree with Him, we are filled with the Holy Spirit and we move out under His grace and power. We then begin to notice that God designed us to experience life full of His Spirit and to walk in abundance.
Joint Heirs With Christ
It only makes sense that as a brand-new creation; we should give ourselves to Him. We are His sons and daughters. We are joint heirs with Christ. As joint heirs with Christ we get everything that Christ has. The beauty of the bridal paradigm message is that we have our inheritance, now! The difference between earthly and heavenly inheritances is that we do not have to wait for God’s inheritance. To receive an earthly inheritance someone has to die. Christ has already died; therefore, you get your inheritance now. Christ has already placed the inheritance in our account. Our inheritance is waiting for us to make a withdrawal. But you will not make a withdrawal until you understand that you now have the privilege to activate such a withdrawal as a son or daughter of God!
God desires that we occupy every spiritual territory. He desires that we be occupied with His power, authority, and love. God desires us to constantly be expanding. This is what Jesus meant when He taught us to pray, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10 NIV). A spiritual inheritance makes us more effective and efficient in representing the King and His kingdom. A spiritual inheritance pulls back the curtain and reveals what we already have permission to use to take possession of the earth. We will discuss this in more detail later.
Do You Agree?
Do you agree that it is possible to go 24 hours without sinning? Jesus did and He is our perfect illustration of a life full of the presence of God. Remember that as a man Jesus showed us a life entirely dependent on His Father. He depended on His Father for everything and did not do anything that His Father did not lead Him to do. Jesus was in utter dependence on His Father. Jesus did not consider Himself equal to God but chose to become a man. Jesus was fully secure in His father’s love, acceptance and purposes. Take a careful look at what Paul said to the Philippians.
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our attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus. Who, being in the very nature of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:5-11 NIV).
Notice that we are to have the same attitude as Christ, which means that we should depend on our Father just as Christ depended on His Father. Not because we ought to, but because it makes sense that we should. This is simply who we are! Believers in Christ lean into the arms of a loving God, looking at Him and to Him for everything they need. Jesus, while He was God, chose to completely lay down His heavenly nature. He actually took on the very nature of a servant even to the point of dying on a cross. Because Jesus was a man, He leaned into His Father for all things, and because of this, His Father has exalted Him to the highest of places and given Him the name that is above all other names!
A Dog and His Bone
Once a boy tried to take a bone from a dog. Unwillingly to let go of his bone, the dog bit him. His father said, “Here, let me take the bone away from the dog.” Soon the father came back to where the boy was standing and held out the bone to him. His son asked, “How did you do that, Dad?” His father smiled and said, “I gave him something he wanted more than the bone; I gave him a steak.” It’s easy to give up sin when you have something better!
God has either made it possible for us to go for 24 hours without sinning, or this Christianity and all that God has purposed to do through the blood and sacrifice of His Son is a big waste of time. Not only that, but God would have to be a liar.
We are active pursuers of Christ; therefore, we will not grab hold of death but life. Since God never lies, I am willing to tell you that you can walk deeper and deeper into Him and experience 24 hours without sinning and have an abundant life full of the Spirit.
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