Who Are You Living For?
Why would you fight for your enemy? Years ago there was a woman who was being beaten up and abused by her husband. So she called the cops. The cops showed up. They heard him beating her up so they burst through the door and both of them subdued the husband. Then something happened that you would not expect. The woman took a frying pan and hit one of the police men over the back of the head. The police officers and everyone who has a brain would say and shout one clear question: why? Why would you fight for your enemy? Even worse, why would you live for him? In the words we look at this morning from Romans 6, that is the point that Paul is making. We read: “1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” (Romans 6:1–2 NIV11-GKE)
The husband was the woman’s enemy. Why would she fight—why would she live for him? Who is the enemy in the words that Paul says here? Sin is our enemy. And sin showed that it is our enemy by putting us to death. It put us to death spiritually when we were conceived and born with hatred toward God in our hearts. And it proves it is our enemy when we face physical death at the end of our lives. Sin is your enemy. Why would you live for it? These words are a great reminder to us that we hate the sins we commit. We hate the lies we willingly believe about ourselves and others. We hate our laziness. We hate how easily we live for ourselves and ourselves alone. We know that this is how we act and we hate it. And that then drives us as Christians to ask the next question: how. How then will we be able to live for God instead of living for sin? Paul answers that question in these words which follow: “3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We 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. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his.” (Romans 6:3–5 NIV11-GKE)
If we ask the question, ‘how do we live for God,’ look what answer God’s word gives us. The answer is our baptisms. There are many Christians who, sadly, conclude that baptism is a good work that we provide for God to prove that we are his. Bur notice here how Paul says just the opposite. Baptism is a great and wonderful gift that God gives to us. For if we want to live for God and not for our sin, baptism is the answer. Baptism is what gives us the power to ‘carry out a new life.’1 There is a progression in these words. What happened to Jesus? He died, was buried, but then what happened? He lived. And God’s word so clearly tells us that the same progression happens to us when we are baptized. In our baptisms we died, we were buried and now we live a new life.
So there is a progression that we find in baptism. We die, get buried and rise from death living a new life. And to make sure the point is so very clear, Paul also tells us that there is a promise in baptism too: “6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.” (Romans 6:6–9 NIV11-GKE)
What does baptism do to our bodies that are so contaminated by sin? What does baptism do to our sinful selves? Baptism nullifies them. Notice what baptism does not do. Baptism does not eradicate and destroy our sinful natures. You sin now. And you will sin all the way to your last day and your last breath. But your sins domination over you is destroyed. Sin is no longer your master. And Paul even illustrates this fact with a beautiful picture. a person who dies and then goes to heaven is freed from sin’s influence and power in his or her life. In your baptism your sinful nature’s power is put to death. Jesus is your Lord and master. Sin no longer enslaves you.
So if you ask the question, ‘how do I live for God,’ where will you look for your answer? Look to your baptism. There in your baptism you find an amazing progression: Just as Jesus died, was buried and then returned to life, so also you died, were buried and now live for him. Now you are able to carry out a new life. And you also find a promise: You are not enslaved to sin—not anymore. You are forgiven. And you are given a new master to serve. He is not the abusive, coercive, destructive master you used to have. Now you have a good, kind and caring master, your Savior, Jesus. Paul then concludes this part of scripture with these words: “10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. 11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 6:10–11 NIV11-GKE)
As Paul closes off these words, he gives us two encouragements. First, consider yourself dead when it comes to sin. Sin is your enemy. It put you to death spiritually. If Jesus delays in coming it will put you to death physically. And in these words we find an amazing irony: Sin put us to death. But through this amazing gift of baptism, we now put sin to death. We put it to death every time we see our sin and hate it, resist it, and repent of it. And second, consider yourselves as ones who now live for God. Notice how beautiful these words are. In your baptisms you can live for God. In your baptisms you do live for God. But notice where that power to live for God comes from. It does not come from you. It comes to God. And it is give to you in those waters of baptism. So when you sin—and you will, do not return to yourself, trying with your own power and your own effort to fight against sin. Instead, return to your baptisms. For baptism is what gives us the ability to live for God. Amen.
1 “ⲉⲛⲕⲁⲓⲛⲟⲧⲏⲧⲓⲍⲱⲏⲥⲡⲉⲣⲓⲡⲁⲧⲏⲥⲱⲙⲉⲛ” (Romans 6:4 GNT-ALEX)