August 21 2011    Reading:  Romans 6 Part 2

Theme: The gospel in Romans

These studies in Romans are not so much a commentary, as an attempt to follow through

Paul’s words in 2 Timothy 3.14 and 15. He writes to Timothy ‘But as for you, continue

in what you have learned and have become convinced of........... the holy Scriptures,

which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.’ The sermons

in this series both recognise the deep convictions of the gospel, and rather than being

comprehensive try to expound those central verses in Romans which ‘make us wise for salvation

through faith in Christ Jesus.’

Last Monday, the 8th. of August, as papers round the world reported, London was confronted with rioting on a massive scale. On Monday night, it is estimated that more than 30 000 young people seized control of streets in various parts of the city, with all that followed, fighting, looting, destruction of property. After the shock of this, since then, there have been all kinds of explanations of why this all happened - some have accused the youth on the streets as the problem - that they are either criminal, mad or evil. Others have accused the government of being the problem - one paper accused the government of being a force for wrongdoing in all this.........

Yet others have pointed to the society we live in as the problem......

where all the emphasis is on what we buy,

what we have -

the way of life constantly put before us on the television,

of wealth and success........... for those who are talented, beautiful,

rich, powerful............

In contrast to all the events of the past months,

the MP’s expenses scandal,

the world economy in danger,

the News of the World,

the riots,

How different is the way of life offered to us in the Bible

how different the Bible’s take on what the root problem is

According to the Bible - the root problem is this: Where the living God should have been life for us, at the very centre of life, where we should have lived life loving God with all our heart soul mind and strength as men and women,  we have turned our backs on Him,  and so rejected life, full, abundant life. In place of that full abundant rich life, says Jesus - From the human heart, there springs theft, murder, greed, malice, deceit, envy slander, arrogance and folly. Over the past few months with all that we have seen.......

how true the words of the Lord Jesus are...........

From the human heart, says Jesus, there springs theft, murder, greed, malice, deceit, envy slander, arrogance and folly. That’s the human condition, Jesus says.

But the amazing declaration of the gospel is that the living God has not given up on us......... the women and men He has created ! the declaration of the Bible, is that the Living God still has a loving purpose for this world. The message of Romans, the gospel message is a message about our present human situation. And it is utterly realistic - yes men and women were created by a loving God, created to find life in Him – but we have turned away from Him, we are separated from God by the sin that lies in all our hearts. But declares Romans, Jesus Christ, has taken our sin upon Himself, He has stood in our place, stood in the place of judgment, stood in our place, taking our condemnation, upon Himself and has taken away our sin and our guilt. God, the gospel declares - in compassion and love, has restored us to Himself.

As you will remember from last week, that’s the very message Paul carried to the ends of the earth..... the known world. That at the Cross Jesus has taken our sin away......

And the fascinating thing is that scattered throughout Paul’s letters we have some of the questions put to Paul in the course of his missionary travels, preaching the gospel we have some of the questions that Paul’s audience put to him.

What kind of questions were these ? Well - Most of the questions go like this........

Paul, if all our sin has been laid on Jesus,

according to the gospel, if we are freed from sin and guilt, then doesn’t that mean we can just keep on sinning ! There’s a question very much like that in Romans chapter 6 verse 1...........

If as the gospel says, all our sin has been laid on Jesus, then we are in the clear - Why not just keep on sinning ?

Our our sin and guilt have been taken away - so Why not keep on sinning ?

Now Paul gives several answers to this throughout his letters,

But this morning, we will simply look at two of those answers............ Here’s the question once again.....

if all our sin has been laid on Jesus,

Why not keep on sinning ?

Here’s the first answer.......... Paul gives.........

Why not keep on sinning ?

Because we are freed from .of sin.............! we are no longer slaves to sin....... though we once were

The Bible speaks a lot about slavery.......... In the book of Exodus, for example, we read that when the Hebrews were a slave people in Egypt, slaves at the very bottom rung of the Egyptian empire.  God did a wonderful thing - He called them to be His own people…. God called these slaves, a people living and working under the dark power of imperial Egypt, out into freedom, He called them to be His own ! He made a covenant with them, gave them the law, a way to worship Him, and a land to call home…………  

In Romans, however, Paul is not speaking about slavery on the grand scale, like that in Egypt............ he is speaking about something much closer to the hearts of the congregation at Rome. Paul is speaking about the normal everyday household slave whose life from start to finish consisted of work from dawn to dusk and beyond.

He is thinking of those he slaves he knew in Corinth, who were at the lowest rung of society. Under orders to clean,to wash, to dig, to cook and so on........ at the whim of the master. Under orders.

Paul writes to the Church at Rome and says - You used to be slaves to sin, You used to be slaves to all that was wrong, all that was sinful, but now you are set free.

Why not keep on sinning ?

Because you are now slaves to goodness and holiness.

You have a new master in Jesus, and in Him is all the riches of eternal life.

Paul’s second answer takes us into the very deep things of the gospel...........

but even if we can glimpse a little of these deep wonderful things........

it may still be enough.............

Here is the question once again......... .........

Why not keep on sinning ?

Here is Paul’s deep, deep, answer

Because we are dead to it !

Now this something very deep, but let us try to understand,

let us take this step by step.............

There is one great, wonderful reality,

one deep fact spoken of throughout the letters to the Romans,

Corinthians, Galatians and others........ and it is this:

We are one with Jesus

We are one with Jesus...........

Jesus now lives in God’s presence.........

and we are one with Him

and while Jesus lives now in all the power and the life of God’s presence.....

this is the same Jesus who once died, long ago, on the Cross for us........

And while now He lives in all the purity and holiness of God’s presence

this is the same Jesus who once, long ago took all our sin upon Himself.........

So - now this world and all its sin is far behind Him

The letter to the Romans says simply.....

Jesus died to sin,

now He lives to God..........

now here is the great, deep thing.........

In the same way, says Paul, in verse 11 count yourselves dead to sin...... but alive to God

live your life out in the light of this..........

that Jesus died to sin,

now He lives to God.......

keep on sinning ?

No - live with Jesus as those who are dead to sin but alive to God

set your hearts on things above ...... set your minds, not on worldly things, but on things above.......

live your life out in the light of this..........

that Jesus died to sin,

now He lives to God.......

May the living Lord Jesus open to us all

understanding of these deep things,

May the living Lord Jesus give us

the power to live like this

Amen.