Continue in Sin That Grace May Abound as Some Say

Notes

Transcript

Handout

Handout

A famous historical instance of such thought comes from the Russian monk Rasputin, who dominated the Romanov family in their final years. Rasputin taught that salvation came through repeated experiences of sin and repentance. He argued that because those who sin more require more forgiveness, those who sin with abandon will as they repent experience greater joy; therefore, it is the believer's duty to sin.

Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more,

Paul continues in his discussion of the benefits of Christ's death on behalf of all believers. Christ has freed all redeemed people from the bondage of Sin. Although sin has no power over believer's ultimately; believers can be enticed to sin because of the powerful sin nature all humans have. Christians can not take Christ's death on the cross for granted to continue in sin simply because of thE GRACE God gives. Paul urges believers not to sin.

Having outlined the way God in Christ justifies sinners, Paul goes on to the way the justified should live (cf. 2 Cor. 13:4; Gal. 5:13). His teaching that salvation is a gift of God, that it is the result of Christ's death and not our own achievement, that we obtain it by faith and not by any effort of our own, marked a revolution. And it raised all sorts of questions that could never surface while it was held that law in some form was the gateway to godliness. One question that arose naturally enough was this: "If everything depends on what God has done, then what does it matter how we live?"

What is God's grace? How has His Grace changed your life?

People for years have held to a misunderstanding of what God's grace means for our lives. Can salvation only be the work of God alone? Do we play no part in this?

Depending upon your theological convictions, you probably agree and are comfortable with the reality of salvation is through Christ alone, by faith alone, for God's glory alone (3 of the Five Solas of Scripture). Our works have nothing to do in our salvation.

How do you feel about that?

Are you comfortable knowing that salvation is a work of Christ alone on our behalf?

Many people struggle with the question "how do I live as a result of this free gift?" I did not work for it, it was given to me. Some treat this as the ugly sweater you get at Christmas time; or that gift on mothers, fathers day or birthdays from people who obviously don't know your taste. And just like that gift we don't like; it gets place to the side. It's neglected, it's not looked at for the sacrifice someone went through in order to purchase it.

Paul is going to tell us as he told the original audience, BY NO MEANS!! we do not sin so that Grace may abound.

The question leads to a suggestion that Paul repudiates strongly. Evidently some had argued that since everything depends on grace our part should be to give grace the maximum scope in which to operate. If we go on sinning we provide scope for grace to increase: should this not be the Christian way?

Previously they had been dead in sin (Eph. 2:1); now they were dead to sin. The aorist in the verb died points to an action rather than a state: "we who died" rather than "we are dead" ("we have died", GNB). Becoming a Christian is a decisive step; it is the beginning of faith and it means the end of sin

It is the end of the reign of sin and beginning of the reign of grace (5:21).

Paul uses baptism as an illustration to teach us about the nature of our death to sin and being alive in Christ.

What does baptism mean to you; what should it mean?

Must people don't understand the nature of baptism; we get caught up in the questions of if Baptism is necessary, is it a symbol, does it bring forth salvation? Because of this, our focus and drive have not been on what's important. The importance of baptism is to signify our new place in life our new status; Buried with Christ in His death-Raised with Him to new life in His Resurrection! Dead to sin (our sin buried in His death); because of His Glorious resurrection raised to new life (sin has lost its power). Sin has been conquered by the glorious resurrection of Christ!

Baptism is not some ceremony, it's not just some ritual, it's not just simply to show off numbers to other churches to be published in magazines to show one denominations ability to get new conversions. . . IT'S NEW LIFE!! It declares I am changed, I have been washed in the blood of the Lamb, I have a new home in Glory. . . Its says I'm all in!

All in to what; not allowing Sin to rule my life.

It is the death of Christ that makes anyone a Christian, and apart from that death baptism is meaningless. This is a strong affirmation of the centrality of the cross

with 2 Corinthians 5:14, "one died for all, and therefore all died." Christ's death alone is the ground of our justification, and when we make that our own by faith we are united with Christ—united with him in his death, united with him in his burial, united with him in his rising again, united with him in life.

Antinomianism (no law- I can do what I want, however I want. No rules)

Antinomianism is the conviction that believers are freed from God's law by depending upon God's grace for their salvation.

It is interesting that we are never said to have been born with Christ or to have been baptized with him, as Lagrange points out. But we are crucified with him (v. 6; Gal. 2:20), we died with him (2 Tim. 2:11), were buried with him (here; Col. 2:12), were made alive with him (Eph. 2:5; Col. 2:13), were raised with him and made to sit with him in the heavenlies (Eph. 2:6), we are co-heirs with him (8:17), sharers of his glory (8:17), and we will reign with him (2 Tim. 2:12). The burial has unexpected emphasis in the New Testament (besides the Gospels, see Acts 13:29; 1 Cor. 15:4; Col. 2:12); it even finds a place in the Creed, a short statement which necessarily omits much that is important. Perhaps the point is that the burial emphasizes the completeness and finality of the death. Christ's death was no momentary faint but real death, death followed by the tomb. Jesus really died. And our identification with that death is also complete.20 When we are baptized we have died. In baptism we are buried with Christ.22 An old way of life passes away completely.

United with him points to a close union.

become" united with Christ "in the likeness" of his death (for "likeness" see on 1:23). The word is characteristic of this epistle (four times out of six in the New Testament; Parry thinks that it "implies true assimilation, but of things different"). It is not easy to grasp the force of "likeness" (how does one unite with a "likeness"?)

Our death "is not the same as Christ's but is similar to it" (Calvin). His death was physical whereas ours is not. JB has "If in union with Christ we have imitated his death", but Paul is not saying this. There is no question of imitation; by faith we become one with Christ and this means a real death to our former life

Emphasis on the Christ's physical death and our Death to Sin. We did not have to physically died.

The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him;

the old self was crucified with him; that the body of sin may be brought to nothing. " I've been crucified with Christ, its not i who lives but Christ who lives in Me.

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

The Believer has died to an old way: The Term is used states the old way is outworn. The old man does not control the believer. However, this does not mean the believer will not sin! Sinless perfection will only happen when we live with Christ for all of eternity.

We have died and continue to die, in a sense daily

I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day!

So the Body of Sin might be brought to nothing....

There is a difference of opinion as to whether the body of sin means the physical body characterized by sin (cf. Moule, "the sin-possessed body" [IBNTG, p. 38]), or whether it signifies "the sinful self"

Paul here is talking about the physical body, which so easily responds to sinful impulses. Christ's death on the Cross changes the believing sinner's situation.

Because of His finished work on the cross : we are no longer slaves to sin. In our previous natural state, we were unable to resist sin (resulting in slavery to sin).

"Slave to sin"- serve sin as a slave.

Sin had full control of us as a Master :

The Old man= ADAM or our Union with ADAM

The New Man-CHRIST or our Union with CHRIST

so Paul restates a point made earlier: Dying with Christ and being raised to life, this frees us from the power of sin. Since we died, we will also live

The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him;

what's added in verse 7 is justification (we have been set free)- legally declared righteous by God.

Does your life signify your death to sin? When people think of you, do they think Adam or Christ?

How are we sure of Christ's resurrection? Eye witnesses saw the risen Lord Jesus; therefore Paul can say with Assurance "Christ was raised from the Dead!"

Jesus' death to sin was once and for all, "the great New Testament note" (Robinson).53 Believers face a new contest with sin every day; as long as we are on this earth we are never free from it. But Christ's death was unique, a once-for-all dealing with sin. God made him sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21), and his death dealt decisively with sin, took it out of the way, paid its penalty, removed its sting (1 Cor. 15:55–56), won the victory over it. Look at sin how you will, Christ has effectively dealt with it.

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

don't let sin reign in your mortal body! don't obey the passions (desires)-Epitomia<greek> of the flesh.

For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

The body should not be an instrument for evil

we live under the freedom of God's Grace

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Source: https://sermons.faithlife.com/sermons/306318-continue-in-sin-so-grace-may-abound

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