Lesson 79

The Christ-Centered Life

The Foundation is our Position in Christ - Rom 6

Ø 6:6 Paul continues with more important information we need to know!

We must answer three problems if we are to understand this crucial verse;

1. Who is the old man??

2. Who or what is the body of sin?

3. What does the verb done away with mean, what is involved?

"knowing this" ginwskw indicates that we are to have knowledge; that is, an intimate understanding and discerning of the facts involved.

that our old self was crucified with (Him),

palaio.j old from the point of use not age;

- Term refers to all that we were, whole person, by virtue of our belonging to Adam.

What about that old man?

- was crucified with (Him) [aorist passive indicative] sustauro,w Old man/self died with on the cross.

- Next follows 2 purposes for the old man being crucified with Christ at salvation;

#1 that our body of sin might be done away with,

- to. sw/ma th/j a`marti,aj(, our body = ;

- lit. that our sin possessed body; recognizes that we are dominated and controlled by the sin nature before salvation;

- might be done away with katarge,w aorist passive subjunctive; with i[na = purpose clause

literal meaning of the expression "done away with" is "to put out of business" or "to dissolve business relationships."

Other meanings: made powerless, impotent, rendered ineffective"

#2 [purpose] that we should no longer be slaves to sin;

- This announces that the tyranny of the is over.

The Sin nature has been rendered , put out of business so that we, no longer are , dominated by it; doesn't say that it is no longer there.

What about those 3 questions we stated at the beginning of verse 6?

Do we have an answer for them? Summary!

1. Who is the old man??

2. Who or what is the body of sin?

3. What does the verb done away with [kjv destroyed] mean? What is involved?

Ø 6:7 "for [reason we are no longer slaves of sin] he who has died is freed from sin."

Some Observations on 6:4-7

1. The First Purpose of the Death of the Old Man/Self; being crucified with Christ is "that our body of sin might be done away with."

There are proposed four different interpretations of this expression "body of sin."

#1 Some believe that it refers to the sin nature.

#2 Some claim that by "body of sin" Paul means all sin in one mass considered figuratively as a body."

In other words, it is the sum total of all sinful acts.

#3 Others see the "body of sin" as the person who sins.

#4 A number of scholars regard the "body of sin" as the physical body of the unregenerate man characterized as an instrument of service to the sinful nature.

- There are several reasons that I'm convinced that this last view 4^th view is correct.

1st this view is consistent with the meaning which Paul attaches to the term "body" every other time he uses that term in this context. [6-8]

Secondly, this view is consistent with the master--slave analogy which Paul develops in Romans 6.

Thirdly, this view is consistent with the grammatical use [case] of the word "sin" in the expression "body of sin." [has the force of "sin possessed body"]

What did Paul mean when he said that the body of sin might be "done away with?"

- The literal meaning of the expression "done away with" is "to put out of business" or "to dissolve business relationships."

- In light of the meanings of "body of sin" and "done away with" the following conclusion can be drawn:

The first purpose of death, being crucified with Christ is the termination of the relationship which exists between the unregenerate man's physical body and his sin nature.

When we believe in Christ we die with Christ, we're crucified with Him. What happens?

1. Our physical body terminates its former relationship with the sin nature.

2. No longer is it the servant of the sin nature.

3. No longer is it obligated to function as an instrument of sin.

4. It ceases to be the "body of sin." body possessed/dominated by sin.

Thus the first purpose of our death with Christ implies that, when the person dies with Christ, his sinful nature loses its position of over him, and he loses his position of to that nature.

2. The second purpose for the old man's crucifixion with Christ is "that we should no longer be slaves to sin."

The second purpose, then, for the regenerate person's death with Christ is the termination of the relationship of slavery to our sin nature into which we were bound for life before the cross. [looking at it from God's standpoint and provision]