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
4th 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]