Knowing this, that our old humanity was crucified together with Him, that the body of sin may be nullified, for us by no means to be still slaving for sin, for the one who dies has been justified from sin. Now if we died together with Christ, we believe that we shall be living together with Him also, having perceived that Christ, having been roused from among the dead, is no longer dying. Death is lording it over Him no longer, for in that He died, He died to sin once for all time, yet in that He is living, He is living to God. Thus you also, reckon yourselves to be dead, indeed, to sin, yet living to God in Christ Jesus, our Lord
Paul to the Romans 6: 6-11, Concordant New Testament
Growing up I was a huge fan of the sci fi series Battlestar Galactica. I recall one episode titled The Long Patrol where the warrior Starbuck has crashed on a planet inhabited by a penal colony. The residents of this penal colony have been forced to pay for the sins of their ancestors by being housed in cells while being forced to brew the same adult beverage their ancestors did, with the profits going to their captors. Near the end of the episode, Starbuck discovers that there the cells which house the prisoners are unlocked. The only thing which keeps them imprisoned, it seems, is tradition. I was thinking of this old TV show the other night as I was in a text conversation with a Gym Rat friend. This man is an old school, church theology based believer. Being such, he cannot or will not accept the scriptures proclaimed by Paul in his evangel which assure us that Jesus Himself has freed us from the bondages of sin. It seems that he is stuck in that old building without locks on the doors. He is able to walk free at any given time, yet he continues to wallow in his captivity. For all intents and purposes, he remains a slave to the sin which once defined him. Paul is clear in his letter to the Romans, we are to "Reckon yourselves to be dead, indeed, to sin" {Paul to the Romans 6:11}. Sadly, far too many believers are just like my Gym friend, they follow the teachings of the mainstream church which continues to proclaim that our sin remains a vital issue in our lives. Not only that, but that sin has actually separated us from the God Who created us. Nothing could be further from the truth.
When we live within the bondage of sin, we believe that despite Jesus having given Himself for our sakes to take away the sin of the world, that we must seek forgiveness continually for the sin we still continue to commit each and every day. Like residents of that fictional penal colony, we accept the same punishments which our ancestors adhered to. This cycle has been repeating itself over and over again for thousands of years. Have we forgotten that Christ Jesus willingly gave Himself to take that punishment we continue to believe is ours? That He Who knew no sin died for us {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:21}. For its part, the church has been doing its best for centuries to hold believers in the bondages of sin. This has NEVER been the Fathers intention for us. The very reason by which Jesus has been dispatched to take away the sin of the world is testament to this truth {Johns Account 3:16-17}. Those within the church know and celebrate the death of Jesus on the cross, but they refuse to practice what they preach. To listen to them is to believe that Jesus has left sin remaining after His death. I know this because of my conversations with more than a few church going believers. It seems that there are far too many who continue to choose to live within the bondage of that which Jesus has already put to death {Paul to the Romans 6:10}. If they were to accept the truth of the freedom which has been given them, they would then be able to escape that bondage and walk out of the unlocked prison they live in. For Jesus has died that the chains which once bound us would be broken. THAT is living free in Christ.
Yet God is commending this love of His to us, seeing that, while we are still sinners, Christ died for our sakes
Paul to the Romans 5: 8, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
No comments:
Post a Comment