Here’s my fairly literal translation of these verses:
1What, therefore, will we say? Are we continuing in the sin, in order that the grace may abound? 2May it never be! We who died to the sin, how will we yet live in it? 3Or, do you not know that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4Therefore, we were placed together with Him through the baptism into the death, in order that, just as Christ was raised up out of dead ones through the glory of the Father, thus also we might walk in newness of life, 5for, if we have become united ones with the likeness of His death, we shall be rather also of His resurrection, 6knowing this, that our old man was crucified together with [Christ] in order that the body of the sin might be rendered inoperative, that we might no longer be slaves to the sin, 7for the dead one has been justified from the sin, 8but we are believing that, if we died together with Christ, we will also live with Him, 9knowing that, Christ having been raised out of dead ones, death no longer has mastery over Him, 10for, the [death] He died, He died to the sin once for all, but the [life] He lives, He lives to God.
Resurrection. Life from the dead. I have said for years that, in one sense, the whole point of Christianity is resurrection. Every Easter, my consuming thought is that what we are celebrating is the enormity of what Christianity is all about—Resurrection, life from the dead, a new life, a second chance. As Paul says in v.4, the point is that we should “walk in newness of life,” in v.6, that “we might no longer be slaves to sin.” Resurrection is about putting away the death and misery and slavery of our old lives and suddenly awakening to live a new life of love and joy and peace!
In Jesus’ death, you and me died. Our old life died. And when He arose, He raised you and me too. The darkness, the despair, the endless frustration, all of that ended and you and me arose in Him to walk in the bright light of His love. God was no longer mysterious and distant, stern and threatening. Suddenly He is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the God who loves me with an everlasting love.
All of this is enough to keep us praising Him for all eternity—and longer if that was possible! That brings us back to vv.1&2: “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? May it never be! We died to sin; how can we live any longer in it?” Any born again person is thinking the same thought: “May it never be!!!” That life of sin and misery and endless death is exactly what Jesus saved us from! Why on earth would we want to go back? “Our old man was crucified together with Him!”
This, I would suggest, is exactly what people are missing when they think grace encourages sin, when they think the idea of grace, of unconditional love, will only cause people to cast off morality and plunge gleefully into sin. Tell a pig he’s free to wallow in the mud and of course he’ll run and jump right into it. Tell a lamb and he’ll ask, “Why would I want to do that?” What people are missing is the enormity of resurrection, the fact that grace not only forgives us, it also changes us. When Jesus saved me, I didn’t just “turn over a new leaf.” I died. My old life died; and I arose to live a new life. I’m not a pig anymore. I’m a sheep. Grace made me a new man, with a new dynamo churning within me. I don’t want to live that old life any longer. I want to know God. I want Him in my life. I want to see my world through His eyes, live it His way, When I know His truth, His truth sets me free.
Mentally, I’m back to asking why Paul even needs to explain all of this. Any genuinely born-again believer joins him in his “May it never be!” To us, it is a complete and total logical absurdity. Continue in sin? That is exactly what I died to. Why on earth would I want to live any longer in it???” But then I’m back to acknowledging that he does explain it. I guess it needs to be said because it needs to be said. Somewhere the Defense needs to refute this indictment that grace encourages sin. I suppose I should say I doubt that any of this will ever satisfy the unregenerate persons who raise the challenge. Perhaps it needs to be said more for our sake than theirs? Yes, we know it, but I also have to admit I sure enjoy hearing it.
What a wondrous truth it all is. Life from the dead! I get to live!
While I’m reveling in the wonder of it all, and with all of that said, there are a few exegetical thoughts I want to record. First of all, there are those who have always jumped on vv.3&4 to support the idea that somehow we are saved by being baptized. “All of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death. We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death and raised from the dead to live a new life.” If we grab this verse out of its context, it certainly seems to support their assertion. However, keeping it in its context, there are several reasons I would suggest the assertion is invalid.
First of all, Paul has just spent the first five chapters of this book addressing the doctrine of justification and clearly established that we are saved by grace through faith alone. Now, in chapter 6, he has moved on to the issues of Christian living for those who have been justified by that faith. The subject under discussion here in chapter 6 is not to somehow go back and re-visit the doctrine of justification. My point is just to say, this is a poor context for someone to pull out an isolated verse or two and somehow establish for themselves an entirely new doctrine of salvation, to suddenly interject this idea that an external ceremony is in some way integral to that justification by faith alone. If the act of baptism were essential to that justification, how could Paul have failed to mention it anywhere in those first five chapters, when that was the context, when that was exactly what he was addressing—the means of our salvation? We simply should not be pulling vv. 3&4 out of their context.
Add to that a couple of other considerations: Throughout the New Testament, the concept of “baptism” is used in a much larger sense than just the act of water baptism. In I Cor. 10:2&3, Paul describes the Israelites as having been “baptized into Moses…they all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink…” John the Baptist said, “I baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8). The ancient peoples were much more “picture” oriented than we are and clearly, as we would read the Bible, their concept of “baptism” was much larger than the act itself.
That thought actually impacts our understanding and even translation of our v.4. As our English versions tend to read, it says, “We were therefore buried with Him through baptism…” Interestingly, that word “baptism” is actually articular. It literally says, “We were buried with Him through the baptism,” which I would suggest should be translated, “We were buried with Him through that baptism…” What baptism? That baptism. The one just mentioned in v.3. Our “baptism into Christ Jesus,” which is the larger picture just like the Israelite’s baptism into Moses. The meaning of the word “baptism” is, of course, actually “immersion.” I think if we were to talk about our “immersion into Jesus” or the Israelites’ “immersion into Moses,” it would be a little easier for us accept that is how Paul is using the word here in chapter 6, as referring to a life-consuming association.
I’m suggesting first of all that we would be pulling vv.3,4 out of their context to try to use them as a proof text for baptismal salvation. Even if someone wants to take that position, I would say the burden of proof is on them to explain why, if it is that important, didn’t Paul even so much as mention it in the first five chapters? Then, add to that the very legitimate exegesis which would allow for the word “baptism” to be here being used in its larger sense of “immersion” into a total life association.
While I’m on it and having brought up the word “immersion,” I also want to say I think we are also on thin ice to try to use these verses as a proof text for what we call immersion baptism. We all like to see in this entire passage the picture of immersion baptism, that going down into the water and up again as being a picture of our death, burial, and resurrection with Christ. I like that picture too, but I have to be an honest exegete and say the same thing—that the point of this passage is not to establish a doctrine of baptism. That may be true, but if we want to get dogmatic, I believe we need to find another passage where that is specifically the context. I know that sounds like heresy, but, once again, I want to be an honest—and a consistent—exegete. I’m saying the baptismal salvation people shouldn’t pull their verses out of context, but neither should we. The point of this passage is to answer the indictment that grace encourages sin. The whole point of the passage is to establish that Jesus’ resurrection renders that indictment utterly absurd. We all need to be careful, no matter how appealing, not to use these verses to dogmatically make any other assertion. If we would all just let these verses remind us again of the wonder of resurrection, we’d have plenty to keep us busy praising God.
Resurrection. Life from the dead. A new life. Hope. Love. Joy. Peace. I never tire of reveling in this amazing and glorious blessing that Jesus has given us!
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