Sanctification – Romans 6 offer us a view of Christian sanctification, which provides a basis for vital, achievable discipleship. Sanctification is "the process by which new life is imparted to the believer by the Holy Spirit such that they are released from the compulsive power of sin and enabled to love God and serve their neighbor."

Double Death / Double Life – Paul says in Romans 6 that we share in Christ’s death and resurrection event. Theologically, when Christ died, so did we. And when Christ rose from death, so did we. This makes sense only when we consider what "in" or "with" Christ means, a phrase that Paul peppered every piece of writing that he produced.

Illustration – Watchman Nee tells a simple but profound story to clarify Paul’s "in Christ" logic. A Christian once held up a piece of paper before simple villagers in one of China’s rural provinces. He placed the paper inside the book and shut it. "Where is the paper?" she asked the crowd. "Right! It’s inside the book. But I’m going to mail the book to America. Then where will the paper be?" she teased. "Yes! The paper will be in America too! But what if I drop it in the middle of this mud puddle? Where will the paper be then? Of course. In the mud puddle too!" Then she made the connection—"the history of the one is the history of the other." So it is that Romans 6 speaks of this double death/double life, for we share the same story through baptism: we are baptized "into Christ," and thus, into the death and resurrection—of Another, Jesus Christ.

What is the closest you have come to losing your life?

• What motivates you to live a good life?
• How does your knowledge of your death to sin affect your struggle with sin—or how can it?
• Food For Thought—"The Christian life is not simply difficult, it’s impossible. Christianity is not the problem, but that we have been trying to live it apart from the help of the Holy Spirit."

 

Vignettes of how people frame the Christian life—what we are supposed to do.

• Suggest the impossibility of living the Christian life
• Explore the idea raised earlier in this commentary about what being "in Christ" means; suggest the impact of such an understanding
• Share the Watchman Nee story as a possible way to envision Christian discipleship.

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[1] Van A. Harvey, A Handbook of Theological Terms (NY: Macmillan Publ. Company, 1964), page 214.
[2] Charles Stanley, The Power of the Cross (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1998), page 105.