The Story of God’s Explosive Grace

What is the greatest obstacle to my personal sanctification? Hint: According to modern culture, it is an old fashioned, out of date word used by nutty religious people.

Twelve Steps to Stop Sinning

1. Fear God

2. Choose to stop sinning

3. Spend time in God’s Word Meditate on it. Like a cow chewing its cud. Then regurgitating it over and over before swallowing it.

4. Consider the consequences that sin will bring into your life

5. Understand the line you cross where something that isn’t sin becomes sin

6. Accountability

7. Learn Biblical wisdom to determine what is and what is not sin

8. Flee sin, do not attempt a negotiation

9. Halt self- deception

10. Man up to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin

11. Beware of the monster (the flesh) within

12. Realize that when you choose to not sin that you are bringing glory to God. And there is no higher goal or end in the universe than to glorify God.

These twelve steps can all be found in the Old Testament. But after the cross, there becomes a new approach for the child of God to face his or her sin. It is the result of our rebirth and relationship with Christ through faith. This new approach is extraordinary and Old Testament believers never saw this coming as it pertains to combating sin in one’s life. This new principle is housed in the last verse of our current study of Romans

Whatever happened to Jesus on the cross happened also to you if you are a son of God

19 “For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live to God. 20 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. 21 “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.” Galatians 2

In some supernatural and spiritual way, at the very nano point of my salvation, I was transported back in time to A.D. 33 to Calvary in Jerusalem, Israel. And as the Son of God was being crucified on that wooden cross, I was there also. Not as a bystander in the crowd, but in some spiritual sense I was on the cross with my Savior. As He died, I died. As He was buried, I was buried. As He was resurrected the third day, I was resurrected the third day. As He paid for all mankind’s sins, my sins were paid for. And as Christ now lives in the newness of the resurrected life, I also live in this new resurrected life. That is the power of the cross.

1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2 May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

5 For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7 for he who has died is freed from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,

9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Baptism, the key to the believer’s new union with Christ

βαπτίζω (baptízō) means to immerse in, dip in or under, wash, and to dye clothe. It also meant to overwhelm (fully wet). The real sense of the word “to baptize” as used in the New Testament, meant for the object of that being baptized to be identified with that which it was being immerse.

1. John’s baptism of repentance – Luke Water baptism of Jesus – Matthew Disciple’s baptism of Jews – John 3.22, Baptism of pain and suffering – James and John’s request Mark Jesus’ crucifixion baptism – Luke Moses’ baptism – I Corinthians Baptism of fire – Matthew Christian water baptism – Matthew Holy Spirit baptism – Matthew Only one baptism – Ephesians 4.4-6

Hint: There is not a drop of water in Romans 6

In both passages the same Greek word is used, the word ἐ ν (en). The preposition means either: in, on, or at. The best understanding is that “in” is the correct view as it correlates closest to the idea of baptizing. Matthew 3.11 ἐ ν (en) the Holy Spirit I Corinthians ἐ ν (en) one Spirit So the idea is that Christ is the baptizer, who takes you the baptizee, and places you into the Holy Spirit thus making you part of the Body of Christ. If you are in the Holy Spirit then you are also in Christ and the Father since all three are the trinity.

Water baptism declares to the world in a simple one act play the grandeur of the what happened when you received Christ. The Lord baptized you into the Holy Spirit and made you part of the body of Christ.

The implications of your Holy Spirit baptism are amazing as Paul describes it well in Romans 6 passage

It all means that you… 1. Are now dead to sin (2) 2. Have newness of life (4) 3. Are no longer slaves to sin (6) 4. Freed from sin (7) 5. Will live with Christ eternally (8)

Grace to something base Satan is a master at taking God’s gifts and turning them upside down into a means of sin and darkness

This is exactly the point Paul makes at the start of chapter 6. 1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2 May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Romans 6 Paul asks a rhetorical question. May it never be loosely translates into, “Are you crazy man!”

Wrapping it up Our union with Christ through our baptism into the Holy Spirit is the key not only for our salvation, but also for our sanctification