THE KING’S BUSINESS
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Sin as a state and an element of life is impossible to the Christian, for his life communion with sin was destroyed at the cross. To acknowledge that this actually took place at the time of justification is to admit the force of the. apostle’s argument for a holy life, because the believer has entered into a new condition of life by reason of his identification with ' Jesus Christ and in His death and resurrection. He cannot possibly live in sin as a state or an element (6 :2, 3). Every conversion is, in a sense, a funeral the old man died, and the believer arose by the power of the risen Christ into new ness of life. The “old man” of sin was crucified, died, and was buried with Christ. It was a new creature in Christ Jesus that came, forth (6:4-6). The “old man,” by which is meant the unregenerate self, the former life, a sinful and fallen nature, “was crucified” and “done away with.” This does not mean that the old nature was annihilated, but that it was rendered inef fective, became paralyzed, entered into a condition of impotency and inactivity as though it were, dead. Indeed, the believer is to reckon” the eld nature as though it were actually dead. The apostle next shows that a life of holiness is possible, not only because of our ' identification with Christ in His death and resurrection, but also because every claim that sin and a broken law have made against the sinner has been met by ' the death of Christ (6:7-14). Faith in the crucified and risen Son of God means acquittal from the guilt of sin, and'redemp tion from its power. Sin and a broken law have no claims upon the man who accepts Jesus Christ as his substitute. Just as the resurrection of Christ meant that death had no more hold on Christ, and also that the life he lived after the resurrection was different from the life he lived before, in the sense that the resurrection released Christ from the sinless limitations of human nature, so the believer who by faith has not only died with Christ, but has also risen with Him, finds himself
living in the element of a life altogether new and different from his former expe dience. Sin no more has dominion over the believer. He who is risen with Christ is thereby constituted a complete victor over sin. Sin shall not reign over him. He may not be able to banish it altogether nor entirely expel it, for it will ever remain with him until the resurrection, but he can, by the power of the risen, Christ, prevent it reigning and ruling or having the upper hand over him. He need not obey it in the lust thereof (6:8-12). A man and his “self” are to be dis tinguished. “Self” is not the whole self, but only that part of man which lay under sin’s dominion. This truth kept in mind will help us to understand the great argu ment of chapter 7. This “self” is dead; the new and true “self” is alive unto God through this union with the risen Christ who can live only after God. The word “reckon” is an important one in this connection. We are to regard and acknowledge something to be a fact which really is a fact by God’s grace, namely, that deadness to sin is the element in which the believer lives. “In Christ Jesus” is the atmosphere and environment of the Chris tian, just as the air is for the bird, and water is for the fish. Sin is not to “reign” in our mortal bodies. We may not be able to entirely expel or banish it, for the old nature will doubtless still remain with us until we get our resur rection body, but we can prevent it reign ing and ruling and getting the upper hand in our lives. The “lusts,” the» perverted bodily, appetites, must not hold sway. Another important word in this connec tion is the word “present.” Twice in 6:13 is it used, and with a change of tense in each case. We present ourselves by one definite, decided act, one resolute effort to the service of our Lord, and then as new opportunities confront us, we continually present ourselves to Him for these indi- vidual acts of service. We are to present “ourselves,” which means our entire personality; and we are
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