I. The Word: Romans 6:5-

5For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6knowing 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; 7for he who has died is freed from sin.

II. Reflection Questions:

1  What does it mean to have been united with Jesus in His death?

2  What does it mean to be freed from sin?

3  Are you still obeying a master who has no power over you?

If we have believed on Jesus, thereby becoming united with Him in His death, then we will also be like Him in His resurrected state. If we have become united with Jesus in His death our old self has been crucified, and we are dead to sin. This is Paul’s point in a nutshell. It is a vitally important point.

Paul supports this truth with an illustration the Romans would understand: slavery. The Roman Empire was very familiar with slavery. Much of the working population of the empire consisted of slaves, made up of people from various conquests and wars. Those born to parents who were slaves became slaves as well. Slaves had to obey their masters. But there was a provision in the Roman law that permitted manumission, that is the freeing of one’s slave. Paul’s point here is that before we believed on Jesus we had to obey sin, which was our master, but now, having been set free by Jesus we no longer have to obey sin. We are no longer slaves to sin.

Paul makes reference to this same concept in his letter to the Corinthians when he talks about Israel being baptized into Moses and the cloud by way of the Red Sea. See I Corinthians 10:1-2. Israel was a slave nation in Egypt. They were bound to obey the Egyptians so long as they were in Egypt. They identified themselves with Moses (and God in the cloud), whom they followed out through the Red Sea. When the Egyptians followed them into the dry seabed that had been the Red Sea, the waters came back together killing the Egyptians, their former masters. Israel was no longer enslaved to the Egyptians. They were now free to serve God.

One of the biggest lies the enemy can tell a new Christian is that he is still a slave to sin. If you believe that, you will continue to obey a master who no longer has any power over you.