Post by Les Brewer on Jun 18, 2012 13:19:02 GMT
ý"THE DOCTRINE OF IDENTIFICATION!" by Pastor Robert Oliver
Beloved Believers, I've Come to the Conclusion that Romans 5:12 is the Most Important Verse of the New Testament! Let Me Explain... Paul, by the HOLY SPIRIT, Writes "WHEREFORE, AS BY ONE MAN SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD, AND DEATH BY SIN; SO DEATH PASSED UPON ALL MEN, FOR THAT ALL HAVE SINNED!" Last night the HOLY SPIRIT Arrested My Attention on This Incredible Verse! Notice the first word "Wherefore!" This word is a "Connector" from All that has been Stated from ch 3:10 to ch 5:11, Where the Great Theme of JUSTIFICATION is Laid out; Paul is Building a Case, and He's About to Give Us the Greatest Contrast in the Entire BIBLE! Now, Notice the Next Word, "AS!" This Word is Critically Important, Because it Indicates that Just AS One Person So Affected the Entire Human Race, Even So Did ANOTHER Person Affect the Entire Human Race! Now, Notice the Next "3" Words, "BY ONE MAN!" Watch Now, GOD'S SPIRIT Reveals Here, that ONLY "ONE" MAN Was Able to Transform the Entire Human Family by His Actions! Listen, Adam was the Federal "Head" of His Race, and What He Did, We Did! Let me Explain: In Hebrews 7:9 GOD Says that "Levi" Paid Tithes "In" Abraham to Melchisedec! Now, Levi Did NOT LIVE until over 120 YEARS "After" Abraham Lived, but GOD Said that Levi was IN THE LOINS of his Great Grandfather Abraham, and that Abraham's Actions were Accounted to Him! Now, Le'ts follow this Revelation to it's Logical End; If What Abraham DID was Attributed to Levi Judicially by GOD, then What Adam DID was Attributed to ALL HIS PROGENY as Well! Now, Calvin taught, that Man Becomes a Guilty Sinner by Actual Personal Sins, but this is Incorrect! Man is a Guilty Sinner Because of What He Did "IN ADAM!" Now, there's a Reason Why Paul is Hammering Home this Point, Watch, He Proclaims that DEATH Passed Upon ALL MEN, For That ALL HAVE SINNED! Now, Until Last Night, I Always Read that as Actual Personal Sins, but it's NOT Saying that! The Text But, is Saying that ALL SINNED "IN ADAM!" Therefore, We Are Not Sinners Because of Personal Sins Committed, but We Are Sinners Because of Our Inherited SIN NATURE!!! Follow me! The Next Words State "SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD!" Listen, SIN Entered Our Sphere, the World, but it Already EXISTED in ANOTHER SPHERE! See, Adam Was NOT The First Sinner! Satan Was! But Listen, When Adam Sinned, a "DEGENERATION" Occurred! He Went From Being Spiritually "Alive" to Being Spiritually "DEAD!" Now, from vs 12 to vs 21, Paul Gives Us the Greatest Contrast Ever Sited in the WORD OF GOD! Watch, vs 15 Speaks of Another "ONE MAN" JESUS CHRIST! Now, Don't Miss This...As In Adam All DIE, Even So, IN CHRIST, Shall ALL BE MADE "ALIVE!!" Listen, ALL those IN ADAM are Partakers of ADAM'S SIN! But, ALL THOSE IN CHRIST ARE "PARTAKERS" OF JESUS CHRIST'S PERFECT RIGHTEOUSNESS!!! Watch, As Adam is the Federal HEAD of ALL HIS Descendants, So Also, JESUS CHRIST IS THE FEDERAL HEAD OF ALL HIS PROGENY!!! This is Why We Are "MEMBERS" OF HIS BODY!!! Listen, WHAT JESUS DID, YOU & I DID!!! WHEN JESUS DIED ON THE CROSS, YOU & I DIED ON THE CROSS! WHEN JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD, YOU & I ROSE FROM THE DEAD!!! And, WHEN JESUS CHRIST ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, YOU & I ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN!!!!! Beloved Believers, Listen to Me...WE "ARE" SEATED TOGETHER WITH CHRIST AT THE RIGHT HAND OF THE FATHER!!!! And IF You Can GRASP THIS TRUTH, YOU WILL NEVER BE THE SAME!!!! We've Been "TRANSLATED" OUT OF ADAM (SIN) AND INTO JESUS CHRIST (RIGHTEOUSNESS)!!!! WE ARE "NOW" MEMBERS OF HIS BODY, OF HIS BONES, AND OF HIS FLESH!!!! OH GLORY GLORY GLORY, PRAISE HIS HOLY NAME!!!!!! Got to Go, I'm Going to Have a Spell With MY JESUS, WHOOHOOE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "THE CHRISTIAN'S SIN NATURE!" I Want to Speak about the Sin "Nature" and GOD'S Divinely Appointed "Remedy" Which is Provided For it! And We Must Realize, that this Remedy is Only For True Believers, as the Unregenerate are Incapable of Receiving the THINGS OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD! So, in Approaching this Great Matter, Let's First Look at the Origin, Character, and Propagation of this Nature: In Genesis 2:17 GOD Said to Adam "IN THE DAY THAT THOU EATEST THEREOF THOU SHALT SURELY DIE!" Now, Listen, Though Adam Didn't Die Physically for Many Years After, Yet He Did DIE SPIRITUALLY on That Day! Last Night, I was Thinking about Adam, and the Magnitude of the Dark Transformation that Overtook him That Day! Beloved Believer, Do You Realize that Adam Underwent a Literal "Degeneration" at that Moment? Listen, He Had No SIN NATURE "Prior" to that Act! He Had Never Experienced Fear, Anxiety, Shame, or Guilt! But Now, He's Alone, Without GOD, and Under a Divine Sentence of Condemnation, from which He Had NO HOPE of Escape! He was Now a Sinner! He was Now Depraved! He Had Now Crossed a Line that He Could Never Repair! His Entire Character is Altogether Changed Now, and "Darkness" Filled His Soul! But Listen Now, This Horrific Alteration of his Being Affected His Body, Soul, and Spirit! His "spirit" was Now Dead and Cut Off from Contact with GOD! His Soul was Now Living In a State of FEAR and Bondage to Sin! And his Body was Now Only Capable of Propagating a spiritually Dead Race, which would Bear His Sin Nature! Now, this spiritually Dead Condition, which is Termed a Fallen, Adamic, Nature, is Transmitted without Dimmunition From Father to Son Throughout All Generations! But, How Does this Condition Now Apply to Those who've Been Born Again, Regenerated, and Redeemed??? I Want Us to Look at "3" Terms which are Employed in the New Testament to Describe this Sin Nature in a Christian: First, The "FLESH!" Now, the Greek word is "SARX!" It Literally Means "THE HUMAN NATURE!" Carnal, Fleshly, Passions! Now, Wait a Minute, I Thought that When I Got Saved All that Was Eradicated? Wrong! Listen Dear One, When You Became Born Again You Acquired a NEW NATURE, and Now, You Have "2" Natures! Do You Know Why Asceticism Does NOT WORK? It's Because You CANNOT DESTROY YOUR SIN NATURE, But, THE HOLY SPIRIT CAN DO WHAT "YOU" CANNOT!!! Watch, Galatians 5:16 says "FOR THE FLESH LUSTETH AGAINST THE SPIRIT AND THE SPIRIT AGAINST THE FLESH, AND THESE ARE CONTRARY THE ONE TO THE OTHER!" Again, the "Flesh" is NOT Just Your Physical Body, but the Whole SIN NATURE that Desires Evil Things! And Paul, by the HOLY SPIRIT, Would NOT Warn Us About these "2" Contrary, Opposing Natures If they Were Not BOTH PRESENT! Now, in Romans 7:14 Paul Does NOT Say that His "Body" is "Fleshly" but He says "I AM CARNAL" and "IN ME, THAT IS, IN MY FLESH, DWELLETH NO GOOD THING!" Paul Refers to the Sin Nature Which was STILL In Him Fighting Against His NEW NATURE! Secondly, The "OLD MAN!" Again, He's Describing the Sin Nature! This Term is Used Only "3" Times in the New Testament! Once, it has to do with the "Present" Position of the Old Man Through the DEATH of JESUS CHRIST! In the Other "2" Ocurrences the Fact that the OLD MAN Has been PUT OFF Forever, is Made the Basis of an Appeal for a Holy & Sanctified Manner of Life! Watch, Romans 6:6 says "KNOWING THIS, THAT OUR 'OLD MAN' IS CRUCIFIED WITH HIM!" Now, this is NOT Speaking about the "Experience" of the Believer, but about a "Co-Crucifixion" WITH CHRIST at the Time & Place When & Where "HE" was Crucified! Now, this "Connects" My Last Post from Romans 5:12-19 to the Transference of the Federal Headship from the First Adam to the Last Adam! Watch, the "First" Adam, as Perpetuated In the Believer, the OLD MAN, the Fallen Sin Nature, Was CRUCIFIED With HIM! This Co-Crucifixion, it will be Seen, is of the Greatest Possible Importance on the Divine Side, in Making Possible a True & Complete DELIVERANCE FROM THE POWER OF THE "OLD MAN!" Now, in the Second Passage for the OLD MAN found in Ephesians 4:22-24, the Fact that the Old Man is ALREADY CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST is the Basis for an Appeal to the Believer, Indicating that "WE" Have the Ability to CHOOSE "Which" Nature We Will Walk In! Paul says "THAT YE PUT OFF THE OLD MAN, WHICH IS CORRUPT ACCORDING TO THE DECEITFUL LUSTS...AND THAT YE PUT "ON" THE NEW MAN, WHICH AFTER GOD IS CREATED IN RIGHTEOUSNESS AND TRUE HOLINESS!" And in the Third Ocurrence of the OLD MAN in Colossians 3:9,10 we Find it Having ALREADY DONE in that Paul says "SEEING THAT YE 'HAVE' PUT OFF THE OLD MAN WITH HIS DEEDS, AND HAVE PUT ON THE NEW MAN, WHICH IS RENEWED IN KNOWLEDGE AFTER THE IMAGE OF HIM THAT CREATED HIM!"Now, Watch, "POSITIONALLY" the OLD MAN Has Been PUT OFF FOREVER!!! Even Though Experientially, the Old Man Remains as an Active Force in the Life and Can ONLY BE CONTROLLED BY THE INDWELLING POWER OF GOD'S SPIRIT!!! And Here is Where the Continuous "RELIANCE" Upon the HOLY SPIRIT Comes In! We Must Comprehend the FACT, that the Sin Nature Has Been JUDGED, and Therefore, POSITIONALLY, We are DEAD TO IT!!!! I'll Come Back to this for our 3rd Term Later on...first, the FLESH, Second, the OLD MAN, and Third, SIN.... "THE CHRISTIAN'S SIN NATURE!" I Want to Speak about the Sin "Nature" and GOD'S Divinely Appointed "Remedy" Which is Provided For it! And We Must Realize, that this Remedy is Only For True Believers, as the Unregenerate are Incapable of Receiving the THINGS OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD! So, in Approaching this Great Matter, Let's First Look at the Origin, Character, and Propagation of this Nature: In Genesis 2:17 GOD Said to Adam "IN THE DAY THAT THOU EATEST THEREOF THOU SHALT SURELY DIE!" Now, Listen, Though Adam Didn't Die Physically for Many Years After, Yet He Did DIE SPIRITUALLY on That Day! Last Night, I was Thinking about Adam, and the Magnitude of the Dark Transformation that Overtook him That Day! Beloved Believer, Do You Realize that Adam Underwent a Literal "Degeneration" at that Moment? Listen, He Had No SIN NATURE "Prior" to that Act! He Had Never Experienced Fear, Anxiety, Shame, or Guilt! But Now, He's Alone, Without GOD, and Under a Divine Sentence of Condemnation, from which He Had NO HOPE of Escape! He was Now a Sinner! He was Now Depraved! He Had Now Crossed a Line that He Could Never Repair! His Entire Character is Altogether Changed Now, and "Darkness" Filled His Soul! But Listen Now, This Horrific Alteration of his Being Affected His Body, Soul, and Spirit! His "spirit" was Now Dead and Cut Off from Contact with GOD! His Soul was Now Living In a State of FEAR and Bondage to Sin! And his Body was Now Only Capable of Propagating a spiritually Dead Race, which would Bear His Sin Nature! Now, this spiritually Dead Condition, which is Termed a Fallen, Adamic, Nature, is Transmitted without Dimmunition From Father to Son Throughout All Generations! But, How Does this Condition Now Apply to Those who've Been Born Again, Regenerated, and Redeemed??? I Want Us to Look at "3" Terms which are Employed in the New Testament to Describe this Sin Nature in a Christian: First, The "FLESH!" Now, the Greek word is "SARX!" It Literally Means "THE HUMAN NATURE!" Carnal, Fleshly, Passions! Now, Wait a Minute, I Thought that When I Got Saved All that Was Eradicated? Wrong! Listen Dear One, When You Became Born Again You Acquired a NEW NATURE, and Now, You Have "2" Natures! Do You Know Why Asceticism Does NOT WORK? It's Because You CANNOT DESTROY YOUR SIN NATURE, But, THE HOLY SPIRIT CAN DO WHAT "YOU" CANNOT!!! Watch, Galatians 5:16 says "FOR THE FLESH LUSTETH AGAINST THE SPIRIT AND THE SPIRIT AGAINST THE FLESH, AND THESE ARE CONTRARY THE ONE TO THE OTHER!" Again, the "Flesh" is NOT Just Your Physical Body, but the Whole SIN NATURE that Desires Evil Things! And Paul, by the HOLY SPIRIT, Would NOT Warn Us About these "2" Contrary, Opposing Natures If they Were Not BOTH PRESENT! Now, in Romans 7:14 Paul Does NOT Say that His "Body" is "Fleshly" but He says "I AM CARNAL" and "IN ME, THAT IS, IN MY FLESH, DWELLETH NO GOOD THING!" Paul Refers to the Sin Nature Which was STILL In Him Fighting Against His NEW NATURE! SIN....*Romans ch 6 Again; Well, We Left off with the "3" Words Used in the New Testament to Describe the "Sin Nature!" First, it's Called The "Flesh!" Second, it's Called The "Old Man!" And Thirdly, it's Called "Sin!" Now, the Greek Word in Romans 6:1 for Sin if "Hamartia" and Means "SINFUL!" He asks this Question: "WHAT SHALL WE SAY THEN? SHALL WE CONTINUE IN SIN (Being Sinful), THAT GRACE MAY ABOUND?" In Other words, Paul asks Should a Christian Continue to Serve the Sin Nature, The Old Man, The Flesh, So that GOD is Able to Extend Grace??? There is a Deep Significance here, Between the Word "Sin" and the Word "Sins!" Remember, Sins are Personal Offences Committed by a Person Against GOD; but "Sin" Refers to One's "Sin Nature!" I'll Explain why that is So Important as We Go; Now, this is our "Third" Term Employed in the New Testament Relating to the Source of Evil in a True Believer, Sin! He did Not Say "Sins" but "Sin!" Sin, Being the word used to Point to the Fallen Adamic Nature, the Old Man, and Sins, being the Word used to Refer to the Evil Resulting From That Sin Nature! Sin is the "Root" while Sins are the "Fruit!" Ok, Now, the Flesh, the Old Man, and Sin, All Refer to the Source of Evil, a Corrupted Nature; But, the Child of GOD Has a Precious "Treasure" in this "Earthen" Vessel! This Earthen Vessel is called "OUR VILE BODY" in Philippians 3:21, which Shall be Changed to Become Like Unto HIS GLORIOUS BODY! Now, Like Physical DEATH, the Adamic (Sin) Nature, which is the Perpetuator of Spiritual DEATH, is NOT NOW DISMISSED by Eradication! But, in the Case of the Regenerate, this Abiding Adamic Nature is SUBJECT to Gracious DIVINE Provisions, Whereby it's Injuries & Outbreaks May be "RESTRAINED!" Listen Now, Salvation from the Power of Sin For the Believer, Like Salvation from the Penalty of Sin for the Unbeliever, "Depends" Upon "2" Factors, Namely, GOD'S DIVINE PROVISION and the Believers Personal APPROPRIATION!!! And Apart from One's Utilizing "Both" these Factors, There can be NO CONSISTENT VICTORY OVER SIN IN THE DAILY LIFE!!! So, Here's What I'd Like Us to Do Next: Let's Examine GOD'S DIVINE PROVISION For Overcoming Sin, the Old Man, the Flesh, the Sin Nature; and Then, we'll Look at THE BELIEVER'S PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR "APPROPRIATING" THAT PROVISION! First, THE DIVINE PROVISION! Now, In Both our Deliverance from the PENALTY of Sin, and our Deliverance From the POWER of Sin, the Righteous Basis for the Divine Provision is Found in the DEATH of JESUS CHRIST! Watch, I Corinthians 15:3 says "CHRIST DIED 'FOR' OUR SINS, ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES" So That We Could Be Delivered From the PENALTY of Sin! But, So That Saved Man Might Be Delivered From the POWER of Sin Unto a Holy Walk, Romans 6:10 says that "CHRIST DIED 'UNTO' SIN!" Now, Listen, HIS Death "FOR" Sin Provides a Finished Work of GOD Upon Which HE is Able to Remain JUST "While" HE JUSTIFIES the One Who Believes ON JESUS CHRIST Unto a State of JUSTIFICATION (Romans 3:26)! But, *HIS Death "UNTO" Sin Provides a FINISHED Work of GOD Upon Which HE is Able, by the Unceasing Energy & Supernatural POWER of HIS SPIRIT, to Advance the Sanctification of All Those From AMONG the SAVED Who "WALK IN THE SPIRIT!" We'll Talk More about that Walk Under the Believer's Responsibility to Appropriate it Later! But, Now, Since HE Died "FOR" Sin, there is, therefore, NOW NO CONDEMNATION For Those Who Believe, Their Standing and Safety, by POSITION, being Perfected Forever In CHRIST JESUS! And, Since HE Died "UNTO" Sin, there is Now a WALK upon a New Principle Made "POSSIBLE" for Those Who are Saved, Whereby They are In a Proper Relationship to GOD Made Eligible to Receive this Provision! But Realize here Beloved Believer, that All this is Only Made Possible Because of Our Eternal Divine "UNION" to the SON OF GOD! We "Were" In Adam, but we have been TRANSLATED Into the Second Adam, and This New Creation of GOD, Entitles us to these Heavenly Provisions, Because HE is Entitled to "Everything" the FATHER Owns! In John 14:20 JESUS Said "YE 'IN' ME, AND I 'IN' YOU!" Here is the KEY, We are NOT IN ADAM Anymore, even though we Retain some Relics of the first Adam; And these Great Transformations are Wholly Accomplished by "CHRIST 'IN' YOU" the HOPE of GLORY, and NEVER BY THE FLESH!!! Now, Let's Go one Step Further: The Believer, Thus JOINED to JESUS in this Literal Eternal UNION, Now "Partakes" of ALL THAT CHRIST IS, because of the Meritorious Standing Which HE Secured For Us! Listen, HIS Crucifixion, Death, Burial, and Resurrection, All Accomplished (Not for HIM) For US!!! Now, II Corinthians 5:21 says "THAT WE MIGHT BE 'MADE' THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD 'IN' HIM!" And, In HIS Judgment of the Believer's Sin Nature, JESUS CHRIST has been Crucified, Died, been Buried, and Raised From the DEAD, SO THAT "WE" ARE NO LONGER OBLIGATED TO SERVE THE OLD NATURE!!! So, In Romans 6:1-14, We Find the Central Passage of the New Testament for the Sanctification of Every Child of GOD, which is Based Upon the SON OF GOD'S JUDGMENT OF AND DEATH UNTO THE SIN NATURE!!! Watch, In Considering the Facts Concerning the Basis Upon Which GOD is Now FREE to CONTROL the Old Nature in the Believer, We CANNOT Emphasize Enough, that the Sin Nature in Every Born Again Believer is ALREADY JUDGED IN THE "DEATH" OF JESUS CHRIST!!! Remember, the Unregenerate Man is DEAD "IN" SINS, but the Regenerate Man IS DEAD "TO" SIN!!!!! Verse 2 States "HOW SHALL WE THAT ARE 'DEAD' TO SIN, LIVE ANY LONGER THEREIN?" Look at vs 7, 8, and 11; "DEAD TO SIN!!!" Question: What is Paul Trying to Convey here? I Believe that He is Saying that Because our Sin Nature Has Been Judged, We Have been Judicially Set FREE from it's Bondage, and, that by GOD'S OMNIPOTENT "SPIRIT" We are DIVINELY ENABLED to Avoid it's Snares! And This Priviledge the Unregenerate Do NOT HAVE! So, Saved Individuals Do No Longer Possess the NECESSITY to Sin, as Sin's Power Has Broken by DIVINE SENTENCE, and We are Now Free to Move on Another Plane and In the POWER of HIS Resurrection LIFE!!! Now, Look at vs 3, Notice the Question: "KNOW YE 'NOT'....WE WERE BAPTIZED (SPIRIT not Water) INTO HIS DEATH?" Watch, Just as We ARE "IN" HIM, We Partake of the VALUE of HIS DEATH!!! We "Partake" of HIS Burial vs 4, HIS Crucifixion vs 6, HIS Death vs 8, HIS Resurrection vs 4, 5, 8!!! Now, All this Information is Intended for the Realization of One Divine Purpose: "THAT LIKE AS CHRIST WAS RAISED UP FROM THE DEAD BY THE GLORY OF THE FATHER, EVEN SO WE ALSO SHOULD WALK IN 'NEWNESS' OF LIFE!!!" That is, by a New LIFE Principle which We Never Knew of Before! So, the Christian Walk is the Divine Objective of the Passage! Listen, What JESUS CHRIST "DID" Forever Satisfied the Righteous Holy Demands of the FATHER Against the Old Man, the Sin Nature, and, it OPENED A WAY FOR A "WALK" WHICH IS WELL-PLEASING UNTO THE FATHER (see II Cor 5:15)!!! Now, We Shall Pick it up Here again tomorrow, Blessings to All and Shalom.... *Romans ch 6 Again; Well, We Left off with the "3" Words Used in the New Testament to Describe the "Sin Nature!" First, it's Called The "Flesh!" Second, it's Called The "Old Man!" And Thirdly, it's Called "Sin!" Now, the Greek Word in Romans 6:1 for Sin if "Hamartia" and Means "SINFUL!" He asks this Question: "WHAT SHALL WE SAY THEN? SHALL WE CONTINUE IN SIN (Being Sinful), THAT GRACE MAY ABOUND?" In Other words, Paul asks Should a Christian Continue to Serve the Sin Nature, The Old Man, The Flesh, So that GOD is Able to Extend Grace??? There is a Deep Significance here, Between the Word "Sin" and the Word "Sins!" Remember, Sins are Personal Offences Committed by a Person Against GOD; but "Sin" Refers to One's "Sin Nature!" I'll Explain why that is So Important as We Go; Now, this is our "Third" Term Employed in the New Testament Relating to the Source of Evil in a True Believer, Sin! He did Not Say "Sins" but "Sin!" Sin, Being the word used to Point to the Fallen Adamic Nature, the Old Man, and Sins, being the Word used to Refer to the Evil Resulting From That Sin Nature! Sin is the "Root" while Sins are the "Fruit!" Remember, the Unregenerate Man is DEAD "IN" SINS, but the Regenerate Man IS DEAD "TO" SIN!!!!! Verse 2 States "HOW SHALL WE THAT ARE 'DEAD' TO SIN, LIVE ANY LONGER THEREIN?" Look at vs 7, 8, and 11; "DEAD TO SIN!!!" Question: What is Paul Trying to Convey here? I Believe that He is Saying that Because our Sin Nature Has Been Judged, We Have been Judicially Set FREE from it's Bondage, and, that by GOD'S OMNIPOTENT "SPIRIT" We are DIVINELY ENABLED to Avoid it's Snares! And This Priviledge the Unregenerate Do NOT HAVE! So, Saved Individuals Do No Longer Possess the NECESSITY to Sin, as Sin's Power Has Broken by DIVINE SENTENCE, and We are Now Free to Move on Another Plane and In the POWER of HIS Resurrection LIFE!!! Now, Look at vs 3, Notice the Question: "KNOW YE 'NOT'....WE WERE BAPTIZED (SPIRIT not Water) INTO HIS DEATH?" Watch, Just as We ARE "IN" HIM, We Partake of the VALUE of HIS DEATH!!! We "Partake" of HIS Burial vs 4, HIS Crucifixion vs 6, HIS Death vs 8, HIS Resurrection vs 4, 5, 8!!! Now, All this Information is Intended for the Realization of One Divine Purpose: "THAT LIKE AS CHRIST WAS RAISED UP FROM THE DEAD BY THE GLORY OF THE FATHER, EVEN SO WE ALSO SHOULD WALK IN 'NEWNESS' OF LIFE!!!" That is, by a New LIFE Principle which We Never Knew of Before! So, the Christian Walk is the Divine Objective of the Passage! Listen, What JESUS CHRIST "DID" Forever Satisfied the Righteous Holy Demands of the FATHER Against the Old Man, the Sin Nature, and, it OPENED A WAY FOR A "WALK" WHICH IS WELL-PLEASING UNTO THE FATHER (see II Cor 5:15)!!! Now, We Shall Pick it up Here again tomorrow, Blessings to All and Shalom.... Ok, Here we Go Again; We Have Been Looking at "THE DIVINE PROVISION" for Overcoming the Sin Nature in the Life of the Believer! Now we Pick up in Romans ch 6 and vs 5 which reads "FOR IF WE HAVE BEEN PLANTED TOGETHER IN THE LIKENESS OF HIS DEATH, WE SHALL BE ALSO IN THE LIKENESS OF HIS RESURRECTION!" Alright, Here, Paul Begins to Present the Same Theme as vs 1-4, Only With Greater Detail beginning in vs 5; Notice the first "2" Words, "FOR IF" Pointing to the Regenerate One, Paul is Issuing one of his Famous "If, Thens!" He's Saying "If" You Have Been Born Again, "Then" You Will Live In a Wholly New Way! But Notice the Word he uses for our "Co-Death" With JESUS, saying If We Have Been "PLANTED!" Oh Boy! The Greek word here is "Sumphutos!" This vs is the Only Ocurrence of this Greek Word in the Entire New Testament! And it Literally Means "Closely United To, Planted Together, Grown Along With, and Conjoined!" It is Describing a "Death" Where "2" People are So Joined Together, that They DIE Together at the Same Moment in Time! Now Listen, All those Who are Saved, are Already "Conjoined" to JESUS CHRIST by the Baptism of the HOLY SPIRIT (Not Water)! This "Positional" Placement Entitles Us to a State of Justification Which Exempts Us From Judgment for Sin, "Freeing" Us to Enter Into the Practical Experience of the Eternal Power and Victory of HIS Resurrection! Verse 6 Explains, "KNOWING THIS, THAT OUR 'OLD MAN' IS CRUCIFIED WITH HIM!" Now, Time-Out Here! Remember our "3" Terms used to Describe the "Sin Nature?" The "Old Man" was the Second! Paul says that the Child of GOD "MUST KNOW THAT HIS SIN NATURE 'IS' CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST!!!" He's Connecting the "Planted Together" of vs 5 with "Our Old Man Is Crucified With HIM" of vs 6! And Notice the Reason Why: "THAT THE BODY OF SIN MIGHT BE DESTROYED!" Question: What is The BODY OF SIN? The Answer is Found in Colossians 2:11, "IN PUTTING OFF THE 'BODY OF THE SINS' OF THE FLESH, BY THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST!" Did You Hear That? Listen, When JESUS Died on the Cross, a "Circumcision" took Place...Not an 8th Day Baby Circumcision, but a LITERAL "CUTTING OFF" of the Entire "Body" of SINS that You Ever Committed or Ever Will!!! Listen Beloved Believer, GOD Will NOT IMPUTE "SIN" TO YOU, BECAUSE YOU "ARE DEAD" TO SIN!!! But it Goes Further Than that...GOD "HAS" IMPUTED HIS SON'S PERFECT "RIGHTEOUSNESS" TO YOU!!! Listen to me, it Would NOT HAVE BEEN ENOUGH to Add HIS Righteousness to Your SINS! The SINS Had to Be REMOVED "FIRST!" Now, back to our Text; Still in vs 6, he says "Old Man..Crucified...Body of Sin..Destroyed ...Henceforth...NOT SERVE SIN!!!" Now Don't Miss This: Two Unbelievable Things Have Ocurred..First, YOUR SIN NATURE HAS BEEN "JUDGED!" And Second, YOUR SINS HAVE BEEN "DESTROYED!" I Beg You to Hear Me Here! First, Listen, GOD Does NOT SEE A SIN "NATURE" IN YOU!!! HE Sees HIS SON, the NEW NATURE!!! Second, GOD Does NOT SEE ANY "SINS" IN YOU!!! HE Sees HIS SON'S BLOOD!!! Did You Hear That??? JESUS CHRIST Not Only Took Care of Our SINS, HE also Took Care of Our Adamic SIN NATURE, NOT BY ERADICATION, but BY HIS DIVINE POWER "SLAYING" IT MOMENT BY MOMENT!!!!! Now, Look at the end of vs 6, "THAT HENCEFORTH WE SHOULD NOT SERVE SIN!" HE Had a Specific Goal In Mind For YOU, and that is that You Would NO LONGER SERVE THE "SIN NATURE" but the "NEW NATURE!!!" He's Saying "WHY SHOULD YOU 'SERVE' SOMETHING THAT YOU ARE 'DEAD' TO???" Watch, vs 7 says "FOR HE THAT IS DEAD IS FREED FROM SIN!!!" Question: Can a Corpse be Convicted of a Crime? NOOO!!! He's DEAD, and Cannot Be Charged!!! He's Totally FREE from Violating ANY LAW!!! Did You Catch This? IN OUR SUBSTITUTE WE HAVE "DIED" TO SIN, AND STAND "FREE" FROM IT'S LEGAL CLAIMS!!! But Watch, it Get's Even Better...vs 8 "NOW IF WE BE DEAD WITH CHRIST, WE BELIEVE THAT WE SHALL ALSO LIVE WITH HIM!!!" Hey, Paul is NOT Talking about Some Bright Day When We Finally GET TO HEAVEN!!! He's Talking About RIGHT NOW IN MY LIFE TODAY!!! Look at the Next Word, vs 9 "KNOWING!" He's saying "BECAUSE WE KNOW" that JESUS CHRIST CAN NEVER DIE AGAIN, HE CAN "ONLY LIVE!!!" Watch, "DEATH HATH NO MORE DOMINION OVER HIM!!" Beloved, Listen Now, Paul is Shifting Focus here, from the Gloom & Doom of What the SON OF GOD had To SUFFER for Us, and He's About to Expose the GREATEST TRUTH THAT SATAN DOES NOT WANT YOU TO KNOW!!! Are You Sitting Down? Watch, vs 10 "FOR IN THAT HE DIED, HE DIED UNTO SIN (the Sin Nature) ONCE: BUT IN THAT HE LIVETH, HE LIVETH (FOREVER) UNTO GOD!!!" The Apostle Speaks of "2" Events here: One, a One-Time Event Never to be Repeated Again, and the Other, an Event that Will NEVER EVER END!!! He's saying that "YOU" Have Eternal LIFE because JESUS CHRIST "LIVES" UNTO GOD THE FATHER FOREVER!!! And GOD THE FATHER LIVES UNTO THE SON, AND UNTO THE HOLY SPIRIT!!! Listen to Me, YOU are AS INSEPARABLE FROM GOD as THE TRINITY IS INSEPARABLE AS THE GODHEAD!!! Now, vs 11 is Designed to Bring it All Home! He says "LIKEWISE, RECKON YE ALSO YOURSELVES TO BE DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN, BUT ALIVE UNTO GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!!!" Oh Me Oh My! Paul Has Built Such a Case in 10 verses, that He Feels Compelled to Issue a Divine Challenge to the Believer here! He's Saying "Because of All This, there is Something That You & I Now NEED to Do!" He Pleads "LIKEWISE RECKON!" That is, Account Yourself, JUST LIKE JESUS, to be DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN!! Believer, We MUST "COUNT" OURSELVES FOR WHAT WE TRULY ARE...DEAD TO SIN!!! And He's Not talking about "SINS" because Those, We'v Already Seen are ALL GONE! He's Talking about the Sin NATURE! Just As JESUS Christ is DEAD to Any SIN NATURE, So too Must We Consider Ourselves! Now, the Fact that the Sin Nature Has Been Divinely JUDGED, is of Immeasurable Importance for the True Believer today! But Listen now, the Record Concerning JESUS CHRIST'S Death Unto the Sin Nature is NOT Given Merely to Enlarge the Believer's Knowledge of Historical Facts, but it is Given That He or She Might Be ASSURED, that there Is DELIVERANCE From the Reigning Power of Sin!!! The CROSS is the Key! The DEATH of JESUS CHRIST UNTO SIN is the Ground of this Great Confidence! And So, we May Conclude, that THE DIVINE PROVISION for the Believer's Deliverance from the Domination of the Sin Nature is Two-Fold, namely, The Legal and Righteous JUDGMENT of the Sin Nature, and, The GIFT of the INDWELLING, OMNIPOTENT, VICTORIOUS SPIRIT OF GOD!!! Tomorrow, We Will Look at "THE BELIEVER'S RESPONSIBILITY" For Appropriating This Provision! Until Then, Blessings and Shalom... Alright, Back to our Study of the Doctrine of Identification! Ok, as we Saw, the DIVINE PROVISION for Overcoming the Sin Nature is two-fold: first, the Legal and Righteous JUDGMENT of the Sin Nature by JESUS CHRIST on the CROSS, and Second, the Precious GIFT of the Indwelling, Omnipotent, Victorious SPIRIT OF GOD!!! However, "Knowing" the Reality of these Truths Does NOT Automatically Bring Daily Victory in our Practical Walk! Acquiring the Experiential Benefits Personally, Requires a "Daily" Appropriation of these Divine Provisions!!! We find the Apostle Peter Constantly Bringing to the Believer's "Remembrance" the Reality of the Truths he Disclosed! Why? It's Because we are Naturally Prone to "Forget" or "Let Slip" Divine Truth, and that is because of the Ever Present Adamic Nature! Now, Today, I want us to Look at "The Believer's Responsibility" for Appropriating the Divine Provision! Now, in Gaining Deliverance from the Power of Sin, and Overcoming the Sin Nature, the True Believer's Responsibility is Stated in One Word--FAITH!!! Now, Watch, We Must BELIEVE Romans 6:11 which says "RECKON YE ALSO YOURSELVES TO BE DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN, BUT ALIVE UNTO GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!" Beloved Believer, the Key to Your Victory Over Sin is FAITH in What GOD Says About You! Here is the "Connecting" Link to Our FREEDOM! As We Learn to Believe GOD, Leaning NOT to our Own Understanding, but Agreeing with GOD'S Declared Estimation of US, We Will Naturally Begin to LIVE According to WHAT WE ARE!!! The Natural Result will be vs 13 which States "YIELD YOURSELVES UNTO GOD, AS THOSE THAT ARE ALIVE FROM THE DEAD!!" Listen, Our Spiritual Resurrection Brings Us Into a Whole NEW LIFE! That LIFE is Called "THE LIFE OF GOD" in Ephesians 4:18! That's Because THE LIFE "OF" GOD is Now Abiding IN YOU!!! Now, We Must Understand, that Nothing Else Remains for Us to Do, Since vs 11 Declares that We "ARE" ALIVE UNTO GOD, and, that HE Has Provided the Righteous Ground upon which this Divine Deliverance May be Accomplished, by the SPIRIT OF GOD (Not Us), as HE Has GIVEN Unto Us HIS SPIRIT to Indwell Us FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE!!! Now, the "Requirement" is Not an Act of Faith, such as Once Secured our Regeneration, but an "Attitude" of Faith, which is Renewed and "Pursued" in Every Succeeding Day! The Word "Reckon" in vs 11 is in the Present Tense, Indicating an Ongoing Action! Listen to Me, the Moment You or I Fail to "Account" ourselves to be DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN, is the Moment We Shall Fall! Now, We find Paul Making a Divine Declaration in vs 14, which, if Properly Understood, Will Reinforce and Solidify the Entire Teaching of vs 1-13! He Says "FOR SIN SHALL NOT HAVE DOMINION OVER YOU: FOR YE ARE NOT UNDER THE LAW, BUT UNDER GRACE!" Oh Me Oh My, What a Verse! Let me make a Statement here...No Christian is Able to Control the Sin Nature in His Own Strength! Paul Himself, found Nothing but Utter Failure, when trying to Perform that which is Good by Self-Effort! Paul is Pointing Back to ch 5, Reminding Us that We Are "UNDER GRACE!" Interestingly, After laying out All this Incredible Truth, the Apostle feels Compelled to Remind Us, that it is ONLY BY GOD'S GRACE that We Can LIVE in Freedom and Victory! This is Vitally Important Beloved, as this Will Keep us from Pride and Self-Dependence! I want to Use the Example of Paul in ch 7 to Show the Absolute Impossibility of Conquering the Sin Nature apart from Divine Assistance! We're Going to Look at ch 7 vs 15-24; Now, Realize, that the Struggle here, is NOT Between the Flesh and the Indwelling SPIRIT, but Between the Old "I" and the New "I!" The HOLY SPIRIT is NEVER Mentioned in ch 7, yet, in ch 8 we Have the HOLY SPIRIT Mentioned MORE Times that Any Other Chapter in the BIBLE, a Total of "21" Times! So, ch 7 is Designed to Reveal to Us the Absolute Inability of Conquering the Flesh Without the HOLY SPIRIT! Ch 8 Will Reveal that it is Actually the HOLY SPIRIT Himself that Overcomes the Sin Nature by "Mortification!" Now, the New "I" is the Regenerated Man, and the Old "I" is the Adamic Sin Nature; I'm Going to use Paul's "Old" Name, Saul, to Represent his Old Nature, the Flesh, and His New Name, Paul, to Represent his New Nature, the Regenerate Man! Watch, the Apostle is About to Graphically Answer the Question, Can a Regenerate Man, Apart from Dependence on the HOLY SPIRIT, "DO" the Will of GOD, even Though He "DELIGHTS" in that Will, vs 22? Beginning in vs 15, we read, "FOR THAT WHICH I (SAUL) DO, I (PAUL) ALLOW NOT: FOR WHAT I (PAUL) WOULD, THAT DO I (SAUL) NOT; BUT WHAT I (PAUL) HATE, THAT DO I (SAUL); IF THEN I (SAUL) DO THAT WHICH I (PAUL) WOULD NOT, I (PAUL) CONSENT UNTO THE LAW (THE WILL OF GOD) THAT IT IS GOOD; NOW THEN IT IS NO MORE I (PAUL) THAT DO IT, BUT SIN (SAUL) THAT DWELLETH IN ME (SAUL); FOR I (PAUL) KNOW THAT IN ME (SAUL) THAT IS IN MY FLESH, DWELLETH NO GOOD THING: FOR TO WILL IS PRESENT WITH ME (PAUL) BUT HOW TO PERFORM THAT WHICH IS GOOD I (PAUL) FIND NOT; FOR THE GOOD THAT I (PAUL) WOULD, I (SAUL) DO NOT: BUT THE EVIL WHICH I (PAUL) WOULD NOT, THAT I (SAUL) DO; NOW IF I (SAUL) DO THAT I (PAUL) WOULD NOT, IT IS NO MORE I (PAUL) THAT DO IT, BUT SIN (SAUL) THAT DWELLETH IN ME (PAUL); I (PAUL) FIND THEN A LAW, THAT, WHEN I (PAUL) WOULD DO GOOD, EVIL (SAUL) IS PRESENT WITH ME; FOR I (PAUL) DELIGHT IN THE LAW OF GOD AFTER THE INWARD MAN: BUT I (PAUL) SEE ANOTHER LAW IN MY MEMBERS (SAUL) WARRING AGAINST THE LAW OF MY MIND (PAUL) AND BRINGING ME INTO CAPTIVITY TO THE LAW OF SIN (SAUL) WHICH IS IN MY MEMBERS!" Then, We Find Paul Asking a Specific Question: "WHO SHALL DELIVER ME FROM THE BODY OF THIS DEATH???" Now, Notice the Wording of this Question...Paul Has Given Up! He's Saying "I" Can't Do It! Is there Anyone Who CAN??? Paul's Answer Comes in ch 8 vs 2, "FOR THE LAW OF THE SPIRIT OF LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS HATH MADE ME FREE!!!" Beloved Believer, Hear Me Now, Paul Made the Greatest Discovery that a Born Again Believer Can Ever Make! He Finally Came to the END OF HIMSELF, and Found COMPLETE VICTORY OVER SIN BY THE INDWELLING SPIRIT OF JESUS CHRIST!!! Now, Realize, that Paul Understood, that there were "2" Natures in Evidence in his Practical Experience, Since with the Mind He Desired to Serve the Law of GOD Only, but with the Flesh He Desired to Serve the Law of Sin! But, He Did NOT Remain a Defeated Christian, because he Found the "FAITH" Principle!! Ch 8 and vs 4 says "WHO WALK NOT AFTER THE FLESH, BUT AFTER THE SPIRIT!" Now, Here is the Whole Consummation of All that has been Given from ch 6 vs 1 through the End of ch 8! It All comes Down to vs 5 of ch 8...."FOR THEY THAT ARE AFTER THE FLESH DO 'MIND' THE THINGS OF THE FLESH; BUT THEY THAT ARE AFTER THE 'SPIRIT' THE 'THINGS' OF THE SPIRIT!!!" Oh Me Oh My, Did You Catch That??? Listen Now, this is So Simple it's Almost too Good to Be True! The ONLY Thing that You & I Have to "DO" is to ALLOW THE HOLY SPIRIT TO "CONTROL" OUR MIND, OUR "THOUGHT" PROCESSES!!! Listen, if You Have a Glass FULL of Water, There is NO ROOM to ADD MORE! And Child of GOD, If YOU ARE FULL OF THE "THINGS" OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD, THERE IS "NO ROOM" FOR THE "THINGS OF THE FLESH!!!!!" Let Me Share With You in Closing, How "I" Attempted to WALK IN THE SPIRIT For Many Years...I Had a Regiment, a Daily List of Do's and Dont's, a spiritual Check-List! I'd Say Ok, I need to Pray, Now I need to Read the WORD, Now I need to Go to Church, now I Need to Worship, now I need to go Witness, etc.; But In All those "THINGS" that I felt Compelled to Do, I was Actually in Bondage to a "System" of Works! Listen, JESUS said, "COME UNTO 'ME' ALL YE THAT 'LABOR' AND ARE HEAVY 'LADEN' AND 'I' WILL GIVE YOU REST! TAKE MY YOKE UPON YOU, AND 'LEARN' OF ME; FOR I AM MEEK AND LOWLY IN HEART: AND YE SHALL FIND 'REST' UNTO YOUR SOULS! FOR 'MY' YOKE IS EASY, AND MY 'BURDEN' IS LIGHT!!!" Beloved Believers, Listen to me, JESUS Did NOT Want Me to Adopt a "System" to Serve HIM, because HE Knows, that When we Serve In the Flesh like that, the Sin Nature Always takes Over, and We Do those "Things" with Sin in the Heart! But, I came to the Realization, that HE Didn't Want a System for me, HE Wanted "HIM" to Be MY ALL IN ALL!!! And Now, Oh Me Oh My, Finally, after So Many Years of Roller Coaster Christianity, HE has Shown Me, that to be "SPIRITUALLY MINDED IS LIFE AND JOY AND PEACE!!!" And Now, HE LIVES "THROUGH" ME, THE LIFE THAT I NEVER COULD!!! Blessings to All, and Shalom...
Beloved Believers, I've Come to the Conclusion that Romans 5:12 is the Most Important Verse of the New Testament! Let Me Explain... Paul, by the HOLY SPIRIT, Writes "WHEREFORE, AS BY ONE MAN SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD, AND DEATH BY SIN; SO DEATH PASSED UPON ALL MEN, FOR THAT ALL HAVE SINNED!" Last night the HOLY SPIRIT Arrested My Attention on This Incredible Verse! Notice the first word "Wherefore!" This word is a "Connector" from All that has been Stated from ch 3:10 to ch 5:11, Where the Great Theme of JUSTIFICATION is Laid out; Paul is Building a Case, and He's About to Give Us the Greatest Contrast in the Entire BIBLE! Now, Notice the Next Word, "AS!" This Word is Critically Important, Because it Indicates that Just AS One Person So Affected the Entire Human Race, Even So Did ANOTHER Person Affect the Entire Human Race! Now, Notice the Next "3" Words, "BY ONE MAN!" Watch Now, GOD'S SPIRIT Reveals Here, that ONLY "ONE" MAN Was Able to Transform the Entire Human Family by His Actions! Listen, Adam was the Federal "Head" of His Race, and What He Did, We Did! Let me Explain: In Hebrews 7:9 GOD Says that "Levi" Paid Tithes "In" Abraham to Melchisedec! Now, Levi Did NOT LIVE until over 120 YEARS "After" Abraham Lived, but GOD Said that Levi was IN THE LOINS of his Great Grandfather Abraham, and that Abraham's Actions were Accounted to Him! Now, Le'ts follow this Revelation to it's Logical End; If What Abraham DID was Attributed to Levi Judicially by GOD, then What Adam DID was Attributed to ALL HIS PROGENY as Well! Now, Calvin taught, that Man Becomes a Guilty Sinner by Actual Personal Sins, but this is Incorrect! Man is a Guilty Sinner Because of What He Did "IN ADAM!" Now, there's a Reason Why Paul is Hammering Home this Point, Watch, He Proclaims that DEATH Passed Upon ALL MEN, For That ALL HAVE SINNED! Now, Until Last Night, I Always Read that as Actual Personal Sins, but it's NOT Saying that! The Text But, is Saying that ALL SINNED "IN ADAM!" Therefore, We Are Not Sinners Because of Personal Sins Committed, but We Are Sinners Because of Our Inherited SIN NATURE!!! Follow me! The Next Words State "SIN ENTERED INTO THE WORLD!" Listen, SIN Entered Our Sphere, the World, but it Already EXISTED in ANOTHER SPHERE! See, Adam Was NOT The First Sinner! Satan Was! But Listen, When Adam Sinned, a "DEGENERATION" Occurred! He Went From Being Spiritually "Alive" to Being Spiritually "DEAD!" Now, from vs 12 to vs 21, Paul Gives Us the Greatest Contrast Ever Sited in the WORD OF GOD! Watch, vs 15 Speaks of Another "ONE MAN" JESUS CHRIST! Now, Don't Miss This...As In Adam All DIE, Even So, IN CHRIST, Shall ALL BE MADE "ALIVE!!" Listen, ALL those IN ADAM are Partakers of ADAM'S SIN! But, ALL THOSE IN CHRIST ARE "PARTAKERS" OF JESUS CHRIST'S PERFECT RIGHTEOUSNESS!!! Watch, As Adam is the Federal HEAD of ALL HIS Descendants, So Also, JESUS CHRIST IS THE FEDERAL HEAD OF ALL HIS PROGENY!!! This is Why We Are "MEMBERS" OF HIS BODY!!! Listen, WHAT JESUS DID, YOU & I DID!!! WHEN JESUS DIED ON THE CROSS, YOU & I DIED ON THE CROSS! WHEN JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD, YOU & I ROSE FROM THE DEAD!!! And, WHEN JESUS CHRIST ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, YOU & I ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN!!!!! Beloved Believers, Listen to Me...WE "ARE" SEATED TOGETHER WITH CHRIST AT THE RIGHT HAND OF THE FATHER!!!! And IF You Can GRASP THIS TRUTH, YOU WILL NEVER BE THE SAME!!!! We've Been "TRANSLATED" OUT OF ADAM (SIN) AND INTO JESUS CHRIST (RIGHTEOUSNESS)!!!! WE ARE "NOW" MEMBERS OF HIS BODY, OF HIS BONES, AND OF HIS FLESH!!!! OH GLORY GLORY GLORY, PRAISE HIS HOLY NAME!!!!!! Got to Go, I'm Going to Have a Spell With MY JESUS, WHOOHOOE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "THE CHRISTIAN'S SIN NATURE!" I Want to Speak about the Sin "Nature" and GOD'S Divinely Appointed "Remedy" Which is Provided For it! And We Must Realize, that this Remedy is Only For True Believers, as the Unregenerate are Incapable of Receiving the THINGS OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD! So, in Approaching this Great Matter, Let's First Look at the Origin, Character, and Propagation of this Nature: In Genesis 2:17 GOD Said to Adam "IN THE DAY THAT THOU EATEST THEREOF THOU SHALT SURELY DIE!" Now, Listen, Though Adam Didn't Die Physically for Many Years After, Yet He Did DIE SPIRITUALLY on That Day! Last Night, I was Thinking about Adam, and the Magnitude of the Dark Transformation that Overtook him That Day! Beloved Believer, Do You Realize that Adam Underwent a Literal "Degeneration" at that Moment? Listen, He Had No SIN NATURE "Prior" to that Act! He Had Never Experienced Fear, Anxiety, Shame, or Guilt! But Now, He's Alone, Without GOD, and Under a Divine Sentence of Condemnation, from which He Had NO HOPE of Escape! He was Now a Sinner! He was Now Depraved! He Had Now Crossed a Line that He Could Never Repair! His Entire Character is Altogether Changed Now, and "Darkness" Filled His Soul! But Listen Now, This Horrific Alteration of his Being Affected His Body, Soul, and Spirit! His "spirit" was Now Dead and Cut Off from Contact with GOD! His Soul was Now Living In a State of FEAR and Bondage to Sin! And his Body was Now Only Capable of Propagating a spiritually Dead Race, which would Bear His Sin Nature! Now, this spiritually Dead Condition, which is Termed a Fallen, Adamic, Nature, is Transmitted without Dimmunition From Father to Son Throughout All Generations! But, How Does this Condition Now Apply to Those who've Been Born Again, Regenerated, and Redeemed??? I Want Us to Look at "3" Terms which are Employed in the New Testament to Describe this Sin Nature in a Christian: First, The "FLESH!" Now, the Greek word is "SARX!" It Literally Means "THE HUMAN NATURE!" Carnal, Fleshly, Passions! Now, Wait a Minute, I Thought that When I Got Saved All that Was Eradicated? Wrong! Listen Dear One, When You Became Born Again You Acquired a NEW NATURE, and Now, You Have "2" Natures! Do You Know Why Asceticism Does NOT WORK? It's Because You CANNOT DESTROY YOUR SIN NATURE, But, THE HOLY SPIRIT CAN DO WHAT "YOU" CANNOT!!! Watch, Galatians 5:16 says "FOR THE FLESH LUSTETH AGAINST THE SPIRIT AND THE SPIRIT AGAINST THE FLESH, AND THESE ARE CONTRARY THE ONE TO THE OTHER!" Again, the "Flesh" is NOT Just Your Physical Body, but the Whole SIN NATURE that Desires Evil Things! And Paul, by the HOLY SPIRIT, Would NOT Warn Us About these "2" Contrary, Opposing Natures If they Were Not BOTH PRESENT! Now, in Romans 7:14 Paul Does NOT Say that His "Body" is "Fleshly" but He says "I AM CARNAL" and "IN ME, THAT IS, IN MY FLESH, DWELLETH NO GOOD THING!" Paul Refers to the Sin Nature Which was STILL In Him Fighting Against His NEW NATURE! Secondly, The "OLD MAN!" Again, He's Describing the Sin Nature! This Term is Used Only "3" Times in the New Testament! Once, it has to do with the "Present" Position of the Old Man Through the DEATH of JESUS CHRIST! In the Other "2" Ocurrences the Fact that the OLD MAN Has been PUT OFF Forever, is Made the Basis of an Appeal for a Holy & Sanctified Manner of Life! Watch, Romans 6:6 says "KNOWING THIS, THAT OUR 'OLD MAN' IS CRUCIFIED WITH HIM!" Now, this is NOT Speaking about the "Experience" of the Believer, but about a "Co-Crucifixion" WITH CHRIST at the Time & Place When & Where "HE" was Crucified! Now, this "Connects" My Last Post from Romans 5:12-19 to the Transference of the Federal Headship from the First Adam to the Last Adam! Watch, the "First" Adam, as Perpetuated In the Believer, the OLD MAN, the Fallen Sin Nature, Was CRUCIFIED With HIM! This Co-Crucifixion, it will be Seen, is of the Greatest Possible Importance on the Divine Side, in Making Possible a True & Complete DELIVERANCE FROM THE POWER OF THE "OLD MAN!" Now, in the Second Passage for the OLD MAN found in Ephesians 4:22-24, the Fact that the Old Man is ALREADY CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST is the Basis for an Appeal to the Believer, Indicating that "WE" Have the Ability to CHOOSE "Which" Nature We Will Walk In! Paul says "THAT YE PUT OFF THE OLD MAN, WHICH IS CORRUPT ACCORDING TO THE DECEITFUL LUSTS...AND THAT YE PUT "ON" THE NEW MAN, WHICH AFTER GOD IS CREATED IN RIGHTEOUSNESS AND TRUE HOLINESS!" And in the Third Ocurrence of the OLD MAN in Colossians 3:9,10 we Find it Having ALREADY DONE in that Paul says "SEEING THAT YE 'HAVE' PUT OFF THE OLD MAN WITH HIS DEEDS, AND HAVE PUT ON THE NEW MAN, WHICH IS RENEWED IN KNOWLEDGE AFTER THE IMAGE OF HIM THAT CREATED HIM!"Now, Watch, "POSITIONALLY" the OLD MAN Has Been PUT OFF FOREVER!!! Even Though Experientially, the Old Man Remains as an Active Force in the Life and Can ONLY BE CONTROLLED BY THE INDWELLING POWER OF GOD'S SPIRIT!!! And Here is Where the Continuous "RELIANCE" Upon the HOLY SPIRIT Comes In! We Must Comprehend the FACT, that the Sin Nature Has Been JUDGED, and Therefore, POSITIONALLY, We are DEAD TO IT!!!! I'll Come Back to this for our 3rd Term Later on...first, the FLESH, Second, the OLD MAN, and Third, SIN.... "THE CHRISTIAN'S SIN NATURE!" I Want to Speak about the Sin "Nature" and GOD'S Divinely Appointed "Remedy" Which is Provided For it! And We Must Realize, that this Remedy is Only For True Believers, as the Unregenerate are Incapable of Receiving the THINGS OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD! So, in Approaching this Great Matter, Let's First Look at the Origin, Character, and Propagation of this Nature: In Genesis 2:17 GOD Said to Adam "IN THE DAY THAT THOU EATEST THEREOF THOU SHALT SURELY DIE!" Now, Listen, Though Adam Didn't Die Physically for Many Years After, Yet He Did DIE SPIRITUALLY on That Day! Last Night, I was Thinking about Adam, and the Magnitude of the Dark Transformation that Overtook him That Day! Beloved Believer, Do You Realize that Adam Underwent a Literal "Degeneration" at that Moment? Listen, He Had No SIN NATURE "Prior" to that Act! He Had Never Experienced Fear, Anxiety, Shame, or Guilt! But Now, He's Alone, Without GOD, and Under a Divine Sentence of Condemnation, from which He Had NO HOPE of Escape! He was Now a Sinner! He was Now Depraved! He Had Now Crossed a Line that He Could Never Repair! His Entire Character is Altogether Changed Now, and "Darkness" Filled His Soul! But Listen Now, This Horrific Alteration of his Being Affected His Body, Soul, and Spirit! His "spirit" was Now Dead and Cut Off from Contact with GOD! His Soul was Now Living In a State of FEAR and Bondage to Sin! And his Body was Now Only Capable of Propagating a spiritually Dead Race, which would Bear His Sin Nature! Now, this spiritually Dead Condition, which is Termed a Fallen, Adamic, Nature, is Transmitted without Dimmunition From Father to Son Throughout All Generations! But, How Does this Condition Now Apply to Those who've Been Born Again, Regenerated, and Redeemed??? I Want Us to Look at "3" Terms which are Employed in the New Testament to Describe this Sin Nature in a Christian: First, The "FLESH!" Now, the Greek word is "SARX!" It Literally Means "THE HUMAN NATURE!" Carnal, Fleshly, Passions! Now, Wait a Minute, I Thought that When I Got Saved All that Was Eradicated? Wrong! Listen Dear One, When You Became Born Again You Acquired a NEW NATURE, and Now, You Have "2" Natures! Do You Know Why Asceticism Does NOT WORK? It's Because You CANNOT DESTROY YOUR SIN NATURE, But, THE HOLY SPIRIT CAN DO WHAT "YOU" CANNOT!!! Watch, Galatians 5:16 says "FOR THE FLESH LUSTETH AGAINST THE SPIRIT AND THE SPIRIT AGAINST THE FLESH, AND THESE ARE CONTRARY THE ONE TO THE OTHER!" Again, the "Flesh" is NOT Just Your Physical Body, but the Whole SIN NATURE that Desires Evil Things! And Paul, by the HOLY SPIRIT, Would NOT Warn Us About these "2" Contrary, Opposing Natures If they Were Not BOTH PRESENT! Now, in Romans 7:14 Paul Does NOT Say that His "Body" is "Fleshly" but He says "I AM CARNAL" and "IN ME, THAT IS, IN MY FLESH, DWELLETH NO GOOD THING!" Paul Refers to the Sin Nature Which was STILL In Him Fighting Against His NEW NATURE! SIN....*Romans ch 6 Again; Well, We Left off with the "3" Words Used in the New Testament to Describe the "Sin Nature!" First, it's Called The "Flesh!" Second, it's Called The "Old Man!" And Thirdly, it's Called "Sin!" Now, the Greek Word in Romans 6:1 for Sin if "Hamartia" and Means "SINFUL!" He asks this Question: "WHAT SHALL WE SAY THEN? SHALL WE CONTINUE IN SIN (Being Sinful), THAT GRACE MAY ABOUND?" In Other words, Paul asks Should a Christian Continue to Serve the Sin Nature, The Old Man, The Flesh, So that GOD is Able to Extend Grace??? There is a Deep Significance here, Between the Word "Sin" and the Word "Sins!" Remember, Sins are Personal Offences Committed by a Person Against GOD; but "Sin" Refers to One's "Sin Nature!" I'll Explain why that is So Important as We Go; Now, this is our "Third" Term Employed in the New Testament Relating to the Source of Evil in a True Believer, Sin! He did Not Say "Sins" but "Sin!" Sin, Being the word used to Point to the Fallen Adamic Nature, the Old Man, and Sins, being the Word used to Refer to the Evil Resulting From That Sin Nature! Sin is the "Root" while Sins are the "Fruit!" Ok, Now, the Flesh, the Old Man, and Sin, All Refer to the Source of Evil, a Corrupted Nature; But, the Child of GOD Has a Precious "Treasure" in this "Earthen" Vessel! This Earthen Vessel is called "OUR VILE BODY" in Philippians 3:21, which Shall be Changed to Become Like Unto HIS GLORIOUS BODY! Now, Like Physical DEATH, the Adamic (Sin) Nature, which is the Perpetuator of Spiritual DEATH, is NOT NOW DISMISSED by Eradication! But, in the Case of the Regenerate, this Abiding Adamic Nature is SUBJECT to Gracious DIVINE Provisions, Whereby it's Injuries & Outbreaks May be "RESTRAINED!" Listen Now, Salvation from the Power of Sin For the Believer, Like Salvation from the Penalty of Sin for the Unbeliever, "Depends" Upon "2" Factors, Namely, GOD'S DIVINE PROVISION and the Believers Personal APPROPRIATION!!! And Apart from One's Utilizing "Both" these Factors, There can be NO CONSISTENT VICTORY OVER SIN IN THE DAILY LIFE!!! So, Here's What I'd Like Us to Do Next: Let's Examine GOD'S DIVINE PROVISION For Overcoming Sin, the Old Man, the Flesh, the Sin Nature; and Then, we'll Look at THE BELIEVER'S PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR "APPROPRIATING" THAT PROVISION! First, THE DIVINE PROVISION! Now, In Both our Deliverance from the PENALTY of Sin, and our Deliverance From the POWER of Sin, the Righteous Basis for the Divine Provision is Found in the DEATH of JESUS CHRIST! Watch, I Corinthians 15:3 says "CHRIST DIED 'FOR' OUR SINS, ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES" So That We Could Be Delivered From the PENALTY of Sin! But, So That Saved Man Might Be Delivered From the POWER of Sin Unto a Holy Walk, Romans 6:10 says that "CHRIST DIED 'UNTO' SIN!" Now, Listen, HIS Death "FOR" Sin Provides a Finished Work of GOD Upon Which HE is Able to Remain JUST "While" HE JUSTIFIES the One Who Believes ON JESUS CHRIST Unto a State of JUSTIFICATION (Romans 3:26)! But, *HIS Death "UNTO" Sin Provides a FINISHED Work of GOD Upon Which HE is Able, by the Unceasing Energy & Supernatural POWER of HIS SPIRIT, to Advance the Sanctification of All Those From AMONG the SAVED Who "WALK IN THE SPIRIT!" We'll Talk More about that Walk Under the Believer's Responsibility to Appropriate it Later! But, Now, Since HE Died "FOR" Sin, there is, therefore, NOW NO CONDEMNATION For Those Who Believe, Their Standing and Safety, by POSITION, being Perfected Forever In CHRIST JESUS! And, Since HE Died "UNTO" Sin, there is Now a WALK upon a New Principle Made "POSSIBLE" for Those Who are Saved, Whereby They are In a Proper Relationship to GOD Made Eligible to Receive this Provision! But Realize here Beloved Believer, that All this is Only Made Possible Because of Our Eternal Divine "UNION" to the SON OF GOD! We "Were" In Adam, but we have been TRANSLATED Into the Second Adam, and This New Creation of GOD, Entitles us to these Heavenly Provisions, Because HE is Entitled to "Everything" the FATHER Owns! In John 14:20 JESUS Said "YE 'IN' ME, AND I 'IN' YOU!" Here is the KEY, We are NOT IN ADAM Anymore, even though we Retain some Relics of the first Adam; And these Great Transformations are Wholly Accomplished by "CHRIST 'IN' YOU" the HOPE of GLORY, and NEVER BY THE FLESH!!! Now, Let's Go one Step Further: The Believer, Thus JOINED to JESUS in this Literal Eternal UNION, Now "Partakes" of ALL THAT CHRIST IS, because of the Meritorious Standing Which HE Secured For Us! Listen, HIS Crucifixion, Death, Burial, and Resurrection, All Accomplished (Not for HIM) For US!!! Now, II Corinthians 5:21 says "THAT WE MIGHT BE 'MADE' THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD 'IN' HIM!" And, In HIS Judgment of the Believer's Sin Nature, JESUS CHRIST has been Crucified, Died, been Buried, and Raised From the DEAD, SO THAT "WE" ARE NO LONGER OBLIGATED TO SERVE THE OLD NATURE!!! So, In Romans 6:1-14, We Find the Central Passage of the New Testament for the Sanctification of Every Child of GOD, which is Based Upon the SON OF GOD'S JUDGMENT OF AND DEATH UNTO THE SIN NATURE!!! Watch, In Considering the Facts Concerning the Basis Upon Which GOD is Now FREE to CONTROL the Old Nature in the Believer, We CANNOT Emphasize Enough, that the Sin Nature in Every Born Again Believer is ALREADY JUDGED IN THE "DEATH" OF JESUS CHRIST!!! Remember, the Unregenerate Man is DEAD "IN" SINS, but the Regenerate Man IS DEAD "TO" SIN!!!!! Verse 2 States "HOW SHALL WE THAT ARE 'DEAD' TO SIN, LIVE ANY LONGER THEREIN?" Look at vs 7, 8, and 11; "DEAD TO SIN!!!" Question: What is Paul Trying to Convey here? I Believe that He is Saying that Because our Sin Nature Has Been Judged, We Have been Judicially Set FREE from it's Bondage, and, that by GOD'S OMNIPOTENT "SPIRIT" We are DIVINELY ENABLED to Avoid it's Snares! And This Priviledge the Unregenerate Do NOT HAVE! So, Saved Individuals Do No Longer Possess the NECESSITY to Sin, as Sin's Power Has Broken by DIVINE SENTENCE, and We are Now Free to Move on Another Plane and In the POWER of HIS Resurrection LIFE!!! Now, Look at vs 3, Notice the Question: "KNOW YE 'NOT'....WE WERE BAPTIZED (SPIRIT not Water) INTO HIS DEATH?" Watch, Just as We ARE "IN" HIM, We Partake of the VALUE of HIS DEATH!!! We "Partake" of HIS Burial vs 4, HIS Crucifixion vs 6, HIS Death vs 8, HIS Resurrection vs 4, 5, 8!!! Now, All this Information is Intended for the Realization of One Divine Purpose: "THAT LIKE AS CHRIST WAS RAISED UP FROM THE DEAD BY THE GLORY OF THE FATHER, EVEN SO WE ALSO SHOULD WALK IN 'NEWNESS' OF LIFE!!!" That is, by a New LIFE Principle which We Never Knew of Before! So, the Christian Walk is the Divine Objective of the Passage! Listen, What JESUS CHRIST "DID" Forever Satisfied the Righteous Holy Demands of the FATHER Against the Old Man, the Sin Nature, and, it OPENED A WAY FOR A "WALK" WHICH IS WELL-PLEASING UNTO THE FATHER (see II Cor 5:15)!!! Now, We Shall Pick it up Here again tomorrow, Blessings to All and Shalom.... *Romans ch 6 Again; Well, We Left off with the "3" Words Used in the New Testament to Describe the "Sin Nature!" First, it's Called The "Flesh!" Second, it's Called The "Old Man!" And Thirdly, it's Called "Sin!" Now, the Greek Word in Romans 6:1 for Sin if "Hamartia" and Means "SINFUL!" He asks this Question: "WHAT SHALL WE SAY THEN? SHALL WE CONTINUE IN SIN (Being Sinful), THAT GRACE MAY ABOUND?" In Other words, Paul asks Should a Christian Continue to Serve the Sin Nature, The Old Man, The Flesh, So that GOD is Able to Extend Grace??? There is a Deep Significance here, Between the Word "Sin" and the Word "Sins!" Remember, Sins are Personal Offences Committed by a Person Against GOD; but "Sin" Refers to One's "Sin Nature!" I'll Explain why that is So Important as We Go; Now, this is our "Third" Term Employed in the New Testament Relating to the Source of Evil in a True Believer, Sin! He did Not Say "Sins" but "Sin!" Sin, Being the word used to Point to the Fallen Adamic Nature, the Old Man, and Sins, being the Word used to Refer to the Evil Resulting From That Sin Nature! Sin is the "Root" while Sins are the "Fruit!" Remember, the Unregenerate Man is DEAD "IN" SINS, but the Regenerate Man IS DEAD "TO" SIN!!!!! Verse 2 States "HOW SHALL WE THAT ARE 'DEAD' TO SIN, LIVE ANY LONGER THEREIN?" Look at vs 7, 8, and 11; "DEAD TO SIN!!!" Question: What is Paul Trying to Convey here? I Believe that He is Saying that Because our Sin Nature Has Been Judged, We Have been Judicially Set FREE from it's Bondage, and, that by GOD'S OMNIPOTENT "SPIRIT" We are DIVINELY ENABLED to Avoid it's Snares! And This Priviledge the Unregenerate Do NOT HAVE! So, Saved Individuals Do No Longer Possess the NECESSITY to Sin, as Sin's Power Has Broken by DIVINE SENTENCE, and We are Now Free to Move on Another Plane and In the POWER of HIS Resurrection LIFE!!! Now, Look at vs 3, Notice the Question: "KNOW YE 'NOT'....WE WERE BAPTIZED (SPIRIT not Water) INTO HIS DEATH?" Watch, Just as We ARE "IN" HIM, We Partake of the VALUE of HIS DEATH!!! We "Partake" of HIS Burial vs 4, HIS Crucifixion vs 6, HIS Death vs 8, HIS Resurrection vs 4, 5, 8!!! Now, All this Information is Intended for the Realization of One Divine Purpose: "THAT LIKE AS CHRIST WAS RAISED UP FROM THE DEAD BY THE GLORY OF THE FATHER, EVEN SO WE ALSO SHOULD WALK IN 'NEWNESS' OF LIFE!!!" That is, by a New LIFE Principle which We Never Knew of Before! So, the Christian Walk is the Divine Objective of the Passage! Listen, What JESUS CHRIST "DID" Forever Satisfied the Righteous Holy Demands of the FATHER Against the Old Man, the Sin Nature, and, it OPENED A WAY FOR A "WALK" WHICH IS WELL-PLEASING UNTO THE FATHER (see II Cor 5:15)!!! Now, We Shall Pick it up Here again tomorrow, Blessings to All and Shalom.... Ok, Here we Go Again; We Have Been Looking at "THE DIVINE PROVISION" for Overcoming the Sin Nature in the Life of the Believer! Now we Pick up in Romans ch 6 and vs 5 which reads "FOR IF WE HAVE BEEN PLANTED TOGETHER IN THE LIKENESS OF HIS DEATH, WE SHALL BE ALSO IN THE LIKENESS OF HIS RESURRECTION!" Alright, Here, Paul Begins to Present the Same Theme as vs 1-4, Only With Greater Detail beginning in vs 5; Notice the first "2" Words, "FOR IF" Pointing to the Regenerate One, Paul is Issuing one of his Famous "If, Thens!" He's Saying "If" You Have Been Born Again, "Then" You Will Live In a Wholly New Way! But Notice the Word he uses for our "Co-Death" With JESUS, saying If We Have Been "PLANTED!" Oh Boy! The Greek word here is "Sumphutos!" This vs is the Only Ocurrence of this Greek Word in the Entire New Testament! And it Literally Means "Closely United To, Planted Together, Grown Along With, and Conjoined!" It is Describing a "Death" Where "2" People are So Joined Together, that They DIE Together at the Same Moment in Time! Now Listen, All those Who are Saved, are Already "Conjoined" to JESUS CHRIST by the Baptism of the HOLY SPIRIT (Not Water)! This "Positional" Placement Entitles Us to a State of Justification Which Exempts Us From Judgment for Sin, "Freeing" Us to Enter Into the Practical Experience of the Eternal Power and Victory of HIS Resurrection! Verse 6 Explains, "KNOWING THIS, THAT OUR 'OLD MAN' IS CRUCIFIED WITH HIM!" Now, Time-Out Here! Remember our "3" Terms used to Describe the "Sin Nature?" The "Old Man" was the Second! Paul says that the Child of GOD "MUST KNOW THAT HIS SIN NATURE 'IS' CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST!!!" He's Connecting the "Planted Together" of vs 5 with "Our Old Man Is Crucified With HIM" of vs 6! And Notice the Reason Why: "THAT THE BODY OF SIN MIGHT BE DESTROYED!" Question: What is The BODY OF SIN? The Answer is Found in Colossians 2:11, "IN PUTTING OFF THE 'BODY OF THE SINS' OF THE FLESH, BY THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST!" Did You Hear That? Listen, When JESUS Died on the Cross, a "Circumcision" took Place...Not an 8th Day Baby Circumcision, but a LITERAL "CUTTING OFF" of the Entire "Body" of SINS that You Ever Committed or Ever Will!!! Listen Beloved Believer, GOD Will NOT IMPUTE "SIN" TO YOU, BECAUSE YOU "ARE DEAD" TO SIN!!! But it Goes Further Than that...GOD "HAS" IMPUTED HIS SON'S PERFECT "RIGHTEOUSNESS" TO YOU!!! Listen to me, it Would NOT HAVE BEEN ENOUGH to Add HIS Righteousness to Your SINS! The SINS Had to Be REMOVED "FIRST!" Now, back to our Text; Still in vs 6, he says "Old Man..Crucified...Body of Sin..Destroyed ...Henceforth...NOT SERVE SIN!!!" Now Don't Miss This: Two Unbelievable Things Have Ocurred..First, YOUR SIN NATURE HAS BEEN "JUDGED!" And Second, YOUR SINS HAVE BEEN "DESTROYED!" I Beg You to Hear Me Here! First, Listen, GOD Does NOT SEE A SIN "NATURE" IN YOU!!! HE Sees HIS SON, the NEW NATURE!!! Second, GOD Does NOT SEE ANY "SINS" IN YOU!!! HE Sees HIS SON'S BLOOD!!! Did You Hear That??? JESUS CHRIST Not Only Took Care of Our SINS, HE also Took Care of Our Adamic SIN NATURE, NOT BY ERADICATION, but BY HIS DIVINE POWER "SLAYING" IT MOMENT BY MOMENT!!!!! Now, Look at the end of vs 6, "THAT HENCEFORTH WE SHOULD NOT SERVE SIN!" HE Had a Specific Goal In Mind For YOU, and that is that You Would NO LONGER SERVE THE "SIN NATURE" but the "NEW NATURE!!!" He's Saying "WHY SHOULD YOU 'SERVE' SOMETHING THAT YOU ARE 'DEAD' TO???" Watch, vs 7 says "FOR HE THAT IS DEAD IS FREED FROM SIN!!!" Question: Can a Corpse be Convicted of a Crime? NOOO!!! He's DEAD, and Cannot Be Charged!!! He's Totally FREE from Violating ANY LAW!!! Did You Catch This? IN OUR SUBSTITUTE WE HAVE "DIED" TO SIN, AND STAND "FREE" FROM IT'S LEGAL CLAIMS!!! But Watch, it Get's Even Better...vs 8 "NOW IF WE BE DEAD WITH CHRIST, WE BELIEVE THAT WE SHALL ALSO LIVE WITH HIM!!!" Hey, Paul is NOT Talking about Some Bright Day When We Finally GET TO HEAVEN!!! He's Talking About RIGHT NOW IN MY LIFE TODAY!!! Look at the Next Word, vs 9 "KNOWING!" He's saying "BECAUSE WE KNOW" that JESUS CHRIST CAN NEVER DIE AGAIN, HE CAN "ONLY LIVE!!!" Watch, "DEATH HATH NO MORE DOMINION OVER HIM!!" Beloved, Listen Now, Paul is Shifting Focus here, from the Gloom & Doom of What the SON OF GOD had To SUFFER for Us, and He's About to Expose the GREATEST TRUTH THAT SATAN DOES NOT WANT YOU TO KNOW!!! Are You Sitting Down? Watch, vs 10 "FOR IN THAT HE DIED, HE DIED UNTO SIN (the Sin Nature) ONCE: BUT IN THAT HE LIVETH, HE LIVETH (FOREVER) UNTO GOD!!!" The Apostle Speaks of "2" Events here: One, a One-Time Event Never to be Repeated Again, and the Other, an Event that Will NEVER EVER END!!! He's saying that "YOU" Have Eternal LIFE because JESUS CHRIST "LIVES" UNTO GOD THE FATHER FOREVER!!! And GOD THE FATHER LIVES UNTO THE SON, AND UNTO THE HOLY SPIRIT!!! Listen to Me, YOU are AS INSEPARABLE FROM GOD as THE TRINITY IS INSEPARABLE AS THE GODHEAD!!! Now, vs 11 is Designed to Bring it All Home! He says "LIKEWISE, RECKON YE ALSO YOURSELVES TO BE DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN, BUT ALIVE UNTO GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!!!" Oh Me Oh My! Paul Has Built Such a Case in 10 verses, that He Feels Compelled to Issue a Divine Challenge to the Believer here! He's Saying "Because of All This, there is Something That You & I Now NEED to Do!" He Pleads "LIKEWISE RECKON!" That is, Account Yourself, JUST LIKE JESUS, to be DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN!! Believer, We MUST "COUNT" OURSELVES FOR WHAT WE TRULY ARE...DEAD TO SIN!!! And He's Not talking about "SINS" because Those, We'v Already Seen are ALL GONE! He's Talking about the Sin NATURE! Just As JESUS Christ is DEAD to Any SIN NATURE, So too Must We Consider Ourselves! Now, the Fact that the Sin Nature Has Been Divinely JUDGED, is of Immeasurable Importance for the True Believer today! But Listen now, the Record Concerning JESUS CHRIST'S Death Unto the Sin Nature is NOT Given Merely to Enlarge the Believer's Knowledge of Historical Facts, but it is Given That He or She Might Be ASSURED, that there Is DELIVERANCE From the Reigning Power of Sin!!! The CROSS is the Key! The DEATH of JESUS CHRIST UNTO SIN is the Ground of this Great Confidence! And So, we May Conclude, that THE DIVINE PROVISION for the Believer's Deliverance from the Domination of the Sin Nature is Two-Fold, namely, The Legal and Righteous JUDGMENT of the Sin Nature, and, The GIFT of the INDWELLING, OMNIPOTENT, VICTORIOUS SPIRIT OF GOD!!! Tomorrow, We Will Look at "THE BELIEVER'S RESPONSIBILITY" For Appropriating This Provision! Until Then, Blessings and Shalom... Alright, Back to our Study of the Doctrine of Identification! Ok, as we Saw, the DIVINE PROVISION for Overcoming the Sin Nature is two-fold: first, the Legal and Righteous JUDGMENT of the Sin Nature by JESUS CHRIST on the CROSS, and Second, the Precious GIFT of the Indwelling, Omnipotent, Victorious SPIRIT OF GOD!!! However, "Knowing" the Reality of these Truths Does NOT Automatically Bring Daily Victory in our Practical Walk! Acquiring the Experiential Benefits Personally, Requires a "Daily" Appropriation of these Divine Provisions!!! We find the Apostle Peter Constantly Bringing to the Believer's "Remembrance" the Reality of the Truths he Disclosed! Why? It's Because we are Naturally Prone to "Forget" or "Let Slip" Divine Truth, and that is because of the Ever Present Adamic Nature! Now, Today, I want us to Look at "The Believer's Responsibility" for Appropriating the Divine Provision! Now, in Gaining Deliverance from the Power of Sin, and Overcoming the Sin Nature, the True Believer's Responsibility is Stated in One Word--FAITH!!! Now, Watch, We Must BELIEVE Romans 6:11 which says "RECKON YE ALSO YOURSELVES TO BE DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN, BUT ALIVE UNTO GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD!" Beloved Believer, the Key to Your Victory Over Sin is FAITH in What GOD Says About You! Here is the "Connecting" Link to Our FREEDOM! As We Learn to Believe GOD, Leaning NOT to our Own Understanding, but Agreeing with GOD'S Declared Estimation of US, We Will Naturally Begin to LIVE According to WHAT WE ARE!!! The Natural Result will be vs 13 which States "YIELD YOURSELVES UNTO GOD, AS THOSE THAT ARE ALIVE FROM THE DEAD!!" Listen, Our Spiritual Resurrection Brings Us Into a Whole NEW LIFE! That LIFE is Called "THE LIFE OF GOD" in Ephesians 4:18! That's Because THE LIFE "OF" GOD is Now Abiding IN YOU!!! Now, We Must Understand, that Nothing Else Remains for Us to Do, Since vs 11 Declares that We "ARE" ALIVE UNTO GOD, and, that HE Has Provided the Righteous Ground upon which this Divine Deliverance May be Accomplished, by the SPIRIT OF GOD (Not Us), as HE Has GIVEN Unto Us HIS SPIRIT to Indwell Us FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE!!! Now, the "Requirement" is Not an Act of Faith, such as Once Secured our Regeneration, but an "Attitude" of Faith, which is Renewed and "Pursued" in Every Succeeding Day! The Word "Reckon" in vs 11 is in the Present Tense, Indicating an Ongoing Action! Listen to Me, the Moment You or I Fail to "Account" ourselves to be DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN, is the Moment We Shall Fall! Now, We find Paul Making a Divine Declaration in vs 14, which, if Properly Understood, Will Reinforce and Solidify the Entire Teaching of vs 1-13! He Says "FOR SIN SHALL NOT HAVE DOMINION OVER YOU: FOR YE ARE NOT UNDER THE LAW, BUT UNDER GRACE!" Oh Me Oh My, What a Verse! Let me make a Statement here...No Christian is Able to Control the Sin Nature in His Own Strength! Paul Himself, found Nothing but Utter Failure, when trying to Perform that which is Good by Self-Effort! Paul is Pointing Back to ch 5, Reminding Us that We Are "UNDER GRACE!" Interestingly, After laying out All this Incredible Truth, the Apostle feels Compelled to Remind Us, that it is ONLY BY GOD'S GRACE that We Can LIVE in Freedom and Victory! This is Vitally Important Beloved, as this Will Keep us from Pride and Self-Dependence! I want to Use the Example of Paul in ch 7 to Show the Absolute Impossibility of Conquering the Sin Nature apart from Divine Assistance! We're Going to Look at ch 7 vs 15-24; Now, Realize, that the Struggle here, is NOT Between the Flesh and the Indwelling SPIRIT, but Between the Old "I" and the New "I!" The HOLY SPIRIT is NEVER Mentioned in ch 7, yet, in ch 8 we Have the HOLY SPIRIT Mentioned MORE Times that Any Other Chapter in the BIBLE, a Total of "21" Times! So, ch 7 is Designed to Reveal to Us the Absolute Inability of Conquering the Flesh Without the HOLY SPIRIT! Ch 8 Will Reveal that it is Actually the HOLY SPIRIT Himself that Overcomes the Sin Nature by "Mortification!" Now, the New "I" is the Regenerated Man, and the Old "I" is the Adamic Sin Nature; I'm Going to use Paul's "Old" Name, Saul, to Represent his Old Nature, the Flesh, and His New Name, Paul, to Represent his New Nature, the Regenerate Man! Watch, the Apostle is About to Graphically Answer the Question, Can a Regenerate Man, Apart from Dependence on the HOLY SPIRIT, "DO" the Will of GOD, even Though He "DELIGHTS" in that Will, vs 22? Beginning in vs 15, we read, "FOR THAT WHICH I (SAUL) DO, I (PAUL) ALLOW NOT: FOR WHAT I (PAUL) WOULD, THAT DO I (SAUL) NOT; BUT WHAT I (PAUL) HATE, THAT DO I (SAUL); IF THEN I (SAUL) DO THAT WHICH I (PAUL) WOULD NOT, I (PAUL) CONSENT UNTO THE LAW (THE WILL OF GOD) THAT IT IS GOOD; NOW THEN IT IS NO MORE I (PAUL) THAT DO IT, BUT SIN (SAUL) THAT DWELLETH IN ME (SAUL); FOR I (PAUL) KNOW THAT IN ME (SAUL) THAT IS IN MY FLESH, DWELLETH NO GOOD THING: FOR TO WILL IS PRESENT WITH ME (PAUL) BUT HOW TO PERFORM THAT WHICH IS GOOD I (PAUL) FIND NOT; FOR THE GOOD THAT I (PAUL) WOULD, I (SAUL) DO NOT: BUT THE EVIL WHICH I (PAUL) WOULD NOT, THAT I (SAUL) DO; NOW IF I (SAUL) DO THAT I (PAUL) WOULD NOT, IT IS NO MORE I (PAUL) THAT DO IT, BUT SIN (SAUL) THAT DWELLETH IN ME (PAUL); I (PAUL) FIND THEN A LAW, THAT, WHEN I (PAUL) WOULD DO GOOD, EVIL (SAUL) IS PRESENT WITH ME; FOR I (PAUL) DELIGHT IN THE LAW OF GOD AFTER THE INWARD MAN: BUT I (PAUL) SEE ANOTHER LAW IN MY MEMBERS (SAUL) WARRING AGAINST THE LAW OF MY MIND (PAUL) AND BRINGING ME INTO CAPTIVITY TO THE LAW OF SIN (SAUL) WHICH IS IN MY MEMBERS!" Then, We Find Paul Asking a Specific Question: "WHO SHALL DELIVER ME FROM THE BODY OF THIS DEATH???" Now, Notice the Wording of this Question...Paul Has Given Up! He's Saying "I" Can't Do It! Is there Anyone Who CAN??? Paul's Answer Comes in ch 8 vs 2, "FOR THE LAW OF THE SPIRIT OF LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS HATH MADE ME FREE!!!" Beloved Believer, Hear Me Now, Paul Made the Greatest Discovery that a Born Again Believer Can Ever Make! He Finally Came to the END OF HIMSELF, and Found COMPLETE VICTORY OVER SIN BY THE INDWELLING SPIRIT OF JESUS CHRIST!!! Now, Realize, that Paul Understood, that there were "2" Natures in Evidence in his Practical Experience, Since with the Mind He Desired to Serve the Law of GOD Only, but with the Flesh He Desired to Serve the Law of Sin! But, He Did NOT Remain a Defeated Christian, because he Found the "FAITH" Principle!! Ch 8 and vs 4 says "WHO WALK NOT AFTER THE FLESH, BUT AFTER THE SPIRIT!" Now, Here is the Whole Consummation of All that has been Given from ch 6 vs 1 through the End of ch 8! It All comes Down to vs 5 of ch 8...."FOR THEY THAT ARE AFTER THE FLESH DO 'MIND' THE THINGS OF THE FLESH; BUT THEY THAT ARE AFTER THE 'SPIRIT' THE 'THINGS' OF THE SPIRIT!!!" Oh Me Oh My, Did You Catch That??? Listen Now, this is So Simple it's Almost too Good to Be True! The ONLY Thing that You & I Have to "DO" is to ALLOW THE HOLY SPIRIT TO "CONTROL" OUR MIND, OUR "THOUGHT" PROCESSES!!! Listen, if You Have a Glass FULL of Water, There is NO ROOM to ADD MORE! And Child of GOD, If YOU ARE FULL OF THE "THINGS" OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD, THERE IS "NO ROOM" FOR THE "THINGS OF THE FLESH!!!!!" Let Me Share With You in Closing, How "I" Attempted to WALK IN THE SPIRIT For Many Years...I Had a Regiment, a Daily List of Do's and Dont's, a spiritual Check-List! I'd Say Ok, I need to Pray, Now I need to Read the WORD, Now I need to Go to Church, now I Need to Worship, now I need to go Witness, etc.; But In All those "THINGS" that I felt Compelled to Do, I was Actually in Bondage to a "System" of Works! Listen, JESUS said, "COME UNTO 'ME' ALL YE THAT 'LABOR' AND ARE HEAVY 'LADEN' AND 'I' WILL GIVE YOU REST! TAKE MY YOKE UPON YOU, AND 'LEARN' OF ME; FOR I AM MEEK AND LOWLY IN HEART: AND YE SHALL FIND 'REST' UNTO YOUR SOULS! FOR 'MY' YOKE IS EASY, AND MY 'BURDEN' IS LIGHT!!!" Beloved Believers, Listen to me, JESUS Did NOT Want Me to Adopt a "System" to Serve HIM, because HE Knows, that When we Serve In the Flesh like that, the Sin Nature Always takes Over, and We Do those "Things" with Sin in the Heart! But, I came to the Realization, that HE Didn't Want a System for me, HE Wanted "HIM" to Be MY ALL IN ALL!!! And Now, Oh Me Oh My, Finally, after So Many Years of Roller Coaster Christianity, HE has Shown Me, that to be "SPIRITUALLY MINDED IS LIFE AND JOY AND PEACE!!!" And Now, HE LIVES "THROUGH" ME, THE LIFE THAT I NEVER COULD!!! Blessings to All, and Shalom...
