March 30
The good news of our deliverance from the power of sin goes even deeper. They took Jesus’ lifeless body off of that cross and buried Him in a tomb. Scripture asserts that those who believe in Jesus “were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death…” (Romans 6:4) We, who believe, are made to share in Jesus’ burial.
The good news goes deeper still… we know that Jesus did not remain dead and buried, but He rose from that grave three days after His sacrificial death. The apostle says: “We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (also Romans 6:4) The apostle concludes, “If we have been united with Him like this in His death, we will certainly also be united with Him in His resurrection.” (Romans 6:5) So as Jesus was raised from the dead by the power of God, so also, we who believe in Him, and embrace Him as Savior, are “united with Him” and share in His resurrection!
The spiritual reality for every devoted believer in Jesus is that the old person (the old self, the sinner, helplessly and hopelessly caught in the bondage of sin) was literally crucified with Jesus, died with Jesus, and was buried with Jesus. But the same old person was not raised with Jesus – the person raised up with The Christ was completely new! This new person (also called the “new man” or “new self,” in Scripture; see Colossians 3:10; Ephesians 4:24) is fully capable of living life just as Jesus Himself lived His earthly life – in unbroken fellowship and harmony with God, in eagerly seeking God’s desires, and in making God known through what is done and said.
All this is possible because Y’shua, our Savior, came to do much more than just bring forgiveness into our lives. He came to destroy the tyrannical reign of sin upon our hearts, by making a way for that old person (so enslaved to sin) to utterly die. “For we know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body of sin might be done away with (i.e. rendered powerless), that we should no longer be slaves to sin – because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.” (Romans 6:6-7) The Christ gave us the opportunity for new life by making a way to kill our “old man” – and bring the “new man” to life.
The Great Missed Understanding 