Chapter Six
The author is still building on previous argumentation. Upon the established conclusion that grace abounds because of, and through, sin, he asks, 'should we continue as before for the sake of grace?' He answers his own question with an emphatic and resounding 'no'. From verses one and two, we get this: grace has made us dead to our previous mind, our previous actions. Our being 'dead to sin' is such a monumental respite from the past that it deserves nothing less than a clean break. Our inclinations must not be allowed to go back. Given the opportunity to advance, we must now settle it in our hearts to press forward only.
Notes on verses three and four: Here, the author clears up and defines the matter of baptism. Baptism is much more than the washing away of sin, for that is the secondary aspect of the ritual. The primary aspect of the ritual is that we are buried with Jesus. The old life is gone. We are raised from that old life with Christ by the glory of “the Father.” We are raised to a new life – a life washed free of sin, a life in the family of God.
Notes on verse five: It is an important aspect of this verse that the author used the word “planted.” As it is presented, the verse is laid out in two parts – an action and a result, a cause, and an effect. The two poles of this verse are death, as the action, and resurrection, as the result. In that the word 'planted' was employed to convey this message, we are reminded that the action of death is the death of the seed referred to in John 12:24. Resurrection, as the result, is a harvest obtained from the planted seed. That is to say, because the seed died, it is now able to bring forth much fruit, which we know to mean, many like itself.
Notes on verses six and seven: Having touched upon the ritual death of baptism in verses three and four, and following immediately with the actual death and resurrection in verse five, the author lays out the mechanics of it in verses six and seven. The point of it is the 'clean break' from sin – to be no longer bound to it or bound by it – but to be absolutely free from it, above it, beyond its pull and influence. The mechanics that brings one to this point hinge on a new alignment. In other words – to align oneself with Christ in his death and to have the same death in oneself. It is to the effect that the body of sin (the spiritual “old man”) should be destroyed, wiped out once and for all. The author uses the same common logic that we still employ to this day, that being, a dead man is finally free of all that bound him in life. There is no more ring in the nose to lead us; there is no more monkey on the back, no more devil on the shoulder whispering in our ear.
Notes on verses eight through eleven: Choices. It is the author's hope and choice, indeed of all Christians also, that planting oneself in the death of Christ will, by the same power of the spirit, join one to the harvest produced by that planting. The reasoning behind this is that we are swept up in the wake of Christ's forward momentum. While Christ died once in regard to sin, as should all faithful, Christ lives (the harvest) unto God. Please take careful note of the word 'unto'. It is a directional word; it is a progressional word; it is a developmental word.
When the word 'unto' is used, one must understand that there is a progression of development in one direction. When we say unto, what we really mean is through and toward. For the faithful to fulfill the same forward momentum as Christ, he or she must face one direction only, he or she must make choices that progress higher and higher. The faithful must move forward through a spiritual terrain, never looking back. To look back is to go back.
Verse eleven is spiritually pivotal. When I say 'spiritual', I point to things we should know and understand; I point to things that should be settled in our hearts and minds. The terrain we progress through is Christ himself. Every developmental choice we make should be a Christ choice. We can ill-afford to merely be 'like Christ' – we must be Christ. We must have his nature. To come close is not enough. Christ recommended that we learn of him. That learning should be neither static nor idle. Learning is the mortar by which we build into ourselves, brick by brick, the essential reality of Christ.
For a while, our progression will include the vehicle of our flesh. We will be as a driver in a car, barreling down an obstacle course, meeting situation after situation in which a decision must be made. The question we must ever keep as compass and guide is, “What would Christ choose in my place?” The mind of Christ exists in all Christians but it may be neither static nor idle. It is a thing we must learn and practice. The mind of Christ is 'unto' Christ, it is developmental and may progress in one direction only.
You are racing around the track in your car, striving to reach the finish line. Your car comes equipped with a rear-view mirror. You must realize that is not forward-looking; there is nothing behind you anymore. Those others you are out ahead of treat the race, not as an obstacle course but, as a demolition derby. Your car comes equipped with a reverse gear. You must realize that you cannot win the race with it. You must bring all forward progress to a halt in order to engage that gear. Your car has a steering wheel with which you may steer your car in any direction – but the car is not the driver; you are in control. You have made your choice; you have set your goal; you are ahead of the others. That is all good. Why change any of it? Stay your course; win the race.
Notes on verses fourteen through eighteen: Under the conditions so far explained, sin no longer has dominion over those who have died and risen with Christ. The reason is pointedly simple: they are now spiritually aligned to the grace God wishes to extend through Christ and no longer subject to the sin and the death that come through the law. The author returns to the same question he asked in verse one. If we are free, may we do anything we choose? The answer, of course, is no. When one is set free from bondage, one may, thereby, choose only freedom. The moment one chooses bondage again, that one is no longer free.
We see, in this, an either-or situation. One may choose either bondage or freedom but not both. One may serve either bondage or freedom but not both. One is completely owned by that which he or she chooses to serve. One may choose to serve sin under the law and expect the result of death or one may serve obedience under the provision of grace and expect the result of righteousness. Please note the four terms: 'sin', 'death', 'obedience', and 'righteousness.'
There are two sets and the elements of each set are placed in direct antithesis of one another. If sin is the direct opposite of obedience, we understand that sin is disobedience. Sin is under the law, therefore, the disobedience is not disobedience to the law but, rather, to the grace God extends through his Son. By the same token, if righteousness is the opposite of the death that follows from sin under the law, then righteousness is life. In this, we understand this particular life to be, not simply the state of organic living (which is affected by death) but, rather, a state that may not be affected by death.
The author is grateful for everyone who was the servant of sin, in that they made a life-changing choice from the heart (that is to say, from the mind) to adopt and follow the doctrine that was handed them – the step-by-step formula for setting themselves free from sin. They, because of the better choice and their disciplined actions, are no longer servants of sin. Still, however, they are servants. They have chosen to serve righteousness. A servant of righteousness is a servant of life and exists in a state that may not be interrupted by physical death. By stepping out of the dark, they stepped into the light. They have stepped into an uninterrupted spiritual state of connectedness to God by and through the life of Christ.
On a personal note, I wish to ask this question. Who are the kind of people that are able to pull off such a monumental change? To choose a thing unseen and unproven over all that is known and dependable (even comfortable) is no common ability. I think a mind must be prepared in advance. Such people are quite likely the “good soil” mentioned in the parable. They cannot be the people who must see to believe. They are not the type who are limited by worldly concerns or by corporeal facts and figures. Necessarily, they would have to see such things as trivial in comparison to the higher truths that have elevated their thinking.
Notes on verses nineteen through twenty-three: In verses nineteen and twenty, the author speaks to his readers as a man, knowing the weakness of the human condition. Verse nineteen is a partial command that both commends and speaks to the choice his readers have made. The choice cannot be all in their heads but must be a real change that includes both mind and body. The author uses the phrase “even so now yield your members.” This is a command that equates the new to the old by degree. The author is saying to his readers that to the very degree to which they yielded both mind and body to sin in their past, they should provide every assurance that their new choice follows through in both body and soul. The former service to sin and iniquity reached its fruition and so their new service to righteousness should reach a fruitious outcome.
Verse twenty continues to make an assessment. That is, namely, freedom from righteousness. It is the beginning half of an argument, the second half of which will follow in another verse. The nature of the argument lies fully within the either-or quality of the choice. When they chose sin, they were free from righteousness. They had not the slightest connection to righteousness. The old choice fully engulfed them. But, now they had rejected the old choice and made a choice for something completely contrary to the old.
The question is asked in verse twenty-one, now that they were ashamed of their past, could they not see the pitiful harvest of their previous planting? All of that – and for what – just to die? Their previous labors offered no do-overs, no coupons, no green stamps, no lottery tickets. In all, their previous estate offered but one reward – and that was a sorry end to a miserable life.
In verse twenty-two, we find both the second half of the argument and the rest of the command. Now, because of their own choosing, they were free from sin because righteousness fully engulfed them and left no tether into their sinful past. With such an auspicious new beginning, the command was that they should run with it. Serve God. Plant the whole field with obedience. Pledge and commit not only the mind to the service of God's will but the body as well. This time around, the harvest would not be pitiful. It would be grand and wonderful. It would be unceasing.
This whole argument ends, in verse twenty-three, with a straightforward and simple truth. For all the work they put into sin, their total wages were zip. Nothing gained. For their complete faith in the work of God's grace through his son Jesus Christ, the reward of unceasing gain would be freely given to them. What a gift!
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