Dead To Sin…Alive In Christ
Dead To Sin…Alive in Christ
The Sunday after Easter always feels a bit like the day after a grand celebration. Like waking up after Christmas morning—wrapping paper cleared away, leftovers in the fridge—and wondering, Now what? After the joyous proclamation that He is risen, what does it mean to live in light of the resurrection… on an ordinary Monday?
That’s the very question we leaned into this week as we continued our journey through the book of Romans, picking up with chapter 6. It’s almost like the Spirit planned it—this chapter, with all its bold truth and grace-soaked hope, lands like a divine exhale after the intensity of Easter. Because while Easter Sunday celebrates that Jesus is alive, Romans 6 asks: Are you?
Dead to Sin. Alive in Christ.
Paul opens this chapter with a question that might feel ridiculous on the surface but is uncomfortably honest when we examine our own hearts:
“Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?” — Romans 6:1
We’ve all felt that subtle temptation. If God forgives us anyway… why not just do what we want? But Paul’s response is emphatic, even jarring:
“By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” — Romans 6:2
This isn’t about guilt-tripping us into obedience. It’s about identity. Who we are in Christ.
Paul doesn’t just tell us to stop sinning—he tells us something far deeper: You died. Not metaphorically. Not emotionally. Spiritually. When you chose to follow Jesus, your old self—the one ruled by sin—was crucified with Him. And in baptism, that death was symbolized as you were buried beneath the waters and raised to new life.
“We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that… we too may live a new life.” — Romans 6:4
Living Like You’ve Been Set Free
I once heard someone say, “Don’t sit in a jail cell with the door wide open.” That’s exactly what Paul is getting at. You’re not who you used to be. So why live like you are?
Sin used to be your master. It called the shots. But when Jesus conquered death, He shattered sin’s power too. You’re not a slave anymore.
“The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” — Romans 6:10–11
You are not defined by your past. Not by your addictions or your anger or your secret struggles. You are alive to God. Raised with Christ. And that resurrection isn’t something that happens someday in heaven—it starts now.
So Who’s Your Master?
Paul knows how we work. If we’re not under law, and we’re under grace, does that mean rules don’t matter? Not quite.
“Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey?” — Romans 6:16
In other words, you’re always serving something. Whether it’s sin that leads to death or obedience that leads to righteousness, you have a master. The question isn’t whether you’re enslaved… it’s who you’re enslaved to.
And here’s the good news:
“Now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.” — Romans 6:22
The kind of slavery Paul is talking about isn’t oppression—it’s transformation. God doesn’t shackle you; He sets you free into His purpose, His holiness, and His life.
Returning to the Grave, or Walking in Newness?
There’s a proverb that Paul seems to echo here:
“As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly.” — Proverbs 26:11
It’s a graphic image, but it gets the point across. Why would we go back to what made us sick, what once held us captive? Why climb back into the grave Jesus pulled us out of?
Maybe you feel like you’re stuck. Maybe the chains don’t feel broken yet. But here’s the truth: If you’ve placed your trust in Jesus, your old self is dead. You have been raised. This is not a future promise alone—it’s a present reality.
And now you get to live like it.
A New Identity. A New Allegiance.
Here’s the challenge Paul leaves us with:
“Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God… as instruments of righteousness.” — Romans 6:13
Think about your daily choices. Your time. Your relationships. Your thoughts. Your habits.
Are they instruments in the hands of sin—or in the hands of a God who brought you from death to life?
Invitation: Walk in Newness Today
Easter wasn’t the end of the story—it was the beginning of a new one. Not just for Jesus, but for us.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” — Romans 6:23
Today, I invite you to live like the tomb is still empty—because it is. Let go of the grave clothes. Stop bowing to a master who no longer owns you. You are free. You are alive.
So take a moment. Ask yourself honestly:
Am I living dead to sin… or just living with it?
Am I walking in resurrection life… or still waiting for it to happen someday?
Offer yourself—every part—to God today. Not out of guilt. But out of gratitude. Because you have been brought from death to life.
And that changes everything.
Let’s live like resurrection people.
Let’s walk in grace—not just forgiveness, but power.
Let’s live like we are truly… Alive in Christ.