Romans 6:3-5 The Message - That’s what baptism into the life of Jesus means. When we are lowered into the water, it is like the burial of Jesus; when we are raised up out of the water, it is like the resurrection of Jesus. Each of us is raised into a light-filled world by our Father so that we can see where we’re going in our new grace-sovereign country.
Scripture Translations
Introduction commentary
From: Warren W. Wiersbe - Be right with God, yourself and others
During a court session, an attorney will often rise to his feet and say, “Your Honor, I object!” Some of the Roman Christians must have felt like objecting as they heard Paul’s letter being read, and Paul seemed to anticipate their thinking. In Romans 6–8 Paul defended his doctrine of justification by faith. He anticipated three objections: (1) “If God’s grace abounds when we sin, then let’s continue sinning so we might experience more grace” (Rom. 6:1-14); (2) “If we are no longer under the law, then we are free to live as we please” (Rom. 6:15–7:6); and (3) “You have made God’s law sinful” (Rom. 7:7-25).
These objections prove that the readers understood neither law nor grace. They were going to extremes: legalism on the one hand and license on the other. So as Paul defended justification he also explained sanctification. He told how we can live lives of victory (Rom. 6), liberty (Rom. 7), and security (Rom. 8). He explained our relationship to the flesh, the law, and the Holy Spirit. In Romans 6, Paul gave three instructions for attaining victory over sin.
Teaching Videos
Commentaries
Romans Chapter 6:1-4
Romans 6:1-4 NKJV - What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
NIV Quest Study Bible Notes
WHAT’S WRONG WITH SINNING AND EXPECTING GOD TO FORGIVE? (6:1–2)
If increasing sin means increasing grace (5:20), why worry about sinning? For three reasons: (1) Sin destroys the moral fabric of our lives. Even when sin has been forgiven, it can leave scars. (2) Sin violates God’s purpose for us. He calls us to something infinitely better. (3) Sinning with the intention of asking forgiveness drains all sincerity out of our repentance. Counting on God to forgive deliberate sin offends God’s grace and insults the price God paid for sin.
From: NIV Quest Study Bible
Hillsong - What is the significance of water baptism?
What is the meaning and significance of baptism?
A Move From Death to Life:
Baptism is a symbol of Christ’s burial and resurrection. Our entrance into the water during baptism identifies us with Christ’s death on the cross, His burial in the tomb, and His resurrection from the dead.
“Going under the water was a burial of your old life; coming up out of it was a resurrection, God raising you from the dead as he did Christ. When you were stuck in your old sin-dead life, you were incapable of responding to God. God brought you alive—right along with Christ! Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ’s cross.” Colossians 2:12-14 MSG
A Brand New Life:
It is a symbol of your new life as a Christian. We bury the ‘old life’ and we rise to walk in a ‘new life’. Baptism is like a wedding ring, it is the outward symbol of the commitment you made in your heart, a commitment that has to be followed through and lived out on a daily basis.
Here is one simple way to explain baptism:
Baptism is a symbol. It’s meant to show the world that that you love, trust, and have put your hope in Christ. It’s like a wedding ring…
Let’s say I’m not married right now, but if I put a wedding ring on my finger, would that make me married? No, of course not. Similarly, I can be baptized in a church, but that doesn’t make me a true believer in Christ. Imagine that I really was married, though. My husband and I really did go through the marriage ceremony, but I just didn’t have my ring on my finger. Would that mean I wasn’t married? No way, of course I would still be married. Similarly, I can be a believer in Christ, but not baptized, and my sins are still paid for and forgiven by God. But imagine that I truly was married and I really, really loved my husband. Would I wear my wedding ring? Of course! I would love my husband and want the whole world to know it! In the same way, if I have trusted Christ to save me from sin, and He is the lord and joy of my life, then I’ll want everyone to know about it. So baptism is a statement to everyone who sees it that I have trusted Christ for my salvation and I’m committed to living for Him.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” 2 Corinthians 5:17
“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.” Romans 6:4
Baptism does not make you a believer; it shows that you already are one! Baptism does not ‘save’ you; only your faith in Christ does that.
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8,9
A Blessed Life:
In baptism, the believer has the triune name of the triune God placed upon them, ‘Father’, ‘Son’ & ‘Holy Spirit’. The name of the Lord Jesus Christ is the name of the Godhead (one God in three persons). The Gospels tell us to baptise believers “… into the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit”, Matthew 28:19.
Baptism confirms our position ‘in Christ’ and affirms the blessings of the Father on us as his children.
A New family:
Baptism also connects us to the ‘body of Christ’, his people in the earth. In baptism there is a real sense of being joined with other believers, not just participating in an individual act of our own spiritual journey.
“…For we were all baptised by one Spirit into one body…” 1 Corinthians 12:12-13
Wendy's thoughts on related scriptures
Romans 6:3 NLT - Or have you forgotten that when we were joinged with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death?
Here is a great explanation of water baptism from Hillsong Church ... Hillsong - What is the significance of water baptism?
Romans 6:4 NLT - For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.
Caution: We need to be careful not to be believe in the ritual (eg baptism), but make sure that our belief remains in Jesus. As per Paul's earlier teaching to the Jews on circumcision.
Romans 6:4 AMPC - We were buried therefore with Him by the baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious [power] of the Father, so we too might [habitually] live and behave in newness of life.
We are a new creation in Christ, and not just for our own sakes, but also for those God brings into our lives.
2 Corinthians 5:17-19 TPT - Now, if anyone is enfolded into Christ, he has become an entirely new creation. All that is related to the old order has vanished. Behold, everything is fresh and new. And God has made all things new, and reconciled us to himself, and given us the ministry of reconciling other to God. In other words, it was through the Anointed One that God was shepherding the world, not even keeping records of their transgressions, and he has entrusted to us the ministry of openng the door of reconciliation to God.
Worship Songs
Romans Chapter 6:5-11
Romans 6:5-11 NLT - Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
NIV Quest Study Bible Notes
IN WHAT SENSE HAVE WE DIED TO SIN? (6:2–12)
Obviously, sin is still around. Few deny that even the most committed Christians are still susceptible to sin. But Paul claimed that in a relationship with Jesus Christ, sin loses its authority over us. We are no longer slaves to sin (v. 6). It may still come knocking at our door, but God’s grace makes it possible for us to refuse. Our death to sin, a spiritual reality demonstrated in our baptism (vv. 3–4), can become a physical reality as well.
The Passion Translation - Footnotes
Romans 6:6 Could it be any clearer that our former identity is now and forever deprived of its power? For we were co-crucified with him to dismantle the stronghold of sin within us, so that we would not continue to live one moment longer submitted to sin's power.*
Footnote: "That the body of sin might be annulled" (put out of business). To beg God for victory over sin is a refusal to understand that we have already dies to sin. Our joyful task is to believe the good news, rather than to seek to "crucify ourselves." Sin is not supressed by the cross; it is eliminated. Upon this "water" God commands us to step out and walk upon it, for we are now in him.
Warren W. Wiersbe - Be right with God, yourself and others
Romans 6:11 NKJV - Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
In some parts of the United States, “to reckon” means “to think” or “to guess.” “I reckon” is also the equivalent of “I suppose.” But none of these popular meanings can apply to this verse. The word reckon is a translation of a Greek word that is used forty-one times in the New Testament–nineteen times in Romans alone. It appears in Romans 4, where it is translated as “count, reckon, impute.” It means “to take into account, to calculate, to estimate.” The word impute–“to put to one’s account”–is perhaps the best translation.
To reckon also means “to put to one’s account.” It simply means to believe that what God says in His Word is really true in your life.
Paul didn’t tell his readers to feel as if they were dead to sin, or even to understand it fully, but to act on God’s Word and claim it for themselves. Reckoning is a matter of faith that issues in action. It is like endorsing a check: If we really believe that the money is in the checking account, we will sign our name and collect the money. Reckoning is not claiming a promise but acting on a fact. God does not command us to become dead to sin. He tells us that we are dead to sin and alive unto God and then commands us to act on it. Even if we do not act on it, the facts are still true.
Paul’s first instruction (“know”) centered in the mind, and this second instruction (“reckon”) focuses on the heart. His third instruction touches the will.
From: Warren W. Wiersbe - Be right with God, yourself and others
NASB Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible
Romans 6:11 — Consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
If we have died to sin by accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we will have the resurrected life of Christ within us. Neither sin nor death will ever be our master again. Death has been defeated because He gives us life without end with Him in heaven. Until we reach our new heavenly home, we are to draw on the power of the Spirit to put to death the sin that still wants to express itself, and obey God for His glory.
Case for Christ Study Bible - Lee Strobel
Romans 6:11 in Christ. The first occurrence in Romans of this phrase, which is found often in Paul’s writings. True believers are “in Christ” because they have died with Christ and have been raised to new life in union with him. See note on Eph 1:1.
Wendy's thoughts and related scriptures
Romans 6:6 NLT - We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.
Thinking back to Paul's introduction in his letter to the Romans, where he calls himself 'a slave of Christ Jesus' ... (Here is the link to my notes on Romans 1:1-6)
Romans 1:1 NLT - This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent our to preach his Good News.
Romans 6:6 AMPC - We know that our old (unrenewed) self was nailed to the cross with Him in order that [our] body [which is the instrument] of sin might be made ineffective and inactive for evil, that we might no longer be the slaves of sin.
We have been renewed - a new creation. But we must continually renew our mind so we keep choosing to do life Jesus' way.
Romans 12:2 AMPC - Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitudes], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].
Romans 6:7 NLT - For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin.
In Jesus we are set free. Question - are we living a 'set free' life?
John 8:36 NIV - So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
Romans 6:9 AMPC - Because we know that Christ (the Anointed One), being once raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has power over Him.
Death has no power over Jesus.
1 Corinthians 15:55-57 NLT - For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Romans 6:11 AMPC - Even so consider yourselves also dead to sin and your relation to it broken, but alive to God [living in unbroken fellowship with Him] in Christ Jesus.
What a beautiful truth - we are alive to God, living in unbroken fellowship with Him, in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 1:4 NLT - Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.
Worship Songs
Romans Chapter 6:12-14
Romans 6:12-14 NIV - Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.
NIV Quest Study Bible Notes
HOW DOES GRACE—MORE THAN LAW—FREE US FROM SIN? (6:14)
The law reveals God’s standard but does not provide the spiritual power to live up to that standard. Grace, on the other hand, cancels out our sin and lets us start over with a clean slate. Grace brings us into a relationship with God and permits us to look to him for the strength necessary to live a righteous life. Knowing God personally as we depend on Christ through faith—rather than knowing his law alone—helps us overcome sin.
New Spirit Filled Life Bible
Romans 6:14 Though we can never say in this life that we are free from all sin (James 3:2; 1 John 1:8, 10), we also should never say, “This one sin has defeated me—I give up.” The power of Christ’s Resurrection at work within us (vv. 4, 5, 11) is greater than the power of any sin, no matter how long established in our lives. To be under law is to be under a system of trying to earn salvation in our own strength by obeying the law, but to be under grace is to be justified and to live by the indwelling resurrection power of Christ. We can die to sin, not because of the law forbidding it, but through all the resources that grace provides. Some erroneously interpret this verse to mean that it does not matter if Christians disobey God’s moral commands, because they are no longer “under law.” Such an interpretation (antinomianism) is contrary to Paul’s whole discussion of sin and to Jesus’ own words about the law (Matt. 5:17–20).
Wendy's thoughts on related scriptures
Romans 6:12 NLT - Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give into sinful desires.
We need Jesus help with this - His strength and His grace.
Nehemiah 8:10 - The joy of the Lord is your strength.
2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV - But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
Romans 6:12-13 TPT - Sin is a dethroned monarch; so you must no longer give it an opportunity to rule over your life, controlling how you live and compelling you to obey its desires and cravings. So then, refuse to answer its call to surrender your body as a tool for wickedness. Instead, passionately answer God's call to keep yielding your body to him as one who has now experienced resurrection life! You live now for his pleasure, ready to be used for his noble purpose.
Keep yielding your body to him as one who has now experienced resurrection life! - This is a daily choice - to surrender to God, lay all our plans down and wait on him.
Psalm 46:10 AMP - "Be still and know (recognise, understand) that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations! I will be exalted in the earth."
Micah 6:8 ISV - He has made it clear to you, mortal man, what is good and what the LORD is requiring from you - to act with justice, to treasure the LORD'S gracious love, and to walk humbly in the company of your God.
Romans 6:14 AMPC - For sin shall not [any longer] exert dominion over you, since now you are not under Law [as slaves], but under grace [as subjects of God's favour and mercy].
We are 'Subjects' of God's favour and mercy. Subjects - we are brought under God's jurisdiction.
Psalm 23:6 ESV - Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Worship Songs
What's next?
Some questions to consider:
1. What did God say to you when studying this passage?
2. What does that mean for how you live your life? (ie is there something you believe God wants you to do differently?)
3. How can we as a Lifegroup support you?