Friday 15 April 2016
- Bible Book:
- Romans
“Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.” (v. 4)
Psalm: Psalm 72
Background
The form of this section of the Letter to the Romans is known as'diatribe'; the writer imagines himself in conversation with aninterlocutor who poses questions from time to time, usually tointerrogate the writer on what has just been said. So here, Paulhas established that the Old Adam/ New Adam narrative tells us thatgrace has far outstripped the power of sin however much sinincreased. If, therefore, more sin just leads to more grace, whyshould Christians not do wrong in order that God's grace mightbecome even better known?
Paul responds with a distinctive phrase - "By no means!" (v. 2)or literally 'let this not be!' (the King James Bible has "Godforbid!"). The idea is appalling because it misunderstands thewhole gospel which was enacted in the Baptism that the Romansreceived. The symbolism of dying and rising again would have beengraphically seen in new Christian's immersion into and lifting outof the water. Paul goes on to detail how this symbolicidentification with the burial and resurrection of Jesus points toa new reality of union with Jesus. The fullness of this union isyet to be seen in the Resurrection but it is still a presentreality in which, being conjoined with Christ, the believer lives anew life in which sin should play no part.
Paul believes that something really changed when Jesus died andthe Father raised him from death, and that something really changedwhen a believer underwent Baptism. It was not that the Christian ismarvellously not capable of sinning; we all know that that is notthe case. It is rather that the Christian no longer feels that heor she is not capable of not sinning as he or she would have doneunder the old regime. This idea takes Paul back to a contrast thathe had established earlier between Law and Grace. The Law was anadmission that sin was in control; Grace has put an end to thetyranny.
To Ponder
- Paul's argument draws heavily on the symbolism of Baptism byimmersion. How might we make the same points clearly if/when aBaptism is conducted by sprinkling?
- Paul wrote to a community which included many first-generationChristians who were conscious of the contrast between their oldlives and the new. Is that your experience? If not (ie if youcannot remember a time when you were not a Christian) what does thelanguage of 'dying to sin' mean for you?