We died to sin...

"'': If we do not understand this brief statement correctly then we will fail to understand Paul's whole doctrine of salvation. Many Christians make the mistake of taking Paul to mean by'we died to sin' that we have personally arrived at the point where sin has no more ability to tempt us and trip us up. As a consequence of this understanding Christians are divided into two groups - those who have arrived at this point where they have no more trouble with sin, and those who have not arrived at this point. But Paul is not talking about that, as he clarifies in the verses that follow. He is talking about the identification and union of every true believer with Jesus Christ, our substitute, in his death, a death in which he bore the penalty incurred by sin - our sin.

In Christ, our substitute, we have died the death penalty which sin imposed on us. As Paul stated in 5:21 'sin reigned in death': it was in charge, it was in control, it called the shots, it involved us in an inescapable condemnation, it held us bound in death and it demanded our death. In our union with Christ in his death we have fulfilled all that sin could justly demand of us. Its rightful authority over us has been terminated. We died to sin. In other words, as far as sin is concerned, it has no authority to do anything more to us, because all that it could legally do to us was done completely and effectively in the death of Jesus Christ for us."