“Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.” (Rom 6:11,12)
When Paul writes that we should believe that we are dead to sin, he does not mean: “Act as if”. No, he is saying in other words: “Count on this fact; be aware that it is so”.
Our old man has been crucified with us (Romans 6:6). We do not feel it. But it is a divine fact that we can put into practice in our daily lives.
Here is an illustration: Imagine a manager who is always grinning broadly, but who is nevertheless a tough, relentless master. He exploits his team mercilessly and everyone groans under his thumb. His reward is death (cf. Romans 6:23). One fine day, however, he is sacked for gross irregularities and sent to the basement to dust files. There he sits alone in a dark hole, deprived of all his control. What would happen if he reappeared in the offices and gave his orders again? The staff would ignore him and say: “Your time is up. Your terrible reign is over. We’ll respond to your instructions the same way we would to a dead man.”
And this is how we treat the cruel master of sin when he comes out of his dark hole and wants to dominate us again and plunge us into misery. We have had enough of sin and we reject the old boss. Not by saying: “We play dead”, but by saying: “We are dead“. This brings clarity and unambiguity to the matter. We no longer have anything to do with sin. But where do we get the strength to reject sin and do good? It comes from living a life of fellowship with a living and gracious Lord. This is the only source of our strength.
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