Dying to Sin

Dying to Sin

“For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

There is no difference between us and Jesus in this respect. If we are to reckon ourselves to be alive to God and live for Him, we must die to sin first. Jesus introduced a new death that did not exist before He came. He partook of flesh and blood like the children, so that through death He could destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil. Heb. 2:14.

The devil gains power over all people through the lusts of the flesh. Nevertheless, by means of the death that Jesus introduced, Jesus could live His life unto God without sinning—then the devil and death have lost their power.

We read that we shall “likewise” reckon ourselves “dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him . . . .” Paul calls this death to sin the dying of the Lord Jesus. “Always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.” 2 Cor. 4:10-11.

This dying to sin is very little known. If the death of Jesus is mentioned, people think only of Jesus’ death for us on the cross, the death that Jesus died in due time for the ungodly. Rom. 5:6. However, we could not follow Him into that death. That is not how we can die with Him in order to be made alive together with Him, for we have all sinned. Because Jesus suffered death according to the flesh, He was without sin and could be offered as a lamb without blemish and without spot for our sins, the just for the unjust. 1 Pet. 1:19, 3:18.

Because Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, we can have grace to receive the Holy Spirit. Gal. 3:13-14. And by the Holy Spirit we can follow Jesus into His death to sin and live unto God by putting “to death the deeds of the body” by the Spirit. Rom. 8:13. This is the new and living way which Jesus has consecrated for us through the flesh. Heb. 10:20. On this way we can follow Him in the power of His resurrection and have fellowship with Him in His sufferings, being conformed to Him in His death. This is the way to the righteousness which is from God by faith. This is not an outward righteousness of the law which Paul calls “my own righteousness,” to which he attained in his own strength. We attain to the righteousness that is by faith through the Holy Spirit, which is Jesus’ resurrection power. Phil. 3:9-10. It is by faith that the Spirit can guide us into the fellowship of the sufferings of Christ, so that we are conformed to Him in His death. “For he who has died has been freed from sin.”

“For if you live according to the flesh you will die . . . .” This is the death from which Jesus was saved because He “in the days of His flesh . . . offered up prayers and supplications with vehement cries and tears, and He “was heard because of His godly fear.” Heb. 5:7. He was not saved from dying for us, the ungodly. When He left the body, He also had a work to do. 1 Pet. 3:18-19. We, too, will have a work to do if we have suffered death according to the flesh, for we are going home to the Lord. Phil. 1:21-23. Then we are not dead, but alive unto God. Then death will have no more power over us. “If anyone keeps My word he shall never see death.” John 8:51. “And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.” John 11:26.

Very few people are interested in the fellowship of the sufferings of Christ in order to be conformed to His death, precisely because they are not interested in gaining victory over sin. They are only interested in having their sins forgiven; therefore they speak only of Jesus’ death on Calvary for the ungodly.

Blessed are they who can see the new way which Jesus has consecrated through the flesh and who, through the power of His resurrection, are willing to suffer death according to the flesh in order to cease from sin. They can live according to God’s will during the time in which they still are in the flesh. 1 Pet. 4:1-2. They also have fellowship in the Spirit and are one, just as the Father and the Son are one. John 17:20-21.