The “therefore” of Romans 6:12 is made possible by the new
relationship with God that begins with death. Not the kind of death that in the
end everyone dies. Not a “wages of sin” death either, the kind of death that
withers the soul when as slaves to self we receive no advantage from things of which
we should rightly be ashamed. No, the death that makes “therefore” possible is
a death for life, if you will. Jesus dies first, as Paul writes in Romans chapter
five, while we were weak, while we were still sinners, while we were God-haters
so that reconciled with God we might also dare to die. Dying with Christ we die
to self and are born into a life of righteousness, which is not nearly as
narrow as some make it out to be. It is not a life bound by law, limited by
piety, constrained by rigid rules. It is a life bound by justice, limited by
kindness, constrained by humility. (Micah 6:8) Therefore, live as those who
have died and have already been set free to live today the new life that is
eternal.
No comments:
Post a Comment