Positional Sanctification Series

2. reckon (vs. 11)

3. yield (vs. 13).

We must be vitally aware of these words as we seek to understand the relationship between justification and sanctification. The first key word in Paul’s presentation is KNOW. The other words will be covered under the next topic—Practical Sanctification. _______________________________________________________________________________

Know. Living the Christian life is so important that it comes with instructions. There are certain things we need to know. We need to know that when Christ died over 2000 years ago we were identified with him. We need to know that when He died, He took Tom Lowe there. I was the one who was guilty. He was not guilty. My sin put Him on the Cross, and your sin put Him up there. We were identified with Jesus Christ. That’s something that is very important to know.

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That as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus. Here he introduces the subject of baptism to show that it is morally inappropriate for believers to go on in sin. But the question immediately arises, “To which baptism is he referring?” So an introductory word of explanation is necessary.

To show the immaturity of those who would continue in sin after justification so that grace may abound, Paul introduces the subject of baptism as evidence that life in sin cannot coexist with death to sin. Baptism into Christ means to be incorporated into Him, to become a member of His body—“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body— whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit” (I Cor. 12:13), and to share with Him those experiences which, although they were historically His, are in some sense ours (i.e., His crucifixion, death, burial, and resurrection). (Also see, “Or are ye ignorant that all we who were baptized,” in the box below.).

When Paul speaks of baptism here, he is thinking both of our spiritual identification with Christ and of its portrayal in water baptism. By referring to water baptism, he reminds his readers how they were “buried” and “planted together” in the “likeness” of Christ’s death.

The New Testament never contemplates the abnormal situation of an unbaptized believer. It assumes that those who are converted submit to baptism right away. Thus our Lord could speak of faith and baptism in the same breath: “he who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16). Though baptism is not a requirement for salvation, it should be the public sign of it. ______________________________________________________________________________

Or are ye ignorant that all we who were baptized—The word baptize comes from the Greek word meaning “to immerse” or “to plunge into.” To baptize is to put into water and take out again. It involves immersion, submersion, and emergence—death, burial and resurrection. The word was used among the heathen Greeks for articles which underwent submersion and emergence, as in the case of the dyeing of a garment.