1. Nicodemus was troubled. We meet him in John CH 3
• All of his religious upbringing. All of his religious training. All of his personal studies has been challenged by this man Jesus.
• Am I obeying God? Do I really understand?
AND… Who is this man Jesus? Is what He is saying really true?
• So he comes to Jesus at night… Look at John 3:1ff
• Nick you must be born again! That’s the only way to be saved.
• You need a new life that is given by God through His Spirit!
“BORN AGAIN”… now that’s a term that has seemed to have lost it’s meaning over the years.
• It’s like a cliché now. Yup, ‘I’m born again.’
• I had a born again experience up in the mountains or after that movie or after chewing those leaves… whatever else…
• But Jesus defines the term very NARROWLY & SPECIFICALLY
• It refers to the new spiritual birth a human being receives when they place their faith in Him!
It’s funny sometimes talking to people & hearing the question, “You’re not one of those BORN AGAINERS are you?”
• There are no other kinds of Christians. A Christian is born again!
2 Cor. 5.17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
NOTE: The Christian life begins with a death… a death to sin.
• In repentance, we have turned from sin and turned to God.
• That’s one of the most powerful choices you can ever make!
• It’s not that now today we are perfect and sinless. (We’re not)
• But we will grow in obedience and SIN LESS.
• And so once we were in Adam, lost in sin & death.
• But now we’re in Jesus, full of life and hope!
Romans 6:1 opens up with a common question.
• It’s one of many Paul will answer as he anticipates the questions on the minds of those reading through his letter to the Romans.
Romans 6:1-2 (NKJV) 1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?
THEN in v3-5 Paul showed us how in water baptism, we identified with the work of Jesus Christ. His death, burial, & Resurrection.
• We weren’t saved by baptism. It was an act of obedience.
• And as we went down & came up, we were declaring to all who watched that we have a new life in Jesus! We pick up in v5
1. (6:5-7) No Longer Slaves of Sin.
a. Our old man was done away with, crucified with Jesus.
b. Next to that word crucified you can circle it & write the words, “rendered inoperative”.
c. We are under new ownership now in Jesus Christ.
Notice the word that begins v6. KNOWING.
• This is a truth Paul wants us to know and believe.
• As we understand & believe these truths, our lives change.
• Christian living depends upon Christian learning & growing.
• Flip over to 2 Peter 1:3-8 Key is v8 fruitful & abounding living
NOTE: Sin is a terrible master & finds a willing servant in our flesh.
• We’ll see when we get to CH7 that even Paul the apostle battled with sin…
Galatians 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
• NASB – SETS It’s DESIRE… there is a constant battle going on.
BUT the work of God in our lives is that we should no longer be slaves of sin. We have a new master now Jesus Christ!
V7 – Reminds us that we have been freed from sin!
APP: That’s one of the greatest freedoms a Christian has.
• Paul writes often from the perspective of his own life.
• You know, Paul was imprisoned a lot, literally.
• In his own testimony he writes…
2 Corinthians 11:23 Are they ministers of Christ?—I speak as a fool—I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often.
• One of those times he wrote a letter to the church in Ephesus:
Ephesians 3:1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles—
NOTE: What reason is Paul referring to? Why is he a prisoner?
NOTE: As Paul writes to the Ephesians, he is prisoner of the Roman Empire. He is in a deep, dark, and horrid prison.
• He’s in prison because of the church. Because of God’s great work of bringing both Jew and Gentile together in Jesus.
• He was God’s messenger of grace!
• AND So Paul is a prisoner because of the church.
• He’s a prisoner of Jesus Christ… there by His will!
APP: Too many Christians are prisoners to the wrong things for the wrong reasons…
• Prisoners of debts, prisoners of habits, prisoners of addictions.
• You see we’ve been given great freedom in Jesus…
• No longer a prisoner of anything or anyone but Jesus.
• Paul understood that. He’s connected to Jesus!
• Yes my ministry got me in trouble… Yes, I’m chained…
• But it’s all being used by Jesus.
• I’m not a prisoner of Nero or Rome! I’m a prisoner of Jesus.
• It’s all being used for the glory of God!
• Paul writes to the Philippians from the same jail…
Phil. 1.12-13 But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, 13 so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ;
APP: Now Paul here is a special encouragement to us.
• When things aren’t going so good, when we feel imprisoned by this situation or that, when we’re wondering what’s going on…
• We can have the same ASSURANCE that God is at work.
This is important to know because Satan is constantly trying to undermine your faith and trust in God.
• He wants you to think God hates you, He’s mad at you, He’s punishing you and holding out… There’s NO HOPE!
• But see, whatever situation you’re in is not because of the upbringing you had with mean parents.
• It’s not because of a hard-hearted boss
• It’s not because you’re married to a lousy husband…
• Wherever you are has been ordained of God if you eyes of faith to see and the patience to wait on Him.
• Whenever I find myself complaining about this situation or that thing , I’m really complaining about my Heavenly Father.
• He’s allowed the things that have come into my life, your lives.
• And if I’m imprisoned today, Jesus wants to release you!
• V7, He who has died has been FREED from sin! AMAZING!
Here’s the thing to watch out for… Sin is attractive.
• If it weren’t then there would be such thing as a temptation.
• Even though we’re freed, there is that constant pull.
REMEMBER as Israel was delivered from bondage in Egypt?
• Even though they were taken out of Egypt, there was still a lot of Egypt in them and among them.
• They got to the point where they wanted to go back.
• They began to complain against Moses.
Numbers 11:4-6 (NKJV) 4 Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: “Who will give us meat to eat? 5 We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; 6 but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!”
• What’s really sad is that they are saying, “We want to be slaves again!” Why go back? There is nothing there for you!
• Satan is clever isn’t he?
• He’ll come and tempt you with your past…
Oh Ed, don’t you remember the fun times you used to have.
• Oh don’t you remember this and don’t you remember that?
• But he fails to remind me of the sorrow I caused, the pain I inflicted.
• He may try to remind me of the party that night, but fail to remind me of the absolute disgust I had in the morning.
• The worry about what might have happened. The panic of not knowing what happened!
• He’ll even send old friends our way… like Peter said
• Flip back to 1 Peter 4:1-5
NOTE: Satan will try to make certain things in your past look a lot bigger and a lot better than it really was.
• Don’t believe him! You have been FREED from sin!
Another thing you’ll face is things in your present that are not good for you… and you have the liberty or freedom to choose.
Be careful how you choose…
• Turn over to 1 Corinthians 6:12 THEN 1 Corinthians 10:23
• Is it helpful?
• Does it or will it dominate my life?
• Will it stumble another brother or sister or unbeliever?
2. (6:8-10) Freed from sin and alive to God!
a. Just as sin came through Adam, life came through Jesus!
Colossians 3:3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
NOTE: Just as Jesus conquered sin and death, so now we in Him live a life that conquers both sin and death!
• We live in the hope of the resurrection!
• This world is not our home!
• Only Christians can really cry out Maranatha, Lord come quickly!
APP: The life that He lives & The life that we live is to God!
• Let that minister to you today.
APP: You stand or fall before your God who loves you!
• Our worth and value isn’t based on our performance.
• It’s not based on some hurtful thing that was said to us.
• It’s not based on a difficult childhood.
• The life you and I live today is to our God who loves us!
3. (6:11) Reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin.
a. Reckon is an accounting term… you can consider to be done.
b. You can believe it to be true.
c. As the temptation comes your way, RECKON yourself to be dead to it. It has nothing for you.
d. We don’t want to go back to Egypt.
e. This world has nothing for us.
RECKONING is a matter of faith that leads to the right action.
• It’s much more than claiming a promise, it’s acting on facts!
And so far in this glorious truth of our new life Paul has told us:
KNOW the truth. Speaks to our minds.
RECKON the truth. Speaks to our hearts.
In our next study we get the next 2. Read ahead.
YIELD the truth. Speaks to our wills.
OBEY the truth. Speaks to our lives!
Let’s close with: 2 Corinthians 13:4-6
