◄ What Does Romans 6:14 Mean? ►

In other passages in the Bible we know that Christ died FOR our sins, but in this passage in Romans we know that Christ also died UNTO sin. In the first instance, Christ died to pay the price of our sin, and the price that Jesus paid for our sin was His death. In the second case, Christ died to break the power of sin in our life, which means that for the rest of the time that we live in this sinful world, sin does not have to have power over us.

When Christ died for our sins it was a once and for all payment, and there is nothing more to do but to simply believe the gospel message that Christ died for our sins and was raised the third day. The result of trusting Christ is that we are removed from the kingdom of Satan and placed into the family of God forever. Past, present, and future sins are paid for by the Cross of Christ.

At that moment in time, we were placed IN Christ. We were taken out of Adam at the point that we believed and placed into Christ. When we are IN Christ, it means that we have His life living in us and it is His life that delivers us from the power of sin - His life is our life - our entirely new life in Christ - our new life and not the old sinful pre-Cross life (which is often referred to as the old sin nature, the old man or the Adamic nature).

As a result of being IN Christ, the Cross has a secondary meaning to us. Christ died UNTO sin: "So sin shall not have dominion OVER you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace." Christ died to break the power of sin in our everyday life which means that sin does not have the power to dominate our lives as it does with non-believers. 

When Christ died UNTO sin, in His omniscience, He knew that one day you and I would trust in His name, and because we would one day believe in Him we are IN Christ. We were in Christ even at the time that He went to the Cross, just as every member of the human race is always born IN Adam because He was our original forefather. That is why Paul was able to say: "I have BEEN crucified with Christ," I WAS crucified with Christ, I died with Him, and my old sin nature died at the point that Christ died on the Cross.

Praise God that Christ not only died FOR our sins, but He died UNTO sin so that the power of sin has been broken in our lives. We still have freewill and can allow sin to dominate if and when we choose. Let us not choose to allow sin to dominate our lives. Rather, let us choose to let Christ live in us and through us, to His praise and glory.

Loving Father, thank You that Christ not only died for my sins but has died unto sin so that the power of sin no longer has power over me. Help me to make the right choice to follow you and listen to Your voice day by day. In Jesus' name I pray, AMEN.