Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death.

…knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.

Romans 6:3 & 6

Our baptism by the Spirit into Christ was, as Paul puts it ‘into His death.’  Because it was, ‘our old man was crucified with Him.’  The practical effect of that is, ‘that we should be no longer slaves of sin.’  What is it to be a slave of sin?  It means that sin is the master.  Sin is selfishness in action.  If we consider a few examples from the Ten Commandments, it becomes very clear.  To lie is to refuse to speak the truth because there is some selfish motive that the truth will not serve.  To steal is to take for myself what does not belong to me in order to have what I want.  To commit adultery is to satisfy my own appetite in such a way as to deprive another person of what is theirs.  By contrast, we behold Christ as He exhibited the life of utter selflessness and in that also sinlessness.  Because the Spirit baptizes us ‘into His death’ and therefore we are ‘crucified with Him,’ we, in following Him learn by degrees to live selflessly.  This goes down to the most common interactions of our everyday relationships.  The more like Christ we live, the less we live like the old selfish person we were.  This is a wholesale transformation which is the result of our baptism into Christ by the Spirit. 

Our Great and Gracious God,
we rejoice that You have put us into Christ.
We praise You that You are working in us
a wholesale transformation to conform us to His image.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

Romans 6:4

What characterizes the life of the person whom the Holy Spirit has baptized into Christ?  The Apostle Paul uses this comparison, ‘just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.’  What does that mean?  What characterizes the person we are by nature?  Paul describes it in Titus when he says, ‘For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another.’  By contrast, the ‘newness of life’ is the kind of life which Paul summarizes in Galatians when he says, ‘as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.’ This is that life which first looks to Christ, concentrates upon Him, and imitates Him in very practical ways.  Christ sought out the marginalized.  He went to the poor, the weak, the helpless, and the outcast.  He lifted up the fallen and supported the weak.  His congregation was the common people who heard Him gladly.  Where He encountered weakness He gave strength.  Where He encountered selfishness, He demonstrated selflessness.  The newness of life of which Paul speaks is the life that imitates Christ in such clear and unmistakable ways as to be utterly unlike the old selfish, self-seeking life of our days out of Christ.  Our newness of life is a walk with Christ, after Christ and like Christ.

Our Wise and Wonderful God,
we rejoice that You have set Christ before us.
We praise You that as we look unto Him,
we learn to imitate Him,
to the good of those whom we encounter.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning

9:30 am Worship Service
10900 Huron Street
Northglenn, CO

Scripture: Romans 6:1-7

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? ³ Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? ⁴ Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. ⁵ For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, ⁶ knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. ⁷ For he who has died has been freed from sin.

Sermon: One Baptism – Tomm Tice

1. What kind of baptism is this?
2. Who receives this baptism?
3. What is the effect of this baptism?

Catechism: Westminster Shorter Catechism Question #97

What is required for the worthy receiving of the Lord’s Supper?

It is required of them that would worthily partake of the Lord’s Supper, that they examine themselves of their knowledge to discern the Lord’s body, or their faith to feed upon him, of their repentance, love, and new obedience, lest, coming unworthily, they eat and drink judgment to themselves.

1 Corinthians 11:27-32 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eatest and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. Bur when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

Worship

O Come All Ye Faithful
Hark the Harold Angels Sing
O Come, O Come Emanuel