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Sermon #3096

Christ's Death Unto Sin

A Sermon on Romans 6:8-10

Originally preached Nov. 21, 1958

Scripture

Romans 6:8-10 ESV KJV
Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the …

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Sermon Description

In the sermon on Romans 6:8–10 titled “Christ’s Death Unto Sin,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones encourages the listener to not think of themselves so much. Christians often feel they must continually die to their old selves. This means they have not fully grasped the immense truth that the old self was crucified with Christ and is gone. They no longer need to think of their struggles, downfalls, and constant failures. Paul emphasizes once more that what happened to Christ has also happened to His people. Thus, they are to live after God, not in a future sense but in a present sense. Sin once had dominion over Christ because death is caused by sin. Christ died unto sin but He also rose from the grave, which means He conquered the dominion of sin. This act happened one time, once and forever. Dr. Lloyd-Jones shows that this means the Christian has full assurance in their salvation and the truth that the old self is gone. The resurrection proves that the law was satisfied and they are no longer under any reign of sin.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. The apostle has proved his negative assertion in verses six and seven.
  2. By that he has proved that because we have died with Christ, we have died altogether to the realm and to the reign of sin.
  3. That is what our Lord did, therefore, that is what we have done.
  4. But that isn't all. We are not merely left in a dead position. We are not merely as dead people.
  5. So he has to hasten on to the positive. It's a great thing to know that we are dead to sin, that as a man who dies is now outside the territory of sin, that sin can't do anything to him, can't tempt him, can't bring a charge against him.
  6. He's freed from sin. It's a great, I say and a wonderful thing to know that. But that isn't all that is true of us.
  7. We are not left in some void. We've come out of that territory. Yes, but he says, we have also been promoted or translated into another territory.
  8. And this is positive. And this, of course, is much more striking and much more reassuring and comforting to our faith.
  9. Very well then. What is this? Well, he states it again as a general proposition in verse eight.
  10. And here it is. Now, if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.
  11. That, of course, as a statement, is in reality nothing but a repetition of what he said in the second half of verse five.
  12. There he put it, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. So he makes that statement once more.
  13. But here he puts it in this way. He says, this is something that follows quite inevitably. Now, we mustn't be tripped by this expression.
  14. We believe that we shall also live with him. There are some people who are so tripped and trapped by that expression that they say that the apostle is just saying, ah, we just hold on to a belief in the resurrection by faith.
  15. But that isn't what, as I hope to show you, that isn't what he's saying at all. This belief really stands here, for we are well aware of the fact.
  16. We are sure. He says, if we be dead with Christ, well, then it follows of necessity that we shall rise with him.
  17. If we really are joined to him, and everything that happens to him of necessity happens to us, well then if we've died with him, we must also rise with him, and that is his way of saying it.

The Book of Romans

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.