Dead to sin
Written by Jeri Woods | 
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Dead to sin=Dead to self-ruler ship
The scripture clearly states that a true Christian who is Born of the Spirit is set free from sin by the very power of God who resides within them.
Romans 6 is a powerful chapter that reveals this truth. As we read this chapter it is imperative that we understand that to be set free from sin is NOT something we work and strive for our whole lives but it is something that we possess by virtue of Christ reigning within us.
So lets first read the following verses:
Rom 6:11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Rom 6:12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Rom 6:13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
Rom 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
Rom 6:15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
Rom 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Rom 6:17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
Rom 6:18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
These verses are miss understood because we don’t know what “sin”is and we don’t know how Paul is using the word “dead“.
If we think sin is some outward action and that dead here refers to our physical death then the true meaning is lost. It is because of these errors that many suppose this state of being free from sin can only be obtained when we die and go to heaven and that it is the plight of a Christian to wrestle and strive with sin to keep it down or under wraps with all our efforts.
But this is not Christianity at all. Jesus came to set us free from our sin once and for all.
Now we are going to read these verses again but we are going to substitute some words with phrases that will help clarify what Paul is expressing.
Now please make the following substitutions:
1.In the following passage replace the word SIN with SELF RULERSHIP:
2.In the following passage replace DEAD with HAVING DIED TO THE RIGHT OF SELF RULERSHIP
Rom 6:11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be deadHAVING DIED TO THE RIGHT OF SELF RULERSHIP
indeed unto sinSELF RULERSHIP, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Rom 6:12 Let not sinSELF RULERSHIP therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Rom 6:13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sinSELF RULERSHIP: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the deadHAVING DIED TO THE RIGHT OF SELF RULERSHIP, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
Rom 6:14 For sinSELF RULERSHIP shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
Rom 6:15 What then? shall we sin(have)SELF RULERSHIP, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
Rom 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sinSELF RULER SHIP unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Rom 6:17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sinSELF RULER SHIP, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
Rom 6:18 Being then made free from sinSELF RULER SHIP, ye became the servants of righteousness.
The idea here is that ultimately SIN is the ruling of yourself. You sit on the throne and call all the shots. When we call all the shot and rule ourselves it gives birth to the lusts of the flesh-lust, anger, fear, covetousness, lying, stealing etc.(Rom 6:12)
Jesus says:
Mat 15:18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; (heart =our self rule)and they defile the man.
Mat 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
Mat 15:20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.We must die to our own self rule in order for Christ to dwell us. Jesus said
Mat 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.This means to die completely to ruling our own lives and turn over the rule to Christ Himself. We stay dead and He reigns us forever. This is different from self denial- self denial doesn’t work if we still rule ourselves.
This is how the discipleship movement got into trouble. It tried to kill the flesh (self rule) by starving it of pleasure which doesn’t work -You can‘t starve the sin out, you have to die to it in voluntarily. Those in this movement that survived (with out deep bitterness and hurts)most likely had already died to self rule and Christ was reigning in them, so any sacrifice they made was done unto the Lord Himself and He rewarded them. But those who emerged from this movement wounded, bitter and angry probably we’re still ruling themselves (thinking they we’re saved but weren’t.) Bitterness and hurts (deep ones that take years to get over) come from the fact that you were on the throne of your life and not Christ. If Christ was on your throne then an offence WILL NOT turn into bitterness because you a dead.
Again Jesus said:
Mat 16:25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Mat 16:26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
Here Jesus is saying if you willingly give up self rule to me you will find LIFE-”I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.
Paul in Romans says:
Rom 6:17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sinSELF RULER SHIP, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
Rom 6:18 Being then made free from sinSELF RULER SHIP, ye became the servants of righteousness.
What was this doctrine that the church at Rome obeyed from the heart that made them free from sin? And then became servants of righteousness.
Paul preached REPENTANCE and GOD’S WRATH OR ANGER!He preached the true state that each person is in-away from God and on the way to Hell, Yes he also preached the love of God but not to the exclusion of the true state of mankind. He always made man responsible for their actions.
Rom 2:4 Or perhaps you despise his great kindness, tolerance, and patience. Surely you know that God is kind, because he is trying to lead you to repent.
Rom 2:5 But you have a hard and stubborn heart, and so you are making your own punishment even greater on the Day when God's anger and righteous judgments will be revealed.
Rom 2:6 For God will reward each of us according to what we have done.
Rom 2:7 Some people keep on doing good, and seek glory, honor, and immortal life; to them God will give eternal life.
Rom 2:8 Other people are selfish and reject what is right, in order to follow what is wrong; on them God will pour out his anger and fury.Oh my! You say, but this is not what the American Church preaches today. Paul must have this wrong.
(The American church in this sermon is defined as the Spirit filled, Holy Ghost Church)
Today we preach God Loves you, accept Him and you’ll be happy, rich, blessed, and go to Heaven! Of course God loves you. It is His love that draws you to Him to repent of your self rule. And if you don’t repent from the depths of your heart the wrath of God is upon you and you will be sent to Hell. The wrath of God is simply that you are Judged already and on your way to hell. You need a Savior to rescue you from certain destruction and deliver you from the bondage of sin.
Oh my! This sound to harsh, can’t you soften it a bit and not be so direct!
No I can’t!! The truth will set you free. That is the problem with the American Church. We have diluted the Gospel so it is NOT the Gospel of Christ, but a gospel of half-truths or LIES! We instruct our children (or should) that if they tell only half the truth it is as good as telling a lie. We know this as adults but somehow we can easily justify telling only half the truth of the Gospel and feel just peachy keen about it. But we are actually spreading a LIE!
We justify it by saying “Oh we want people to love God and if we tell them that they are sinners and on the way to hell they‘ll think God is mean and you know first impressions are important. So we’ll keep these uncomfortable items like repentance, confession, and restitution in the background for now or they won’t come to Him.” These thing are just to hard for these precious people to handle at first, we’ll encourage the sinner that God has a great plan for their lives so they’ll come to church. Then we can teach them God’s ways. PS we’re still debating if repentance is all the important for our civilized society-it’s so messy ya know! Yuck.”
BUT we NEVER get around to telling them the truth because we STILL think it’s to HARSH. So no one ever truly repents and get converted, they just clean up a little and go God’s way! This is why our churches are full of troubled souls in bondage to sin and their lives are a ship wreck. The leadership view these sheep as saved but having troubles growing in grace. The leaders don’t realize they are dealing with unconverted souls, and hence all the sin and problems! News flash many leaders are not converted either-the blind leading the blind straight to Hell.
America needs a great awakening to this truth-I have been awakened by the Spirit!!!!!!!
In essence what we are saying to God is “We know how to preach the Gospel correctly and YOU don’t! See how full our churches are! We are quite proud of all our accomplishments the big numbers, buildings, missions, conferences, prosperity and our fashionable appearances all clean and nice. “
But inside you are raving wolves full of sin. You are white washed sepulchers!! You hold the truth in unrighteous and the wrath of God is upon those who live in sin, be it sinner or professing Christian hypocrites! If the shoe fits you better wear it because your life depends on it.
The reason pornography has exploded in our nation is because the church lives in sin. The church is wrestling with pornography! Pastors, leaders, missionaries, and lay people all professing to love God and serve Him but behind close doors are addicted to pornography on the internet and else where. (This is not God’s way, we have invented our own religion and it stinks) It is destroying families and ripping this nation apart! The divorce rate in the church is more than in the world! Adultery is now common place in the church and we are so proud of how we handle it by restoring the adulterer back into fellowship without public repentance, because we know how to run the church better that God.
The Church has no answers for the world on how to stop pornography or any other sin for that matter, because she has no answers for herself. The only difference between the church and the world is some church members repent constantly and feel bad about their sin and the world just enjoys it. Is this what holiness is? to feel bad about your sin and then repent but sin again and again with no power to overcome. NO NO NO this is not holiness. You have believed a lie from the pit of hell.
This is exactly what the Devil wants you to believe. This is what the Devil proclaims: “To keep sinning is the Christian way, you will always wrestle with sin, to feel bad about your sinning is proof you’re a Christian, the cross and resurrection of Christ are not powerful enough to set you free from sin, and anyone who says that Christ has set the free from the power of sin is a LIAR. (OH yeah I’m the Father of Liars.”)
Doesn’t this sound like the American Church doctrine? It does to me!
If you live in sin or wrestle with sin, God is not in you! You are a sinner, or if you profess to be a Christian and live in sin you are a Hypocrite-of which the Lord Jesus strongly rebuked as worse than a sinner! The wrath of God is upon you! Meaning you have been judged already and sentenced to be cast into Hell with the Devil and all his demons- totally away from the presence of God FOREVER! The only thing keeping you from the fires of Hell is that you physically haven’t died yet!
IS THIS YOU?
To the Hypocrite:
Definition: One who professes to be a Christian or thinks he has been saved, but lives in sin. By this I mean you continually have to repent to the Lord for the sin you commit-daily, or weekly, or monthly. Your repentance may even be sorrowful and deep-you feel relieved and clean for awhile.
But the very fact that you sin and repent, sin and repent and keep replaying this pattern reveals that Christ is not in you- sin has dominion over you, you are a slave to it. And replaying this pattern over and over again will not create holiness or a right Spirit within you. Doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results is insanity! If you live in sin as a professing Christian you have been relating to God outside of you, not from within you. Your continuing in sin is the litmus test that proves to you that he is not in you!
YOU NEED TO REPENT
If you have been a Hypocrite for many years, repentance will be a long process. I wish I could say it will be instantaneous and take 5 minutes. But it won’t. American Christianity has deluded us into thinking every gift from God is quick and easy- which is another lie. But remember YOU got yourself into this mess by abusing God’s Holy word and holding the truth in unrighteousness. It may take hours of repenting, or day or months, but I can granentee you that if you will fully expose your heart to God-He will show up to guide you and unravel the twisted deceit in your heart. My husband and son were hypocrites and they repented for 2-4 months, but the very moment they got honest and cried out to God- He was there! Will you for once do it God’s way! Don’t grow weary in seeking his face and exposing your hidden secrets and sins-the reward is great!! The reward is Christ Jesus Himself. Jesus loves you and died just for you-He has been drawing you all this time with His tender mercies Every experience you have had with God has been His wooing. Even when His has used you to minister to others, he was wooing you so you would repent so He could dwell in you and abolish sin in you! And then you could have true fellowship with Him as your Father.
If this is you-a hypocrite you must at once repent of all your sins one at a time (write a list if necessary), forsake them forever, completely die to your right to rule yourself, and lovingly invite Christ Himself to come into the throne room of your heart and be the supreme Ruler of your life. You must respond to the conviction of the Holy Spirit with total honesty and admit you have NEVER been saved!
Lord is it I? Have I defamed and abused your Holy name? Have I made a mockery of the Cross? Have I crucified you all over again and again?
YES LORD IT IS I ?
STEPS TO TRUE CONVERSON -Must be done with an honest heart!
-the only way to die to self-rule is to see yourself as you truly are from God‘s view point.
- if you live in sin, as a sinner or professing Christian, Christ is not in you, you are ruling yourself.
-no one can have two masters, if He is not your master you are your own master. Therefore, you stand as a enemy of God.
- You are in actuality in rebellion to His rule. You must see yourself as such
-the wages of your rebellion is eternal Hell. An eternity away from the very presence of God and united with your Father the devil and his demons.
-The only way to avoid eternal separation from The LORD JESUS is to:
- acknowledge and confess your open rebellion to Him personally.
-you must place yourself at the Judgment Seat of God
-confess all your sins-be complete and honest calling sin- sin
-repent from the depth of your heart. There will be tears and wailing if it’s real.
Repentance is an act of your will to crawl off your throne and die to your right of ruling yourself, once and for all. You will never rule yourself again, and turn the ruler ship of your life over to the rightful King. plead for His mercy for Him to come in and rule you.
- for you WILL not rule your self, and if He doesn’t come in and take His rightful place on the throne of your heart you will perish. (you are lost)
-Then and only then can Christ have mercy and forgive you.
- Then Christ washes and cleanses His temple ( that you stole from Him),
- you humbly ask Him to rule your life forever.
-if your heart repentance is true He will know it (and you will know it)
-when He accepts your repentance
-He makes entrance into your heart by His Spirit, and becomes your Divine Lord, King, and Loving Ruler forever.
-Now by His Rule in your heart sin(self rule) in you is abolished. Your heart is clean and Lust, anger, fear, worry etc have no barbs, no hooks. A tempting thought can easily be rebuked and it leaves. The power of the living God reigns in you! -He, in you, has created a new heart and Spirit-“if you walk in the Spirit you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Gal 5:16
-This is the true peace and rest of God! Oh the Love of God how pure and right.
-once you were blind but now you see. You’ve been translated from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. Into the kingdom of His dear Son!
- you are now in blessed fellowship with your Creator. The kindest, most loving ruler in all the universe and He lives in you! Abba Father! Holy, Holy, is you name!
Now you are His temple: (IF HE HAS ACCEPTED YOUR REPENTANCE)
1Co 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?2Co 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.
2Co 6:18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
-He abides, dwells, inhabits, sups inside you from the throne room of your heart
-Joh 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever;
Joh 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
Joh 15:4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
Joh 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
Joh 15:6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
Sin has no dominion over you, because Christ Himself abides in you!!
1Pe 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed (MADE WHOLE-delivered from sin)
Now all you must do is remain dead to your own self ruling and continue to allow Christ His righful place on the throne of your heart and you will practically walk in lasting peace and rest. You now are truly His son or daughter and He treats you so. by gentle ,loving and kind guidance. You will willing obey all His commands because you love Him supremely-His wish is your command. His desires become your desires. Where ever He leads you will follow. You are free from that old slave master of sin and self and you now have the most kind Master in the universe!!! Jesus Christ Himself- you now walk in a blissful communion with your Savior!!