Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.” vs. 4
Romans 6:3-11
For Paul, the death of Jesus was intensely personal. It’s not so much that he felt his sins had been forgiven on the cross, but he earnestly believed that in his baptism, his old self had been buried with Christ. Most of us have a hard time getting our heads around what he’s trying to say. We don’t necessarily think of our baptisms as a burial, and it’s really hard to make the connection between our sinful selves and what happened to Jesus on the cross. But some know exactly what Paul is talking about–they too have experienced it. They know what it’s like to die together with Christ because it’s happened in their lives. The old self has died, and, praise be to God, together with Christ they have begun to live a new life. And the difference between the old and the new is like night and day. That’s what had happened with Paul–in Christ he had been reborn. There was a definitive before and after–and it was all related to Good Friday and Easter. It’s that reality that gives hope for us all. We don’t have to continue to live as we have lived in the past. Because Christ has been raised from the dead, we too can walk in newness of life.
Thought for the Day: What was the old me like?
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