IV.
In my last post, I asked, “Do we discover the essence of this passage by counting the occurrence of certain words or by some other means?”

What did you come up with?

Let’s read these words of Paul again, and then see what impresses us the most.

V.
Romans 6:1-14 (New Revised Standard Version)

What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 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.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. For whoever has died is freed from sin. But 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. The death he died, he died to sin, once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Therefore, do not let sin exercise dominion in your mortal bodies, to make you obey their passions. No longer present your members to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instruments of righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

VI.
What if in the first paragraph of this week’s reading we heard, “ … grace … go on living … baptized into Christ Jesus … buried with him … might walk in newness of life.”

Or what about in the second paragraph, “…united with him in a resurrection like him … if we have died with Christ … we will also live with him … consider yourselves … alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

VII.
Is that what Paul wants us to pay attention to?

If so, why does he mention “sin” so many times?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}