Romans 6: Baptism unto Death, Resurrection

                Paul speaks out about baptism and sin…

“Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized unto his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we should wake in newness of life.” (Romans 6:3-4)

                Here, Paul makes an interesting point. We are baptized in a symbolic manner, to represent the death of the sinner and the resurrection of a new life. Just like Jesus Christ died for our sins, and was then raised from the dead. We too leave behind our sinful life in the waters of baptism by making a covenant with God to follow Him and to obey (to the best of our abilities) the laws and ordinances of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This symbolism can only be achieved through full immersion. Just as Jesus Christ was baptized (see: Matthew 3:16) It is also important to note that baptism must be done by someone who has the authority to baptize. Note that Jesus Christ sought John the Baptist to be baptized (see: Matthew 3:13-17) and that if someone is baptized without the Authority, a proper baptism must occur (see:  Acts 19:2-6)

Paul continues his address by advocating against sinning; “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.” (Romans 6:12) Paul explains that just because we have grace in Jesus Christ, does not give us permission to sin, because “…to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey…” (Romans 6:16) Essentially Paul is saying that if you choose to obey the lusts of the world and sin, you will become a slave to them. If, however we choose to be obedient to God and His commandments, we can become a servant to Him. Paul warns that; “…the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) If we chose to not sin, we will be happier and will obtain Eternal Life. This shows that grace, the free gift from God does not entitle us to Eternal Life. For if we chose to sin, we cannot obtain Eternal Life.