Reflection on Romans 6:1b-11 (Sunday, June 21st, 2026)

Romans 6:1b-11 (NRSVue)

^1b Should we continue in sin in order that grace may increase? ² By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? ³ Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴ Therefore we were 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 also might walk in newness of life.
  ⁵ 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. ⁶ We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, so we might no longer be enslaved to sin. ⁷ For whoever has died is freed from sin. ⁸ But if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. ⁹ We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. ¹⁰ The death he died, he died to sin once for all, but the life he lives, he lives to God. ¹¹ So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Reflection

The Apostle Paul asks an important question: if we are loved by God as a pure gift, if we are shown grace every time we do something to hurt ourselves or others, then would it not be a good idea keep sinning so that we can have even more grace?  Why not be grace hoarders, filling our rooms and walkways increasingly with life’s junk just so that Jesus can come over to the house increasingly to love us and clean up after us?

And I know that this line of thought can seem pretty heady and academic, but it is not.  In fact, it is something that is very fundamental to who we are.  Let me show you.

Anyone who has ever raised a toddler knows this dynamic very well.  The toddler runs outside and splashes in a mud puddle, having a grand old time, mud in every crease and cranny of the body, and when the dad calls them in for the much-needed bath, it starts.  The toddler laughs as the child gets tickled with the washrag under the arm pits.  The toddler takes in the familiar smell of dad as the child gives a hug, getting their back massaged…I mean washed.  And the child feels snuggly warm in the towel as their dad starts to clean up the grime from the tub.

And it only takes a moment of tub cleaning distraction for it to occur.  And by “it,” I mean the throwing off the towel, the running outside into the mud, and the desire to do it all over again.  Because if playing in the mud means lots of tickles, love, and snuggles, then the child is going to make certain that they get lots and lots more.

Now what seems amazing to a toddler may not be so much for the dad. Because as much as they love the tickles, love, and snuggles, there is nothing more a dad wants to do than clean things he has just cleaned.  That is just a joke, of course.  No dad or mom for that matter wants to add even more cleaning to their list of things to do.  Will they still love their toddler?  Yes.  Will they clean them up a second time?  Of course.  But the whole point of cleaning the child in the first place is so the child can be clean.

And I am certain that this very dynamic is a daily truth for God.  After all, it is not only toddlers who get addicted to the joys of things that dirty up life.  Water is polluted for the sake of progress and the enrichment of only a few.  Do these powerful and rich people care?  Sometimes.  Sometimes they listen and make good faith steps forward to correct the wrong.  But as we all know, progress and riches are very enticing, no matter how dirty.  Families love the good life, and when you care for your family and build a good life for them, then it is easy to overlook how dirty the world around becomes.

God looks down with grace, of course, and forgives us.  But God would prefer that when we have been washed clean, we would remain clean.

Joining the toddlers and the rich are those who muddy up their family’s lives because the desire to feel loved overrides notions of commitment to a spouse and family unity.  Loneliness or excitement or affection, or all the above can drive a person into the arms of those they should not be embracing.  It is a dirty mess that is often washed clean with forgiveness and understanding.  But as we all know, these are powerful emotions, and dirtying the waters of marriage and family life is always a persistent danger that is often repeated.

God looks down with grace, of course, and forgives us.  But God would prefer that when we have been washed clean, we would remain clean.

What entices you and leads you into sin over and over again? 

Of course, it is great that we have been given this wonderful, embracing grace from Jesus Christ on the cross who opened his arms to embrace all of us who fail over and over again, and who raises us to new life over and over again.  But when washed clean, I cannot help but think that God would prefer that we stay clean. 

The Apostle Paul asks, “Should we continue in sin in order that grace may increase? By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?” (Romans 6:1b-2).  Good question Paul.  How can we continue in sin when it has been cleared away?  Quite easily actually.

Just the other day I learned that fried food is bad for me.  And no, I am not stupid… completely.  I have known for a long time, as a general statement of fact, that fried food is not healthy.  You have learned that as well.  But McDonald’s and their fries still exist.  Carnivals and their funnel cakes and their deep fried Oreos still exist.  Fried chicken still defines an entire quarter of our nation.  We know it is bad but we do not necessarily understand that it is bad for “me.”  Well, I now know.  I was told that it was bad for “me.”

“So, what do I do when I have no choice but fast food?” 

“Don’t order the fries,” was the answer.

So, I did that.  The next time we ate fast food, I did not order the fries.  I did great.  However, the kids did order fries.  They smelled wonderful.  But I did not steal.  “Thou shalt not steal.”  I was great.  I was good.  I was dead to the sin of fried food.  I was doing great until one of the children uttered those fateful words, “I’m full.  Do you want my fries?”

Yes, of course I wanted fries.  Are you insane?  I wanted the fries.

But I was good.  I replied, “That’s OK, I will just have one.”

“How can we who died to sin go on living in it?” (Romans 6:2).  Is that a serious question, Paul?  Of course, I ate the whole paper sleeve of fries!  You do not let food go to waste!  Well, actually I did…it went to waste…my waste.  But don’t you have to eat it because there are children starving in Africa?  “Eat it all.”  That is what I learned.

And that is my point.  It is all learned.  It is all ritualized.  It is all repeated over and over again throughout our lives.  The mud of hate is repeated from generation to generation.  The mud of addiction is ritualized over years through each drink and puff.  The mud of greed and the blindness to those around is well established.  Of course, we go on living in it because it is our lives.

That is where the gift of God really starts to shine, because God’s solution is not simply a bath, where God, as a frustrated dad, endlessly wash us over and over again as we run back to the exact same puddle and try to horde God’s time and love with cleaning. 

Rather, it is a bath that drowns our ideas of what a good life looks like.  It is a bath that drowns our old identity and then raises us up into a new identity where gymnastics replaces jumping in dirty puddles and the support of team sports replaces the selfish need to horde love.

To this point, my wife relayed, “When checking out at the store, you should ask your checkout person what kind of candy bar they like and buy them one.  I did this today.  Yes, I was at the self-checkout, but I still thought it was a nice thing.”

But, what if you could be transformed from the person who takes the candy for themselves, to the person who buys one and automatically give it away?  What if Jesus can, not only wash your sin off the outside, but also transform your inside; your heart.  That is what your Baptism is about.

Baptism is not a bath that cleans the outside.  It is a drowning that ends the old self so that a new heart can be brought forth.  Paul says, “Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we were 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 also 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” (Romans 6:3-5). 

To be forgiven of a sin is a wonderful thing, but it does not necessarily change anything essential about your life.  It does not necessarily change your heart. 

But to be forgiven in a way that drowns your old self and raises you up into a brand new, cross-shaped life is truly a gift from God.  It is the gift of having a new heart.  What if you could just have a new heart, then the old stuff, the old habits and the old rituals would be gone for good.

Here is the amazing thing: this has already happened.  This happened when you were baptized.  You are a new self.  You have a new, cross-shaped heart.  We just forget.  We simply need to be reminded.  Paul reminds us: “You also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11). 

The job has already been done.  Christ has died, raised, and given you a new life once and for all (Romans 6:9).  You are already that new person of God’s grace and love.  Sometimes, we just need to be reminded.

Paul should know.  When he was Saul, he was a zealous person of God, who somehow got to a point in life where he would stand by and watch people suffering and dying without lifting a finger, without even questioning.  Saul confused his cold heart for faith. 

But even Saul can become Paul.  Even the wealthy and powerful can sit and eat with the hungry.  Even the unstable and unfaithful can be transformed into rocks of love and commitment.  Even thieves can be transformed into givers.  All of us simply need a reminder of who we are.  We are not those old people.  We are new people of grace and love.  We are reflections of the one who gave it all up for us, Jesus Christ our Lord.