If you would, let's turn to Romans 6. Romans 6. Romans 6, and I'm gonna begin, I'm gonna read verses 6 through 11, at least for now. 6 through 11. Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin, for he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him. Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more, death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once, but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

We started out by reading in verse six, knowing this, it says. So what is it that we know, verses three through five? Know ye not that so many of us were baptized into Jesus Christ, were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death, that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.

We know by the grace of God that we were baptized into Jesus Christ. we were baptized into his death is what it says. And I know I just came up with big insight on that scripture, didn't I? No, that's what his word says. God said it through the Apostle Paul. Whoever is baptized into Jesus Christ was baptized into his death. I don't have to interpret God's word. I just need to proclaim it. When you and I hear God's word proclaimed, God will use that by his spirit and guide us into that truth. The preacher along with those that are hearing. But it does not stop there. If we are baptized into Jesus Christ by his death, we are also in the likeness of his resurrection. Life from the dead in Jesus Christ. I don't see anything that I've done there, do you?

Now I said it says knowing this. It's referring back to what he just said, but he is also going further or going on to say more about it. The old man is crucified with him for a specific reason spoken of here, that the body of sin might be destroyed. And let me just say, it was. By what Jesus Christ did, it caused or allowed us that we may no longer serve sin. It does not say that we do not sin. It says that we serve not sin. We're told in James that if we say we have no sin, we lie. Now we serve not sin, though, by the work of Jesus Christ. We serve, as it says here in our text, in newness of life. Because it says in Romans 6, 4, therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death, that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. And it says here, walk. That word for walk means to follow or be occupied with. We serve Jesus Christ our Lord because of him, by him, and in him. We are still in this world and we still have this flesh. I see my sin every day. I don't like to think about it. I do not glory in any sin I commit. I'm actually ashamed of it. But just as one preacher said, Jesus Christ died for our sins, so we have to commit all of those sins. What do I glory in? I do glory in that he, it says here, he destroyed the body of death.

But where I want to go is verse 11, likewise reckon. We are reckoning three things here, and that's what I want to talk about. Reckon dead indeed to sin, alive unto God, but also through Jesus Christ our Lord.

So dead indeed unto sin. We read in the prior verse this statement, for in that he died, he died unto sin once. Jesus Christ died one time. He's not dying over and over again. He died once, and in dying that one time, he paid the debt of sin for his people. Scripture says so, Hebrews 10, 10. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once. For all, it goes on to say. And if you'll notice, the words are italicized. And it's okay to use them if you understand what they mean. Once for all time. not once for all people. I know this world likes to think that about God, that he said that, but he did not say that. What God is telling us there is it took Jesus Christ dying one time unto sin. When he did that, he took those sins as far as the east is from the west. Verse nine says, of Romans six, knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more. Death hath no more dominion over him.

Jesus Christ died unto sin once for all time and that for his people. We are told in verse 11 to reckon ye yourselves also to be dead indeed, I-N-D-E-E-D, to sin. That means very or truly. It is a fact that we are dead to sin and we are to reckon it so. Reckon means to conclude. The conclusion to what Jesus Christ did was to free us from the bondage of sin. And we count it to be so. In God's eyes, we are righteous in Jesus Christ. In our eyes, we still have sin daily. But we are to reckon it to be that we are dead indeed unto sin because it is true. We believe God and what he says Christ has done.

If you do not believe, then you cannot say this. If you never believe, then it's not true of you. Pray God he intervene and calls you to believe because if he doesn't, you're still the servant of sin. But if he died for you, you are dead to sin and you serve sin no longer, but it does not stop there.

we are also to reckon ourselves alive unto God. It continues on in the verse and it says alive unto God and that means live or quick. We have life before God. What does it say about Christ in the previous verse, verse 10? But in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Jesus Christ arose from the grave and he ascended to the Father's right hand on high. having procured or obtained eternal redemption for his people. And I keep saying his people. There's no special mark on God's people that you can tell who they are. They don't have certain mannerisms, certain jobs, or anything like that. First of all, the scripture says, the Lord knows them that are his. His people are just like anyone else born of Adam. The only way we have any reason to know someone is a child of God is if they believe the record he's given of his son. These people, it says here, live unto God. We are to reckon this to be so. Conclude it to be so because it is a fact of God in what he said he has done for his people.

Even though I might not feel it to be so all the time. even though I may not behave myself that way all the time. It is true if Jesus Christ died for you, you are dead to sin. And it's also true that if he raised from the dead for you, then you are alive unto God. He did both. He died and he arose. You were not involved in bringing any of that to pass, were you? It was all done by one man. That is Jesus Christ the Lord. Which we are told in this verse, it goes on to say, this reckoning is to be done in light of what he has done, not what I do. My next point is, through Jesus Christ our Lord. We cannot reckon anything apart from Jesus Christ. This reckoning has nothing to do with what we have done or do. We read it, it's all because of grace, not works. It's all because of what he has done and not we ourselves.

Turn over to Hebrews 10 for a minute, Hebrews 10. Hebrews 10 verses, starting verse 14. For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified, whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us. For after that he had said before, this is the covenant that I will make with them. After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them. And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which he hath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, his flesh, and having a high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering, for he is faithful that promised. And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.

" We could keep reading on there. I just had to pick somewhere to stop. Reckoning these things to be so is all based on what he has done. That's how we come boldly to the throne of grace. What is our profession that we hold to? This does not say hold fast to our profession. It says hold fast our profession. And what is our profession? Jesus Christ the Lord died for my sins that I might be dead to sin, and he raised from the dead that I might live unto God. Through him and what he has done, I can reckon myself to be perfected forever. He took on mine and your weaknesses so that he might set his people free from the weakness of this flesh and our sin.

Listen at 2 Corinthians 13, 4 and how it says this. For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you. There it says weakness. through, it says, through weakness, not by weakness. He was not weak, but being made sin, which is the weakness of this flesh, our flesh, to the point the scripture says there was none to help. Not even God the Father. What did he do by that one great transaction that he did? Romans 8.3 says, for what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh. God sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh. The law could not do this. It was given to our flesh. But our flesh was too weak and we sin and we have sinned. But he paid the penalty of sin, which the law could not do. All the law can do is say this, do this and live. If you don't, then you die. Scripture is clear, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And the only way we could is by and through Jesus Christ our Lord. He who died under the weight, the guilt, the curse, and the penalty of that sin that was due us, he did this one time. And that one time perfected his people forever.

We see in this passage that we are to reckon or count it to be so. That we are dead to sin and alive unto God. We count it that way because it is so. This is not pretending that it's so. It is counting it as so. Because it is through our Lord Jesus Christ that this is so. That is sure, there's no doubt about that. We can count on what he's done.

This reckoning has a certain thing in mind in the light of what Jesus Christ has done. The thing in mind is not so that we can have an excuse to sin or license to sin, although we do continue to sin. We were told in 1 John 1 8, if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we say we have not sin, we make him a liar, it says. The whole of this book is about Christ and what he came and accomplished. He came to save his people and that from sin against God. We have broken his law and sin is the transgression of the law. So we do sin.

But reckoning this to be so is that we do not let sin reign in our mortal bodies. That's what it says in the book here. Verse 12 begins, let not sin therefore. Let's read that 12 through 14. Let not sin. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body that ye should obey it in the lust thereof. 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. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Grace does not cause us to sin or want to sin. We are enabled by God through Jesus Christ our Lord to live unto God by His Spirit. Paul starts out this chapter saying this, what shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? When you look at it, the word continue means to abide. Shall we live as our home, our abode in sin that grace may abound? He asked the same type of question in verse 15. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? God forbid is the answer.

But is the answer to let the law be our guide to life or in life? Between verse 1 and verse 15, did we read anything about what the law did? Not a thing. We, in fact, read a passage from Romans 8-3 that Christ did what the law could not do. What we read is everything that Christ did. But do we live in sin? Is that our way of life? We deceive ourselves if we say we do not sin, and we make Him a liar if we say we have not sinned. But we do not live under the dominion of sin.

Sunned up by God this way, verse 14, for ye are not under the law, but under grace. We serve Him, we believe Him, we give Him the praise and glory, and we love the brethren by the grace of God. not by following the law as our guide, because we know what he's done for us. He's done this for all those who believe. He shed his grace upon us through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who died for us and paid the sin debt so that we're no longer under the bondage of sin. He then raised from the dead, and in him we live unto God, serving him who deserves to be served.

Oh, that he might cause me, cause us to reckon what he has done to be so with us. If he does, and if you're one of his, he will. But if he does, we can glory in Jesus Christ from whom all blessings flow. We died in Him being made dead to sin, but we are dead no longer because He raised from the dead, so then we are alive in the God through Jesus Christ our Lord to serve in newness of life. We are to reckon it to be so, amen.

Dear old God. Cause us to see these in our heart, dear Lord, and comfort us with these words because you've done it all, dear Lord, and there is nothing for us to do. Cause us by your spirit, dear Lord, to believe and to walk in that, dear Lord, that you've done everything for us. May it be that we love one another, dear Lord. Forgive us of our sins. All these things we ask in Christ's name, amen.