In what ways does Colossians 2:20 connect with Romans 6:2-4 about sin? Setting the Foundation: Dying with Christ “If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as though you still belong to the world, do you submit to its regulations?” “2 By no means! How can we who died to sin live in it any longer? 3 Or aren’t you aware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 We therefore were buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may walk in newness of life.” Freedom from Sin’s Dominion • Both texts declare a decisive break with the old life: – Colossians: we “died with Christ” to the world’s elementary principles (legalistic rules, man-made systems). – Romans: we “died to sin,” severed from its enslaving power. • Death ends obligation. A corpse owes nothing to its previous master. In Christ, the believer is as unreachable by sin’s authority as a dead man is by earthly creditors. • The “elementary principles” (Colossians 2:20) and “sin” (Romans 6) are two faces of the same tyrant. Legalistic regulations and fleshly passions both spring from a world system opposed to God. Union with Christ liberates from both. Walking in Newness of Life • Romans 6:4 moves from death to resurrection: “walk in newness of life.” • Colossians 2 flows into 3:1-3, where resurrection life is explicit: “Since you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above…” • Connection: 1. Death with Christ — freedom from sin/world. 2. Resurrection with Christ — empowered obedience and heavenly focus. 3. Ongoing walk — practical holiness, not rule-keeping for merit but Spirit-empowered living. Practical Implications for Everyday Choices • Reject legalistic self-made religion (Colossians 2:21-23). Rules “do not handle, do not taste, do not touch” cannot curb the flesh; only the cross can. • Refuse habitual sin (Romans 6:12-14). Sin “shall not be your master, for you are not under law but under grace.” • Present your body to God as an instrument of righteousness (Romans 6:13). • Set your mind on things above, not on earthly distractions (Colossians 3:2). Motive and Power for Holiness • Identity precedes activity. Because you “have died” and “have been raised,” you can live differently. • The same power that raised Jesus works in believers (Ephesians 1:19-20). • Grace teaches us to “say No” to ungodliness (Titus 2:11-12) far more effectively than external rules. Related Passages That Echo the Theme • Galatians 2:20 — “I have been crucified with Christ…” • 2 Corinthians 5:14-17 — “One died for all, therefore all died… therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” • 1 Peter 2:24 — Christ bore our sins “so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness.” |
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