Pastor Scott Gabrielson
As we close out Easter month soon, before we leave that most important of Holy Days, we might examine some questions about the resurrection of Jesus.
First Question: Am I actually living what I already possess in Christ?
There is a true story — and you may have heard versions of it — about a man who spent years living in poverty, struggling to make ends meet, never quite getting ahead. When he died, his family went through his belongings and discovered something remarkable hidden away in a drawer — uncashed checks, unclaimed accounts, and certificates he had never touched. It turned out he was worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. He had an inheritance sitting there the whole time. He just never lived like it.
Many of us today have been walking with Jesus for a long time. We know the gospel. We know the right answers. We can quote the verses.
But I want to ask a simple, honest question — are you actually living what you already possess in Christ? Paul opens Romans 6 with a striking question of his own. He has just finished explaining in Romans 5 that where sin increased, grace increased even more. And somebody raises their hand and says, well then, should we just keep on sinning so that God can show us more of his wonderful grace?
Paul’s answer is immediate and absolute. He says in Romans 6:1-2 in the NLT, “Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it?” The resurrection of Jesus Christ did not just secure your future in heaven. It changed who you are right now. And this day I want to make sure you are living like it.
What the Resurrection Did For You
Let’s look at what Paul actually says happened to you. Romans 6, verses 3 through 7 in the NLT: “Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in his baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ, we were set free from the power of sin.”
Don’t let the theological language throw you off. Paul is making a very practical point. He is saying that when you placed your faith in Jesus Christ, something happened to you spiritually that mirrors exactly what happened to Jesus physically.
He died — and so did your old self. He was buried — and so was who you used to be. He was raised to new life — and so were you. This is not just poetry. This is your spiritual biography. The old you — the one ruled by sin, driven by selfishness, defined by your worst habits and your darkest moments — that person was crucified with Christ. Done. Buried. And the you that walked out of that grave is someone new, someone free, someone with access to the same resurrection power that rolled that stone away on Easter morning. That is what the resurrection did for you. Not just someday in the future. Right now, today.
An Inheritance That Goes Unclaimed
So here is where it gets convicting — especially for those of us who have been in church for a long time. Think back to that story I opened with. A man with a full inheritance sitting in an account he never touched, living like he had nothing when everything had already been given to him. Romans 6:8-10 in the NLT tells us, “And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him.
We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God.”
Did you catch that? Sin’s power has been broken. Not weakened. Broken. Christ died once, and it was enough. And because you are in Christ, that victory belongs to you. But here is the honest question for longtime believers — and I am asking myself this too — are you living like sin’s power is broken, or are you still living like it has the upper hand?
A lot of us have been Christians long enough to know better. We know the theology. We have sat through countless sermons. We can explain justification and sanctification. But we keep going back to the same patterns, the same fears, the same small cramped way of living.
And meanwhile, the inheritance sits there unclaimed. You know what is heartbreaking about that man who died in poverty? It was not that the money was not real. It was. It was not that he had no right to it. He had every right to it. The tragedy was simply this — he never lived like it was his. Some of you have resurrection power available to you right now, and you are not drawing on it. You are still living under the old rules, still identifying with the old self that Paul says was buried with Christ, still letting sin have an authority over your life that it legally lost at the cross. The inheritance is real. It is in your name. The question is whether you will start living like it.
Start Living What’s Already Yours
So what do we do with this? Paul lands the whole argument in one verse. Romans 6:11: “So, you too consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” That word consider — it means to reckon it, to count it as true, to agree with what is actually real. This is not pretending. This is not positive thinking.
This is simply agreeing with what God says is already true about you in Christ. Paul is not giving you a ten-step program this morning. He is giving you one move. One decision. Consider it true. I do not want to send you home with a list. I want to leave you with a moment — just a quiet moment between you and God — where you make a decision. Stop living like a spiritual pauper when the inheritance is already in your name. That might mean the next time a familiar temptation comes knocking, instead of caving out of habit, you stop and say — no, that person does not live here anymore. I died to that. I am alive to something better. It might mean releasing a fear or a shame you have been carrying for years that resurrection life was supposed to set you free from long ago. Whatever it is for you — and I think you know what it is — today is a good day to start living like it is already yours. Because in Christ, it already is.
Next Week: The Second Question: What are the benefits of the resurrection of Jesus Christ?
Reminders:
Our church yard sale is coming up April 25th from 8 AM. It’s a NAME YOUR OWN PRICE SALE* (reasonable offers*) along with a bake sale to raise funds for our new fellowship building. Come join us!
Our FOOD PANTRY is available to everyone – there is no financial pre qualification. Come by the church office on Monday, Wednesday or Friday from 9-12 for a free bag of food!
Craig Valley Baptist Church, next to Bibo’s at 171 Salem Ave in New Castle, welcomes you to visit and share in the love of God we have experienced. We meet Sundays at 11AM, with an upbeat service of music, sharing and preaching. You don’t need to dress up, and you won’t be asked to speak, so just come and hang out and meet new and old friends! Questions? Call 540-864-5667 or email pastor@cv-bc.com.
-Pastor Scott Gabrielson