The Power Of Your New Nature

Consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
–Romans 6:11

If you are a Christian, your old sin nature has been crucified. It is still there, but it has no more power than you choose to allow it to have. But to truly experience the power of the Holy Spirit in times of temptation, Paul said you need to understand the power of your new nature.

In Romans 6:11, he wrote, “Consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” That word “consider” is an accounting term. It means to make an accurate financial calculation. Let me illustrate it for you this way: Let’s say you ask your accountant where you are financially. He crunches the numbers and says, “I have some great news for you: you are $100,000 in the black.” Man, you feel great. You go to the car dealership and pick out a new car, but when you try to pay for it, the check bounces from here to the moon. You ask your accountant, “Why did you tell me I had $100,000?” He replies, “The truth is, you are in the hole $250,000. I just wanted to make you feel better.” Would you continue to use that accountant? No, you want an accountant who will give a true picture of where you are financially.

Just like that accountant, some Christians believe we have to pretend sin has no more power over our lives–and if we pretend long enough, then maybe one day it will be true. But if you just pretend you are no longer under the rule of sin, it will come back to bite you. Paul was saying, “Don’t just pretend you are free from sin; do an accurate calculation and understand where you are spiritually. The fact is, you really are free from sin; therefore, you need to act accordingly.”

Paul went on to say we are “alive to God in Christ Jesus” (v. 11). The same power that lifted Jesus Christ out of the grave is working in your life right now to help you say no to sin and yes to God. Look at verses 12-13: “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.”

In other words, stop filling your eyes with pornographic images; instead, fill your eyes with the truth that comes from God’s Word. Stop using your tongue to tear down other people; instead, use your tongue to build up other believers. Stop allowing your feet to take you places you know you should not go; instead, present your feet to God to take you to share the gospel. Stop allowing your mind to be controlled by anger and fear; instead, allow your mind to be filled with the peace that comes from the Holy Spirit. Stop acting like you are still under the control of sin, and start acting in a way that is consistent with the new power you have in Christ.

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Today’s devotion is excerpted from “What The Holy Spirit Can Do For You” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2011.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.