Crucifying The Old Man

Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. Romans 6:6

How can we ever come to a place where we seldom or hardly sin? The key is found in Romans 6:6 where it says that our old man needs to be crucified with Christ. What does that mean? Let me illustrate with this example:

Say there is this terrible man who drinks heavily and smokes a lot. He watches pornography on television all the time. He visits sleazy massage parlors and constantly cheats on his wife. Whenever he is in a bad mood or comes home drunk, he becomes violent and beats up his wife and kids. And whenever his wife and children come back from church, he would use the vilest profanities and start cursing God.

One Sunday morning, his wife and kids have gone to church and the man is watching pornography on television again. He has a glass of whiskey in his hand and a cigar in his mouth.

That Sunday, his family has a wonderful time in church. But as they approach home, they become very fearful. Would daddy be drunk when we enter the door? Would he beat us up again? But when they step into the house, they are shocked. The cigar and whiskey are by the table but the man is not smoking or drinking. The television is on but he is not watching it either. He didn’t shout, curse or swear at them. He didn’t get violent or beat them up. What happened?

The man had just died of a heart attack! And when he died, he also became dead to sin-to all his bad habits and vices!

The Bible says that at Calvary, Jesus took your old nature, the old man, the “old you”-who likes to sin, rebel, lie-and nailed it together with Him to the cross. In exchange, the new man, the nature of God in Christ, becomes alive in us. When we live out the life of the new man, the power of sin has no more hold on us.

A very important truth is that Romans 6:6 starts with the word “knowing.” That word means “knowledge by experience” or “knowledge by supernatural revelation.” That is why it is so crucial to have personal encounters with the presence and the power of God. Religious information to your head alone will not help you become victorious. You need daily encounters with God to live out the overcoming life in Christ.