As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.-Ephesians 2:1, 2
The Word of God uses what I believe is some of the most powerful symbolic language to describe the spiritual condition of those who have trusted in Christ. The Bible says that as followers of Jesus, we are dead to sin, but alive in Christ. Until we had the power of Christ in us, the situation was that we were spiritually dead in sin and that was it. We had no true spiritual life apart from the Lord Jesus. Trusting in Christ changed all of that. We were born again, renewed, regenerated, made whole, and made alive. Now, instead of sin reigning in us, Christ now reigns in us, and we are dead to sin. What kind of power does sin have over one who has died? The answer is none whatsoever. The person has died; he or she no longer has the negative effects of sin work in the body or in life. The Bible says that this describes the state of the one who is dead to sin; it no longer has any power over us.
If that is the case, then why is it that believers sometimes fall prey to sin? Why do we sometimes give into sin? The answer lies in what the Scripture says about being obedient and disobedient, and of not following after the lusts of the flesh, the mind, and those things which war against the Holy Spirit. We have to confront the old man - the sinful nature, the residue of what we used to be, on a daily and ongoing basis. We must be prepared to defeat that old nature every day. For the believer that is not a battle that will soon end, but one that must fought continually.
Apart from Christ we were in a state of spiritual death which was brought about by sin. However, Christ Jesus, because He has overcome death, has made us alive in Him. We were, as the Bible says, quickened – made alive. When we put our faith in Christ we are brought out of that deadness of sin; we are made alive in Christ. As the Scripture says, sin is to no longer have dominion over us. Who is to have the dominion over us? That would be, of course, Christ Jesus. He alone is able and capable of taking on the power of this new life that is in us.
Through Jesus Christ we no longer have to live each day under the control of that old nature which is forever trying to bring us down in defeat. Instead, we can walk forward in Christ's power with a new outlook and a new perspective. Imagine walking through a field during the rain and you lose your balance and end up falling into a mud puddle. With your clothes all sodden and covered with mud, your one desire is to get home and get cleaned up. What a relief to cast off those filthy, muddy clothes and put on some cleans ones.
