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I. WHAT IT IS TO BE DEAD UNTO SIN. Obviously the opposite of being dead in sin. As he who is dead has nothing more to do with earthly things, so he who is dead to sin has nothing to do any more with sin or its attractions.

II. WHAT IS IT TO BE ALIVE UNTO GOD? To be full of life for Him — to be altogether active and on the alert to do His will.

III. WHAT IS IT TO RECKON OURSELVES DEAD INDEED UNTO SIN? To believe, esteem yourselves dead to it. Regard this as truly your relation to sin; it shall have no more dominion over you.

IV. WHAT IS MEANT BY RECKONING YOURSELVES ALIVE INDEED UNTO GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST? That you are to expect to be saved by Christ and to calculate on this salvation as your own.

V. WHAT IS IMPLIED IN THE EXHORTATION? That there is an adequate provision for realising these blessings in fact. A precept requiring us to account ourselves dead to sin and alive to God, would be utterly untenable if no provision were made for its accomplishment.

VI. WHAT IS IMPLIED BY COMPLYING WITH THIS INJUNCTION?

1. Believing such a thing to be possible.

2. Ceasing from all expectation of attaining this state of ourselves.

3. A present willingness to be saved from sin, and the actual renunciation of all sin as such.

4. An entire committal of our whole case to Christ, not only for the present, but for all future salvation from sin.

5. The foreclosing of the mind against temptation, in such a sense that the mind truly expects to live a life purely devoted to God. Christians in this state of mind no more expect to commit small sins than great sins. Hating all sin for its own sake and for its hatefulness to Christ, any sin, however small, is to them as murder.

6. That the Christian knows where his great strength lies. He knows it does not lie in works, but only in Christ received by faith.Conclusion:

1. This text alone entirely justifies the expectation of living without sin through all-abounding grace.

2. To teach that such an expectation is a dangerous error is to teach unbelief. Dangerous to expect salvation from sin? If so, what is the gospel worth? Some expect to have to count themselves not dead indeed unto sin, but somewhat alive to it, and in part alive to God through all their mortal life. It follows as quite a thing of course that expecting no complete victory over sin they will use no appropriate means, since faith stands foremost among those means, and faith must include at least a confidence that the thing sought is possible to be attained. An elder I knew rose in a meeting and told the Lord he had been living in sin thus far, and expected to go on in sin as long as he lived; he had sinned today and should doubtless sin tomorrow, and so on — and he talked as calmly about it all as if it were foolish to make any ado, as well as impossible to attempt any change for the better. How horrible! Suppose a wife should say to her husband, "I love you some, but you know I love many other men too." And yet this is not to be compared in shocking guilt and treason with the case of the Christian who says, "I expect to sin every day I live," with unmoved carelessness. You expect to be a traitor to Jesus each day of your life; to crucify Him afresh each day; and yet you talk about having a good hope through grace! But tell me, does not every true Christian say, "Do not let me live at all if I cannot live without sin; for how can I bear to go on day by day sinning against Him I so much love!"

(C. G. Finney, D. D.)

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KJV: Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

WEB: Thus consider yourselves also to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.