Four Flat Tires

I invite you to read the sixth chapter of Paul’s letter to the Romans.

In verses 6 and 7, Paul writes, "Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him [Christ], that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin."

Imagine driving your route to work one morning when you hear a loud bang and feel the steering wheel tugging to the side. "Oh great," you mumble as you herd the car to the side of the road. You pull the trunk release, grab the jack from the trunk, and prepare to replace the tire with the spare. Your thoughts about how you should have stayed in bed are interrupted by a glance at the wheels. Your car is sitting on four rims. The tires have disappeared!

I used to think that being freed from sin means that sinful behavior suddenly disappears from my life. And if it doesn’t, I wasn’t doing something right. This led me to doubt my sincerity as a Christian and drove me down a dark road of discouragement—exactly the route the enemy had mapped for me.

The Greek verb in the phrase "done away with" is katargeo, which means "to render inoperative...to deprive of force, influence, power."

Being crucified with Christ doesn't mean that sin suddenly disappears from my life. It means that it has been rendered inoperative; it has been deprived of its force, influence, and power over me. I no longer have to engage in it. Sin has been given four flat tires.

Christ didn’t die to make me a perfectly-behaved person. He died to give me a choice of which direction I drive—through the town of Sin with a final destination of eternal Death, or through the towns of Obedience, Righteousness, and Holiness, with a final destination of Eternal Life.

And as I drive with Jesus, I gradually begin to behave more and more like Him.