An Easter Pop Quiz

When Jesus was on the cross, where were you?

In Him!

Why is this important?

Q: What will have to happen in order for me to finally be free from sin? Answer: I’ll have to die. Follow up Q: When did I die? My answer to that question is right now determining much of my experience in life and my expectations of God.

When Jesus died, with Him, in Him we died. Our previous self, our former nature, which was predisposed toward sin, was crucified with Him on the cross. We’re not only admirers of the cross and what Jesus accomplished there, we’re participants! This means that we will never have to die for our sins because, in Him, we already did. It also means that we won’t have to die to gain power over sin because, in Him, we already did.

How marvelous is that?

Rom 6:1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

Gal 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.