Liberated Living | Part 2

Now here's the question that you're asking if you're a thinking person. You're saying, okay, Pastor, okay. I know that when he died, I died. When he was buried, I was buried. When he rose, I rose. But now, Pastor, I want to ask you a question. If I have been crucified with Christ, why am I having so much trouble with the old person I used to be? If I have been crucified with Christ, if I've been buried with Christ, if I've been raised with Christ, why, tell me why, is my old man giving me so much trouble? He died for us.

We died with him. And now we have that same power that raised Jesus from the dead in us. The grace of God enables us to live godly lives in Christ Jesus and empowers us to live in liberation. If you have your Bible, turn to Romans chapter 6 as Adrian Rogers shares three basic principles for liberated living. Now, in the sixth chapter of Romans, there are three key words.

I want to rivet them into your heart. I want to indelibly, by the grace of God, stamp them upon your consciousness that you will never, ever again look at Romans chapter 6 and not have these three words to come to your mind. The first word is the word know, K-N-O-W. Look, if you will, in verse 6. Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him.

Did you hear that? Crucified with him. That when Jesus died, I died with him. Your old man is crucified with him that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. We are no longer slaves of sin, for he that is dead is freed from sin. Now, if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him, knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dies no more. Death hath no more dominion over him, for in that he died, he died unto sin once, but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

Now, what is the doctrine of identification? Know your identification with Jesus who gave himself for you. That means that when Jesus was crucified, when Jesus had that agony, that passion upon the cross, not only was Christ on that cross, but since he was your substitute, you were on that cross. Calvary not only deals with the sin, Calvary deals with the sinner. Now, not only did we die with him, but now listen, we were also buried with him.

Look now in verses 3 and 4. It says, Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him. You see, my funeral was my baptism.

I hope you've had a funeral. I hope you have been baptized by immersion, dead and buried. We are buried with him by baptism unto death. Now, folks, remember that the Lord's Supper speaks about Jesus' death for us. Baptism speaks of our death with him. Those are two very vital things that God has put into the church.

Now, here's the question that you're asking if you're a thinking person. You're saying, okay, pastor, okay. Theologically, I know that. I know that when he died, I died. When he was buried, I was buried.

When he rose, I rose. But now, pastor, I want to ask you a question. If I have been crucified with Christ, why won't my old man lie down? Why won't he be still? Why am I having so much trouble with the old person I used to be if I have been crucified with Christ, if I've been buried with Christ?

If I've been raised with Christ, why, tell me why, is my old man giving me so much trouble? Because you haven't gone to the next step. First of all, there's something to know. Now, if you don't know it, you can't go any further. You've got to know it.

First of all, it is an F-A-C-T fact. But not only is there something to know, secondly, there is something to reckon. Now, what you are to know is your identification with Christ. What you reckon is your appropriation, not only your identification, but your appropriation of Jesus who gave himself for you.

Of course, you can know it, and know it, and know it, and you need to know it, but you must appropriate it. Look now in Romans 6, verse 11. Likewise, reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin. Now, he said, know it, but now reckon it. Reckon ye also yourselves to be dead unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Remember our words?

First word, no. The second word is reckon. Now, let's talk about that word reckon. Reckon is a bookkeeping term. It does not mean to think or to feel or to guess, but it speaks of something that you can count on, something that is not a matter of feeling, but a matter of fact.

It is something you can calculate on. It is not a matter of closing your eyes and pretending. It is not a matter of clenching your fists and trying to do better. It is, now listen carefully, reckoning is acting on faith what you know to be a fact. First is fact, and then faith. Faith must always be in fact. The fact is that Christ died for you, and you died with him. Now you must reckon on it.

You say, well, what does that mean to reckon? Well, if you're saved, you already know how to reckon. That's how you got saved. You put your faith where God put your sins on Jesus. You said, Lord Jesus, you died for me. You died to forgive me.

I trust you. Thank you. Save me.

Thank you. I'm saved. Did you see you there when it happened? Did you see it with your eyes? No, but you know it to be true, and you reckoned on it for salvation. Now, in the same way, you reckon for sanctification, the same way. You see the Lord Jesus, so walk ye in him. You're not told to feel it.

You're not even told really to understand it. You are told to reckon on it. I've read of a woman one day, and I've done the same thing. Sometimes when you sleep is especially sweet. You look at your eyes, and you wake up, and the whole night has gone through just like that. You think, it couldn't be morning.

I just lay down. The alarm clock goes off. She said, it can't be 6 in the morning.

It just can't be. But she got up and looked at the clock and said 6 a.m. She looked at another clock, and it said 6 a.m. She opened the window, and the sun was coming up. She said, okay, it sinks. Now, she would have been quite foolish to go against every clock in the house and the sun, moon, and stars, right?

I mean, there are the facts. Now, it doesn't matter how she felt. Doesn't matter what she thought.

Doesn't matter whether she says it doesn't feel like it. That has nothing to do with it. Reckoning does not deal with feeling. It deals with fact. It is a fact that you were crucified with Christ. It is a fact that you were buried with Christ. It is a fact that you've been raised with Christ. Know it and then reckon on it.

Remember, that's a bookkeeping term. That means to count on this fact by faith. I must reckon that the old Adrian is dead, dead to his plans, to his own wishes, and to his own will. And I must daily reckon that Jesus Christ is alive and well in me.

Put these verses down, ancillary verses, Colossians 3, verses 3 through 5. For ye are dead. Now, he doesn't say you could be, might be. You are dead. That is your old person. You're dead. And your life is hid with Christ in God.

When Christ, whose our life shall appear, then shall he also appear with him in glory. Now, I'm dead. I'm dead, right? Right.

That's what he says. Well, now look at the next verse. Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth. That means put them to death.

Well, I thought I was dead. You see, what he's talking about here now is not double talk. He is talking about reckoning what you know to be true.

He is talking about appropriating what is already a fact. Now, reckon it, appropriate it. Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth. Talking about your members, your eyes, your hands, your feet, your tongue. Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth.

Fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Put these things to death. You don't have to obey the whole world, the old man, because that old man is dead. Third thing, third word. First of all, there's something to know.

This is theological fact. Secondly, there's something to reckon. Now, thirdly, there's something to yield. Yielding deals not with identification or appropriation, but now, thank God, it deals with emancipation being set free. Something to yield, that is your emancipation through Jesus who lives his life in you. Now, let's look in verses 12 through 13. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal bodies, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye, there's our word, your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but yield, there's our word again, yourselves unto God as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as the instruments of righteousness unto God. Yield yourself to God.

Yield. Now, look in verse 16. Know ye not that to whom ye yield yourselves, there's the word, servants to obey his servants ye are, to whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death or of obedience unto righteousness? Now, look in verse 19. I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh. For as ye have yielded your members' servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity and to iniquity unto iniquity, even so now, here's the word, yield your members' servants to righteousness unto holiness.

Now, here's the thing. When he died for you, that is imputed righteousness. When you yield to him, that is imparted and practical righteousness. It cannot be done without him.

He will not do it without you. Now, we told you how to reckon. Now, how do you yield?

What does it mean to yield? First of all, there must be the dethronement of sin. You're making notes, write it down, the dethronement of sin.

Look now in verses 12 and 13. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body. You don't have to let sin have its way.

You don't have to. Don't let it do it. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body. Don't let sin be on the throne. Dethrone sin. There is the dethronement of sin that ye should obey it in the lust thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but yield yourself unto God as those who are alive from the dead and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

What does this mean? Let not sin reign. You see, it's up to you. You have the right, you have the authority to impeach sin. You have the authority to dethrone sin. You have the authority to evict sin.

You can choose. You can say, Satan, you are a liar. I don't belong to you. I'm no longer your slave.

The person I used to be is dead and buried with Christ and I have resurrection life. Therefore, Satan, you are an imposter. You have no right, no authority in my life, and I will no longer allow these members of mine to be your tools.

You have authority. There must be the dethronement of sin, but that's not enough. There must be the enthronement of the Savior.

Look now in verse 13. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin, but yield yourselves unto God as those that are alive from the dead and your members as the instruments of righteousness unto God. That is, you yield to God. Now, what does it mean to yield? It may interest you to know that in Romans chapter 12 and verse 1, this same word is used and is translated there, present. I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, wholly acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. The word present is the same word the Greek as the word yield.

And it means to turn something over to another. You present yourself to God. Now, when you kick Satan out, you dethrone sin, then you enthrone Jesus.

Nature abhors a vacuum, and you simply enthrone the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, when self and Satan is on the throne, Christ is on the cross. But when self is on the cross, Christ is on the throne. You need to enthrone Christ. You need to yield to him.

It means just to turn it over to him. And you do that consciously as you yield to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, look, there must be... Now, we're talking about yielding. There must be the dethronement of sin. There must be the enthronement of the Savior. And then... Now, you may not like this, but the enslavement of the saint. I use the word enslavement purposefully.

Listen to this now. Look in verses 17 and 18. But God be thanked that ye were the servants of sin.

And the word here for servant literally means slave. You were the slaves of sin. But ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered to you.

And I hope you're listening and will obey from your heart. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. And that word servant literally means bond slave. You became a bond slave. Or you say, I thought I was going to be free.

No. You become a slave to Jesus Christ. You died with him. You were buried with him.

You rose with him. Your life is with him. And you are forever bound to him as a bond slave of the Lord Jesus Christ. You say, I don't want enslavement. Friend, this enslavement brings liberty. Let me tell you what you get when you become a slave of Jesus, and I'll be finished. First of all, you get a new freedom.

Look in verse 18. Being then made free from sin. Free from sin. Free.

Free. Free from sin. Ye became the slaves of righteousness. Set free from the devil.

Now, if you don't want to be set free, I can't help you. But if you're saying, Adrian, I would like to live in victory, if there's something you will know, reckon, and yield, then you will see a new freedom. And not only will there be a new freedom, it will show up as a new faithfulness. Notice verse 19. For as ye have yielded your members' servants to uncleanness unto iniquity, even now yield your members' servants to righteousness unto holiness.

How would you like to be righteous and holy in a practical way? There's a new freedom. There will be a new faithfulness. And as night follows day, if there is a new freedom and a new faithfulness, there will be a new fruitfulness.

Look in verse 22. But now being made free from sin and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness. Would you like to have a fruitful life? Would you? Would you like to be free from Satan? Would you like to be faithful to God? Would you like to be fruitful in the things of God? Then yield.

Listen. When temptation comes, there's only one thing to do, and it is to yield. Not to sin, but to Jesus. To yield. To present yourself. To say, here I am. Something to know, something to reckon, and something to yield.

Fact, you know. Faith, you reckon it. Yield, you function that way, and as you yield yourself to Him. Now, the fact that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross, what good is that to you so far as your daily walk is concerned if you don't bring it into practice? You see, thank God for His passion. But what about our purpose?

How do we react to what He did on the cross? How does that apply to us? Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, and that freed the slaves, and I'm grateful for it. But did you know that historians tell us there were some slaves who continued to live in slavery? They stayed on the plantation.

Do you know why? Some of them never even heard about the Emancipation Proclamation. Others of them heard it, but then we heard it intellectually. They couldn't reckon it to be true. They couldn't believe that it was possible. Sadly and tragically, they continued because it could not get into their consciousness that they were indeed free.

And others who heard it and knew it to be true still failed to act upon it, to dethrone the old master. They say, I no longer belong to you. You have no right nor authority in my life. I'm telling you, the devil does not want you to hear what I preach tonight. You ask God the Holy Spirit to rivet this truth into your heart. God wants you to live, blessed friend, in victory. And God's people said, Amen. You pray for a moment and ask God to teach you this as I'm praying because, friend, I am a fellow pilgrim, and I am still, after all of these years, still learning fully the truth that I'm preaching tonight.

And none in this building has arrived ultimately. Something to know, something to reckon, and something to yield to. The dethronement of Satan, the enthronement of the Savior, and the enslavement of the saint. Lord Jesus, I belong to you. Now I have a new freedom, a new faithfulness, and a new fruitfulness.

Just pray for a moment. Now, Father, what these are praying for themselves, the Atlas, I'm praying for my own heart. Forbid, Lord, that I should preach something I do not believe, nor be unwilling to practice. Lord, as a church, help us, dear Lord, to practice practical holiness because of our identification with you. Thank you, Lord Jesus, that you gave yourself for us, that you might give yourself to us, that you might live your life through us. In your holy name, Amen.

Amen. And if you've prayed to receive Christ today, we would love to celebrate with you. Go to our Find God's Love page on the website. You'll find answers you may need about your newfound faith. Simply go to lwf.org slash radio and click the tab that says Find God's Love.

Welcome to his forever family. We can't wait to hear from you today. Now, if you'd like to order a copy of today's message, you can call us at 1-877-LOVEGOD. Mention the title Liberated Living when you order. This message is also part of the insightful series Victory in Jesus. For that complete seven message collection, call us at 1-877-LOVEGOD or you can order online at lwf.org slash radio or write us at Love Worth Finding, Box 38600, Memphis, Tennessee 38183. You may not know you can also purchase our new Bible studies, much like this message, in our online store.

Simply go to lwf.org slash radio for more information. Do you know that you identify with Jesus in his death, burial, and resurrection? Have you reckoned your life to what you believe?

Have you yielded fully to him? We're so glad you studied in God's word with us today. Tune in next time for more from Adrienne Rogers right here on Love Worth Finding.

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