You are Not a Sinner, Part Two

There's nothing wrong with remembering the price that was paid. In fact, I think if you rightly assess the price paid for your sin, you'll see there can be none left out of that transaction, especially since that transaction resulted not only in Jesus' death, but yours.

What many believers miss in the phrase "Jesus died for my sins," is the truth that in order for your sins to die with Jesus, you had to die as well. Since we know the essence of Christianity is new life, how do we miss the need for prerequisite death? Someone had to die for you to be reborn, and it was the old sinner inside you.

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This summer, I went to Mexico on a mission trip. To make things smoother, I learned to speak just a little Espanol. It became a bit of a habit. I often think, "what's the Spanish word for that?" More often than I probably should, I actually say things in Spanish...not that well. I love Mexican food, and eat it as often as I can. I guess what I'm trying to say is...I am now a natural born Mexican Citizen.

That's ridiculous, isn't it? Participating occasionally in the language or culture of Mexico does not make me a Mexican. I'd have to be born there to say that. Well, it's just as ridiculous for a believer in Jesus to call himself a sinner. You might say, "I was born a sinner," and I'd have to answer, "No, you weren't...not the real you."

You see, even though all of us were born into sin, we no longer have a right to claim that title. We've been crucified and reborn, raised with Jesus in our inner person. That inner person, the hidden, new self, is our true identity. The one born into sin is no longer who we are. In fact, it's dead.

Paul goes into great detail in his letter to the Roman Christians to tell them that the person they were before they met Jesus had died, and that they had been resurrected with Jesus. The Romans, like us, were dealing with powerful cultural influences from their past lives every day, and Paul gave them an iron-clad legal case to prove that sin was not in charge anymore.

That legal case centered on one piece of evidence: the death of the old self. It's as if he's saying to them, "Look, I know the temptations are powerful, but you don't have to put up with it...that's not who you are anymore!" The early Christians were not in the habit of calling themselves sinners, or I'm certain He would have chided them for it. However, he did tell them very clearly to look at themselves as dead to sin.

How can someone dead to sin be a sinner? It's not possible. Therefore, Paul's instructions to the Romans are clear: calling yourself a sinner is not allowed. Why not? Isn't it good to be grateful for Jesus' death in our place? Didn't Paul call himself the worst of sinners?

As for Paul's statement in Timothy, it was past tense, and it's also a good lesson for us in gratitude. There's nothing wrong with remembering the price that was paid. In fact, I think if you rightly assess the price paid for your sin, you'll see there can be none left out of that transaction, especially since that transaction resulted not only in Jesus' death, but yours.

What many believers miss in the phrase "Jesus died for my sins," is the truth that in order for your sins to die with Jesus, you had to die as well. Since we know the essence of Christianity is new life, how do we miss the need for prerequisite death? Someone had to die for you to be reborn, and it was the old sinner inside you.

You are not a sinner. You may feel like one--sometimes I do, too. You may act like one on occasion--and so do I. You may remember what it was like to be one, but that does not change the fact that the sinner in you is dead. That's just not who you are anymore. As I said before, you've been changed...enjoy it.