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"How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?" (Ro.6:2,3).

To understand this, let us remember that before we came to Christ, we were 'dead in sin' (Ep.2:1). Our sins had separated us from God, and we were spiritually dead. But when we recognised and admitted we were sinners, confessed and turned away (repented) from our sins, God forgave our sins as a free gift. He was able to do it because Jesus had already suffered the punishment for our sins. We are able to receive it because we trusted in Jesus as our Saviour. God then made us His children, and gave us a new spiritual birth by the Holy Spirit making us alive towards God.

When we get baptised, it is not baptism that gives us the new birth or makes us dead and then alive in Christ. That takes place when we are born again by grace through faith. When we go through baptism we are identifying ourselves with Jesus who died for us and rose again. We are also making a declaration through baptism that we want to live now onwards with a clear conscience towards God (1Pe.3:21). In other words, God has given us a mind that does not want to sin any more. But after the baptism, as we face the different temptations that come up, we have to work out in our daily life that decision which we testified to in baptism.

Sometimes people don't interpret the Scripture in the big context of the whole Bible, but take each verse as a complete expression of truth. For example, they think that since they have been 'baptised into His death' it is baptism that makes us dead to sin. No. Baptism is something by which we testify to what God has done in our life by forgiving our sins and giving us a new spirit that does not want to sin, and, at the same time, express our desire to follow Him by obeying Him in everything and overcoming sin.

Some others think that when they have gone through baptism they are dead to sin and there is no more any sin in their lives! They try to claim this in their doctrines, but everybody else can see how they are still falling into sin here and there! A correct interpretation of doctrine must also be in line with practical experience! Otherwise we can have different doctrines that give some fantastic pictures but which do not match with reality.

We have been made 'dead to sin' meaning 'dead towards sin'. It does not mean that there is no more sin in our life or that we don't have to deal with sin any more (1Jn.1:8). It means that now we hate sin and our goal is to stop sinning (1Jn.2:1). This is the result of the new birth (1Jn.3:9). But now, with a mind that wants to overcome sin, we must daily move in that direction and deny ourselves when we are tempted to sin in order to obey God (Lk.9:23). In order to do this, we must become careful to present every part of us to God to do His will, and stop yielding to sin (Ro.6:11-13). It is not automatic.

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