The sermon text for this morning is Romans 6, 5 to 10.

For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death,

certainly we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.

Knowing this that our old self was crucified with him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to

sin. For he who has died is freed from sin.

Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him.

Knowing that Christ having been raised from the dead is never to die again.

Death no longer is mastered over him. For the death that he died, he died to sin once for all.

But the life that he lives, he lives to God. So Father, as we enter into your word now, we ask that we would experience to the fullest possible measure our union with Jesus Christ.

It is a precious thing beyond all words that by your own doing we are in Christ Jesus who has been made for us wisdom and justification and

sanctification and redemption. and I pray, be our teacher, holy spirit draw near and rest heavily upon this congregation

I pray and give us understanding and transformed minds.

through Christ I pray.

Amen.

I want to begin with a general statement now about the believer's union with Christ.

It goes like this.

Because of our union with Christ,

we have died with him and we will most certainly be raised with him.

Now as soon as you hear that, you should raise a question and say,

but don't you really mean to say, Pastor John, since we have been united with Christ, therefore we have died with

him and have risen with him? Do you really mean to say because we have died with him we shall

be raised with him? Isn't it true that in our union with him what happened to us happened to him. And so when he died, we

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