Into Jesus, Out of Adam
Raised with Jesus, walking in newness today
Devotional Credit: Immeasurably More, Ray Stedman, Romans 6:3–4
Photo Credit: Unsplash
When Paul says we were baptized into Christ Jesus, he is not talking about water. He is talking about the Holy Spirit placing us into Jesus Himself. Ray Stedman draws a clear line here. Water never moved a person from Adam to Jesus. Only the Holy Spirit can do that. I am grateful for his clarity because it keeps the spotlight on union with the risen Lord, not on a ceremony.
Paul expects ordinary believers to know this. Do you not know, he asks, that all of us were baptized into His death. He is saying something happened at conversion that went deeper than our senses. The Holy Spirit united us with Jesus in His death, burial, and resurrection. That union means the old realm of sin’s claim ended, and a new life in Jesus began. This is not theory. It is fact. Just as Adam’s act once told our story, now Jesus tells it, and we are in Him.
This also answers the question, can a believer keep living under sin’s rule. Paul says no, because we died to sin in Jesus. The Spirit took our history, folded it into Jesus’ history, and raised us with Him into a newness of life. Newness is not a coat of paint. It is a new location, a new source, a new identity. We live from Jesus, not toward Him. We live from victory, not for it.
So we do not confuse the symbol with the substance. Water baptism points to this reality and is a beautiful confession, yet the reality itself is the Spirit’s baptism into Jesus. That is why our daily posture is not try harder. Our daily posture is abide. We trust the indwelling Spirit to express the life of Jesus through us, and we count true what God has already done. We are in Christ, and Christ is in us.
Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I placed you into Jesus, and I placed Jesus in you. I joined you to His death so sin’s claim would be silenced. I buried what belonged to Adam. I raised you with Him so a new life would be your present reality.
You do not chase newness. You share it. You are My workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works that flow as you walk with Me. I am the Spirit of life. I dwell in you, and the life I supply is the very life of the risen Jesus.
When accusation whispers that you are unchanged, remember, you were crucified with Christ, and the life you now live, you live by faith in the Son of God. Faith agrees with what I have done. Faith counts true what I have spoken. Faith steps forward trusting My supply.
I have baptized you into one body. You belong. You are not an isolated struggler. You are a member of His body, joined to the Head. From Him, through Me, your life is nourished and knit together in love.
Therefore present yourself to Me as one alive from the dead. Present your members to Me as instruments of righteousness. This is not self-improvement. This is sharing in His resurrection life. As you yield, I work in you to will and to do for the Father’s good pleasure.
Set your mind on the things above where Christ is. You died, and your life is hidden with Him in God. I bear witness with your spirit that you are a child of God. I lead you as many as are led by Me. Walk by Me, and you will not fulfill the desires of the flesh.
The same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you. I give life to your mortal body. I produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Remain in step with Me.
Real-Life Analogy
Think of inserting a new SIM card into a phone. The moment the tray clicks shut, the device registers on a new network. Identity, access, and flow all change. You did not boost the phone by sheer effort. Connection did the work. In a richer way, the Spirit united you to Jesus. Your life now runs on His network. When a tense conversation pops up today, instead of drafting a sharp reply and managing yourself by rules, pause and say, Lord, I rely on You to speak through me as the One living in me. Then proceed, trusting His patience and truth to flow through your words.
Prayer of Confidence
Lord, thank You that I have been placed into Jesus by Your Spirit. Thank You that I died with Him, was buried with Him, and was raised with Him to walk in newness of life. I agree with You that I am no longer under sin’s rule. I present myself to You as one alive from the dead. I trust You to express the life of Jesus through me today in my words, my tone, my choices, and my responses. Thank You that everything I need for life and godliness is already mine in Christ.
Scripture References for the Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture Section
Romans 6:3–5, 6:11, 6:13. Galatians 2:20. Ephesians 2:10. Romans 8:2, 8:9–11, 8:14–16. 1 Corinthians 12:13. Colossians 2:12, 3:1–4, 2:19. Philippians 2:13. John 15:4–5. Galatians 5:16, 5:22–25. 2 Peter 1:3.