https://youtu.be/F-4X-fRff4U
In our verse by verse study of Romans last time we started in Rom 6:5; we noted that the verse starts with a protasis with a 1st class condition that is an assumption that is made from the reality of Bible doctrine, and from that the apodosis draws the conclusion.
The protasis: "For if we have been united together in the likeness of his death" It begins with the postpositive conjunctive particle "gar" (for). This particle is used to explain retroactive and current positional truth in a conditional sentence.
Then comes the conditional conjunction "ei" (if) plus the indicative mood verb "if" with the indicative is used to introduce a first class condition that forms a supposition from the viewpoint of reality.
In this case it is actual reality. In the premise we have retroactive positional truth, and in the conclusion of the apodosis we have current positional truth. Plus the perfect active indicative of the verb "ginomai" (to become, to be, or come to pass).
It is used here of a person who has had their nature changed by entering into a condition, so it is translated literally, "For if we have become." The perfect tense of "ginomai" (become) is an intensive perfect that refers to completed action with emphasis on the existing results.
The middle voice: the believer receives the action of the verb through the baptism of the Holy Spirit when they believe Jesus for salvation.
The intensified result that follows our believing in Jesus Christ for salvation is the baptism of the Holy Spirit that places us into union with Jesus Christ in His death, His burial, resurrection, ascension and His session in heaven right beside God the Father.
The indicative mood is declarative to indicate a reality of doctrine. This is a fact that occurs during the Church Age for each one of us as members of God's royal family. The perfect tense indicates that the work is completely finished.
"united together in the likeness of his death" is from the predicate nominative plural from "sumphutos" (united together). The word means to be united with something, to grow together with something. Here it means intimately united.
This is a reference to retroactive positional truth or identification with Christ in His death and burial. Plus the dative singular indirect object from "homoioma" (likeness), it means "likeness," but it also means "image," "form," or "copy."
It has a definite article "ho" in front of it making it monadic referencing the previous reference to the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Plus the descriptive genitive singular of "thanatos' (death) the spiritual death of Christ on the cross where the personal sins of the entire human race were imputed to Jesus Christ and judged by God the Father.
Again with the definite article "ho" again referencing the previous specific reference to Jesus' spiritual death in verse 3 with the possessive genitive singular from the intensive pronoun "autos" (His), used as a possessive pronoun to emphasize the uniqueness of Jesus Christ's spiritual death on the cross.
He was unique because He was impeccable because of His virgin pregnancy He did not have the imputation of Adam's original sin. It was the unique spiritual death referred to by " ho thanatos" whereby our Lord was judged for our sins, but at the same time good and evil that is the policy of satan was rejected by not being imputed and He had no old sin nature encoded into the gene structure of His biological human body.
Expanded Translation so far: "For if (first class condition) we have become intimately united in the likeness of his death (that we have through retroactive positional truth)."
"even so we should also walk in the newness of life" starts with the rhetorical ascensive use of the adversative conjunction "alla" (but). Usually this is an adversative conjunction but in its rhetorical ascensive use in this verse it combines with the adjunctive use of "kai" (and) that in this case is translated (also), to mean "and not only this but also."
Plus "we shall be," the future passive indicative of the verb "eimi" (we will be). In this case this is not the predictive future for the possession of a resurrection body, though that is a true doctrine just as identification with Christ in His death is a part of the Baptism of the Spirit so is the phrase "we shall be intimately united in the likeness of His resurrection."
This is not referring to our bodily resurrection that is also a true literal fact but that is not what is being taught here. This is referring to current positional truth that Paul is explaining so the future tense here is not a predictive future, it is not predicting the future of our resurrection body that occurs at the exit resurrection of the Church.
Instead we have a gnomic future for a statement of fact or doctrinal truth that may rightfully be expected under the conditions of our union with Christ under the principle of current positional truth.
This means that the future reference is a logical result rather than a chronological result. The future tense in the Greek is obviously used for chronological things but it is also used sometimes for logical relationships.
The middle voice: the believer through the baptism of the Holy Spirit at salvation is targeted by the action of the verb and receives current positional truth.
The indicative mood is declarative for a dogmatic statement of doctrine of current positional truth.
There is also a genitive of reference from a personal pronoun "autos" (His) that is used as a possessive pronoun. With it the genitive of reference "anastasis (resurrection). It refers to the literal resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and we are positionally identified with that resurrection that has already occurred.
Expanded Translation Rom 6:5; "For if we have become intimately united to the likeness of his death (and we have through retroactive positional truth), not only this, but also we shall be intimately united to the likeness of his resurrection (on the basis of current positional truth)."
The apodosis is very elliptical. We have "we shall be of His resurrection" that an ellipsis. The idea is not fully expressed grammatically and is left to the reader to supply the self evident omissions to make it a correct sentence.
The ellipsis indicates Paul's great excitement in discussing this reality.
The verse means that satan's policy of good and evil, both as a policy and a function in the world is destroyed by the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This is a positional destruction.
Believers are identified with Christ positionally in His death, in His burial, and in His resurrection right now in time and that removes from the devil's power.
When the baptism of God the Holy Spirit intimately unites with Christ in His death so we have positionally rejected good and evil, we are positionally separated from good and evil and we are being united with Him in His resurrection and that is the predicate for our new life.
Newness of life is the status quo of the mature believer. It is the reality of blessing in time plus the reality of an encapsulated environment in the devil's world. The old sin nature is not eradicated, but instead we are freed from the power and the tyranny of the old sin nature as the ruler of our lives. Jesus Christ is our Lord now instead of satan.
Verses 6-8 explain the implications of positional truth. In the first five verses Paul makes the simple statement of the doctrine of retroactive and current positional truth. Then the implications of the doctrine are explained.
There can be no proper application of the doctrine until the implications of the doctrine are properly understood. Current positional truth emphasizes that we are different from all other believers in every other dispensation.
We are God's ROYAL family that is much more than being God's family.
The difference is what happens at the new birth with the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Rom 6:6; "Knowing this." If we had known these things Paul wouldn't be giving them to us, so when it says "knowing this" and it is talking about something we do not know so we have to assume that we are ignorant regarding the matter and start learning it.
The Romans to whom he addresses this book didn't know anything about this. This is the present active participle of the verb "ginosko" (knowing) denotes intelligent comprehension of an object or a matter; whether this is revealed for the first time or is understood after consideration and a final decision that something you had previously heard about was actually correct all along.
There is a difference between intelligent comprehension and rote memorization. The verb is appropriate because "Ginosko" is often used to refer to those who have rejected some information, but who are now finally being brought around to accepting and believing the doctrine at a later time.
It can be translated "to come to know, to perceive, or to learn again." The verb "ginosko" denotes knowledge of what really is true. It never denotes false or fake knowledge, or pseudo intellectualism. It connotes verification by observation so it means to know from reflection on the facts or, in this case after some careful thought about some true doctrinal principle.
So in this case it ultimately comes to mean to know from careful thought about the doctrine of retroactive positional truth plus current positional truth.
The imperative concept is also implied here, we have to learn again. In the participial form this would be "knowing, comprehending, perceiving."
The present tense is a perfective present tense that denotes a continuation of existing results from the perception of retroactive and current positional truth. It implies perception of the doctrine in the past but it emphasizes renewing it, reviewing it, and hearing it again and again until suddenly it breaks through and everything falls into place.
The active voice: the believer produces the action of the verb through constantly exposing himself to repetitive doctrinal teaching. The participle is circumstantial or imperative. This is a command that demands intelligent cooperation.
This is because we have to be read into the situation because we understand that "Knowing this" is a command that requires us to think while we are executing the command. The word "this" is the accusative singular direct object from the immediate demonstrative pronoun "autos" (this) that is used here for what is relatively near in context, relatively near in thought he idea of retroactive positional truth.
The participle is circumstantial so it is primarily a Koine Greek concept. In the Koine Greek there is a strange phenomenon, at least to the Classical Greek thinker, and that is what is known as the imperative participle.
Instead of using repetitions of imperatives the participle is substituted. Then the imperative participle is found as a peculiarity of the Greek of the New Testament. Good translations are "be knowing this" or "we are commanded to learn."
This verse reveals that retroactive positional truth is that phase of the baptism of the Holy Spirit at salvation that identifies the believer with Jesus Christ in His spiritual death on the cross, physical death on the cross, and burial after He was taken down from the cross.
In the spiritual death of Jesus Christ on the cross all the personal sins in human history were imputed to Jesus but at the same time the other two trends of the old sin nature were not imputed.
Good and evil is the policy of satan as the ruler of this world that becomes the function of the old sin nature as the ruler of human life.
Good and evil were not imputed at the cross. That means in the spiritual death of Jesus Christ on the cross they were rejected. They were rejected to remain an issue in the angelic conflict, rejected to be perpetuated in human history as an issue that every believer must face, and either overcome through the intake of doctrine or be trapped by ignorance of doctrine that results in failure to glorify God in time.
We are identified with Christ in His spiritual death that means the positional rejection of good and evil as satan's policy and the old sin nature's function in accord with that policy
It means that every believer has positionally rejected satan's policy of good and evil.
In the physical death of Jesus Christ on the cross and His subsequent burial in the tomb He was totally separated from good and evil. Burial refers to His humanity. His body was in the tomb, His soul was in Paradise, and His spirit was in the presence of the Father. In the presence of the Father His spirit was separated from evil.
In the Paradise section of Hades there was no evil, and therefore His soul was separated from evil. In His body there was not one cell with an old sin nature, and therefore separation from evil was there when His physical body was in the tomb.
We are identified with Christ in His physical death and burial that means positional separation from good and evil.
All believers have been positionally separated from good and evil since the day they believed in Jesus Christ. This, therefore, is the implication of retroactive positional truth that must be understood for both implication and application.
History destroys the immature believer because immature believers still experientially identify with good and evil so they get destroyed along with good and evil when history destroys good and evil.
Satan keeps on having this policy of good and evil, and every time he gets something going it destroys everything. Good and evil destroys people. Good and evil destroys everything. That is what is happening the USA at this time because too many believers in the USA have adopted satan's evil policy of good and evil.