May the peace of the Lord be with you and your household. May the Almighty Eternal God grant you grace, mercy, and revelation to understand His word, so that you and your loved ones may know the truth that sets free and walk in the abundant life that Jesus offers.
Today, we will explore a crucial topic for those who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior: the body of sin, as mentioned by the Apostle Paul in Romans 6:6: “Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin”. What does this “body of sin” mean? What is Paul referring to with this concept? It is essential to understand that the “old man” and the “body of sin” are not the same. The old man must be crucified, while the body of sin must be destroyed. These are two distinct realities that require our attention.
What is the Body of Sin?
The body of sin is not synonymous with the old man. The old man represents the personality, habits, attitudes, and thought patterns we acquired while living apart from God, in the world. Even after coming to Christ, these patterns may persist and must be crucified, that is, transformed by the renewal of our mind toward the mind of Christ. On the other hand, the body of sin encompasses all the actions, thoughts, attitudes, and postures we have accumulated throughout our lives, even before knowing Christ. These things, though we may believe they are in the past, remain alive and active before God until we confront and destroy them.
The Life of Faith in Christ
Many people, even with years in the faith, do not understand what life in Christ entails. It is often associated with attending church, participating in religious activities, or practicing disciplines like fasting and prolonged prayer. However, the life of faith is not defined by these external activities but by a deep commitment to the Lord. The parable of the talents (Matthew 25) clearly illustrates this: the servants received talents according to their capacity, which refers not to skills or resources but to their level of commitment to their master. The servant who received one talent was rebuked as “wicked and lazy” because he showed no commitment. The life of faith is, above all, a personal commitment to God.
The Weight of the Body of Sin
The body of sin acts as a burden that hinders our spiritual growth. According to Hebrews 12:1, we must “lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us”. This weight includes not only obvious sins, such as vices or acts contrary to God’s will, but also thoughts, attitudes, words, and decisions we have made throughout our lives, even those we consider insignificant or from the past. Matthew 12:36 warns us that “for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment”, and 2 Corinthians 5:10 states that “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad”. This applies not only to unbelievers but also to believers, as the judgment seat of Christ is exclusively for those who are part of Christ’s body.
How to Destroy the Body of Sin?
Destroying the body of sin is not achieved through fasting or long hours of prayer, though these practices are valuable. First, we must identify and undo every action, thought, attitude, or posture we have taken against God’s will. This involves reviewing our past, from childhood to the present, and presenting each act before God, acknowledging: “Lord, at such a moment I did this, thought this, adopted this attitude. I shouldn’t have. Now I undo it before You.” For example, visits to psychics, tarot readings, hurtful words, deceit, or attitudes of unbelief are part of the body of sin that continues to testify against us until we address it.
Ephesians 5:11-13 exhorts us: “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light”. Bringing these things to the light means confessing and repenting specifically before God. The case of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:7-9) is a powerful example: “Now when they saw it, they all complained, saying, ‘He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.’ Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham’”. No one told Zacchaeus to do this; the revelation of the word led him to undo his body of sin, and Jesus declared salvation for his house.
Consequences of Ignoring the Body of Sin
Many believers fail to progress in their faith because the body of sin holds them back like an anchor. We mistakenly believe that upon accepting Christ, our entire past is automatically erased. While God forgives, the consequences of our actions remain until we address them. For instance, actions like visiting a spiritualist or harming others affect not only us but also our families, as spiritual contamination spreads. Daniel, in the book of Daniel, confessed not only his sins but those of the people, showing how collective repentance also undoes the weight of sin.
Call to Action
It is not enough to say: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). That promise is fully realized when we destroy the body of sin. Every act, word, thought, or attitude must be brought before God’s presence to be undone. This is not an automatic process but a personal responsibility. Without this step, our prayers and fasts lack effectiveness, like the whitewashed tombs Jesus criticized (Matthew 23:27), which look good on the outside but are full of decay within.
Today, in the presence of the Lord, we must repent and undo every action that forms part of our body of sin. This includes things we believe are forgotten, such as idle words, attitudes of unbelief, or decisions from the past. By doing so, we fulfill John 8:32: “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free”. May the Lord give us the courage to confront our past and destroy the body of sin, so we can run the race of faith with freedom.
May the peace of God be with you, and may He fulfill His purpose in you. Amen.
