The Christian life is one of joy. We are set free from our sins, and our joyful response is to obey the Lord in everything we do. Yet there are days where we feel defeated or we are not doing enough. This is a constant battle for Christians especially in the area of holiness.
We are dead to sin, the book of Romans tells us, yet we are still prone to it. We fight the indwelling sin still in us and the temptations that come with it. It is an ongoing battle day and day out.
We have joy in Christ knowing that we are saved by Him even as we battle the flesh. This is what Brad Wetherell communicates in his book, Saved to Sin No More: How Union with Christ Empowers a Life of Holiness.
This book is mostly based on Romans 5:12-6:23 with the exception of the last chapter and conclusion. This is book is about our union with Christ and how that union leads us to holiness. We are reminded that we are dead to sin and it is not our master because we are under grace. We are reminded that we are slaves to righteousness and that we should give our members (parts of our body) as instruments of wickedness.
We are called to remember what God has done for us in Christ and why we obey Christ which is not get saved but because we are saved. Christ has saved us from sin and the wrath of God; therefore, we must fight our sin. We also must remember why we are saved. We are saved because God sent Jesus to be the propitiation for our sins on the cross.
The final chapter address our need for the body of Christ. Based on Ephesians 4:4-6 which Wetherell has titled the chapter, "Saved Together." The Christian life is not meant to be a solo ride. We need each other. We need one another to serve the Lord and each other as well growing in our Christian walk. Yes, we have been saved by God individually, but those who have been saved are brothers and sisters in the Lord. They are the family of God, the body of Christ, the Church of the Living God. They are fellow believer who struggle in their fight against sin just as you are.
A couple of things in this book that I want to mention that did not set well with me. Wetherell stated that when we are united with Christ, His story becomes our story. How is that possible? Is my story of one where I become the perfect Son of God because of my union with Christ? Do I perform miracles like Jesus did (Can anyone say New Apostolic Reformation)?
The other place I had a problem with was when Wetherell mentioned when we have peace, we have access to him, which led him to say, "We don't need to fear that God is greater than us." Yes, we do. God is greater than us. We do come to Him in Holy reverent fear. He is greater than us because He is the one by whom "we live and move and exist" (Acts 17:28).
Overall, this was a decent book on sanctification and holiness with the exception of the two area mentioned above.
I received this book from Crossway in exchange for an honest review.
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