In the Lord's death on the Cross there is a cleansing power against sins. Whoever is baptized, that is, immersed, into Christ's death is immersed into the power that cleanses sin.
This power, in the very act of immersion, consumes every sin, so that no trace of it remains.
Here it is as if someone had prepared a chemical substance. When unclean linen or a garment is immersed in it, it immediately dissolves and consumes every uncleanness.
Only immerse it, and every uncleanness will be consumed.
So too Christ's death, as the cleansing power against sin, consumes every sin as soon as one is immersed into this death by baptism.
In the baptized man no trace of sin remains. He has died to it.
Yet one must keep in mind that in this dying to sin through baptism nothing happens mechanically. Everything is accomplished with the participation of the morally free resolutions of the person himself.
The essence of dying to sin is always one thing: turning away from sin and hating it with deadly hatred.
Where is this found in baptism? It is there, in the spirit of the one being baptized.
For what does the one being baptized do before immersion into the font? He renounces Satan, all his works, and all his service.
This is the same as turning away from sin and hating it.
Then, when he is immersed in the font in this spirit of aversion and hatred toward sin, the grace of God descends within.
It seals these dispositions and resolutions of the will, and gives them living and active power.
All former sins are forgiven the baptized man. The power that has descended into him in baptism will guard him from future sins.
He is truly dead to sin.
All this is produced by the cleansing power against sin that exists in Christ's death. Immersion into that death is accomplished through immersion in the font.
Chrysostom says: "What the Cross and the tomb were for Christ, baptism has become for us, though in another respect.
For Christ died and was buried in the flesh. In us, sin died and was buried.
Both are death. In Christ and in us alike, the death is real.
Yet although sin truly dies in us through baptism, we ourselves must also cooperate in putting it to death."
This cooperation is accomplished through the hatred of sin, received before baptism, sealed in baptism, and preserved by grace after baptism.
Baptism does not free us from guarding ourselves against sin. On the contrary, it obliges us to do so.
Why do people sin after baptism? Because, having entrusted everything to the power of baptism, they do not wish to move even a finger in resisting sin.
They willingly incline toward it, first in thoughts, then in sympathies, then in desires, and finally in falls.
Through this, sin comes to life and begins to live again, though it had been so effectively put to death in baptism.
Just as it is true that, being immersed into Christ's death in baptism, we die to sin, so it is unalterably true that this death to sin is hatred of sin.
We must willingly kindle this hatred within ourselves, even with all the power of Christ's grace that clothes us.
THEOSIS