<p>6:8&nbsp;<i>But i</i><em>f we died with Christ</em>- In baptism into Christ&rsquo;s death. Paul is writing to baptized believers; his thought is therefore &lsquo;Since we died with Him&rsquo;.&nbsp;</p><p><em>We believe that we shall also live with Him</em>- yet the fact someone has been baptized doesn&rsquo;t necessarily mean that they do at this point believe that they will live with Christ. Paul surely means that if we really accept the reality of what happened at baptism, this must influence our faith now- that we shall therefore live with Him eternally in the future, and we therefore shall live with Him and in Him, within the sphere of His life, right now. The logic here is powerful, intense, and cutting. It can&rsquo;t be squirmed out of. If we really were baptized into His death- then we almost have to believe that we will also live with Him, because He didn&rsquo;t stay dead but rose to life. The power of baptism, therefore, is that it reminds us subsequently in our lives of the simple fact that therefore, as Christ died and lives, so I too &ldquo;shall&rdquo;, I really will, &ldquo;live with Him&rdquo;.</p>