a gentle, soothing sleep. Therefore ye are, Paul would say, beyond
measure happy. In Christ ye have already escaped death by dying unto
sin; that death ye need die no more. It--the first death, which ye
have inherited from Adam through sin--is already taken away from you.
That being the real, the bitter and eternal death, ye are
consequently freed from the necessity of dying. At the same time
there is a death, or rather only the semblance of one, which ye must
suffer because ye are yet on earth and are the descendants of Adam.

SPIRITUAL AND PHYSICAL RESURRECTION.

21. The first death, inherited from Adam, is done away with, changed
into a spiritual dying unto sin, by reason of which the soul no
longer consents to sin and the body no longer commits it. Thus, in
place of the death which sin has brought upon us, eternal life is
already begun in you. Ye are now freed from the dreadful damning
death; then accept the sweet, holy and blessed death unto sin, that
ye may beware of sin and no longer serve it. Such is to be the result
of the death of Christ into which ye are baptized; Christ has died
and has commanded you to be baptized in order that sin might be
drowned in you.

22. The other, the "little death," is that outward, physical death.
In the Scriptures it is called a sleep. It is imposed upon the flesh,
because, so long as we live on earth, the flesh never ceases to
resist the spirit and its life. Paul says: "The flesh lusteth against
the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are contrary
the one to the other; that ye may not do the things that ye would."
Gal 5, 17. The spirit, or soul, says: I am dead unto sin and will not
sin any more. But the flesh says: I am not dead and must make use of
my life while I have it. The spirit declares: I believe that God has
forgiven my sins and taken them away from me through Christ. But the
flesh asks: What do I know of God or his will? The spirit resolves: I
must be meek, pure, chaste, humble, patient, and seek the future
life. But the flesh in reply makes a loud outcry: Away with your
heaven! if only I had enough of bread and money and property here!
Thus the flesh does continually, as long as it lives here; it draws
and drags sin after itself; it is rebellious and refuses to die.
Therefore God must finally put it to death before it becomes dead
unto sin.

23. And after all, it is but a gentle and easy death. It is truly
only a sleep. Since soul and spirit