“Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation – but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.”
Once again, we must look at the context of this verse to see what the ‘therefore’ is there for. In verse 11, Paul reminds us of how the Spirit lives in us, with all the power that was manifested in Christ’s resurrection from the dead. Because of this indwelling, we have an obligation to allow the Spirit to freely operate in our lives. We are no longer under any obligation to indulge the sin nature. We have a choice.
Even though the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is given to all believers, this is not something to be taken lightly. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is not something that any believer in the Old Testament was able to experience. They received salvation by faith in anticipation of Christ’s work on the cross, but their sin was not paid for until that day. They had not been spiritually cleansed, and so the Holy Spirit could not dwell in them in the same way that He dwells inside us. Our sin has been completely dealt with, so that the Holy Spirit is able to make His dwelling in our hearts. His presence within is a great treasure of infinite value. He deserves the effort it takes on our part to allow Him to work in and through our lives.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
Romans 8:11
“And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.”
There’s a song with the lyrics, ‘Because He lives I can face tomorrow, because He lives all fear is gone. Because I know He holds the future, life is worth the living just because He lives.’ Jesus’ resurrection is what gives our lives purpose and meaning. And this is incredible: the same Spirit who raised Him from the dead, lives inside us and makes us alive to God. It’s hard to comprehend the power needed to raise a person from the dead. Yet that power is at work in us, transforming us into the image of Christ, day by day. This transformation gives us great hope for what is to come. As we see the difference between Jesus’ physical body and His resurrection body: no longer subject to pain, suffering, ageing etc., yet able to touch, see, smell, eat; this is what we can look forward to as well. One day our bodies will also be transformed, and we will be given bodies like His (1 John 3:2, 1 Cor. 15:49). Our present bodies are suited to the earth, and like the earth, will decay. Our resurrection bodies will be suited to heaven – spiritual, eternal and immortal. Until then, the presence of the Spirit within us is a constant reminder of what we look forward to.
There’s a song with the lyrics, ‘Because He lives I can face tomorrow, because He lives all fear is gone. Because I know He holds the future, life is worth the living just because He lives.’ Jesus’ resurrection is what gives our lives purpose and meaning. And this is incredible: the same Spirit who raised Him from the dead, lives inside us and makes us alive to God. It’s hard to comprehend the power needed to raise a person from the dead. Yet that power is at work in us, transforming us into the image of Christ, day by day. This transformation gives us great hope for what is to come. As we see the difference between Jesus’ physical body and His resurrection body: no longer subject to pain, suffering, ageing etc., yet able to touch, see, smell, eat; this is what we can look forward to as well. One day our bodies will also be transformed, and we will be given bodies like His (1 John 3:2, 1 Cor. 15:49). Our present bodies are suited to the earth, and like the earth, will decay. Our resurrection bodies will be suited to heaven – spiritual, eternal and immortal. Until then, the presence of the Spirit within us is a constant reminder of what we look forward to.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Romans 8:10
“But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.”
In our present existence, our natural body is slowly decaying; every day brings us closer to the end. Adam’s body was created immortal, but became mortal at the Fall because of sin. Everyone, having descended from Adam, has inherited the same kind of mortal body – prone to disease, easily injured, growing old, losing strength. In addition, his spirit was separated from God, the source of spiritual life. All of us are born into this same state, both physically and spiritually. All of us will die physically, but we have a choice as to whether we will endure the ‘second death’ – eternal separation from God. We will not endure this if we are born again by the Spirit of God.
If we are only born once, we will die twice. But if we are born twice, we will only die once.
For those of us who have been born again, we have been made spritiually alive by the power of God. We have regained the connection with God that He created Adam with, and intended for all people to have before the Fall. At the end of the day, this spiritual life is the only life that matters. Who wants to be stuck in their physical body for eternity? And, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?” (Luke 9:25). Have you got your eternal priorities in order?
In our present existence, our natural body is slowly decaying; every day brings us closer to the end. Adam’s body was created immortal, but became mortal at the Fall because of sin. Everyone, having descended from Adam, has inherited the same kind of mortal body – prone to disease, easily injured, growing old, losing strength. In addition, his spirit was separated from God, the source of spiritual life. All of us are born into this same state, both physically and spiritually. All of us will die physically, but we have a choice as to whether we will endure the ‘second death’ – eternal separation from God. We will not endure this if we are born again by the Spirit of God.
If we are only born once, we will die twice. But if we are born twice, we will only die once.
For those of us who have been born again, we have been made spritiually alive by the power of God. We have regained the connection with God that He created Adam with, and intended for all people to have before the Fall. At the end of the day, this spiritual life is the only life that matters. Who wants to be stuck in their physical body for eternity? And, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?” (Luke 9:25). Have you got your eternal priorities in order?
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Romans 8:8-9
“Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, however, are not controlled by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.”
It may be a hard truth to stomach, but as long as a person continues without submitting to Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour, they cannot please God. Living in such a way that your good deeds outweigh your bad, is not sufficient to please Him and gain entry to heaven. The only way to please God is to repent and seek His forgiveness. Indeed, this is the only prayer of an unsaved person that God promises to answer.
Many Christians are concerned that they slip up on a regular basis – losing their temper, saying foolish things, falling into temptation, entertaining unholy thoughts. Sometimes they wonder if God still loves them. The Bible reassures us, time and time again, that His love is unconditional. While these things do not please God, what does please God is when we come to Him in repentance and seeking His forgiveness. Our voluntary love for Him is what He wants from us most of all.
We know what is right and what is wrong, because the Holy Spirit dwelling in us has a hold on our conscience. He will not let us get away with living in an ongoing lifestyle of sin. If you are getting away with it, and do not feel a sense of unease in your spirit, if you have no guilt about what you are doing, then it would seem that the Spirit is not active in your life. We all need to examine ourselves (2 Cor. 13:5) – do we really belong to Him?
It may be a hard truth to stomach, but as long as a person continues without submitting to Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour, they cannot please God. Living in such a way that your good deeds outweigh your bad, is not sufficient to please Him and gain entry to heaven. The only way to please God is to repent and seek His forgiveness. Indeed, this is the only prayer of an unsaved person that God promises to answer.
Many Christians are concerned that they slip up on a regular basis – losing their temper, saying foolish things, falling into temptation, entertaining unholy thoughts. Sometimes they wonder if God still loves them. The Bible reassures us, time and time again, that His love is unconditional. While these things do not please God, what does please God is when we come to Him in repentance and seeking His forgiveness. Our voluntary love for Him is what He wants from us most of all.
We know what is right and what is wrong, because the Holy Spirit dwelling in us has a hold on our conscience. He will not let us get away with living in an ongoing lifestyle of sin. If you are getting away with it, and do not feel a sense of unease in your spirit, if you have no guilt about what you are doing, then it would seem that the Spirit is not active in your life. We all need to examine ourselves (2 Cor. 13:5) – do we really belong to Him?
Friday, August 6, 2010
Romans 8:6-7
“The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.”
Here is the crux of the issue with having a mind controlled by the sinful nature. There is only one outcome if we indulge in sin: death (Rom. 6:23). Sin is not only in opposition to God, but is in defiance of Him. It stems from man exercising his own will against the will of God. Where God has told us ‘do this’ and ‘don’t do this’, the sinful nature says, ‘I don’t like the sound of that’. It is drawn by the present pleasures, and disregards the eternal consequences. The sinful mind is drawn to the deeds of darkness. This is the way sin is: things that are forbidden are made to seem desirable. When God tells us to pursue things that are pure and holy, the sin nature wants to pursue things that are lewd and immoral. Sin is not limited to failing to keep God’s commands, but it seeks to find new ways to do ungodly things. We see this raw behaviour in small children, when they are told, ‘Don’t touch that!’ (a parent’s plea so that they don’t hurt themselves), they will give a mischievous look of open defiance and then reach out. This is what the sinful mind does with God. It does not submit to God’s law. But Paul goes further than this and adds, “nor can it do so”. A person may be openly defiant towards God, or they may be seeking to live a ‘good life’ by keeping as many of the commandments as they can. But without Jesus Christ, both are still dead in their sin.
Here is the crux of the issue with having a mind controlled by the sinful nature. There is only one outcome if we indulge in sin: death (Rom. 6:23). Sin is not only in opposition to God, but is in defiance of Him. It stems from man exercising his own will against the will of God. Where God has told us ‘do this’ and ‘don’t do this’, the sinful nature says, ‘I don’t like the sound of that’. It is drawn by the present pleasures, and disregards the eternal consequences. The sinful mind is drawn to the deeds of darkness. This is the way sin is: things that are forbidden are made to seem desirable. When God tells us to pursue things that are pure and holy, the sin nature wants to pursue things that are lewd and immoral. Sin is not limited to failing to keep God’s commands, but it seeks to find new ways to do ungodly things. We see this raw behaviour in small children, when they are told, ‘Don’t touch that!’ (a parent’s plea so that they don’t hurt themselves), they will give a mischievous look of open defiance and then reach out. This is what the sinful mind does with God. It does not submit to God’s law. But Paul goes further than this and adds, “nor can it do so”. A person may be openly defiant towards God, or they may be seeking to live a ‘good life’ by keeping as many of the commandments as they can. But without Jesus Christ, both are still dead in their sin.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Romans 8:5
“Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.”
What is your mind set on? This will tell you whether you are living according to the flesh or according to the Spirit. If we set our mind on gaining fame and fortune, spending our money and time on things for pleasure, indulging in whatever is the latest fad, putting our own interests first and having no regard for whether something is sinful or not, this is a pretty clear indication that we are living according to the sinful nature. Its motto is, ‘if it feels good, do it.’
In contrast, if we have set our mind on the things of God, assessing whether our words and actions are pleasing to Him; if we seek to put others first and let the light of Christ shine forth from our lives in every situation, then we can know that we are living in accordance with the Spirit.
Of course, none of us are perfect. We all have areas in our life that are in progress. We will always have the sin nature with us while we are in these mortal bodies. But now we have the Spirit with us as well. We have two natures, and we must decide if we will follow the sin nature or the Spirit. The one that we feed is the one that will grow strong. So which is it to be?
What is your mind set on? This will tell you whether you are living according to the flesh or according to the Spirit. If we set our mind on gaining fame and fortune, spending our money and time on things for pleasure, indulging in whatever is the latest fad, putting our own interests first and having no regard for whether something is sinful or not, this is a pretty clear indication that we are living according to the sinful nature. Its motto is, ‘if it feels good, do it.’
In contrast, if we have set our mind on the things of God, assessing whether our words and actions are pleasing to Him; if we seek to put others first and let the light of Christ shine forth from our lives in every situation, then we can know that we are living in accordance with the Spirit.
Of course, none of us are perfect. We all have areas in our life that are in progress. We will always have the sin nature with us while we are in these mortal bodies. But now we have the Spirit with us as well. We have two natures, and we must decide if we will follow the sin nature or the Spirit. The one that we feed is the one that will grow strong. So which is it to be?
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Romans 8:4
“in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.”
Jesus’ act as a sin offering on our behalf means that we switch places with Him in every aspect. He took our frailties and failure, every one of our sins, the punishment we deserve from God. He took our sickness and weakness, and endured the separation and condemnation that we should have received. We are counted according to His perfect righteousness, blameless and justified before God. We are included in the beloved and are destined for eternal glory.
Now if Christ dwells in us, He who met the requirements of the Law imputes that quality to us. We are clothed in His righteousness, as if we were the ones who had lived a perfect life, as He did. He stands before the Father to intercede on our behalf, saying, ‘this one’s with Me.’ And so because He dwells in us, we are no longer compelled to live in subjection to the sin nature, but we have the freedom to live in the new life of the Spirit.
Jesus’ act as a sin offering on our behalf means that we switch places with Him in every aspect. He took our frailties and failure, every one of our sins, the punishment we deserve from God. He took our sickness and weakness, and endured the separation and condemnation that we should have received. We are counted according to His perfect righteousness, blameless and justified before God. We are included in the beloved and are destined for eternal glory.
Now if Christ dwells in us, He who met the requirements of the Law imputes that quality to us. We are clothed in His righteousness, as if we were the ones who had lived a perfect life, as He did. He stands before the Father to intercede on our behalf, saying, ‘this one’s with Me.’ And so because He dwells in us, we are no longer compelled to live in subjection to the sin nature, but we have the freedom to live in the new life of the Spirit.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Romans 8:3
“For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending His Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so He condemned sin in sinful man.”
The Law tells us, ‘Keep all these commandments and you will live.’ But our sinful nature is incapable of the perfection required by the Law. Thus the Law is powerless to save us – once we have broken it, there is no way to un-break it. For imperfect people – and we are all imperfect – salvation cannot be found in the Law.
God knows all this. This is why He sent His Son to earth as a human being – just like us in physical and emotional capability, but without the sin nature and with the self-discipline to keep the Law perfectly. He became a sin offering for us: our sin was transferred to Him (across the ages, by faith) and He died in our place.
How wonderful it is that God has not abandoned us to die in our sin, and that the Law, with its ‘one strike and you’re out’ policy, has been superceded by Christ’s work on the cross on our behalf. God’s justice has been satisfied, and we are now free.
The Law tells us, ‘Keep all these commandments and you will live.’ But our sinful nature is incapable of the perfection required by the Law. Thus the Law is powerless to save us – once we have broken it, there is no way to un-break it. For imperfect people – and we are all imperfect – salvation cannot be found in the Law.
God knows all this. This is why He sent His Son to earth as a human being – just like us in physical and emotional capability, but without the sin nature and with the self-discipline to keep the Law perfectly. He became a sin offering for us: our sin was transferred to Him (across the ages, by faith) and He died in our place.
How wonderful it is that God has not abandoned us to die in our sin, and that the Law, with its ‘one strike and you’re out’ policy, has been superceded by Christ’s work on the cross on our behalf. God’s justice has been satisfied, and we are now free.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Romans 8:2
“because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.”
Like it or not, we are all under one of two laws. Either we are under the law of sin, or the law of the Spirit. Paul described his own encounter with each of these in chapter 7. ‘For in my inner being I delight in God’s law, but I see another law at work in the members of my body’ (Rom. 7:22-23).
Some people are said to ‘have a law unto themselves’. How true this is: if we have not submitted to the Lordship of Christ, then we are still captives to sin and under its power. Sin, if it is not dealt with and forgiven by the blood of Christ, results in death.
However, there is another law we can live by: the law of the Spirit. This is not something enforced externally to modify our behaviour from outside, but a change of heart inside that is manifested in our outward actions. The law of the Spirit is simple: love. Love God, and love other people as you do yourself (Mark 12:28-31). Seek to develop the fruit of the Spirit in your life: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Gal. 5:22-23). To live in this way is to live on a higher plane than simply having your actions moderated by ‘don’t do this’ and ‘don’t do that’. The way of the Spirit sets us free from this form of the law.
Like it or not, we are all under one of two laws. Either we are under the law of sin, or the law of the Spirit. Paul described his own encounter with each of these in chapter 7. ‘For in my inner being I delight in God’s law, but I see another law at work in the members of my body’ (Rom. 7:22-23).
Some people are said to ‘have a law unto themselves’. How true this is: if we have not submitted to the Lordship of Christ, then we are still captives to sin and under its power. Sin, if it is not dealt with and forgiven by the blood of Christ, results in death.
However, there is another law we can live by: the law of the Spirit. This is not something enforced externally to modify our behaviour from outside, but a change of heart inside that is manifested in our outward actions. The law of the Spirit is simple: love. Love God, and love other people as you do yourself (Mark 12:28-31). Seek to develop the fruit of the Spirit in your life: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Gal. 5:22-23). To live in this way is to live on a higher plane than simply having your actions moderated by ‘don’t do this’ and ‘don’t do that’. The way of the Spirit sets us free from this form of the law.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Romans 8:1
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
As with the start of any chapter in the Bible, we need to read back a few verses to gain the context. We need to know what the ‘therefore’ is there for. In chapter 7, Paul described his battle with sin and how God has rescued him from ‘this body of death’ (Rom. 7:24). Because Paul has died to sin through faith in Jesus Christ, he can confidently say ‘there is now no condemnation’. If we also are in Christ, we can claim this too.
Condemnation is the result of someone being found guilty. A condemned person is awaiting punishment. We are all guilty of sin (Rom. 3:23), and the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). But because Jesus took the punishment we deserve, by dying on the cross, God’s justice has been satisfied. We stand before Him, guiltless, and without condemnation.
Satan may also try to condemn us, reminding us of our past failures and our present ones. But if we are in Christ, we can know that all of these are forgiven.
As with the start of any chapter in the Bible, we need to read back a few verses to gain the context. We need to know what the ‘therefore’ is there for. In chapter 7, Paul described his battle with sin and how God has rescued him from ‘this body of death’ (Rom. 7:24). Because Paul has died to sin through faith in Jesus Christ, he can confidently say ‘there is now no condemnation’. If we also are in Christ, we can claim this too.
Condemnation is the result of someone being found guilty. A condemned person is awaiting punishment. We are all guilty of sin (Rom. 3:23), and the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). But because Jesus took the punishment we deserve, by dying on the cross, God’s justice has been satisfied. We stand before Him, guiltless, and without condemnation.
Satan may also try to condemn us, reminding us of our past failures and our present ones. But if we are in Christ, we can know that all of these are forgiven.
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