Daily Bread 2011 - Romans 8
Daily Bread 2011 – Romans 8
Life Through the Spirit
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, 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.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. 6 The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace
What Does This Mean?
As Paul concludes in chapter 7 by saying we can’t beat our own inherent sinful nature on our own, he begins with a word of Gospel in 8:1. “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!” This is the hope of every man, woman and child. We can stand before a holy and living God because of what Jesus has done setting us free from the law of sin and death. What we were powerless to accomplish on our own, was accomplished by the only one who had the power to fulfill the requirements of the Law.
Subsequently and very importantly, we can now live according to the new nature we have through the “means” or “agency” of the Holy Spirit, which has been poured out into our hearts when we came to faith in Jesus. We can go back and live according to our old nature but the results will be obvious (death). Here Paul starts to move from “justification”, or how we are made right with God by faith in Christ; to “sanctification”. Sanctification is the process where we now live our new life having been freed from the regulations of the Law and in step with the Holy Spirit who lives inside of us and helps changes our desires from the inside out. It is God’s work for sure, but needs our cooperation and commitment as well.
What Does This Mean For Us?
What this means is that if we have received Christ, we no longer need to wallow in condemnation, guilt, shame etc… If God has declared us free and not guilty, it is actually sinful for us to keep beating ourselves up and try to self-justify ourselves before God. Instead, we are called to live by the same Spirit that led us to faith and begin to understand God’s desire for our lives in life of faith and obedience to the will of God.
This is a process that begins when we come to faith and are baptized, and will continue the rest of our lives. While we will still battle the sinful nature and the corruptive influence of the world; we now have a new propensity to hear God’s voice and obey in this same power God gave us when we came to faith. Reading the Daily Bread is one way to continue to feed and nourish the Spirit within you. It is also very helpful to meet with a few other believers who are on a similar path in their life to pray with and share your trials and temptations and learn this new way of life together.
Gracious God, thank you for freeing us from the power of sin and death by the Good News of Your Son applied through the Holy Spirit. Help us to live each day in step with Your Spirit which is transforming our desires to align with yours. Amen.
Life Through the Spirit
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, 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.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. 6 The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace
What Does This Mean?
As Paul concludes in chapter 7 by saying we can’t beat our own inherent sinful nature on our own, he begins with a word of Gospel in 8:1. “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!” This is the hope of every man, woman and child. We can stand before a holy and living God because of what Jesus has done setting us free from the law of sin and death. What we were powerless to accomplish on our own, was accomplished by the only one who had the power to fulfill the requirements of the Law.
Subsequently and very importantly, we can now live according to the new nature we have through the “means” or “agency” of the Holy Spirit, which has been poured out into our hearts when we came to faith in Jesus. We can go back and live according to our old nature but the results will be obvious (death). Here Paul starts to move from “justification”, or how we are made right with God by faith in Christ; to “sanctification”. Sanctification is the process where we now live our new life having been freed from the regulations of the Law and in step with the Holy Spirit who lives inside of us and helps changes our desires from the inside out. It is God’s work for sure, but needs our cooperation and commitment as well.
What Does This Mean For Us?
What this means is that if we have received Christ, we no longer need to wallow in condemnation, guilt, shame etc… If God has declared us free and not guilty, it is actually sinful for us to keep beating ourselves up and try to self-justify ourselves before God. Instead, we are called to live by the same Spirit that led us to faith and begin to understand God’s desire for our lives in life of faith and obedience to the will of God.
This is a process that begins when we come to faith and are baptized, and will continue the rest of our lives. While we will still battle the sinful nature and the corruptive influence of the world; we now have a new propensity to hear God’s voice and obey in this same power God gave us when we came to faith. Reading the Daily Bread is one way to continue to feed and nourish the Spirit within you. It is also very helpful to meet with a few other believers who are on a similar path in their life to pray with and share your trials and temptations and learn this new way of life together.
Gracious God, thank you for freeing us from the power of sin and death by the Good News of Your Son applied through the Holy Spirit. Help us to live each day in step with Your Spirit which is transforming our desires to align with yours. Amen.
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