“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.” Romans 8:11
Dear Faithful Seed Sowers,
Greetings! It’s been few long weeks of doctor visits for me: extreme pain in my neck and left shoulder plus a hernia that needs surgery. The hernia surgery is scheduled for 11-8-23. I should only be down a week. The neck and shoulder aren’t such an easy fix. I’m growing bone—from my skull, my spine, and then having free floaters in my neck and shoulder area. In order to get an MRI, I need three weeks of PT. The earliest PT appointment they had was 10-8! As my wife would say, Pastor needs prayer.
Speaking of prayer, It is my prayer that as you read the SEED OF FAITH each week that you come to grow in the LOVE of GOD, the GRACE of CHRIST, and the POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT. That’s The Seed’s mission statement and it’s my prayer for you.
If you have been reading the Seeds of Faith for the past month, you will remember that we are spending time in Romans 8. I encourage you to take and read chapter 8 of Romans several times—why not daily? Ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you again and again of God’s unending love and outrageous grace just for you. This chapter has it all!
Last week we looked at what a life in Christ might be. This week we take a little dip in the deep waters of living a life in the Spirit. (These “seedlings” are but a portion of my weekly messages. You can always ask for the complete manuscripts of the weekly messages.)
Romans chapter eight has been called by theologians “one of the greatest chapters in the Bible”. An old German commentator named Spener said, “If the Bible was a ring and the Book of Romans a precious stone, chapter 8 would be “the sparkling point of the jewel.”[i]
Many commentators have divided this chapter into different headings for the thirty-nine verses it contains. In the NIV Bible there are three sections, “Life in the Spirit”, “Present Suffering and Future Glory”, and “More Than Conquerors.” Chapter 8 is all about the Holy Spirit and the work that the Holy Spirit does within us as we live our life “in Christ.” In the first seven chapters of Romans there have only been two mentions of the Holy Spirit: a passing reference to “the Spirit of holiness” in chapter 1, verse 4, and the other is found in chapter 5, verse 5 where the Holy Spirit is described as the pouring out of the love of God within our hearts—so twice in the first 7chapters, and now 20 times in Chapter 8. When something is repeated in the Bible, pay attention.
Second Corinthians 3:17 says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” Romans 8 could be named the chapter of “freedom through the Holy Spirit”.
Romans 8 begins with the promise: there is therefore now no condemnation in Christ and it ends with there is now no separation in Christ. Isn’t that the gospel? No CONDEMNATION. NO SEPARATION. What good news here in Chapter 8.
The position that Paul wants the Christian to know is that they are free.
We are free from condemnation.
Why? Because of what Christ has done for us on the cross.
A good so what question at this point is, “Do I know the freedom I have in Christ?”
Paul writes these words to the us from the Book of Galatians, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1)
Do you know the freedom that you have in Christ?
Paul tells us here in Chapter 8 that our position in Jesus is that we stand free with no condemnation. What GOOD NEWS. We stand free, without any condemnation.
So how do we put this freedom into practice?
That is what Paul will explain in the next fifteen verses.
In this next section we have some great big theological themes like incarnation, atonement, justification, and sanctification. I want to slow down and read these verses and interject a thought or two.
Again, and always, when you read the living word, put yourself into the story. The Apostle Paul is writing around 57 AD. He’s writing from the Greek city of Corinth, just 3 years after the 16 year-old Nero became the Emperor of Rome. Are you in this story? Perhaps we are in a small home church in Rome, and we heard that Paul has written us! Rome was a tough city to be a believer in. How we long for the words of Paul.
“For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature,” (Romans 8:2) –— the law is powerless to save us because of our sinful nature.
“God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering.” (Romans 8:3) God is the one who is doing all the action here, we are not. We are saved by grace. God chose to send His One and Only Son (this is the incarnation) to become like us — a human. Jesus was a sin offering in order to fulfill the law.
“And so he (GOD) condemned sin in sinful man, 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.” (Romans 8:3-4) Just pause and ponder that powerful statement. God chose to put all the sin of humankind upon His One and Only Son so that, through His One and Only Son, the righteous requirements of the law are met… for you and for me. We can never meet the righteous requirements of the law. Only one man can and did: Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
“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. 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.” (Romans 8:5-7) Notice how many times Paul uses the word “mind” –five times. Paul contrasts the mind of sinful people with the mind of those who live according to the Holy Spirit.
As we put ourselves into the story, we also must put the story into our hearts and minds. Here’s a few “so what” questions:
What about your mind?
What is your mind set on?
What do you spend your time and money on?
What do you think about the most?
There is a clear warning here … the sinful mind is hostile to God.
“Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, however, are controlled not 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. (Romans 8:8-10)
Paul challenges us here and begins to step on our toes. What are we being controlled by? Paul makes it clear that a mind set on the works of the flesh leads to death, while the mind set on the Spirit leads to life. As we listen to Paul’s words, are we setting our mind on the Spirit of Life?
I was reading the end of Deuteronomy this past week and was reminded of the challenge that Moses gave to the people before they entered the promise land. Listen to this verse from Deuteronomy 30:16— “For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.” Deuteronomy 30:16
I read a disturbing statistic in one of my Christian emails this past week. Do you know that 26 million Americanshave mostly or completely stopped reading the Bible during COVID? “Currently, only 10 percent of Americans report daily Bible reading.” [i]
If there are 500 people reading this message, the statistics say that 450 aren’t reading their Bible daily, only 50 are. Instead of letting that statistic discourage you, resolve today to make it a priority to read and study God’s Word. Be one of the 10%-ers.
Paul is telling us that in order for us to live in the freedom that Christ provided us on the cross, we need to know what this book says. Lamentations tells us that God’s word is new every morning. I’ve been reading my word daily since 1987 and I can tell you that there are many days when I read something I’ve never read before—and I read this Bible through each year.
SO WHAT?
This theological process of living a life in the Spirit is called sanctification— or holy living. There is an awe-inspiring connection between the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian. The manifestation of the Spirit’s power and presence brings control, and peace, and knowledge and grace and so many good things. The presence of the Holy Spirit in our life brings about our sanctification—we are actually being made holy as we repent, confess, submit and surrender to the inner work of the Holy Spirit within us. It’s honestly amazing to me to be a pastor and to watch this transformation take place in people. It’s why I do what I do.
What Paul is saying is that “if the Spirit of God lives in you, you will be controlled by the Spirit.” It’s a daily wrestling match for each of us. Sometimes we are good, and our halo shines brightly. Sometimes we fail and regret soils our halo. But…each new day we are given “new mercies” in order that we learn to live in the freedom that Christ bought for us on the cross.
Corrie ten Boom offered an insight into this marvelous truth: “I have a glove here in my hand. The glove cannot do anything by itself, but when my hand is in it, it can do many things. True, it is not the glove, but my hand in the glove that acts. We are gloves. It is the Holy Spirit in us who is the hand, who does the job. We have to make room for the hand so that every finger is filled.”
That is what it means to make room for the Holy Spirit to live within us. We are the glove. The Holy Spirit is the hand in the glove.
SO WHAT, Pastor Dave”?
POSITION, PRACTICE.POWER. PRESENCE.
Position — Do you know the freedom that you have in Christ?
Practice — What are your daily devotional practices like so that you are filled with the Holy Spirit? Are you in the 10% club?
Power — Glove or no glove? Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to sanctify you each moment of each day? Is your glove empty, just sitting on the shelf? Or is your glove full of the living word of God, empowering your heart and soul and mind to make “holy” decisions that give you life and freedom?
In the fall of 1987 I started reading my bible daily. I read 5 psalms, and a chapter of Proverbs each day. Here I am 36 years later still reading 5 psalms and a chapter of Proverbs (plus a gospel and a ton of other theology) and there are days I look and think, “I’ve never noticed that before.” Why? Because God’s mercies are new for us each morning.
No condemnation. No separation. Remember that.
God loves you and so do I,
Pastor Dave
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