WWUTT 1262 The Law of the Spirit of Life? (Romans 8:2-3)

Romans 8:1 and the Assurance of No Condemnation in Christ

Back in Romans chapter six, we read that we are no longer under the law, but under grace. Well, if you're in Christ, you are still under the law. It's just not the Mosaic law. It's the law of the spirit of life when we understand the text.

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Here once again is Pastor Gabe.

Thank you, Becky. We continue with our study of the book of Romans. Chapter eight is where we are this week. And I'm gonna begin by reading verses one through nine. The apostle Paul wrote to the church in Rome.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law weakened by the flesh could not do by sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the spirit.

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the spirit set their minds on the things of the spirit for to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the spirit is life and peace.

For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God for it does not submit to God's law. Indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the spirit.

If in fact the spirit of God dwells in you, anyone who does not have the spirit of Christ does not belong to him. So yesterday we focused mainly on this first verse and just how powerful this is. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

And the way that that starts, that's very clearly carrying on a previous thought. Because that's a lot of extra added words at the beginning of the statement that's basically there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, but we also have therefore now.

There is therefore now. The therefore connects Romans 8 .1 with what we just read in Romans chapter seven. The now is our present state before God. A need for Paul to have to declare, to remind the reader, the hearer, that in Christ we are now under no condemnation.

What he had just been talking about in chapter seven is sanctification. Through chapters one through six, Paul has been making the argument that we are justified not by our works, but by faith. And in chapter seven, what he's essentially saying is that not only are we not justified by our works, we're not even sanctified by our works, but by faith in Christ.

Christ is the one who justifies. Christ is the one who sanctifies. But as we're struggling in that process of sanctification, the stuff that Paul is laying out from verses seven through 25, the end of Romans chapter seven, as he's laying all of that out and he's struggling with the, I want to do this, but I can't seem to do it.

I want to do the right thing, but there is still that temptation that arises in my flesh that wants to do the fleshly thing. And that leads him to having to ask at the end of that chapter, wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death?

Praise be to God through Christ Jesus, my Lord. So as there is that statement at the very end, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh, I serve the law of sin. There's still kind of a puzzling thing there going on regarding sanctification.

And as I said, sin is complicated, so Romans chapter seven is complicated. There's still obviously that conflict that we have between the desire that we have with our mind, which has now been conformed to Christ, and the desire that still exists in our flesh, which is coming to destruction.

I mean, the body is going to die. Even though we are saved from death in Christ, the sting of death is gone, but death is still there. Your body is still material. It is still part of this world that has been subjected to futility.

So eventually the body's gonna die. Since the body is coming to corruption, it is susceptible to corruption. And there's still that tugging on the flesh as it exists in a world subjected to futility. So we are still gonna have those temptations that we're battling against.

Now, when I say temptations of the flesh, I'm not talking about sexual immorality, not explicitly that. The temptation to do sexual immorality, I'm talking about anger, malice, letting a word come out of your mouth that you didn't mean to come out of your mouth, or you would not have wanted to.

If you had more control, self-control, restraint over your faculties, you would never have let that word come out. But there's still that weakness in your flesh. Almost seemed impossible to stop it. Now, understand when I'm saying that, I'm not giving anybody permission to swear.

It's not at all what I'm saying. Go ahead and swear, because God will forgive you. You haven't stopped being a Christian. No, you must be holy as God is holy. You must be perfect as your heavenly father is perfect, as Jesus puts it in Matthew 5.

So you must pursue holiness. But where your flesh stumbles, and you fall into that conflict that Paul is laying out in Romans 7, and you end that with, I serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh, I serve the law of sin.

You get to Romans 8, 1, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Yeah, you're still struggling with the flesh, but you're not condemned. You stumbled there, that was your flesh reacting to something, with your mind, with your heart, you desire to serve God, but your flesh had a moment of weakness.

You fell into something you didn't want to do. And now you're repenting of it. Did you stop being a Christian in there? Because your flesh got weak? Does this mean, oh no, I'm still a slave to my sin, just like Paul was talking about in Romans 6.

I mean, it could mean that. If you are continually giving yourself over to that sin, and you just can't seem to gain control over it, then it's possible that sin still masters you, and you are under the law and not under grace.

That's a possibility. You must examine yourself to see that you are in the faith. That's a very real charge that Paul gave to the Corinthians, and you must understand it also. Examine yourselves to see if you pass the test, to see if you're really in the faith.

We should have assurance of salvation. John says so in 1 John 5, that I have written these things to you that you may know that you are saved. We should have assurance of our salvation, but we must also see that we are walking in that salvation, not serving the law of sin, but serving God with our heart, soul, mind, and strength.

But in those moments where the flesh gets weak, and you're battling with the flesh, and you stumble, you know that Christ is delivering you from this wretched body of death. You desire to serve God with your mind that is in Christ, renewed in Christ, but you still have the laws of sin that are tugging at your fleshly desires.

Even though you still feel that, you may stumble in sin, you may feel the tug of sin on your flesh. Either way, okay, we're either talking about temptation or giving into the temptation. We must know and we must understand this wonderful, gracious promise.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For those that are continually stumbling into that sin, that may find themselves still mastered by sin, under sin and not under grace.

You must still understand the truth of what's being stated there in Romans 8, 1. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ. That means if you're not in Christ, you are under condemnation.

Everyone is condemned that is not in Christ. When we read in John 3, verse 17, that Jesus did not come into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. When we read that, the reason why Jesus did not come into the world to condemn the world is because the world was already condemned.

And that's stated in the next verse, verse 18. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already because he is not believed in the name of the only son of God.

In Christ, there is no condemnation, but if you are not in Christ and you are still serving your flesh, then there is condemnation. You are in condemnation and you must grieve over that. You must turn from your sin and you must cling to Christ.

Whatever it takes, turn to Christ, turn to him, give up everything that is keeping you from being as Christ. Hebrews 12, one, lay aside every weight and sin, which clings so closely and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and the perfecter of our faith.

Look to Christ, I'm struggling with sin, I'm being tempted, look to Christ. Don't look at the sin, don't concentrate on the sin. If I just look at this long enough, maybe it'll go away. No, it's gonna awaken the desire in your flesh to want that thing.

And as long as it's in front of you, you feel even more tempted. Turn to Christ, whatever it takes, take off the sin, turn to Christ. Jesus is the one who justifies, he is the one who sanctifies. He is the one who delivers us out of this temptation.

And it is he who keeps us saved. See, if it was dependent upon you, the moment you stumbled into sin, you wouldn't be saved anymore. That's why it's so important that we understand there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

When the flesh gets weak, you've not fallen into condemnation. The Lord is disciplining you, he is treating you as sons, you are convicted over your sin because of the discipline that comes from the father upon those whom he loves.

We are not condemned, but we are being disciplined. So you feel guilty, that's not condemnation. It's never about what you feel. I feel condemned. Well, are you? Read the word of God, turn to Christ. Those who are in Christ Jesus, there is no condemnation.

So it's not about what we feel, it is the truth relying on Christ and what he has said in his word. This is our justification, this is our sanctification, this is our assurance, it is our adoption, it is the promise of glorification, it's all here in the word of Christ.

The Law of the Spirit of Life and Freedom from Sin and Death

And verse two, for the law of the spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. Everything that is wrapped up in that law. Roman 6 .23 again, for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

This is just another way of saying that. The law of the spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. The law of sin that everyone is under when they are born. Physically born, you are born in the line of Adam, he is your federal head.

So when Adam all are born in sin, in Adam all die because that's the wages of our sin, that's what we earn, that's what we deserve for our sin, we deserve death. But all who are in Christ are made alive.

You've been brought from death to life even now that you may live in your flesh unto Christ and not unto yourself. You've been released from the law of sin and death. Rejoice in that. Walk in the grace of Christ.

The spirit of life has set you free. Now remember back in Romans 6, it says that we are either slaves to sin or we're slaves to righteousness. So you've gotta be enslaved to somebody. You're either a slave to Satan or you're a slave to Christ.

But in Christ Jesus, we have been set free from our slavery to sin. That we may become slaves to Christ. So our freedom is in Christ. There's still a slavery that occurs there, but it's a beautiful slavery, it's one that we want because there's no condemnation in this slavery.

When we are enslaved to Christ, there's nothing but freedom and life and the promise of an eternal kingdom that we are fellow heirs of with Christ. So you are a slave, either a slave to Satan or a slave to Christ.

Jesus said in John 8, 36, if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. So that means you are free from the curse of sin, but you're still a slave. Romans 6, 18, you are set free from sin, you have become slaves of righteousness.

As John MacArthur has said, I am a free man, the slave of Christ. You know what a free man is, right? A free man is somebody who once was a slave but has been set free. And so now we have this beautiful paradox that we are in Christ.

I am a free man, the slave of Christ. And this is a slavery that we rejoice to have for it is the slavery that leads to eternal life with Jesus Christ our Lord guarantees us eternal life as we become fellow heirs of the heavenly kingdom of God.

The law of the spirit of life has set us free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. So there is still a law that you are under, but it is not the law of sin and death, it is the law of the spirit of life.

Christ Condemns Sin in the Flesh and Fulfills the Law

Verse three, for God has done what the law weakened by the flesh could not do by sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh. Remember what we read about this back in chapter seven, where it says in well, verse seven, what shall we say then that the law is sin by no means?

No, the law is good. The commandment is holy and righteous and good. Verse 13, did that which is good then bring death to me? No, so the law is not sin and the law did not bring death to me. It was sin producing death in me through what is good in order that sin might be shown to be sin and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure.

For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh sold under sin. Still, the law did not have the power to save us. So the law is holy and righteous and good, but the law doesn't save and it was never meant to save.

Salvation is only in Christ. Salvation was in Christ even for the children of Israel who were under the law. It was trusting in God. The law was a tutor. The law guided them. It pointed them to the holiness and the righteousness of God.

But all of this was a type and a shadow of the one who was to come who fulfilled the law. His righteousness demonstrated in his keeping of the law so that Christ in serving God perfectly became that perfect spotless lamb to be sacrificed on our behalf.

The blood of goats and bulls never had the power to wash away sins anyway. It is only Christ and by faith in him do we have the forgiveness of our sins. So the law weakened by the flesh could not save us.

Now, understand what we mean when we say weakened by the flesh. It doesn't mean, well, like the law of God is powerful, but once we got ahold of it, we just drained it of all of its power. Okay, we don't have any authority over the law.

The law has authority over us. So it's not like we did something to the law and it lost its power. But when we hear the law and we try to live by the law, like we hear it, it goes into our ears and it's in our spirits somewhere, but we're still living according to the flesh and we try to do the law, sinful flesh is going to twist the law for its own purposes.

Either sinful flesh will completely rebel against it or sinful flesh might try to make it into something else, but something that is has diminished it so that it's more achievable. Do you know what I mean?

So, for example, exactly what Jesus had confronted in Matthew 5, he said, you have heard in the law, thou shalt not murder. And there's plenty of Pharisees walking around going, easy to keep that one.

I've never killed anybody, okay? So this is sinful flesh taking the law and twisting it for its own nefarious purposes. But Jesus demonstrates what the law was actually meant to reveal. And that's the wickedness of the heart.

When he says that if you've even hated your brother, if you've even called him names, you're worthy of the fire of hell for you have committed murder in your heart. So you can say, I've never committed murder before, but that law was meant to reveal to you the hatred that is within you that leads to murder.

And so if you have murdered in your heart, you have broken that law. And the commandment that reveals to us the spiritual nature of the law is the one that Paul cited as an example in Romans 7, thou shalt not covet.

I didn't ever think of the law as something that I could break even with my own desires until I heard that commandment, commandment number 10, thou shalt not covet. And then Paul says, I realized I was a covetor.

I was doing what was contrary to the law. So when we hear the law in our rebellious sinful flesh, we want to go against that law and do our own thing. And so therefore the law attempting to be played out in our members is weakened.

It can't save us rather our sinful flesh just becomes all the more sinful as Paul put it in Romans 7, so that it might be shown to be sin beyond measure. No matter how hard we try, we will never be able to keep the righteousness of the law.

So the law weakened by the flesh could not save us, but God had done what the law could not do by sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh. It was not just condemning sin in the spirit.

The law is spiritual, God is spirit. He condemned sin in spirit, but he even became flesh and dwelt among us and condemned sin in the flesh in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the spirit.

And so now we do keep the law of God and we fulfill the righteous requirement of the law because Christ fulfilled it and now we are in Christ. So we fulfill the law and are able to do so in a righteous way where previously before we had the spirit of life dwelling within us, we couldn't do that.

Our wicked flesh wanted to go against the law. We wanted to twist the law. The law weakened by the flesh could not save us. Christ has saved us. And now in Christ, we live righteously as he did. Let's conclude there.

We'll pick that up again tomorrow. Heavenly father, we thank you for the goodness that you have shown to us in Christ. And I pray that you would convict us of our sin, that we not walk in this sin, but we would welcome that conviction, that it may shape us and make us more like Christ, less of ourselves, more of him.

I must diminish, he must increase. Let there be more of Christ in our hearts today. Help us to turn from those desires of the flesh. We not do them, reacting according to our flesh, but our whole selves are submitted unto Christ that we may be as Christ even in this world.

Grow us in sanctification, knowing that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. In his name we pray, amen.

Pastoral Exhortation, Prayer, and Closing Banter

This is When We Understand the Text with Pastor Gabe Hughes. There are lots of great Bible teaching programs on the web, and we thank you for selecting ours. But this is no replacement for regular fellowship with a church family.

Find a good gospel-teaching, Christ-centered church to worship with this weekend, and join us again tomorrow as we continue our Bible study When We Understand the Text.