"LIFE THROUGH the SPIRIT"
Romans 8:1-20 New International Version (NIV)
8 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you[a] free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh,[b] God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.[c] And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life[d] because of righteousness. 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 because of[e] his Spirit who lives in you.
12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.[f] And by him we cry, “Abba,[g] Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
Present Suffering and Future Glory
18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope
8:1 Therefore: Because of the fact of salvation by faith alone, but especially picking up the major outline of Christ’s redemptive work, Christians are free from God’s banishing judgment.
8:2 The law here does not refer to God’s written moral commands in the OT, but to the system of operation that the Spirit of life, the Holy Spirit, carries out in our lives, breaking the dominion of the old law [principles] of sin and death.
8:3 Though given by God, the law (the written code in the OT)was powerless to enable people to meet its demands because it had to depend on sinful human nature to carry them out. In the likeness of sinful flesh: The human nature of Jesus was real, but sinless (Phil. 2:7,8; Heb. 2:17; 4:15; 1 Pet. 2:22).
8:4 Paul presents two ways of life, and they are central to the whole discussion until v. 17. To walk after the flesh is to follow the sinful desires of one’s old life. To walk after the Spirit is to follow the desires of the Holy Spirit, to live in a way pleasing to Him.
8:5 Paul expects that Christians ordinarily will live after the Spirit. This involves holiness, not only in actions and words, but also in the thoughts that fill our minds each moment through the day.
8:7, 8 They that are in the flesh characterizes people’s very nature and is a stronger description than the activity of walking according to the flesh. The phrase, therefore, refers to unbelievers who cannot please God. This situation is not true of believers, as the following verse shows.
8:9 He is none of his: All Christians have the Holy Spirit within them. Anyone who does not have the Holy Spirit within is not a Christian. Though Paul says that Christians are in the Spirit, he also warns that they can from time to time live "after the flesh"(v. 13).
8:12 To live after the flesh: Although Paul does not state it, the implication is that we are debtors to the Spirit, to live according to the Spirit.
8:13 Paul lays out two directions of life and shows their ultimate consequences. He implies that Christians have an ability to choose to do what is uncharacteristic of a Christian, namely, to walk "according to the flesh," and he warns them not to do it. If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body: A good summary of the process of sanctification (growth in holiness) in the Christian life. We are active to work at growing in holiness and "putting to death" any sin in our hearts or minds, as well as in our words and deeds. Yet, in spite of the fact that we actively put fort effort, Paul reminds us that it is only "by the Spirit," that is, by the Holy Spirit’s power, that we can succeed.
8:13 Paul lays out two directions of life and shows their ultimate consequences. He implies that Christians have an ability to choose to do what is uncharacteristic of a Christian, namely, to walk "according to the flesh," and he warns them not to do it. If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body: A good summary of the process of sanctification (growth in holiness) in the Christian life. We are active to work at growing in holiness and "putting to death" any sin in our hearts or minds, as well as in our words and deeds. Yet, in spite of the fact that we actively put fort effort, Paul reminds us that it is only "by the Spirit," that is, by the Holy Spirit’s power, that we can succeed.
8:14 The phrase as many as are led by the Spirit of God is more than a synonym for Christians. It describes the lifestyle of those who are sons of God. Paul is giving encouragement not to live according to the flesh but to put to death the deeds of the body (v. 13). Therefore, being "led by the Spirit of God" involves progressively putting to death the sinful appetites of the lower nature.
8:17 Scripture often indicates that God leads His children through suffering before they reach His glory.
8:19 The creature will be redeemed at the consummation of our redemption.
8:20 The whole created universe has suffered the consequences of human sin, being subjected to decomposition, futility, and corruption. However, that process of deterioration is only temporary, because God has provided hope of deliverance.
8:17 Scripture often indicates that God leads His children through suffering before they reach His glory.
8:19 The creature will be redeemed at the consummation of our redemption.
8:20 The whole created universe has suffered the consequences of human sin, being subjected to decomposition, futility, and corruption. However, that process of deterioration is only temporary, because God has provided hope of deliverance.
Janet Irene Thomas
Playwright/Screen Writer/Director
Published Author/Gospel Lyricist &Producer
FOUNDER/CEO
Bible Stories Theatre of
Fine & Performing Arts
www.biblestoriestheatre.org.
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