The Power of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:1-17)
"1There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.[a] 2For the law of the Spirit of life has set you[b] free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3For 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,[c] he condemned sin in the flesh, 4in 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. 5For 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. 6To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. 8Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9You, 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. 10But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
Heirs with Christ 12So then, brothers,[d] we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons[e] of God. 15For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" 16The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him."
In this passage of Scripture, Paul tells the Romans about the workings of the Spirit and how it affects our lives. Paul gives three ways that the Spirit is powerful and working in our lives.
I. The Spirit is powerful because it sets us free (v.1-8)
A. It has set us free from sin (v.1-2)
There is no condemnation. When we are in Jesus, we are safe from the eternal fires of Hell. The Spirit has set us free from death and sin’s control over our lives. Sin no longer has control over us. It may have some power over us, but we can defeat sin through God living inside of us via the Spirit. The Spirit is powerful because it has set us free from sin’s grip, and only God can do that.
B. It has set us free from ourselves (v.3-4)
By sending his own son, Jesus, God has conquered sin. By following the law, by doing good things, we could not save ourselves and God knew this. By doing this, we may live ‘righteous’ lives through the Spirit. We cannot live righteous lives apart from the Spirit living in us. The Holy Spirit is powerful because it has set us free from ourselves and our selfish ways of living which keep us from being able to worship God wholly.
C. It has set us free from death (v.5-6)
To live a life that is centered on oneself will equal death – it will equal eternal death, as well as spiritual death. If we are believers and we live our lives for ourselves, then we will never have ‘life and peace.’ The Spirit is powerful because it has set us free from the pains of death.
D. It has set us free from hostility (v.7-8)
When we are living for ourselves, we are hostile to God and our lives are out of sort. The Spirit is powerful because it has set us free from being hostile enemies to God.
II. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us life (v.9-11)
In order to belong to Christ, one must have the Spirit of Christ in them. The Spirit makes us alive in righteousness. If the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is in us, then surely it can give us life…i.e. save us. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us life when we deserve death.
III. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us status (v.12-17)
A. Status as slaves (v.12-13)
We are slaves to the Spirit once we accept Christ. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us status as slaves to Christ and not to death.
B. Status as sons (v.14-15)
When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior we are His son. We are adopted into is family. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us status as His son who lives comfortably under the roof of a new and loving Father.
C. Status as heirs (v.16-17)
When one gets adopted into a family, he has equal rights the father’s household. The Spirit gives us status as heirs to the Father’s kingdom. And if we are fellow heirs with Christ we will not only suffer with Him, we will also be glorified with Him in the future.
9You, 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. 10But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
Heirs with Christ 12So then, brothers,[d] we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons[e] of God. 15For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" 16The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him."
In this passage of Scripture, Paul tells the Romans about the workings of the Spirit and how it affects our lives. Paul gives three ways that the Spirit is powerful and working in our lives.
I. The Spirit is powerful because it sets us free (v.1-8)
A. It has set us free from sin (v.1-2)
There is no condemnation. When we are in Jesus, we are safe from the eternal fires of Hell. The Spirit has set us free from death and sin’s control over our lives. Sin no longer has control over us. It may have some power over us, but we can defeat sin through God living inside of us via the Spirit. The Spirit is powerful because it has set us free from sin’s grip, and only God can do that.
B. It has set us free from ourselves (v.3-4)
By sending his own son, Jesus, God has conquered sin. By following the law, by doing good things, we could not save ourselves and God knew this. By doing this, we may live ‘righteous’ lives through the Spirit. We cannot live righteous lives apart from the Spirit living in us. The Holy Spirit is powerful because it has set us free from ourselves and our selfish ways of living which keep us from being able to worship God wholly.
C. It has set us free from death (v.5-6)
To live a life that is centered on oneself will equal death – it will equal eternal death, as well as spiritual death. If we are believers and we live our lives for ourselves, then we will never have ‘life and peace.’ The Spirit is powerful because it has set us free from the pains of death.
D. It has set us free from hostility (v.7-8)
When we are living for ourselves, we are hostile to God and our lives are out of sort. The Spirit is powerful because it has set us free from being hostile enemies to God.
II. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us life (v.9-11)
In order to belong to Christ, one must have the Spirit of Christ in them. The Spirit makes us alive in righteousness. If the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is in us, then surely it can give us life…i.e. save us. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us life when we deserve death.
III. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us status (v.12-17)
A. Status as slaves (v.12-13)
We are slaves to the Spirit once we accept Christ. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us status as slaves to Christ and not to death.
B. Status as sons (v.14-15)
When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior we are His son. We are adopted into is family. The Spirit is powerful because it gives us status as His son who lives comfortably under the roof of a new and loving Father.
C. Status as heirs (v.16-17)
When one gets adopted into a family, he has equal rights the father’s household. The Spirit gives us status as heirs to the Father’s kingdom. And if we are fellow heirs with Christ we will not only suffer with Him, we will also be glorified with Him in the future.
posted by Charlie Wallace at
7:09 PM
3 Comments:
Excellent post.
Thanks for the kind words.
Charlie,
I apologize for not commenting on this specific post, but you were absolutely right about the discussion on the Founders blog: completely out of control. It's been a long time since I've witnessed the knock-down, drag-out nature of some of those disputes.
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