Gospel Realities of the Christian Life
Text: Romans 8:1-17
Core Idea: Through Christ, there’s now no condemnation against us, we can be victorious over sin, and we can now cry out to God, “Abba, Father.” These are the gospel realities that we can now enjoy through the work of the cross. Then let’s live out of these realities because they will free us from fear and fill us with joy and peace.
INTRODUCTION
Good morning, Lighthouse. It’s always delightful to see you. I want to welcome all of you but especially our Tugboat and Anchor friends who will be joining us today for the whole service. As a church, we want to be intentional about worshiping together at least once a month to remind ourselves that we are a church – not just the adults, but the children and youth as well. I understand that this may be challenging at times, but I firmly believe that in the long run, it will help all of us grow as faithful disciples of Jesus Christ. When our children and youth begin to see Lighthouse as their home, when we learn to do life together, we’ll see that all our struggles were worth it. So, let’s help each other to do this well.
Today, we’ll take a break from the Book of Philippians and look at the Book of Romans – following the curriculum that the Tugboat ministry is going through. For those of you who may not be familiar with this book, this is a letter written by Paul addressing the Christians in Rome. Now, the church in Rome was made up of Jewish and Gentile converts who were passionately following Jesus – but they were also relatively new believers. So, even though Paul had not yet met them personally, he knew that what they most needed was the gospel – not just to understand it but also to live it out. Hence, the whole book is about the gospel – Paul labors to teach them not only what the gospel is but how the gospel transforms the life of Christians. Then with this in mind, please turn your Bibles to Romans 8:1-17. And I will invite Adam to the front – and he will read the passage for us.
1 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 free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. 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 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 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. And by Him we cry, “Abba, 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.
Thank you, Adam, for reading the passage for us. And children, I hope you enjoyed the video. Now, I’ll be honest – this is not a simple passage to preach from. Because it’s packed with deep theological truths, it could sound really complicated. So, my aim for today is not to go through everything that Paul addressed here but rather to point out just a few things that will help us in our walk with God – three gospel realities that will hopefully transform the way we live our lives. But before I do that, let’s first look at the context to see what Paul has been talking about in this letter so far so that we can better understand the flow of his argument. In Chapters 1-5, Paul explained the gospel – that Jesus Christ came to substitute His place with us so that we may have life and life to the full. Romans 5:8 says, “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” And Romans 5:20 says, “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more.” That really is the essence of the gospel. Because of His extravagant love for us, God did not treat us as our sins deserved but He embraced us with grace. He didn’t save us because we were good but because He was merciful. Now, Paul must have anticipated a lot of questions from his readers (since this message seems too good to be true) – so, he provided a short Q&A session beginning in Chapter 6 where he addressed questions like, “If God’s grace increases where sin increases, shouldn’t we continue in sin so that we’ll experience more of His grace? Since we’ll receive new heavenly bodies later, can’t we do whatever we want with our earthly bodies now? In fact, should we just throw out the law because Jesus freed us from the law?” If you want to know the answers to these questions, you should go back and read Chapters 6 and 7 because Paul addresses them in length. But if you’re curious, a short answer to all of them is “no.” Now, at the end of Chapter 7, Paul reminds us that even though we’ve been set free from the penalty of sin (justification), we’re still being set free from the power of sin (sanctification). (And in case you’re wondering, we’ll finally be set free from the presence of sin when Jesus comes back – glorification.) All that to say, as Christians, the reality is that we will continue to wrestle with our sin until Jesus takes us home. In fact, that was Paul’s experience. So, he says in Romans 7:15, 18-19, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do… I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do – this I keep on doing.” Isn’t this how all of us feel? We want to live for God. We want to do good to others. We want to center our lives on Christ. But we find ourselves doing exactly the opposite. No wonder Paul says in Romans 7:24, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?” We all understand his sense of failure – his sense of defeat and frustration as he looks at his own sins. Then is there any hope for us? Can we ever be freed from this power of sin? Romans 7:25, “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Paul says that we do have hope – and that His name is Jesus Christ. Through Him, we’re not only justified but we will be sanctified. Now, I wish that this chapter ended right here. But for whatever reason, Paul concludes the train of his thought with these words – Romans 7:25, “So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.” Translation – “Knowing this (that through Christ, we can be victorious over our sins), in my mind, I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I’m still a slave to sin.” Now, why does he say this? Why such a downer? Because he wanted them to know that even though our hope is in Christ, the reality is that we will continue to sin because we’re sadly still living under the power of sin. Then in one sense, he was comforting them – telling them that it’s okay to struggle, that God understands. And in Chapter 8, he’ll continue to encourage them by sharing three more realities for Christians – reassuring them that their salvation is secure in Christ. Then let’s spend the rest of our time looking at those three gospel realities.
· ONCE SAVED, ALWAYS SAVED (NO CONDEMNATION)
· SAVED CHRISTIANS ARE GROWING CHRISTIANS (SANCTIFICATION)
· GOD IS OUR KING BUT ALSO OUR FATHER (ADOPTION)
1) ONCE SAVED, ALWAYS SAVED (NO CONDEMNATION)
Verse 1, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Paul makes it clear – no matter how much you struggle with sin, there will be no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. What is condemnation? It’s an expression of strong disapproval and judgment – pronouncing that one is guilty. It’s to say that there’s a debt that you still need to pay. Then here, Paul reminds us that for those in Christ, the debt of our sin no longer exists because it’s already been paid in full. As a result, no matter how much we fail, no matter how much we sin against God, He will never use that against us. Now, can we just take a moment to let this truth sink in? When we sin, God doesn’t say, “Are you serious? After all that I’ve done for you, you’re still going to disobey Me and live for yourself? You’re seriously hopeless. You know what? One more strike – and you’re out.” No, He doesn’t use our sin to threaten us, discourage us, humiliate us; drown us in guilt and shame; or make us feel worthless. There’s now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Friends, it’s absolutely crucial that we remember this because when we fail to live out of this reality, we will always live out of fear. Think with me. If you think that there’s a possibility that you can be condemned for what you do, that your salvation can be taken away because of your sins, everything that you do will be driven by the fear of failure, the fear of rejection, and the fear of condemnation – “What if I’m not good enough? What if God’s not pleased with this? Did I miss anything? How will God treat me if I fail again? If I can’t even forgive myself, why would God forgive me? How can God love someone like me?” In fact, if something bad were to happen to you, you would automatically assume, “Is God paying me back for what I’ve done? Am I getting punished for that sin I committed yesterday?” We must realize that a life driven by fear will never produce joy and peace in our hearts – there will only be anxiety, exhaustion, and frustration because you will undoubtedly be crushed by the weight of your guilt. Then friends, is your life driven by fear today? Are you living under the shadow of this condemnation? If so, look to this passage again because this truth will set you free.
Paul reminds us that there’s now no condemnation for Christians – that Jesus’ death wiped away not only the presence of existing condemnation but also the possibility of future condemnation. Do you know what this means? It means that there’s absolutely nothing we can do right now that will make God love us more or love us less. Brothers and sisters, you are in Christ. You have been united with Christ – which means there’s nothing that will cause God to hold back His love for you. Sadly, many Christians think that God will love you more the more you become like Christ. But listen to what Rankin Wilbourne said, “God doesn’t love you to the degree that you are like Christ. He loves you to the degree that you are in Christ and that is always 100%.” We must remember that the foundation of God’s love for us is not in what we do for Christ but in the fact that we are in Christ. Will our disobedience bring Him grief? Absolutely. Will our obedience bring Him joy? Absolutely. But His love for us does not waver whether we’re obedient or not because God’s love for us is not determined by our worthiness – He loves us simply because His heart goes out to us. Then let me ask you, “Do you feel like this past week was one of the worst when it comes to your walk with God? Are you feeling the weight of guilt and shame as you come into His presence today? Do you feel like you don’t deserve His love? Are you frantically asking for forgiveness because you’re scared that God will punish you for what you have done?” If so, let this truth bring you peace knowing that there’s now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Engrave this truth in your hearts because this means that God is just as pleased with you on your very worst day as well as your best day. Remember that God’s love for you is unconditional, unending, and unbelievably extravagant because we are now in Christ Jesus.
Now, as much as it’s comforting to hear this (once saved, always saved), it can cause us to ask questions like, “Isn’t this quite dangerous because it can give people the excuse to do whatever they want to do with their lives? If they know that they will never be condemned for what they do, wouldn’t this give Christians a license to indulge in their sins? What will stop them from living for themselves?” These are very good questions. But thankfully, the next two gospel realities that Paul shares will guard us from thinking this way. Then let’s look at them one by one.
2) SAVED CHRISTIANS ARE GROWING CHRISTIANS (SANCTIFICATION)
Verse 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.” Paul makes it clear that if you’re in Christ, you will live in accordance with the Spirit – which means that you will always have your mind set on what the Spirit desires. If the Spirit resides in you, you won’t gratify the desires of your flesh, but you’ll live to bring Him joy. So, for Christians, it’s not just “once saved, always saved,” but also, “once saved, forever following.” Yes, there’s now no condemnation for those who are in Christ, but this will be proven true only for those who endure to the end. Then what does the Spirit desire for us? Verse 13, “By the Spirit, you put to death the misdeeds of the body.” What the Spirit desires for us is that we put our sins to death and live to please God. Now, let’s be honest – this is not easy. Because we’re sinful, because we’re ambitious, because we’re still craving for the things of this world, because life is busy, because the demands are great, because we’re wearing so many hats in life, even though our spirit is willing to put our minds set on what the Spirit desires, our body is weak – so, we’re easily distracted, and we quickly give up. But the Bible never said that this was going to be easy – in fact, it tells us that our fight against sin will be exhausting and painful. Listen to what Hebrews 12:4 says, “In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” In other words, the author was challenging us to resist sin to the point of shedding our blood – to fight for holiness even if it may cost us everything. We must vigorously and deliberately put our sins to death because as John Owen so wisely put it, “Be killing sin, or sin will be killing you.” We shouldn’t flirt with sin; we shouldn’t try to tame it; we shouldn’t try to wean ourselves off of it; we shouldn’t try to control it. No, we must put to death our sins because sin is a predator – crouching at the door of our hearts looking for opportunities to destroy us. No wonder the word “put to death” in Greek is very violent and total – we must give everything we have to resist our sin. All that to say, if you’re a Christian, Paul is calling you to wage war against your sins. J.C. Ryle says, “True Christianity is a struggle, a fight, and a warfare. Where there is grace there will be conflict. The believer is a soldier. There is no holiness without warfare. Saved souls will always be found to have fought a fight.” Friends, is this the kind of attitude you have against your sin today? Or have you made peace with your sin – a truce with your sin? If so, let this truth remind you of the power of our indwelling sin – if we don’t fight, it will consume us one day.
Now, I’m not saying that we must experience transformation overnight. I understand that this can be a slow and gradual process – but let’s not allow that to deter us from fighting the good fight. Let us strive for holiness because saved Christians are growing Christians. Now, I’m sure you’ve heard some Christians ask this question to determine if someone is saved or not, “If you died tonight, how do you know for sure that God will let you into heaven?” It’s a great question because it reveals their understanding of the gospel. But an equally important question is this – “If you get up tomorrow, how will the gospel make a difference in your life? How will you aim to be more like Christ?” I know that many of you would’ve had no problem answering the first question – but how would you answer this second question? In fact, not just answer it but are you really aiming to live out your answer? Friends, if you’re saved, you must walk with the Lord too. Then are you resisting sin and striving for holiness? This is how we know that we’re in Christ. This is the gospel reality that we must experience every single day. We must give everything to set our minds on what the Spirit desires so that we grow.
3) GOD IS OUR KING BUT ALSO OUR FATHER (ADOPTION)
Verse 14, “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 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.” Paul makes it clear that the reason why Christians shouldn’t indulge in their sins and grieve God is because they’ve now been adopted as the children of God. It’s true that we were once slaves to sin. It’s true that we were once the enemies of God. It’s true that we were once spiritual orphans. But the moment we placed our faith in Jesus Christ, we’ve become God’s beloved – He’s not just our King, our Lord, our Master, but also our Father. This image is incredibly important in understanding the Christian faith because there are amazing privileges that come with adoption. Let me share just a few. First, assurance. Because God is our Father, we’re no longer bound by duty but love. Think about it. There’s nothing that we did to win the right to be adopted – in fact, it cost God so much to embrace us as His children. Then why did God adopt us knowing that the cost will be great?” Because He wanted to share with us His love, because He wanted to be close to us, because He delighted in us. If we were sought after by God because of something in us, we will always be driven by fear – “If I fail to please Him, if I lose what gave me worth, God may reject me.” But we’ve been made children of God not because of what we’ve done but simply because He delights in us – which means that our performance will never disqualify us from being a child of God. No matter what we do, nothing will separate us from the love of our God. Think about it. If I feel that way toward my sons as a sinful human being, how much more would our perfect Father love us and embrace us? Brothers and sisters, remember that you’re no longer slaves who need to be afraid but children who stand secure. He will never let go of you.
Second, security. One of the things that Alicia and I decided to do was co-sleep with our children. Partially because I just couldn’t go through the pain of sleep training – it was so hard for me to hear Eli cry for so long. But more importantly because we wanted to be the source of comfort as they fell asleep. And something I noticed was that Julian would either put his hand on me (whether it’d be my arm, my back, sometimes my face) or literally climb on my belly – and that would help him to sleep better. But if he couldn’t feel me because I was turning or stretching, he would just quietly say, “Daddy?” I would then hold his hand and he would fall asleep again. Now, Eli did pretty much the same thing – and since I was able to actually communicate with him, I asked him one time why he wanted to hold my hand or hug me as he fell asleep. He said, “Because what if I wake up and you’re not there? I would be all alone in the dark and I’d be too scared.” Now, I was thinking about this as I was preparing for this message and I realized that even though we’re all grown up, we’re still scared of the same thing – to be left alone in the dark. So, we stretch our hands to get a hold of God – and when we feel like we can’t feel Him, we panic, we worry, we fear. But this image of adoption tells us that we don’t have to be afraid because we have a Father who will never leave us or forsake us. In fact, we don’t even have to keep our hand on God because He keeps a nail-scarred hand on us – and the amazing thing is that His grip on us is always stronger than our grip on Him. The fact that we are God’s children is the greatest source of our security.
Lastly, intimacy. Verse 15, “And by Him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’” Now, you might have heard that the word “Abba” is an Aramaic word for “daddy” or “papa” – which displays this child-like intimacy and affection we have with God. But in my studies, there were others who claimed that this was not a childish term but more of a polite and serious term – which is why it’s better translated as “dear father.” Either way, I think the point is that we’re now able to approach the all-powerful Creator God (the One who sustains and governs all things) and call Him, “Father.” I can’t remember exactly where it was, but I had an opportunity to pray at an event. After we finished, someone came up to me and shared that she was incredibly blessed by the fact that I started my prayer with the words, “Our Father.” She shared that she had never considered God as her Father – she actually thought that that would be blasphemous. “How can we call God our Father?” But hearing me pray that way, she shared that she was envious because she also wanted to experience that kind of intimacy with God. Then let me ask you, “Are you experiencing this kind of intimacy with God? Do you know that you have this kind of access to God? If you do, are you calling out to Him today? Or are you still trying to do everything on your own?” Friends, you have a Father who cares for you – you can cry out to Him. He will answer.
CONCLUSION
Lighthouse family, these are the gospel realities that we can now enjoy through the work of the cross – through Christ, there’s now no condemnation against us; through Christ, we can be victorious over sin; through Christ, and we can now cry out to God, “Abba, Father.” Then let’s live out of these realities because they will free us from fear and anxiety and fill us with joy and peace. May this be felt in your lives today.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1) What does it mean that there’s now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus? If there is no condemnation for believers, should we ever have feelings of guilt? Why or why not? Do you ever feel under condemnation? What causes you to feel this way? How will verse 1 help you overcome this?
2) In verse 13, Paul shares that living in accordance with the Spirit means that we put our misdeeds to death. Are you at war with your sin today? If not, what’s keeping you from doing so? What will help you resist sin in your life?
3) Why is it important for you to remember that God is not just our King but also our Father? What difference can this make in our thoughts, priorities, and behavior today? How will this reality transform the way you do life with God?