Living a New Life

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… 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.

Last month I accepted a challenge from Pastor Bucklew of Zion Lutheran Church in Delmont to memorize the entire chapter of Romans 8.  I can assure you that was certainly time well spent, and I would encourage each of you to find a Bible and at least read through that chapter a few times.  The part that really has stuck with me in the weeks following has been this concept of living in the realm of the Spirit instead of the realm of the flesh.  When Paul speaks about the realm of the flesh he is talking about all those things that come naturally to us.  Each week in our congregation, we confess that “we are, by nature, sinful and unclean.”  This is the reality for us in this fallen world.  The things that come naturally for us are not good for us.  Sin is natural to us.  And sin flows naturally out of us – envy, jealousy, greed, lust, anger, hatred, etc.  So when people blame their sin on their nature – i.e. “I was just born that way.” – in one sense they are right.  They were born sinful – we all are.  But that phrase can only explain our sin, it cannot excuse it.  Thankfully, God offers us each an alternative to our nature.  He offers us a chance to live according to His nature – His Holy Spirit.

He does this through His Son, Jesus Christ.  In Christ, we are offered forgiveness of our sins – verse 1 “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”  Why is this forgiveness possible?  Because Jesus did for us what we, because of our sinful nature, were incapable of.  He set us free from the law of sin and death by becoming a sin offering for us by dying on the cross in our place.  He did this to fulfill the righteous requirement of the law for us.  And in doing so, He has made it possible for us to live a new kind of life.  A life no longer governed by our flesh – our nature, but a life led by the Holy Spirit.  Not just a morally better life, but a completely new kind of life.  Now, this doesn’t mean that we will never sin; it doesn’t mean that we will be perfect in thought and deed.  But it does mean that we no longer have to live a life driven by our sinful nature.  It does mean that we should never again be content with just doing whatever comes naturally.  It means that we will see, “I was born that way,” only as a confession and explanation, but never as an excuse for our sin.  Yes, I was born that way, but Jesus Christ has set me free from that way and has given me a new nature – His Holy Spirit.  And the only way to live that life is through faith in Jesus Christ.  The only way to live that new life is by living in the realm of the Spirit and forsaking the realm of the flesh.  As it says in verse 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.  Which realm are you living in today?