Romans 8:1-8 ESV
“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.”
Many people are quoting these first two verses out of context and they are applying them broadly to anyone who makes a profession of faith in Jesus Christ. But we need to keep reading, for that is not who this applies to. This applies only to those who walk (in conduct, in practice) not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit of God. For to be in Christ we must be crucified and buried with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer as slaves to sin but as slaves to God.
So, we have to read these verses in the context of the book of Romans, and in the context of the whole of the teachings of Christ and of his NT apostles. For you are not “in Christ” just because you profess to be “in Christ” by a faith in him, which may or may not be God-given and God-persuaded faith. For we are “in Christ” when we die with him to sin and we live to him and to his righteousness, in the power of God, when sin is no longer what we practice, but holiness and obedience to our Lord are what we practice.
So, what does it mean to be “in Christ”?
• Raised with Christ to walk in newness of life (Rom 6:3-7)
• Dead to sin and alive to God (Rom 6:11)
• Obedience to Christ leading to righteousness (Rom 6:16)
• Set free from law of sin and death (Rom 8:2)
• Walk not according to flesh but according to Spirit (Rom 8:1-17)
• Minds set on God’s Spirit (Rom 8:1-17)
• Debtors not to live according to the flesh (Rom 8:12-13)
• By the Spirit put to death deeds of the flesh (Rom 8:13)
• A new creation: the old gone, the new come (2 Co 5:17)
• Crucified with Christ; no longer I live, Christ in me (Gal 2:20)
• Faith working through love (Gal 5:6)
• Faithful in Christ Jesus (Eph 1:1)
• In Christ might be to the praise of his glory (Eph 1:12)
• We are his workmanship, created for good works (Eph 2:10)
• Truth in Christ – put off old self, put on new self (Eph 4:20-24)
• Not living in sin, not making sin practice (Gal 5:16-21; Eph 5:3-5)
• Suffer for the sake of the name of Jesus (Php 1:29)
• Have same mind and attitude as Jesus (Php 2:5-8)
For, if we live according to the flesh, even after we have professed faith in Jesus Christ, our minds are set on the flesh, and not on the Spirit of God. And the mind set on the flesh is death, not life eternal. 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. And God is not pleased with us just because we confessed him as Lord and Savior. We must live to please him in all that we are and say and do.
Pleasing God: [Romans 8:8; 2 Corinthians 5:9; Galatians 6:8; Ephesians 5:10; Colossians 1:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 2:4; 1 Thessalonians 4:1; 2 Timothy 2:4; Hebrews 11:6; Hebrews 13:6; 1 John 3:22]
Romans 8:12-14 ESV
“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For 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. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”
So, because of what Jesus Christ did for us, we are debtors to God, but not to the flesh to live according to the flesh. For if we live according to the flesh, and if we walk in sin, and not in obedience to our Lord, and not in holy living, we are going to die in our sins regardless of what faith in Christ we have professed with our lips. And heaven will not be our eternal destiny. But if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the body/flesh, then we will live with Christ for eternity.
For it is us who are being led by the Spirit of God and who are following our Lord in obedience who are the children of God. So, if we keep on sinning, making sin our practice, deliberately and habitually, and if righteousness is not what we practice, by the Spirit, then we don’t know God, we are not born of God, God’s Spirit does not live within us, and we are of the devil. And we will not inherit eternal life with God regardless of what our lips profess. So, please take this to heart, for it is what the Scriptures teach:
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
No Less
An Original Work / March 19, 2012
I can do no less than praise You,
Lord, for all You’ve done for me.
You died for my sins to save me,
So I would be set free.
I adore You! Lord, I praise You!
Jesus, Savior, King of kings!
You provided my redemption.
Your grace has pardoned me.
I can do no less than serve You.
Lord, Your witness I would be,
Telling others of Your love,
And why You died on that tree.
Tell of how You gave of Your life,
So from sin we’d be set free,
So we could worship You forever,
And live eternally.
I can do no less than love You,
Lord, for You have first loved me.
You gave of Your life so willing,
Because You cared for me.
Turn from my sin! Obey freely!
Live for You each passing day.
Read Your word, and follow Your lead,
Lord, as I humbly pray.
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