‘So there is now no punishment following sentence to those who are
in Christ Jesus.'
This is literally ‘so no punishment following sentence now to those
who are in Christ Jesus.' The English versions translating 'ara as
‘therefore' can give the impression of a decisive break as in
Romanos 5:1, but i... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free
from the law of sin and of death.'
Here we have an explanation of the deliverance by ‘Jesus Christ our
LORD' in Romanos 7:25. It was wrought by ‘the law of the Spirit'
(paralleling ‘the law of my mind' - Romanos 7:23), ‘of life in
C... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the
flesh, God, sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and
for sin, condemned sin in the flesh,'
Once again we learn of the weakness of the Law because of man's
fleshly disposition (Romanos 7:14 onwards). The ‘spiritual' Law
fa... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘That the ordinance (requirement) of the law might be fulfilled in
us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.'
And the consequence of what He has done is that the ordinance of the
Law is fulfilled in us as is revealed by the fact that we walk after
the Spirit (compare Gálatas 5:16; Gál... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For those who are after the flesh mind the things of the flesh, but
those who are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.'
The test of whether we walk after the flesh or after the Spirit is
revealed by our mind set. Those who walk after the flesh have their
minds set on the things of the flesh.... [ Seguir leyendo ]
THE CONTRAST BETWEEN FLESH AND SPIRIT IS CONSIDERED, LEADING UP TO THE
ASSURANCE OF LIFE THROUGH THE TRIUNE GOD AND A DECLARATION OF OUR
SONSHIP AND HEIRSHIP (8:5-17). Reference to ‘walking not after the
flesh but after the Spirit' now leads on to a deeper examination of
what it means to be respons... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For the mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is
life and peace,'
The consequence of having ‘the mind of the flesh' is death. If we
set our minds on fleshly things we will reap our reward. God is not
mocked. He who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption
(Gálatas 6:7).... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘Because the mind of the flesh is enmity against God, for it is not
subject to the law of God, nor indeed can it be, and those who are in
the flesh cannot please God.'
And this is because having the mind of the flesh is to be at enmity
with God. That which is fleshly is not subject to the Law of God... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if it be that the
Spirit of God dwells in you. But if any man has not the Spirit of
Christ, he is none of his.'
In contrast those who have the Spirit of God dwelling in them are
‘in the Spirit' and not ‘in the flesh'. They dwell and walk in the
realm... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the
Spirit is life because of righteousness.'
Quite easily Paul can slip from having the Holy Spirit in us, to
having Christ in us, thus illustrating Their total equality. It is
because Christ is in us that the body is dead because of si... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘But if the Spirit of him who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells
in you, he who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will give life
also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit which dwells in you.'
The Triune God is now seen as in action. ‘Him Who raised up Jesus
from the dead' (the Father) is n... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after
the flesh,'
So, says Paul, we must recognise that we are debtors. We owe it to God
to be what we should be and yield our lives to His Spirit. On the
other hand we own no debt to the flesh, by pandering to it and in
consequence livin... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For if you live after the flesh, you must die, but if by the Spirit
you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.'
Indeed if we do live after the flesh we ‘must die', both in this
world and the next. It is a certainty. The contrast with ‘live'
indicates that this means more than just phys... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of
God.'
And one reason why we can be so sure that we ‘will live' is because,
by being led by the Spirit in this regard we are demonstrating that we
are ‘sons of God'. The assumption is, of course, that in the same
way we will follow all t... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but
you received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, “Abba,
Father”.'
This is a call for them to recognise that they have not been called as
servants (who were often beaten) but as sons (something made clear by
Jesus in the parable of... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit, that we are
children of God,'
And all this is because the Spirit Himself bears witness with our
spirit that we are the children of God, making us aware of the
privilege and joy of such a position. It is through the Spirit's
illumination and encoura... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘And if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint-heirs with
Christ, if so be that we suffer with him, that we may also be
glorified with him.'
Furthermore the Spirit bears witness to even more. He bears witness to
the fact that as children we are heirs, heirs of God, and joint-heirs
with Christ... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not
worthy to be compared with the glory which will be revealed towards
us.'
Paul now gives the assurance that no matter how great the sufferings
of this present time they are not ‘worthy to be compared' with the
glory which is to be reveale... [ Seguir leyendo ]
THE WHOLE OF CREATION IS GROANING IN EXPECTATION OF ITS REDEMPTION.
AND GOD'S PEOPLE ALSO GROAN WITH IT, AS DOES THE SPIRIT OF GOD HIMSELF
ON OUR BEHALF (8:18-27).
In spite of the division necessarily made this passage very much
connects up with the previous one and it is only the change in subject... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For the earnest expectation of the creation waits for the revealing
of the sons of God.'
Paul vividly presents the whole of creation as waiting, as it were,
with bated breath, for the time when the sons of God will be revealed.
In Jewish tradition ‘creation' can refer to either the whole of
creatio... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For the creation was subjected to frustration (emptiness, vanity),
not of its own will, but by reason of him who subjected it, in hope,
that the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of
corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.'
And the reason why it waits... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For we know that the whole creation groans together and suffers
birthpangs together until now.'
Thus just as Christians are groaning within themselves over their
temporary enslavement by sin which is not of their own will (Romanos
8:23; Romanos 7:14; Romanos 7:24), so does the whole creation groan... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘And not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first-fruits of
the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for our
adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.'
Creation groans, and so also do Christians. We have received the
firstfruits of the Spirit. We have thus experienced... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For in hope were we saved, but hope that is seen is not hope, for
who hopes for what he sees?'
For we were saved ‘in hope' (through faith - Efesios 2:8). When we
committed ourselves into the hands of our Saviour we were accounted as
righteous and entered into the process of salvation. But that was... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘But if we hope for what we do not see, then do we with patience
wait for it.'
And because that hope is of something that we do not see, we will wait
for it with patient endurance. God has plenty of time, and He does not
determine His purposes according to our wishes. We must therefore
trust in Him... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘And in the same way the Spirit also helps our infirmity, for we do
not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself makes
intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered,'
And in the same way as hope sustains us and aids us as we go forward
with Christ at difficult times, so does... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘And he who searches the hearts knows what is the mind of the
Spirit, because he makes intercession for the saints according to (the
will of) God.'
The reference to ‘He Who searches the hearts' confirms that the
Spirit is praying as we pray. Whatever our outward words our Father
knows all that is i... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘And we know that to those who love God all things work together for
good, even to those who are called according to his purpose.'
In contrast to what God knows (Romanos 8:27) is what ‘we know'. Our
knowledge of the purposes of God may be limited, but what we do know
is that to those who love God ... [ Seguir leyendo ]
THE BELIEVER CAN REST IN TOTAL ASSURANCE BECAUSE HE KNOWS THAT GOD IS
WORKING HIS PURPOSES OUT FROM BEGINNING TO END. HE CAN THEREFORE REST
IN THE CERTAINTY OF HIS LOVE WHATEVER BEFALLS (8:28-39).
Now we learn that, although we may not know what is the mind of the
Spirit in His intercession on our b... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For whom he foreknew, he also foreordained to be conformed to the
image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers,
and whom he foreordained, those he also called, and whom he called,
those he also justified, and whom he justified, those he also
glorified.'
In Romanos 8:17 Paul... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘What then shall we say to these things? If God for us, who against
us?'
Here we have another typical Pauline question, ‘what then shall we
say?' But this time it refers ‘to these things'. The previous three
verses have indicated that God is for us in accordance with His own
divine purpose, as indee... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘He Who spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how
will he not also with him freely give us all things?'
Indeed the extent to which He is ‘for us' is revealed in the fact
that ‘He spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all'.
God commended His love towards us in that Ch... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘Who will lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God who
justifies.'
In Romanos 8:32 Paul's language was sacrificial, now it becomes legal.
What possible charge can be laid against God's true people, those
‘chosen' as described in the process in 29-30, and who would dare to
lay such a cha... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘Who is he who will condemn? It is Christ Jesus who died, yes
rather, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God,
who also makes intercession for us.'
Nor can anyone condemn God's ‘chosen and beloved ones' (His elect).
For the only One Who has the right to condemn is the One appo... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or
anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?'
In view of the fact that it is Christ in His love Who pleads our cause
(Romanos 8:34), it demonstrates the impossibility of our being
separated from that love. H... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘Even as it is written, For your sake we are killed all the day
long. We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter.'
On the other hand the fact that persecution with its consequences is
prominent in Paul's mind comes out in this supporting quotation, which
is from Salmo 44:22, and refers to our suf... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who
loved us.'
Indeed rather than being defeated by such circumstances as those
described above, Christians rise above them. ‘In all these things we
are ‘more than conquerors' (or ‘super-conquerors')'. They not only
overcome them, but... [ Seguir leyendo ]
‘For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor
principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, will be able to
separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.'
Paul closes this part of his le... [ Seguir leyendo ]