Text Sermon: The Spirit gives life and peace (Romans 8:1 11) Romans 8:1 11 Dan Mueller, 16th July 2017, After Pentecost 6 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. Sermon May the words of my mouth, and the meditation of our hearts be pleasing in your sight O LORD, our rock and our redeemer. Amen. Introduction I have a terrible sense of direction I get turned around easily and often head in the opposite direction to where I need to go. When driving I rely heavily on my Sat Nav, but sometimes with disastrous results! I was once driving in Switzerland, trying to find the hotel I had Walla Walla Lutheran Parish Dan Mueller Page 1 of 6
reserved in the Swiss Alps. I d put the address into my Sat Nav and was blindly following the directions. The Sat Nav pointed me up the mountain, so up I went. Up, up, up. Before long the road became narrower and narrower. It narrowed down to a single lane with no markings. Twisting and turning I followed the Sat Nav further up the mountain. The houses and buildings thinned out to almost nothing. My sense of direction was bad, but even I knew this wasn t where my hotel was! I eventually gave up and rang the front desk of the hotel. Hello, said the receptionist, Oh yes, we get this all the time. Don t follow your Sat Nav, this is a common problem. Our hotel down the bottom of the mountain. This whole time I d been heading in the wrong direction! In our reading today Paul introduces a new section of his letter to the Romans. He begins with therefore (Romans 8:1), a clear indication of a new train of thought. This new section points the opposite way to his argument in the preceding chapters. In chapters 5, 6, and 7, which we ve been studying these last few weeks, Paul has been developing his theme in a negative way: those in Christ Jesus have been set free from sin and death (Romans 5), our old self (Romans 6), and the law (Romans 7). Paul now changes directions, describing his theme in a positive way: those in Christ Jesus have life (Romans 8:1 11). The two ways to live/walk The whole of chapter 7 is summed up in the first few verses of our reading. Remember last week we spoke about the battle between the four laws raging inside us: (1) the other law and (2) the law of sin wage war against (3) the law of God and (4) the law of the mind. Last week we concluded that the law can not deliver us from this internal battle, but only Jesus Christ. Paul summarises this point for us again: 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. (Romans 8:3) Paul then introduces two ways to live. But following the ancients, who derived the word to live from the concept of moving and walking, Paul uses the specific word to walk. To walk to have motion, to be animated means to live. So Paul contrasts these two ways to live/walk: (1) those who walk the way of the flesh, and (2) those who walk the way of the Spirit. These are the two different directions you can walk in life. Throughout this first part of chapter 8, Paul contrasts these two ways of walking using three areas: (a) desire, (b) destination, (c) stance. Walla Walla Lutheran Parish Dan Mueller Page 2 of 6
The way of the flesh What does walking the way of the flesh look like? (a) Firstly, if you re walking the way of the flesh it affects what you think and desire. Those who walk the way of flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires (Romans 8:5). Paul doesn t unpack what these fleshly desires are here in Romans, but does so in Galatians chapter 5: 19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:18 21 NIV). (b) Secondly, if you re walking the way of the flesh you have a particular destination. To set the mind on the flesh is death (Romans 8:6). Walking the way of the flesh leads to death. (c) Finally, if you re walking the way of the flesh you have a particular stance before God. The mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God (Romans 8:7). Paul concludes his contrast of those who walk the way of the flesh: those who are in the flesh are not able to please God (Romans 8:8). The way of the Spirit In verse 9 however, we notice a shift in language. Paul stops talking in the third person. He stops talking about those and starts talking to the Romans. Paul starts talking to you. He says, you! You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit (Romans 8:9). You are not walking the way of the flesh, but you the way of the Spirit. What does walking the way of the Spirit look like? (a) Firstly, if you re walking the way of the Spirit it affects what you think and desire. Those who walk the way of the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires, but those who walk the way of the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires (Romans 8:5). Paul doesn t unpack what this means here, but does so in Galatians chapter 5: 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22 23 NIV). (b) Secondly, if you re walking the way of the Spirit you have a particular destination. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to Walla Walla Lutheran Parish Dan Mueller Page 3 of 6
set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. (Romans 8:6). Walking the way of the Spirit leads to peaceful, everlasting life. (c) Finally, if you re walking the way of the Spirit you have a particular stance before God. The mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God (Romans 8:7). 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. (Romans 8:10). Rather than being at odds with God, in hostility, you are in a right standing with God, you are made and declared righteous. Like a judge banging his gavel, because Christ is in you, God the judge declares you innocent. There is no condemnation (Romans 8:1). The Spirit gives you life Walking the way of the Spirit means you are on the path toward life and peace. But what does that mean? What does that look like? How does the Spirit give you life? Let me suggest to you that the Spirit gives you life at three different (connected) times. (a) Firstly, the Spirit gives you life in the past at your baptism. You may recall a few weeks ago when we studied Romans chapter 6: at your baptism it was like you died, and were buried with Christ in the tomb. And just as Christ was raised from death to life, you too were raised to new life through your baptism. (b) Yet, at your baptism, your mortal body did not physically die. So the second time the Spirit will give you life will be in the future when you die, your mortal body will be raised from death. Paul says: 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. (Romans 8:11). (c) Lastly, the Spirit gives you life in the present the Spirit does this through the Word. Remember that the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Jesus, are all the same person they are the breath of God. The Bible uses the same single word for spirit/breath/wind. God is a speaking God. He spoke creation into existence ( And God said Genesis 1:3). He continues to speak His Word to sustain creation (see Psalm 19:1 4). And God continues to speak into your life to sustain you, to keep you alive, to give you faith, to help you live. As the breath of His Word and Spirit passes through and around you, you are turned from your old direction (oriented toward yourself) and turned toward God. Walla Walla Lutheran Parish Dan Mueller Page 4 of 6
The picture I have in my mind is from Ezekiel 37: [Ezekiel writes:] 1 The hand of the LORD was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. 3 He asked me, Son of man, can these bones live? I said, Sovereign LORD, you alone know. 4 Then he said to me, Prophesy to these bones and say to them, Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! 5 This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. 6 I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD. 7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. 8 I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. 9 Then he said to me, Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live. 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet a vast army. (Ezekiel 37:1 10 NIV). So I invite you to imagine in your mind some part of your life right now that is dead or dying. Perhaps your marriage. A broken relationship. Your devotional/prayer life. Someone close who is far from God. Picture something that is like sun scorched bones filling a dry valley. As you picture this I m going to read God s Word His breath, His Holy Spirit is going to breathe into these slain corpses, so that they may live. God s Spirit is going to reorient you, turning you from yourself toward Him. If you want, you can close your eyes as you picture some aspect of your life that is dead or dying. 4 Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! 5 [He] will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. 6 [He] will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; [He] will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that [He is] the Walla Walla Lutheran Parish Dan Mueller Page 5 of 6
Amen. LORD. 7 As I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. 8 I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. 9 Then the LORD said to me, Prophesy to the breath and say to it, This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live. 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet a vast army. (Ezekiel 37:4 10 NIV). Walla Walla Lutheran Parish Dan Mueller Page 6 of 6