Romans 8:1-2

If you will, I hope you have your copy of God's Word with you today. If you will turn to Romans chapter 8.

Romans 8 · chapter mention

And while you're doing that in the hopes that I won't be a distraction to you this morning, I'll tell you why I'm in pain.

My lower back is just killing me and I'm not actually sure the reason. It's actually gotten worse as the day's gone on.

I've never been kicked by a horse in the lower back, but I'm pretty confident this is what it would feel like if I were.

So if you see me leaning a little extra heavy on the podium or pacing a bit, that's what's going on.

I'm glad to be here. If I grimace, it's because of my back, not because I don't want to be in this place with you.

Romans chapter 8. We'll look this morning at verses 1 and 2.

Romans 8 · chapter mention

There's 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.

So we're now seven full chapters into the book of Romans, beginning chapter 8.

And Paul has continued to develop the theme of the gospel, justification by faith alone.

And he's been at times recycling through some of the same truths.

That presents a problem for a preacher as myself.

What do I say that's new and fresh?

How is it that this is a new thing that we need to hear?

And the reality is we don't really need to hear a new thing.

We need to hear the same great old story that is the good news of Jesus Christ.

Somebody much wiser than myself, I believe Clay, shared this with me, so I'll give him credit for it.

But compared the gospel to a beautiful gym.

I think there's a number of newly engaged people in our congregation.

And probably, I don't know this for sure, but probably got engagement rings with a diamond set in the middle of it.

The gospel is a treasure like that, which is beautiful upon looking at it.

But to really grasp its beauty, we've got to turn it over and look at it from varying angles.

Ladies, I know you have looked at that diamond over and over and over and over again.

The diamond has perfect clarity.

You can look at it from one side and you'll know what it looks like on the other side.

It looks the same.

Gentlemen, if you bought a decent diamond, it looks the exact same from the other side.

It was cut the same way and it's clear, just like the rest.

But you don't really appreciate it until you turn it over.

The same is true with the gospel.

The preaching here to us in the letter of Romans is a turning, looking at varying angles.

The same great truth.

Martin Luther, in the 16th century, held a pastorate and preached every week the gospel to his congregation.

And his congregation began to murmur about that.

They began to come to him and say,

Martin Luther, when are you going to take us deeper?

When are you going to teach us new things?

Surely we've come to understand the gospel already.

And his response was, when you begin to live like you believe what I'm preaching to you, then I'll preach something else.

The truth of it is, we all forget, probably on a daily basis, the beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If we would remember what he's done for us, we would live much differently.

And I think that Paul had the same thing in mind as he's writing.

He's continuing to turn the beauty of the gospel over and angle it differently and hold it up to the light in these varying ways that we might appreciate it more.

So we come to the beginning of chapter 8.

And he starts off saying, there is therefore now.

Now he's directly referencing back to chapter 7.

Verses 23-25, we saw Paul having the common struggle of every Christian,

where we're not all as bad as we could be, but certainly none of us are as good as we should be.

And we war against sin in our life, even though we've been delivered from it.

He writes, beginning in verse 23,

I see in my members another law, waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin.

That dwells in my members.

Wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death?

Thanks be to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

So directly, he's referencing back to that.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Indirectly, I believe he's referencing back to the entire letter to this point.

Chapter 1, verse 16 and 17.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel,

for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,

to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

For in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith.

As it is written, the righteous shall live by faith,

and those who live by faith have no condemnation.

Chapter 2, verse 12 and 13.

For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law,

and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law.

For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God,

but the doers of the law who will be justified.

And in chapters 3 and 4 and 5,

we see that none of us can earn our way to heaven,

that none of us are righteous on our own,

apart from faith in Christ.

And Christ gives us, imputes to us,

his righteousness.

Chapter 5, verse 4.

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith,

we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Certainly, he's referencing back to chapter 6, verse 6.

We know that our old self was crucified with him

in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing,

so that we no longer would be enslaved to sin.

The condemnation has been lifted.

So there's no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Interestingly,

our English word translated, no,

is the Greek word, oidaes.

It is an emphatic negative pronoun

which relates to time.

I'll catch that.

It's an emphatic negative pronoun

that relates to time.

It carries the idea

of the completion

of a period of time.

So those of us who are in Christ

once bore the condemnation

of our sin,

but that period of time in our life

is now over.

That's not a call to learn

and understand the original language.

I don't know what is,

because the English word we get is no.

Much more meaning carried in oidaes.

Condemnation.

Katakrama is the Greek word.

It's only found in the book of Romans

here and in 5, 16, and 18.

So it's three places in the New Testament.

And it relates to the sentencing of a crime,

but focuses not on the verdict,

not that we've been declared guilty,

which we have,

but on the penalty

the verdict demands.

That's the emphasis.

It emphasizes the verdict.

Excuse me.

The penalty that the verdict demands.

Chapter 6, verse 23,

for the wages of sin is death.

Amen.

So now,

in Christ,

those who have placed their faith in Him,

there is no condemnation.

But before that,

if you haven't placed your faith in Christ,

or before you have placed your faith in Christ,

if you are in Him,

there was great condemnation on you.

The guilt of your sin pressed down upon you.

Let me read to you an excerpt

from a wonderful sermon

by Jonathan Edwards

called Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.

If you haven't yet read this,

I hope that you will.

It was delivered in 1741,

June or July 8th,

I can't remember,

in Connecticut.

I am told that Jonathan Edwards

stood at the back of the sanctuary

and read this in a very monotone voice.

I'm going to try to inflect my tone a bit

so that you can understand

what I'm saying to you.

But listen to the weight

of the words he uses here.

There is the dreadful pit

of the glowing flames

of the wrath of God.

There is hell's wide, gaping mouth open,

and you have nothing to stand upon,

nor anything to take hold of.

There is nothing between you and hell,

but the air.

It is only the power

and mere pleasure of God

that holds you up.

You probably are not sensible of this.

You find that you are kept out of hell,

but do not see the hand of God in it.

But look at other things,

at the good state of your bodily constitution,

your care of your own life,

and the means you use

for your own preservation.

But indeed,

these things are nothing.

If God should withdraw His hand,

they would avail no more

to keep you from falling

than the thin air

to hold up a person

that is suspended in it.

Your wickedness makes you,

as it were,

heavy as lead,

and to tend downwards

with great weight

and pressure towards hell.

And if God should let you go,

you would immediately sink

and swiftly descend

and plunge

into the bottomless gulf,

and your healthy constitution

and your own caring prudence

and best contrivance

and all your righteousness

would have no more influence

to uphold you

and keep you out of hell

than a spider's web

would have to stop

a falling rock.

This is where it gets really good.

Were it not for the sovereign

pleasure of God,

the earth would not bear you

one moment,

for you are a burden to it.

The creation groans with you.

The creature is made subject

to the bondage

of your corruption.

The sun does not willingly

shine upon you

to give you light

to serve sin and Satan.

The earth does not willingly

yield her increase

to satisfy your lust.

Nor does it willingly

a stage for your wickedness

to be acted upon.

The air does not willingly

serve you for breath

to maintain the flame

of life in your vitals

while you spend your life

in the service

of God's enemies.

God's creatures are good

and were made for men

to serve God with

and do not willingly

subserve to any other purpose

and groan when they are abused

to purposes so directly

contrary to their nature

and end.

And the world would spew you out

were it not for the sovereign

hand of him

who has subjected it

in hope.

There are the black clouds

of God's wrath

now hanging directly

over your heads

full of the dreadful storm

and big with thunder

and were it not for the

restraining hand of God

it would immediately

burst forth

upon you.

Isn't that incredible?

the earth

rejects us

in our sinful state.

The earth doesn't want

to be a stage

for which

in which we carry out

evil intentions

towards God.

Did you catch all that language?

The sun does not

willingly shine upon us

to give us light

to sin

against our God.

The air

doesn't willingly

sustain our life

as long as we serve

the enemy.

Isn't that phenomenal

language?

We are a burden

to the earth

before Christ.

And this

is the condemnation

that laid upon us

that we inherited

from Adam

apart from Christ

this is where

you

are.

I'll add

that many

of the congregants

in Jonathan Edwards

church building

that day

were clutching

the pews

in front of them

and begging him

to stop

preaching.

They were afraid

that the floor

was going to open up

and that hell

was going to swallow

them whole.

Incredible.

Absolutely incredible.

But now

for those of us

who are in Christ Jesus

this burden

has been lifted.

There is no

condemnation

for us.

Jesus says in

John chapter 10

John 10:27–29

verse 27

through 29

My sheep hear

my voice

and I know

them

and they follow

me.

I give them

eternal life

and they will

never perish

and no one

will snatch

them out

of my hand.

My Father

who has given

them to me

is greater

than all

and no one

is able to

snatch them

out of my

Father's hand.

You see the

connection there

now.

Those of us

who are in Christ

are secure

in the hand

of God.

There is

no condemnation

for us

any longer.

Udice

katakramah

no condemnation

for us.

We can live

guilt free.

The sins

that you've

committed

and are maybe

in the process

of committing

now

and will

commit

have already

been paid

for

by Christ.

That wrath

that is due

to you

apart

from him

because

you're

in him

who bore

it for you.

We are

secure

in the hand

of God

if we're

in Christ.

If you're

not in

Christ

if you've

not placed

your faith

in him

if you have

thought that

anything you

can do

will hold you

up from being

swallowed into

hell

you are

desperately

wrong.

I won't

pretend

that there's

a special

time

of any

service

for you

to repent

and believe

in Jesus

Christ.

You don't

have to wait

for me to

ask you

to do

that.

I don't

hold that

kind of

power.

The front

of this

building

is in

no way

some

secret

special

place

for you

to

consecrate

yourself

to

God.

The

holy

place

for that

to

happen

is

in

your

heart.

if you

feel the

weight

of

condemnation

on you

this

morning

believe

in

Christ.

Do that

now

where you

sit.

You don't

have to

listen to

anything

else I

say

this

morning.

Place

your

faith

in

Christ.

Verse

2

For

the law

of the

spirit

of life

has set

you

free

in

Christ

Jesus

from

the

law

of

sin

and

death.

The

article

at the

beginning

of

verse

2

4

So

there's

no

condemnation

for those

of us

in

Christ

because

if you'll

allow me

my own

interpretation

because

in

Christ

Jesus

we have

been

delivered

from

the

law

of

sin

and

death

we've

been

set

free

from

that

to

the

law

of

the

spirit

of

life.

Now

Paul

here

is

not

referring

to

the

Mosaic

law

or

any

other

divine

commandments

or

requirements

he's

referring

to

a

principle

of

operation

the

thing

that

drives

you

where

you

get

your

motivation

so

where

do

we

get

that

from

as

Christians

the

law

of

the

spirit

of

life

which

is

the

Holy

Spirit

what

he's

referring

to

when

Jesus

explained

the way

of

salvation

to

Nicodemus

in

John

3

5

he

said

truly

truly

I

say

to

you

unless

one

is

born

of

water

and

the

spirit

he

cannot

enter

the

kingdom

of

God

God

explains

in

Titus

3

5

and

6

God

saved

us

not

because

of

works

done

by

us

in

righteousness

but

according

to

his

own

mercy

by

the

washing

of

regeneration

and

renewal

of

the

Holy

Spirit

whom

he

poured

out

on

us

richly

through

Jesus

Christ

our

Savior

it

is

the

Holy

Spirit

who

bestows

and

energizes

our

spiritual

life

Paul

clarifies

this

in

the

following

verses

in

chapter

8

so

follow

with

me

down

in

chapter

8

we're

going

to

discuss

these

in

brief

in

coming

weeks

we'll

discuss

living

by

the

Spirit

verses

6

9

and

10

see if

you can

follow

me

verses

6

9

and

10

for

to

set

the

mind

on

the

flesh

is

death

but

to

set

the

mind

on

the

spirit

is

life

and

peace

you

however

are

not

in

the

flesh

but

in

the

spirit

if

in

fact

the

spirit

of

God

dwells

in

you

anyone

who

does

not

have

the

spirit

of

Christ

does

not

belong

to

him

but

if

Christ

is

in

you

although

the

body

is

dead

because

of

sin

the

spirit

of

life

the

spirit

is

the

life

because

of

righteousness

I'm

so

sorry

I got

ahead of

myself

but

if

Christ

is

in

you

although

the

body

is

dead

because

of

sin

the

spirit

is

life

because

of

righteousness

so

we're

granted

by the

law

of the

spirit

of

life

in

Christ

Jesus

to

not

have

condemnation

that's

an

interesting

phrase

in

Christ

Jesus

we see

it both

in

verses

1

and

2

of

chapter

8

in

Christ

Jesus

this

little

phrase

has

been

vexing

me

all

week

I

get

the

concept

I

understand

generally

but

how

to

explain

a

mystery

as

profound

as

what

it

means

to

be

in

Christ

I'm

still

not

sure

I

could

do

a

fantastic

job

of

it

I

was

trying

to

come

up

with

all

kinds

of

analogies

and

things

I

could

bring

in

to

show

you

I

think

everything

falls

short

of how

really

profound

this

mystery

is

and

I

don't

know

that

we're

really

going

to

fully

understand

it

until

we

see

him

face

to

face

but

the

point

is

that

we're

not

simply

united

with

Christ

but

that

we're

united

in

Christ

in

1st

Corinthians

15

22

!

Paul

gives

us

a

little

more

explanation

he

says

for

as

in

Adam

all

die

so

also

in

Christ

shall

all

be

made

alive

and

in

the

same

epistle

chapter

12

verse

27

you

are

the

body

of

Christ

and

individually

members

of

it

so

we're

in

Christ

verses

1

and 2

chapter

8

and

Christ

is

in

us

verses

9

and 10

we

just

read

that

you see

in

verse

9

in

the

spirit

if

in

fact

the

spirit

of

God

dwells

in

you

in

verse

10

again

but

if

Christ

is

in

you

although

the

body

is

dead

because

of

sin

the

spirit

is

life

because

of

righteousness

so

we're

in

Christ

and

Christ

is

in

us

the

best

analogy

I can

think

to give

you

is a

biblical

analogy

And

that

is

!

when

Christ

died

when

he

bore

the

wrath

of

God

even

though

he

lived

a

sinless

life

he

did

so

for

the

church

and

in

so

doing

he

imputed

to

his

church

he

gave

to

his

church

his

righteousness

so

what

Martin

Luther

called

the

great

exchange

he

took

on

the

sin

of

the

church

bore

the

wrath

of

God

for

it

and

gave

!

to

us

his

righteousness

so we

are then

clothed

in the

righteousness

of

Christ

we

are

wearing a

Christ

suit

so to

speak

so that

when we

approach

the

Father

the

things we

do

can be

seen as

pleasing

in his

eyes

because

he

sees

the

righteousness

of

Christ

in

us

Christ

is

also

in

us

the

spirit

dwells

within

us

motivating

right

living

apart

from the

spirit

of

God

abiding

within

you

everything

you

do

is

sin

we

can

categorize

the

things

you

do

as

good

things

but

anything

that

you

do

apart

from

faith

full

dependency

on

God

is

sin

and

your

heart

does

not

incline

toward

that

it

actually

rejects

that

kind

of

notion

apart

from

the

spirit

of

God

dwelling

within

you

so

if

this

weren't

true

that

in

Christ

and

Christ

in

us

we

would

be

unable

to

stand

before

God

and

we

would

be

unable

to

live

rightly

as

I

said

in

the

coming

weeks

we're

going to

look

at

what

life

in

the

place

your

faith

in

him

listen

to

these

number

one

in

Christ

you

were

given

grace

before

the

world

was

created

2nd

Timothy

1

9

says

he

gave

us

grace

in

Christ

Jesus

before

the

ages

began

number

two

in

Christ

you

were

chosen

by

God

before

creation

Ephesians

1

4

God

chose

us

in

Christ

before

the

foundation

of

the

world

number

three

in

Christ

Jesus

you

are

loved

by

God

!

Romans

8

38

39

I

am

sure

that

neither

death

nor

life

nor

angels

nor

rulers

nor

things

present

nor

things

to

come

nor

powers

nor

height

nor

depth

nor

anything

else

in

all

creation

will be

able to

separate us

from the

love of

God

in

Christ

Jesus

our

Lord

number

four

in

Christ

Jesus

you

were

redeemed

and

forgiven

for

all

your

sins

Ephesians

1

7

in

Christ

we

have

redemption

through

his

blood

the

forgiveness

of

our

trespasses

number

five

in

Christ

Jesus

you

are

justified

before

God

and

the

righteousness

of

God

in

Christ

is

imputed

to

you

2

Corinthians

5

21

we

have

in

Galatians

3

26

in

Christ

Jesus

you

are

all

sons

of

God

through

faith

we're

halfway

there

this

phrase

is

in

the

New

Testament

88

times

this

isn't

that

many

number

seven

in

Christ

Jesus

you

have

been

seated

in

the

heavenly

places

even

while

he

lived

on

earth

Ephesians

2

6

God

raised

us

up

with

Christ

and

seated

us

with

him

in

the

heavenly

places

in

Christ

Jesus

number

eight

in

Christ

Jesus

all

the

promises

of

God

are

yes

for

you

praise

God

2

Corinthians

1

number

nine

in

Christ

Jesus

you

are

being

sanctified

and

made

holy

1

Corinthians

1

2

to

the

church

of

God

that

is

in

Corinth

to

those

sanctified

in

Christ

Jesus

number

10

in

Christ

Jesus

everything

you

really

need

will

be

supplied

Philippians

4

19

my

God

will

supply

every

need

of

yours

according

to

his

riches

and

glory

in

Christ

Jesus

number

11

in

Christ

Jesus

the

peace

of

God

will

guard

your

heart

and

mind

Philippians

4

7

the

peace

of

God

which

surpasses

all

understanding

will

guard

your

hearts

and

your

minds

in

Christ

Jesus

and

number

12

in

Christ

Jesus

you

have

eternal

life

Romans

6

23

for

the

wages

of

sin

is

death

but

the

free

gift

of

God

is

eternal

life

in

Christ

Jesus

our

Lord

this

ought

to

radically

change

the way

we live

the light

of this

truth

should

expose

all

the

darkness

of our

hearts

if we

believe

that there is

therefore now

no condemnation

for those who are in

Christ Jesus

our lives will look

radically different

from the lives

of those around

us

there are so

many people

who don't

believe in

God at

all

and from the

exterior

if you looked at

their life

you would

say

that's a

really good

person

you would

even go as

far to

say

that person

is better

than some

of the

people I

know

who say

they believe

in God

and in

Jesus

Christ

shame

on us

if we

don't

live

rightly

it is a

clear

evidence

that we

don't

believe

this to

be true

not that

you're

necessarily

not a

Christian

but the

value of

the gospel

the immense

treasure

that it

is

is far

from you

in those

moments

take this

truth

with you

this week

there is

therefore

now no

condemnation

for those

in Christ

Jesus

I'm sure

I've said

it enough

now that

you have

it memorized

and preach

the gospel

to yourself

when you

wake up

in the

morning

and as

you head

off to

class

or to

work

go get

the kids

up

there's

therefore

now no

condemnation

for those

who are

in Christ

Jesus

I

am in

Christ

and Christ

is in

me

what a

glorious

glorious

truth

let's pray

together