The Spirit Liberates

And let's bow our heads and pray together.

Our gracious Father, we thank you so much for your word.

! And we thank you that your word is truth.

!

Amen.

So, as you've probably gathered, we are in the middle of a teaching, well, towards the end of a teaching series,

about the ministry, life, and work of the Holy Spirit.

And today, we're talking about something which, as I implied earlier, I think has a very kind of contemporary feel for our culture today.

The Spirit liberates. The Spirit sets us free.

And I want, by way of introduction, to make three points in relation to my text, which is just the first two verses.

I wish there were opportunity to give detailed exposition of this whole chapter,

but I appreciate you'd like to get your lunch before five o'clock this afternoon.

But these are the most amazing verses.

They're not immediately easy to understand, but they are verses which are dense with kind of gospel truth.

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

Because through Christ Jesus, the law of the Spirit, that's the Holy Spirit,

who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.

It's by way of introduction, I want to say something very obvious to you.

And that is, who this promise in particular relates to.

Let me just remind you again, it says,

No condemnation for who?

For those who are in Christ Jesus.

In other words, those who understand and are committed to Jesus' atoning work on the cross of Calvary,

have believed that Jesus has been physically raised from the dead,

and ascends into heaven.

And as we were praying together then,

the Bible tells us that our prayers go to Jesus,

who sits at the right hand of God,

and lives to make intercession for us.

We have that privilege.

But for this morning,

let's just focus on these words about no condemnation.

I imagine

that in every church gathering,

certainly one of this size,

there are people whose lives are lived in the rain shadow

of disappointment,

of guilt,

of regret.

Things we think about where we think,

if I had my time over again,

I would decide differently.

Or even more seriously,

some of you who live with shame and guilt,

because you've not yet discovered

the liberating message

of the cross of Calvary.

The thing about this verse is,

it's almost the gospel in one sentence.

There is now no condemnation.

Paul was talking about

existential condemnation.

That is,

what will happen to us at the end of our lives?

Will God condemn us?

If you have any doubts about that,

then I think you need to come back to the cross.

A little more about that in a moment.

But just know for now,

this promise is for those who are in Christ.

And the good news is,

if you don't feel you're in Christ,

you can do something about that today.

The second thing is,

why is it important?

It's important for what I've already hinted at,

that too many people in churches,

I spent almost 50 years in pastoral ministry,

and time and time again,

people who really should understand

there is no condemnation,

actually live in the rain shadow of it.

Their lives are less than they could be.

And when the preacher gets in the pulpit,

announces his text from John chapter 10,

John 10 · chapter mention

and says,

in quoting Jesus,

says,

I've come that they may have life,

and have it in all its fullness.

They sit in church,

and just think to themselves,

I wish.

This is important.

On two fronts.

Like a lot of good theology,

it has an extra spin-off.

But this truth is good

on the basis of theology.

It's telling us the truth

of the outcome of those

who respond to the gospel

and give their lives to Jesus.

There is now no condemnation.

It doesn't say,

there is now not much condemnation.

There is now no condemnation.

But it's not just good

on a theological front,

it's good on a psychological front.

For those of you who live

in the light of fear and condemnation,

for those of you who live in the light,

especially in our culture today,

of self-condemnation,

this is surely good news.

Why, even today,

you could be set free

from that dull ache

of worrying

whether or not

you are saved

and saved for eternity.

And finally, by way of introduction,

I just want to say

a little word

about how freedom

is understood

in our culture.

I noted your vigorous conversations

about identity cards.

I mean, a peripheral thing

at one level,

but the kind of thing

that civil liberties people

get very exercised about.

And some of you

get exercised about,

I could tell

by the look on your faces.

But freedom

is quite a slippery idea.

In our culture,

there is a French philosopher

called Jean-Jacques Rousseau

who wrote in the 18th century.

Rousseau was a kind of classic

libertarian.

He believed that

there should be no imposition.

He believed we were all

born free

and no imposition whatsoever

should be put on that

other than one.

And that is,

we're free to do

whatever we want

unless it would harm

somebody else.

I've told you this before,

that is a most fatuous argument.

And the reason

it's a fatuous argument

is you have no idea

what impact your behaviour

will have on another person.

You can't guarantee that.

I know that one area

that's big for

kind of

self-condemnation today

is the whole issue

of parenting.

I don't want to go into that,

but

you know,

you quickly learn

that

your children learn

far more

by your behaviour

than they do

from your threats.

So,

at this end

of one scale,

you've got

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

and then

you've got

a man called

Locke.

And,

sorry,

I don't mean Locke,

I mean Thomas Hobbes.

And Thomas Hobbes

believed that

at the other end

of the scale,

really,

that in order

to live in a

civilised society,

Hobbes would have

agreed with Rousseau

that we're all

born free,

but he said

in order to live

in a civilised society,

we have to submit

some of those

freedoms to the state

in order that

we can live together

civilly.

We can't just

make it up

as we go along.

So,

Rousseau thought

everything was in,

Hobbes had a more

qualified

understanding

of it.

and I guess

that most of us

sit somewhere

between the two.

If you are a

card-carrying

libertarian,

you'll be

near Rousseau

than you will

be Hobbes.

But this stuff

doesn't really

square

with the freedom

that God

offers

in Jesus Christ.

Christ.

The Bible

says,

if the Son

sets you

free,

the Son,

S-O-N,

sets you

free,

you will be

free

indeed.

Psychologists

and theologians

are happy to

speak and write

about our

pathological fear

of condemnation.

those of you

who have been

involved in

counseling ministry

will have been

exposed to the

teaching of

Carl Jung.

And Carl Jung,

I mean,

said a lot of

not very good

things.

But one of the

things he fastened

onto is this.

He talked about

our fear of

moral condemnation.

He thought that

human beings

had what he

called a shadow

side to our

personality,

which lived in

constant fear

of condemnation.

Writing a little

later,

a psychologist

called John

Bradshaw,

quite an

influential

psychologist,

talks about

something he

called toxic

shame.

I don't know

whether you've

ever watched

it,

and I don't

think she's

a person of

faith.

But if you

want to learn

something about

shame,

go and

Google TED,

and then

Google on

the search

site on

the TED

website,

Monica Lewinsky,

who talks

understandably

about shame.

That's what

John Bradshaw

is on about.

he's on about

that kind of

toxic thing

that can

really wreck

your life.

And in a

way, I think

Monica Lewinsky

has moved on

a bit.

I don't know

how she's

managed that,

but she's

moved on a

bit from it.

But again,

some of you

will be living

today with

toxic shame.

Things you've

said or done

that you kind

of can't get

past.

lost.

I was

speaking last

week in the

family church,

and a lady

came up to

me at the

end.

She said,

could I have

your phone

number?

I'm like,

look.

You know,

women don't

normally react

to me like

that.

Here we go,

you know.

I said,

there's any

reason for

this?

She said,

I've done

something in

my life.

She said,

I'm in

church every

Sunday,

but I just

can't get

past it.

And then

she said,

in response

to the

thing I

did,

the church

really just

ignored me.

I can't

get past

that either.

can I

fix up to

have a

conversation

with you?

I said,

yes,

sure you

can do

that,

yeah.

And some

of you I

know,

understandably,

are a fan

of a

well-known

international

speaker now

called

Brené Brown.

And she

talks about

all the

shame

business

and fear

of condemnation.

She talks

about the

fear of

disconnection

and moral

exposure.

In Romans

8,

Paul tells

us that

in Christ

there is

no

condemnation.

I have

an anxiety

that some

people sit

or lie on

the couches

of psychotherapists

for decades,

trying to

work out,

how am I

going to get

rid of this

baggage that

I'm walking

through life

in?

I think

Jesus

can heal

you in a

moment

of

condemnation

and the

fear of

condemnation.

But it

will take

a work of

the Holy

Spirit

to do

that.

God

is

God.

So the

theologian

Paul Tillich,

he talked

about the

anxiety

of

condemnation.

This is

what he

said,

the anxiety

of condemnation

is the

awareness

of being

unacceptable

before what

he called

the source

of our

being.

I don't

find that

a particularly

helpful way

of describing

God.

But nevertheless,

he's referring

to God.

I wonder

if there's

anyone in

the house

this morning

who just

has this

awareness

of feeling

unacceptable.

I mean,

a lot of

Christians who

feel unacceptable.

In their

head they

believe the

gospel, but

in their

hearts, you

know, just

not quite

sure about

that.

The wonderful

news of the

gospel is

that today

you can

start to

be free.

Not just

from condemnation,

but from the

fear of

condemnation.

And there

is no more

existential

fear than

the fear of

condemnation

of God.

You

imagine,

you

imagine,

you might

walk through,

I think we

blocked that

door, that

door today,

free.

free from

the fear

and the

fact of

self-condemnation.

Wondering

whether you

are acceptable

or not.

Listen,

if you want

to be really

free, you

need to

listen up,

because this

is a really

profound

spiritual truth.

There is now

no condemnation.

I mean,

I think the

spirit frees us

in a lot of

ways, and

maybe they'll

come up in

other weeks,

maybe it

has already,

but you

can be free

of thinking

that you

have to

earn your

salvation.

I

studied for

a brief

time when

I was

studying

what they

call comparative

religion.

It was

based on a

mad idea,

frankly, that

all religions

are equal,

and the fact

that we're

Christians is

kind of

random, and

yeah, just

not good.

And so

one of the

things that

amazed me

about the

other religions

I heard of

is that they

all contain

an element

of trying to

earn their

way into

the presence

of God.

And of

course, that

inevitably, because

we're human

beings, leads

to a kind of

neurosis, and

the neurosis is,

have I done

enough?

Have I done

enough good

in my life to

kind of

obliterate the

stuff that's

not so good?

It goes back

to Tillich,

doesn't it?

Worrying about

our acceptability.

And the

great news of

the gospel is,

you don't have

to earn your

salvation, it's

a gospel of

grace.

Someone say

amen.

It's a gospel

of God's love

shown to you,

even though you

don't deserve

it.

that truth

in itself

would be

enough.

I don't

have to earn

my salvation.

And when it

comes to that

toxic shame

that John

Bradshaw

writes about,

you can be

free forever

from the

acute pain

of shame.

The writer

of the

epistle to

the Hebrews

wrote these

truly

reassuring

words.

He said,

let us draw

near to God

with a sincere

heart and

with full

assurance that

faith brings,

having our

hearts sprinkled

to cleanse us

from a guilty

conscience,

and having our

bodies washed

with pure

water.

let us hold

unswervingly,

he said,

to the hope

we profess,

for he who

promised is

faithful.

God doesn't

promise this

stuff to you

and let you

down.

We've all had

that in our

lives,

haven't we?

People who

promise us

things and

then let us

down.

I've,

you know,

a couple

of times

I really,

you know,

felt let

down.

I remember

when Antti

and I

worked on

the Scargill

community,

which it

was there

to serve

the guests

who came

on house

parties and

who came,

you know,

for conferences

and stuff.

And we

had a

very focused

purpose,

serve the

guests.

If you

have never

heard of

Scargill,

you've

probably

heard of

Lee Abbey,

same kind

of deal.

And

suddenly,

there seemed

to be a

move in

the community.

People

wanted more

time off.

They wanted

not as much

time exposing,

you know,

themselves and

their personalities

to guests.

And I

I smelled

a rat

here.

And I

talked to

several

community

members.

Guess what?

They all

agreed with

me.

We get

to the

vital meeting

of the

community

with the

warden and

the chair.

I spoke

up thinking

I'm going

to be on

safe ground

here.

There were

40 people

in the room.

Do you

know how

many more

people spoke

up?

Just one

more.

And everybody

thought he was

weird anyway.

Life can

be messy.

People will

let you

down but

you've got

to get

past it.

Here's the

truth.

There is

now no

condemnation

for those

who are

in Christ

Jesus.

But there's

a painful

truth here

which,

you know,

trigger warning,

some of you

won't like

this.

But the

implication is

surely that

if there is

no condemnation

for those

who are in

Christ Jesus,

there might

be some

condemnation

for those

who are

not.

I say

that and

I almost

feel a lump

in my throat

about my

own sister.

who,

when she

was younger,

you know,

went to

church twice

a day,

taught in

a Sunday

school.

I mean,

you could

almost see

the halo

on that

girl.

I was

always the

one in

trouble.

She was

always the

one getting

rewards and

goodness knows

what.

And I

have no

idea what

happened to

her.

I think,

you know,

maybe she

married a

guy who

wasn't a

Christian.

He may

have had

more influence.

But when I

say that,

there may

be some

condemnation

for some.

I don't

like the

thought of

that.

Will some

people be

eternally

condemned?

The concept

of judgment

is avoided

in many

pulpits,

certainly in

the Church

of England

today.

But it's

there in

Scripture.

This is

what Jesus

said.

Enter

through the

narrow gate,

for wide

is the

gate,

and

broad is

the road

that leads

to destruction,

and many

enter through

it.

But small

is the

gate,

and narrow

the road

that leads

to life.

And only

a few

find it.

Here's

some great

news.

You can

join the

few today

with

certainty.

And you

can work

tirelessly

to seek

to help

others

join the

few.

I

wouldn't

dare to

kind of

put a

thermometer,

a thermometer,

try and read

the temperature

of many

churches.

Maybe not

even this

church,

but a lot

of churches.

I spent

30 years

in peripatetic

ministry.

And if

you said

to me,

give a

score out

of 10,

10 being

people are

really hot

for the

gospel and

seeing lives

transformed,

and one

is,

business as

usual,

I'd have to

say,

most

churches

full of

nice

people,

they don't

give squat

about

unsaved

people.

And then

they expect

people like

me to

stand up

at a

funeral and

try and

say stuff

that implies

they're going

to make it

home.

I think

that,

you know,

the whole

business of

judgment is

God's

business.

and I

think there

will be

some

surprises

in heaven.

But the

Bible is

very,

very clear.

The

Bible's

witness is

there is

only one

way to

God,

and that

is through

his grace

and through

faith in

Jesus Christ.

That's the

only way

I know.

And you

say to me,

what about

devout

Muslims?

I don't

know.

But I

know one

way.

And it's

working for

me and

for many

of you.

The

Spirit

liberates

us,

frees us

from

condemnation.

And it

frees us

from

condemnation

because it

liberates us

from the

consequences

of our

sin.

But the

Spirit can

also

liberate

you

from

something

that I

imagine

worries

some of

you.

The

Spirit

can

liberate

you

from the

desire

to sin,

providing

you allow

him.

At the

beginning

of the

service,

we quoted

from 1

1 John 1 · chapter mention

John

chapter 1,

if we

say we

have no

sin,

what are

we?

We're

deceived.

But if we

confess our

sins,

God is

faithful and

just to

forgive us

our sins.

Amen?

And then

one more

thing.

And

cleanse us

from all

unrighteousness.

God

wants to

forgive you,

but he

wants to

cleanse you.

he wants

to cleanse

you from

the very

desire to

sin.

Oh,

you know,

Israel had

the law,

and if

people could

obey the

law,

that's Paul's

point in

the rest

of Romans,

if people

could keep

all the

law,

they probably

would look

fairly righteous,

but they

couldn't.

Paul says

basically,

the law

as understood

by Israel,

the Old

Testament,

the Old

Covenant

people of

God,

is like a

school.

teacher.

We learn

about our

sin when

we break

the law.

In other

words,

the law's

out there

trying to

change me

from out

there by

my

adherence.

Whereas

the Holy

Spirit is

trying to

change you

from the

inside out.

You want

to be

forgiven,

that's a

great start,

but you

want to be

cleansed.

trouble with

sin,

honestly,

quite a lot

of it's

enjoyable.

I never

watched it,

but somebody

told me about

that film,

The Exorcist,

which is 40

years old now.

Apparently,

at one point,

the poor

little girl

who's possessed,

her head's

whirling around

at 360

degrees,

vomiting green

bile everywhere.

I mean,

if that

was sin,

would you

have a

problem

avoiding

it?

No.

It's

the sinful

thoughts,

the sinful

behaviours.

And in

Christ,

there will

be no

condemnation

because you

will be

liberated

from the

consequences

of your

sin.

So,

let me

end.

This

morning,

God

doesn't

want you

just to

be free

of guilt

and shame.

He wants

you to

know in

the depth

of your

soul that

you are

free in

Christ.

There is

now no

condemnation.

This

morning,

the Spirit

wants to

help to

cleanse you

from a

desire to

sin.

Those of

you struggling

with addiction

need to

hear this.

Those who

are struggling

with terrible

habits need

to hear

this.

He's

calling you

to repent

of your

habit,

to repent

of your

repeated

failure to

come clean

and seek

the Spirit's

help.

And he

doesn't want

you just to

know freedom

in your

head,

he wants

you to

feel freedom

in your

heart.

Can you

imagine

that?

Can you

imagine

it's

possible?

Two verses

that could

change your

life,

change your

mental health,

change your

spiritual health.

Therefore,

there is now

no condemnation

for those who

are in Christ

Jesus.

Because God

through Christ

Jesus,

the law of

the Spirit

who gives

life,

has set you

free from

the law

of sin

and death.

The end

of this

service,

there are

going to

be people

who've been

trained and

released to

pray with

you.

If you

want to

pray through

one of

these issues,

if you

truly want

to be

free,

and I

would

commend

you to

do it.

Go and

see one

of them,

pray with

them.

Why?

Because

if you

don't do

something

before you

leave the

house this

morning,

the likelihood

is you

will do

what?

Nothing.

Just go

home and

say,

poor old

Mike was

off on

one this

morning.

It's not

the point.

I'm trying

to declare

to you

humbly

and honestly

the truth

of Romans

Romans 8:1

chapter 8

verse 1.

there is

now no

condemnation

for those

who are

in Christ

Jesus.

Blessed

are those

who have

ears to

hear,

and

blessed

are those

who believe

and are

saved.

Let us

pray.

Would you

like to

stand up?

spirit can

set you

free.

I'm just

going to

suggest

that in a

few moments

of silence,

as you

stand there,

just take

a few deep

breaths.

breaths,

not too

many,

because you

get dizzy.

Breathe in,

and in your

minds,

I believe

you're

breathing in

the spirit

who will

set you

free.

Let's just

do that,

let's see

a few

moments

quiet.

Our gracious Father, we're so grateful

that in you, in Jesus,

there is now no condemnation.

Thank you, Lord.

The Spirit of life, the Holy Spirit,

wants to come to us this morning

for those who have no faith.

The Spirit wants to ignite a spark in you today.

For those of you who would clearly say

that I have faith, but I'm dogged by shame,

I'm dogged by regret,

I'm dogged by self-condemnation and fear

that I may not be acceptable to you.

Lord, speak a word of grace into their hearts,

would you please?

God says, I love you.

Even though you don't deserve it.

And the evidence for that is the cross of Calvary.

On which the Prince of Glory died.

My riches gained I count but lost,

and poor contempt on all my pride.

Lord, please don't let our pride stop us

from facing the truth about ourselves

and doing something about it.

And Lord, help us,

those of us who struggle with

addictive behaviors,

struggle with personalities

that could start a row in an empty house.

Lord, thank you.

You forgive us from our sin

when we turn to you,

but Lord, please cleanse us.

That our lives might become more like Jesus.

And our church would be different.

And our community would be different.

And our county would be different.

And our nation would be different.

And the world would learn the truth

that in Jesus,

there is now no condemnation.

Now, no condemnation.

Lord, hear our prayer, we pray.

Because we're desperate.

Not just to know that truth in our heads,

but in our hearts as well.

Come, Holy Spirit, we pray.

The people who agreed,

joined together and said

in a loud and confident voice,

Amen.

Amen.