Many writers call Romans 8 the greatest chapter in the Bible. While that is a tall statement, and one that we might debate due to personal preference, we likely all agree that it is one of the most significant portions of God’s Word. We reach the mountain peak when we scale the heights of Romans 8, as we see new vistas of the sufficiency of Jesus Christ in His death and resurrection.
Let’s take a few moments to overview the chapter before we plunge into the first couple of verses.
First, Paul links vv. 1-11 with what he has already explained concerning the effects of union with Christ. He has introduced the Holy Spirit in 1:4, alluded to His work in 7:6, but now He explains that the Holy Spirit actively works in every believer, applying the full effects of Christ’s redemptive work in the Christian’s daily walk. Only those indwelled by the Spirit are truly Christians (8:9).
Second, in vv. 12-17, Paul takes up the theme of assurance, giving clear evidences that belong to every Christian, marking with certainty that he belongs to Jesus Christ. He lives with a new sense of “oughtness,” not to the flesh, but living unto Christ; he puts the deeds of the flesh to death by the Spirit; he is led by the Spirit of God; he has received the spirit of adoption—a sense of belonging affirmed by the Spirit; he has the inward witness of the Holy Spirit; he is willing to suffer for the sake of Christ and the gospel.
Third, verses 18-25 shows the effects of the Christian’s hope in Christ. He groans, as does the creation, for the final redemption of the body, putting off every trace of sin. This hope stimulates perseverance.
Fourth, verses 26-27 explain that the Holy Spirit aids the Christian. Recognizing the believer’s weakness, the Spirit helps us through His inward groanings, interceding for us according to the will of God.
Fifth, the golden chain of redemption, as it has been called, is set forth in verses 28-30. We have the certainty that those upon whom God places His electing love will be finally glorified in His presence. Every detail of the Christian’s life is worked together by God for his good.
Sixth, yet Christians still face opposition in the world. I read story after story this week of believers suffering for the sake of the gospel. How do we know that God has not abandoned us? Verses 31-39 take us back to God giving His Son on our behalf so that we consider the magnitude of His conquering love for us. Knowing that nothing can separate us from this love gives us the confidence to face whatever comes our way.
Now, what of these opening verses in Romans 8? We quote them often. Where do they come in Paul’s letter? Right after Romans 7! As you recall, when we last left the Apostle in Romans 7, he almost left us hanging in despair. After contemplating the conflict that rages between flesh and Spirit (to use Galatians 5 language), he uttered the cry, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death?” His answer is simple, to the point, and without further explanation. “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Then he goes right back to the reality of the conflict. “So then, on one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.” So we’re left with the question. “Does that mean that I am doomed to defeat over sin as a Christian?” No, no, Paul insists, you are in Christ Jesus, and that union with Him assures every believer of living in His triumph. But how does this work out in practice? That’s what Paul begins to explain in Romans 8. Let’s join him.
Theory is wonderful to discuss, to talk over all the angles and details. It is another story, though, to put theory into practice. Science deals with this all the time. Theories are proposed that seem so promising but when put into practice they falter.
After giving the startling, yet realistic picture of the believer’s struggle with sin, Paul explains that the only ground of liberation is “through Christ Jesus our Lord,” that is, through the Christ who died and rose again on our behalf. That was a capsulated declaration of the gospel as the basis for our sanctification. But was Paul all theory and no practice? Romans 8, works out the practice of living as one who is in Christ Jesus.
This is one of those verses that is packed with truth! I will break it down into four parts. The first focuses on the word “therefore.” “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Therefore always links us to what has already gone before us. In this case, some scholars say that Paul links to everything he has written up to this point in Romans. In one sense, that is certainly true, because we have noticed that Paul has built one section on another. He sets forth his premise of justification by faith in the introduction in 1:1-17, and then begins to unpack the problem of sin and our need for righteousness in 1:18-3:20. Then, in 3:21-31, he moves to the redemptive work of Jesus Christ as our propitiation and the one through whom we are justified before God through faith. But faith alone seems out of the question for many, so Paul builds his argument of faith rather than law as the means to receive the justifying work of Christ in 4:1-25. In 5:1-5, he explains the benefits of justification through Christ and then, in 5:6-21, explains the effect of union with Adam for our downward spiral in sin and our union with Christ to live under the reign of grace. Chapter 6 concentrates on union with Christ and its corresponding effects on our sanctification through the grace of God. Chapter 7 answers the question of the law, what place it has in all the work of sanctification. None, Paul explains; it’s a work of grace in Christ, instead. Yet, with all honesty, Paul explains the conflict that Christians still face with sin, declaring that the only liberation is through Jesus Christ our Lord.
So, yes, Romans 8 is directly related to the rest of the book in that it begins to make application of the work of redemption explained in the gospel. Yet, I propose that it directly relates to chapters 6-7 in a more precise way. It shows us how to apply our union with Christ through the indwelling Holy Spirit. As those chapters focused on sanctification and its marriage to justification, Romans 8 does the same, weaving through its fabric both truths, yet showing that sanctification is inevitably built on justification.
With that in mind, what does Paul mean by the “therefore”? He is answering the question, “What does it mean to be in Christ?” He shows that it does mean something in practice to be in Christ. He cares nothing for mere theory about Christian living! Therefore takes us back to chapters 6-7, reiterates what it is to be in Christ, and then thrusts us forward in putting the gospel into practice in our lives. So what does it mean to be in Christ? What has Paul explained so far?
We know that future glory holds great reward for us as Christians. But we live in the here and now. So, lest we put all focus on the future consummation and fail to persevere to live in present joy in the Holy Spirit, Paul emphasizes the present practice of the gospel in the believer. “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Because sin sounds the trumpet of condemnation in our ears due to the battle with sin, we must get a grip on the certainty of our present triumph in Christ.
Does “now” mean now? Yes, there’s no hidden Greek meaning here! It is one of those words that we find often in the New Testament to take our minds out of the clouds and put them on the present reality of the gospel. John distinguishes from the “now” and the “not yet” in 1 John 3:2. “Beloved, now we are children of God,” that is, this is what we know in part, “and it has not appeared as yet what we will be,” that is, there’s much more ahead. This seems to be what Paul is doing. He zeroes in on the impact of now being in Christ Jesus. The future holds much more in Christ, as he muses in 8:18-25 but meanwhile, we live in the present tense. While we find encouragement by pondering the future we still live in the present. Since the battle with “sin in the flesh” rages, we cannot give up and wait for the final day of redemption. We need to know what is ours right now in Christ so that we might now live in triumphant confidence in Him.
If we do not know the present effects of justification then we will lose heart in the battle with sin. That’s why Paul keeps going back to what Christ did even while explaining the work of the Spirit in the believer’s life. The Holy Spirit will never, never let you forget the work of Christ! He keeps you anchored in the sufficiency wrought by Jesus in His death and resurrection. Notice how Paul reiterates this in Romans 8:
The reason that I make that comment, more than “no condemnation,” is that the word translated as “condemnation,” while close is not totally accurate. I know that we quote this passage often and use this translation. It is not a faulty translation but rather the word carries even more weight than what we think of as condemnation. Condemnation usually implies guilt and future sentence. The Greek word is very similar to the word used in verse 1 (katakrina is normal word for condemnation; this word is katakrima). This particular word is used only here and in 5:16, 18. While “condemnation” is adequate, it is probably best to distinguish it from that same English word in verse 3. Here, it comes from the legal realm, used in describing “a judicial pronouncement” of “servitude.” Adolph Deissmann calls it “legal burden,” which conveys not only the reality of the sentence of condemnation but the weight of its execution being carried out [Bible Studies, 264-265]. Another source explains that it means “the punishment following sentence” or a sense of “doom” that follows one’s steps [BAG, 413]. F.F. Bruce translates it as “penal servitude,” which implies a sense of laboring under the law as though never pardoned, still living in “the prison-house of sin” [TNTC: Romans, 159].
Think of the context of Romans 7 and the flesh’s battle with sin. Paul even goes so far as to explain that he served “with my flesh the law of sin.” In other words, in the ongoing conflict that believers face with sin, there are times when we feel a sense of “doom.” In those cases, we often resort to “penal servitude,” or trying to work our way out of the doom through slavish adherence to the law or doing good deeds. What Paul is doing is showing us that we do not need to live there! We’ve been liberated from “penal servitude” in Christ Jesus! There is now no penal servitude in Christ Jesus!
How does this work out in reality? It can show up as a constant sense of “oughtness.” ‘I ought to be doing this, and I ought to be doing that, or else the Lord will hammer me.’ Or it comes as ‘I know that Jesus died for me to take me to heaven but I have to do something about the nastiness of the present. If it is to be it is up to me!’ For others, this “penal servitude” results in an “eschatological dread,” that is, fearfulness about future judgment. We fear standing before God one day even though we have trusted Christ.
Condemnation, in this sense, is a mental and emotional weight that stifles spiritual progress. It conveys the idea that God is mad at me so I have to do some things to change His mind. Or God is waiting for me to mess up so that He can swat me so I have to watch my step to avoid His heavy hand. Instead of the consciousness of sonship it is more the mindset of “penal servitude.” Some go so far as to think God expects me to justify myself so I must go back to the law. That is a Christian life characterized by dread, fear, and gloom.
No! Paul hammers home this truth. That’s not for those in Christ Jesus: “Therefore there is now no condemnation—no penal servitude—to those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Who are those who can lay claim to “no condemnation”? There are parameters to that claim. “Ah, I knew it!” someone might say. “I knew there was a catch.” Here it is. This promise is only for those in union with Jesus Christ the Lord. “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” It is the sphere of relationship to Christ, a union established by the grace of God on the basis of Jesus Christ becoming sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor. 5:21). Christ removed the enmity between us and God so that He adopts us into His family, seeing us perfectly united to His Son.
It is interesting how Paul develops this theme of union in the Epistle to the Romans. In Romans 5 he emphasizes “through Christ,” that is, that Jesus Christ is the solitary instrument, the means, the Substitute, and the very person who as our Great High Priest reconciled us to God. (We see this in 5:9, 10, 11, 17, 18, 19, and 21). Yet even with the emphasis on “through Christ,” the picture of union is shown in two ways. First, union with Adam, the first man, led to our condemnation. Second, union with Jesus Christ, the Second Adam, secured our justification.
In Romans 6 he moves to emphasizing “in Christ Jesus” and “with Christ” (3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 11, 23) to show that (a) Christ has accomplished the redemptive work and we cannot add to it; (b) every believer is united to Him so that every blessing of redemption belongs to everyone in Him—so there are no elites and no second-class Christians; (c) therefore, all that Jesus did was perfectly accomplished in you so that you have no need to rely on the works of the law for justification or sanctification.
If union with Christ puts you into that unique, intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, then you can be assured that this impacts your daily walk. That’s what Paul unfolds for us in these verses. He clarifies, in case we’ve misunderstood, that sanctification is just as certain for the one who has faith in Christ, as is justification. In other words, if Christ has saved you then He will also sanctify you. He shows us what the application of the gospel looks like in daily life, as the indwelling Holy Spirit helps us.
Coaches draw up game plans to defeat their opponents. X’s and O’s fill the marker boards as they instruct their teams on the perfect plan for victory. Yet half of those plans fail! Many intangibles stand on the field of battle. I remember many years ago attending a college football game. One team was undefeated and led by one of the great all-time running backs that won that year’s Heisman Trophy. The other team limped along throughout the game but somehow, kept the score tight. On paper, there was no way that the weaker team could win the game. But something strange happened. Late in the game, the undefeated team lined up near the goal line for the winning score. The best running back in the country got in his stance. Everyone in the stadium knew that he would take the hand-off and run in for the score. The ball was snapped, the quarterback looked for the Heisman Trophy winner, but he ran the wrong way. The next play, everyone knew what that he would get the call and score. But something went wrong as again he ran the wrong way. This gave the underdog a chance to take over and win. Indeed, that’s what happened in a most improbable way, as the team drove up field, ending the game with a 52-yard field goal. Did their coach draw it up like that? Absolutely not! He just did not want to get embarrassed by a better team! But he had his team ready for the intangibles that arose to give them a chance to win.
Do we live the Christian life on game plans that only work half the time? Certainly not, we have more than a game plan that has half a chance to succeed in facing our battle with sin. Plans are good and important in our growth. But plans do not sanctify us. The Spirit does that work. We have the unseen Sovereign who liberates us from sin by His power because we are in Christ Jesus.
While Paul explains our justification in verse 1, he moves to our sanctification in verse 2. Or as John Piper put it, “Verse 1 is a declaration of no condemnation. Verse 2 is a description of practical transformation” [www.desiringGod.org, “Set Free by the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus,” October 7, 2001, p. 2]. Notice what Paul describes.
First, it’s not what you do it is rather, who has worked in you that matters in your sanctification. “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.” Paul reiterates that you do not liberate yourself in the battle with sin. That does not mean that we take a passive, lazy position. We do not embrace the “Let go, let God” mentality. Instead, the aorist verb “set you free” declares something that has already happened by the Spirit’s application of our union with Christ. Does that mean that we have arrived so that there’s no more room for growth? Certainly not, as is evident by the ongoing work of God in every detail of our lives (8:28-30). What Paul does, though, is to warn us of the big trap of living in legal “oughtness” by trying to find God’s favor and overcome sin. You already have God’s favor by union with Christ. You have the assurance of the Spirit’s power and help in overcoming sin because you are in Christ.
Second, this liberation and transformation is grounded in justification. That’s why he first declared “no condemnation,” and why he explains how the Spirit has set you free from the law of sin and death through God sending His Son to condemn sin in the flesh (vv. 3-4). The Godhead works in concert. The Spirit applies what the Son secures through the Father’s gift.
Third, this liberation and transformation is Paul’s continuing explanation of his cry in 7:24 and the brief answer to his question in 7:25a. How does Jesus Christ free us from the body of this death? It is by the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus setting you free from the law of sin and death.
Fourth, the “law” is used here as “power or principle or impulse or authority” (Piper, 3), either by sin working death or by the Spirit working life. Because you are in Christ, the Holy Spirit’s power goes to work liberating you from the principle of sin and death at work in you. Paul does not speak of potential liberation. He speaks of certainty. The Spirit has done this work—so live in it.
Finally, because the Spirit “has set you free from the law of sin and death,” you are in a position to live as a Christian, even in the battle with sin. Triumph belongs to you through the Spirit’s power in applying the gospel day after day.
While every step of the Christian life involves the practice of living out the gospel, it is always rooted in the redemptive work of Christ and applied by the power of the Holy Spirit. We must never try to jump over the multiple implications of the death and resurrection of Christ to gain the Spirit’s enabling. The Holy Spirit constantly takes us back to the cross, back to relying upon Christ crucified, and Christ as our righteousness.
In the same way, if we merely theorize about the redemptive work of Christ without asking for the Spirit’s help in applying it, then we fail to live out the gospel. If you are in Christ Jesus then be certain that the Holy Spirit is at work to lead you in gospel triumph over the bondage of sin and death.
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