Introduction:
This is actually the second part of the series of sermons in the 8th chapter of the epistle of Paul to the Romans.
At this point, the Apostle Paul makes it clear that “the Spirit of God lives in” every believer. Here’s the crucial point of his discussion throughout this chapter. We received a new standing before God, new life in Christ, and new way of living under the directives of the Holy Spirit because the Spirit of God dwells in us, the believers of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The indwelling of the Holy Spirit in our lives is a vital part of our union with Christ. Without His presence in us our new birth is clouded with doubts.
There are those who teach that a person who got saved should wait for sometimes before he/s can be indwelt by the Holy Spirit. But that is a false teaching! Our passage unmistakably declares that the Holy Spirit dwells in a believer at the moment he/s receives Christ (vv. 9-10).
In addition, the Holy Spirit does not leave a believer even for a while. The word “dwells” (NASB) is a translation of the Greek “oikeo”, which means “to be at home”. It has the idea of residence. In other words, to be indwelt by the Holy Spirit is to have the Holy Spirit residing in us and that is ‘til Jesus Christ returns.
Let us now examine the other three sets of outcome of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
I. New State (v. 9ab)
After a series of contrast between a mind set on the things of the flesh and a mind set on the things of the Spirit, Paul goes on to indicates that the indwelling of the Holy Spirit makes it certain that Christians are no longer in the dominion of sin (“not in the flesh”) but in the dominion of the Spirit. So, in other words, the believers are transferred from their old state of sin into the new state – the state of being “in the Spirit”.
Our former state is “in sin”. To be in sin is to be in the state of total helplessness and total hopelessness. It is to be in bondage to sin (cf. Rom. 7:14).
On the other hand, our new state – “in the Spirit”- is a state of blessedness. A state of freedom to do the very will of God out of love and thanks for Him. In 1 Corinthians 3:17 Paul says,
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
Dr. S. Lewis Johnson, a noted New Testament scholar, tells of his visit in Britain, where he observed that British people love dogs as their pets. During his stay he noticed three kinds of dogs which he relates to people in reference to freedom.
The first are those dogs who have law but no freedom. They are those who are in chain. Though they jog and roam with their masters yet they cannot go where they want.
The second are those dogs who have freedom but no law. These kind of dogs are not in chain and are free to do whatever they want and to go wherever they want to go. Yet they are living in a dangerous existence.
The third are those dogs that have the law of freedom. They are the kind of dogs who jog, roam, and play with their masters without any chain. They are free to go wherever they want to go but they still return to their masters. This they do because of the chain of affection that connects them to their masters.
The first are like those legalists who painstakingly live in obedience to man-made rules to the suppression of their freedom.
The second are like those people who make use of their freedom as license to sin.
The third one are those like genuine believers who make use of their freedom in Christ to stay close with the Master, the Lord Jesus Christ.
To be “in the Spirit” is to be in a new state of being at peace with God and submissive to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
II. New Identification (vv. 9-10)
Martin Luther, a Catholic monk and the one who started the reformation in 16th century, says,
“The life of Christianity consists of possessive pronouns.”
This is precisely true. It is one thing to say “Christ is the Saviour” and quite another thing to say, “Christ is my Saviour”. This makes more sense when we look closely the verses we’ve just read. If we transform the last part of verse 9 into a positive one it reads like this,
“If anyone has the Spirit of Christ, that person belongs to Him.” How do we know a person really has the Spirit of Christ and he/s belongs to Christ?
Paul sets forth the yardstick which we can measure true Christianity, that is, new birth (v. 10). Somebody approached and asked me, ‘How do you know a person really belongs to Christ?’ Without further hesitation I told him a person is of Christ when he demonstrates the character of Christ. Christ likeness is done by the Holy Spirit. In 2 Corinthians 3:18, the Apostle Paul writes,
“But we all, with unveiled faces, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.”
The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the reason behind the transformation of the lives of believers. Therefore, with continuous transformation we reflect the image of our Saviour Jesus Christ.
The true test of our Christianity is not membership of the church. It is not being baptized in water. It is not participating in Holy Communion. It is not attendance in church meetings. The true test of Christianity is becoming like Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit which makes us identifiable with Christ!
Albert Barnes, an 19th century theologian, in his Notes on the New Testament, affirms this truth,
“If a man is not influence by the meek, pure and holy Spirit of the Lord Jesus, if he is not conformed to His image, if his life does not resemble that of the Saviour, he is a stranger to [Christianity]… it does not matter what else he may have. He may be loud in his profession, amiable in his temper, bold in his seal or active in promoting the interest of his own party or denomination in the church; but if he does not have the character of the Saviour… it is a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal.”
III. New Hope (v. 11)
One of the fundamental claims of Christianity is that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. Throughout the history of Christianity this claim is constantly being challenged, and, at most, denied by its critics. Yet try as they may, they could not knock it off. This is because of two undisputed proofs: the empty tomb and Christ appearances to many people. Regarding the empty tomb the Gospels reported:
“After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it…The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.” Matthew 28:1-2, 5-5
This is the same incident reported by the Gospel of Mark. Here’s the report of the Gospel of Luke:
“On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.” Luke 24:1-3
John reported the same incident with some variations. On the other hand, the appearances of the risen Christ are further affirmed in the New Testament. In his on the spot sermon, the Apostle Peter told of his listeners,
“God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.” Acts 2:32
How could they be witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection had not Jesus Himself appeared to them?
Paul, in his discussion of the resurrection, declares,
“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.” 1 Corinthians 15:3-8
Those passages are but some of the 300 verses dealings with the resurrection of Jesus Christ. But there is more to Christ’s resurrection than you can actually think. It has an impact not only in the whole world but also to His followers. Everett F. Harrison, a New Testament scholar, comments on the resurrection of Christ,
“No man saw Jesus rise from the dead; only a few saw Him risen; but all men are affected by His resurrection in one way or another.”
In Romans 8:11, Paul tells us that Christ’s resurrection is actually the foretaste of our own resurrection. In 1 Corinthians 15:20, 22-23 we read,
“But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep… For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the first fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.”
This is our new hope. To be resurrected the way our Lord resurrected from the dead. This new hope is made sure by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The Apostle Paul tells us with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit we experienced spiritual resurrection (new birth). And it is the same indwelling that makes it certain that we are to experience physical resurrection.
At the back drop of threats of destruction, inevitability of aging, sickness, and death we have an earnest expectation that our corruptible bodies will be resurrected into incorruptible ones.
We should not seek for perfect health in this world for that is impossible. And we should not buy in to the idea of being forever young. James Innel Packer, in his article, Poor Health may be the Best Remedy, says,
“Perfect physical health is promised not for this life, but for heaven, as part of the resurrection glory that awaits us in the day when Christ will change our lowly body to be like His glorious body.”
