GRACE OR GUILT
ROMANS 8:1-4
INTRODUCTION
Order in the court! I am going to ask you to put yourself on trial this morning. I want you to imagine that you are sitting in the court room of life and you are in the hot seat. You are on trial. Your actions and thoughts are on trial. Your attitudes and heart are on trial. Your goodness and your not-so-goodness is on trial. Laid before you is your life… your successes and your issues… your victories and your problems. You are on trial.
The prosecution is the “sinful nature” team led by none other than the great accuser himself, Satan. The Book of Job, Zechariah 3:1, and Revelation 12:10 state plainly that Satan stands forth and accuses us of our sins. They are seeking to convict you and I on the basis of the sinful nature that lurks inside each of us. The defense is the “law of the spirit” team led by none other than our divine advocate Jesus Christ. 1 Timothy 2:5, Hebrews 8:6, Hebrews 9:15, and Hebrews 12:24 explains that we have a mediator and an advocate who speaks on our behalf to the Judge… that is Jesus Christ. The Judge is God… He’s always the Judge.
The prosecution begins their case. You got problems. I got problems. We all have a laundry list of issues we face in our daily lives and we know that we need to deal with them. The prosecution nails us on our sins and the fact that we always say we will deal with them (at some point) but never do. We always say that someday we will be a better person. We say:
Someday I’m going to stop worrying constantly and trust God
Someday I’m going to quit smoking and get a handle on this addiction
Someday I’m going to stop drinking and not lose control
Someday I’m going to be organized, make good decisions, and not live in chaos and not procrastinate
Someday I’m going to get a handle on my anger and quit cursing
Someday I’m going to stop lusting and reach a point of purity and honor myself and my spouse
Someday I’m going to make God a priority and pray and read my Bible
Someday I’m going to get a hold of my mouth and not gossip and commit to integrity
Someday I’m going to stop overspending because I crave material things and live within my means
Someday… Someday… Someday…
Jealousy. Covetousness. Laziness. Apathy. Lying. Impurity. Sowing discord. Selfish ambition.
The prosecution begins and ends their case with the absolute truth that you and I have problems that war against us and we struggle with on a daily basis. There is a constant war inside us. It is a battle between the sinful nature and the inner God-honoring nature. There is a battle between the law of sin and death and the law of spirit and life. Romans 7:21-24 says, “So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God's law; 23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” Paul leaves off chapter 7 in Romans with the thought that every single one of us are in trouble. What hope is there? The prosecution seems to have an open and shut case. You and I are sinners! The prosecution rests.
The defense stands ready to defend you and I to our accusers and to the prosecution. What is the defense going to say? What is Jesus Christ, our mediator and advocate going to say? What can He say? You and I are absolutely guilty and without excuse. Romans 3:23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” 1 John 1:8 says, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” What defense can Jesus Christ possibly offer? We are guilty!
Today we are going to look at Romans 8:1-4 which is indeed the response of Jesus Christ to our accusers on the “sinful nature” team. Let us read the response of the defense and I believe along the way you and I will gain some perspective on grace and guilt.
READ Romans 8:1-4
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, 4 in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.”
The defense Jesus Christ offers us is found within these verses and centers on some important words and concepts as we think about grace and guilt. Sometimes we read a passage of Scripture and words just jump off the page at us as we read. I happen to believe that is the Holy Spirit guiding our reading of the living and active Word of God. I would like to share with you what words jumped off the page at me this week as I was digging deep into Romans 8.
I. VERSE 1: “NO CONDEMNATION” IN JESUS
VERSE 1: “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”
The Apostle Paul begins verse 1 describing for us the end result of all his thoughts in Romans chapters 1-7; specifically chapter 7. The Apostle Paul explains to us in verse 1 that those who are found in Christ Jesus have a special standing before God. The verse says specifically that we have “no condemnation” against us. We have no “damnatory penalty sentence weighing on our souls.” What is God saying to us? What is God not saying to us in this verse?
(http://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/no-condemnation/)
I know that God is not saying that there is no cause for condemnation. That certainly wouldn’t be true for any of us because we all sin, make mistakes, and fall short of God’s perfect design for us.
Is the Apostle Paul saying, “There is, therefore now, no failure for those who are in Christ Jesus?” No.
Is the Apostle Paul saying, “There is, therefore now, no struggle for those who are in Christ Jesus?” No.
Is the Apostle Paul saying, “There is, therefore now, no stumbling for those who are in Christ Jesus?” No.
God through the Apostle Paul saying there is no “damnatory penalty sentence weighing on our souls.” You can struggle against sin, but you’re not condemned. You can fail, but you’re not condemned. You can trip up and slip up, but you’re not condemned. You can stray off the well defined divine path, but you are not condemned.
When Jesus saved you and I, He didn’t say He would take away all of our problems. He did, however, tell us in Romans 8:1 that we have “no condemnation.”
No Condemnation = absolute forgiveness of all sin
No Condemnation = we are spiritually healthy people
No Condemnation = we are good in God’s eyes
No Condemnation = we have the freedom to become more like Jesus Christ
ILLUSTRATION… First Years of Marriage (p)
When Kelly and I first got married, we were both in school. Kelly was finishing up student teaching at USF and I was in my junior year at school in Tennessee. I took a semester off right after we got married to move to Tampa to start our life together.
I immediately felt like I had put God’s calling on my life on hold to get married and I felt guilty. I felt guilty for letting God down by putting my own desires before His. We got a small one bedroom apartment up off of Busch Blvd that was the cheapest we could find and I felt immediately like our lives had taken a step backwards. I felt like we were not prepared for marriage and I felt guilty. I worked 16 hour days at a catering place down the street and even tried to stock at K-Mart overnight in addition to that job, and we still could not pay all our bills. I felt like a failure. I hated my new life and the life I had chosen. Kelly and I had not lived in the same town before we got married because I lived in Tennessee and she lived in Florida. Our lives did not exactly mesh well and we had such a difficult time in marriage. I sinned greatly in anger, in frustration, in the way I treated Kelly on a daily basis.
It is only by the grace of God and by the graciousness of Kelly that we are still married today.
When I think back on my life, I pinpoint my first years of marriage as a period in my life when I was more than guilty and a period in my life when I SHOULD BE CONDEMNED for my words, my attitudes, and my actions.
And yet, we are now into our late “teen years” of being married and I have had to come to terms with something so very important. I have asked for forgiveness and I have received it. That means what, according to Romans 8:1? That means no condemnation. I do not know what period in your life you feel extremely guilty over, but God can and will redeem it if you are in Christ and He will not condemn you for it.
II. VERSE 2: “FREEDOM” THROUGH JESUS
VERSE 2: “because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death”
We know in verse 1 that those who are in Christ have “no condemnation” before God. The Apostle Paul explains this further in verse 2 by beginning the verse with “because.” Verse 2 gives us the cause of what happened and what is described in verse 1. There is no condemnation because Jesus Christ gives us life and freedom. There is no condemnation because Jesus Christ offers us and gives us freedom through His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension into Heaven.
The result of our “condemnation-less status” is freedom. It is only through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that any of us have any freedom whatsoever. Romans 1-7 makes it clear that we were once bound to sin and shackled by the eternal consequences of our mistakes, sins, oversights, attitude problems, addictions, and wrongdoings.
2 Corinthians 3:17 says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
Galatians 5:1 says, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”
Galatians 5:13-14 describes, “You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. 14 The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself."
Ephesians 3:12 encourages us, “In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.”
James 1:25 states, “But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it-- he will be blessed in what he does.”
1 Peter 2:16 warns us, “Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.”
Please realize that only in a relationship with Jesus Christ are we truly free from the bonds of our sins. We are free to have the Holy Spirit in our lives. We are free from the absolute guilt of sin. We are free to love and pursue Godliness. We are free to approach God in prayer and have a relationship with Him. We are free to be blessed by God. We are free to be honest servants of God who seek Him and find Him. I want to make one other point about freedom that is quite important in this verse and in the Christian faith. We are only free because of Jesus. We are only free because of His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. We are not free because of anything we have earned or done, but because of Jesus.
III. VERSE 3: “OFFERING” OF JESUS
VERSE 3: “For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man”
In our imaginary, but quite real trial we talked about earlier, I asked you the important question, what defense can Jesus possibly offer? Jesus Christ stands up and defends us by Himself with Himself. Jesus offers Himself. Jesus stands before the accusers, the judge, and all of us and offers Himself on our behalf.
Verse 3 in Romans 8 further explains the cause of our condemnation-less and free status before God. As I said before, we are not free because of anything you or I have done, said, thought, or experienced. We are only free because of Jesus Christ and His offering.
What did Jesus offer?
Jesus offered His blood as payment for our sins.
Jesus death was an offering that paid for our death because of sins.
Hebrews 7:27 tells us plainly, “Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.”
Hebrews 9:14-15 reveals more, “How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance-- now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.”
We have no condemnation because of sin and are free to pursue a relationship with the Almighty God because of the offering and sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
ILLUSTRATON… Worst Hymn Ever (p)
Last Sunday we had an old fashioned singspiration where we gathered and sang our favorite hymns and choruses. It was a wonderful time. We raised our hands and called out a song and the very talented musicians played those songs with no preparation (amazing).
We did not sing the worst hymn ever… and I so am glad! What is the worst hymn ever? Well, in my opinion the worst hymn ever is entitled “Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone” and is number 449 in our hymnal if you would like to look it up.
The first verse says:
“Must Jesus bear the cross alone, And all the world go free? No, there's a cross for everyone, And there's a cross for me.
Do you see problems with this verse? Jesus DOES bear the cross alone and the world does get FREEDOM because of His ultimate sacrifice. There is NOT a cross for everyone and there is NOT a cross for you and I because Jesus Christ took our place!
The second verse says:
“The consecrated cross I'll bear, Till death shall set me free; And then go home my crown to wear,
For there's a crown for me.”
Do you see any issues in this verse? You and I do not have to bear a consecrated cross… only Jesus Christ consecrated, or made holy, death on a cross. Jesus is the only way any of us get free from sin and death. This hymn makes it sound like we should take part and bear some of the responsibility.
I don’t want to! Romans 8:3 tells us very plainly that Jesus is our offering and He pays for our sins and our debt with God. We cannot pay it. He can and does.
IV. VERSE 4: “IN ORDER THAT” WE LIVE IN THE SPIRIT
VERSE 4: “in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit”
Verse 4 in Romans 8 gives us the grand conclusion of what the results of the sacrifice of Jesus is for us and what He does in us. Two very specific truths are presented in verse 4.
First, the “righteous requirements of the law” are met. The Law tells us that God requires perfection. God has given us the laws (in the Old Testament) to define for us principles of what is right and what is wrong and expects us to follow them. He wants us to always choose right. We choose wrong. Yet because of Jesus we are given inside ourselves the fulfillment of doing right. This is called “justification.” That is a big church word for “just as if I never sinned.” We are made right before God in Jesus. Acts 13:38-39 shares with us, “Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39 Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.”
Second, we can live “according to the Spirit.” Galatians 5:22-26 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” Romans 8:4 and Galatians 5 makes it clear to us that because of what Jesus has done for us we can have love, joy, peace and the other fruit of the Spirit in our lives. We must then “keep in step” with the Spirit and live according to God’s desires.
The goal all along for human beings was that we would be righteous before God and be like Him. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ allows us to be righteous. The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives enables us to have freedom to pursue a Spirit-filled Godly lifestyle. We were not saved from condemnation to keep sinning,
but to live the kind of lives that God desires. Romans 6:1-4 tells us, “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3 Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”
CONCLUSION
Remember, we are on trial. The prosecution has rested and has a rock solid case against us. We are guilty of sin. We have no hope. What defense can the defense offer? Will the judge come down with a verdict of grace or one of guilt?
The defense centers the argument on four words/phrases:
“no condemnation” in Jesus
“freedom” through Jesus
“offering” of Jesus
“in order that” we live in the Spirit
Grace or Guilt?
The judge listens to both sides of the argument. No doubt you and are sinful. We are indeed guilty and have no hope of innocence. However, the defense offers Himself as the perfect sacrifice to pay all the penalties. When the judge looks at you and me, in Christ, He gives grace rather than leveling guilt.
Grace or Guilt?
God gives us grace through Jesus.
INVITATION
To the Christian…
I invite you to live in freedom and get rid of guilt and condemnation you heap upon yourself.
I invite you to be encouraged to live in step with the Spirit
To the Non-Christian…
I invite you to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior
I invite you to allow Jesus to defend you against the Accuser
