Life in the Spirit
Romans Chapter 8:1-17
Good Morning Church, if you would take out your bibles or phone app and turn to Romans Chapter 8:1-17
We are going to look at living life in the Spirit of God
The world would want to tell you that it is impossible to live life in the Spirit of God-
I want to show you in the word of God that that it should be impossible for a believer to not live in the Spirit of God when the Spirit of God is leading your life.
We will see that if the flesh (yourself) is leading than it is impossible for you to be both lead by the Spirit and your flesh. One will surrender to the other.
Illustration-
Have you ever heard the term “peeled like an onion”? It is a said because an onion is an onion all the way through. Each layer is another layer of an onion. I first heard it as an illustration with a question that said would you like to be an apple or an onion? Most would say an apple because the outside is a red or yellow skin that looks polished and appetizing. But with an apple, what is happening beneath the skin can be at least a bruise and at most could be completely rotten. You are not sure what you got until you bite into it. An onion is layer upon layer of onion- no surprises. You pick up an onion, you know what you got.
Matt. 6:33- “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.”
Seek is an action word, it cannot be done passively. It has to be initiated, It has to be intentional. We are going to see that if we are to live a life in the Spirit- meaning that the Lord is in charge of your life- it will be initiated by God and intentional by you.
What people see will be who you are- your kids who are watching your life and taking notes must see that the Lord is in charge and that you are intentional in serving Him.
I have said for a very long time that everyone is going through something.
We need to stop kicking this can down the road.
We need to start working out our hope and confidence in Christ Jesus.
We use that term as a cutch saying that allows us to believe that we have to live under par of what the Lord would have us live.
We need to work out of this mindset and begin to put our trust back into the hands of the Lord that offers us hope and confidence.
Hope only comes from one source and that is Jesus Christ.
Hope is in the bible over 130 times. Do you think that He is trying to tell us something? Yes hope for today (now) and hope for tomorrow (eternity) is found in Jesus Christ.
We decide! We choose where we live and how we act and with what power we will do the things we are called and ask to do.
Hope is not a strategy- it is a life style! The old saying- while Rome is burning, we can still have hope!
Romans 8:(1-4)”Therefore, there is now (eternity) no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus, the law of the spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death, 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 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.”
Thanks be to God for what He has done for us through Christ!
Now get this as we get started- remember condemnation is what the devil throws at us to draw us away from God and conviction is what the Lord brings to draw us towards God.
Because of what Christ has done, there is no more condemnation for our sins if we are in Christ.
The once guilty are now acquitted and spared because Jesus paid the price. So when we are given condemnation, we know that is not from the Lord, it is a lie from the pit of hell to draw us away from the Lord.
We see here that we have been given a pardon, acquitted of our sins and thus released of condemnation because of the wonder working power of God.
The acquitted are those who are in Christ Jesus- those united with him. Paul’s language here is relational- only those who are in Christ are not condemned.
See how this works- God the Father condemns sin- the breaking of the law against God. Missing the mark of perfection which is what God demands. Because of Christ, the sinless one, we have been acquitted and justified because of our faith in Christ rather than the sin of Adam.
Those who do not accept Christ and his sacrifice are condemned not because God does not live them but because they have sin in their life and sin is condemned by God.
Paul writes “through Christ Jesus, the law of the Spirit of life set me free (Jesus) from the law of sin and death,”
We could not do this in ourselves! Jesus . Jesus .Jesus Thank you precious Jesus!
What we could not do in ourselves, He has done for us!
The Spirit of the Lord dwelling in us empowered by the Lord Himself. The flesh is ourselves, our own desires apart from God’s, the term carnal. We cannot save ourselves and the flesh cannot keep us from sinning and falling.
There are things we cannot do ourselves which is hard for some, we cannot save ourselves and we cannot be justified in our own sinful manner.
We are free from condemnation and released from doom and despair and destruction when we remain in aright relationship with God and justified in Christ.
We do not go by feeling, He did not save by feelings, he saved by being the sacrifice for our sins. Because of what Christ has done, we are already, today, free from the powers of sin and death so that we can live that abundant life he talks about in John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they might have life, and have it to the full “ Abundant life! The law of the Spirit of life has set us free!
“And so he condemned sin in sinful man to be the sin offering” it don’t get better than that!
“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.”
2 Cor. 5:17- “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.”
This world does not need more books about Jesus… it needs to read the book about Jesus and respond to His great love for each of us! (Hold Bible)
Some of us this morning need to stop heaping condemnation on ourselves when our Lord has set us free! Be released from the guilt of sin because Jesus has paid the price for you.
Some of you this morning keep talking about Jesus setting you free when He comes back, He wants to set you free today! We are no longer living hopeless, we are hopeful and we have a hope in a creator God that loves us enough to make that ultimate sacrifice and don’t wait for something that He has already promised you can have in Jesus Name!
When believers grab these facts, the emotional freedom will usually follow.
Romans 8:5-8 read slowly and clear
If it is impossible for God to fulfill the law in us…what determines whether we obey or disobey God?
Whether we are living in the flesh (self) or by the Spirit of God, Which one we choose determines our mindset of how we choose to live.
One mindset is on the flesh- (1) what we want (sinful nature) and (2) the Spirit of God and do what the Lord wants of us.
One is spiritual death without Jesus and one is spiritual life with Jesus for eternity.
The one without God is chaos and destruction , no peace and always fighting within yourself who you want to control your life.
The one with the Lord is not easy, does not come without earthly hurts and heartaches but comes with the assurance of the peace of God and the strength and presence of God in your life.
After talking too many today, you see that the hardships in their life a lot of times are brought on because of their rebellion against God, the lack of peace in a world struggling to find peace.
The bible tells us we either live in Adam or we live in Christ- living carnally or spiritually
Those that totally depend on human resources and themselves walking in the flesh without the Lord walk earthly, everything for the now and those that walk and are led by the Spirit of God and are empowered by the Spirit of God to love and obey the things of God.
I live for myself, I will do what I want! I will have it all now and will worry about the consequences later-that is the mindset of the world.
The ones in the mindset of the Spirit are committed to seeking the things of God and seeking the things from above. They are storing up treasures in heaven because they know this is not all there is.
“Without the Spirit of God, we can do nothing. We are as ships without the wind, branches without sap, and like coals without fire, we are useless.”—Charles Spurgeon
In the world of technology there is a new development called Hyper Sonic Sound (HSS). The inventor, Elwood “Woody” Norris, has engineered sound waves to travel like a laser beam for about 150 yards. This allows sounds to be heard by a person in a particular place but not by those immediately around them. You could be listening to music or specific instructions while those standing next to you would be left in total silence. If you move out of the tightly formed path of these unique sound waves you too will be unaware of any noise.
God's communication with us is very similar to these sound waves. We must be in the right place to hear the Holy Spirit, and when we’re there the message is clear. If we move away from the pathway of His voice we become unaware of the fact that He is communicating with us and we consequently miss the message.
When D.L. Moody was just starting in the ministry, he heard a preacher make this statement, “the world has yet to see what God can do with one man fully surrendered to Him.” Moody that night said, “By God’s grace, I’ll be that man!”
I have a glove here in my hand. The glove cannot do anything by itself, but when my hand is in it, the glove can do many things. True, it is not the glove, but my hand in the glove that acts. The Christian is a glove. It is the Holy Spirit in us, the hand, who does the work. We must room for the hand so that every finger in the glove is filled.
Close
If you are running the show in your life, how is that working out for you? Are you repeatedly making the same mistakes or doing the same old things, the same old way, and you wonder why the outcome is always the same? Maybe it is time for you to turn your life over to the only way that can put it back into order-to the only one that promises to walk with you, to lead you, empower you, the only one who wont leave you at the times of need because He is with you always! For some on you today, He is speaking loudly and pinpointing areas of your life that He wants to be involved in- you can shut Him out or you can let Him in- He is standing waiting for your answer. Let Him in, allow the Holy Spirit into your life. Invite Him in! Holy Spirit, I am sorry for not listening to you speak in my life but today, I invite you in to make the necessary changes in my life. I will seek you with all my heart and with all my strength. I will allow you access anywhere in my life.
I am the glove and you are the hand. I HAVE THE POTENTIAL to change but I cannot without you. If you are online this morning, please let us know if you have come to Christ or you have allowed the Holy Spirit to direct your life. Please contact us or leave a message with the video, we want to rejoice with you.
Let’s pray
