Every lost person is like a person that is on death row who has already been tried and condemned.
The sinner does not have to be proven guilty. In the sight of God:
• WHO SEES ALL
• WHO KNOWS ALL
The sinner has already been condemned.
You might ask, "If this be true, then why does the lost person have to appear at the great white throne judgment?”
God knows he is guilty already, but on the judgment day, God will have the indisputable evidence of his guilt.
Illus: For example, a woman was cheating on her husband. The husband did all he could to preserve their marriage, but his wife continued living in sin, all the while denying that she had done anything wrong. Finally the husband hired a man to follow her and record what she was doing with a video camera. Later in the divorce court, before the judge, she still denied she had done any wrong. Since she would not admit her guilt, they showed the video of her and her lover together. She was so embarrassed, when the evidence was so overwhelming, showing that she was guilty. She could no longer deny her wrongdoing.
Sinful people all over the world are doing the same thing. They actually think they can sin and get away with it, but one day, the sinner will appear at the Great White Throne Judgment, and the evidence will be indisputable.
This is why it is difficult to get some lost people to attend church. They do not want to be reminded that they are condemned sinners, waiting for that awful day when they will hear Jesus say, "Depart from me..."
A Christian is a person who once was in that same awful situation, but he recognized that the sin he was committing was terrible in the sight of God, so he did something about it. He came to Christ and confessed his sin before the Saviour, and Jesus forgave him of all his sins.
When he did that, some wonderful things happened:
1. HE WAS JUSTIFIED
The moment he received Christ as His Lord and Savior, he was justified. That is, he was declared righteous. The reason he was declared righteous is because on Calvary the Lord took our sins, and we took on His righteousness. And when God sees us, He sees us through the blood of the Lamb, and we are declared righteous.
But he was not only JUSTIFIED, also-
2. HE WAS SANCTIFIED
Whereas he was justified instantly, his sanctification began when he received Christ. He was declared righteous, and now, through the process of sanctification, God will make him righteous.
Having recognized that we are no longer under the condemnation of sin, we understand what Paul is telling us in Romans eight.
Look at verse 1, "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
This verse of scripture tells the Believer some wonderful things, such as:
I. THE BELIEVER'S POSITION
Look at verses 1-2, we read, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.”
These precious verses tell the Believer about -
A. OUR SECURITY
Look at verse 1, we read, "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
Notice the words, "...in Christ Jesus..." This is our new position, as believers. We are “In Christ” we are no longer “In Adam!”
Someone might be saying, “If there is NO CONDEMNATION to those who are IN CHRIST, then why do we have to be judged?”
There are two judgments.
1. THE GREAT WHITE THRONE JUDGMENT
Sinners will appear before the Great White Throne Judgment to give account of their sins.
2. THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF CHRIST
Christians will appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ to give account of their faithfulness (or lack of it).
The Christian will not be judged as the sinner is judged. Because of the price Christ paid for sin, the saved man is beyond condemnation.
Paul makes the distinction here that only those who are "...in Christ..." enjoy this blessing.
Illus: In this life, God lets the rain and the sunshine fall on the JUST and the UNJUST.
But, there are some blessings we Christians enjoy that the lost world cannot enjoy, and one of those blessings is that we live lives FREE FROM CONDEMNATION!
Is it possible to be a Christian and still be in condemnation? Absolutely not! God's Word says, "There is therefore now NO CONDEMNATION TO THEM WHICH ARE IN CHRIST JESUS.”
Notice, Paul is quick to add that those who now are free from condemnation are those, “WHO WALK NOT AFTER THE FLESH, BUT AFTER THE SPIRIT."
If we meet the condition of being "...in Christ Jesus..." we have no other condition to meet to be free from condemnation.
We who are justified by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ, have passed from condemnation, but if we walk in the flesh, we certainly cannot have the joy and peace of God.
B. OUR SAFETY
Now it does happen that many Christians do not "...walk...after the Spirit..." Sometimes they walk "...after the flesh."
Those who walk after the flesh sometimes say:
• They do not feel like they are saved
• They are not sure they are saved
The problem is that they have lost their JOY. You can not have close fellowship with Jesus when you walk after the flesh, because the Holy Spirit constantly reminds you that you are walking in disobedience.
Because they have lost the joy and peace that comes with a life of walking in the Spirit, they feel they are being condemned.
But this is not the "condemnation" of the unsaved man. This is not being able to enjoy the Joy and the Peace of the Christian life we have in Christ.
Illus: A lady came to her pastor several times with the complaint that she could not feel the assurance of her salvation. Each time she came, the pastor would go through the plan of salvation with her. She had done all that God had asked her to do many years before those visits. Still she did not have the assurance of her salvation. The problem was, when she first gave her heart to the Lord, she was living a life close to God, being led by the Spirit. As the years went by, she became careless. She did not stay close to the Lord. That resulted in her feeling that she was no longer saved. Many people are guilty of this. They know what they are doing is wrong, and their own heart condemns them for living a life of walking after the flesh.
Any Christian who decides to walk after the flesh like the lost world, will loose their joy and peace in their heart.
Notice these words in verse 1, "...NO CONDEMNATION to them which are IN CHRIST JESUS, who walk NOT AFTER THE FLESH, but after the Spirit."
The safest place in all the world to be is "IN CHRIST JESUS..."
The Old Testament gives us a good picture of this in Noah's ark. We see the invitation in Genesis 7:1, "...Come thou and all thy house into the ark...", and once they were in, the Bible states, in Genesis 7:16, "... the Lord shut him in."
• God did not tell Noah to get a spike and a hammer, and nail the door shut himself
• God did not tell Noah to drive some spikes into the wall and hold on
Some feel that is what happens when we get saved; we, through our own efforts, try to hang on.
But look at what happened when God shut Noah and his family in the ark. God took care of securing the door, and keeping all who were inside, safe.
This is a perfect picture of what happens when we accept Christ as our Savior. There is no other place in the world that is as safe as to be in the new Testament Ark - CHRIST JESUS!
Illus: We are told that when God created the human body, he created the woman with a womb that she might be able to bear children. We are told that all the while she carries that child, the baby is protected with a water cushion up until it is time for the baby to be born. Then that protective shield breaks, and the child is born. All the while that protective shield is in place, the baby is not harmed if the mother is bumped.
Someone said that in America, the most dangerous place for a baby is inside its mother's womb. Each year thousands upon thousands of babies are slaughtered, while still in their mother's womb.
We who are IN CHRIST are in the safest place we can be. He will take care of us, and protect us from all the bumps and licks of life.
Illus: We have many who find safety in their bank accounts, CD's, IRA's, Mutual Funds, Treasury Bills, stocks and bonds, etc., but the safest place is, "...IN CHRIST."
One day lost people will find out that all the things they thought they could trust in will fail them, and they will stand before the Lord at the Great White Throne Judgment, condemned, while all who have been justified by the blood of Jesus will be free of condemnation.
Wouldn't you much rather be in the shoes of the redeemed?
Look at verse 2, "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death."
Illus: Suppose you had a pen in your hand and you turned it loose. The law of gravity would immediately take over, and cause it to fall to the floor. Every time it will fall!
But suppose as that pen fell, you reached out and caught it and kept it from falling. This is exactly what has happened to all of us. Christ has made us “Free from the law of sin and death”. The Lord reached out from the cross of Calvary and saved us.
Christ will come to any lost person, when they come to believe on the redemptive work of Calvary. He will make them free from that law, by reaching out and pulling them up by His righteousness.
We have looked at the BELIEVERS POSITION, but let us look at -
II. THE BELIEVER'S POSSIBILITIES
First, we want to look at-
A. THE FACT
Look at verse 3, we read, "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh."
Notice, Paul states something as a fact here. He states the "LAW COULD NOT DO".
WHAT COULD IT NOT DO? It could not make us righteous. Instead of making us righteous, it CONDEMNED us.
Notice also that Paul stated that as a fact, but he also gave the reason why the law could not make us righteous. He said, "...in that it was weak through the flesh..."
Illus: A church that had a soft ball team found themselves in an embarrassing position. They were ridiculed on every hand, because every time they played, they lost by so many points it was disgraceful. The pastor of the church was so embarrassed that he decided he would assist the team by bringing in a well-known coach to observe the team, and point out some of the weaknesses. The well-known coach assisted them, but still they lost. The pastor of the church talked to the coach, and said, "You have been with the team now for several games. What would you suggest we do so we can at least come close to winning a game?"
The coach, with a serious expression, said, "GET ANOTHER TEAM!"
The coach could not make the players into a successful softball team, because the players simply were not capable of winning. What they needed, physically, they did not have, and what they did not need, they had. The problem was not with the coach, the problem was with the team. No coach could have made them win. It is the same with the law.
Paul said the problem was, "...in that it was weak through the flesh..."
Illus: The story is told of a very successful pastor. His church grew by leaps and bounds. He surprised the congregation one Sunday morning, when he announced that he would be leaving to take another church. Everyone hated to see him leave, but they all knew that wherever he went, he would be successful. He went to a much smaller church, and to his surprise, that church would not make any progress at all. What was the problem? The problem was that the first congregation shared the pastor's desire to see God's Work grow, while this group of people had no vision for doing any more for the Lord.
The problem was not with the pastor, it was that in the “flesh” of those people. Everything that should have been in them was not there, and everything that should not have been there, was there.
There is nothing wrong with the law, but it could not make us produce righteousness, "...in that it was weak through the flesh..."
Here is the glorious fact; this old sinful flesh of ours that the law condemns, could never be justified by our deeds, but notice what Paul said happened in verse 3, "...God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh."
B. THE FULFILLMENT
Look at verse 4, we read, "That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
We could not fulfill the law's righteousness in this sinful flesh, but Christ, Who came in the likeness of sinful flesh, did fulfill every requirement of the law.
We could not live above sin within ourselves, but THROUGH CHRIST WE CAN! Every Christian here tonight has the full potential of living a victorious life above sin, because of what Christ has done.
Conclusion:
We, as Christians, have been placed in a very unique position in Christ.
Illus: When John Chrysostom was brought before the Roman Emperor in the fifth century, and threatened with banishment because of his faith, he replied, "Thou canst not banish me, for this world is my Father's house." The emperor said, "But I will slay thee." This great man of God said, "Nay, thou canst not, for my life is hid with Christ in God." The emperor said, "I will take away thy treasures." John said, "Nay, but thou canst not, for my treasure is in heaven and my heart is there." The emperor said, "But I will drive thee away from here and thou shalt have no friend left." John said, "Nay, thou canst not, for I have a friend in heaven from whom thou canst not separate me! I defy thee; for there is nothing that thou canst do to hurt me!"
I. THE BELIEVER'S POSITION VERSES 1-2
A. OUR SECURITY
B. OUR SAFETY
II. THE BELIEVER'S POSSIBILITIES VERSES 3-4
A. THE FACT
B. THE FULFILLMENT
