Christianity for the Real World Part 1 Romans 8:1-16
Preached at Midway Community Church Oct 10, 1999
A billboard attracted my attention. College for the Real World; The ad says I can get an education for the real world. Those who respond will have skills they can draw on as they go out to apply for and work at a job.
This eighth chapter of Romans is what I like to call Christianity for the real world. What we will learn here will help us in the real world, the world outside that door.
The Real World: Barren times; Rejection, heartbreak, times when we feel unworthy, unaccepted, and incompetent. Ever have any times like that in the real world? How about the real world of broken pieces? The tragedy of broken relationships, the tragedy of broken lives because of sin, the broken families that are a result of divorce and or death, the pain that comes from the broken pieces is like no other pain I have experienced. Will Christianity work in the middle of these broken pieces? That is the real world. What about all those blessings that have turned in to so called curses. When that child that you have poured your life in turns out to be a disappointment. They did not turn out like you planed for them to. They chose a relationship with someone else over you. All those unfilled dreams, the sudden storms the unplanned losses. Will Christianity work in this real world? What about the things that have me in bondage that I have been battling for years, habits that are destroying my health, and in some cases my wealth? Is there a real answer for this REAL WORLD? CAN I NOT ONLY SURVIVE BUT CAN I THRIVE IN THESE STORMS?
IS CHRISTINIATY FOR THE REAL WORLD, OR IS IT A PANACEA.
IS IT ONLY SOMETHING WE DO ON SUNDAY AM?
IS IT ONLY A RELIGION THAT WILL KEEP ME OUT OF HELL OR IS IT A REALITY FOR THE HELL I AM IN?
WHEN WE GET THROUGH WITH THIS CHAPTER I HOPE YOU WILL BE ABLE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS FOR YOURSELF.
What we are going to examine here in Romans 8 is life in the Spirit. What has this to do with the real world? Everything. Some people may have a concept of life in the Sprit different than the Bible depicts. 1, Emotionalism, and sure it has emotions but it is much more practical and down to earth than just feelings.
2. Some people think it is only something to do with the gifts of the Spirit, and truly He gives gifts, but life in the Spirit is much more than the gifts.
3. 3. Some are even skeptic.
4. 4. And some of us don’t really know, and this is where I fall. I approached this chapter with out any preconceived notions. I wanted to learn about Life in the Spirit.
A few verses: 8:4; a person can walk or live according to the Spirit, he is our source; 8:6 He is someone we can set our minds upon; 8:9 LIFE IN THE SPIRIT IS A LIFE OF BELONGING; 8:11 The Spirit will give life to our mortal bodies; 8:13 By the Spirit we put to death the deeds of the body; 8:16 The Holy Spirit bears witness that we are His children; 8:23 we have the first fruits of the Spirit; 8:26 The Holy Spirit helps our weakness; 8:27 The Holy Spirit intercedes for us; One thing I can conclude already, is that if as a believer, I am living in the real world, The Holy Spirit is very active and involved with me in my circumstances. I don’t have to meet the real world in the energy of my own power. Do you agree? Then why do we meet them on our own? We don’t know much about life in the Spirit, is my conclusion. I thought I could handle the broken pieces, the barren places, and the blessing into curses but I found out I could not. Life in the Spirit IS Christianity for the real world.
First we will see the release: This is where life in the Spirit begins; then we will see The Response to our being released in 8:12-17; and later we will see The reality of being released and the response, in other words what Life in the Spirit looks like lived in the trenches of the real world.
1. The release; PERMANENT FREEDOM NOT PROBATION;
Romans 8:1; No condemnation, the foundational truth to life in the Spirit. One of the greatest statements you will ever read in the New Testament. The problem is that many only read it they don’t embrace it or don’t believe it.
When is there no condemnation to those who are In Christ Jesus? When I get good enough? When I learn certain truths? When I get to where I don’t struggle with sin? When will this be a reality? NOW. Now that God has acted in grace on your behalf; now that Jesus has reconciled you to God through His death on the cross; Now that you have received the reconciliation; Now that you have been justified as a gift of his grace; now that you have peace with God. Now that the finished work of God and Jesus is done: The moment you repented and received salvation is the moment you moved into the reign of no condemnation. Never ever will you ever be condemned, executed for your sin? Col. 2:13-14
And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, [14] having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us and which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. There is absolutely nothing against you as a believer. But what about my past? you may have failed miserably as a Christian, or as an unbeliever, and there are consequences to those failures, but there is no condemnation, you will not be executed because of your past. If you are in Christ you are not condemned. Until you buy into this obvious truth you will never experience life in The Spirit. As long as you let the condemnation of others, or yourself or the enemy keep you in prison, you will never be able to walk according to the Spirit. When this happens at the hands of others, give them the first stone. HOW MANY OF YOU THIS AM ARE FEELING CONDEMED? IT IS ONLY A FEELING NOT A FACT. IF YOU ARE A BELIVER YOU ARE NOT CONDEMEND BUT IF YOU ARE NOT A BELVIER, YOU ARE CONDEMED ALREADY. The real world will condemn you; you will need to meet them with this truth. WE HAVE BEEN RELEASED FROM THE PRISION OF CONDEMNATION.
A. Why have we been released? It sounds too good to be true. I can tell you first of all why we were not released. We were not released because of good behavior, or because we had earned probation, are because it is time to do our community service. We were not released because we PROMISED to be good little boys and girls, and go to church every Sunday, and Wednesday. And because we promised to read our Bibles early in the am. We have been release from the law of sin and death because of Three reasons. 1.GOD DID SOMETHING; V3 The law could not do the releasing, it is what put me in prison. All the law could do was tell me what was wrong, but it cold not be any strength to me whatsoever, because it was weak when it depended upon me to keep it. So God had to do something. And He knew this from the very beginning. If you have been released today it is not because you did anything IT SAYS RIGHT HERE GOD DID SOMETHING. 1 Cor. 1:30 But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, Not only did God do something, He acted in Grace and mercy, but 2. Jesus did something; v3b He was the offering for our sin. It was His sacrifice that satisfied our sin and allowed us to be reconciled to God. He is the one who took the keys away that held us in prison. Do you think you had anything to do with your release? God did something, and Jesus did something but I said there were three things what was the third thing that allowed me to be set free? I became someone. 2 Cor. 5:21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. I responded to the finished work of Jesus Christ, I repented and received His gift of no condemnation, and His gift of righteousness, and I became a Saint. Not a sinner anymore. Prison is for sinners, not saints.
Yes we have been released from the penalty of sin, this release is permanent, and we are under no condemnation, because God did something, Jesus did something and I became someone, a person uncondemed not on probation, but permanently free. Life in the Spirit begins when we embrace our no condemnation position. But there is something else about being released we are permanently free, but note the:
B. The PROBLEMS WE FACE. The world we face on the outside is still the same. We have a different Identity, but we still have the world, the flesh, and the devil to contend with. In the world penal system many go back to jail because they cannot live as a free person. 1. Society will not let them forget what they have done; 2. The proctors of the prison let them out with out any resources to make it on the outside; 3. They are always identified as an ex-con, they can never shake that identity; 4. They are usually made to feel as though they don’t fit back in to the free world. WE ARE NOT EX-CONS we are UNCONDEMED FORGIVEN SAINTS. The SON has set us free himself and if the son has set us free we are free indeed. He has given us everything for life and Godliness, and what is that? Not a material thing like money but His very life. He lives in us and wants to live through us to meet the circumstances of the real world. AND THIS IS WHERE THE BATTLE BEGINS. AM I GOING TO ALLOW Him to live his life through me, or am I going to continually live as though I am still an ex con? The problem we face is the serious battle. How serious is it? Eph 6 alludes to this. And where do the attacks come? In the mind. This is where we believe truth, and where we are convinced of our righteousness, where we can know peace, where our faith is tested, and our salvation is believed. The Battlefield is in the mind. Satan wants me to change my focus, my mind set. If he is successful this is the progression. 1. Disappointment, which leads to discouragement, which degenerates into depression, and despair and finally demoralization. And a demoralized Christian can not pray, cannot hope, cannot function as a free person. So how do we set our minds? A very difficult thing to do. Illustration, two channels. Channels one and two. One being the flesh, the other the Spirit. IT BOILS DOWN TO A CHOICE. IT DOES NOT DEPEND UPON MY FEELING BUT UPON MY WILL TO ACT UPON THE TRUTH OF WHO I AM, AND EX-CON OR UNCONDEMED CHILD OF GOD.
WHEN YOU AND I DON’T CHOOSE WE LOSE. WE LOSE OUT ON OUR FREEDOM. If you and I don’t set our mind it will be set for us. What do we lose? V6. We lose on life, we get death, emptiness, a death like existence, death to relationships; v7 we lose out on the experience of being God”s child, we are hostile toward God, and we lose every battle; With out him you can do nothing; v8; we lose out on rest, we have frustration and failure every day.
We have seen the problems we face let us look at the:
2. The power that never fails; v9-11 we are not in the flesh but in Christ. We have the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit living inside us. And why is He there?
Because v10-11; He will give life to our mortal bodies, His life through us. To meet the circumstances of the real world. He does not give us simply a paper that says we are free, a new suit of clothes and tell us to go live like Him, a little bit of blessing and say go do it. He gives us His very life when we receive Him. We exchange our life for His. And then we go out and through us He meets the real world, down in the trenches with His life. He has been there before. Life in the Spirit? A life of release, no condemnation, PERMANTLY FREE NOT ON PROBATION, AND PROBLEMS FACED NOT PROBLEMS THAT ARE FATAL. I LIKE LIFE IN THE SPIRIT.
