Romans 9:1-5

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"1 I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel. 4 Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. 5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen." ~ Romans 9:1-5

Today, we transition into Romans 9. After explaining the fact that all mankind is guilty and deserving of hell in Romans 1-3, and the believer's justification in Romans 4-5 and his sanctification in Romans 6-8, Paul turns to the plight of the Jews who have largely resisted God's love. It is clear throughout the Bible that God is not finished with Israel, even though they rejected Him. In fact, according to Daniel 9:24-27, it is evident that He has a future plan for this group of people.  

Romans 9-11 focuses on the nation of Israel. In these three chapters, the Apostle Paul uses Israel to illustrate the themes that he has developed in Romans 1-8. Romans 9 highlights Israel’s past,  Romans 10 zeros in on Israel’s present, and Romans 11 delineates Israel’s future.

In v.1-3 of today's passage we read, "1 I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel."

We begin this chapter with the recognition of the depth of the anguish of Paul's heart for his fellow Israelites. His sorrow at his countrymen's dismissal of the Lord Jesus was unbearable to him. I am convinced that it was unbearable because he maintained a close and intimate walk with the Lord. Knowing God so well and the depth of His love for him, the Apostle was broken hearted by those who wanted to remain under the law wrapped up in religion, instead of having a personal relationship with God. 

It is only when we begin to understand the intensity of God's love that we can begin to get to the point that the Apostle was as described here. This is intense, and, Paul couldn't bear for his people not to experience the love of God as he. What a lesson this is on how to approach someone who isn't very eager to receive the truth. We must never come to those who are lost with accusations, or with bitter words, or denunciations, or even with the issues that separate us. Paul first dove deep into his personal relationship with the Lord and then he identified with the deep seated confusion of the lost.

To the Jews of Paul's day, I am positive he sounded like he was their enemy. Had a Jew read the letter of Romans, he would have regarded it as a gigantic put-down to the whole nation. Paul's ministry made his countrymen angry and upset, even violent in their rage against him. And yet, he was not their enemy, as he himself makes clear here in today's passage. The spiritual condition of his countrymen broke his heart. His anguish was so deep that he declared that if it were possible, he would be willing to take their place in hell to make it possible for them to believe in the Lord Jesus as their Messiah.

In v.4-5 of today's passage we read, "4 Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. 5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen."

The Jews had every reason to recognize the Lord Jesus for who He is, because they had been given by God the where with all to arrive in that place. But, Israel’s downfall was its arrogance which led to God’s rejection of them. If we find fault with God for saving some but not all, we are really asserting that mankind has a right to be saved. And, we all know this is absurd. For Israel, God advanced his purposes by choosing to give Israel the stage for Christ, through whom salvation would open to all of mankind.

Now, it appeared to many in Paul's day that the word of God failed to lead the Jews to faith in the Lord Jesus. That is until we factor in the fact that they had a choice to believe in the Lord Jesus or not. Notice the many reasons why Israel, as a whole, should have recognized the Lord Jesus as their Messiah. There are eight unique things that God granted the Israelites that should have so greatly influenced them that they should have believed in the Lord Jesus. 

The Apostle Paul didn’t tell us the story of Israel simply that we might appreciate it. He did so that we might find our place in it. We like Israel find ourselves thinking that "Mercy is only for the deserving." We get to this place when we forsake abandoning ourselves to God. If the purpose of Israel was to set the stage for Christ, our purpose is to give Christ the stage. And, the stage is our very lives. Israel set the stage for Christ so that God’s salvation could be extended to all of mankind. It is through the stage of our broken lives that God shines most authentically to our friends and acquaintances.

By and large, we are reluctant to give Christ the stage, because we are more narcissistic than we think. Once we overcome our reluctance to go belly-up with God, it is then that the real adventure begins. This adventure is the most rewarding and the most taxing. It is most taxing because now that we have been found, we are now expected to be lost in the will of God. And, that is dangerous to our comfort laden world. It is most rewarding because of the inexhaustible nature of our God of grace and mercy. And, nothing can make injustice just but His grace and His mercy.

Romans 8:35-39

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35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." ~ Romans 8:35-39

Today, we conclude our study of Romans 8 where we have been learning of how the Holy Spirit factors in on our sanctification. Today's passage places the spotlight on the concept that gives us the greatest amount of confidence in a world that is stacked against us: the love of God. 

This chapter began with the idea that the believer in Christ need not fear any "condemnation" from God, and, it ends with the idea that we need not fear any "separation" from the love of God that is given through the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

In v.35-36 of today's passage we read, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: 'For your sake we face death all day long we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.'"

There are days in our relationship with God that all hell seems to be invaded our existence. In those moments when it appears that the truth that we have long been convinced of is threatened by our circumstances, we need a vantage point to rise to in order to maintain the security that the truth provides us. it is a biblical understanding of God's love that inflates our perspective to the point that we realize we waste time when we doubt God's commitment to us. 

In our moments of doubt, we learn what is truly substantive in our lives. In context here, the Apostle asks a series of question, questions that threaten our assurance that God really is committed to us in those most difficult moments of life. These questions are oh so important because they present to us the contrast that we need to be even more convinced of the veracity of the truthfulness and faithfulness of God. And, without the contrast, we do not see more clearly that which is most important.

That which we focus on the most is that which will define us. Perhaps you noticed the accentuation of the word "love" in today's passage. Used three times here, God's love is the anchor that we need that keeps us from capsizing in this world of torrential waters. It is the love of God that provides the buoy that our troubled souls need, and, God has clearly provided it through the death, burial, and resurrection of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

There is no truth in the whole Bible that impacts us as much as the love of God. In 1 John 3 we read, "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us or lavished on us." The word "behold" is such a key word here because in order for us to be defined by something, we must be preoccupied with it. the drilling down of our understanding of the love of God in Christ is essential for the maturation of our heart's ability to see God. In this case, when the love of God truly captures our attention and begins to define us, we will be the most secure people on this planet.

God's love is so amazing, because He is Holy. And, since He is Holy, God is unapproachable. This is why our only door to enter God's presence is the Lord Jesus Christ. While on His cross the Lord Jesus paid for our entry way into God's presence. While at Mount Sinai, the children of Israel could not come near God's presence, otherwise they would have died. They would have died because their sin had not been atoned for. 

In God's holiness, He is unapproachable. But in His love, He is approachable. When the Lord Jesus came into this world, He said, "If you have seen me, you have seen the Father." At His first coming, the Lord Jesus showed up as God incarnate, as if to say, "Now, you can approach God." The Lord Jesus never met anyone He didn't love. He loved the worst of sinners. And He loved the best of saints. And He loves everyone in between.

In v.37-39 of today's passage we read, "37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Now, in these verses, Paul is picturing us surrounded by all of our enemies. But we still come out on top as the winners, because we are more than conquerors through Christ. That phrase, "more than conquerors" is one word in the original Greek language. It means that through Christ's merit, authority and will, we are super conquerors. 

Not even our arch enemy death can separate us from the love of God. In fact, death will unite us to God one day. It will unite us into His immediate glory, because death's sting was taken away at the cross and the tomb of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we have a victory in death. Remember what David wrote, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death." David didn't write, "the valley of death." No, he wrote "the shadow of death." This means that all of our trials present the possibility of defeat, but we can rest assured that we will even more than win in the end, just wait and see.  

At the end of the book of his epistle, Jude wrote, "Keep yourselves in the love of God." This means that we must be diligent to keep ourselves in the place where we are mindful of God's love for us. The only place this is done is at the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our sin would try to convince us that we can out sin God's love but this is impossible. God's love sought us when we had nothing to give Him in return. His love is humanly irrational in the sense that it has nothing to do with our intrinsic qualities. His love is a decision on His part to favor us, the undeserved. An accurate understanding of this results in our ability to love Him in return.

Romans 8:31-34

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"31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us." ~ Romans 8:31-34

Today, we return to our study of Romans 8 which has as its main topic the sanctification of the believer in Christ. This section in Romans reiterates the fact that God is for us, and only when we have trusted in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross can we access His love. Through His cross the Lord Jesus paid the debt that was created by our rebellion. That rebellion rejected God's definition of all things. Our sanctification is the process whereby we are being given God's definition of all things. As a result, our thinking and our choosing is becoming more consistent with the wisdom of His word.

In v.31 of today's passage we read, "What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?" 

Even though through believing in the Lord Jesus, we have been included in God's family and we know with our heads that God's will is the best for us, we still struggle at trusting God. The reason we do this is due to the fact that God allows and uses the unwanted pains of live to bring about His purposes for our lives. Through life's many up and downs, God takes us to places that we would never choose for ourselves. He does this so that He could give us what we could never receive anywhere else, Himself.

I remember the day when I sat on the back porch of my childhood home in Georgia. It was my last night in the place that had given me the most precious memories up to that point in my life. I cried like a baby because my newfound personal relationship with God included quite a bit of the unknowns. I was fearful about what and where the will of God was taking me. In this case, His will was taking me to Columbia Bible College in Columbia, South Carolina. But, the uncertain way is where the excitement is found. Such is the nature of our faith in the God of the Bible.

Little did I know then that God's will would radically change my life for the absolute good. We all search for the next thrill in life. Some take to traveling to foreign lands, some take on a new hobby, but it is all the same. We all want a life that is full with meaning and purpose. But, nothing in this world truly fills that hole in our soul. The reason the God-shaped hole in our soul is never fulfilled is due to the fact that these pursuits are not of eternity. I am not saying that we should not enjoy the pleasures of this life, Lord knows we need the distraction from time to time. But, we must remember that we were created to work at our best in the kingdom of God. This is the point of our sanctification which is not about a better us, it is ultimately about how our lives count for His kingdom in the lives of others for eternity.

All that the Apostle Paul has written up to this point in the book of Romans should convince us that God desires our best at heart. And, since God is for us, it doesn't matter who is against us.

In v.32 of today's passage we read, "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?"

All things work together for our good because we have been part of God's plan from eternity past. It happened in real time in the present, and, it will continue into eternity. And, since God was willing to sacrifice His own Son, we need worry about anything else. In other words since God has willingly given us the most precious thing to Him, we can count on Him to meet all of our needs. 

In v.33-34 of today's passage we read, "33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us."

Since Christ died, and, is also risen, it really doesn't matter who brings any accusation against us. It could be the devil, himself, and believe me, he has plenty of ammunition to use, but, it is God who has justified us through His Son. God has made a declaration concerning you and me, a declaration that shouts we are forgiven and we have been placed into His family for eternity. So, because God has made a declaration concerning us, we are foolish to allow anyone else, even ourselves, to define us. 

The Lord Jesus sits at the right hand of God. He is interceding on our behalf. He tandems with the Holy Spirit, interceding for us daily. The Lord Jesus is seated because all of His work for our salvation has been completed. He is always at work in our lives, sketching out what is perfect for His outcome. And, we can rest in the fact that He knows the end from the beginning. Once God completed creation, He rested. Once the Lord Jesus finished His work of redeeming all who would ever believe, He made it possible for us to rest. And, the more we experience His rest amidst the troubles of life, the more we will rest at trusting Him to use all things together for our good and for His glory.

Romans 8:29-30

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"29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified." ~ Romans 8:29-30 

Today, we return to our study of Romans 8 which is about the believer's relationship with the Holy Spirit. Throughout this chapter, the Apostle Paul chronicles the workings of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer in Christ. The Spirit reminds us that the believer in Christ is not condemned in v.1-4. In v.5-8, He teaches the believer how to think God's thoughts. In v.9-11, He teaches us how to walk in God's ways. In v.12-17, the Holy Spirit teaches us how to live the life that the Lord Jesus died to give us. Then in v.18-28, the Holy Spirit teaches us the value of our trials and their role in the deepening of our faith in the Lord Jesus. All of this is designed to enable the believer in Christ to increase in his intimacy with the Lord Jesus Himself.

Today, we come to v.29-30 where the Holy Spirit pulls back the curtain allowing us to see the greatness of the One who is behind our salvation. Think of it, had not the Lord Jesus agreed to come and bail us out of our damnation to hell, we would be hopeless. We would spend eternity in a place that was made for the devil and his followers. Having said that, the beauty of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is that it is real. God doesn't rescue us out of the pains of life, He rescues us through the pains of life.

Most believe that if we love God, we will not have bad things to happen to us. This postulate is obviously not true! Horrible things can happen to us, and believing in and loving God will not keep them from happening. As we considered in our last study, God uses all things to work together for the good of the believer in Christ. The "good" is the will of God for our lives because He absolutely knows what is best for each of us. God allows or causes bad things into our lives, in order to rescue us from things that can destroy us. Things like arrogance, selfishness, hardness of heart, and the belief that we don’t need God, in the long term will destroy us. God's will rescues us from these things that we have long been too acquainted with.

In v.29 of today's passage we read, "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters."

In this section the Apostle Paul is simply describing the process involved in bringing each believer in Christ to faith in Him. The word the Apostle used translated "foreknew" in this verse informs us that from among the tremendous number of human beings that have ever walked this earth, God foreknew that you and I would believe in His Son as our Savior. In fact, the chances that you and I would emerge to be in God's family was somewhere around 1-200 million. 

We are told that before the foundation of the earth, God foreknew that we would believe. Then, Paul tells us that God "predestined us to be conformed to the image of His Son." Predestination has absolutely nothing to do with anyone going to hell. According to the Bible, predestination is never related to that in any way whatsoever. Predestination is a term only applicable to believers in Jesus Christ. This simply means that God has chosen that those who believe in His Son would be conformed to the likeness of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Greek word translated "conformed" means "metamorphosis." A God-caused change is promised to those who are willing to trust Him. This means God's primary objective in our lives is that we be "holy" or "whole" or "complete." God's goal in the life of the believer is that we function as He intended us to function, like the Lord Jesus. And, in this case, we are not the one's producing the outcome. 

In v.30 of today's passage we read, "And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified."

Only those who are in a personal relationship with God can have the application of the words "predestined," "called," "justified" and "glorified." God's vantage point is much different than ours. He sees from the realm of the instantaneous now (eternity), as opposed to our limited view of time. Of course, no one would be able to come into a personal relationship with Him unless He call, yet we bare the responsibility to exercise trust in God or not. And, if we exercise that truth or faith, we will know the application of the words predestined, called, justified and glorified.

The Apostle wrote, "Those he predestined, he also called." This means that at one point in time the Holy Spirit began working in our lives so that we would enter into a personal relationship with God. For the Apostle Paul, he was converted in the brilliant light on the Damascus road when he saw the glory of the Lord shining around him greater than the sun. He was intercepted by the Lord Jesus as he was traveling to Damascus to persecute Christians. He thought that he was right with God, but he wasn't. The Lord Jesus had to blind him for three days so that he would come to faith in Him. The Apostle fought the Lord but in the end the Lord won out. Our salvation is really part us and part God. Our part was running away from God, and God's part was to run after us until we were found by Him.

As a result of being predestined, we were called and justified. All along in this letter we have been looking at what justification means. It is God's gift of worth. We who are justified are valuable in God's sight. We are forgiven through the work of Christ on the cross. When the Lord Jesus took our punishment on the cross, God was freed to give all humble enough to believe the gift of righteousness. Had He given it apart from the cross, He could be properly accused of condoning sin, but the cross freed Him to lavish on us sonship. 

Paul wrote, "Those whom God justified, he also glorified." At the end of time, there will be none lost in this process. The same number of people He has called, He also justified, and, the very ones He justified, He also glorified. No one is lost in the process, because God is responsible for it. It is going to involve pain and toil, death and tears, disappointment, sorrow, sin, and failure. But it is going to happen, because what God sets out to do, He accomplishes, no matter what it takes.

Charles Spurgeon once said, "When we get to heaven, we’ll see those great big pearly gates, with a huge sign overhead that reads, "Whosoever will, come". And as we pass through the gates into heaven, if we would care to look over our shoulder, we’d see that there’s another message on the other side of the sign. It reads, "Predestined before the foundation of the world". From the earthly side of heaven, all we can really understand is that we have a choice. God offers us salvation, but we have to choose to accept it and receive it. Yet when we get to heaven, we’ll look back and see that we were chosen by God from the very beginning.

To be sure, the point of these three verses is that we are viewed by God as perfect through His Son, and we are learning to see that God can take a bad and bring good out of it.

Romans 8:26-28

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"26 In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; 27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." ~ Romans 8:26-28

Today, we return to our study of Romans 8 where we have been learning about sanctification. An essential part to our sanctification is the role the Holy Spirit plays. In today's passage we learn that the Holy Spirit helps the believer in Christ to pray. The preceding verses reveal that creation groans for a world without the effects of sin. In fact, there are three groanings in this passage; that of creation, that of the Spirit, and we ourselves groan. These groanings are reminders that this world is not our home. Our hearts have been lured by our Creator who not only chose to give us life, He also chose to lay down His life so that we could spend eternity in heaven with Him. These groanings that we have for another world are evidence that we are children of God.

In v.26 of today's passage we read, "In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." 

Prayer is the instinctive mark of the born again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. Generally, we do not pray unless we have a sense of dependence. Independent people do not pray. It is only when we come to the place where we realize we can not handle something that we really begin to pray about it. And, it is out of that sense of dependence that comes the instinctive cry of the heart expressed in prayer. 

There are times when we do not know what to pray. We lack the words to even form the simplest of prayers. According to this verse, it is in these moments that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us. The Greek word translated "intercedes" means "to rescue someone who has no hope." That’s what the Holy Spirit does. When we do not have the strength and we are confused and we do not even know how to pray the way we should, the Holy Spirit intercedes before God on our behalf. God prays for us in these moments. He does this by taking our groans, those prayers that we can not form into words, and He presents them to the Father in heaven. This type of prayer emanates out of our sense of dissatisfaction and discontent which are products of our deep hunger and thirst within for God. This deep hunger and thirst is evidence that this world is not our home. 

In v.27 of today's passage we read, "... and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God."

We must be careful to not separate this verse from the previous two verses. That which the Spirit prays for is what happens in the life of the believer in Christ. The Spirit prays according to the mind and will of the Father who answers these prayers of the Spirit by bringing into our lives the experiences with Himself that result in a deeper intimacy with Him. This means that the unwanted trials and tragedies that happen to us are also an answer from the Father to the praying of the Spirit. The Spirit of God voices the deep concern of God Himself for our most important needs. And, His motive is that we gain a greater sense of our security in our Heavenly Father’s intentions for our lives. 

In v.28 of today's passage we read, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."

Out of uncertainty and the help of the Holy Spirit's work in our lives comes the assurance that no matter what happens in our lives, it will work together for our good and God's glory. And, the more we experience this with God, the more we will be adjusted to any scenario that He sends or allows to come our way. This verse does not tell us that everything that happens to us will be good; it tells us that whether the situation is bad or good, it will work together for our good as we learn to give our hearts to God. As a result, our calling will become increasingly evident to us. This will result in a more growing and intimate relationship with Him. 

This means we can wait with patience for God's will to come to fruition in our lives because as He has worked in this world for thousands of years, He is actively at work in our lives. This means we are always being prepared for the next thing that He has in mind for us. This call of God on our lives to abandon ourselves to His will for our lives is the greatest adventure that we could ever imagine. And, with each passing day, it is being revealed to us as we learn to walk in and by His Spirit, even through the bumps and bruises of life. 

The words "work together" is one word in the original language. This one Greek word literally is best translated, "together energized." We get our English word, "synergy," from this Greek word which means God, in His power and providence, causes all things, even those things that are unwanted by us, to produce a result greater than the sum of those things. And, this is where our faith comes in. As we trusted God for the forgiveness of our sin, we trust Him with the daily events of our lives to accomplish His will for and through us on the basis of His proven character. 

Just four years ago our middle son died and was resuscitated three times back to life. That first night was the longest night of my life. The evening when it all happened the doctors could not give us any hope that our son would live through the night. But, he miraculously did. The beauty of it all was there was incredible tapestry revealed to us as we went through my most difficult of trials. Our daughter in law kept oxygen going to our son's heart until the paramedics arrived at their home. That night people worked who were not supposed to work. Doctors were placed in the life of my dying son who had been perfectly fitted for the moment. And, the outcome was truly amazing, revealing the amazing heart of our Heavenly Father to us. Four years later the life of our son is perfectly normal, being used in the lives of his many elementary aged students. I have to say that week was the most difficult week of my life but it continues to bear forth the purposes of God in our lives. Through that trial I met one man in particular. When I first met Him he did not know the Lord as his Savior. To make a long story short he came to faith in the Lord and he has since died. I will one day see him in heaven because of my son's death.

God sometimes causes or allows the most tragic moments to come about in our lives in order to grant us a deeper walk with Him. This deeper walk is not only a gift to us, it is a gift to others because God has been known to use such to bring about His perfect plan for and through our lives. He does this not only for us but also others. He rarely blesses us with only us in mind. God has to sometimes allow what He hates in our lives in order that He might accomplish what He loves in our lives. And those who have trusted in Him, not only experience His blessings in the end, we also experience the blessing of helping others as they struggle with life's unwanted trials and frustrations. Through all of this we are growing more comfortable with the idea that says, "All things work together for the good to those who love God, to those who are the called, according to His purpose." 

Romans 8:23-25

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23 Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. 24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance. ~ Romans 8:23-25

Today, we continue our study of Romans 8 which is all about the believer's relationship with the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit's responsibility to bring about the process of change that God desires to bring about in the soul of the believer. Sanctification is the changing of the mind, the will and the emotions of the believer in Christ.

In v.23 of today's passage we read, "Not only that, but we also who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body." 

Today's passage begins with the words, "Not only that..." With those words the Apostle referred us back to what he had written before which was about the fact that all of creation groans for its redemption. And, like all of creation, the believer groans for our redemption which has been provided but not fully realized.

Previous to today's passage, we learned that the believer in Christ has been adopted into the family of God, but the full reward of our adoption is a whole new resurrected body. When the Lord Jesus died on the cross, He justified us and He freed us from the penalty of our sin. He also freed us from the power of our sin which is sanctification. And He glorified us which is our deliverance from the presence of sin. This means that the believer in Christ has already been provided justification, sanctification and glorification. And this verse points us to that day when we will experience our glorification or our deliverance form the presence of sin.

Though we ourselves are totally redeemed in spirit, our bodies and souls are not yet totally redeemed. Along with all of creation we, too, are groaning. All through this paragraph there is a constant contrast between the groan and the glory; yet there is a link between the two. Nature groans; we groan. And yet the groan is producing glory. 

In 2 Corinthians 4:17 we read, "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."

Our afflictions are working for us to prepare us for the glory that will be revealed at the second coming of the Lord Jesus. Every time we groan, it is a reminder to us of His promise of glory. I do not think anything will transform our sufferings more than remembering this fact. And, as we groan and anticipate, we bring Him glory because we believe in His promise of our glorification.

In v.23 the Apostle wrote of "the first fruits of the Spirit." This term first fruits is a concept taken from the Old Testament and is applied here to the Holy Spirit. The "first fruits" were the first fruit of the harvest, which God commanded be offered to Him. When this was done in obedience to God, He then guaranteed that the rest of the harvest would come in. In using this term "first fruits," Paul is telling us that the presence of the Holy Spirit in the believer is God’s guarantee of the fullness of the harvest of redemption that will come at His second coming.

In v.24 of today's passage we read, "For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees?"

When we trusted in the Lord Jesus as our Savior, we were given justification, sanctification and glorification. Believers in Christ were saved in a state of hope or confidence in our future glorification. Being saved “in hope” is the guarantee of our full salvation including our justification, sanctification and glorification. Faith in Christ’s death effected our salvation and at that point we placed our hope in the idea that our mortal bodies will one day be liberated from decay and death. Hope does not save us, but our salvation is characterized by our hope.

Hope is always a confidence concerning the future. It’s a confidence, not a finger-crossing wish. In Romans 5:5 we read, “Hope does not put us to shame.” The hope the Lord Jesus has given us is rock-solid and sure. Biblical hope creates confidence in the believer. When we say that hope does not see what it hopes for, the reason it doesn’t see it is because it hasn’t happened yet. Our hope is always future-oriented and consists in a firm confidence of what we are hoping for; it is not just a wish.

The main distinction between Christian faith and Christian hope is that faith is in a substantial way a trusting relationship with a person. Faith says to Christ, “I trust you, not just your promises.” Faith and hope are related concepts as seen in Hebrews 11:1, “Faith is confidence in what we hope for.” Biblical hope is built on faith. Hope is the earnest expectation that comes with believing something good. Hope is a confident anticipation that naturally stems from faith. 

Our lives consist of a great deal of groaning. But our groaning is done in hope. As nature groans in hope, so we groan in hope, too. For in this hope we were saved, in the anticipation that God has a plan for our bodies as well. Though our bodies are in pain and we struggle with suffering now, it all is useful to God as we continue in our sanctification. Even our pain and suffering is an important aspect of our lives. It is something that is part of the whole program and plan of God, part of the privilege committed to us as Christians. 

In v.25 of today's passage we read, "But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance."

We are saved in hope, and by that hope we live. It is true that hope, by its very nature, is something yet in the future but hope that is seen is no hope at all. And, what makes it possible to wait in hope is that we already have the first fruits of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us joy and peace and patience in the context of our pain and suffering. These are the first fruits of the Spirit, the power of God to make the believer in Christ at peace in the midst of our trials and our troubles. Instead of sight, which is the realization of our hope, we “hope for what we do not see.” 

Romans 8:18-22

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18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. ~ Romans 8:18-22

Romans 8 chronicles the activity of the Holy Spirit in our lives as believers in Christ. The activities of the Holy Spirit in our lives has one main goal, that we grow in our personal relationship with the God of truth. In the first four verses of this chapter the Holy Spirit reminds us that we are not condemned, despite the fact that we still sin. In verses five through eight, the Holy Spirit teaches us to think God's thoughts. In verses nine through thirteen, the Holy Spirit enables us to live the life that the Lord Jesus died to give us. And, in verses fourteen through seventeen, the Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God.

In today's passage, we learn that the Holy Spirit teaches us the value of our trials in this life as we await the return of the Lord Jesus. The greatest thing that you and I can ever experience is to know our Creator. What makes this process so difficult is that most often, it is required of us to suffer, in order for us to draw nearer to Him. We tend to think that we can handle life without Him, yet it is our trials that make us draw nearer to the Lord.

In v.18 of today's passage we read, "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

This verse links together two things that we probably would not put together: sufferings and glory. These belong together, and we find them together in almost every passage of Scripture that deals with the suffering of the Christian. Suffering is not the same thing as pain which can be a good thing. What qualifies something as suffering is the heartache that goes with pain. In context, the Apostle Paul, uses the concept of groaning in order to describe this suffering. God uses the groanings of creation to illustrate for the believer the value of his suffering. This word speaks of a heavy awareness of how wrong this life is. There will be suffering for believers and we can't deny that, but we can see its positive end and trust the Lord to bring good out of it. But, the real ultimate goal of it all is for us to know Him more intimately.

Throughout the Scriptures there is a thread of hope which speaks of a day that is coming when all the hurt and heartache and injustice and weakness and suffering of our present experience will be explained and will result in a time of incredible blessing upon the earth. 

In v.19 of today's passage we read, "For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God."

The word in the original language which is translated "earnest expectation" pictures a man standing and waiting for something to happen, craning his head forward. All of creation is standing on its tiptoes, as it were, eagerly awaiting the revelation of the sons of God. This revelation will take place when the Lord Jesus returns at His Second Coming, and He will return with us. The Apostle strained in this attempt to describe this fantastic thing that is about to happen, which he calls the revelation of the glory that is coming. We are going to be on the stage with the God of all glory. We are going to be involved in it. It will be a glory that will be "revealed into us," and we will be an obvious part of it.

In v.20-21 of today's passage we read, "20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God."

Creation fell when man fell. Not only did all of mankind fall into the bondage of sin and death, but the entire physical universe fell as well. It was man's sin that put thorns on roses. It was man's sin that made the animals hate and fear each other and brought predators and carnivores into being. With the fall of man came the spreading fear, hostility, and hatred in the animal world, and the whole of nature testifies to this fact. It was subjected to futility or frustration.

This phrase "the bondage to corruption" is a description of the second law of thermodynamics. This is the law of infinite increase of entropy. Everything is decaying; everything, with no exception, is running down. Though for a while something may seem to grow, eventually it dies. Even human life dies, and so does all that is with it. All of this is because of the rejection of God's truth by man..

But the Apostle argues that, if this is true, and it is, it is also true that when man is delivered from this corruption, nature will be delivered as well. Therefore, when the hour strikes when the sons of God will be revealed as delivered from the bondage of sin and death, nature will be freed from its bondage. And, it will burst into a bloom that no one can possibly imagine.

In v.22 of today's passage we read, "For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now."

Creation groans in today's passage. And, we will see that the believer groans in v.23-25. And then, in v.26-27 the Holy Spirit groans. All of the groans are an indication of an unfulfilled reality. Our groanings are the expression of our suffering crying out to the only One who can do anything about it. All of creation yearns and churns in the hope that it will be delivered from the effects of man's sin, and it will be. Creation has been subjected to its inability to achieve its purpose. The evidence of this is seen in earthquakes and hurricanes and other natural catastrophes. 

Ironically, creation will be the saved when man's ultimate redemption is revealed. The order of creation will be reversed in the end. Whereas God originally created the universe and the land and the trees before He created man, when He recreates, it will all be done in reverse of the original. It is said that currently, all of the sounds of nature are in the minor key. All nature sings the song of bondage, yet it sings in hope. It sings it in the hope that one day it will step into that which we all long for, a world without pain and hatred and destruction.

Romans 8:14-17

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14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. ~ Romans 8:14-17

Romans 8 chronicles the activity of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer in Christ, resulting in the believer's sanctification which is the changing of his mind, will, and emotions. This process will never come to its completion until the believer is delivered from the presence of sin. 

In Romans 8:1-4, the Holy Spirit reminds the believer that he is not condemned, especially since he still sins after being "born again." In Romans 8:5-8, the Holy Spirit teaches the believer to think like God thinks. In Romans 8:9-13, the Holy Spirit enables the believer to live the life that the Lord Jesus died to give him. And, in today's passage we learn that the Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are "the children of God."

In v.14-15 of today's passage we read, "14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father.'"

Today's passage teaches us that we are adopted children of God if we have placed our faith in the finished word of the Lord Jesus Christ. For the first time in this letter to the Romans Paul used the phrase "children of God." He used it in the context of explaining adoption which was a unique practice in the Roman culture of that day. The Greek word translated "adoption" occurs only five times in the New Testament and it literally means: "the place and condition of a son given to one to whom it does not naturally belong."

Once sin entered the world all mankind was separated from God. We, at that point were made to be illegitimate children by sin. And since we were made illegitimate, God had to do something special to buy us back. And the way He did it, well, that was special. He adopted us through His Son to be in His family forever. Adoption, in the Roman world at that time, included the deliberate choosing of one who was not the biological child of the adoptive father. It was done in order to perpetuate the father's name. The adopted child was in no way inferior in status to a biological child born unto the father. By using this word translated "adoption," God was emphasizing the fact that He chose us to be in his family, not we Him. And, now that we have been included in His family, we can be assured that we will spend eternity with the Father, even though we struggle yet with sin.  

When we were born again, the Spirit of God came into our spirit, and we no longer should fear the wrath of God, even though we still sin. When we were adopted into the family of God, God deliberately included us in His family. When we were born into Adam's family, we are all children of Adam by natural birth. We belonged to the human family, and we inherited Adam's nature of sin with all of its defects, problems, and the evil that made us children of disobedience. By nature we were not part of God's family. 

Now, God has taken us out of our natural state in Adam, and, by the person of the Spirit, has made us legally sons of God, and we are part of his family. We are in His family by adoption so that we might never take it for granted, especially when we fail in this process of sanctification. It is only by the grace of God that we have come into His family. And, now, we actually share the nature of God because we have been born of His Spirit. This is why in v.16 we read, "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children."

In v.17 of today's passage we read, "Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory."

As believers in Christ we are co-heirs with Him. This means everything the Lord Jesus Christ has by divine right, we have received by divine grace. All that He has accomplished, His perfect life here on earth and death and resurrection, even His suffering and its results, have been applied to our account before God. To share in His sufferings is to have identified with His accomplishments while He was on this earth, especially His accomplishments while He hung on the cross. It was on that cross that He procured our salvation. And, as a result, we are co-heirs with Him. And, we are in the family of God for eternity.

Romans 8:12-13

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"12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live." ~ Romans 8:12-13

In Romans 8, we discover the things that the Spirit of God enables the believer in Christ to realize, resulting in experiencing eternal life, now. You will remember that Romans 6-8 is about sanctification. This inside out change takes place in the soul of the believer. The soul has three parts: the mind, the will and the emotions.

In Romans 8:1-4, the Holy Spirit reminds the believer that he is not condemned, especially since he still sins after being "born again." In Romans 8:5-8, the Holy Spirit teaches the believer to think like God thinks. In Romans 8:9-13, the Holy Spirit enables the believer to live the life that Jesus died to give him.

In v.12 of today's passage we read, "Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it."

In context, the Apostle Paul clearly draws a distinction between the flesh of the believer in Christ, which is he sinful desires that yet abide in us, and the Spirit of God. These are the two primary influences in the life of the believer in Christ. The one we feed the most wins in a given day.

The believer in Christ is not obligated or indebted to the sinful desires within us. The reason we are not obligated to the flesh is due to the fact that we are no longer enslaved to the flesh. The Greek word that the Apostle Paul uses for "obligation" carries with it the gratitude that we gained once we first understood and appreciated the gospel. It is the very love of God that motivates the believer in Christ, who is no longer destined to hell, into action. You will remember that mankind's descent away from God began with a lack of gratitude. Implied in the usage of this word is the very important role that gratitude plays in the motivation of the believer who in learning to walk in the Spirit. When my sons were children, they loved to put their feet on top of mine and they would experience my inertia as we walked along. This picture gives us an idea of what it means to walk in the Spirit. Walking in the Spirit is recognizing the leading of the Hoy Spirit in our every day lives and depending upon His inertia at living the Christian life.

In v.13 of today's passage we read, "For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live."

The Apostle Paul utilized the word "Spirit" here, because he is referring to the Holy Spirit. Whenever we see in and through our yielded lives the truth of God being expressed, we must be quick to recognize that this is the work of the Holy Spirit. This is not our works. This is why God's them to fruit of the Spirit.

Here, the Apostle Paul describes the inside out difference that the Holy Spirit brings to the life of the follower of Jesus Christ. When we all entered this world, we entered it indifferent to God. As the Apostle Paul tells us in the book of Ephesians, we were dead in our sins and trespasses. But, once we trusted in the finished work of Christ on the cross for the forgiveness of our sin, we were given a new heart for God. This difference is a new way of looking at God, a new way of understanding Him. Trusting in Christ rendered in us an inner new-birth that liberates us not only from sin, but from our old way of viewing God. It is as if the scales that were causing us to be blind to God were removed.

Our newfound relationship with God has as its goal a deeper intimacy for us with Him. The secret to drawing nearer to God is having Him draw near to us. And, our intimacy with Him most often comes on the heels of learning to hear His voice in our hearts as we go through the trials of life. The trials drive us to Him and His word enables us to hear Him. Trust is at the heart of intimacy with God. The more we trust Him, the closer we let Him get to us. The degree to which our trust in Him is the degree to which our intimacy with Him grows.

This is real life, when we connect with the God of the Bible who chose to become vulnerable enough to attract our hearts, this results in the arresting of our hearts. His vulnerability has shown up in our lives in a variety of ways from His virgin birth to His death on the cross. This has resulted in the opening wide of our hearts to this God who is convincing us that the way of the flesh, the way of sin is futile because it only delivers death in all of its forms. The beauty of it all is that He has supplied us His Spirit so that we can not only say yeas to the truth but also to know the truth for ourselves in the most intimate way.

  

Romans 8:9-11

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9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. ~ Romans 8:9-11

In Romans 6-8 we are given instruction about sanctification which is the process whereby God is changing our souls on a daily basis. Our souls are made up of our minds, wills and emotions. Thus, our sanctification begins with what defines our thinking.

Romans 8 chronicles the activity of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer in Christ. In v.1-4, we are taught that the Spirit of God teaches us that we are not condemned, even though we still struggle with sin. In v.5-8, we are taught by the Spirit to think God's thoughts. And, in v.9-11, the Spirit of God teaches us how to walk in God's ways.

In v.9 of today's passage we read, "But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His."

The believer in Christ has been delivered from the penalty of his sin and has now been translated into the kingdom of the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. However, the believer in Christ still has a daily choice to feed the Spirit of God who lives within us. When we are not feeding the Spirit or following His lead in our lives, we automatically will feed the flesh which are the evil desires that are yet within us. 

In v.10 of today's passage we read, "And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness." 

If the believer in Christ feeds the Spirit of God within, we will experience life. We have, before, referred to this life which is the kind of life that is not of this world. This life essentially is the life of Christ. With His life we gain God's ability to evaluate the life that we live in this world. Thus, we are enabled to walk in God's ways, which is what the Bible calls walking in the Spirit.

The way of the Believer in Christ is unraveled in the mystery of what God wants to give us as we yield our lives to Him. This never-ending search for clues about God and His ways is primarily found in His word, the Bible. As the Believer listens to the words of God and learns His thoughts and ways, he will recognize His voice in every avenue of life. And yet, there remains the stranger that resides within. The more we learn and know about God, the more we will walk in His ways.

The tragedy of modern faith is that it seems to no longer be capable of what the Bible calls transformation. This transformation of one's life begins with the bone-chilling, earth-shattering, gut-wrenching, knee knocking, heart-stopping, life-changing fear that leaves us speechless, paralyzed, and helpless? What happened to those moments when we would open our Bibles and our hands started shaking because we were afraid of the Truth we might find there? “Truth” has different expressions, according to the Bible. 

The first way that truth is presented to us in God's word, as Mike Yaconelli once said,  "Brings with it a description of a wrestler grabbing an opponent by the throat; a word meaning to describe the humiliation of a criminal who was paraded in front of a crowd with a dagger tied to his neck, its point under his chin so he could not put his head down. That is what the Truth is really like! It grabs us by the throat, it flays us wide open, it forces us to look into the face of God. When is the last time you and I heard God’s Truth and were grabbed by the throat? We are afraid of unemployment, the collapse of our government, not being fulfilled, more than being afraid of God."

Now, I can hear someone saying, "but you told me that in Romans 8:1-4, the Spirit teaches us that we are not condemned?" This is true, but the fear that I am referring to here is different that that type of fear. This is respect, which is a product of experiencing God's grace. I would like to suggest that we become a people who hears God saying to us, “Fear not” again. Our relationship with God is not a simple belief or doctrine or theology, it is God’s burning presence in our lives. I am suggesting that the tame god of comfort be replaced by the God whose very presence shatters our egos into dust, and strips us naked to reveal the real person within. 

In v.11 of today's passage we read, "But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you."

Unfortunately, many say this verse refers to the promise of the resurrection at the end of life, when we will be given new bodies. But that is not what Paul is saying here. He is talking about the Spirit giving life to our mortal bodies. A mortal body is one that is subject to death. It is dying, but it is not yet dead. Therefore, this is not talking about the resurrection, he is talking about what the Spirit does in the believer in Christ now. We cannot reverse the processes of death, no one can. Our bodies are going to die. But we can refuse to let the members of our bodies become the instruments of sin. We do not have to give in to sin. 

After I invited the Lord Jesus into my life, just one month before my eighteenth birthday, I remember the chang that was rendered in my heart. Where up to that point in my life, I didn't want to go to church. Once I trusted in Him,  I wanted to go to church. And, all of a sudden, I wanted to read the Bible. I didn't want to read the Bible before. I wouldn't have understood it had I tried to read it. But, once I was born again, I had such a craving for reading the Bible. That did not mean that I would no longer sin. I have sinned throughout my life. But, my relationship to sin is different now than it was before I was born again. I now see how foolish sin is. So, I have been known to turn away from it. I have also been known to embrace the culture of God, and that is the wisest thing I have ever done.