Eternity Daily Bible Study: No. 536 Romans 1-8 - A Righteousness That Is By Faith Verses: Romans 8:8-11 Topic: In The Spirit Date: 7th November 2005 Romans 8:8-11 ASV and they that are in the flesh cannot please God. (9) But ye are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you. But if any man hath not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of 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 that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you, he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give life also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth in you. These verses contain some very absolute and categorical language such as: 1.Those in the flesh cannot please God. 2.If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. 3.The body is dead because of sin. This makes clear that there is an absolute separation between those in the flesh and those in the Spirit. Those "in the Spirit" are not an advanced group of Christians, they are in fact the only Christians. People who do not have the Spirit are quite simply unsaved. Those "in the flesh" who live by the baser values of the world, without spirituality, without sensitivity to Scripture or to spiritual things, without prayer and lacking the fruits and gifts of the Spirit - cannot please God. And it is not just any spirit, as if New Age spirituality or channeling the spirits of the dead was enough to make one spiritual and not carnal. Rather it is only the Spirit of Christ that makes alive. Christ must be in the Christian. In verse 9 we see Paul making God and Christ equivalent: "But ye are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you. But if any man hath not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." The Spirit of God is obviously the same as the Spirit of Christ. This supports the idea of the Trinity. So Christians are God-indwelt people, who have Christ in them, and Christ in us is what animates us and makes us spiritually alive. In 1 Corinthians 6 Paul even says that our bodies are temples - places where God dwells, our bodies are a sacred site and are to be honored as such and not defiled by immorality. The problem of what to do with the body carries over from Romans chapter 7 where it was revealed that the body was the dwelling place of sin. So Christ dwells in us, and sin dwells in us, both at the same time. However they seem to dwell at different levels of being. Sin dwells in the outer level of being known and the flesh, while Christ dwells in the inmost level of being known as the spirit. Translations differ on verse 10, most capitalize the word "spirit" which I cannot see as justified from the Greek. The ASV version is I think most correct: Romans 8:10 ASV And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the spirit is life because of righteousness. The body, which has become the dwelling place of sin, must die, for indeed flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 15:50). Yet God does not give up on our bodies but instead resurrects them and makes them glorious and immortal. "But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you, he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead shall give life also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth in you." Our mortal bodies shall be resurrected and somehow that transformation will be a work of the indwelling Holy Spirit. The immortal body is somehow connected to the mortal body. It is as if the "mortal body" is the seed of the eternal spiritual body. Just as there is little resemblance between a pumpkin seed and a pumpkin but yet there is a continuity. Though the seed is destroyed in the ground, the pumpkin surely came from it. The following verses from 1 Corinthians 15 illustrate the organic seed-to-plant connection between the sin-indwelt and temporary mortal body and the glorious,eternal spiritual body. 1 Corinthians 15:35-54 ASV But some one will say, How are the dead raised? and with what manner of body do they come? (36) Thou foolish one, that which thou thyself sowest is not quickened except it die: (37) and that which thou sowest, thou sowest not the body that shall be, but a bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other kind... (42) So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: (43) it is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: (44) it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body..... (49) And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. (50) Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. (51) Behold, I tell you a mystery: We all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed, (52) in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. (53) For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. (54) But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. The death that our bodies experience through being sin-indwelt, is "swallowed up in victory". Thus sin's effect on us will be nullified. Death will be transcended. The mortal shall put on immortality for those who are indwelt by the Spirit of God. Thus being a Christian cannot be defined in social terms, such as "being a gentlemen" or "being kind to others". A Christian is a distinct category of spiritual being. We are, to use some long words, "existentially other" to the rest of humanity. Christians are God-indwelt people. All who have the Spirit of Christ are Christians and all true Christians have the Spirit of Christ. Our bodies have the life of Jesus dwelling in them in spiritual form. We have a power operating in us that enables us to be acceptable to God. We are able to please God because Christ is the power of our lives. Those without Christ dwelling in their bodies cannot please God, since they do not have the power that leads to righteousness and sin in the flesh subverts every move. Being in the Spirit is not optional, rather it is absolutely essential and defining for all Christians. God has come to dwell with us and in us and desires to transform us into the image of His beloved Son through the power of the Holy Spirit. Blessings, John Edmiston (johned@aibi.ph) REFER OTHERS: If this devotional is a blessing to you, maybe you have a friend or family member that would like to start receiving this daily bible study. You can forward this to them, and they can use the following link to subscribe. http://www.aibi.ph/eternity/ or they can just send a blank email to: eternity-dbs-subscribe@strategicnetwork.org BLOG: If you missed a day or would like to read the bible studies online you can catch up using the new Eternity Daily Bible Study Blog at: http://aibi.gospelcom.net/eternity/wordpress/ EBOOKS & ARCHIVES : http://www.aibi.ph/eternity/ - includes free ebooks containing each series of Eternity-DBS bible studies. 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