I have decided to do a small, in-depth meditation on Romans Chapter 8. Romans itself is a powerful book, and personally, I love this chapter because it covers many deep theologies. Now, I am no theologian so remember that the things posted here are simply from my meditations. You can take them for what their worth. I write for myself more than anything because it helps clear my thoughts. My posting is only because I hope they can help someone out there.
I first read Vv. 1 - 11. I am going to break them down one by one.
"There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit (v. 1)." I want to focus on the first phrase primarily (before the comma), mainly because this is the "meat" of the verse, and also because the earliest manuscripts do not have the following phrase. Anyways, this first phrase is part of the founding thought of the Church! The whole reason for the Gospel of Jesus Christ (which actually means "Good News"!) is that there is no condemnation for our sins! The word condemnation entails a judgment that we are in the wrong and will have to pay our due because of it. What Paul says here is that there is none of that for the one who believes! Profound! Because of my belief and faith put into Christ Jesus, all of my sins (past, present, AND future!) are forgiven 100%. There is NO condemnation...
"For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death (v. 2)." Paul continues by explaining this a little further. Through the law, we only received because it was through the law that we sin. You see if it wasn't for the law, I wouldn't know that anything against it would be sin, so therefore sin is dormant. However, I do know what I am and am not supposed to do, therefore I am held accountable. Because I have ultimately failed (many times, to be frank), I am therefore a sinner. And that sin has a hold on me because the price of sin is death (6:23) and it wants its due. However, because of my faith in Christ and because there is no condemnation, I am set free from not only my payment of death, but also the hold sin has on my Spirit.
"For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, (v. 3)" Paul reiterated two things here: (1) our flesh keeps us from coming to God because it is IMPOSSIBLE for us to sinless our whole loves, because our flesh is way too weak; and (2) since we couldn't do it on our own, God sent His beloved, only begotten Son to pay the price for us just so we could be free, because He loved us so much that He couldn't stand to watch us be in bondage and condemned to Hell for all eternity. So, Christ not only saved us from our condemnation, He condemned sin while being in the flesh of a human! It is the ultimate irony and paradox.
"that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit (v.4)." I want to only focus on the first part because the next is covered in the next few verses. The Law requires our utmost best and purest obedience in every area of our life. That is the "righteous requirement". We have to have pure actions, pure words, and pure thoughts, 100% of the time. We can't. That is why we HAVE to have Christ to save us from our own selves and our own sin so that we can come before God. However, Paul shows us in the second half of the verse it is ONLY for those who have put their faith in Him to be their personal Savior.
"For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. (v. 5-6)". The basic difference between a true believer and an unbeliever goes all the way to the heart. Those that are only focused on themselves, and do not give any thought to God are the ones who have their minds on the flesh. Those who live according the God, and they do the things they do for God are the ones who are spiritually minded and have life and peace. You see, it doesn't matter WHAT you do. You could be a preacher for all it matters, but if you heart is not right with God, all of it is void and you still need Christ to save you from your sin. Does this mean you are going to think on God 24/7? No. But it does mean that God has an effect on your life, the way you live, and the way you think. You suddenly find yourself doing things that you once did, but feel bad about it, and actually lose interest in it. You find yourself not thinking as harshly as you once did, or at least finding yourself trying to stop the things of your old self. All of this is evidence that you are trying to set your mind on the spiritual things and away from the flesh. It is not an instantaneous event. It is a long, long process.
"Because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (v. 7-8)" Paul makes a very profound statement here. The carnal, or fleshly, or worldly mind, is in enmity against God. Even if it is not giving God any thought at all, it is still at war against God. Paul says that those in the flesh CAN NOT please God, because they are still lost in their sin and sin has total control over that person. The only hope for that person is a faith in Jesus Christ.
The remaining three verses of this section reiterate the lesson learned from the last eight: Christ is our only hope. Without Him, you are utterly lost in your sin and condemned to eternity without God (Hell). However, a faith and belief in Him will cause all of your condemnation to be filled, and you will be set free from your condemnation and sins hold on your life. Again, this ONLY comes through Jesus Christ - no other way!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
The Great Exchange - Mark 8:14-38
I write this post with utter amazement with the Gospels. I have read this section (Mark 8:14-28) and picked up on things I have never noticed before, but they all seem to run together with the same theme. This whole section seems to deal with the disciples and their relationship with Christ (excepting the few verses about the blind man), but what I find so amazing is how this section shows how the relationship between Christ and His disciples was so rocky. I want to look at each break and look more closely.
The first part (vv. 14-21) is about how the disciples do not understand what Jesus is saying. They have no bread, and Jesus gives them a warning about the Pharisees, which they determine to mean something about having no food. Immediately, Jesus comes down on them! That's right - comes down on them! He seems flabbergasted that His own disciples still does not understand. "Is your heart still hardened?" He scolds. I can imagine his voice rising in three octaves at His utter disbelief in them! He reminds them of when He fed four thousand with only 12 loaves of bread and how they had seven baskets full when it was over! I picture his ending statement as almost a whisper, and a tear forming in His eye - "How is it you do not understand?"
Jesus, God's own Son, was actually amazed at the amount of sin in His own disciples. This is the first time I noticed this and was shocked by this discovery! Why was I shocked? Well, basically, because I believe it related to our relationship with Christ. Remember - when we give our lives to Christ, we too become one of His disciples!
This same theme is echoed in vv. 27-33 when Jesus is talking to Peter. Christ had just took the Twelve to Caesarea Philippi and asks them the question, "Who do men say that I am?" They tell Him John the Baptist, Elijah, or just a prophet. But then Jesus asks them one of the most profound questions in the Gospel: "But who do you say that I am?"
Immediately Peter says, "You are the Christ!". Here Peter makes a profession of faith and is shown as being a true follower of Christ. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus actually applauds Peter's statement and tells Him that on that statement, He was going to build His church! Back in Mark, only FOUR VERSES LATER, Jesus is looking at Peter and calling Him Satan!
Now, how can there be such a huge switch in such a short amount of time! This is still in the same conversation! Here is where I take what we just read and apply it: I think it shows how utterly sinful even Christ's followers still are, and how real the spiritual warfare is in life.
To reiterate, I think God is showing us through this that even after we are saved, it doesn't mean that you are not going to sin anymore! There is this heresy in America that a lot of people believe that if you sin, then you can't truly be saved! If this was true, then there would be no such thing as a Christian! And also if it was true, there would have been no disciples in the Bible!!
The Gospel of Mark just revealed to us how Peter was used as the mouthpiece of God, and then in a few moments later, was used as a mouthpiece of Satan! Such a switch it is almost unimaginable! But this is the reality that we live in.
Every second you are alive, there is a war for you! It doesn't matter whether you are saved or not, Satan is still out to set you against God, and so we must always be on guard. Some of the people Satan and his demons work on the most are people that are already saved by Christ. This is because he wants to stop them from working for God and doing the things that God has set aside for them to do. If he can wedge his way in between them, then he can get a small victory for his side, even though he has already lost the war for the person.
Now, don't misunderstand me here - once you truly belong to Christ, Satan can not get you back! Once you are God's, you are God's and as Paul writes in Romans 8, "Nothing can separate us from the love of God!". However, Satan can still influence you, and he will try his best! This is what we get from these sections out of Mark, and this is why Jesus follows up with what He says next:
"Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his sould? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."
Jesus told us that following Him was not going to be easy - in fact, it was going to be like taking up a cross of our own! But, He says that not taking up that cross is actually worse! No matter what anyone else says, the Christian life is probably the hardest one to live on this Earth because you are constantly going against every fiber of your body. The question is: Is Christ worth it to you? What will you exchange for your soul?
The first part (vv. 14-21) is about how the disciples do not understand what Jesus is saying. They have no bread, and Jesus gives them a warning about the Pharisees, which they determine to mean something about having no food. Immediately, Jesus comes down on them! That's right - comes down on them! He seems flabbergasted that His own disciples still does not understand. "Is your heart still hardened?" He scolds. I can imagine his voice rising in three octaves at His utter disbelief in them! He reminds them of when He fed four thousand with only 12 loaves of bread and how they had seven baskets full when it was over! I picture his ending statement as almost a whisper, and a tear forming in His eye - "How is it you do not understand?"
Jesus, God's own Son, was actually amazed at the amount of sin in His own disciples. This is the first time I noticed this and was shocked by this discovery! Why was I shocked? Well, basically, because I believe it related to our relationship with Christ. Remember - when we give our lives to Christ, we too become one of His disciples!
This same theme is echoed in vv. 27-33 when Jesus is talking to Peter. Christ had just took the Twelve to Caesarea Philippi and asks them the question, "Who do men say that I am?" They tell Him John the Baptist, Elijah, or just a prophet. But then Jesus asks them one of the most profound questions in the Gospel: "But who do you say that I am?"
Immediately Peter says, "You are the Christ!". Here Peter makes a profession of faith and is shown as being a true follower of Christ. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus actually applauds Peter's statement and tells Him that on that statement, He was going to build His church! Back in Mark, only FOUR VERSES LATER, Jesus is looking at Peter and calling Him Satan!
Now, how can there be such a huge switch in such a short amount of time! This is still in the same conversation! Here is where I take what we just read and apply it: I think it shows how utterly sinful even Christ's followers still are, and how real the spiritual warfare is in life.
To reiterate, I think God is showing us through this that even after we are saved, it doesn't mean that you are not going to sin anymore! There is this heresy in America that a lot of people believe that if you sin, then you can't truly be saved! If this was true, then there would be no such thing as a Christian! And also if it was true, there would have been no disciples in the Bible!!
The Gospel of Mark just revealed to us how Peter was used as the mouthpiece of God, and then in a few moments later, was used as a mouthpiece of Satan! Such a switch it is almost unimaginable! But this is the reality that we live in.
Every second you are alive, there is a war for you! It doesn't matter whether you are saved or not, Satan is still out to set you against God, and so we must always be on guard. Some of the people Satan and his demons work on the most are people that are already saved by Christ. This is because he wants to stop them from working for God and doing the things that God has set aside for them to do. If he can wedge his way in between them, then he can get a small victory for his side, even though he has already lost the war for the person.
Now, don't misunderstand me here - once you truly belong to Christ, Satan can not get you back! Once you are God's, you are God's and as Paul writes in Romans 8, "Nothing can separate us from the love of God!". However, Satan can still influence you, and he will try his best! This is what we get from these sections out of Mark, and this is why Jesus follows up with what He says next:
"Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his sould? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."
Jesus told us that following Him was not going to be easy - in fact, it was going to be like taking up a cross of our own! But, He says that not taking up that cross is actually worse! No matter what anyone else says, the Christian life is probably the hardest one to live on this Earth because you are constantly going against every fiber of your body. The question is: Is Christ worth it to you? What will you exchange for your soul?
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