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desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1Timothy 2:3-4
Romans by the Book Lesson 52
I
want to thank the regular visitors for their faithfulness and welcome you all to
HBS.
We’re
going to jump right into the Bible study, this time around and forego the
announcements and such. If you’ll please
open your Bible to the book of Romans, at chapter 8, we’ll commence.
Romans
8 highlights the ministry of the Holy Spirit to Believers.
Prior
to this chapter, the Spirit is mentioned only once in Romans (Romans 5:5).
But
in the 8th chapter of Romans the Holy Spirit is referred to nearly
20 times.
This
is why I’ve said and many others refer to this chapter as a “treasure trove”
for Believers…and a refuge for the weary, when life seems to be an uphill
climb.
We
spent some time at verse 10 in the previous lesson but there’s one more item I
want to cover before we press on. Let’s
review.
Romans 8
10: If Christ is in
you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive
because of righteousness.
Paul
states a double-fact concerning
those in whom Christ, by His Spirit is
alive.
First,
the body is dead.
In
the previous lesson Paul taught us that our bodies (our flesh) are hopelessly
lost (Romans 7:18-25). We must
understand that even though we are Believers, and Jesus Christ dwells within
us, our bodies are not redeemed yet.
This is why the vast majority of us will face death in this life.
In
our present state, our bodies cannot enter heaven. They must be changed.
Romans 8
22: For we know
that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth
together until now.
23: And not only
this, but also we ourselves, having (what) the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within
ourselves, waiting eagerly for our
(what) adoption as sons, the
redemption of our body.
The
body is dead as regards to anything God-ward and this due to sin.
But
the day is coming when our bodies will be “changed.”
Let’s
go to Scripture.
1 Corinthians 15
51: Behold, I tell
you a mystery; we will not all sleep (pass away), but we will all be (what) changed,
52: in a moment, in
the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will
sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be
changed.
53: For this
perishable (body
– whether awake or asleep) must put
on the imperishable, and this mortal (the word mortal means: subject to physical death) must put on immortality.
The
Bible verses above are referencing the rapture
of the church which could occur at any time (1 Corinthians 15:20-23; 1
Thessalonians 4:13-18).
The
second stated fact from verse 10 is this: the
Spirit is life because of (Christ’s) righteousness.
Scripture
says,
2 Corinthians 5
21: He (God the Father) made Him (Jesus Christ) who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the
righteous of God in Him (through faith alone).
There
are few things in this life that are certain, but we all have an appointment
with death and that is a certainty. The
countless cemeteries across this land provide a silent testimony to this
truth.
Federal
Adam’s transgression brought sin and death into this world (Romans 5:12).
Like
the rest of humanity, you entered the world as a sinner, but because you made a
decision to believe, Jesus Christ lives in you.
Jesus said, “I AM the resurrection and the
life. He who believes in Me will live,
even though he dies.” (John
11:25)
Scripture
says that even though these bodies, which were once “fearfully and wonderfully made”
by the hands of God, are consigned to death and destruction because of
sin. But for those who are in Christ Jesus they will be
raised in glory.
1 Corinthians 15
43: it (our sinful body) is sown in dishonor, it is raised in
glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.
Our
decaying bodies are described here as being “sown (buried) in dishonor”
because they have been ravaged by sin.
Picture,
if you will the lungs of someone who has turned them black as coal and ruined
their health due to smoking, or a human brain that is no longer able to form a
complete thought because of substance abuse.
In much the same way, the human body is decaying as a direct result of
one’s sinfulness. If there had been no
sin, there would be no decay and no death (1 Corinthians 15:56). But God, through Christ’s regenerating power, is able to raise
His children with new glorious bodies.
1 Corinthians 15
44: it (our body) is sown (buried) a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a
spiritual body.
45: So also it is
written, “The first man, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.” The last Adam (Jesus Christ) became
a life-giving Spirit.
The
“soul” was the basis of life for the first Adam but the “Sprit” is the
basis of life for the last Adam, Jesus Christ, and for all those who believe.
Let’s
move on to the next verse.
Romans 8
11: But if
the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who
raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give (what) life to your mortal bodies through
His Spirit who dwells in you.
If
the Spirit dwells in you, you have the
assurance of God the Father that He will raise you from the
dead just as certainly as He raised His Son, Jesus Christ, from the dead.
I
prefer to let the Bible “speak” as much as possible. I have another verse in mind that says the
same thing – only clearer. Please turn
to 1 Corinthians, chapter 15.
I Corinthians 15
22: For as in Adam all
die, so also in Christ all will be made (what) alive.
23: But each in his
own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at
His coming,
God,
through His written Word, has promised to raise your earthly body from the dead
(if that’s necessary) and He’s promised you a “glorified body.” If you were regenerated spiritually, you will
be regenerated physically as
well.
As
I said earlier, these bodies were not made for heaven. They must be altered (changed). Please turn to the book of Philippians,
chapter 3.
Philippians 3
20: For our
citizenship is (where)
in heaven, from which also we
eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
21: who will
(read
carefully) transform (regenerate)
the body of our humble state into
conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the
power that He has given to subject all things to Himself.
What
does “transform the body of our humble state”
mean exactly?
I’m
glad you asked?
Verse
21 informs us that after our bodies have been regenerated they will be exactly like (conform to) Christ’s glorious
body. The word conform means: to match -identically.
That’s
difficult to wrap the thought processes around, after all we live in and we
deal with the physical world 24/7. We’re
ignorant of anything else. For most
people the spiritual world is Ouija boards, vampire movies, and reality shows
such as Ghost Hunters. But the truth is
the Spiritual realm is in the future of every Believer.
Now
I’m going to be honest with you.
Scripture is silent as to what this means exactly and I’m not one to
cite opinion in lieu of facts. For
instance, we are not told what we’ll look like, how old we’ll be,
whether well be slim and trim, or obese.
I don’t know if I’ll suddenly have hair or if I’ll need hair…but you get
the idea.
However,
every diligent Bible student is aware that there are “Biblical hints” in
Scripture that may give us some idea of what we could experience once our
bodies have been transformed. You need look no further than that time
period (40 days) after Jesus’ resurrection for these hints because Christ was the first fruits (1
Corinthians 15:23).
One
thing is for certain we’re not going to be a bunch of ghosts, sitting
around on puffy clouds, all the live-long day.
After Jesus’ resurrection, He was all about taking care of His Father’s
business here on earth. We’ll have
responsibilities too. I get this from
Jesus’ parable of Money Usage (Luke
19:11-27) for one, but there are other Scripture accounts that clearly teach
this truth (1 Corinthians 6:2-3; 12).
Here
are a few of those Biblical hints I spoke of earlier that each of us may
experience after our bodies have been transformed:
- Jesus had a physical body. You could see Him, you could touch Him, and Jesus ate food (Luke 24:36-43).
- Jesus could come and go and travel great distances in a flash. He could also control people’s thoughts (Luke 24:13-31).
- Jesus was able to pass through solid objects (John 20:19).
- Remember, Jesus’ body still bore the visible wounds from His crucifixion. Whether these scars were for the disciples benefit, meaning - the eleven who remained may have required “a sign” before they would believe (1 Corinthians 1:22), or if these wounds were permanent Scripture is silent.
Our
earthy (physical) bodies limit us in ways and in dimensions (like time)
that our Spiritual bodies will not. The
natural body is “fitted” for this life here on earth (this universe – we need
to stop thinking small – do you not know that eternity exists in you now?). Our Spiritual bodies will equip us for the
“eternal existence” which is our destiny as Believers.
Let’s
go to verse 12.
Romans 8
12: So then,
brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to
the flesh –
13: for if you are
living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are
putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
The
two words, “So then,” the Apostle Paul inserts here have all the great truths
in mind from Romans 6:1 to this point. Believers
are identified with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, and our
connection with Federal Adam, the first being, has been broken. Our “old self” was crucified with Him, in
order that our body of sin might be done away with. Next we share Christ’s newness of life
as being in Christ Risen.
Next
the Holy Spirit, which is life, indwells all those who by faith believe, and we
are set free from the law of sin and of death—because all rights of sin
as connected with flesh were cancelled at the cross. Finally, although our body is still dead to
God, yet the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus personally dwells within us,
guaranteeing that He who raised Christ from the dead will also raise us from
the dead when Christ returns. Meanwhile the indwelling Spirit becomes an “earnest” (down payment) of the coming
redemption of our bodies.
“So then”—let the power of all these glorious
truths direct our thoughts from here.
In
consideration of these mighty truths expressed above, Believers are under obligation to God, to Jesus
Christ, and to the indwelling Spirit. But,
please note, this is not how verse 12 reads. Rather, it’s the denial of any debtorship
whatever to the flesh instead!
Put
in simpler terms, Paul is saying, “Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an
obligation,” (verse 12). That
obligation is not to live according to the flesh, for if we do that, we
will die - see verse 13.
Because the
(carnal) mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not
subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so (Romans 8:7).
It
is not that “the flesh” is, or ever will be, in any sense improved on.
I’ve
heard people say, “How can you behave like that? You’re a Christian. Act like it.”
The
thing most Christians don’t understand is that the flesh is hopelessly lost,
whether you’re a Believer or not. Christians
should not hold people to a standard that the Bible does not. Believers will have “those moments” when the
“old Adam” within us makes his presence known and in that moment of weakness we’re
going to fail to do the right thing. Sometimes
the flesh wins out. But Believers, with
the Spirit’s help, will overcome these momentary spiritual assaults by and
by. They don’t hang around these “bad
neighborhoods,” in other words.
Believers
are aware of their mistakes, they confess them to their Savior, and the maturing
process continues. They are attentive to
the Spirit’s leading; they don’t tune the Spirit out. They don’t consistently fail to do the right
thing. That’s the difference.
Due
to this truth, all efforts to reform (or purify) the body are futile.
It
is not that man or woman does not recognize right from wrong or knowing it is
powerless to make the right choice at the right moment. To say this and leave it at that would be to
declare that an individual is not a responsible person but is simply the
“victim” of a cruel fate, living their life, succumbing to whatever happens
along life’s journey.
All people are drawn
towards wrongful activity because they are dominated by their
flesh, to which they yield their members as instruments of unrighteousness, as we’ve seen in Romans, chapter
six.
However,
a Believer yields their members to unrighteousness less and less because
they are no longer in the flesh they are in
the Spirit; the Spirit of God dwells in them.
Believers
are becoming more and more like the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29).
The
Spirit
is the source of our power and it is this power that enables us to overcome
these sinful impulses. Our body
has no role to play in this. We get no help from the flesh. The body is
dead because of sin. It must be
considered thus, so far as its ability to produce “fruit” for God.
All
must be of the Spirit – the
Spirit is life because of (Christ’s) righteousness.
Since
God has claimed us for this we owe nothing to the flesh. We are not its debtors to do its
service (verse 12). To do so would only
mean to die (we’ll spend a bit more time on verse 13 in the
next lesson).
But,
through the power of the indwelling Spirit we put to death the deeds of
the body. The body is viewed as the vehicle through which the flesh acts. It incites the natural appetite
to sinful indulgences. The Spirit-led person
must be attentive and on their guard against these physical onslaughts. They have to put to death these unwanted
and unlawful fleshly desires. It’s a
process.
The
Apostle Paul put it this way,
Colossians 3
5: Therefore, consider
the members of your earthly body as dead to immortality, impurity,
passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts (is equivalent) to idolatry.
6: For it is because
of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of
disobedience,
7: and in them you
also once walked, when you were living in them.
8: But now
you also, put them all aside:
anger, wrath, malice, slander, and
abusive speech from your mouth.
9: Do not lie to
one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices,
10: and have put
on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to
the image of the One who created Him -
(To
be continued)
©
Copyright 2011
GJ
Heitzman’s Ministry
All
Rights Reserved
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