1 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. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 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, 4 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. 5 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. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 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.
Commentary
Preamble In Romans chapter seven the Apostle Paul declared that through Jesus Christ's crucifixion death He has brought us into a new covenant relationship with God (the old covenant having been annulled as a legal force against us who believe in Jesus Christ when He suffered crucifixion death on the cross, for He has satisfied God's righteous demands there). And thus through the analogy of marriage the Apostle showed us how it is now lawful for us to be "married to another", to Christ (i.e. be in a covenant relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ). For with Jesus Christ's crucifixion death, and thus or co-death with Him, we who believe in Him have not only died to sin (Rom 6:6), but we have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that we may be married to another, to Christ who was raised from the dead, so that we should bear fruit to God (Rom 7:1-4). And so serving God in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter is where each and every believer finds their victory over sin. For as the Apostle Paul stated in chapter seven, "For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. 6 But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve gin the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter." Rom 7:5-6
And so being "in the flesh" and "being under law" is the essence of Romans chapter seven.Yet the law does not provide any empowerment to live by it, nor does it give grace when anyone fails to do it. All the law does as a legal force is expose sin and pronounce a judgment against it. And thus the law simply reveals the fleshes weaknesses and inability to have any sort of victory over sin through it. The Apostle Paul will go on to describe this dilemma in great detail throughout the rest of chapter, coming to a sort of crescendo in 7:24-25 where he cries out and concludes by saying, 24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin." Rom 7:24-25
And with that the Apostle Paul sets the stage for the indwelling Spirit of God as the Source of life and victory for us who believe in Jesus Christ over sin and death. For as we will see in chapter eight it is the Holy Spirit who not only brings us to Spiritual life. But it is the Holy Spirit who also transforms our persons and lives as we are led by Him. Thus just as chapter seven was all about the fleshes defeat and death through sin, revealed to us all through the laws ministry. Chapter eight is all about the Spiritual life and victory over sin and death (or anything else that could separate us from the love of God) that we all have through the indwelling Spirit of God, which comes to us all who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ through the Gospel, the moment we believe in Him (Eph. 1:13-14).
Vs. 1 Here then the Apostle Paul boldly declares every believer's position with God because of our being redeemed by the Lord Jesus Christ. And that is, there is no condemnation for us all who are In Christ Jesus. Now this is based solely on the Lord Jesus Christ's shed blood and crucifixion death at Calvary where Jesus once and for all time satisfied the justice of God, having paid our sin debt in full there. Thus there can be no condemnation for us who are In Christ Jesus. For in having been delivered from law, sin, and death through Christ's vicarious sacrifice and now living Person, there can be no condemnation of us who believe in Him. And so though we may stumble and sin, as the Apostle Paul makes clear in chapter seven, we will overcome it all by the indwelling Spirit of God.
Now the second part of Romans 8:1 states "...who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit." Now if taken at a glance one might think what is being implied there is a condition on God's saving us, which if taken that way would throw the whole purpose and accomplishment of the cross (and thus our justification and ongoing sanctification by the Holy Spirit) into complete disarray. Therefore what is being stated is not a condition for our salvation, (or our remaining In Christ, and thus saved) rather it is an exhortation for us all who believe in Jesus Christ not to walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. And so we are to live out our redeemed position in Christ, by having a Spirit disposition towards the things of the flesh and the things of Spirit of God. For having been delivered from the law, having died with Christ to what we were held by (Rom 7:4-6), we are now to serve God in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter. Thus we are neither to live by "the letter" (i.e. basically codified legalism) nor are we to live according to the sinful lusts of the flesh revealed and awakened by the law. Instead we are now living by "the law of the Spirit in Christ Jesus which has made us free from the law of sin and death". Which is the the new Spirit nature within us all who believe in Jesus.
Vs. 2 "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death."
Thus it is "the law and the life of the Spirit of God in Christ Jesus" that is giving us victory over "the law of sin and death" (vs. 2). For though both are called laws, they are not equated as being equal in our persons. For again, "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death." And so it is "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" which cause us to rise above the law of sin and death having released us from it's clasps forever. Which is something every believer must apprehend for themselves by faith and not by works of the law. For it is through "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" by which we are not only brought to Spiritual life, but this is the law that is sanctifying us and empowering our persons throughout our lives to bear fruit to God. And so everything about this law is life, because it is rooted in the Holy Spirit indwelling and sanctifying and empowering our persons individually and collectively until the Day of Christ. And so this "law of the the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" has not only released us from "the law of sin and death", but it is the law that is now working within us conforming us to the will of God. And so just as the law of sin and death was once at work within us bearing fruit to death (Rom 7:5) so now the "the law and the life of the Spirit of God in Christ Jesus" is at work within every believer sanctifying and equipping and empowering us to bear the fruits of eternal life through our regenerated persons and lives. For just as the law of sin and death inevitably drags people downward to it's terrible and finial end, so "the law and the life of the Spirit of God in Christ Jesus" moves each and every believer heavenward, progressively transforming us into what God intends us to be for all eternity.
Vs. 3-4 3 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, 4 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.
Here the Apostle Paul explains why and how "the law and the life of the Spirit of God in Christ Jesus" became enacted. The why is simple, for though the Law of God is holy and good it cannot resolve the fundamental problem with humanity and that is indwelling sin in our flesh. For though the Law represents the moral character and will of God for us all, it does not address this fundamental problem with us all, and thus the law of sin and death always supplants the law of God as the dominant law within every person unless there is Divine intervention, which there has now been. Therefore what the Law could not do in that it 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. And so in passing a legal judgment against it, as well as providing the atonement for it, Jesus has left no provisions for sin to have a legal mastery of our persons any longer. For Jesus' shed blood has not only brought about the remission of all our, His sacrifice has also perfected us in the sight of God forever, and so the sanctification of each and every believer by His Spirit is assured us (Heb 9:22; 10:14). And so in fullness of time Jesus became a Man and took on human flesh, being born fully human in every way to take the place of Adam as the Feudal head of humanity. Yet Jesus was also born fully separate from sin (1 John 3:5), so that He as God's Righteousness in the flesh for us all could legally condemn sin in the flesh, which He did when He was crucified at Calvary as the propitiation not only for the sins we have committed, but also for the sin nature that we have all inherited from Adam. And thus in doing so Jesus has made the way so 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.
Vs. 5-11 5 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. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 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.
Notice the utter contrast than between the Spirit led believer and the one who is not. For these only have their minds set on the things of the flesh (regarding this also consider Phil 3:19 and then Col. 3:2). And so those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh. That is their whole person and life is only being lived for the things of the flesh. And so that is where their hearts loyalty begins and ends, with the things of the flesh. Which for them is the measure of everyone and everything. And thus their loyalty is with the flesh and the desires and pursuits of it (antithesis 1 John 2:15-17). In contrast then is the Spirit led and filled believer whose heart and life has it's loyalty with Christ, and and thus whose heart and mind is set on the things of the Spirit. But not as means to salvation, rather the Spirit is as much the center and core of their person, as the fleshes works, lusts and desires are the center and core of the unregenerate person (consider Gal 5:16-25). And so these are contrary to each other, for to be loyal to one is to be hostile towards the other.
Vs. 6-8 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
"To be carnally minded is death", indicates not only a spiritual condition (that one is dead in one's sins and transgressions) but it indicates a loyalty to this world and the lusts and desires of it. And so there is no vacillation with the Apostle Paul on this. For you can't have your feet on the rock and the sand, you have to take your stand completely with Christ, and not with the other (consider James 4:4). Therefore for us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ we must guard and hold dear that spiritual mind that is ours by default (1 Cor 2:16), because that is where life and peace is found in knowing the Will of God and being surrendered to it through Christ via His Word. While to be fleshly or carnally minded is only death, for that is to be alienated from God and living hostile towards God. And so no one who is fleshly minded is at peace with God. Whether secretly or blatantly the carnally minded individual is always at enmity with God, because all that they believe and hold dear is hostile to the Will of God revealed for us all through His Word. Thus the fleshly minded individual is neither subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. Because they are neither subject to Christ, nor are they led or empowered by His Spirit. Their thoughts, lives, and actions are only led and empowered by their own sinful human nature, which inevitably leads them into pursuing and justifying their own unregenerate will and desires. "So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God." Because they have not yet to come the place of repentance and faith towards God. And so they are either still living carnally, or they are trying to save themselves through what they do, rather than acknowledging their own sinfulness or willfulness or brokenness so that Christ might save, heal, and change them. For there is nothing anyone can do to either save themselves or change themselves, (for the Lord Jesus Christ has already condemned sin in the flesh, vs. 3). Thus our regeneration and transformation must come from God alone, who by His Spirit first initiates it, and later assures of His completing it, by His indwelling Spirit, which comes permanently to indwell and sanctify us all who believe, the moment we repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ through the Gospel (Eph. 1:13-14).
Vs. 9-11 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.
And so the Apostle Paul now uses a the finest little conjunction in Biblical Greek to begin this section to indicate something being added to what was already stated while here introducing a contrast. And so we have (
de) translated here in English "
But". Meaning all that the Apostle has previously stated about being "in the flesh", he was not referring to believers. He was simply revealing a contrast between the Spirit minded individual with that of the unbeliever, whose mind is fixated on the things of the flesh. Thus the Apostle Paul now reaffirms us all who believe in Jesus Christ that we are not in the flesh (as a state or condition of our being, even though we may have sinned or struggled with sin), but we are in the Spirit,
if (
ei, another conjunction, adverbial marker of condition)
the Spirit of God dwells in you. For that is the measure of every true Christian, (not what denomination you belong too, or church you attend, or Bible translation you read, or in what capacity you seek to serve in) but only the indwelling presence of the Spirit of God is the measure of every Christian, for it is He who Spiritually unites and sanctifies each and every one of us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. "Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His." So simple and so true, and yet so misused by those who try to manifest so called Spirit gifts through their own flesh. Yet the true Christian who knows their standing with God, knowing that they already have the Spirit of Christ, don't feel the need to do so. For our security is Christ Himself inside of us. And so our secured standing with God doesn't come from our trying to emulate so called things from the Spirit of God, our being secure with God is God's Spirit indwelling us from the moment we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ until the end of eternity. Something that God's Spirit reveals to our person personally.
Now in verse ten the Apostle Paul says, "
And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness." vs. 10
And so here the Apostle is moving us away from looking to the flesh and rather living in the Spirit, for that is where our victory over sin is found. For the body is dead because
of sin, it can in of itself rise no higher than that condemned and futile
state. Now if that is all we were, mere mortal bodies indwelt by sin than we would be without hope, but that is not the case with us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. For as the Apostle Paul goes on to say (using our favorite little conjuction) "but the Spirit is life because of righteousness." Spirit here is unmistakably the Holy Spirit. For it is He alone who has brought our once spiritually dead persons to life, and thus it is He who gives life to our mortal bodies because of Jesus Christ's Resurrection life! And so the Spirit is life because of righteousness, which is not our righteousness, but God's (see Rom. 3:19-28, vs. 23-26). For it is God in His Righteousness, through the death and resurrection of His Son the Lord Jesus Christ, who has bought us and brought us to life by His Spirit, as the Apostle Paul goes on to say, "
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." vs. 11
Thus the emphasis here is on life, something sin through the flesh always seeks to undermine. Nonetheless through Christ's resurrection life we now have and experience life through our mortal bodies because of the Holy Spirit indwelling us and uniting us with Him (Rom 6:4, 8, 11) and thus empowering us to overcome sin in the flesh. And so just as we have life in our mortal bodies so we also have the promise of the resurrection life to come (see 1 Cor 15:20-28, 35-55). Thus we have life in the fullness of it here and now. For it is Christ's Spirit who not only brings us to life, He also strengthens us throughout our reborn lives (Psalm 28:7; 59:17; 62:7;
Psalm 118:4; Isaiah 12:2) sustaining us through every trial and tribulation that we must pass through in this life. And so like Moses we may also boldly declare our praise and thanksgiving to the Lord, saying:
"The LORD is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation;
He is my God, and I will praise Him;
My father’s God, and I will exalt Him." Ex. 15:2
Therefore the body is dead because
of sin, yet the Spirit is alive because
of righteousness.For it is God's Righteousness
imputed to each and everyone of us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ through which we have confidence before Him (2 Cor 5:21). Sin then in this mortal flesh though it will take this mortal body to the grave, (if we die before Christ's return) God's Spirit has already united our persons with Christ, and so just as He is, so are we being transformed by His Spirit to be.
Scripture Quotations
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.
Additional Resources Consulted
Walvoord, John F., and Roy B. Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary. The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985.
Louw, Johannes P., and Eugene Albert Nida. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains. New York: United Bible Societies, 1996.
Word Studies
Vs. 9 But: LN. 89.124, Str 1161
Vs. 10 If: LN. 89.124, Str 1487
