When the Bible writers wrote the Scriptures, they did not include any chapter or verse divisions. These were added in the fifteenth century to make Bible reading easier. But sometimes, in order to get the correct meaning of the text, it is advisable to ignore either the chapter or the verse division. This is true when we come to study Romans 8, especially verses 1-4.
Notice that chapter 8 begins "There is therefore . . ." This is telling us that the first verse of chapter 8 is really the conclusion of what Paul has been saying at the end of chapter 7. It really belongs with chapter 7.
In the last chapter, we established the fact that the inner turmoil described in Romans 7:15-24 is referring to a born-again Christian who sincerely and honestly wants to do what is right as defined by the law of God. We found that the sinful nature prevents this from happening, since it is dominated by the law of sin which the believer is unable to overcome in his or her own strength. Paul sums up this struggle between the converted mind and the unconvertible flesh in verse 25, "So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin."
This is the context, then, for the first verse of chapter 8: "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Incidentally, this is all that Paul wrote in verse 1. The King James Version, as well as the New King James Version, adds the following statement, "who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit." But this last phrase is not found in any of the older manuscripts. It is a later addition by those who were copying the Scriptures and should be ignored. Yes, Paul did write that phrase in verse 4, but it does not belong to verse 1, for in that context it contradicts Paul's whole message of justification by faith alone.
When Paul wrote, "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus," what did he mean?
In the light of Romans 7:25, he means that a Christian who is struggling with the flesh and experiencing defeat does not stand condemned before God.
"How can this be?" you say. This can be true because, unlike us human beings, God does not judge us by our outward performance, but by the intent of the heart or mind (see 1 Samuel 16:7; Jeremiah 17:10; Romans 8:27). In the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, you will discover that, again and again, Jesus judged the Jews of His day by what they were thinking rather than by what they were saying or doing. God does not judge our Christian experience by our performance, but by what our minds are preoccupied with. Since we humans cannot read minds we must leave judging each other to God, who will judge us by our motives on judgment day (1 Corinthians 4:5). That's why the apostle Paul warns believers to stop judging each other (see Romans 14:10).
Twice in Romans 7, Paul states that he finds himself doing those very things that he doesn't really want to do. And, he says, when that happens, "it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me" (verses 17,20). By this he means, the converted mind is not responsible for the failure to live the good life, since its desire, as well as its choice, is to do what is good (see verse 18). It is the sinful nature that must take the blame—the flesh which is dominated by the law of sin and which brings the mind into captivity to sin (see verses 21-23).
Clearly, the man of Romans 7 has no cherished sins even though he is struggling and being defeated by besetting sins. A cherished sin is one your mind refuses to give up, while a besetting sin is one your converted mind has relinquished, but which still has a hold on you. Today, a besetting sin is commonly referred to as a compulsion, something we all struggle with.
Remember, it is the converted mind that Christ saves and will take to heaven, along with a glorified body which He will give us at His second coming; our sinful natures are not redeemable and will be destroyed. Paul makes this clear in 1 Corinthians 15:50-54 and Philippians 3:20, 21. If we have the mind of Christ, a mind emptied of self (see Philippians 2:5), then we are safe to be saved because that is what we will take to heaven.
But if the sinful flesh is so strong and so unchangeable, is there no hope for Christians? Must those who long to live the victorious life, who are struggling with the flesh, who hate the evil they are doing, and who delight in the law of God and want very much to live a life pleasing to God—must they simply give up? Is there a solution to this problem?
Paul answers with a definite Yes! "I thank God," he exclaims, "—through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 7:25). Thank God that Jesus Christ is not only our Saviour from the guilt and punishment of sin, but that He also came to this world to save us from the power and slavery of sin!
When we first became Christians, our main concern was to be saved from our sins (plural) because we realized that these sins condemned us and would deprive us of life and heaven. But after being a Christian for some time, we discovered that sin is more than an act, it is also a force, a principle, a power that resides in our sinful natures and which we are unable to conquer, in and of ourselves, try as we may. This is the experience Paul describes in Romans 7:15-24.
We believers can thank God, that the blood of Christ forgives our sins and cleanses us from all unrighteousness (see 1 John 1:7, 9). But if we are truly converted and appreciate Christ, we want more than forgiveness from sin, wonderful as this is. We want victory over sin. Not in order to be justified or to make it to heaven; that is already ours in Christ. "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). Rather, we want victory over sin because we want to glorify God while we are waiting patiently for the blessed hope, the appearing of our Lord and Saviour (see Titus 2:11-14).
The big question is this: "Is total victory over the flesh possible this side of eternity?"
Many Adventists today say, "not possible." And their proof is the challenge: "Show me someone who has done it." I call this salvation based on human experience rather than salvation by faith in God's Word. This mindset is the influence of the scientific method creeping into the church—a method that rejects anything that is supernatural.
My response to those who must have empirical evidence before they can believe is this: "What would you have done if you were in Noah's or Abraham's shoes? Noah had never experienced rain; Abraham had no scientific evidence that a woman could have a child after passing the age of childbearing. In fact, he had evidence that such a thing could not happen. Yet both men took God at His Word, and their histories are recorded for our benefit. (Read Romans 4:16-18 to find out what true faith involves.)
Because we live in a scientific age that largely accepts only what can be demonstrated in the laboratory, even Christians—even many Seventh-day Adventist Christians—find it difficult to believe that total victory over the power of sin in the flesh is impossible this side of eternity. But what answer does the apostle Paul give to this question in Romans 8? Does Paul believe that total victory over the flesh is possible in this life? The answer is a definite YES!
In Romans 8, Paul has some wonderful, encouraging good news for us, who long for victory over our sinful flesh. He assures us that victory over the power of sin is possible and that the source of that victory is none other than "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" (verse 2). Paul expounds this glorious truth of victory over the sinful flesh in the first half of chapter 8. He says that in Christ we have salvation full and complete. Just as we once came to Him for forgiveness and justification, so also we must now come to Him for power to overcome the flesh and for grace to live the sanctified life. "I can do all things," Paul says, "through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13). "Not I, but Christ" is the gospel formula for experiencing both justification as well as sanctification.
With this in mind, let's now proceed to examine carefully what Paul is saying about Christ's victory over the sinful flesh in Romans 8:2-4.
In verse 2, the apostle Paul states a fact. He says, "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me [and all mankind] free from the law of sin and death." This became reality in Christ some 2,000 years ago, when, as the second Adam, He redeemed all humanity by His death. Paul is not referring here to the Christian's subjective experience, but to an objective fact that actually took place at the cross. He uses the Greek aorist (past) tense—the tense which means that something occurred once and for all in the past.
All through His earthly life, two forces struggled within Christ's humanity, trying to dominate Him—the law of the Spirit of life versus the law of sin and death. Please notice, both of these forces are described as a law, that is, a constant force or principle. And the good news is that in Christ's humanity, the law of the Spirit of life defeated and overcame the law of sin and death—and finally condemned it on the cross! This proves that the power of the Holy Spirit is far superior than all the power that the devil can muster through the sinful flesh. This is a vital part of the incredible good news of the gospel that is often ignored.
Those who insist that we cannot totally overcome the sinful flesh—even by the power of the indwelling Spirit—are not only undermining God's power, they have also failed to understand the full implication of what Paul says in Romans 1:16, "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, because it is the power of 'God to salvation for everyone who believes" (emphasis supplied).
The secret of victory for the Christian is stated in this fact: "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death" (Romans 8:2). Every believer is conscious of an inner influence or impulse moving him or her to do wrong. This is the law of sin which produces death, because death is always the consequence of sin (see Romans 6:23). But in the believer this law of sin is to be replaced by a new, vitalizing force, "the law of the Spirit" (verse 2), which gives spiritual life (see Romans 8:11). In other words, the indwelling Holy Spirit moves us constantly to do the right. But more than that, the Spirit actually provides the power and strength we need to do it! He is not only an influence; He is a positive force, enabling us to live righteously.
What a wonderful exchange! Not I, but Christ. By applying the truth of the cross daily to our lives (see Luke 9:23; Galatians 5:24), we surrender to the cross the inner influence toward sin. And, in exchange, we receive a living Person to control our lives, One who will guide us and empower us!
In verse 3, the apostle explains what happened to make all this possible. He says, "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 [the law of sin]: He condemned sin in the flesh." The moral law of God was incapable of producing righteousness in sinful flesh. But what the moral law could not accomplish, God accomplished in Christ's humanity— a humanity which was identical to our sinful humanity.
Some insist, however, that when Christ clothed Himself with humanity at the incarnation, He was exempt from the "law of sin" (Romans 8:2) with which we are born. They argue that Paul says God sent His Son "in the likeness of sinful flesh" (verse 3, emphasis supplied), and that the word "likeness" does not mean "identical." They argue that Christ's humanity was like ours in that He experienced fatigue, hunger, aging, etc., but that it was unlike ours when it came to possessing a sinful nature dominated by the law of sin. If He had a sinful nature, just like ours, they insist, He Himself would be a sinner in need of a Saviour.
If you look at a Greek lexicon, however, you will find that the Greek word translated "likeness" has different shades of meaning and therefore can be used in more than one way. For example, according to A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament by Arndt and Gingrich, this Greek word may also be translated as "make like," "compare," "likeness," "copy," "form," "similar to," etc.
How can we understand, then, exactly what Paul had in mind when he used this word in Romans 8:3? The only way to know is by looking at the context, the setting, in which he uses it. The whole issue Paul has been addressing in the last half of Romans 7 and the first half of chapter 8 is the issue of the law, or principle, of sin that resides in the Christian's human nature. He says that we cannot, of ourselves, overcome this law of sin in our lives. But Christ "condemned sin in the flesh" when He came "in the likeness of sinful flesh" (Romans 8:3). The phrase "sin in the flesh," (NKJV) or "sin in sinful man" (NIV), is synonymous with "the law of sin and death" (verse 2) as well as with "sin dwelling in me" (Romans 7:17, 20). The context clearly indicates that Christ condemned sin in the very same human nature that you and I possess—a human nature in which the "law of sin" resides.
Furthermore, the word "sin" in Romans 8:3, is singular (not sins) and therefore could not be referring to our many sins which Christ bore on the cross, but to "the law of sin" which Christ also condemned by His death on the cross. It was because this "law of sin" was executed on the cross in Christ's humanity, that Paul could declare in Romans 8:1, "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus," even though the sinful human nature of the believer is still serving the law of sin.
As we saw earlier, Romans 5:12-21 makes it clear that when Christ redeemed humanity as the second Adam, He could do so lawfully only by assuming our corporate sinful humanity as we know it. But this did not make Him a sinner because that humanity was not His by native right. He assumed our sinful humanity in order to redeem us totally from every aspect of sin. This is why the New Testament writers always add a qualifier when they speak of Christ's humanity. Thus Christ was "made flesh" (John 1:14, emphasis supplied); He was "made sin" (2 Corinthians 5:21, emphasis supplied); He was "made of a woman" (Galatians 4:4, emphasis supplied); etc. The word made in these texts means He was made to be something that, in and of Himself, He was not. This is why Paul says that God sent Christ "in the likeness of sinful flesh" (Romans 8:3, emphasis supplied) in order that He might first overcome sin by His life, and than condemn that law of sin on the cross by His death.
Had Christ consented to any of the desires of that sinful nature He assumed, even by a thought (the consent of the mind), He would indeed have become a sinner in need of a Saviour. But by His perfect life and His sacrificial death, He became our perfect Saviour and gave us everlasting hope, not only from our many sins which condemn us but also from the law of sin and death which disqualifies us from heaven and makes holy living impossible, in and of ourselves.
The result of this glorious truth is that the righteousness of the law, which we are incapable of attaining in our own strength, is now possible for us who walk in the Spirit, as Christ did when He was on this earth (see Romans 8:4). In verses 5-17, Paul proceeds to explain what walking in the Spirit actually involves. He says that this is the secret to holy living that God has prepared for those who have accepted Christ as their Saviour.
All this is wonderful news. But we must be very clear on one point: As long as we are depending on our performance, even in the slightest way, for our assurance of salvation, the Holy Spirit will not reproduce in us the victorious life of Christ.
Why is this so?
Because, in the first place, the Holy Spirit is not a coredeemer with Christ. His function in the plan of salvation is to communicate to us the perfect salvation God has already obtained for all men in Christ. The Holy Spirit is the active agent in the plan of salvation, but only Christ is the redeemer.
Second, for the Holy Spirit to produce righteousness in us, in order to save or justify us, He would have to contradict the gospel which already has justified all who believe in Christ (see Romans 5:1). The Godhead does not contradict itself. In other words, if we are not resting in Christ and His perfect salvation which He obtained for us some 2,000 years ago, we are not safe for victory and therefore cannot experience it.
We cannot be justified by faith alone in the righteousness of Christ, we cannot admit that there is nothing good in us and that we are 100 percent sinners, and then turn around and try to add our own good works to that perfect righteousness we received in Christ. This is what the Galatian Christians were attempting to do (see Galatians 3:3). Paul warned them, "You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith" (Galatians 5:4, 5).
We must constantly keep in mind that we are justified by faith alone in the righteousness of Christ and by nothing else. Sanctification, holy living, is the fruit of that justification. As long as we fail to understand, or as long as we are unwilling to accept, this fundamental truth of the gospel, the Holy Spirit cannot manifest the power of God to overcome our sinful flesh.
This is one of the major reasons Christians today are such poor witnesses to the world when it comes to manifesting the power of the gospel over sinful flesh. This is why so many who live in so-called Christian countries have turned their backs on Christianity. Understanding and accepting the truth of justification by faith alone is the crying need of Christians today. Without it, the Church will fail to experience the victorious life that Christ is longing to bestow upon His believers through the power of the indwelling Spirit. And what the Church does not experience, she cannot witness to.
We can be set free from our ego-centric preoccupation with our own personal salvation only when we understand and accept justification by faith alone— set free so that the Holy Spirit may take over and lighten this earth with the glory of Jesus Christ. I believe this was God's purpose some one hundred years ago when He brought this most precious message to the Adventist Church. Thank God, He has not abandoned His purpose; He still longs to make it a reality today. So let's stop slinging mud at each other over this issue of the human nature of Christ. In Christian love, let's study this subject prayerfully, putting aside our pre-conceived ideas and earnestly seeking truth as did our pioneers in the formative years of this church. The result will be 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" (Romans 8:4).
Key Points in Chapter Nine Redeemed From the Law of Sin