April 7, 2002
Romans 8:1-4
Paul has told us in Romans 8:1, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,” the reason being that we are linked up with the crucified, buried, and risen Christ. In Him there is no condemnation. In Christ, we operate under the Law of the Spirit of Life. However before that, in Adam, we operated under and were controlled by the Law of Sin and Death.
The reason the law could not aid us in any way is because the law was weak through the flesh (we mortals). The beloved Bible teacher, Dr. J. Vernon McGee, had a wonderful example of this.
Stick
a fork in an overdone chicken and try to lift it out of the pan. The fork
comes right through the overdone chicken.
There was nothing weak or wrong with the fork. The problem was the overdone chicken. The fork was weak through the flesh!
There is nothing weak or wrong with the Law of God. It is holy and true. The problem is through the flesh of man. It is impossible for mortal man to keep the Law. So what the Law couldn’t do (granting us eternal life in Heaven by keeping it perfectly), God accomplished through sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh. He wasn’t in sinful flesh but in the likeness of sinful flesh. God sent His Son as an offering for sin, the purpose being that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled.
For the wages of sin is death, but the free
gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23
The requirement of the Law was fulfilled, not by us, but in us who do not walk according to the Law but according to the Spirit (v. 4). What a statement! I have reverted to this statement hundreds of times in my Christian experience.
The Holy Spirit has no trouble at all in fulfilling God’s righteousness in our lives. Our part is to learn to walk and order our life by the Spirit. This requires staying in the Word of God as much as we can for the Word is where the Holy Spirit works and operates.
So, beloved, take your stand in God’s Word and let the Spirit do the rest. Happy walking this week. God bless.
Love to you all,