Romans 8:1-17
For you Bible students out there, Romans 8:1 is a memory verse. It’s also one of the most comforting verses in all of scripture.
“So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.”
Since One Step began some 13 years ago, this has been one of our foundational verses. The reason is if there’s one thing that keeps a sinner out of fellowship, it’s the chance that they may have to identify as a sinner! Over the years I’ve met with lots of people who come to me with interest to come to be a part of our weekly gathering, but they need to know: “Who’s gonna see me there?”
And that’s when I get to tell them, “Probably a bunch of people who you know! But guess what? We don’t worry about that at One Step because we understand that we’re all here because we’re beyond broken and lost in our sins. We don’t worry about condemnation or judgment because we know we belong to Jesus.”
And that many times is followed by the statement, “I have no idea what it even means to belong to Jesus.”
Well, the good news there is that if you’re looking for healing in your life and you want to get the sinning under control by turning to Jesus, you probably belong to Him a lot more than you think you do.
But Paul elaborates a bit more than that in this amazing letter…
Paul reminds us that, “The law of Moses (The Ten Commandments) was unable to save us (sinners) because of the weakness of our sinful nature.”
In other words, we’re not capable of obeying God’s law! Sure, we can handle the biggies like murder but don’t get too comfortable with that. Because God’s Word is quick to point out that if you break one commandment, you break them all. To God, sin is sin. The Commandments aren’t laid out in order of gravity, okay? Any one of them, when broken, separates us from the Father.
In Romans 7, Paul goes on and on, lamenting over how he knows right from wrong, but he does the wrong thing anyway. He wants to do the right thing but can’t. Earlier in this same letter, he goes so far as to point out that the law at times actually leads him to sin. The law says, “Don’t covet!” Paul says that command makes him, in his flesh, want to covet just to see what might happen.
Think about it…when you’re driving down the highway don’t you automatically give yourself the old, “the police give you a ten-mile-an-hour over the speed limit cushion.”
Well, not according to the speed limit sign on the side of the road. The law says, don’t speed and our flesh responds by saying let me see how fast I can go before there’s a consequence. It may seem petty, but it is a blatant disregard and disobedience of the law.
So, Paul falls into this trap constantly as we all do. And In Romans 7:24 he blurts out, “Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life of sin and death?”
And without missing a beat, he answers his own question. “Thank God! The answer is Jesus Christ our Lord!” That’s it. It’s in the moment when sin makes us miserable that we find this wonderful opportunity to acknowledge that Jesus fills the gap between the law and our inability to obey it. He hung on the cross to save us from ourselves, to save us from the reality that rebellion is bred into us. Thanks, Adam and Eve!
Romans 5:8, another reassuring verse for those of us who belong to Jesus…
“But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”
And that verse is the Gospel! It’s the Good News! Do you want to belong to Jesus? Then believe that He died for you even though you’re a stinking sinner!” Look, Jesus made Paul an Apostle even while he was on his way to persecute Christians. And He helped him to endure in that role even though he apparently remained pretty weak in the flesh at times.
We come to belong to Jesus when we confess our disobedience and pray for His help in turning away from that way of living. We embrace the mysterious indwelling of the Holy Spirit, His ability to convict us when we sin, and how He leads us back to Jesus and that righteous way of life.
Paul makes a great observation, in Romans 8:12. “…you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do.” Resist Satan and he flees, right? In this battle, the enemy only has as much power as we give him so, if we’re trusting in the power of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Satan loses! And if you rely on that power before surrendering yourself to the pill, drink, needle, or illicit website, Satan loses!
Remember, once we belong to Jesus, nothing can snatch you from the Lord’s hand. It’s just a matter of deciding what you’re surrendering to.
So, how do you avoid condemnation through Jesus Christ? Just ask Jesus Christ to spare you from condemnation. It’s that simple and it changes everything!