March 18, 2017 NO CONDEMNATION
Romans 8:1-2: “There is now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.”
We all have things in our past, or in the present, that can cause us to feel condemned, and there is nothing more burdensome or life-draining than that of bearing the weight of condemnation. Because of the sin of Adam and Eve, man is born with a sin nature, alienated from God. However, Jesus came and took on our sin, which is the root of condemnation, and died as a once-for-all sacrifice for our sin, setting us free from the law of sin and death, and condemnation. No matter our past, we can at this very moment live free of any sense of condemnation because we are in Christ and He has reconciled us to the Father. However, according to this verse, we have to conclude that all believers do not automatically live free of condemnation; there is a condition to being free of a sense of condemnation. When a believer chooses to walk or live according to the flesh, he or she will have a sense of condemnation because the Holy Spirit convicts them that they are not walking in the ways of God. (One work of the Spirit is to convict us when we sin.) The Holy Spirit does not actually ‘condemn’ us when we sin, but He does convict us. (Condemnation and conviction may feel very much alike.) The antidote for living under a feeling of condemnation is to walk according to the Spirit, not according to the flesh. We walk according to the Spirit by hearing and following the direction of the Spirit. Foundational to walking according to the Spirit is having a heart that is turned to God, desiring to please Him in all we do. The Spirit enables us to understand and apply what is written in scripture; the scriptures are spiritual and cannot be understood by the carnal mind. Without the Holy Spirit in us to direct our steps, and to empower us, we would be limited to walking according to the flesh, unable to experience a life free of condemnation. It is indeed a giant step forward for us when we realize that “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus had made us free from the law of sin and death.” Only by being in Christ and by walking according to the Spirit can we go about life free of any and all condemnation! Today, let each of us walk and live according to the Spirit, pleasing Him in all we do. Our enemy does not want us to know and experience “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus,” but wants us believing that we are condemned. Thank God for taking us from darkness to light, and from condemnation to freedom. Enjoy!
Galatians 5:1: “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourself be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”
2 Corinthians 3:17: “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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