Romans 8 Bible Study (1)

Over the next few weeks whenever we meet on Wednesday nights, we’re going to be studying out of Romans 8 and we’re going to dive into one of the greatest chapters in the New Testament as Paul shares with us the hope that we have in Christ as there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. As we go through this chapter, we’re going to also have an introduction to Biblical interpretation crash course as well. It’s important for us as Christians to not only spend time reading the Bible, but to spend time carefully studying God’s Word. Suppose that someone came in to our church and said that FBC Salem is sitting on top of a massive amount of buried treasure that has been dispersed from 10 feet below the soil to 100 feet below the soil and the further you dig, the more treasure you’ll find. It would take a split second for us to run home and grab our shovels and work clothes before we came back and got busy digging! In fact, some of us would go and buy some tools in order to dig deeper and deeper to extract the treasure below our feet. This is the reality of studying the Bible. The deeper you go, the more treasure you’ll find. Sure, if you just read the Bible at surface level you’ll be blessed but if you dig deep and really study the Scriptures and spend effort and time doing so, you’ll be even more blessed as you walk away knowing more and more of God’s Word. This is why Bible study matters so much in our individual lives and also in the life of the church corporately.

Sometimes in Bible study we read some Bible verses and the leader will discuss some thoughts and study that they have done and then this question is asked, “What does this verse mean to you?” I’m not opposed to this question, but we have to be careful with this question. The Bible will never mean something that it never meant. Our responsibility as Christians and Bible students is not to immediately think about what this verse means to me but instead to think about what this verse meant back in its original context and then to think about what its modern application is in 2022. Some people jump immediately to modern application and we can miss the original meaning and make the Bible mean something that it was never meant to mean - this is called Eisegesis or reading something into the text that isn’t naturally there. We don’t want to practice this… Instead we want to practice Exegesis or extracting the meaning of the text. Books and books have been written on how to best do this and this is what we call the process of Hermeneutics or Biblical interpretation. Maybe we’ll do a Wednesday night series on the nuances of this process one day in the years to come… But for now, let’s take a crash course and look at what’s called the grammatical/historical method of Biblical interpretation to see what the plain meaning of the Bible text is.

How can we know the meaning of the text? This requires us to do some studying and investigating. Some things to keep in mind in this process:

What is the context of this passage?

What is the context of this book?

Who - Cultural

What - Historical

Where - Geographical

Why - Theological

What is the genre of this passage?

Historical Narrative like Exodus

Wisdom like Proverbs

Prophecy like Isaiah

Apocalyptic like Revelation

Epistle like Ephesians

Parable like John

Each book has different genres and we have to read the Bible in light of that genre. Narrative is a story - you would read this just like you would read a story in a biography book. Acts is a lot of historical narrative. These are real events that really happened. You read those stories differently than you do Prophecy in a place like Isaiah 53. Isaiah 53 talks about the suffering servant and that prophecy we know is fulfilled by Jesus but Isaiah didn’t see Jesus do those things. It’s prophesying what He will do. Not what He has done. As a result, we have to read those prophecy sections differently than we do a story from the Gospels or Acts. Same for apocalyptic sections of Scripture. You can’t read those passages like historical narrative sections. We have to study what the genre is and study accordingly.

What is the main idea of the text?

Let’s put some of these things to use tonight as we look at Romans 8:1-11 and look at what it looks like to experience the life giving Spirit

Romans 8:1–11 CSB

1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus, 2 because the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do since it was weakened by the flesh, God did. He condemned sin in the flesh by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh as a sin offering, 4 in order that the law’s requirement would 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 have their minds set on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit have their minds set on the things of the Spirit. 6 Now the mindset of the flesh is death, but the mindset of the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mindset of the flesh is hostile to God because it does not submit to God’s law. Indeed, it is unable to do so. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him. 10 Now if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, then he who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through his Spirit who lives in you.

Context of Book

Who wrote the book of Romans?

Paul

What is the setting of Romans?

Written to Christians in Rome

Genre of Romans?

Epistle from Paul to church

When was Romans written?

~57 AD

Why was Romans written?

To address problems in the church

To emphasize salvation in Christ, not the law

To encourage believers to walk in the Spirit

To give hope to those being persecuted

To glorify God

Context of Romans 8

What is going on in Romans 8?

Paul begins with “therefore” what does that mean?

Have to go back to Romans 7 and see what he has said about the inner struggle that Christians face

We’re tempted to do what we shouldn’t do and not do what we should do

Yet, it ends in verse 24-25 with this

Romans 7:24–25 CSB

24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I myself am serving the law of God, but with my flesh, the law of sin.

Why address this?

Because some Christians are tempted to think that they are a failure because of their sin

Because Christians are called to walk in the Spirit

Because Christ has come to set Christians free

Text

Let’s start with verse 1

Romans 8:1 CSB

1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus,

Questions to ask as we examine this verse

What is the therefore doing?

Why is there “now” no condemnation?

57 AD - Christ has come and died on the cross for sinners and paid the price. Only true for Christians

Why would there be condemnation?

Sin - Romans 3:23 shares that we’re sinners and we deserve death/separation from God

What does it mean to be “in Christ?”

To be saved and a new creation

2 Corinthians 5:17 CSB

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!

If we used to be under condemnation and not a new creation… What changed?

Romans 8:2 CSB

2 because the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.

The Spirit of life in Christ Jesus sets us free! Who does the Spirit set free? Those who are in Christ. Why does the Spirit do this? Because of what Christ has done - because (v. 3) of what God did!

Look at these first 2 verses and note some application for us today.

We deserve condemnation left to ourselves

Through Christ and only through Christ can we be set free from condemnation as we are under something new

We have every reason in the world to rejoice in what Christ has done for us!

We can look at these opening verses with 3 “R’s”

Reality - Celebration

We celebrate what Christ has done on our behalf

Reason - Justification

The reason that we can celebrate is because Christ has justified us before God and set us free

Result - Sanctification

The result of Christ’s work is found in verses 3-4 as we walk according to the Spirit. Even though we still struggle (Romans 7:13-25), we always have hope in Christ

To someone in Paul’s day in the 1st century who was taught that they had to maintain their salvation through good works and perfection, how would the message of Romans 8:1-4 stand out to them? How should this truth impact us 2000 years later?

This would provide great hope and set Christianity apart from other religions.

Instead of mankind doing things to get to God, Romans 8:3 shares that God sent His Son to be an offering for our sin

This message should stand out to us today and remind us that Jesus has won for us the victory and expects us to walk in a manner worthy of His work!

Verses 5-9 transition from good news to some bad news as Paul talks about our mindset

There is tension between the flesh and the Spirit here that we have to note in order to fully understand

Live according to flesh/spirit

Think according flesh/spirit

Mind of flesh/spirit

In flesh/spirit

What does it mean to live “according to the flesh?”

Paul has contrasted the flesh and spirit throughout Romans and even in Romans 8. Therefore it follows that living according to the flesh would be in opposition to God’s Spirit.

It means that sin has a grip on this person and has control over them in many respects - therefore, they are hostile to God and do not submit to GOd’s law because they are unable to do so.

Why would someone in the flesh be unable to submit to God’s law?

Because God’s law is diametrically opposed to the flesh and sin! Because we must be born again and given a new heart and be led by the Spirit!

If you don’t have this and if you aren’t led by the Spirit, verse 9 says that you cannot please God and that you do not belong to Him… Going back to verse 1, this means that this person is facing condemnation from Christ

V. 10-11

If Christ is in someone, the person’s body will die, but inside them the Spirit imparts life and delivers them from condemnation into eternal life

Romans 6:4 CSB

4 Therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life.

Implies that Christ was raised from the dead by the Father and will one day raise us too! We have this same resurrection hope and Paul concludes in verse 11 by sharing that the Spirit transforms what was dead and imparts immediate and eternal life… We are a new creation as we have been born again by His power and presence in us!

What is the main point of this text to apply to our lives?

The main point is not that we will never have problems as Christians or that we are exempt from difficulty

The main point of the text is that because of the Father’s plan, the Son’s sacrifice, and the Spirit’s presence, we are saved from the wrath of God and set free to serve God as His children.

Think of some necessary questions to ask ourselves and others in light of Romans 8:1-11:

What does it mean to be in Christ?

Am I in Christ?

Why did Jesus have to come as an offering for sin?

Am I walking according to the flesh or Spirit?

What is my ultimate hope, even in times of difficulty? (See Romans 8:11)

Context:

What does Romans 8 tell us about God?

God is holy and demands that sin be punished

Jesus alone is the sacrifice for sin because He is the Son of God and He alone condemned sin in the flesh