Daily Bible Reading – Romans 6:1 – 8:39
What an incredible Thanksgiving message is found in Romans 7 and 8. In chapter seven Paul confesses his ongoing battle with sin. What believer in Christ has not felt the guilt of the struggle with sinful behavior that seems to be ever present in the Christians’ life?
Romans 8 is perhaps the apex of the inspired writings of Paul. Who has not been comforted by the cry of victory over sin that Paul declares in verse 1: “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”
These opening verses actually form the conclusion to the argument in chapter 7. Keep in mind that Paul is not dealing with salvation in chapter 7 but with the problem of how the believer can ever do anything good when he has such a sinful nature. How can a holy God ever accept anything we do when we have “no good thing” dwelling in us? It would seem that He would have to condemn every thought and deed! But there is “no condemnation” since the indwelling Holy Spirit fulfills the righteousness of the Law in us. The Law cannot condemn us because we are dead to the Law. God cannot condemn us, for the Holy Spirit enables the believer to “walk in the Spirit” and thereby meet God’s holy demands.
It is a glorious day in the life of the Christian when he or she realizes that God’s children are not under the Law, that God does not expect them to do “good works” in the power of the old nature. When the Christian understands that “there is no condemnation,” then he realizes that the indwelling Spirit pleases God and helps the believer to please Him. What a glorious salvation we have!
