Romans 8:9-17 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Romans 8:9-17. Let’s go!
Romans 8:9 (NIV)
9 You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
On verse 9: Here in Romans Paul uses the names “Spirit”, “Spirit of God”, “Spirit of Christ” and “His Spirit” interchangeably since they are all referring to the same thing, the Holy Spirit. How do you know if you have the Holy Spirit? You believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins, that He rose again and is alive today, and you’ve trusted Jesus to be your Saviour. If that’s you, then the Bible says that the Holy Spirit lives inside you (1 Corinthians 6:19; 2 Corinthians 5:5) and you have the Holy Spirit.
Romans 8:10-11 (NIV)
10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.
11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
On verses 10-11: All of our earthly bodies will eventually die as a natural consequence of the human race’s fall into sin. That is what Paul means by “your body is dead because of sin” (v10). However, as Christians we have hope and comfort in this:
1. Although we will die physically, our spirit is alive and will stay alive “because of righteousness” (v10), that is, because Jesus covers our sins and His blood reconciles us to God forever; and
2. One day the same Holy Spirit who raised Jesus physically from the grave will also raise us physically after we die, but this time with new resurrection bodies (see 1 Corinthians 15:35-58).
So for the Christian, death does not have the last word on our lives. Because of Jesus our spirits will stay alive forever and even our bodies will be raised back to life one day.
Romans 8:12-16 (NIV)
12 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation–but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.
13 For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live,
14 because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
15 For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”
16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
On verses 12-16: Because of Jesus, not only are we justified (that is, declared righteous in God’s eyes), even more, we become children of God (v14-16). In Romans 8 Paul emphasizes the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives: how the Holy Spirit rules over us (“controls us” – v9), lives in us (v11), raises our bodies from the dead one day (v11) and leads us (v14). Here we learn one more thing that the Holy Spirit does: He testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children (v16) and by Him we are able to call God “Abba, Father” (“Abba” being the most tender way in Aramaic to refer to one’s father, kind of like “Daddy” in English). Somehow through the Holy Spirit, we are adopted into God’s family, bear the family name and can draw near to God as our Father.
Romans 8:17 (NIV)
17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs–heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
On verse 17: Paul plays out his reasoning here: if we are children of God (v12-16), and if God is a king, then that means we are also heirs of God’s kingdom and co-heirs with Christ. We are His royal family. The last part “if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory” (v17) could refer to the importance of having a faith that perseveres to the end. That doesn’t mean we’re not allowed to make mistakes. But it means that if we want to receive all of the inheritance that God has for us, we don’t want to abandon our faith in Jesus midway through.
Holy Spirit, thank You for being the One who rules over me, lives in me, raises me from the dead, and leads me. You make my status as a child of God possible through Jesus Christ, and You make it possible for me to draw near to God on the most intimate level. What would I do without You Holy Spirit? Come and fill me today. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
