Read Romans 8:9–11
Questions from the Scripture text: To whom is the apostle speaking in Romans 8:9? What does he say they are not in? What are they in instead? Whose Spirit is He? But Whose Spirit is He in the second half of the verse? What is the reality about someone who does not have the Spirit of Christ? Who is in you if the Spirit of Christ is in you (Romans 8:10, cf. Colossians 1:27)? What is the condition of our body? Why? Whom do you know is in you, producing what? Why is He sure to be life in you? Now what is the Spirit called in Romans 8:11? How great, then, is the life that is in you? What did the triune God do with Christ? What will He do with our bodies even now? Through Whom?
Where can a Christian get confidence for the battle that rages in his life? Romans 8:9–11 looks forward to the sermon in the upcoming midweek meeting. In these three verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that the Triune God has brought Christians out of themselves, and into union with Himself in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Since those who are in the flesh cannot please God (Romans 8:8) how can a Christian, who has so much flesh remaining in him, hope to live in a way that pleases God? The answer is that if we belong to Christ, we are united to the second person of the Godhead, and indwelt by the third person of the Godhead, making us the object of God’s life-giving purposes and actions in this world.
The Spirit of God dwells in Christians, Romans 8:9. “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” The contrapositive of this (which is necessarily, logically true) is that “If anyone is in Christ, he has the Spirit of Christ.” Praise God! We know that sin still dwells in us (Romans 7:17, Romans 7:20). Does sin still dwell in me? The Spirit of God does too! Notice the two titles in Romans 8:9: “Spirit of God” and “Spirit of Christ.” There are three great encouragements here. First, the Spirit Who dwells in us is God Himself; so who will win a battle between Him and our remaining flesh? Second, Christ is God. When the Spirit dwells in His humanity, He is the Spirit of Christ, because Christ is a divine Person (when He indwells a Christian girl named Suzy, He does not become “the Spirit of Suzy”). Third, Christ has given us to have the same Spirit in us that is in Him.
The Spirit of God is a Spirit of life in Christians, Romans 8:10. We know why our bodies are dead, why there is death in them, why there is sin in us as long as we are in these bodies, and why these bodies themselves are going to die. This is all the necessary consequence of our sin. But what is the necessary consequence of our standing of righteousness in Christ? That we are spiritually alive. But not just that we ourselves are spiritually alive, that the Spirit Himself is the continual, inexhaustible, indefatigable source of life in us!
The Spirit of God gives Christians resurrection life already, in bodies that haven’t died yet, Romans 8:11. The Spirit is the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead. This does not mean just the Spirit of the Father or the Spirit of the Son, for all three Persons of the Godhead actively raised Christ from the dead (cf. Romans 1:1, Romans 6:4; John 10:17–18; Galatians 1:1). But this is the powerful point of Romans 8:11: the life and power of the Triune God that was exerted in Christ’s resurrection is what is being exerted, even while we are still in our death-bodies, in which the resurrection-life-Spirit has come to dwell. Dear Christian, this is how we are able to live unto God (cf. Romans 6:4, Romans 6:9–11)! Dear Christian, this is how you can walk according to the righteous requirements of the law. You have an almighty Ally dwelling within you, and He is determined to produce the resurrection life of Christ even within your death-body.
What sins are you battling in your life? Where is the life to do so coming from? How do you know this?
Sample prayer: Lord, we thank You for attesting to Your life-giving power by Christ’s resurrection. Grant that by Your Spirit, we would live unto You for the rest of our earthly life, we ask in Jesus’s Name, AMEN!
Suggested songs: ARP24 “The Earth and the Riches” or TPH448 “Union With Thee”
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