There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. – Romans 8:1
The above passage is how Romans chapter eight begins—with one of the most important verses in the New Testament. It breathes life into many a sin-weary soul. It breathed life into me as a new follower of Christ forty years ago and continues to do so to this very day.
C.H. Spurgeon called the eighth chapter of Romans the “pinnacle of the highest peaks of the New Testament.” I agree with him. This chapter covers so much that is so important for us to know as Christ-followers. It encourages us from the start, reminding us that to be in Christ Jesus (one of the Apostle Paul’s favorite descriptors of the believer) is to know zero condemnation. Paul then weaves a picture of our fallen nature, reminding us that to be outside of Christ (in the flesh) is not a neutral state in God’s eyes, but it is to be an enemy of God—one who cannot please him. This is the scary section in this incredible chapter. However, Paul quickly reminds the church in Rome, and us, that believers do not live their lives in the flesh, but in the Spirit. Although we will taste physical death, our spirits will continue to live on because we have been made righteous in Christ, making us sons of God and heirs of all that he owns (which, incidentally, is everything). We are then reminded that suffering in this world is both real and difficult, but of no comparison to the glory that is to be revealed both in us and to us. Even the created order (the natural world) awaits the glorious day of our resurrection, when it too will be liberated from its own bondage to decay resulting from the fall. Paul goes on to remind us of the Holy Spirit’s interaction both in and through us, and of the assurance of both our past election and our future glorification. As Paul describes these realities, our hope continues to rise. Finally, Paul ends the chapter by reminding believers of God’s everlasting love for them, and of the assurance of our final salvation.
In the midst of the roller coaster ride through Romans eight, Paul weaves a picture of the work of the Triune God in the salvation of sinners. We see God the Father electing, God the Son procuring or winning our salvation, and God the Holy Spirit applying that salvation to our lives and serving as our Helper and Counselor. Our salvation is a Triune salvation, firmly established before the foundations of the world by one God who reveals himself to us in three Persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Way back in A.D. 175, a well-known bishop of the early church who went by the strange name of Irenaeus of Lyon, reminded the church of the rock solid foundation of the Christian faith. He said, “Whomsoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold to the catholic faith (catholic here denoting “universal”), which faith except one do keep whole and undefiled, he shall, without doubt, perish everlastingly. And the catholic faith is this: We worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in unity, neither confounding the Persons nor dividing the substance. For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit.” I typed that from memory because I think it is worth knowing without having to find it in a history book; it is that foundational to the faith. As early as A.D. 175, the church and its leaders knew that the revelation that God gave us of his divine Tri-unity was essential, and foundational, to the faith. Paul, writing the letter to the Romans circa A.D. 57, knew it over a century before Irenaeus declared it to be true. Romans eight is where he makes it clear.
Friends, if you were ever going to set yourself to the task of memorizing a full chapter of the Bible, you could do no better than to commit Romans chapter eight to memory. It is a long chapter and will take some considerable effort, but it will prove incredibly valuable. To have these truths stored away in your head and heart will allow this breath of fresh biblical air to permeate your thinking. It is full of high and lofty truths, and in a world of never-ending lies, spoken daily to us as if they were perfectly sensible realities, we can all benefit from reading, and knowing, true truth. This “true truth” is displayed freely in the word of God. It is displayed beautifully, even majestically, in Romans chapter eight.
Grace and peace,
Pastor Jym