1Therefore, there is now no condemnation
for those who are in Christ Jesus,[a]
2because through Christ Jesus the law of
the Spirit of life set me free from the
law of sin and death. 3For what the law
was powerless to do in that it was
weakened by the sinful nature,[b] God
did by sending his own Son in the
likeness of sinful man to be a sin
offering.[c] And so he condemned sin in
sinful man,[d] 4in order that the
righteous requirements of the law might
be fully met in us, who do not live
according to the sinful nature but
according to the Spirit.
5Those
who live according to the sinful nature
have their minds set on what that nature
desires; but those who live in
accordance with the Spirit have their
minds set on what the Spirit desires.
6The mind of sinful man[e] is death, but
the mind controlled by the Spirit is
life and peace; 7the sinful mind[f] is
hostile to God. It does not submit to
God's law, nor can it do so. 8Those
controlled by the sinful nature cannot
please God.
9You, 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. 10But if Christ is in
you, your body is dead because of sin,
yet your spirit is alive because of
righteousness. 11And 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.
12Therefore,
brothers, we have an obligation-but it
is not to the sinful nature, to live
according to it. 13For 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, 14because those who are led by the
Spirit of God are sons of God. 15For you
did not receive a spirit that makes you
a slave again to fear, but you received
the Spirit of sonship.[g] And by him we
cry, "Abba,[h] Father." 16The Spirit
himself testifies with our spirit that
we are God's children. 17Now 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.
Thought:
[We] do not live according to the
sinful nature but according to the
Spirit. --Romans 8:4 Most of you know
that I once road a Yamaha Virago 1100
motorcycle. It's was blue, with lots of
chrome, it looks good, it goes real
fast, and I like to think that I ride it
like a pro. Except for when I hit an ice
patch, laid down the bike, and slid into
an intersection. (Funny, this would
never have happened in Florida)
I would take almost anyone for a ride on
my Yamaha. Sounds fun? Sounds scary?
It's not--unless you don't lean.
Even if you've never ridden, you've
probably seen motorcycle riders lean in
the direction they're turning. If they
don't, the motorcycle (and the rider)
will topple over.
To the
passenger, it's a matter of faith. As
long as the passenger leans in the same
direction the driver is leaning, the
ride is smooth. But when the passenger
panics, because it feels more natural to
sit straight, that causes problems.
I realized while riding that I was
illustrating an important spiritual
principle. (I had previously thought
that was just trying to keep from
crashing!)
God has set down
important principles in His Word. If we
lean away from sin and toward God, we
enjoy a Christ-centered ride and can
move in whichever direction God is
leading us.
Sometimes it feels
unnatural to lean. All of our instincts,
as well as some of the people around us,
can cause us to lean away from God. Our
own wisdom gets us in trouble. We suffer
either a minor fender bender or a major
wreck.
Learning to trust God is
like leaning with a motorcycle: The
first few times may seem unnatural, even
scary. But as you get used to it, it
becomes easier and easier. Eventually,
not trusting God's way seems crazy--as
crazy as leaning the wrong way on a
motorcycle.
Compare your
Christian experience to a motorcycle
ride. Has it been a wild ride? Have you
come close to tipping over or crashing?
Maybe you have been working against God
instead of with Him.
Watching a
motorcycle take turns gracefully is
impressive. And so is observing an
obedient Christian who is committed to
following God's will. But a Christian
who does things his own way is like a
motorcycle that is about to crash. What
kind of ride are you looking for?
Questions to consider:
***What's the scariest thing about
riding a motorcycle? What's the scariest
thing about following Jesus?
***How have I been leaning away from
God? In what ways do I need to lean more
in the direction God is going?
To increase sin resistance, lean with
God.
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