Hi and welcome back to Perspective For Today. This past week my wife Mary and I attended a tent revival led by Frank Shelton.
It’s the first time I have attended something like this. It was a great experience and it had me energized and ready to go out and serve. But, in all honesty Frank was preaching to the choir; those that know Christ and have made a commitment.
Revivals such as these are an opportunity for us to bring the unsaved to that tent.
If you haven’t been able to lead someone to Christ, for whatever reason, then lead them to the tent and pray that the Holy Spirit will prick their hearts and bring them to the altar. But, don’t let it end there. After they make that commitment they are going to need someone to walk beside them and encourage them in their walk. Being a mentor to a new believer is critical to their continued growth.
So let’s pick up our Bibles and continue with our study for today. Open your Bible to Romans chapter 8 verse 1.
Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
As Christians we are going to mess up.
We are going to have that moment when we sin, and along with that sin comes the guilt and the shame for our actions.
But if we come to the Lord and ask His forgiveness and repent of that sin there is no condemnation.
If you’re feeling condemned and separated from God, then rest assured that Satan is at the center of it.
There is no condemnation for those that are in Christ.
But if you live in the flesh from cradle to grave, judgment and condemnation will be your inheritance.
Romans 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.
The spirit of life is the Holy Spirit that sets us free from the law of sin and death.
As Christians we are spirit-filled or should be spirit-filled believers. If the Holy Spirit lives and reigns in us then the law of sin and death has no power over us. We are set free in Christ.
Romans 8:3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,
The law could in no way be able to bring about a holy life.
The law was weak because of the flesh. In our own strength the law is futile. But thanks be to God that he sent His only begotten Son in the likeness of sinful flesh. Not that He came in sinful flesh but in the likeness of that sinful flesh.
Romans 8:4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
When we have a spirit-filled life we meet the requirements of the law.
The Holy Spirit empowers us to love God and to love our neighbor. In doing so we can meet the requirements of the law.
1 Corinthians 16:14 Do everything in love.
Just meditate on that verse. If everyone lived their life according to that one verse, what a beautiful world this would be. But it has to start somewhere, so let it start with you. Do everything in love.
Romans 8:5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.
If you set your mind to something you do so with determination.
You are either determined to live according to the things of the flesh, or you are determined to live according to the things of the spirit. So what channel are you tuned into? You can only put your focus on one channel. I know some of you will say, what about picture in picture. But for the most part you’re going to have your mind on the big picture, not that little image in the corner of the TV or your mind.
Romans 8:6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
Again, if you are determined to tune in to r-rated movies with adult content and language you are heading down a dead end road.
I love how they use the word adult content. The word adult implies that there is some maturity. But what kind of maturity has taken root? We tend to use words to justify our actions. If you’re taking in things of the world, you might consider yourself to be sophisticated. A common term would be “a man of the world.” Never a truer statement has been uttered.
But, if you are taking in the things of God then you have spiritual sophistication. You are a man (or woman) of God. Through that relationship you can have life and peace. But if you are a man (or woman) of the world, woe to you, your fleshly desires lead to death.
Romans 8:7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.
The mind of the flesh is not subject to the law of God.
It seeks its own will, not God’s will. The flesh is dead toward God. Under its own power the flesh can accomplish nothing that is of God.
1 Corinthians 2:14 The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
God’s word is foolishness to anyone who does not have the Holy Spirit. The word of God is discerned by and through the Holy Spirit.
John 8:47 He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.”
If you are not of God your Bible is going to sit on a shelf.
You might pick it up once in awhile, but you’ll put it down just as quick, because it has no meaning for you.
Romans 8:8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
There’s no surprise here. There’s nothing an unsaved person can do to please God.
Your acts of servitude and your religious observances have no bearing on your standing with almighty God. It is only by accepting Christ as your Lord and Savior and believing in your heart that God raised him from the dead that God will be pleased with you.
I’d like to ask you to just take the time to go over this scripture on your own and let the Holy Spirit discern it for you.
Yesterday, I went to a memorial service for a dear friend Russell Bannon.
It was such a joy to be there. Russell knew the Lord and he lived his life not only as a prayer warrior, but a willing servant going wherever the Lord called him. It was such a joy to hear others stand up and tell how brother Russell had not only touched their lives but they saw Christ in him. His family was at peace because they knew that Russell was finally home. It is my prayer that you, my listeners, will come to know the Lord, and that others may see Christ at work in your life. I can tell you that when the unsaved die it is a real struggle for a pastor to give a eulogy that is an encouragement for others. So I urge you to strive to have a eulogy that will be an encouragement to your friends and your family.
Thank you for listening and as always may you have a week full of opportunities to share this good news with those that need to hear it.