Made New:  "Led by the Spirit"

Romans 7:21‑‑8:14

     "I couldn't help it," he said.  "I can resist anything -- except temptation."

     This is what Lord Darlington complained of in one of Oscar Wilde's plays. You may know that Wilde was always cynical about those who try to pretend they are always good but don't live up to their own pretensions.  I think we can all relate to Lord Darlington, can't we? Temptation in this world is very strong and a great problem for all of us, even for us who go to church.

     "I couldn't help it," we say.  The shoplifter says it to the police officer.  The unfaithful husband says it to his betrayed wife.  The disobedient child says it to his/her parents. The person addicted to porn says it when caught.

     This human weakness to temptation is not new.  It was true in the Bible days as much as it is in our own. And, yes, even people like the Apostle Paul are susceptible to temptation.  That brings us to today’s message in our “Made New” series in Romans. The entire section of God’s Word we’re looking at, Romans 5-8, tells us that God is engaged in a mission in our lives and in our world to make everything the way it’s supposed to be. One part of God’s mission is that all who are in Christ will be set free from failure to temptation.

     But, it doesn’t happen as quickly or easily as you might hope for.  So, here’s the daily question we have as we follow Jesus: How are we to overcome temptation?

     In today’s passage running from Romans 7:21-8:14, the Apostle Paul speaks of two ways that human beings might try to gain victory over temptation.  One is to make a list of “dos and don’ts” and then to say, “I’m going to do the dos and not do the don’ts!” For Paul’s people group, the people of Israel, they had God’s list of dos and don’ts, what he called “the law”.  But, almost all people have some sort of list of things they think are right and wrong. To this attempt to overcome temptation with our own willpower, the Bible says that simply it never works.  Why?  That’s what we saw in Rom 5-6, i.e., we human beings have a problem, i.e., we keep falling short.  We can’t even live up to our own set of dos and don’ts; much less God's.

     But, listen to me now: A follower of Jesus is not a person who just is forgiven by God of past sins -- and then left to our own strength to live pure and holy lives in this world. But, our victory is not going to come just by us making a list of rights and wrongs and then pledging to do what’s right!  You and I don't have the strength in ourselves to overcome temptation.  We all know that’s true... and God knows it too.

     So, do I have any hope to offer you today? The answer is yes! When you place your faith in Jesus, God provides a gift that he promises will make a difference in your life, i.e., the gift of the Holy Spirit. That's what I want us to think about as we turn to Romans 7:21‑8:14. Let’s walk through this very personal part of God’s Word.  We’ll start where Paul starts in 7:21-25, by revisiting the internal struggle we all face.

1. The Struggle Revisited (7:21-25) – In my mind I am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

     I want you to remember back to Pastor Jeff’s message last week in which he spoke powerfully of the struggle with temptation that Paul gave testimony to in 7:14-23.  The Apostle Paul’s testimony about his own temptations is so strong that many have tried to say he couldn’t have been speaking about the battles he was facing after becoming a Christian. But, for reasons I don’t have time to innumerate now, I’m convinced this is exactly what he was doing.  Let me put into my own words what I hear Paul saying to us in Romans 7:21-25:

• 7:21-23: Even when we are believers, good and evil still are a part of our make-up. – After you come to Christ, you should have an ever-deepening delight in living a godly life -- as well as a profound desire to do so.  But, at the same time, old patterns and old ways are still alive inside you too.
• 7:24: This reality of good and evil residing inside us creates inner conflict. – It’s a tension that makes us feel like we’re addicted to sinning even though we declare that Jesus is our true Lord and Master.  For the true believer, this inner conflict leads us to long for deliverance. Like Paul, sometimes we wonder whether deliverance is even possible.  Paul cried out, “What a wretched man I am!  Who will rescue me?” I’m sure we’ve all felt that at times.
• 7:25a: True believers know that God has provided a rescuer, i.e., Jesus Christ. – Paul confessed, “Thanks be to God who delivers me through Jesus.”  We must always affirm that to ourselves too.  Part of coming to church weekly is that you are to do this very thing, i.e., You should confess your sins to God and then claim his forgiveness.  Each week, you should affirm, “Jesus, you are my Savior!”
• 7:25b:  True believers honestly admit both 1) our commitment to live for God and 2) our ongoing temptation toward sin. Paul confessed, “I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.”

     In my years of teaching from Romans 7, I know this: Some churchgoers find Paul’s language in vv.21-25 a bit difficult to understand.  However, at the same time, we know from our own experience of temptation that what he wrote about himself and his struggle is also true of us.

     With those things in mind, let’s return to our question of the day: Where will we find victory over temptation?  The brings me to the Gift that all of us receive when we give our lives in faith to Jesus.

2. The Gift Received (8:1-4) – … in Christ Jesus…”

     As we come to Romans 8, we discover it’s not a chapter that tells us that, once we place faith in Jesus, we’ll never again struggle against sin.  Instead, it tells us that there is eventual victory to be had in spite of ongoing temptation and sin. Paul says the core of our confidence in eventual victory is that all who place their faith in Jesus are given the gift of the Holy Spirit.

     The Bible says that the characteristic of a child of the first Adam is indwelling sin.  The characteristic of a child of the second Adam (i.e., Jesus) is the indwelling Holy Spirit.  And although one of things the Holy Spirit promises to do in our lives is to give us victory over temptation, that work is still in process.  In other words, it will happen –but it takes time. Why am I so sure we will someday find complete victory?  Because God's Spirit is greater than our sin.  I hold onto that promise even when I struggle and fail.  And I want you to do the same.

     For those of you who may be unsure of where you stand with God, this would be a good time for you to make sure.  Paul’s phrase for being a Christian is “in Christ Jesus” (8:1). 

     To grasp this, I do not want you to miss another phrase found in 8:3.  It says, “God sent his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh.”  Jesus was the only person who was not “sinful flesh”.  Do you see it?  Paul says Jesus came came “in the likeness” of sinful flesh”. So, Jesus is fully human like we are -- except without sin!   His was not "sinful flesh" because a sinful person would have to die for his own sins and could not take our place.  The flesh of Jesus was sinless. Because of that, Jesus could die, as Paul put it, "as a sin offering (8:3)."  God dealt with your sin in the flesh of Jesus. It is amazing but true.  Now, you must be "in Christ Jesus" to be right with God.  You must ask Jesus to be your savior.  Is Jesus your Savior?

     When Jesus is your Savior, you also need your pastor to tell you what Paul told his people in Romans 8, i.e., Jesus gave his life for you not only so that you can be forgiven of your past.  God wants to do a whole lot more in you than that. The goal of Christ's work on our behalf was to free us from our rotten old lives and make us what we should be. When you trust Jesus as Savior, His Spirit unites with yours and begins God’s work of changing you and “making you new”.

     All this is what the Bible means in 8:4 in which we read that Jesus died on the cross?  Why?  “In order that you no longer have to live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit (8:4).  You have the Spirit of God within you who is able to change what you cannot change on your own.

3. The Response Required (8:5-14) -- Those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

     The consistent message of the New Testament is that God’s Spirit begins to remake us through transforming our minds. What the Bible means by “mind” is different from what we mean by it.  We think of “mind” as simply being our thoughts.  But, the word Paul uses for “mind” refers to our entire inner beings, i.e., our thoughts and emotions. “Mind” in the Bible refers to the core of what you think of and long for.  Notice again 8:5: Those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

     Here’s the way it is for Christians: Before giving our lives to Jesus by faith, we usually set our hopes and dreams on ourselves: our own pleasures success, and fulfillment. When we set our minds that way, we eventually give in to those cravings we feel when we’re tempted.  But that must change when you follow Jesus. One of the surest ways to know that you are genuinely a Christian is that you begin to live life wanting to live for God, longing to please him.  As Paul puts it here -- you set your mind on what the Spirit desires.

     So, it's not that when you become a Christian, you cease to have temptations.  What happens is that what God desires begins to become the core of your longing.  It’s like Paul’s testimony in Gal 2:20: “Now that I know Christ, I no longer live for myself but for him who died for me.”

     So, practically speaking, what does setting your mind on what the Spirit desires look like? 

Start with this: Remind yourself daily of whose you are. -- There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death (8:1-2).

     That law of sin and death is, as Rom 6:23 said, “The wages of sin is death.”  That’s still true.  But, the wages for your sin have been paid by Jesus.  You are no longer a slave to the law of sin and death.  You have been set free.  So, when you continue to fail, you often have this thought run through your mind, “How can I think I’m a Christian.  My thoughts are bad.  My attitudes are bad.  My actions are bad.  What a wretched person I am!”  Paul says, “Stop.  With your mind, remember that there is no condemnation for you for you are in Christ Jesus.”

Continue with this:  Count yourself dead to sin. – Put to death the misdeeds of the body… (8:13).

     Daily, consciously turn from any sins you are aware of in your life.  I recommend starting your day by bringing to mind the temptations you think you might face that day, especially those you know you give into easily. Then, tell God, those things are no longer who you are! Pray, “Lord, in Jesus, I no longer have to be ruled by that.  I am yours.  Through the power of your Spirit, today, set me free from that way of life.”

     I hope that, when you go home, you will read through Romans 8:5-14 more carefully than I am able to speak about it today.  I think you’ll see the Bible’s point: When you trust Jesus, he gives you his Spirit who dethrones sin in your life.  The Bible tells you no longer have to give in to the things your sinful nature desires.  They should no longer the control your life.  But, of course, sometimes they try to jump back on the throne of your life, don’t they?  With your mind, refuse to accept that the sin to which you are drawn is representative of the real you any longer.  You are no longer a slave to sin.  You are a child of God!

     Don’t misunderstand me:  When you sin, you are responsible for what you do.  It is you who does it.  You should bring it immediately to God to seek forgiveness for it and to turn from it. At the end of the day, take time to pray in light of 1 John 1:8-9:  If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Do not forget this:  Set you mind on what the Spirit desires. -- Those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires (8:5).

     How do you know what the Spirit desires? 

     1) God’s Word –This is the foundational way to learn about what God desires.  If you will be faithful to worshiping in church and we will be faithful to teaching the Bible, you will begin to know the Word better and better.  I also encourage you to find a small group in which you study the Bible together.  And, of course, I urge you to read the Bible on your own daily.  If you need help with any of this, please come to our Pathways Center after the service and we’ll seek to help you. The more you know God’s Word, then more you can compare what you desire with what the Spirit desires as taught in God’s Word.  This is central to your walk with God.

     2) The Spirit’s Promptings – God’s people have always given witness to the fact that we experience personal tugs from God in a variety of ways.  Sometimes, it’s hard to sort out whether a prompting is from God or just your own desire.  That means you’ll have to evaluate those inner promptings in the light of God’s Word. I once had a woman tell me that she was being led by God’s Spirit to divorce her husband so that she could marry another woman’s husband.  I assured her that this was not the Spirit’s leading. The Spirit always leads in keeping with God’s Word.

     One of the things the Spirit does when he prompts you is to convict you of sin when you are feeling temptation.  Jesus said that himself in John 16.  My experience has been that the better I know God’s Word and walk with the Lord, I learn to discern and trust those promptings.

     3) The Fellowship of Your Church – I’ll speak more of this next week.  But, let me simply say today that Romans is written to a church, not just to individual Christians.  Paul is convinced that all of us who follow Jesus will be faithful parts of a church family – one that teaches, prays, encourages and corrects one another.  We all need to be accountable to those who love God and love us.  We slip so easily into deception if we do not. 

     Have you ever seen Chuck Swindoll’s accountability questions for men in his small group?

1. Have you been with a woman anywhere this past week that might be seen as compromising?
2. Have any of your financial dealings lacked integrity?
3. Have you exposed yourself to any sexually explicit material?
4. Have you spent adequate time in Bible study and prayer?
5. Have you given priority time to your family and close friends?
6. Have you fulfilled the mandates of your calling?
7. Have you just lied to me?

     We all need this kind of accountability and support.  Again, if you have not found a smaller group of Jesus-followers with whom to have this kind of fellowship, please contact us.  We will help you.  It will be an important part of finding victory over temptation in your life.

     I imagine that as God looks at this world, he sees most people wanting to live well.  Most people don’t want to live duplicitous, destructive, addicted lives.  But, God’s Word tells us that he sees two kinds of people: 1) He sees those Paul would call “in flesh” who complain about evil in the world and make lists of what they think is good and what is bad.  But, they cannot consistently do even the good things on their own list because they are trying to do life without God. They do not seek Him, His forgiveness, or His ways.  The end of it all is hopeless. 

     But God also sees 2) His children whom Paul calls “in Christ” ‑‑ who still struggle with sin but know it is an offence against God.  We long, deeply long, to live in a way that honors him.  God has given us His Spirit to change things.  God is pleased when we find victory over temptation – and, when we fail, he is pleased when we seek His forgiveness and begin to experience – sometimes all-too-slowly - the victory God alone can give. 

      God promises you today ultimate victory over temptation because the Holy Spirit is within you and he is greater than your sin.  I assure you that someday, when Christ returns, you will be complete.  So, until God completes his work in you, I call you to count yourself dead to sin, to set your mind on what the Spirit desires, and to rest in the fact that "there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."