“Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do,weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.“-{Romans 8:1-4}
Romans 8:1- The Law could not Justify you– “Pardon” you from your sins, because it is powerless to do so.
Romans 8:2- The Law Could Not Sanctify You– It could not and cannot change you to be a God loving person and of others because the Law does not have the Power to change you, it is powerless to do so.
Romans 8:3-The Law Could Not Deliver us from Condemnation; Meaning it could point to our condemnation, show us our guilt but could not disarm and break sin in our lives. Think of being in a court of law for a capital offense. The Judge looks at the evidence and pronounces concerning you as you stand in the dock before him-“Guilty!” That the sentence is “death,” that is, the carrying out of the condemnation of guilt against you and the execution of the verdict will be the result. It is not as though the judge says you are “guilty” and points to the evidence and then criticizes you for your evil deeds and then let’s you go. No! Part of the condemnation is just not the declaration and sentencing but also the execution of the penalty handed down to you. And before the court of Heaven you as I, we have all sinned against God and the verdict of the sentence of death not just physical but eternal separation is the result of His verdict against our sin against Him. Guilty and heading towards the Gallows upon death…to the place of eternal separation from God to a place of torment, Hell!
The Law could not and can never remove the condemnation, only God could and He did through the LORD Jesus Christ. The Law can point to how we have sinned, how we have failed but it is powerless to remove the power of sin from our lives and is powerless to deliver us from the condemnation upon our lives due to our sin! People can talk about keeping the ten commandments but you cannot keep them. For sin is our master and controls us and apart from the Power of God through the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus applied to us it is impossible to break free from the power of sin ruling, mastering, having complete dominion over us. The Law can show us our sin, but it cannot remove it’s power, dominion or our punishment. It is helpless in that regard.
Why Could The Law Not Justify and Change us?
It is not that the Law is Evil;
“So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. “-{Rom 7:12}
The problem is …me…you… We are “sold under sin!”
“ For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin.“-{Rom 7:14}.
The ‘flesh’ as used here is not speaking of our skin but here it speaks of the sinful nature of a person who has no personal relationship with God, who is powerless without the Spirit of God. The Law which is ‘holy, righteous, good’ and the ‘flesh’ referring to humans like you, me, we are ‘unholy, unrighteous and evil in our thoughts, motives, deeds. We are self centered, proud, arrogant people who do not want to submit to God. We want to “use” Him for our own selfish end but not to submit to Him. We are rebels at heart, thinking we are in control when we are captives to sin,” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.“- {John 8;34}; Captives to satan, “But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning”- {1 John 3:8 NLT};So what is the problem with the Law? It was not meant to rescue, deliver us, who are rebellious, selfish, ungodly, sinners, helpless, captives, cotrolled by sin and satan.
“For by works of the law no human being will be justified in His sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin”-{Rom 3;20}. The LAW cannot justify us, it can not sanctify, it cannot change us. It can not liberate us from condemnation or guilt.
But what it can and does do is make us aware of our sin. It condemns us. ” What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.”-{Romans 7:7}
“God’s law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant.”-{ Rom 5:20 NLT}
“Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure.”-{Rom 7:13}.
The Law of God shows us our sinfulness and cannot as it were lift a hand to help us to be right with God. It cannot change us or deliver us from condemnation and guilt.
4 THINGS THE LAW COULD NOT OR CANNOT DO FOR YOU OR OTHERS
1 The Law cannot Justify us
2.The Law cannot Sanctify us,-bring about Transformation- in our lives!
3. The Law cannot remove our Condemnation and guilt!
4. The Law cannot save us!
“BUT GOD….”– GOD DID!
“God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us,”
” We maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.”-{Romans 3:28}.
The GOD News –
“Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. “-{Gal 3;24}. The Law can point us to Jesus who has the power to break sin as a ruling force in our lives, remove condemnation and give us new hearts to follow and love Him and the things He loved “whom the Son sets free is free in deed!”{John 8:31-32}. Through Jesus Christ alone God Justifies us and pardons and gives us Power through the Gift of the indwelling Spirit so we can live in a new way with a heart for Him!
“What the Law could not do… God Did!”
How did God do it?
He sent His SON as our sin offering and standing in our place on the Cross he poured out His wrath for sin upon Him who had no sin in Him! But His love for us through the sacrifice of Calvary… He bore our condemnation. He bore the wrath of God and through Him exclusively, and Him alone we have been PARDONED from our sin and we have POWER over sin where it no longer is master but Jesus Christ is and He imparts power for us to be being changed by His Spirit.
v 4 “SO THAT…” shows the purpose of God condemning
“so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
It can show us our sin, But it cannot save us from the power and penalty of sin, the shackles of sin and the power of satan upon us.It can show the wrath of God to us but cannot deliver us from God’s wrath. It is impotent to Justify, sanctify-{transform us from the inside out}. It cannot break the power of condemnation upon our lives.
“BUT GOD…”
“God Did,…” Through His SON so we can walk in newness of life because through His Son He JUSTIFIED- Pardoned us/ His declaration is His work, not ours He justifies! and He SANCTIFIES us- He transforms us having transferred us from the Kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of His Beloved Son-{Col 1:12-13} and in these verse is reason for continually growth in gratitude to Him for doing so!
His Declaration to all who are “In Christ Jesus.” is now and forever…
NO CONDEMNATION!- v 1
TRANSFORMATION results – v 2
Only exclusively through The sacrifice of Jesus Christ and through Him alone are we made right with God. God’s declaration of Justification is “In Christ,” alone, and we are set free from the power and penalty of sin and Pardoned from all sin “In Christ” and never to be condemned and executed with the penalty of sin that would condemn us to HELL. As a result of God’s DECLARATION that we are Justified- declared right by Him in Christ… we then are free LIBERATED to be TRANSFORMED “In Christ” to live by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit to live and love God and towards others. All because of what GOD DID! HIS Law is used to convict us of our sin and lead us, point us to Christ!
Now “In Christ Jesus” There is no condemnation, there is liberation and the progressive transformation of our thinking, motivation, choices and deeds all because we are “In CHRIST JESUS,” and He gifts us the Holy Spirit to reside within us to help us,-{Rom 8:26} empowering us to walk in a new power, a new direction a new love for God, and to Him be the Glory!
” For what the Law could not do,weak as it was through the flesh, God did: “
DO NOT Look to the LAW to Justify or Change you – it cannot! Look to the One of whom the Word testifies to- Jesus Christ- “Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.“-{Luke 24:27}
DO NOT Look to YOUR PERFORMANCE to Validate you-! A Christian at times is tempted to look to their own performance rather than the perfect performance of the LORD Jesus. Looking to the Law to Justify and Change us…it could not before in Christ and it cannot now. Look to what God has done for you in His Son. Look to Him. His performance, has totally, eternally satisfied God. You are “complete” in Christ. The word “complete,” speaks of the state of no deficiency! No Deficiency in your salvation;{ Col 2:11-13; No Deficiency in your Forgiveness- {Col 2:13-14}; No Deficiency in your Savor!{Col 2:15}. Perfect salvation, perfect forgiveness because of a Perfect Savior! Look to what God has done for you. His performance through the LORD Jesus to satisfy His Holy, Right standard on our behalf and what we could not do what the Law could not do- “GOD DID!”
Remind yourself and speak these words to you, “GOD DID… IN CHRIST”
“GOD DID” THE WORK… and “IN CHRIST,” you are Justified. This is God’s DECLARATION! And as a result comes TRANSFORMATION- you are being Changed and have the power of the Holy Spirit to live this new life! Praise Him!
He CONDEMNED Condemnation on His Son on the cross so that we will not be now or ever be condemned by Him because Jesus Christ bore our condemnation! What a SAVIOR!
“IN Christ” There is therefore Now- {presently, eternally} –
“NO” {it is emphatic, not now or forever}
Condemnation {for those who are -This promise is not for everyone only for those who are}
“In Christ!”
“In Christ alone my hope is found;
He is my light, my strength, my song;
This cornerstone, this solid ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My comforter, my all in all—
Here in the love of Christ I stand. “-
{Keith Getty, Stuart Townsend}