“8 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. (Romans 8: 1-20)”
Today we are going to dwell in Romans 8:1-2 that introduces yet another law. Remember back to those early math days in high school when we had to memorize basic axioms like a+b=b+a, the addition principle, but a-b does not = b-a, the subtraction principle. We learned about the law of gravity and many more. Paul is presenting basic spiritual laws. He is saying that the first law, The Law, the Ten Commandments, is the basic principles given to us to help us live a good and happy life. They were never meant to be instruments to evaluate if we are good enough or if we are better than someone else. They just tell us how life works best. The second law, the Law of Sin, speaks to our selfish, self-centered desires that trip us up so that we are convicted of not living totally by the Law. But the third law is the “Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” that we read today. The Spirit of God comes with conversion and baptism and lives in our life teaching us, reminding us, and interceding for us so that we no longer need to be slaves to our sinful desires. The third law says there are grace, forgiveness, and love even when we are sinners learning to live in harmony with the Spirit.
The Law of the Spirit has nothing to do with whether we speak in tongues or how holy we may think we are becoming. The Holy Spirit, called the Advocate, is our 24/7-coach guarding our back and leading us forward. The opening promise, “there is now no condemnation,” needs to come into focus and not the mechanics of how and how much. Relationship with the mysteriousness of God evades our attempts to define. Paul will continue his discussion but for today let us grab onto the phrase, “no condemnation” and rejoice.
Perhaps there is a past incident you hold yourself guilty about or that you hold another guilty for doing. In prayer, place that situation in God’s hands and allow him to resolve the pain of that memory. He is not condemning you so maybe you can loosen your grip. His desire is that we be free from the law of sin and death. Thank you, Lord.
On the Way to Wonder 