A CHILD OF GOD IN A SINFUL WORLD
By David Woodbury
The reality is that the Christian
still has to live in in a sinful world, and an imperfect body with its natural
orientation toward sin. However, when we are born again we are under no
obligation to our old, sinful nature, rather we choose, of our own volition, to
ignore that natural orientation toward sin and conduct our lives under the
influence of the Holy Spirit. There is a delicate balance here between body and
spirit which all thinking Christians need to address. We still live in this
world and there are facets of daily living which have to be addressed and
resolved by the Christian. Some aspects of daily life are not in themselves
wrong or sinful and they play a part in our everyday existence; activities like
relaxation and pleasure. They are part of being human but need to be constantly
monitored lest their priority and place in in our lives begins to undermine the
influence of the Spirit.
12 Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you
have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. 13 For
if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the
Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will
live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of
God. 15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves.
Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now
we call him, “Abba, Father.” 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit
to affirm that we are God’s children. 17 And since we are his
children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s
glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering. (Romans 8:12-17 – NLT)
In our present age there is a
strong and persistent desire to focus on self and what self desires, and to
presume that our physical nature is entitled to dictate the terms on which life
shall be lived. Such an attitude is a modern and ancient error which inevitably
leads to a society that is selfish, self-centred and materialistic. Much of the
advertising with which we are bombarded in this digital and video age focuses
on those things which are centred on self and gratifying self. Much of which is
presented often appear, on the surface to be quite reasonable and normal, even benevolent.
We may well find ourselves going down a path that to all intents and purposes,
seems right and honourable only to find that are wrong and simply satisfying
our carnal nature. To be well-meaning never exempts us from the consequences of
being wrong.
In the final analysis it comes
down to that which controls the mainstream of our lives; the carnal self or the
Spirit of God, and that is a volitional decision the Christian makes on a
daily, if not hourly basis. However, it is a process taken in the context of a
family environment with the assistance of a loving Father in whose presence we
can resolve our struggles with our errant desires, and our new, spiritual
nature. Paul will deal with this struggle later in this chapter, but suffice to
say that God is a loving Father who understands and accepts us as we continue
our struggle between our sinful nature and our new, spiritual nature. We have
moved from the situation where, in our sinful condition we were slaves and
dominated by fear, to a secure and loving relationship of a child in a devoted
family wrapped up in love.
Because of the relationship we
now have with God we are, with Christ, heirs to all his goodness. However, Paul
adds a qualification here that we cannot ignore; we must also share his suffering (NLT). Life has taught us that anything worthwhile has a price attached
to; consequently we must expect to find that the same inevitable reality is
true in the spiritual world. Jesus in his parables clearly indicated that those
who chose to follow him needed to be ready and willing to pay a high price. (Matthew
13:44-46 – Matthew 16:24) Christians must always keep in mind that our
pilgrimage is along the same road the Master trod, a path of sacrifice and
suffering. However we also need to be aware that following the crucifixion came
the resurrection and there is a new consciousness of glory which surrounds even
the daily lives of those who are risen
with Christ.
The Future Glory
18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing
compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. 19 For all creation
is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children
really are. 20 Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s
curse. But with eager hope, 21 the creation looks forward to the day
when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and
decay. 22 For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the
pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 And we believers
also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of
future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering.
We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights
as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised
us. 24 We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already
have something, we don’t need to hope for it. 25 But if we look
forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and
confidently.)
26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our
weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the
Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in
words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit
is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s
own will. 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for
the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for
them. 29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to
become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many
brothers and sisters.30 And having chosen them, he called them to come to
him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And
having given them right standing, he gave them his glory. (Romans 8:18-30 – NLT)
Paul expands on the subject of
suffering in the life of the Christian. He observes that we live in an
imperfect and fallen world which looks forward to a day when all the
imperfections of earth will be perfected in God’s eternity. Consequently while
in this earthly existence the Christian cannot be insulated from the suffering
that is part of the world in which they exist. Paul acknowledges that in this
life, we will not be impervious to sin and suffering, however, the Holy Spirit
within us gives us a foretaste of future
glory (NLT). We eagerly look forward with great hope to the day when God
will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us (NLT).
At the moment we turned our lives over to Christ and affirmed our faith in his
redeeming death and resurrection, we were given this hope of eternal life with
God. However, Paul reminds us that hope by its very nature is not something
that is currently tangible, but rather an attribute for which we wait in
confident and positive anticipation.
When we accepted Christ as our Saviour we came into a secure and eternal
partnership with God and because of this we know and are assured everything
that happens somehow fits into a pattern for our good, even though at times it
defies our logic. In his foresight, God knows our complete life’s plan and
desires that we bear the family likeness of his Son. God called us and when we
responded to the invitation to accept Jesus as our Saviour, we came into a
right standing with God; clothed in the righteousness and glory of Jesus.
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