1 Romans 8

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Romans 8

The Spirit-Filled Life

15 studies for Bible-believing born-again Christians seeking knowledge of the deeper life in Christ. By John Edmiston

? Copyright John Edmiston, 2020 Romans 8 : The Spirit-Filled Life by John Edmiston is Creative Commons, attribution required, non-commercial, share-alike and may be freely used, translated, photocopied, printed, and distributed electronically for non-profit ministry purposes, however it may not be sold in any way.

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Before You Start!

Purpose

The purpose of this series on Romans 8 is spiritual growth and not theological argument. The aim is for the believer to experience, grow-in and mature as a Spirit-filled Christian. We will not be debating theories of salvation or comparing denominations or various viewpoints. This is an interdenominational bible study focused on discipleship.

Bible Version

You will need a fairly literal translation such as ESV, NKJV or NASB. You do NOT want a translation that replaces terms such as flesh, walk, mind, or inner man with abstract concepts.

Pre-Reading

Please read Romans chapters 5-8 and Galatians chapters 3-6 as background. It will help you get a LOT more from this study.

Repetition of Concepts

There is some repetition of concepts in this study (especially in the first few studies) but please bear with it since the ideas are completely new to many people.

Group Study

These studies are meant to be used in small groups but can also be used for personal study. The leader should be a mature Christian who is well-prepared beforehand.

Free Commentary

A free commentary on Romans chapters 1-8 (by John Edmiston) can be downloaded from:

Website

The website with these studies and other resources is at: rom8/

Copyright and Sharing

You are free to reproduce this study book for non-profit ministry purposes but it must not be sold in any way. See the copyright notice on page 1.

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Contents

1. Introduction: Spirit vs. Flesh - p. 4 2. Romans 8:1,2 ? No Condemnation ? p.7 3. Romans 8:3,4 ? The Flesh Is Weak ? p.8 4. Romans 8:5-8 ? The Mind, The Flesh and The Spirit ? p.9 5. Romans 8:9-11 ? The Spirit of Christ Dwells In Us ? p.10 6. Romans 8:12,13 ? Putting The Flesh To Death ? p.11 7. Romans 8:14-17 ? Sons and Daughters of the Living God ? p.12 8. Romans 8:18 - Suffering and Glory ? p.13 9. Romans 8:19-22 ? The Creation In Childbirth ? p.14 10. Romans 8:23-25 ? The Hope of Redemption ? p.15 11. Romans 8:26,27 ? The Spirit's Intercession ? p.16 12. Romans 8:28 ? All Things Work Together For Good ? p.17 13. Romans 8:29,30 ? The Divine Process ? p.18 14. Romans 8:31-34 ? God Is For Us! ? p.19 15. Romans 8:35-39 ? More Than Conquerors ? p.20

About the Author ? page 21

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Introduction: Spirit vs Flesh

In Romans 7 the apostle Paul speaks of his own struggle with "sin in the flesh" and concludes that there is a good part of him (the Inner Man v. 22) that agrees with the law of God, and which also observes his behavior, which Paul hates, because he finds himself "sold as a slave into sin" (Romans 7:14). Eventually Paul concludes that he is not to blame for his sin, because he is not doing it, rather it is sin in the flesh that is doing it (Romans 7:17,20), and because he is not to blame for his sin, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus! (Romans 8:1)

We find that Paul has three components, the Inner Man ? eos anthropon which desires to obey the Law, The Mind (nous) which knows the Law in an intellectual way, and the Flesh - sarx, which hates the Law and cannot please God at all. The mind can be set on either the Flesh or the Spirit (Romans 8:4-6) so it is not intrinsically good. However, the New Creation, the Inner Man is intrinsically good because it is born of God and cannot sin or even desire to sin (1 John 3:9). The flesh is just flat out wicked (Galatians 5:19-21). If you were to die and go to Heaven (as a born-again Christian) you would be there without your flesh and without your merely human mind, you would be there as a New Creation and you would have no desire to sin at all and you would have perfect knowledge (1 Corinthians 13:12).

The New Creation is far beyond our human mind and the sense-perception thought-realm. Our spiritual self is our true self, and is a citizen of heaven, and is currently seated with Jesus at the right hand of God (Philippians 3:20, Ephesians 2:6, Colossians 3:1-4, 1 John 3:2). Our spiritual self receives information from the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:9-16) and is intimately connected to God and is one spirit with Him (1 Corinthians 6:17), so that we always have a sense of eternity and the eternal (Ecclesiastes 3:11). It is this new creation, our spiritual self, that will receive the fully spiritual resurrection body (1 Corinthians 15:35-55). This is where our true identity lies, this is essentially Who We Are, forever.

The human mind is mainly a survival tool. It is easily affected by alcohol, drugs, hormones, caffeine, moods, evil spirits, temptations etc. It is not our true self, though it sure feels like it. The mind can be set on good or on evil, on things above or below, on the appetites or on holy things, on the Spirit or on the flesh. Our mind determines what we are filled with. Filling flows to focus. If we focus on resentments we are filled with rage, if we focus on God's promises we are filled with faith, and so on.

The flesh is the egocentric self that is appetite and vanity driven and which mostly has very immediate plans. The Bible refers to "the flesh with its lusts and desires" (Galatians 5:24, Ephesians 2:3). The flesh is also called the Old Man (Ephesians 4:22). It carries the old stimulus-response pathways of the old nature, the bad habits,

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the cravings, the foolish reactive emotions and so on. The flesh contains "no good thing" (Romans 7:18). The mind set on the flesh is death (Romans 8:6) since the carnal mind is at war with God (Romans 8:7) and those who are in the flesh cannot please God (Romans 8:8). Following the flesh results in a wide variety of toxic lifestyle choices (Galatians 5:19-21).

The human mind is the instrument that chooses between the flesh and the Spirit: (Romans 8:4-6) 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. 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. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

Therefore, the Spirit-filled life is made possible and fruitful when we set our minds upon the Spirit, and is made impossible and spiritually deadly when we focus our minds upon the flesh. So then, which things cause us to focus our mind of the flesh and its carnal desires? Resentments, offenses, addictions, superstitions, irrational beliefs, fear, threat, ego, pride, vanity, self-absorption, a sense of entitlement, gross appetites, worldliness, love of status, slothfulness (extreme laziness), greed, covetousness, rage, in appropriate sexual lusts of all kinds, doubts, a stubborn and critical spirit, self-righteousness, unreasonableness, selfish ambition, distractions, being in a hurry, frantic behavior, rationalizing sin, toxic guilt, getting stuck in the past or the future, ego defenses, need for control, absorption in trivia, gossip, neediness, insecurity. These things, and many like them, send us straight into the flesh.

What then can pull us out of this mess and into the Spirit? Self-awareness, repentance, being still before God, knowing we are children of God, setting our minds on things above, casting our cares upon God, prayer, being anxious for nothing, fellowship with people of faith, Scripture, worship, challenging our doubts and fears, Sabbath rests, patience with life, patience with others, hope in God, all the fruit of the Spirit, leading a disciplined life, being careful about we watch and read, fleeing temptation, fleeing idolatry, setting our mind on the blessed hope of the Resurrection, being alert about the times and circumstances, doing the works of the Lord and good deeds, and many things like these will keep us in the Spirit with our minds and hearts set upon Christ. This is what we call "walking in the Spirit".

So let's recap a bit. You have two main parts, the Inner Man (the real eternal you), also called the New Man or the New Creation. Then you have the Flesh, the Old Man, also called the Outer Man, which is temporary and "of

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