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Sermon Points

1. The Kind of Living That Leads to Death
2. The Kind of Dying That Leads to Life

Scripture Reading

Romans 8:5–14 (ESV)

• (5) 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.
• (6) For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
• (7) For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.
• (8) Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
• (9) You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
• (10) But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
• (11) If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
• (12) So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.
• (13) For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
• (14) For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

Introduction

We are still trying to get our bearings back in Romans 8 after our 7-week mini-series on the nature of the Church.

Last week, Philip drew our attention to the explosion of language in Romans 8 regarding the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Whereas we had been seeing the Spirit “out of the corner of our eye,” Paul now puts the Holy Spirit into the focal plane of our view. And this view of the Holy Spirit is multi-faceted.

Earlier in Chapter 8, Paul repeatedly contrasted two groups of people—those who live according to the flesh and those who live according to the Spirit. It has been a number of weeks since we looked at these distinct groups; we should probably look again.

The Two Groups in Romans 8

Verse 4

• those who walk according to flesh / Spirit

Verse 5

• those who live according to the flesh / Spirit

Verses 8-9

• those who are in the flesh / Spirit

The two groups, then, do not refer to some Christians who live out their faith more spiritually than other Christians, or who have more victory over fleshly temptations than others, or who have made more progress in sanctification than others.

Paul is simply contrasting in descriptive terms the lives of unbelievers with those of believers. It is important to remember these distinctions.

The ongoing effects of the indwelling Holy Spirit

As Philip reminded us last Sunday, though, the reality of the indwelling Spirit goes beyond mere metaphor. The Holy Spirit actually dwells in believers. We read this already in verse 9.

Romans 8:9 (ESV)

• (9) You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

We are familiar and casual about speaking of the Spirit dwelling in us, yet this reality is full of wonder and beyond our comprehension.

• Colossians 1:27 (ESV) — To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
• 1 Corinthians 2:16 (ESV) — “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
• 1 Corinthians 3:16–17 (ESV) — Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? …. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

The same God that sent his own son to “tabernacle” with us on earth (John 1:14) has now sent his promised Holy Spirit to be in us (John 14:17).

Where, then, will Paul go next in his argument? What will be the results of the Holy Spirit dwelling in the people of God? Look back at verse 11.

Romans 8:11 (ESV) — If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

The Spirit gives life to us. We know that this ultimately points to our eternal life with Christ in heaven, though it hints at fullness of life and joy and peace even now.

A very logical question for us to ask would be, “What evidence should I find in my life to prove that the Spirit is actually dwelling in me?” After all, it should be noticeable that the Spirit of the Living God is residing in us in the great mystery of God’s ways.

Over the coming weeks we will explore various evidences of the Holy Spirit residing in us.

If we were to brainstorm right now without reading ahead, we might expect Paul to answer this “evidence” question with things like…

• the baptism or filling of the Spirit
• the presence of Spiritual Gifts in our lives (tongues, prophecy, teaching, mercy, leadership)
• Miraculous spiritual power displayed in our lives (miracles, healings, effective evangelism, spiritual warfare)
• the Fruit of the Spirit in our lives (love, joy, peace, patience, etc. from Galatians 5)

Though all of these could be present in a believer’s life (and do point to the reality of the Holy Spirit) this is not Paul’s immediate answer to our “evidence” question. He gives us quite a different answer, in fact, and that is our topic for this morning.

We will take our topic under two headings today:

1. The Kind of Living That Leads to Death
2. The Kind of Dying That Leads to Life

Pastoral Prayer

• recent graduates — gratefulness for their accomplishments; wisdom for what comes next; a calling and vocation on them for kingdom work
• Baker family — Grieving and travel (unexpected death of Anne’s cousin, Hannah, in Ohio)
• help this morning to distinguish between mere religious practices and Spiritual life.
• Romans 12:2 (ESV) — Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

I. The Kind of Living That Leads to Death

After Paul’s spiritual crescendo in verses 9-11, we are prepared to hear how we are to live out this Christian life with the Spirit dwelling in us. And this is what we get in the text, though perhaps different than what we expect.

Paul does draw a conclusion from his earlier argument. He begins…

Romans 8:12 (ESV)

• (12) So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.

He combines two “conclusion” words — therefore (or “so”) and now to make his point very clear (Gundry, p. 598). He also shifts from “you” to “we” and calls them “brothers” to identify with them. (This is a good reminder for preachers. Sometimes we default into “you” statements, but the reality is that we are right there with you in the Christian journey.)

Paul’s conclusion: since all of this is true about the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, “we are debtors, not to the flesh to live according to the flesh.”

“Debtors” may feel like an odd word to put here. Most other modern translations give the sense a little differently, saying we are “under obligation.” In other words, since the Spirit lives in us, we have some obligation put onto us for how we are to live.

I do find it interesting that Paul didn’t spell out that obligation directly. Instead, he used the negative example. We are not under obligation to live according to the flesh.

A life captive to sin

What does Paul mean by this? How does the indwelling Spirit make this true? Before we were in Christ and received the Holy Spirit, we were held captive to sin.

Titus 3:3 (ESV) — For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures…

2 Peter 2:19 (ESV) — They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved.

John 8:34 (ESV) — Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.

Romans 7:23 (ESV) — but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.

The world does not describe living according to the flesh as being enslaved or captive. Quite the opposite! The world defines “the good life” as doing whatever one wants whenever one wants to do it. Paul calls this “living according to the flesh.”

• “Be who you want to be.”
• “Whatever feels good, do it.”
• “If I have these desires, how can they be wrong?” Sometimes even, “If God made me with these desires, how can they be wrong?”
• “It’s important for me to be authentic and pursue my desires.”

The world and the Devil want us to embrace living by our wants and desires. Remember the temptation in the garden—the fruit was desirable to make one wise.

Living according to the flesh does not always manifest itself by the pursuit of the worst desires possible.

We identify depravity when a person wants unwholesome things. Living according to the flesh is obviously bad when one person murders or injures another to take whatever they want, or when the desires are corrupted from scriptural or even societal norms. We easily identify the “fleshliness” of pagan idolatry, sexual immorality and homosexuality (though culture is trying its best to normalize them), violence and abuse, and unfiltered greediness or selfishness.

What may be less obvious to us is that a person can live “according to the flesh” while pursuing better goals. Perhaps the person wants traditional marriage, well-behaved children, a rewarding job, and the American dream. Would we describe that person as “living according to the Spirit” just because he or she isn’t pursuing a debauched lifestyle? They could still be living according to the flesh.

There is a real danger here of us appearing to be Spirit-led when in reality we just happen to want better things. Don’t misunderstand, it is better to want things in line with what God prescribes. It is better to want monogamous marriage than prostitution or to want an honorable job than stealing. But, it is possible to make marriage an idol, or to abandon God’s priorities through the pursuit of wealth.

Mark 10:25 (ESV) — It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”

The consequence of this way of living is serious

Romans 8:13 (ESV)

• (13) For if you live according to the flesh you will die…

Maybe you think back to the Garden again.

Genesis 2:17 (ESV) — but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Or maybe, as a movie-goer in the 80’s you think of “Return of the Jedi.” “If you will not be turned, you will be destroyed… Now, young Skywalker, you will die” (Star Wars VI “Return of the Jedi” — Emperor Palpatine).

In both scenes, the stakes are high.

We must remember that Paul is not referring to physical death only. Paul reminded us in verse 10 already that the body is dead because of sin. In other words, all people die, not just sinners.

This means the death mentioned in verse 13 is eschatological, spiritual, and final. This is the death of eternal punishment.

How do we express “debt” or “obligation” to sin?

I don’t think any of us would ever claim that we are “obligated” or “indebted” to sin. However, we do often minimize or excuse our sin, essentially expressing that we couldn’t help it (we were under obligation?).

• “We’re all just human?”
• “To be human is to sin.”
• “Let the one who is sinless cast the first stone.”
• “Don’t judge.”
• “If you didn’t want me to respond like that, you should not have provoked me.”
• “I can’t help it. I have an addiction.”

This is not to minimize the difficulty of choosing not to walk according to the flesh. It is simply a reminder that Paul says we are not in debt to the flesh.

We have a higher obligation.

John 6:38 (ESV) — For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.

We are no longer captive

Romans 8:2 (ESV) — For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.

Galatians 5:13 (ESV) — For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

Living according to the flesh leads to death. Now, let’s turn to heading 2.

II. The Kind of Dying That Leads to Life

Now we can finally get to the second half of verse 13.

Romans 8:13 (ESV)

• (13) For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

Paul states his argument in a fresh, new way here. He could have simply stated the opposite of the first half of the verse. He could have written, “but, if you live according to the Spirit you will live.” He’s more specific than that. He’s more concrete than that. Also, it sounds better in the King James Version.

Romans 8:13 (KJV) — For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

Let’s remember the evidence question we began with today.

“What evidence should I find in my life to prove that the Spirit is actually dwelling in me?”

Here is Paul’s answer. Through the Spirit, you must mortify (put to death) the deeds of the body. We will call this activity mortification.

The great Puritan, John Owen wrote a treatise on the subject in 1656, which I read over my vacation last week. His full title is, Of the Mortification of Sinne in Believers: The necessity, Nature, and Meanes of it. With a Resolution of sundry cares of conscience, therunto belonging.

I do recommend the work, although if you’re going to attempt it, the edition from Crossway edited by Kelly Kapic and Justin Taylor is worth the cost over the older editions. It’s titled, Overcoming Sin and Temptation, and actually contains three of Owen’s books together, along with introductions, footnotes, a glossary, scripture index, and a modern typesetting.

Here is a taste to get us into the topic:

Let not that man think he makes any progress in holiness who walks not over the bellies of his lusts. He who does not kill sin in his way takes no steps toward his journey’s end. He who finds not opposition from it, and who sets not himself in every particular to its mortification, is at peace with it, not dying to it.

• Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 55.

What is mortification?

Justin Taylor summarizes Owen in his introduction.

So what is mortification? Owen argues that mortification is a habitual, successful weakening of sin that involves constant warfare and contention against the flesh.

• Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 37.

It is habitual, not just a one-time, permanent putting off of sin. It is a way of life.

Do you mortify;
do you make it your daily work;
be always at it while you live;
cease not a day from this work;
be killing sin or it will be killing you.

• Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 50.

It is successful. This doesn’t mean that our aim is accomplished in totality in this life. Our aim is to so depend on Christ and the Spirit that we do not sin. We aim to kill sin dead. But, in this life, we often end up with only mostly-dead sins.

Mortification is not passive

Mortification is not something that happens to us. This is no “let go and let God” moment. It requires effort and struggle. It involves vigilance and diligence.

No one else can mortify your sins for you.

Though God could completely remove the temptation for a particular sin in your life, generally, God will not mortify your sins apart from your participation in putting it to death.

Though you may want a break from putting your sin to death, be sure that your enemy is taking no such break.

Sin will not only be striving, acting, rebelling, troubling, disquieting, but if let alone, if not continually mortified, it will bring forth great, cursed, scandalous, soul-destroying sins.

• Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 52.

Mortification is not mere self-improvement

Our calling is not simply to improve our disposition or even our self-discipline. In reality, some of you have nicer, more easy-going dispositions naturally. This doesn’t mean we have put sin to death in our lives.

• Just because your anger is not revealed through violence or demeaning tirades of profanity does not mean that you do not have an anger problem that must be put to death.
• Just because your lust is not exhibited through adultery or sexual immorality does not mean that you don’t have a lust problem that must be put to death.
• Just because your greed may not result in lying, stealing, and cheating does not mean that you don’t have a greed problem that needs to be put to death.

We are all tempted to limit our expressions of sin just enough that they don’t bother us, without cutting them off at the root and putting them to death.

Every unmortified sin will certainly do two things: It will weaken the soul and deprive it of its vigor. It will darken the soul and deprive it of its comfort and peace.

• Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 64.

Mortification is not about avoiding certain sins

I would venture that all of us have avoided certain sins for reasons other than because they displease God.

Not merely the avoiding of one particular sin, either because that sin bothers you or is embarrassing to you, or has consequences you don’t like.

As we mature, we learn to hide the sinfulness in our hearts. Those of you with young kids understand this naturally. When your two-year-old doesn’t get what she wants there is no question whether or not she is displeased. And the four-year-old has no “selfishness filter” to hide that he wants what his sister has.

As we get older, our outbursts turn into gossip or bitterness. This is no evidence that selfishness has been mortified.

Psalm 51:4 (ESV) — Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.

Mortification is not cause of life, but corresponds to life

We must not confuse what Pauls says in verse 13.

• Romans 8:13 (ESV) — For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

This does not make mortification the cause of our salvation, but it will correspond to our Spirit’s work in our heart..

The cause of our Spiritual life is a gift of God. We are saved by grace, not by works. It is Christ’s sin-conquering work that redeems us.

Romans 8:3–4 (ESV) — For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 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.

However, this gift of salvation provided by the work of Christ, does not remove the need for us to put sin to death in our own lives.

The believer’s once-for-all death to the law and to sin does not free him from the necessity of mortifying sin in his members; it makes it necessary and possible for him to do so.

• John Murray, The Epistle to the Romans, 294.

This possibility of mortification is made possible through the indwelling Spirit.

Mortification must be by the Spirit

• dependance upon the power of God
• looking to the Cross
• crying out to God for help
• can’t be done through rules or law.

A man may easier see without eyes, speak without a tongue, than truly mortify one sin without the Spirit.

• Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 80.

How is it that the Spirit actually helps us in our mortification?

And this is the first thing that the Spirit does in order to the mortification of any lust whatsoever—it convinces the soul of all the evil of it, cuts off all its pleas, discovers all its deceits, stops all its evasions, answers its pretenses, makes the soul own its abomination and lie down under the sense of it. Unless this be done all that follows is in vain.

• Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 138.

This is a helpful outline of ways to pursue the mortification of our sins by the Spirit

• be convinced of the evil of sin
• don’t allow any excuses
• explore how this sin finds its way into other parts of our life
• see the ugliness of it before God
• rejoice in the work of Christ that took the penalty of our sins from us as far as the east is from the west.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV) — For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Set your faith in the Work of Christ

Set faith at work on Christ for the killing of your sin. His blood is the great sovereign remedy for sin-sick souls. Live in this, and you will die a conqueror; yea, you will, through the good providence of God, live to see your lust dead at your feet.

• Overcoming Sin and Temptation, 131.

Jesus is the founder and perfecter of our faith

Hebrews 12:2 (ESV) — looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Conclusion / Application

1. The Kind of Living That Leads to Death
2. The Kind of Dying That Leads to Life

Don’t hide. Mortify.