10 February 2013
Geoff Hohneck
Romans 8:1-4
Every believer struggles with what Geoff refers to as ‘unredeemed body baggage’ i.e. sinful words and deeds of the past, plus the ongoing capacity to sin. Paul, too, mentions this struggle in the previous chapter and calls himself a helpless wretch. This spiritual tug-of-war can often weigh believers down, causing them to doubt the surety and reality of their salvation. But here in the very first verse the Holy Spirit, through Paul, provides some of the most encouraging words in all of scripture.
Two promises are highlighted here – the promise of ‘No Condemnation’ and that of ‘No Separation’. Geoff unpacks these promises to reveal the extent of freedom that every believer truly has in Christ. What’s reassuring is that while believers will still sin after being saved, they are delivered from the punishment that is rightly due to them owing to the finished work of Christ at Calvary that justifies those who are in Him.
Of course, deliverance from divine condemnation does not imply deliverance from divine discipline (Hebrews 12:6). However, being saved does imply that God’s freedom is given to us not so that we may live as we please, but to do that which pleases Him. This is what true freedom is all about – God frees us so that the righteous requirements of the law are fulfilled in us. Hence we live in a manner that pleases Him.
Sermon outline:
• The reality of our true freedom
• The reason for our true freedom
• The road to true freedom
• The results of our true freedom