There Is No Condemnation In Christ

Romans 7:22- 8:6  ,”For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on  the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. Therefore there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin of death… (v6)… but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace…”

This is such a wonderful passage of scripture. Here the apostle Paul at the end of his ministry is getting honest and in shameless surrender talking about how he continues to struggle with sin, but that even as his flesh struggles he still is able to practice the presence of God. He is still able to be aware of God’s presence when he ‘sets his mind on the Spirit.’

I have someone in my life that is really struggling right now with the schizophrenic life we all live as Christians. We are all so capable on a moment’s notice of great sin even though we love God. For me, I think the bi-polar-ness of a sinful life in a Christian is exacerbated by teachings that speak of a need for repentance, or sinlessness, or holiness, or whatever man-made righteousness can be concocted in order to experience the presence of God.

This is poppycock in the sense that it is putting the cart before the horse. If we will set our mind on the Spirit, if we will practice His presence, if we will stop and quite our minds so that our spirit/soul can be aware of the presence of God, aware of Christ in us, aware of His kingdom in us… then all the other stuff will take care of itself. Sin will disappear in God's timing. Holiness will only be because of the increasing awareness of Christ and His kingdom in us. Focusing on Christ, coming to Him even in our sin and guilt will cause knew vision and understanding of how we are both sinner, and the temple of the Holy Spirit simultaneously.

THERE IS NO CONDEMNATION IN CHRIST! Go to Him in your greatest struggle. Go to Him in your greatest sin, and understand that He is going to be there when you do. The sin, the anger, the lust, the greed all of it can’t separate you from God. Nothing "will separate us from the love of God." (Rom 8:39) God cannot look upon sin, and that is why when He sees the Christian He does not see the sin, but He sees the atoning blood of Christ.

It is very true that when you set your mind on the Spirit that there may very well be conviction. And if so then the response is repentance. But there will also be love. There will also be peace, there will be joy, there will be patience, even if it is only with yourself.

Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is at hand.” He said, “the kingdom of God is inside you.” (Luke 17:21) It does not come and go with your sin. It is safely protected inside you from the sin because it is housed in a reborn spirit. The schizophrenia, the bi-polar struggle of sin and Spirit is the spirit and flesh struggle for the soul. Stop and allow your soul to be aware of the Spirit, of Christ in you. When you do, you will have the experience Paul shamelessly wrote for us all. You will discover a great truth about the kingdom of God, and you will overcome, and overcome, and overcome.