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THE KING’S BUSINESS
promptings of and in the power of the Spirit of God. But there is something that intervenes between this failure of the law and the triumph of the Spirit, i. e., God’s sending of His own Son (v. 3). This Son'is sent “in the likeness of sinful flesh.” He is not sinful flesh, but abso lutely “without sin,” but He was made sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 3:13). By send ing Him “in the likeness of sinful flesh” and “as an offering for sin” God “con demned sin in the flesh.” Sin has been sentenced and the sentence executed in the cross of Christ. Sentence therefore need not be again by the death of Christ, and as we have been entirely delivered from the guilt of sin by the death of Christ we may therefore be delivered from the power of sin by the life of the Spirit. And so “the ordinance of the law” will “be ful filled in us,” who walk not after the flesh, There are two classes of people in the world, “they that are after the flesh,” (i. e, controlled by the flesh and its prompt ings), “they that are after the Spirit,” (i. e. controlled by the Spirit and its prompt ings). To which class any man belongs is shown by what he “minds," i. e. by what he directs his mind toward. The word trans lated “mind” does not merely mean the intellect but includes thoughts, affections and will. They that are after the flesh direct their thoughts, affections and will toward, or set their thoughts, affections and will upon, the things of the flesh. They that are after the Spirit direct their mind toward, or set their thoughts, affection and will upon, the things of the Spirit. It is easy for any man to tell to which class he belongs. What are you setting your thoughts, affections, will upon, the things of the flesh of the things of the Spirit? “The mind of the flesh,” i. e. the mind directed toward the things of the flesh, “is death.” Not merely does it result in death, it “is death.” The very essence of spiritual death is a flesh controlled mind. It'is evi- but after the Spirit. Wednesday, July il. Rom. 8 : 5 - 8 .
the other chapter represents us “in Christ.” The chapter begins with the believer’s standing in Christ as worked out in the early chapters of the epistle. This stand ing before God Paul summarizes in two words, “No condemnation. God has abso lutely nothing against any man who is “in Christ Jesus.” It has been often and well said that this chapter begins 1 with “no con demnation” and ends with “no separa tion.” But who are in Christ Jesus? All who are united to Him by a living faith. The moment a man ceases from trying to be justified by “deeds of the law,” i. e. by his own good works, and believes in a God who “justifies the ungodly," who has revealed His pardoning love in the pro pitiation made by the death of Jesus Christ, that moment the man steps into Jesus Christ and out of all condemnation. There is for him no condemnation. And why is there no condemnation for him ? Because he is set free from the power of that which makes' condemnation necessary, “the law of sin and death.” Here Paul brings out the connection between the believer’s justified standing and his puri fied state. “The Spirit of life” is the Holy Spirit. He is so called because He is a life-giver, and especially here in contrast to the death wrought by sin. We have had “the law of sin and death” described in the preceding chapter. The Holy Spirit sets us free from a life of defeat and brings us into a life of victory. The sphere of the Holy Spirit’s operation is “in Christ Jesus.” There was something impossible for the law to accomplish, that is, to make us righteous. The reason the law could not do this was because it was weak through the flesh that ruled in us. But the impossible of the law is the possible of the Spirit. What the law could not do, the Spirit does do. So then the ordinance of the law is fulfilled in us to walk out not after the flesh but after the Spirit. This then, is the secret of a life well pleasing to God: give up walking according to the promptings of and in the power of your own flesh, and walk according to the
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