SERMON: "A New Life in a New Family"
March 29, 2020
Romans 8:11-19
Romans 8:11-19
11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.
12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. 14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. 18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.
The text this week, Romans 8:11-19, follows last week's text of the first 10 verses of Romans 8. We saw that the age old rivalry between the flesh and the Spirit continues into our day and age. When the evidence is presented, the realm of the flesh is a downward spiral leading to physical and eternal death. The realm of the Spirit, on the other hand, leads to life and eternal salvation. The text today expands on the thought, "what is this new life we have in Christ?"
We are the children of God. We have received the Spirit of adoption. (Romans 8:15) The adoption process starts when a child is not wanted or is in a danger. Even though the Devil desires to wrestle us away from God, he doesn't care about us. The devil is the "Father of Lies." He promises us so much but cannot fulfill those promises. The devil offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world in Matthew 4:8-9, but are those kingdoms his to give? This so called father is neither good nor great. We need someone to come and take us away from this unsafe environment. Galatians 3:23-25 puts it this way, "Before the coming of this faith, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed. So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian."
God steps into our lives to save us from a hopeless situation. St. Paul continues further on in Galatians 3:26-27, "So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." The Holy Spirit works through the Means of Grace offering us this new life in a new family. For most of us it is the Sacrament of Holy Baptism that offers us these great blessings. Titus 3:5, "He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit." (For a longer study look at Nicodemus in John 3:1-15) The Baptist would say born again while Lutherans would say regeneration. The Spirit regenerates us. Batteries that are all used up are dead with no life. Rechargeable batteries cannot recharge themselves, they need an outside power source. We are dead in our trespasses and sins but made alive in Christ. Christ took the punishment we were found guilty of, so He died on the cross. The events of Good Friday show us the extent and expense God will pay in order to redeem us lost and condemned creatures.
Now we have a true Father. I was taught that Abba is like our term daddy. A child is dependent upon a parent to provide everything. We are dependent upon God to provide both our physical and spiritual blessings. Thus we pray, Our Father who art in heaven. We petition or ask for something of our Abba, Father. We pray for spiritual blessings, physical blessings and deliverance from evil.
Now we have a new spiritual life. Verse 16 says, "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children." The text says we ARE God's children, not that we maybe or could be, but we ARE! He pours into our hearts holy desires, like prayer. The fruits of the Spirit, as we saw last week, in Galatians 5:22-23 shows us how to live as God's children. Live like His children. We have an obligation, but not to the flesh. We cannot continue living according to the sinful flesh. We are to mortify the deeds of the body. If we belong to God and live under God in His kingdom, we are to serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness.
The final part of our text is that if we are God's children then we are heirs. The text says, "Heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ." (verse 17). Heirs receive all that the Father has, such as the older brother in the Prodigal Son. We shall receive all things in Christ. Yet, we have not reached that point. We are here in this world. An imperfect world filled with sin and sufferings. Oh boy, do we have sufferings and tribulations. The corona virus is testing the faith of many. God uses difficult times and suffering to strengthen our faith. Look up the sending out of the twelve in Mark 10:16-39 to see the difficulties of serving Christ. We may have to suffer for the sake of the Gospel.
Yet, we have the hope of glory. (verse 18) All of creation eagerly awaits for that day. We will receive it. Jesus IS the resurrection and the life, whoever believes in Him will also rise unto everlasting life. Our souls will be with Christ. We will be raised and will receive glorified bodies. That glory will far outweigh the sufferings of this life. 1 Thess. 4:17, simply puts it this way, "We shall be forever with the Lord."