Rev. Reed Lee Pedersen's
The first book of the Bible starts with creation. “In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth…” This is the first part of Genesis 1:1. The rest of the chapter is devoted to how God created the world. Within this little snippet is a claim; all things were created from nothing. In light of that, let’s take a look at Romans 8:1-11:
1There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. 3 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 to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 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 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law—indeed it cannot, 8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since 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, though 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 from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you. (New Revised Standard Version) This passage speaks of living a life according to the Spirit not the flesh. What does this mean? This means living a life which puts God and God’s mission first instead of living a life that puts the things of this world first. When we put our trust and faith in the things of this world (possessions, money, people, and any created thing) before God we are putting our trust in something that at its core came from nothing. When we live according to the flesh, live according to the desires of our physical bodies, we are putting our trust in something that will eventually fail us when we die and we return to our pre-created state of nothingness. When you look to the end of the road of life after only living according to the flesh you will see nothing. No purpose and no existence. However, living a life of the Spirit puts trust and faith in the Creator instead of the created. God is eternal and did not come from nothing. When we put our trust and faith in God (live according to the Spirit) we put our trust in eternity. When we look to the end of the road of life in which we live according to the Spirit we see that it keeps going. It does not stop at our earthly death. We don’t see nothingness, but rather an eternal road of life. This is the promise we received in Christ’s death and resurrection. “11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.” Points or Questions to Ponder: 1. Even if you could trace your genealogy all the way back to Adam and Eve you’d still find a time when your family tree did not exist (i.e. came from nothing). 2. What are some examples in your own life of living in the flesh versus living in the Spirit?
1 Comment
Pastor Reed Pedersen
10/17/2017 09:17:47 am
Feel free to answer questions in the comment section. I'd love to interact with you.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorPastor Reed is a first call pastor at Augustana Lutheran Church in Andover, Illinois. Archives
July 2019
|