Friday 03 February 2023
(Romans 8:1) There is Therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
No condemnation is a courtroom language. To have “no condemnation” declared means to be found innocent of the accusation, to have no sentence inflicted and no guilt verdict found. By the grace of God, believers in Jesus Christ will not face the condemnation of God. Believers in Christ have passed from death to life (see 1 John 3:14). Christians are free from the “law of sin and death”. as it says in Romans 8:2 “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.” Although we will commit sin, the Law no longer has power to condemn us. We are no longer under the Law’s condemnation because Jesus Christ fulfilled the expectations of the Law perfectly and for all those who believe Him and accept His payment on our behalf.
Believers are free from the “law of sin and death,” which means, although they may commit sin, the Law no longer has the power to condemn them. We are not under the Law’s condemnation because Jesus fulfilled (“filled-up, completed”) the expectations of the Law perfectly, and believers are “in Christ” (Romans 8:3). Because believers are in Christ, they have the joy of being counted as righteous, simply because Christ is righteous (Philippians 3:9). Paul also points out that genuine Christians, although they struggle, will not live “according to the flesh”; that is, they will not persist in a constant state of sinful living (Romans 8:5).
As Christians, we must understand that our justification is found in Christ alone—in His finished work on the cross—not in what we do or don’t do (Romans 3:28). Believers can find solace in the assurance that we have been adopted into God’s own family and have been made heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17). Nothing can separate us “from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:39).
Romans 8:15-16 says, “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” So, be encouraged to forget the past, and the self-condemnation you may have, instead you should be looking forward to what is ahead in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13 says, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.
Beloved, as Christ’s believer, you do not need to fear condemnation. You can come to God as a loving and forgiving Father. Beloved, you are blessed.
Meditation: Be encouraged to forget the past, and the self-condemnation you may have, instead you should be looking forward to what is ahead in Christ Jesus.
RM: The Power of a Believer
Prayer: Dear Lord, I crave your presence, wrap me in your loving arms and tender mercies in Jesus Name, Amen.
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