Holy Spirit - Romans (Part 1)
Holy Spirit • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 1 viewNotes
Transcript
pneuma (408 Times in the NT)
pneuma (408 Times in the NT)
“pneuma” = The Root and General Word for “Spirit” (Sometimes “Wind” and “Breath” - 379 Times
“pneumatikos” = “Spiritual” - 26 Times
“pneumatikōs” = “Spiritually” - 2 Times
“theopneustos” = “Inspired By God” - 1 Time
We’re Now Entering into the Epistles
We’ve Learned Lots of Facts About the Holy Spirit Up to this Point
But I Think the Epistles are Going to Offer Us a Lot of Practical Information About the Spirit
Romans 1:1–4 (NASB95)
Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,
Jesus was the Seed/Descendant of David According to the Flesh
But Jesus was Declared the Son of God According to the Spirit of Holiness/Holy Spirit
What Did the Holy Spirit Do to Prove Jesus to Be the Son of God?
He Raised Jesus From the Dead
From the Beginning, the Holy Spirit has Been the Bringer of Life in Lifeless Places
That Includes Resurrection From the Dead
Romans 8:9–10 (NASB95)
However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.
In this Section of Romans, Paul is Talking a Lot About Living By the Spirit
This is Allowing the Holy Spirit to Transform and Guide Us into Christ-Like Living
If You Don’t Have the Holy Spirit Living in You:
You are Still Following the Ways of Your Flesh
You Don’t Belong to Jesus
But if You Do Have the Spirit Living in You…
Though Your Body is Dead, Your Spirit is Alive Because God has Declared You Righteous
It’s Important that We Understand this Language
It’s Obvious that Our Bodies are Not Actually Dead
But What Paul Means is Our Bodies are Still Bound By Sin, Corruption, and Death
Meaning Our Bodies Still Struggle with Temptation
They Still Grow Old, Get Sick, Sustain Debilitating Injuries
They Still are Capable of Dying
But Our Spirit on the Other Hand has Been Brought to Life
When We Place Our Faith in Christ By Being Baptized, We are Reborn
Our Bodies Aren’t Reborn, But Our Spirits are
They are No Longer Bound By Sin; They are Set Free and are Prepared for the Age to Come
But What is Going to Happen to Our Bodies Which Bound to Sin, Corruption, and Death?
Romans 8:11 (NASB95)
But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
Just as the Spirit Raised Jesus’ Body From the Dead, He Will Also Raise Our Bodies From the Dead
“Will Give Life” = Future Tense
He Will Give Life in the Future
“To Your Mortal Bodies” = Bodies that are Capable of Death
We Currently Have Bodies that are Capable of Death, Just as Jesus Did
But in the Future, When Jesus Returns, the Spirit Will Not Only Resurrect Us Like He Did Jesus…
But He Will Give Life to Our Bodies that are Capable of Death
He Will Transform Our Mortal Bodies (Capable of Death) into Immortal Bodies (Not Capable of Death)
We Will No Longer Have “Dead Bodies” But “Life Bodies”
Just as Jesus Now Has a Body Empowered and Animated By the Life-Giving Spirit…
So Will We Who Currently Have the Spirit Living Within Us in this Life
This is One of the Most Important Aspects of the Indwelling of the Holy Spirit
Without the Indwelling of the Holy Spirit, We Can’t Experience the Resurrection to Eternal Life
At Our Baptism, We Received the Holy Spirit and He Gave Our Spirits Life
He Purified and Prepared Our Spirits for the Age to Come
But We Still Wait for the Day When He Will Do the Same for Our Bodies
That is Why Baptism into Jesus is So Important
There We Receive the Spirit Who Renews Our Spirit Now and in the Future Will Resurrect Our Bodies
Romans 1:9 (NASB95)
For God, whom I serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of His Son, is my witness as to how unceasingly I make mention of you,
This Isn’t Talking About the Holy Spirit, But Paul’s Spirit
What Does it Mean to Serve God “in My Spirit”?
Spirit, Heart, Desire, and Will are Often Used Synonymously
He Serves God From the Heart
He Serves God Out of Desire
He Serves God Because His Will is Aligned with God’s Will
Paul Didn’t Serve God By Going Through the Motions or Checking Off Boxes
Paul was a Man Whose Spirit was Transformed and Guided By the Holy Spirit
Only Then Can a Person Serve and Worship God in the Way God Desires
Romans 1:11–12 (NASB95)
For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be established; that is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine.
Paul had Never Met the Roman Church
And as Far as We Know, None of the Apostles Had
Therefore, the Congregation had Not Yet Had Received Miraculous Spiritual Gifts
Paul Wanted to Share These Spiritual Gifts With Them
Why?
So that They Would Be Established/“Strengthened”
In Faith, No Doubt
So that They Would Be Encouraged
To Remain Faithful
Even Though They Didn’t Yet Have Spiritual (Charisma) Gifts…
We Do Know that They Had (Charisma) Gifts According to God’s Grace and Their Measure of Faith
Romans 12:3–8 (NASB95)
For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.
For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
They Didn’t Have Spiritual Gifts (In the Miraculous Sense)…
But They Did Have Gifts
This is Not an Exhaustive List
But it Does Represent a List of Gifts that We are Still Capable of Having in the Church Today
It’s Important for Us to Know What Our Gifts are
According to Paul in Multiple Letters…
Every Christian Has a Gift Given By the Grace of God According to Their Measure of Faith
There’s a Theology Professor I Follow On Twitter Who Posted This the Other Day:
“Spiritual gifts are not what the Spirit gives to you. They are what the Spirit gives to the church through you.”
What is Your Gift?
What Gifts Has God Given the Church Through You?
And are You Using it?
Romans 2:25–29 (NASB95)
For indeed circumcision is of value if you practice the Law; but if you are a transgressor of the Law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. So if the uncircumcised man keeps the requirements of the Law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision?
And he who is physically uncircumcised, if he keeps the Law, will he not judge you who though having the letter of the Law and circumcision are a transgressor of the Law? For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh.
But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.
The Jews Took Pride in Their Circumcision
It was the Sign of Their Covenant with God
They Believed as Long as They Were Circumcised and Bore in Their Flesh the Sign of Their Covenant with God…
That They Were Pleasing to God
But Paul Tells the Jews is Rome that Circumcision of the Flesh is Worthless Without Faithful Obedience to God
They Didn’t Need Circumcision of the Flesh
They Needed Circumcision of the Heart
Paul is Borrowing this Language and Concept From Jeremiah
Jeremiah 4:4 (NASB95)
“Circumcise yourselves to the Lord And remove the foreskins of your heart, Men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, Or else My wrath will go forth like fire And burn with none to quench it, Because of the evil of your deeds.”
Jeremiah 9:25–26 (NASB95)
“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “that I will punish all who are circumcised and yet uncircumcised—Egypt and Judah, and Edom and the sons of Ammon, and Moab and all those inhabiting the desert who clip the hair on their temples; for all the nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised of heart.”
Jeremiah Told the Israelites They Needed to Circumcise Their Hearts
Then Later Called Them Uncircumcised of Heart
They Were Circumcised in Their Flesh, But Their Hearts Were Nowhere Close to God
Romans 2:29 (NASB95)
But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.
This Circumcision of the Heart Doesn’t Come Through the Letter of the Law
The Israelite People Tried for Generation to Keep the Letter to Attain Righteousness for Themselves
But the Law Doesn’t Change the Heart
A Written Code of Commandments Doesn’t Transform the Spirit
Only God’s Holy Spirit Can Do that
Circumcision of the Heart…
A Desire to Do God’s Will…
Only Comes Through the Indwelling of God’s Own Spirit
The Entire OT was Pointing to the Day When All of God’s People…
Would Receive New Hearts that Long to Obey God
And the Prophets Said that Would Only Come Through the Giving of God’s Spirit
The OT Contained a Written Code of Commandments for the People to Keep
But the People Ended Up Focusing On the Letter Instead if God’s Spirit and Desire Behind the Letter
The NT is Not a Written Code of Ethics
If We Simply Look at the NT as Our New Rule Book, We’ve Missed the Boat Completely
The NT is About the Justification/Righteousness that Comes Through the Good News of Jesus
And the Sanctifying Work of the Holy Spirit to Transform God’s People into Images of Jesus
The Focus is to Be On the Spirit Who Circumcises the Heart…
Not On a Checklist of Rules