Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone and I'm one of the pastors here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church and it's my joy to bring God's word to you today.
We're continuing our series in the book of Romans. You remember that Romans is a letter written by the Apostle Paul in the 50s AD.
It's called Romans because it is written to the churches in the city of Rome and this letter is about the gospel, about the good news of Jesus' life and death and resurrection.
And as I've done the last couple weeks, I'm going to remind you again where we are at in the argument, the flow of the book of Romans because it can be complicated at times.
In chapter 5, we talked about the fact that we are saved by Jesus' life and death and resurrection. We are not saved by our works. We're not saved by anything you do.
Chapter 6 then goes on to say, okay, you are saved not by your works but by Christ's work and but you can't do whatever you want.
You still have to live a life of holiness, which then takes us to this next question which we're still answering in chapter 8, which is how do we do that?
How do we live that life of obedience to God? So chapter 7 then goes on to say what the answer is not.
Chapter 7 says the answer is not more rules. The law cannot create holiness. Holiness does not come from more rules.
Which then now we come to the payoff in chapter 8, which gives us finally the answer. Paul tells us holiness comes by the Spirit of God.
And so chapter 8 is a chapter about life in a Spirit. Life empowered by God's Spirit, the Holy Spirit.
Two weeks ago, verses 5 through 8, we talked about how we live by the Spirit.
We live by the Spirit by setting our mind on the things of the Spirit.
The things of the Spirit are Jesus Christ and His work, His life, His death, His resurrection, and all the benefits that flow to us from that.
So we're living life, all of life, in light of Christ's resurrection. That's how we live in the Spirit.
Then last week, verses 9 through 11, we saw that God, by His Spirit, also gives us new life.
It gives us new life, both now and in the future.
We talked about the fact that Christianity is not just or merely new beliefs and new behaviors.
It is also a new power at work within you and a new heart.
Because God, by His Holy Spirit, has taken up residence in your life.
Jesus lives in you.
And that happens by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
We have life now as the Spirit's at work, convicting us of sin, assuring us of God's love, making the gospel clear, among many other things.
We have life in the future as we have a resurrection body.
We get a new body that will not decay, that will live forever, that won't have sin and temptation, sickness, and disease.
So that, I've caught us up.
That's where we ended last week.
We ended with the new body, the resurrection life that we look forward to.
This week, we're continuing this same overarching question of how we live in holiness, how we walk by the Spirit.
And we have a specific question this week, which is why?
Why do we say no to sin and yes to righteousness?
Why should you obey God?
And what does the Holy Spirit have to do with that?
By the way, I bid off more than I could chew for this week.
It was extremely ambitious, thinking we would make it all the way from verse 12 to verse 15.
We are only looking at verses 12 and 13.
I'm not even going to read 14 and 15 for you.
So 14 and 15 are in your worship guide.
They are a problem for Monday, Matthew.
But it is Sunday, Matthew.
So I'm going to preach the same strategy we've been using, straight line from top to bottom.
So with that, I invite you to turn with me to Romans chapter 8, starting at verse 12,
which you will find page 8 of your worship guide.
Remember, as we come here, that this is God's word.
Jeremiah chapter 23 tells us that God's word is like a hammer that breaks a rock into pieces,
which is a way of saying that there is nothing so powerful that God's word is not more powerful still.
And so that's why I invite you to read with me now Romans chapter 8, verse 12.
So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.
For if you live according to the flesh, you will die.
But if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.
Our Father in heaven, we do thank you and praise you again for your many gifts to us and your mercy and your grace,
especially the gift of your Holy Spirit that comes and gives us new resurrection life.
We ask that you would pour out the Holy Spirit here and now in a powerful and extra special way among us as we come to your word,
that you would open up our eyes, you would unstop our ears, you'd clear our minds, you'd soften our hearts,
that we would be able to hear and see and understand and believe everything that you've written in your word.
And we ask these things not because we have earned them or deserve them.
We know that we haven't and we don't.
We simply ask for them in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.
I want you all to imagine with me, we're going to do a thought experiment,
that you have two things.
You have a free Saturday afternoon and you have an extra $1,000.
Okay?
There's a catch though.
You have to spend that afternoon with someone and the person you spend the afternoon with,
you have to give them the $1,000.
So you have this free afternoon, you have this $1,000, but it's not actually yours, you have to give away.
So that's catch one.
There's another catch, which is you only have two options for who receives this.
Okay?
Option one, you can spend the afternoon with someone who has mistreated you, stolen from you,
lied about you, and lied to you.
So that's option one.
That's one person you can spend the afternoon with.
Second option, you can spend the afternoon with a friend who has sacrificed for you,
helped you,
and at one point, this friend even saved your life.
Now, who do you choose?
Tough question, right?
No, it's a stupid question.
Of course, you're going to spend it with a second person, right?
That's obvious.
Why would you even consider the first person?
First person doesn't make any sense.
Of course, your friend will receive all of this.
We might even say,
you owe that to them.
It would be scandalous, actually,
if you gave it to the person who mistreated you.
And that, my friends, is exactly what Paul is saying here in verse 12.
He starts with a so then,
which means in light of everything we've looked at in the previous verses.
And what have we looked at?
Life in the Holy Spirit.
So so then, because of Jesus' death and resurrection
that results in the gift of the Holy Spirit,
which gives you both new life now and in the future.
Because of that, we're debtors.
We owe someone something.
But we need to be clear who we don't owe anything to.
We don't owe anything to the flesh.
We don't owe anything to live according to the flesh.
And so once again, I'm going to remind you what the flesh is.
Same definition from the last two weeks on page seven of your worship guide.
The flesh is human nature as corrupted, directed, and controlled by sin.
Remember our question, why?
Why do you obey God?
Well, you obey God because you don't owe sin anything.
You obey God because you don't owe sin anything.
And because you do owe God everything.
You don't sin.
You obey God because you don't owe sin anything.
And because you do owe God everything.
And you owe God everything because of Jesus' resurrection
and the new life that he gives to you.
The new life from the Holy Spirit that gives you
something now, gives you something in the future.
Verse 12, we are debtors.
You're just not debtors to the flesh.
You're debtors to God.
Why do we say no to sin?
We say no to sin because we owe it to God.
We owe it to God because of everything that's come before in chapter 8.
Remember, that's why Paul says,
So then, we owe it to God because the gift of life given to us through the Holy Spirit.
Now, the word owe here can sound a little bit negative.
We could end up in a weird place if we take it too far
because God's gift of salvation is a gift.
We're not meant to think of it as we have to repay God somehow.
That's not what Paul's getting at.
I want you to go back to our opening illustration.
Why did you choose person two?
At least, I hope that's who you chose.
You chose person two because of the great love that they've shown you.
Right?
Spending the afternoon with them is not burdensome.
You don't think to yourself,
Wow, I really, you know, I really just wanted to take a nap.
I hate that I have to be with this person who's been so kind to me.
No, it's a delight.
I think that's an easy choice.
Of course, I want to spend the afternoon with them.
You're not resentful that you have to give them your $1,000.
No, you're thrilled.
You're thrilled that you're able to do that.
It's small compared with what they've done.
That's what Paul's telling us.
Obedience comes from hearts that have been melted by the gospel.
We're thrilled.
By God's grace.
It's a delight.
By the way,
God's mercy and grace and love to us
must capture our hearts.
If you're a Christian,
we've talked about this over and over,
that
is what drives you to the new life.
If you really understand what Paul's been saying,
verses 1 through 11 of chapter 8,
everything else in your life
pales in comparison.
If you really understand,
if you grasp what it means
that you are indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God
who is at work giving you
new love, affection, and power,
everything else is small in comparison.
So when sin comes calling,
and suggests to you,
commands you,
tries to coerce you
to disobey God,
you can talk back to it.
You can say,
you know what?
You're not in charge anymore.
In fact,
you can even say it out loud if it helps.
You can say,
you don't run this place anymore.
And I don't owe you anything.
In fact,
quite the opposite.
I'm going to give myself
to the one who loves me.
I'm going to give myself
to the one
who's given me new life
through the Spirit.
We are debtors.
Now,
we don't just say yes to righteousness
because we're debtors.
Paul goes on in the next verse
to give us his second reason.
We say yes
because it is a choice
between life and death.
verse 13.
For if you live
according to the flesh,
you will die.
We have to have some qualifications here,
remind you some basics.
This is going even back
to chapter 5.
You are not saved
by your works.
But,
God does produce works
in those he saves.
God does not save you
based on anything
you have done
or will do.
But,
and,
those God saves,
he sanctifies.
holiness
comes from
and after
salvation,
but holiness
does
come.
If you belong
to God,
if God has
chosen you,
he will
also
change you.
if God
has chosen you,
he
will
change you.
Put it in a
other way,
if you keep
living
exactly
the same way
as you were living
before,
you
will
die.
Heaven
is not
where you are
headed.
If you keep
living exactly
the same way
you're living
before,
heaven is not
your final
destination.
That is not
the metro line
that you
are on.
Is there
a battle
against sin
in your life?
Are you
fighting against
it?
I certainly
hope so.
sin.
That's the
life of the
Christian.
The life of the
Christian is what
Paul says here.
We're putting
sin to death.
If you are
not
fighting sin,
if you are
not battling
for holiness,
you should
question
whether you
truly belong
to God.
it does
not matter
how much
theology
you know.
It does
not matter
how many
events for
the church
you have
planned.
It does
not matter
how many
Bible studies
you've
attended,
how many
churches
you've been
a part
of.
Fighting
against
sin,
concern
for holiness,
that is
what the
Holy Spirit
stirs up
in the
Christian.
Remember
verse 9
from last
week,
and every
Christian
has the
Holy Spirit.
all said
it already.
If the
Holy Spirit
is not
in you,
you are
not a
Christian.
Is there
a battle
against sin
in your
life?
Are you
fighting
against it?
For if you
live according
to the
flesh,
you will
die.
And if
you think
that's
too harsh,
hear the
words of
our Lord
Jesus in
Matthew
chapter 7.
Not
everyone who
says to
me,
Lord,
will enter
the kingdom
of heaven,
but the
one who
does the
will of
my Father
who is
in heaven.
Do
you
do the
will of
your
Father
who is
in
heaven?
We've
made it
through the
first half
of verse
13,
which tells
us holiness
is non-negotiable
in the
Christian life.
The second
part of
verse 13
tells us
holiness
takes work.
We play
a part.
So we're
going to
break it
down.
But if
by the
spirit
you put
to death
the deeds
of the
body,
you will
live.
And that
first phrase
is important.
If by
the spirit.
Remember,
this chapter
is answering
this question
Paul's been
getting at,
which is how
do we live
lives of
holiness?
And we've
already seen
it is not
by the
law.
That's
chapter 7.
It is not
by more
rules.
It is not
by gritting
your teeth
harder.
It is not
by pulling
ourselves up
by our
bootstraps.
Remember,
if God
has chosen
you,
he will
change you.
He
will change
you.
It is
by the
spirit.
Some of
you are
familiar with
the Navy
SEAL and
influencer
Jocko
Willink who
says,
only person
who can
fix your
problems
is you.
And that's
actually
false.
It's not
true.
And it's
not true
because your
problems are
too big
for you
to fix.
That's the
bad news
of the
gospel.
You must
change,
and you
cannot
change
yourself.
So what
do you
do?
You need
the new
life that
comes from
the Holy
Spirit.
The new
life that
gives you
new
desires,
new
motivations,
and new
power to
put sin
to death.
Without
the Holy
Spirit at
work in
you,
changing
your
heart
stone
into a
heart
of
flesh,
you have
no
hope.
By
the
Spirit.
Now those
new desires,
those new
motivations,
that new
power also
leads to
new action.
That's the
next part
of 13.
Put to
death
the deeds
of the
body.
And we've
talked about
this before.
this word
body does
not mean
that the
body is
bad.
What it
means is
this.
When you
sin,
whenever you
sin,
it happens
in your
body in
one way
or another.
Your sin
is an
embodied
act.
Sin is a
presence that
expresses itself
in your
embodied
existence.
And so you
must,
you must put
those sinful
acts to
death.
You must
end them.
You must
wage war
against the
presence of
sin.
Remember
chapter 6,
we talked
about the
war against
sin,
which tells
us obedience
requires specific
commitment to
change.
It is one
thing to
say,
yes,
I'm going
to follow
God.
It is
another thing
to say,
I am going
to stay
away from
people and
places that
cause me to
drink too
much.
it's another
thing to
say,
I am going
to put a
filter or
accountability
software on
my phone and
my computer.
It is another
thing to say,
I'm going to
work on a
budget so
that I can
be generous
consistently.
It is another
thing to say,
I'm going to
talk to a
friend and
say,
yes,
I'm tempted
to gossip.
Would you
help me?
It is another
thing to go
to bed on
Saturday night.
So you
can come
here on
Sunday morning
to worship
the living
God.
Putting sin
to death,
putting to
death the
deeds of
the body
means we
take action,
empowered by
the Holy
Spirit,
enabled by
our new
power,
love,
motivation,
and desire,
but action
nonetheless.
Action
towards holiness.
The person
who is fighting
this war
doesn't dismiss
their sin.
They don't
say things
like,
oh,
you know,
there's grace
for that.
God accepts
me as I
am.
No,
they're in a
fight.
They are
putting to
death the
deeds of
the body.
Paul doesn't
leave any room
for us to
wonder,
right?
I'm not sure
if there's
anything more
radical than
putting to
death.
He's saying
there needs
to be something
that is
aggressive and
determined.
You are
taking sin
by the
throat
and strangling
it.
Not cozying
up with
it,
killing it.
Remember,
Romans is
the fifth
gospel,
which means
that what
Paul teaches
Jesus
first.
Jesus teaches
this in
Matthew
chapter 5.
If your
right eye
causes you
to sin,
tear it
out and
throw it
away.
For it
is better
that you
lose one
of your
members than
that your
whole body
be thrown
into hell.
And if
your right
hand causes
you to sin,
cut it off
and throw
it away.
For it
is better
that you
lose one
of your
members than
that your
whole body
go into
hell.
For if
you live
according to
the flesh,
you will
die.
But if
by the
spirit
you put
to death
the deeds
of the
body,
you will
live.
Now there's
a million
things we
could say,
I could say
about the
fight against
sin,
a hundred
qualifications,
and my
goal.
this morning
as I
sometimes
tell you
when we're
up against
a massive
topic,
it's
to say
something
on
everything.
And so
as we
think about
our battle
against sin,
putting sin
to death,
the war
of obedience,
I want to
point out
two and
only two
things to
you.
Two pastoral
notes.
First,
if you want
progress in
your battle
against sin,
you cannot
do it
alone.
if you
want to
put sin
to death,
that is
not a
solo
journey.
I've said
before,
the opposite
of,
and this
doesn't come
from me,
the opposite
of addiction
is not
sobriety,
the opposite
of addiction
is connection.
God has
not designed
us to
kill sin
by ourselves.
you have
to tell
someone,
someone who
will help
you.
When someone
asks for help,
I say,
wow,
I'm so proud
of you.
You are
doing the
exact right
thing
to kill
sin,
bringing it
out into
the light.
The Bible
has something
to say about
this.
James
chapter 5,
therefore,
confess your
sins to
one another
and pray
for one
another
that you
may be
healed.
Second,
in our
battle against
sin,
we must
remember
that God's
law
is life.
As we've
seen many
times in the
book of
Romans,
it is in
God's
glory
that we
discover our
good.
In other
words,
it is the
wrong way
to think
about this
when you're
tempted to
say,
you know,
I'll
obey,
I'll
miss out
now,
so I
can gain
in the
future.
I'll
forgo all
these
wonderful,
beautiful
things with
some kind
of hope
of heaven.
That's the
wrong view
because you
are not
missing out
now,
you are
gaining
now.
God's
law is
always the
path to
life.
God
has designed
the universe
in a
certain way
and his
commands tell
us how to
live within
the grain
of the
universe,
the way
it actually
brings us
joy and
hope and
peace.
Remember
verse 6,
to set the
mind on
the spirit
is life
and peace.
your heavenly
father has
given you
his commands
not as a
killjoy,
but as
one who
desires
your good.
Do you
want to be
protected from
the ravages of
this world?
Stay within
the fences
that God
has given.
And when
you see
someone who
you think is
better off
than you
are,
because
they're not
constrained by
Christian ethics,
you know,
they're experiencing,
enjoying all
these things that
you're not because
of their sin.
Remember
this,
that person
is neither
joyful nor
peaceful.
They do
not have
what only
the spirit
of God
can give.
God's
law is
the way
the life.
I remember
years and
years ago
I met
with a
Christian
counselor and
I was telling
him about,
you know,
this other
person in my
life who
had all
these things
and he
just looked
at me and
he said,
at what cost?
At what cost?
God,
your father
longs to
give you
life.
Longs to
give you
life now,
he longs to
give you life
in the future.
We'll end
with this,
you see this on
page eight
of your worship
guide.
A fish is
only free
when it is
bound to
the water.
A bird
is only free
when it is
bound to
the air.
And we
are only
truly free
when we
are bound
to God.
Walking
according to
his will
is not
an oppressive
burden.
It is a
liberating
blessing.
living in
obedience to
God
revives our
souls,
makes us
wise,
and fills
us
with joy.
For if you
live according
to the flesh,
you will die.
But if by the
spirit you put
to death the
deeds of the
body,
you will
live.
Let's pray.
Our
Father in
heaven,
we do
praise you
and thank
you that
you come
to give us
life and
give us
life abundantly.
We ask
that we
would see
your beauty,
your love,
that as we
meditate on
the great
blessings that
are ours in
the gospel,
it would warm
and soften
our hearts and
we would
respond with
joy and
obedience to
you.
We ask all
of these
things,
in Jesus'
name.
Amen.
I invite
you to
stand for
our closing
hymn.