WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.839 Good morning, church. It's good to see you all this morning. We are in Romans 8 this morning. 00:00:06.940 --> 00:00:11.300 That's page 944 in the Pew Bible. Let me ask you to turn there with me. 00:00:12.679 --> 00:00:16.160 We are going to focus on verses 9 through 11 today. 00:00:18.080 --> 00:00:21.480 But for our reading, I'm going to start in verse 1 so we get the context. 00:00:27.120 --> 00:00:29.420 As we come to God's Word together, let me pray for us. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:30.480 Amen. 00:00:35.880 --> 00:00:40.240 Our Father, as we have just sung, how great is your steadfast love toward us. 00:00:41.299 --> 00:00:48.460 Lord, you have taken our sin and you have separated it from us as far as the east is from the west. 00:00:48.700 --> 00:00:55.960 Lord, there is no remembrance of our sin because of what Christ has done for us. 00:00:55.960 --> 00:01:06.319 Lord, we confess this morning that we need your Spirit to come and make this truth real to our hearts. 00:01:06.319 --> 00:01:11.119 Lord, in our own selves, our hearts are so cold toward you. 00:01:11.239 --> 00:01:14.559 Our minds are so closed toward you and the things of you. 00:01:15.919 --> 00:01:24.759 So now, God, as we come to your life-giving Word, we pray that you would dwell richly among us by your Spirit 00:01:24.759 --> 00:01:27.379 and help us to behold wondrous things from your Word. 00:01:27.379 --> 00:01:30.539 Lord, we ask this in Jesus' name, Father. 00:01:31.060 --> 00:01:31.259 Amen. 00:01:34.939 --> 00:01:38.780 Well, let me read Romans 8, verses 1 through 11. 00:01:38.780 --> 00:01:43.939 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 00:01:45.099 --> 00:01:51.140 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 00:01:52.340 --> 00:01:56.299 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. 00:01:57.219 --> 00:02:02.219 By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh 00:02:02.219 --> 00:02:07.179 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, 00:02:08.120 --> 00:02:11.939 who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 00:02:13.280 --> 00:02:16.400 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, 00:02:16.479 --> 00:02:20.759 but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 00:02:21.579 --> 00:02:27.120 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 00:02:28.120 --> 00:02:31.860 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law. 00:02:31.860 --> 00:02:32.540 Indeed, it cannot. 00:02:32.880 --> 00:02:34.900 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. 00:02:35.420 --> 00:02:43.420 You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. 00:02:44.940 --> 00:02:48.020 Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him. 00:02:48.560 --> 00:02:53.340 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, 00:02:53.700 --> 00:02:56.160 the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 00:02:56.159 --> 00:03:02.120 If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, 00:03:03.039 --> 00:03:07.939 He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies 00:03:07.939 --> 00:03:11.180 through His Spirit who dwells in you. 00:03:11.180 --> 00:03:22.439 When Beth and I were dating after college, we lived about two and a half hours away from each other. 00:03:22.800 --> 00:03:25.860 I was living in Pennsylvania where I had a job, 00:03:25.860 --> 00:03:29.719 and she was living and working back home in New Jersey with her parents. 00:03:29.719 --> 00:03:35.719 So what that meant was that every weekend, I would drive two and a half hours on Friday after work 00:03:35.719 --> 00:03:41.919 to stay in the spare bedroom at her parents' place just so we could spend Saturday and most of Sunday together, 00:03:42.039 --> 00:03:45.780 and then I would turn around and drive another two and a half hours back to Pennsylvania. 00:03:47.280 --> 00:03:49.719 Needless to say, that was not very fun. 00:03:49.719 --> 00:03:56.199 And keep in mind, this was in the stone age when Skype and FaceTime didn't exist, 00:03:56.300 --> 00:04:01.079 that when we talked to each other on the phone, we could literally only hear each other's voices. 00:04:01.259 --> 00:04:02.379 That was all we had. 00:04:06.460 --> 00:04:10.900 So when it became pretty clear to us and to the people whose godly wisdom we trusted 00:04:10.900 --> 00:04:15.419 that marriage was in our future, that that was the right path for us, we could not wait. 00:04:15.419 --> 00:04:22.399 We planned a six-month engagement, which is crazy short if you haven't gotten married before. 00:04:22.479 --> 00:04:23.259 We booked the church. 00:04:23.659 --> 00:04:25.519 We booked the ladies' club for the reception. 00:04:25.740 --> 00:04:26.620 We booked the caterers. 00:04:26.719 --> 00:04:27.620 We sent out the invitations. 00:04:27.839 --> 00:04:30.300 And if you've planned a wedding, you realize that that's an incredible amount of work. 00:04:30.759 --> 00:04:33.860 And at last, when our wedding day came, what happened? 00:04:35.099 --> 00:04:38.659 We took on a whole new status. 00:04:39.759 --> 00:04:43.000 Now, we were legally husband and wife. 00:04:43.000 --> 00:04:45.620 Everything was now redefined. 00:04:45.740 --> 00:04:47.100 Legally, what was mine was hers. 00:04:47.180 --> 00:04:48.100 What was hers was mine. 00:04:48.180 --> 00:04:51.600 You see, we had taken on a whole new status in getting married. 00:04:53.459 --> 00:04:57.040 But with that new legal status of husband and wife came something else. 00:04:59.579 --> 00:05:04.800 Beth packed up all of her stuff, brought it all the way from New Jersey to Pennsylvania, 00:05:05.199 --> 00:05:07.740 and we moved into our first apartment together. 00:05:07.740 --> 00:05:15.240 We actually started doing life together, taking up residence, dwelling in the same space. 00:05:17.340 --> 00:05:18.519 Then the real fun began. 00:05:21.920 --> 00:05:27.160 Now, imagine how strange it would have been after getting married, after entering into this whole new status, 00:05:27.420 --> 00:05:30.220 where we were now considered one in a binding legal union. 00:05:30.300 --> 00:05:32.160 What's true of her is true of me, and vice versa. 00:05:32.160 --> 00:05:38.760 Imagine if after all that, we wrapped up the reception, said goodbye to the guests, watched the caterers clean up and head home. 00:05:38.860 --> 00:05:41.960 Imagine if after all that, I then drove two and a half hours back to Pennsylvania, 00:05:42.200 --> 00:05:45.120 only to see her every once in a while when the weekend rolled around, 00:05:45.720 --> 00:05:50.120 and when we could get a chance to talk on our flip flones, and maybe write a letter or two. 00:05:52.060 --> 00:05:55.020 That would have been very strange, would it not? 00:05:55.019 --> 00:06:02.139 Now, I know some married couples have seasons where they have to live apart for various reasons, 00:06:02.240 --> 00:06:08.560 but apart from those circumstances, don't you see the change in status goes hand in hand with the change of dwelling. 00:06:09.060 --> 00:06:14.620 What's pronounced legally, that these two are now one, gets then lived out relationally. 00:06:15.759 --> 00:06:19.539 And they don't just live in the same space, but financially, emotionally, physically, socially, 00:06:19.540 --> 00:06:21.460 there's this increasing union. 00:06:21.600 --> 00:06:25.460 They really begin to dwell with one another. 00:06:29.500 --> 00:06:34.540 Now, what Paul is helping us to see in verses 9 through 11 of Romans 8, 00:06:34.540 --> 00:06:39.920 this great chapter about assurance, is that something very similar, 00:06:40.400 --> 00:06:46.300 but even more profound happens in a believer's relationship with God in Christ. 00:06:46.300 --> 00:06:51.800 You see, over and over again in Romans, Paul has been saying, 00:06:52.139 --> 00:06:55.520 through faith in Christ, you have a new status. 00:06:56.680 --> 00:07:01.040 As chapter 5 of Romans will say, you've moved from being in Adam, 00:07:01.400 --> 00:07:04.080 the old humanity, under the curse of sin and death, 00:07:04.340 --> 00:07:06.840 and now, through faith, you are in Christ. 00:07:06.980 --> 00:07:08.300 You are in the new humanity, 00:07:09.300 --> 00:07:12.620 where his gift of righteousness has brought life. 00:07:12.620 --> 00:07:16.060 Or, as Paul puts it right here in verse 1 of chapter 8, 00:07:16.139 --> 00:07:20.480 there's therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 00:07:22.120 --> 00:07:25.780 Through faith, we're united to Christ, now what's his becomes ours. 00:07:26.160 --> 00:07:30.399 You see, if God's verdict over Christ is that there's no condemnation, 00:07:31.019 --> 00:07:33.800 then that means God's verdict over us. 00:07:34.079 --> 00:07:35.920 Though in and of ourselves, we don't deserve it. 00:07:35.980 --> 00:07:36.540 It's the same. 00:07:36.620 --> 00:07:37.980 There's no condemnation. 00:07:37.980 --> 00:07:42.580 But you see, that's not the end of the story. 00:07:44.420 --> 00:07:49.460 This new status comes hand in hand with a new presence. 00:07:51.300 --> 00:07:54.400 Three times in these three verses, 9 through 11, 00:07:54.620 --> 00:08:00.319 we're told that the Holy Spirit indwells the believer. 00:08:00.319 --> 00:08:05.920 That he comes and he takes up residence within. 00:08:08.740 --> 00:08:15.139 And the word indwell means a settled, permanent residence. 00:08:16.600 --> 00:08:19.639 The Holy Spirit's not just passing through, 00:08:20.060 --> 00:08:22.120 here one day, gone the next. 00:08:23.319 --> 00:08:26.459 The Holy Spirit's not like most of us when it comes to New Haven. 00:08:26.560 --> 00:08:27.439 We're here for a couple years, 00:08:28.300 --> 00:08:29.680 and we're on to something else, right? 00:08:30.319 --> 00:08:31.840 That's what I thought was going to happen to Beth and I. 00:08:31.980 --> 00:08:32.740 God had other plans. 00:08:33.480 --> 00:08:34.659 Maybe he's got other plans for you. 00:08:36.659 --> 00:08:39.840 But no, the Holy Spirit is here to stay. 00:08:40.279 --> 00:08:41.460 He's settling in. 00:08:42.120 --> 00:08:43.480 He's never going to leave. 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:49.940 So this morning, I want us, with the Apostle Paul here in verses 9 through 11, 00:08:49.940 --> 00:08:55.340 to pause and to consider and to rejoice in the reality 00:08:55.340 --> 00:08:59.080 that if you are in Christ, then the Spirit of God dwells in you. 00:08:59.679 --> 00:09:02.479 And we're going to do that in three steps, 00:09:02.519 --> 00:09:04.779 just looking at each of these three verses in turn. 00:09:04.879 --> 00:09:08.500 And in verse 9, we're going to see the fact of the Spirit's indwelling, 00:09:08.659 --> 00:09:11.439 just the brute fact of it, the reality of it. 00:09:11.479 --> 00:09:14.759 And then in verse 10, we're going to see that there's present power 00:09:14.759 --> 00:09:16.159 in the Spirit's indwelling. 00:09:16.319 --> 00:09:19.699 And then in verse 11, we're going to see that there's future transformation 00:09:19.699 --> 00:09:22.419 because of the Spirit's indwelling. 00:09:22.419 --> 00:09:25.159 Clear? 00:09:26.599 --> 00:09:27.179 Let's do it. 00:09:27.339 --> 00:09:28.860 Okay, first, the fact. 00:09:29.000 --> 00:09:29.500 Verse 9. 00:09:29.559 --> 00:09:30.319 Look at verse 9 again. 00:09:30.500 --> 00:09:33.699 You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, 00:09:34.079 --> 00:09:35.979 if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. 00:09:36.079 --> 00:09:39.799 Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 00:09:39.799 --> 00:09:46.279 It is a truth universally acknowledged 00:09:46.279 --> 00:09:49.459 that a single man in possession of a good fortune 00:09:49.459 --> 00:09:51.319 must be in want of a wife. 00:09:53.759 --> 00:09:55.000 You recognize that line? 00:09:55.259 --> 00:09:57.159 It's the opening line of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. 00:09:57.199 --> 00:09:58.199 Some people are shaking their heads. 00:09:58.759 --> 00:10:01.479 Am I the only geek here who's a Jane Austen fan? 00:10:01.579 --> 00:10:01.719 Okay. 00:10:02.620 --> 00:10:04.439 Jane Austen begins one of her greatest novels 00:10:04.440 --> 00:10:07.600 with just wit and irony and sarcasm, 00:10:07.660 --> 00:10:08.680 as only she can do. 00:10:09.320 --> 00:10:10.700 Here's a universal truth. 00:10:12.160 --> 00:10:14.900 That a man possessing good fortune must be in want of a wife. 00:10:15.900 --> 00:10:20.040 But here, you see, Paul is laying down a universal truth. 00:10:20.140 --> 00:10:22.700 He is laying down a reality with no irony, 00:10:23.300 --> 00:10:24.380 no sarcasm, 00:10:24.840 --> 00:10:29.040 just full-on joyful truth. 00:10:29.039 --> 00:10:36.279 That the Spirit of God indwells everyone who belongs to Christ, 00:10:36.939 --> 00:10:40.179 and conversely, no one who does not belong to him. 00:10:42.500 --> 00:10:43.579 Look at verse 9 again. 00:10:43.679 --> 00:10:47.699 Let me try to unpack Paul's tightly packed reasoning in this verse. 00:10:47.939 --> 00:10:49.559 I think it goes something like this. 00:10:50.039 --> 00:10:53.579 How can Paul be so sure that the Roman Christians, 00:10:53.699 --> 00:10:55.139 the you in verse 9, 00:10:55.259 --> 00:10:56.500 are no longer in the flesh? 00:10:56.500 --> 00:10:59.139 That is that they're no longer in the realm 00:10:59.139 --> 00:11:00.600 or under the sway 00:11:00.600 --> 00:11:03.980 of that old self-centered nature 00:11:03.980 --> 00:11:05.460 that we inherit from Adam. 00:11:06.200 --> 00:11:07.980 That's what the flesh means here in Romans 00:11:07.980 --> 00:11:09.460 and in pretty much all of Paul's language. 00:11:09.600 --> 00:11:11.480 It's our old self-centered fallen nature. 00:11:11.820 --> 00:11:13.240 How can Paul be so sure 00:11:13.240 --> 00:11:14.779 that they're no longer in that realm, 00:11:14.960 --> 00:11:16.139 but in the realm of the Spirit? 00:11:16.519 --> 00:11:20.139 That is in the realm of the Spirit's liberating reign and presence. 00:11:21.399 --> 00:11:22.539 How can he be so sure 00:11:22.539 --> 00:11:24.100 that that transfer has been made of them? 00:11:24.100 --> 00:11:31.259 Well, because the Spirit of God dwells in them. 00:11:33.019 --> 00:11:36.139 You see, the words, if in fact, there, 00:11:36.340 --> 00:11:40.100 don't so much cast doubt on whether the Spirit dwells in them. 00:11:40.659 --> 00:11:43.019 Rather, Paul is showing the deep logical connection 00:11:43.019 --> 00:11:45.159 between being in the Spirit 00:11:45.159 --> 00:11:48.180 and having the Spirit in you. 00:11:48.179 --> 00:11:55.199 But how can Paul be so sure 00:11:55.199 --> 00:11:58.719 that the Spirit of the living God dwells in them? 00:11:59.299 --> 00:12:00.239 It's quite a claim. 00:12:02.000 --> 00:12:05.419 Well, because as the rest of verse 9 says, 00:12:05.919 --> 00:12:08.199 if anyone doesn't have the Spirit of Christ dwelling in them, 00:12:08.699 --> 00:12:10.019 they don't belong to Christ at all. 00:12:10.019 --> 00:12:16.600 So the question for Paul is, 00:12:16.699 --> 00:12:17.799 do you belong to Christ? 00:12:19.659 --> 00:12:22.279 Are you His through faith? 00:12:24.179 --> 00:12:25.019 If yes, 00:12:26.019 --> 00:12:27.799 then there's no doubt in Paul's mind 00:12:27.799 --> 00:12:30.240 that the Holy Spirit dwells in you. 00:12:30.460 --> 00:12:31.799 And if the Spirit dwells in you, 00:12:31.840 --> 00:12:33.179 then you're no longer in the flesh, 00:12:33.360 --> 00:12:34.419 but you're in the Spirit. 00:12:34.620 --> 00:12:35.759 That is Paul's reasoning. 00:12:35.759 --> 00:12:38.659 And you see what the central plank of it all is. 00:12:40.120 --> 00:12:41.600 It's the reality, the truth, 00:12:41.679 --> 00:12:44.639 that the Spirit of God indwells everyone 00:12:44.639 --> 00:12:47.059 who belongs to Christ through faith. 00:12:49.580 --> 00:12:51.399 Okay, now why is that such a big deal? 00:12:54.539 --> 00:12:55.740 Well, in the next two verses, 00:12:55.879 --> 00:12:57.779 we're going to see two implications 00:12:57.779 --> 00:12:59.379 of the Spirit's dwelling in us. 00:13:00.319 --> 00:13:03.200 But I want us to just pause for a second 00:13:03.200 --> 00:13:07.340 on the stunning fact of what Paul is saying. 00:13:08.640 --> 00:13:10.140 That if you are in Christ, 00:13:10.840 --> 00:13:13.460 then the Spirit of God dwells in you. 00:13:17.620 --> 00:13:21.580 The Spirit of God dwells in you. 00:13:23.920 --> 00:13:25.360 If you've been a Christian for a while, 00:13:26.100 --> 00:13:28.259 maybe that's become a very familiar thing to you. 00:13:29.259 --> 00:13:30.580 You were told, rightly, 00:13:31.160 --> 00:13:33.140 that when you put your trust in Christ, 00:13:33.200 --> 00:13:35.200 the Holy Spirit came to dwell within. 00:13:36.780 --> 00:13:38.600 But do you realize, friend, what that means? 00:13:41.700 --> 00:13:45.180 Stop and consider who we are talking about here. 00:13:46.840 --> 00:13:50.660 The Holy Spirit of God. 00:13:52.840 --> 00:13:56.580 The one who hovered over the waters of creation, 00:13:57.360 --> 00:14:01.259 bringing life to what God the Father made through the Son. 00:14:01.259 --> 00:14:03.259 The Holy Spirit. 00:14:03.259 --> 00:14:06.639 The Holy Spirit who descended in glory 00:14:06.639 --> 00:14:09.439 upon the tabernacle and the temple in the Old Testament 00:14:09.439 --> 00:14:12.960 with a glory so devastatingly holy 00:14:12.960 --> 00:14:15.319 that everyone had to bow down 00:14:15.319 --> 00:14:17.240 and no one could stand up 00:14:17.240 --> 00:14:18.580 because he was there. 00:14:18.580 --> 00:14:26.920 The Holy Spirit who came like a whirlwind 00:14:26.920 --> 00:14:29.680 and fire at Pentecost 00:14:29.680 --> 00:14:33.780 and that launched the church into a mission 00:14:33.780 --> 00:14:38.800 that erupted and ripped through the first century 00:14:38.800 --> 00:14:42.980 with an energy and a life that is yet to cease 00:14:42.980 --> 00:14:44.080 even to this day. 00:14:44.080 --> 00:14:49.860 The Holy Spirit who created worlds, 00:14:49.960 --> 00:14:51.820 who brought men and women to their knees, 00:14:51.980 --> 00:14:55.379 who conquered empires with the word of the cross, 00:14:55.460 --> 00:14:57.160 the same Holy Spirit, 00:14:57.280 --> 00:14:57.840 the Lord, 00:14:58.240 --> 00:14:59.259 the giver of life, 00:14:59.420 --> 00:15:01.720 who proceeds from the Father and the Son, 00:15:02.060 --> 00:15:03.340 who with the Father and the Son 00:15:03.340 --> 00:15:05.240 is worshipped and glorified, 00:15:05.600 --> 00:15:06.759 as the Nicene Queen says. 00:15:06.759 --> 00:15:10.319 This Holy Spirit dwells in you. 00:15:18.319 --> 00:15:20.559 I think we need to just pause for a second 00:15:20.559 --> 00:15:21.360 and take that in. 00:15:22.559 --> 00:15:25.840 In you, Christian. 00:15:25.840 --> 00:15:35.180 And so you realize that according to Paul 00:15:35.180 --> 00:15:36.340 and to the rest of the New Testament, 00:15:37.340 --> 00:15:40.300 there's no sort of two-tiered Christianity. 00:15:41.660 --> 00:15:44.879 There's no sort of group of super-Christians over here 00:15:44.879 --> 00:15:46.519 who are indwelt by the Spirit 00:15:46.519 --> 00:15:48.500 and they've really got it going on. 00:15:49.240 --> 00:15:51.860 And then there's all the schmucks over here, 00:15:51.960 --> 00:15:52.740 the rest of us, 00:15:52.980 --> 00:15:54.580 who aren't indwelt by the Holy Spirit. 00:15:54.580 --> 00:15:56.740 We're just getting by by the skin of our teeth. 00:15:58.820 --> 00:15:59.980 No, Paul is saying, 00:16:00.240 --> 00:16:01.940 if you belong to Christ, 00:16:02.580 --> 00:16:04.259 the Spirit of the living God 00:16:04.259 --> 00:16:05.860 has taken up settled, 00:16:06.440 --> 00:16:08.440 permanent residence within 00:16:08.440 --> 00:16:11.620 every single one of you. 00:16:17.300 --> 00:16:18.680 Friends, does that not change 00:16:18.680 --> 00:16:21.520 how you see yourself? 00:16:23.360 --> 00:16:24.120 More importantly, 00:16:24.120 --> 00:16:24.940 does that not change 00:16:24.940 --> 00:16:26.060 how you see God 00:16:26.060 --> 00:16:28.299 and His great grace 00:16:28.299 --> 00:16:30.340 and His great purpose? 00:16:36.120 --> 00:16:37.379 Now, I realize some of you here 00:16:37.379 --> 00:16:38.039 are not Christians. 00:16:39.100 --> 00:16:41.500 Maybe you're interested in spiritual things. 00:16:41.620 --> 00:16:43.279 Maybe you're not so sure 00:16:43.279 --> 00:16:45.320 about this Christianity thing just yet. 00:16:45.980 --> 00:16:46.960 Let me say to you 00:16:46.960 --> 00:16:48.299 that you're very welcome here. 00:16:48.379 --> 00:16:49.480 We want this to be a place 00:16:49.480 --> 00:16:50.840 where you can explore 00:16:50.840 --> 00:16:52.660 and hear what Christianity is all about 00:16:52.660 --> 00:16:54.120 and ask good questions 00:16:54.120 --> 00:16:55.100 and see whether or not 00:16:55.100 --> 00:16:56.940 Jesus is who He says He is. 00:16:58.399 --> 00:16:59.379 And I imagine that for you, 00:16:59.440 --> 00:17:01.420 all this talk about the indwelling Holy Spirit 00:17:01.420 --> 00:17:04.660 probably either seems very curious to you 00:17:04.660 --> 00:17:06.640 and maybe you want to know more, 00:17:07.220 --> 00:17:08.680 or else, maybe more likely, 00:17:08.779 --> 00:17:10.500 this just seems totally absurd. 00:17:10.500 --> 00:17:16.759 How could anyone believe such a thing? 00:17:21.359 --> 00:17:22.740 But you know, if you think about it, 00:17:23.319 --> 00:17:24.819 is it all that absurd? 00:17:24.819 --> 00:17:29.659 If there is a God who made us 00:17:29.659 --> 00:17:31.460 and who loves us, 00:17:32.179 --> 00:17:34.339 and if that God in love 00:17:34.339 --> 00:17:36.419 took our humanity upon Himself, 00:17:37.220 --> 00:17:39.419 and if He bore our worst, 00:17:39.659 --> 00:17:40.879 if He bore our failure 00:17:40.879 --> 00:17:42.980 and our selfishness and our sin 00:17:42.980 --> 00:17:45.359 so that you and I could be released from it, 00:17:45.419 --> 00:17:46.659 is it so hard to believe 00:17:46.659 --> 00:17:48.720 that that God who made us, 00:17:49.039 --> 00:17:49.879 who loves us, 00:17:50.099 --> 00:17:51.119 is it so hard to believe 00:17:51.119 --> 00:17:53.599 that that God would also want to be near to us? 00:17:53.599 --> 00:17:56.879 to be with us, 00:17:57.559 --> 00:17:59.919 to not just be a God above us 00:17:59.919 --> 00:18:01.179 or over us 00:18:01.179 --> 00:18:02.799 or even a God among us, 00:18:02.980 --> 00:18:05.299 but to be the God within us, 00:18:05.819 --> 00:18:07.439 closer to us 00:18:07.439 --> 00:18:08.740 than we are to ourselves. 00:18:13.459 --> 00:18:14.939 Maybe it's not so strange. 00:18:17.159 --> 00:18:18.299 Maybe it's exactly 00:18:18.299 --> 00:18:19.879 what we've all been longing for. 00:18:23.599 --> 00:18:26.500 So that's our first point. 00:18:27.799 --> 00:18:28.899 Just the fact 00:18:28.899 --> 00:18:31.719 of the Spirit's indwelling. 00:18:33.399 --> 00:18:34.980 But what's the implication of all this? 00:18:35.019 --> 00:18:36.899 If the Holy Spirit dwells in us, 00:18:37.099 --> 00:18:38.079 what does that mean? 00:18:38.779 --> 00:18:39.779 So in the next two verses, 00:18:39.959 --> 00:18:40.740 Paul will show us, 00:18:41.000 --> 00:18:42.079 and if we could sum it up 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:43.179 with one word, 00:18:43.419 --> 00:18:44.919 that one word would be 00:18:44.919 --> 00:18:46.459 life. 00:18:48.459 --> 00:18:48.899 Life. 00:18:49.660 --> 00:18:50.420 In verse 10, 00:18:50.480 --> 00:18:51.800 we see that the indwelling Spirit 00:18:51.800 --> 00:18:53.560 is life. 00:18:53.680 --> 00:18:54.340 And in verse 11, 00:18:54.440 --> 00:18:55.560 we see that the indwelling Spirit 00:18:55.560 --> 00:18:57.160 will give life. 00:19:00.720 --> 00:19:01.519 In verse 10, 00:19:01.600 --> 00:19:03.620 this life means present power. 00:19:04.060 --> 00:19:04.820 And in verse 11, 00:19:04.900 --> 00:19:06.700 this life means future transformation. 00:19:07.000 --> 00:19:09.040 Let's look at the present power. 00:19:09.259 --> 00:19:09.720 Verse 10, 00:19:09.800 --> 00:19:11.860 but if Christ is in you, 00:19:13.040 --> 00:19:13.900 notice by the way, 00:19:13.980 --> 00:19:14.600 before we go, 00:19:14.660 --> 00:19:15.259 here's an aside. 00:19:15.259 --> 00:19:16.019 Notice by the way 00:19:16.019 --> 00:19:18.299 how differently Paul describes 00:19:18.299 --> 00:19:19.200 the Holy Spirit here. 00:19:19.680 --> 00:19:20.180 The Spirit, 00:19:20.839 --> 00:19:21.680 the Spirit of God, 00:19:22.059 --> 00:19:22.759 the Spirit of Christ. 00:19:22.900 --> 00:19:23.660 Here he just says, 00:19:23.960 --> 00:19:24.940 if Christ is in you, 00:19:25.000 --> 00:19:25.720 what's Paul doing? 00:19:25.819 --> 00:19:26.400 Is he sort of getting 00:19:26.400 --> 00:19:27.740 all of his categories confused? 00:19:28.139 --> 00:19:29.279 Is for Paul the Spirit in Christ 00:19:29.279 --> 00:19:30.099 just sort of one person? 00:19:30.259 --> 00:19:30.519 No. 00:19:32.660 --> 00:19:34.000 What Paul is saying 00:19:34.000 --> 00:19:35.960 that the Spirit of God 00:19:35.960 --> 00:19:37.720 and the Son of God 00:19:37.720 --> 00:19:38.539 and the Father, 00:19:38.980 --> 00:19:40.879 though they are very distinct persons 00:19:40.879 --> 00:19:41.740 in one God, 00:19:42.680 --> 00:19:44.599 their actions can never be separated. 00:19:46.019 --> 00:19:48.859 That Jesus, 00:19:49.119 --> 00:19:49.879 from the Father, 00:19:50.039 --> 00:19:50.740 sends the Spirit 00:19:50.740 --> 00:19:52.000 and the Spirit mediates 00:19:52.000 --> 00:19:53.039 the presence of Jesus 00:19:53.039 --> 00:19:53.920 into our hearts. 00:19:56.180 --> 00:19:57.079 This is the same thing 00:19:57.079 --> 00:19:57.639 Jesus taught 00:19:57.639 --> 00:19:59.480 in the chapter from John 00:19:59.480 --> 00:20:00.220 that we read earlier 00:20:00.220 --> 00:20:00.680 in the service, 00:20:00.759 --> 00:20:01.859 that he was going to send 00:20:01.859 --> 00:20:02.220 a helper, 00:20:02.339 --> 00:20:02.980 the Holy Spirit, 00:20:03.079 --> 00:20:04.539 and he would dwell in you. 00:20:04.900 --> 00:20:05.879 And then Jesus is going to say, 00:20:06.079 --> 00:20:06.299 oh, 00:20:06.740 --> 00:20:08.180 and my Father 00:20:08.180 --> 00:20:09.099 and I will come 00:20:09.099 --> 00:20:10.519 and we'll make our home in you. 00:20:12.599 --> 00:20:14.079 You can see how reading passages 00:20:14.079 --> 00:20:15.460 like Romans 8, 00:20:16.359 --> 00:20:17.240 like John 14, 00:20:18.019 --> 00:20:19.139 how the early church 00:20:19.139 --> 00:20:20.539 in faithful interpretation 00:20:20.539 --> 00:20:21.079 of Scripture 00:20:21.079 --> 00:20:23.699 would speak of God 00:20:23.699 --> 00:20:24.699 as triune, 00:20:25.379 --> 00:20:26.119 one God, 00:20:26.599 --> 00:20:27.539 eternally existing 00:20:27.539 --> 00:20:29.179 as three persons. 00:20:32.179 --> 00:20:33.119 But that's not Paul's 00:20:33.119 --> 00:20:33.639 main point here. 00:20:33.720 --> 00:20:34.199 He's talking about 00:20:34.199 --> 00:20:35.079 the present power 00:20:35.079 --> 00:20:35.899 of the indwelling Holy Spirit. 00:20:36.000 --> 00:20:36.639 Back to verse 10. 00:20:36.899 --> 00:20:38.039 If Christ is in you, 00:20:38.279 --> 00:20:39.460 although the body is dead 00:20:39.460 --> 00:20:40.220 because of sin, 00:20:40.460 --> 00:20:41.919 the Spirit is life 00:20:41.920 --> 00:20:43.100 because of righteousness. 00:20:44.840 --> 00:20:45.220 Now, friends, 00:20:45.300 --> 00:20:45.820 Paul in the rest 00:20:45.820 --> 00:20:46.380 of the New Testament 00:20:46.380 --> 00:20:47.640 is quite clear. 00:20:49.400 --> 00:20:50.360 Being a Christian 00:20:50.360 --> 00:20:51.980 does not exempt you 00:20:51.980 --> 00:20:53.860 from physical death. 00:20:56.000 --> 00:20:56.840 The body, 00:20:57.019 --> 00:20:57.720 as Paul says here, 00:20:57.779 --> 00:20:59.680 is still subject to death 00:20:59.680 --> 00:21:00.400 because of sin, 00:21:00.480 --> 00:21:01.480 because we still inhabit 00:21:01.480 --> 00:21:02.539 this fallen world. 00:21:04.519 --> 00:21:05.560 But that is not 00:21:05.560 --> 00:21:06.300 the whole story 00:21:06.300 --> 00:21:06.900 for the Christian. 00:21:07.019 --> 00:21:08.340 Even though our outward bodies 00:21:08.340 --> 00:21:09.300 waste away, 00:21:09.420 --> 00:21:10.480 even though we get sick, 00:21:10.480 --> 00:21:11.819 even though we wrestle 00:21:11.819 --> 00:21:13.160 with mental illness 00:21:13.160 --> 00:21:14.279 and physical illness, 00:21:14.380 --> 00:21:15.039 even though we struggle 00:21:15.039 --> 00:21:16.640 with aging and dementia, 00:21:16.799 --> 00:21:17.400 even though, 00:21:17.539 --> 00:21:18.360 unless the Lord returns, 00:21:18.500 --> 00:21:19.259 each one of us 00:21:19.259 --> 00:21:19.779 in this room 00:21:19.779 --> 00:21:20.680 will physically die. 00:21:23.059 --> 00:21:24.420 Despite of all that, 00:21:26.039 --> 00:21:27.220 Paul says there's another 00:21:27.220 --> 00:21:29.160 principle at work 00:21:29.160 --> 00:21:30.279 within us. 00:21:31.700 --> 00:21:33.900 The Spirit is life 00:21:33.900 --> 00:21:35.519 because of righteousness. 00:21:35.519 --> 00:21:39.440 Oh, we could have spent 00:21:39.440 --> 00:21:40.220 the whole morning 00:21:40.220 --> 00:21:41.759 on just that one phrase. 00:21:41.839 --> 00:21:42.539 I was actually tempted 00:21:42.539 --> 00:21:43.039 to just preach 00:21:43.039 --> 00:21:44.119 a whole sermon 00:21:44.119 --> 00:21:45.220 on the Spirit is life 00:21:45.220 --> 00:21:45.960 because of righteousness. 00:21:48.039 --> 00:21:49.980 The Spirit is life 00:21:49.980 --> 00:21:50.779 because of righteousness. 00:21:51.019 --> 00:21:51.299 First, 00:21:51.779 --> 00:21:52.579 whose righteousness? 00:21:55.139 --> 00:21:55.539 Yours? 00:21:57.539 --> 00:21:58.660 Has the Spirit come 00:21:58.660 --> 00:21:59.500 and given you life 00:21:59.500 --> 00:22:00.859 because of your moral goodness? 00:22:01.579 --> 00:22:02.859 Because of your worthiness? 00:22:03.039 --> 00:22:03.960 Because of your record? 00:22:03.960 --> 00:22:05.279 No. 00:22:07.600 --> 00:22:08.920 God takes up residence 00:22:08.920 --> 00:22:09.460 in you 00:22:09.460 --> 00:22:10.920 because of His righteousness. 00:22:14.000 --> 00:22:15.059 This is the message 00:22:15.059 --> 00:22:16.740 of the entire book 00:22:16.740 --> 00:22:17.799 of Romans. 00:22:18.940 --> 00:22:19.779 In our high school 00:22:19.779 --> 00:22:20.640 Sunday school class 00:22:20.640 --> 00:22:21.100 this morning, 00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:22.960 we tried to spend 00:22:22.960 --> 00:22:23.640 most of our time 00:22:23.640 --> 00:22:24.700 thinking about this idea 00:22:24.700 --> 00:22:26.799 of God's righteousness. 00:22:28.299 --> 00:22:29.640 That God's righteousness 00:22:29.640 --> 00:22:31.180 has come to us 00:22:31.180 --> 00:22:32.259 the guilty 00:22:32.259 --> 00:22:33.600 as a gift 00:22:33.600 --> 00:22:34.960 through Jesus Christ, 00:22:35.140 --> 00:22:36.080 the righteous one. 00:22:37.340 --> 00:22:38.700 And this makes Christianity 00:22:38.700 --> 00:22:40.240 totally different 00:22:40.240 --> 00:22:41.759 than anything else. 00:22:45.000 --> 00:22:46.259 Every other religion, 00:22:46.440 --> 00:22:46.539 friends, 00:22:46.600 --> 00:22:47.500 is about offering 00:22:47.500 --> 00:22:48.660 a righteousness 00:22:48.660 --> 00:22:49.960 to God 00:22:49.960 --> 00:22:50.980 in hopes 00:22:50.980 --> 00:22:51.720 that He'll love 00:22:51.720 --> 00:22:52.480 and accept us. 00:22:52.480 --> 00:22:55.460 but Christianity 00:22:55.460 --> 00:22:56.380 is about receiving 00:22:56.380 --> 00:22:56.880 a righteousness 00:22:56.880 --> 00:22:58.220 from God 00:22:58.220 --> 00:22:59.480 with the assurance 00:22:59.480 --> 00:23:00.599 that nothing then 00:23:00.599 --> 00:23:01.339 can separate us 00:23:01.339 --> 00:23:01.839 from His love 00:23:01.839 --> 00:23:02.360 and acceptance. 00:23:04.839 --> 00:23:05.900 And because of that 00:23:05.900 --> 00:23:07.360 righteous status, 00:23:07.519 --> 00:23:08.039 the righteous 00:23:08.039 --> 00:23:09.299 given to us 00:23:09.299 --> 00:23:10.180 through Jesus' 00:23:10.400 --> 00:23:11.440 faithful life 00:23:11.440 --> 00:23:12.559 and sin-bearing death, 00:23:12.620 --> 00:23:13.420 because of that, 00:23:13.599 --> 00:23:14.700 there is nothing 00:23:14.700 --> 00:23:16.299 keeping the Holy Spirit 00:23:16.299 --> 00:23:17.279 from coming 00:23:17.279 --> 00:23:17.860 and taking up 00:23:17.860 --> 00:23:18.779 residence within 00:23:18.779 --> 00:23:19.620 and bringing 00:23:19.620 --> 00:23:20.940 a new power of life 00:23:20.940 --> 00:23:22.400 where once there was 00:23:22.400 --> 00:23:23.740 sin and death. 00:23:26.539 --> 00:23:28.180 The power of sin 00:23:28.180 --> 00:23:29.500 has been broken 00:23:29.500 --> 00:23:30.500 through the righteousness 00:23:30.500 --> 00:23:31.279 of Christ 00:23:31.279 --> 00:23:32.779 and now the Spirit 00:23:32.779 --> 00:23:34.220 comes flooding in 00:23:34.220 --> 00:23:36.559 with unstoppable life. 00:23:41.600 --> 00:23:42.519 Now what does that 00:23:42.519 --> 00:23:43.500 present power 00:23:43.500 --> 00:23:44.880 look like? 00:23:48.480 --> 00:23:49.539 Well, Paul has actually 00:23:49.539 --> 00:23:50.360 been telling us 00:23:50.359 --> 00:23:51.539 and he'll go on 00:23:51.539 --> 00:23:52.139 to tell us 00:23:52.139 --> 00:23:53.179 right here 00:23:53.179 --> 00:23:53.799 in Romans 8. 00:23:55.939 --> 00:23:56.859 Let's paint a picture. 00:23:58.619 --> 00:23:59.339 The present life 00:23:59.339 --> 00:23:59.859 of the Spirit 00:23:59.859 --> 00:24:01.579 means a new mindset, 00:24:02.059 --> 00:24:02.579 verse 5. 00:24:03.199 --> 00:24:03.919 If you live 00:24:03.919 --> 00:24:04.599 according to the Spirit, 00:24:04.879 --> 00:24:05.740 you set your mind 00:24:05.740 --> 00:24:06.159 on the things 00:24:06.159 --> 00:24:06.579 of the Spirit. 00:24:06.679 --> 00:24:08.099 It's a whole new 00:24:08.099 --> 00:24:09.179 desire 00:24:09.179 --> 00:24:10.179 or controlling 00:24:10.179 --> 00:24:10.879 passion 00:24:10.879 --> 00:24:11.779 for your life. 00:24:12.199 --> 00:24:13.539 You're no longer 00:24:13.539 --> 00:24:15.459 bound 00:24:15.459 --> 00:24:16.439 to just think 00:24:16.439 --> 00:24:17.359 about yourself 00:24:17.359 --> 00:24:18.240 and how you can 00:24:18.240 --> 00:24:19.159 exalt yourself 00:24:19.160 --> 00:24:19.880 and how you can 00:24:19.880 --> 00:24:21.600 win others' favor 00:24:21.600 --> 00:24:22.259 for yourself, 00:24:22.340 --> 00:24:23.440 but you're bound 00:24:23.440 --> 00:24:26.560 and you're captivated 00:24:26.560 --> 00:24:28.340 and you're drawn out 00:24:28.340 --> 00:24:32.019 into loving Christ 00:24:32.019 --> 00:24:33.400 and delighting 00:24:33.400 --> 00:24:34.660 and exalting 00:24:34.660 --> 00:24:35.460 in Him. 00:24:36.600 --> 00:24:37.540 You have a whole 00:24:37.540 --> 00:24:39.340 new mindset. 00:24:39.339 --> 00:24:43.619 The power 00:24:43.619 --> 00:24:43.919 of the Spirit 00:24:43.919 --> 00:24:44.399 also means 00:24:44.399 --> 00:24:44.980 a new 00:24:44.980 --> 00:24:45.819 submission 00:24:45.819 --> 00:24:46.439 to God 00:24:46.439 --> 00:24:46.859 and God's 00:24:46.859 --> 00:24:47.159 word. 00:24:47.299 --> 00:24:48.500 That's verse 7. 00:24:48.619 --> 00:24:49.119 Paul says there, 00:24:49.199 --> 00:24:49.879 if you're in the flesh, 00:24:50.240 --> 00:24:50.959 you don't submit 00:24:50.959 --> 00:24:51.379 to God, 00:24:51.559 --> 00:24:52.019 you're hostile 00:24:52.019 --> 00:24:52.480 to God, 00:24:52.579 --> 00:24:53.079 you don't submit 00:24:53.079 --> 00:24:53.579 to His word. 00:24:53.720 --> 00:24:54.139 The implication 00:24:54.139 --> 00:24:54.639 is that the 00:24:54.639 --> 00:24:55.279 opposite is true. 00:24:55.359 --> 00:24:56.079 If you're in the Spirit, 00:24:56.139 --> 00:24:56.519 if the Spirit 00:24:56.519 --> 00:24:57.299 dwells in you, 00:24:57.740 --> 00:24:58.079 then 00:24:58.079 --> 00:24:59.980 out of our 00:24:59.980 --> 00:25:00.720 new desires 00:25:00.720 --> 00:25:01.379 come a new 00:25:01.379 --> 00:25:01.899 obedience. 00:25:04.459 --> 00:25:04.720 You see, 00:25:04.779 --> 00:25:05.039 the Spirit 00:25:05.039 --> 00:25:05.720 comes and He 00:25:05.720 --> 00:25:06.419 changes not just 00:25:06.420 --> 00:25:07.220 our inner desires, 00:25:07.320 --> 00:25:08.279 but also our habits, 00:25:08.840 --> 00:25:10.000 also the way we live, 00:25:10.440 --> 00:25:11.140 also the shape 00:25:11.140 --> 00:25:11.920 of our life. 00:25:13.700 --> 00:25:14.279 Of course, 00:25:14.320 --> 00:25:15.000 we will always 00:25:15.000 --> 00:25:15.500 wrestle with 00:25:15.500 --> 00:25:16.740 temptation and sin 00:25:16.740 --> 00:25:17.640 in this life, 00:25:17.680 --> 00:25:18.160 but what Paul 00:25:18.160 --> 00:25:18.700 is saying here 00:25:18.700 --> 00:25:19.420 is that more 00:25:19.420 --> 00:25:20.519 and more 00:25:20.519 --> 00:25:21.700 sin 00:25:21.700 --> 00:25:22.860 loses its 00:25:22.860 --> 00:25:24.340 control over us. 00:25:26.340 --> 00:25:27.259 More and more 00:25:27.259 --> 00:25:27.960 we delight 00:25:27.960 --> 00:25:28.960 in God's ways 00:25:28.960 --> 00:25:29.440 now 00:25:29.440 --> 00:25:30.620 and new habits 00:25:30.620 --> 00:25:31.460 begin to form. 00:25:31.460 --> 00:25:36.740 This new life 00:25:36.740 --> 00:25:37.200 also means 00:25:37.200 --> 00:25:37.980 a new witness 00:25:37.980 --> 00:25:38.500 within 00:25:38.500 --> 00:25:39.519 that we are 00:25:39.519 --> 00:25:40.200 children of God. 00:25:40.279 --> 00:25:40.680 This is jumping 00:25:40.680 --> 00:25:41.980 ahead to verse 16. 00:25:46.660 --> 00:25:47.059 Friends, 00:25:47.100 --> 00:25:47.340 I don't know 00:25:47.340 --> 00:25:47.779 about you, 00:25:47.860 --> 00:25:48.299 but I think 00:25:48.299 --> 00:25:48.840 most of us 00:25:48.840 --> 00:25:49.180 struggle 00:25:49.180 --> 00:25:50.559 with an old 00:25:50.559 --> 00:25:51.019 voice 00:25:51.019 --> 00:25:52.240 in our heads, 00:25:53.240 --> 00:25:53.680 a voice 00:25:53.680 --> 00:25:54.539 of condemnation, 00:25:55.319 --> 00:25:56.100 of shame, 00:25:56.500 --> 00:25:57.240 of guilt. 00:25:59.539 --> 00:26:00.579 An old voice 00:26:00.579 --> 00:26:01.019 that stretches 00:26:01.019 --> 00:26:01.759 the whole way 00:26:01.759 --> 00:26:02.220 back 00:26:02.220 --> 00:26:03.500 to the garden 00:26:03.500 --> 00:26:05.059 that comes 00:26:05.059 --> 00:26:05.619 and tells us 00:26:05.619 --> 00:26:05.960 that we need 00:26:05.960 --> 00:26:06.700 to work harder 00:26:06.700 --> 00:26:08.379 and prove ourselves 00:26:08.379 --> 00:26:09.740 that God 00:26:09.740 --> 00:26:10.619 doesn't really 00:26:10.619 --> 00:26:11.480 love us 00:26:11.480 --> 00:26:12.160 and have our best, 00:26:12.240 --> 00:26:12.779 so we need 00:26:12.779 --> 00:26:13.160 to do it 00:26:13.160 --> 00:26:13.859 on our own 00:26:13.859 --> 00:26:15.039 to fit in. 00:26:17.639 --> 00:26:18.119 But you see, 00:26:18.220 --> 00:26:18.639 now, 00:26:19.099 --> 00:26:19.559 because of the 00:26:19.559 --> 00:26:20.639 indwelling Holy Spirit, 00:26:20.740 --> 00:26:21.299 because the Spirit 00:26:21.299 --> 00:26:22.000 is life, 00:26:22.279 --> 00:26:23.139 because of righteousness, 00:26:23.339 --> 00:26:24.279 that old voice 00:26:24.279 --> 00:26:24.779 is met 00:26:24.779 --> 00:26:26.160 by another voice, 00:26:27.299 --> 00:26:28.200 the voice 00:26:28.200 --> 00:26:28.859 of the Spirit 00:26:28.859 --> 00:26:30.099 witnessing to our 00:26:30.099 --> 00:26:30.460 spirit 00:26:30.460 --> 00:26:31.360 that we are 00:26:31.360 --> 00:26:32.180 God's children, 00:26:33.140 --> 00:26:34.160 heirs of eternity, 00:26:34.819 --> 00:26:36.120 awash in dignity 00:26:36.120 --> 00:26:37.140 and glory 00:26:37.140 --> 00:26:38.380 that's nothing 00:26:38.380 --> 00:26:39.759 like this world 00:26:39.759 --> 00:26:40.340 or the favor 00:26:40.340 --> 00:26:40.840 of the world 00:26:40.840 --> 00:26:41.420 can give. 00:26:47.900 --> 00:26:48.500 Last, 00:26:48.620 --> 00:26:49.400 this new life 00:26:49.400 --> 00:26:49.840 in the Spirit 00:26:49.840 --> 00:26:50.480 means that there's 00:26:50.480 --> 00:26:51.279 a new groaning 00:26:51.279 --> 00:26:52.160 within us, 00:26:52.819 --> 00:26:53.740 a new groaning 00:26:53.740 --> 00:26:54.819 for the new creation 00:26:54.819 --> 00:26:57.099 and the Spirit's help 00:26:57.099 --> 00:26:57.779 for us 00:26:57.779 --> 00:26:58.599 as we pray. 00:26:58.720 --> 00:26:59.980 That's verse 23 00:26:59.980 --> 00:27:01.319 and verse 26 00:27:01.319 --> 00:27:02.079 and 27. 00:27:03.460 --> 00:27:04.559 This life 00:27:04.559 --> 00:27:05.500 that's in us 00:27:05.500 --> 00:27:06.759 because of Christ's 00:27:06.759 --> 00:27:07.220 righteousness 00:27:07.220 --> 00:27:08.139 through the Spirit 00:27:08.139 --> 00:27:09.679 means that there's 00:27:09.679 --> 00:27:10.720 an inner longing 00:27:10.720 --> 00:27:12.519 for God's future. 00:27:13.759 --> 00:27:15.599 There's an inner groaning 00:27:15.599 --> 00:27:17.419 to see creation healed 00:27:17.419 --> 00:27:18.919 and for his justice 00:27:18.919 --> 00:27:19.559 to come 00:27:19.559 --> 00:27:20.639 and make things right. 00:27:20.640 --> 00:27:23.480 And when we don't 00:27:23.480 --> 00:27:24.460 even know how to pray 00:27:24.460 --> 00:27:25.140 for that, 00:27:26.320 --> 00:27:26.780 Paul says, 00:27:26.860 --> 00:27:27.900 the Spirit prays 00:27:27.900 --> 00:27:29.000 for us. 00:27:32.140 --> 00:27:32.960 And though we might 00:27:32.960 --> 00:27:33.860 not be able to hear 00:27:33.860 --> 00:27:34.840 those prayers 00:27:34.840 --> 00:27:36.240 on our behalf, 00:27:37.240 --> 00:27:38.540 we can be sure 00:27:38.540 --> 00:27:39.680 that with them come 00:27:39.680 --> 00:27:41.100 peace 00:27:41.100 --> 00:27:42.620 and joy 00:27:42.620 --> 00:27:44.080 and a renewed sense 00:27:44.080 --> 00:27:44.980 of the love of God. 00:27:44.980 --> 00:27:51.180 So, 00:27:51.299 --> 00:27:51.860 brothers and sisters, 00:27:51.980 --> 00:27:52.220 Christian, 00:27:52.299 --> 00:27:52.759 the Spirit 00:27:52.759 --> 00:27:55.380 is life in you. 00:27:58.059 --> 00:27:58.640 Next week, 00:27:58.680 --> 00:27:59.220 we'll go deeper 00:27:59.220 --> 00:28:00.400 into what that looks like 00:28:00.400 --> 00:28:00.819 for us 00:28:00.819 --> 00:28:01.720 to be active 00:28:01.720 --> 00:28:03.440 in that life-giving power 00:28:03.440 --> 00:28:04.000 in the present, 00:28:04.120 --> 00:28:04.559 what it means 00:28:04.559 --> 00:28:05.680 to put sin to death, 00:28:05.779 --> 00:28:06.740 to live by the Spirit. 00:28:08.380 --> 00:28:09.059 We'll talk about 00:28:09.059 --> 00:28:09.960 some of our responsibility 00:28:09.960 --> 00:28:10.680 and all of that 00:28:10.680 --> 00:28:11.099 next week, 00:28:11.160 --> 00:28:11.720 but this morning, 00:28:11.779 --> 00:28:12.200 I wonder 00:28:12.200 --> 00:28:13.660 if we just need 00:28:13.660 --> 00:28:14.240 to hear a word 00:28:14.240 --> 00:28:14.819 of comfort 00:28:14.819 --> 00:28:15.799 and encouragement. 00:28:19.059 --> 00:28:20.159 Perhaps you're discouraged 00:28:20.159 --> 00:28:21.119 and disappointed 00:28:21.119 --> 00:28:22.240 in your own lack 00:28:22.240 --> 00:28:23.139 of holiness. 00:28:24.139 --> 00:28:25.539 Perhaps you're feeling stuck. 00:28:26.379 --> 00:28:27.639 How can I ever 00:28:27.639 --> 00:28:28.220 overcome 00:28:28.220 --> 00:28:29.539 this area 00:28:29.539 --> 00:28:30.259 of sin 00:28:30.259 --> 00:28:31.119 in my life? 00:28:32.000 --> 00:28:33.119 How can I ever 00:28:33.119 --> 00:28:35.519 change? 00:28:37.839 --> 00:28:38.679 How can I ever 00:28:38.679 --> 00:28:39.579 meet the challenge 00:28:39.579 --> 00:28:40.740 that lies before me now 00:28:40.740 --> 00:28:42.000 as a follower of Christ? 00:28:44.819 --> 00:28:45.659 Well, 00:28:45.679 --> 00:28:45.799 friend, 00:28:45.839 --> 00:28:46.799 the short answer is, 00:28:47.240 --> 00:28:47.879 in yourself, 00:28:48.139 --> 00:28:48.960 you can't. 00:28:50.179 --> 00:28:50.659 But, 00:28:51.079 --> 00:28:52.139 the Holy Spirit 00:28:52.139 --> 00:28:54.240 dwells within you. 00:28:57.799 --> 00:28:58.279 So, 00:28:58.359 --> 00:28:58.980 you don't have 00:28:58.980 --> 00:28:59.599 to remain 00:28:59.599 --> 00:29:00.559 stuck. 00:29:01.839 --> 00:29:02.639 You don't have 00:29:02.639 --> 00:29:03.319 to remain 00:29:03.319 --> 00:29:04.839 in that relationship 00:29:04.839 --> 00:29:05.659 that you know 00:29:05.659 --> 00:29:06.319 isn't pleasing 00:29:06.319 --> 00:29:07.000 to Christ. 00:29:07.519 --> 00:29:08.460 The Holy Spirit 00:29:08.460 --> 00:29:09.460 dwells in you. 00:29:09.519 --> 00:29:10.079 He will give you 00:29:10.079 --> 00:29:10.679 the courage 00:29:10.679 --> 00:29:11.599 to end things 00:29:11.599 --> 00:29:12.359 if you need to end things, 00:29:12.419 --> 00:29:13.059 to walk away, 00:29:13.059 --> 00:29:14.039 to ask for help. 00:29:14.419 --> 00:29:14.960 You don't have 00:29:14.960 --> 00:29:15.599 to go back 00:29:15.599 --> 00:29:17.159 to that sinful habit. 00:29:17.799 --> 00:29:18.639 The Holy Spirit 00:29:18.639 --> 00:29:20.000 dwells in you 00:29:20.000 --> 00:29:20.720 in that habit, 00:29:20.819 --> 00:29:21.279 that behavior. 00:29:21.500 --> 00:29:22.819 It's not you anymore. 00:29:24.019 --> 00:29:25.179 It doesn't define 00:29:25.179 --> 00:29:25.839 you anymore. 00:29:26.079 --> 00:29:26.579 It doesn't have 00:29:26.579 --> 00:29:27.859 dominion over you anymore. 00:29:28.159 --> 00:29:28.679 You belong 00:29:28.679 --> 00:29:29.379 to the Spirit 00:29:29.379 --> 00:29:30.919 and He dwells in you. 00:29:33.440 --> 00:29:34.379 And if you've been 00:29:34.379 --> 00:29:35.259 too afraid 00:29:35.259 --> 00:29:37.179 to ask for help, 00:29:37.940 --> 00:29:38.859 too embarrassed 00:29:38.859 --> 00:29:39.859 or ashamed, 00:29:40.079 --> 00:29:41.079 listen to what 00:29:41.079 --> 00:29:41.839 the Holy Spirit 00:29:41.839 --> 00:29:43.059 says to your spirit. 00:29:43.480 --> 00:29:43.960 You 00:29:43.960 --> 00:29:45.720 are a child 00:29:45.720 --> 00:29:46.359 of God. 00:29:49.059 --> 00:29:49.699 And there's 00:29:49.699 --> 00:29:50.220 no place 00:29:50.220 --> 00:29:51.119 for shame here. 00:29:57.000 --> 00:29:58.059 We're all sinners 00:29:58.059 --> 00:30:00.319 and we all 00:30:00.319 --> 00:30:01.000 stand 00:30:01.000 --> 00:30:02.159 on the righteousness 00:30:02.159 --> 00:30:03.199 of another, 00:30:03.879 --> 00:30:04.439 the righteousness 00:30:04.439 --> 00:30:05.220 of our faithful 00:30:05.220 --> 00:30:05.599 Savior, 00:30:05.759 --> 00:30:06.480 Jesus Christ, 00:30:06.639 --> 00:30:07.460 and He has made 00:30:07.460 --> 00:30:07.960 us all 00:30:07.960 --> 00:30:08.980 sons and daughters. 00:30:08.980 --> 00:30:13.799 So there's 00:30:13.799 --> 00:30:14.480 no more shame. 00:30:15.400 --> 00:30:16.559 There's no more fear. 00:30:18.079 --> 00:30:19.099 And that old 00:30:19.099 --> 00:30:19.940 way of living, 00:30:20.380 --> 00:30:21.920 it's not 00:30:21.920 --> 00:30:22.500 your future. 00:30:25.620 --> 00:30:26.799 There's present 00:30:26.799 --> 00:30:27.819 power 00:30:27.819 --> 00:30:28.640 through the 00:30:28.640 --> 00:30:29.160 indwelling 00:30:29.160 --> 00:30:30.059 Spirit. 00:30:33.799 --> 00:30:34.920 But last, 00:30:34.980 --> 00:30:35.400 this is our 00:30:35.400 --> 00:30:36.099 third big point, 00:30:36.200 --> 00:30:36.660 the fact, 00:30:37.099 --> 00:30:37.460 the present 00:30:37.460 --> 00:30:37.839 power, 00:30:37.839 --> 00:30:37.879 power. 00:30:38.459 --> 00:30:38.899 But Paul goes 00:30:38.899 --> 00:30:39.299 on to say 00:30:39.299 --> 00:30:39.959 there's future 00:30:39.959 --> 00:30:40.759 transformation. 00:30:42.439 --> 00:30:42.939 Verse 11, 00:30:43.599 --> 00:30:44.179 if the Spirit 00:30:44.179 --> 00:30:44.699 of Him 00:30:44.699 --> 00:30:45.679 who raised 00:30:45.679 --> 00:30:46.379 Jesus from 00:30:46.379 --> 00:30:46.799 the dead 00:30:46.799 --> 00:30:47.619 dwells in 00:30:47.619 --> 00:30:48.019 you, 00:30:48.379 --> 00:30:49.299 He who raised 00:30:49.299 --> 00:30:49.919 Christ Jesus 00:30:49.919 --> 00:30:50.519 from the dead 00:30:50.519 --> 00:30:51.359 will also 00:30:51.359 --> 00:30:51.859 give life 00:30:51.859 --> 00:30:52.599 to your 00:30:52.599 --> 00:30:53.299 mortal bodies 00:30:53.299 --> 00:30:54.079 through His 00:30:54.079 --> 00:30:54.419 Spirit 00:30:54.419 --> 00:30:55.099 who dwells 00:30:55.099 --> 00:30:55.419 in you. 00:30:56.779 --> 00:30:57.339 Where 00:30:57.339 --> 00:30:58.179 is all 00:30:58.179 --> 00:30:58.639 of this 00:30:58.639 --> 00:30:59.240 heading? 00:31:02.059 --> 00:31:02.799 Not just 00:31:02.799 --> 00:31:03.199 our service 00:31:03.199 --> 00:31:03.720 this morning, 00:31:03.879 --> 00:31:04.159 which you're 00:31:04.159 --> 00:31:04.480 thinking, 00:31:04.740 --> 00:31:04.879 well, 00:31:04.919 --> 00:31:05.319 I hope it's 00:31:05.319 --> 00:31:05.599 heading to 00:31:05.599 --> 00:31:06.379 coffee downstairs 00:31:06.380 --> 00:31:07.180 or something 00:31:07.180 --> 00:31:07.540 cold to 00:31:07.540 --> 00:31:07.900 drink because 00:31:07.900 --> 00:31:08.240 it's hot 00:31:08.240 --> 00:31:08.540 in here. 00:31:09.440 --> 00:31:09.880 Where is 00:31:09.880 --> 00:31:10.240 all this 00:31:10.240 --> 00:31:10.460 heading? 00:31:10.720 --> 00:31:11.180 Not just 00:31:11.180 --> 00:31:11.580 your week 00:31:11.580 --> 00:31:12.060 at work. 00:31:12.580 --> 00:31:12.880 Is it 00:31:12.880 --> 00:31:13.200 heading to 00:31:13.200 --> 00:31:13.680 a promotion? 00:31:14.140 --> 00:31:14.440 Is it 00:31:14.440 --> 00:31:14.780 heading to 00:31:14.780 --> 00:31:15.260 a vacation? 00:31:15.720 --> 00:31:16.220 Where is 00:31:16.220 --> 00:31:17.120 all of 00:31:17.120 --> 00:31:17.320 this 00:31:17.320 --> 00:31:17.620 heading? 00:31:19.620 --> 00:31:20.580 Your life. 00:31:24.220 --> 00:31:24.740 What's 00:31:24.740 --> 00:31:25.520 the destination 00:31:25.520 --> 00:31:26.100 that God 00:31:26.100 --> 00:31:26.920 has in store 00:31:26.920 --> 00:31:27.940 for those 00:31:27.940 --> 00:31:29.060 who belong 00:31:29.060 --> 00:31:29.780 to His 00:31:29.780 --> 00:31:30.760 Son and 00:31:30.760 --> 00:31:31.460 are indwelt 00:31:31.460 --> 00:31:32.259 by His 00:31:32.259 --> 00:31:32.600 Spirit? 00:31:35.039 --> 00:31:35.720 Paul says 00:31:35.720 --> 00:31:35.980 if you 00:31:35.980 --> 00:31:36.299 want to 00:31:36.299 --> 00:31:36.640 see your 00:31:36.640 --> 00:31:37.079 future, 00:31:38.720 --> 00:31:39.440 then look 00:31:39.440 --> 00:31:40.620 to Christ 00:31:40.620 --> 00:31:41.400 Jesus. 00:31:43.000 --> 00:31:43.700 If you 00:31:43.700 --> 00:31:44.019 want to 00:31:44.019 --> 00:31:44.440 see where 00:31:44.440 --> 00:31:44.920 God is 00:31:44.920 --> 00:31:45.559 taking you, 00:31:45.940 --> 00:31:46.539 then look 00:31:46.539 --> 00:31:47.220 to your 00:31:47.220 --> 00:31:47.579 King. 00:31:48.860 --> 00:31:49.559 Look to 00:31:49.559 --> 00:31:50.000 your King 00:31:50.000 --> 00:31:50.779 who entered 00:31:50.779 --> 00:31:51.680 into such 00:31:51.680 --> 00:31:52.259 deep 00:31:52.259 --> 00:31:53.299 solidarity 00:31:53.299 --> 00:31:54.700 with us, 00:31:54.940 --> 00:31:56.299 who took 00:31:56.299 --> 00:31:57.160 hold of us 00:31:57.160 --> 00:31:58.799 so firmly 00:31:58.799 --> 00:31:59.700 and so 00:31:59.700 --> 00:32:00.819 completely 00:32:00.819 --> 00:32:01.240 in the 00:32:01.240 --> 00:32:01.639 incarnation 00:32:01.639 --> 00:32:02.659 that now 00:32:02.659 --> 00:32:03.680 what's 00:32:03.680 --> 00:32:04.500 true of 00:32:04.500 --> 00:32:04.919 Him 00:32:04.919 --> 00:32:05.859 will be 00:32:05.859 --> 00:32:06.659 true of 00:32:06.659 --> 00:32:07.240 us. 00:32:09.539 --> 00:32:10.059 That's 00:32:10.059 --> 00:32:10.500 part of 00:32:10.500 --> 00:32:10.759 what it 00:32:10.759 --> 00:32:11.799 means that 00:32:11.799 --> 00:32:12.720 Jesus is 00:32:12.720 --> 00:32:13.299 the Christ, 00:32:13.659 --> 00:32:13.919 is the 00:32:13.919 --> 00:32:14.419 Messiah. 00:32:15.319 --> 00:32:15.759 In the 00:32:15.759 --> 00:32:16.279 Old Testament, 00:32:16.399 --> 00:32:16.819 the Messiah 00:32:16.819 --> 00:32:17.619 stood for 00:32:17.619 --> 00:32:18.159 His people. 00:32:18.740 --> 00:32:19.079 What was 00:32:19.079 --> 00:32:19.639 true of 00:32:19.639 --> 00:32:20.059 the King 00:32:20.059 --> 00:32:21.000 was true 00:32:21.000 --> 00:32:21.279 of the 00:32:21.279 --> 00:32:21.539 people. 00:32:21.899 --> 00:32:22.299 If the 00:32:22.299 --> 00:32:22.579 King 00:32:22.579 --> 00:32:23.259 obeyed, 00:32:23.619 --> 00:32:24.059 the people 00:32:24.059 --> 00:32:24.579 got blessed. 00:32:24.779 --> 00:32:25.079 If the 00:32:25.079 --> 00:32:25.319 King 00:32:25.319 --> 00:32:26.119 disobeyed, 00:32:26.419 --> 00:32:26.740 everything 00:32:26.740 --> 00:32:27.480 went downhill. 00:32:28.799 --> 00:32:29.980 But now 00:32:29.980 --> 00:32:30.359 Christ, 00:32:30.460 --> 00:32:31.039 our perfect 00:32:31.039 --> 00:32:31.319 King, 00:32:31.379 --> 00:32:31.779 has come. 00:32:32.960 --> 00:32:33.319 He's 00:32:33.319 --> 00:32:34.059 taken hold 00:32:34.059 --> 00:32:34.399 of us 00:32:34.399 --> 00:32:34.879 as people 00:32:34.879 --> 00:32:35.879 so that 00:32:35.879 --> 00:32:36.099 what's 00:32:36.099 --> 00:32:36.779 true of 00:32:36.779 --> 00:32:37.139 Him is 00:32:37.139 --> 00:32:37.500 true of 00:32:37.500 --> 00:32:37.859 us and 00:32:37.859 --> 00:32:38.039 He's 00:32:38.039 --> 00:32:38.819 taking us 00:32:38.819 --> 00:32:39.720 there. 00:32:41.680 --> 00:32:42.059 And friends, 00:32:42.099 --> 00:32:42.500 what do we 00:32:42.500 --> 00:32:43.879 know is 00:32:43.879 --> 00:32:45.059 true of 00:32:45.059 --> 00:32:45.419 Jesus? 00:32:47.940 --> 00:32:48.680 It's that 00:32:48.680 --> 00:32:49.119 God the 00:32:49.119 --> 00:32:49.500 Father 00:32:49.500 --> 00:32:51.680 raised Him 00:32:51.680 --> 00:32:52.019 from the 00:32:52.019 --> 00:32:52.319 dead 00:32:52.319 --> 00:32:53.099 through the 00:32:53.099 --> 00:32:53.599 power of 00:32:53.599 --> 00:32:53.919 the Holy 00:32:53.919 --> 00:32:54.319 Spirit. 00:32:55.099 --> 00:32:55.419 And Paul 00:32:55.419 --> 00:32:55.779 says if 00:32:55.779 --> 00:32:56.539 that same 00:32:56.539 --> 00:32:57.279 Spirit 00:32:57.279 --> 00:32:58.279 dwells in 00:32:58.279 --> 00:32:58.779 you and 00:32:58.779 --> 00:32:59.519 He does 00:32:59.519 --> 00:33:00.200 on the 00:33:00.200 --> 00:33:00.779 last day 00:33:00.779 --> 00:33:01.319 when the 00:33:01.319 --> 00:33:01.539 trumpet 00:33:01.539 --> 00:33:02.500 sounds and 00:33:02.500 --> 00:33:03.279 Christ returns 00:33:03.279 --> 00:33:03.980 to judge the 00:33:03.980 --> 00:33:04.399 world and 00:33:04.399 --> 00:33:04.819 make all 00:33:04.819 --> 00:33:05.359 things new, 00:33:05.740 --> 00:33:06.480 you too 00:33:06.480 --> 00:33:07.119 will be 00:33:07.119 --> 00:33:07.720 raised to 00:33:07.720 --> 00:33:09.019 unceasing, 00:33:09.480 --> 00:33:10.460 transformed, 00:33:10.899 --> 00:33:11.680 physical, 00:33:12.039 --> 00:33:12.660 material, 00:33:13.119 --> 00:33:13.759 unending 00:33:13.759 --> 00:33:14.700 life. 00:33:19.819 --> 00:33:20.379 And 00:33:20.379 --> 00:33:20.980 nothing 00:33:20.980 --> 00:33:22.240 is going 00:33:22.240 --> 00:33:22.639 to stop 00:33:22.639 --> 00:33:22.839 it. 00:33:22.839 --> 00:33:29.039 now there 00:33:29.039 --> 00:33:29.279 are many 00:33:29.279 --> 00:33:29.799 saints in 00:33:29.799 --> 00:33:30.319 this room, 00:33:31.679 --> 00:33:33.099 many 00:33:33.099 --> 00:33:33.619 believers in 00:33:33.619 --> 00:33:33.959 this room 00:33:33.959 --> 00:33:34.240 who have 00:33:34.240 --> 00:33:34.679 run the 00:33:34.679 --> 00:33:34.939 race 00:33:34.939 --> 00:33:35.679 faithfully 00:33:35.679 --> 00:33:36.679 for many 00:33:36.679 --> 00:33:37.139 years. 00:33:39.720 --> 00:33:39.919 And 00:33:39.919 --> 00:33:40.220 brothers and 00:33:40.220 --> 00:33:40.379 sisters, 00:33:40.539 --> 00:33:41.139 you know 00:33:41.139 --> 00:33:42.339 better than 00:33:42.339 --> 00:33:42.740 many of 00:33:42.740 --> 00:33:43.639 us what 00:33:43.639 --> 00:33:44.259 it means 00:33:44.259 --> 00:33:45.039 to have, 00:33:45.099 --> 00:33:45.379 as Paul 00:33:45.379 --> 00:33:45.639 says, 00:33:45.699 --> 00:33:46.139 a mortal 00:33:46.139 --> 00:33:46.779 body, 00:33:47.379 --> 00:33:48.459 a body 00:33:48.459 --> 00:33:48.899 that grows 00:33:48.899 --> 00:33:50.279 old and 00:33:50.279 --> 00:33:50.599 weary, 00:33:50.599 --> 00:33:50.659 weary. 00:33:53.039 --> 00:33:53.839 But know 00:33:53.839 --> 00:33:54.119 this, 00:33:54.240 --> 00:33:54.480 saints, 00:33:55.699 --> 00:33:56.699 one day 00:33:56.699 --> 00:33:58.179 the Holy 00:33:58.179 --> 00:33:59.559 Spirit in 00:33:59.559 --> 00:34:00.319 you, 00:34:01.099 --> 00:34:03.599 who has 00:34:03.599 --> 00:34:04.279 continued to 00:34:04.279 --> 00:34:04.699 give your 00:34:04.699 --> 00:34:05.500 spirit new 00:34:05.500 --> 00:34:06.480 life and 00:34:06.480 --> 00:34:07.359 vitality through 00:34:07.359 --> 00:34:08.219 all of life's 00:34:08.219 --> 00:34:08.920 trials and 00:34:08.920 --> 00:34:09.460 temptations, 00:34:09.599 --> 00:34:10.360 that spirit 00:34:10.360 --> 00:34:10.679 who has 00:34:10.679 --> 00:34:11.619 empowered you 00:34:11.619 --> 00:34:12.799 to live for 00:34:12.799 --> 00:34:13.579 Christ day 00:34:13.579 --> 00:34:14.539 in and day 00:34:14.539 --> 00:34:15.239 out will 00:34:15.239 --> 00:34:16.079 one day 00:34:16.079 --> 00:34:17.980 make your 00:34:17.980 --> 00:34:19.219 body 00:34:19.219 --> 00:34:20.739 new, 00:34:21.599 --> 00:34:22.399 just like 00:34:22.399 --> 00:34:22.859 Christ, 00:34:23.000 --> 00:34:23.539 your Savior. 00:34:25.919 --> 00:34:26.619 You will 00:34:26.619 --> 00:34:27.099 be raised 00:34:27.099 --> 00:34:27.459 anew on 00:34:27.459 --> 00:34:27.779 the last 00:34:27.779 --> 00:34:28.000 day, 00:34:28.079 --> 00:34:28.299 you will 00:34:28.299 --> 00:34:28.839 run and 00:34:28.839 --> 00:34:29.139 not grow 00:34:29.139 --> 00:34:29.419 weary, 00:34:29.819 --> 00:34:30.179 you will 00:34:30.179 --> 00:34:31.139 walk and 00:34:31.139 --> 00:34:31.719 not faint. 00:34:35.079 --> 00:34:35.759 All the 00:34:35.759 --> 00:34:36.359 effects of 00:34:36.359 --> 00:34:37.279 sin on 00:34:37.279 --> 00:34:37.659 the fall 00:34:37.659 --> 00:34:37.919 of your 00:34:37.919 --> 00:34:38.319 body 00:34:38.319 --> 00:34:39.799 will be 00:34:39.799 --> 00:34:40.279 undone 00:34:40.279 --> 00:34:43.059 and God 00:34:43.059 --> 00:34:43.879 will get 00:34:43.879 --> 00:34:44.439 the glory 00:34:44.439 --> 00:34:45.879 for conquering 00:34:45.879 --> 00:34:46.939 all the 00:34:46.939 --> 00:34:47.459 effects of 00:34:47.459 --> 00:34:47.719 sin, 00:34:47.719 --> 00:34:48.259 even 00:34:48.259 --> 00:34:49.099 undoing 00:34:49.099 --> 00:34:49.599 death 00:34:49.599 --> 00:34:50.099 itself. 00:34:56.299 --> 00:34:56.899 But if 00:34:56.899 --> 00:34:57.079 you're here 00:34:57.079 --> 00:34:57.480 this morning 00:34:57.480 --> 00:34:57.939 and your 00:34:57.939 --> 00:34:58.879 race is 00:34:58.879 --> 00:34:59.199 just 00:34:59.199 --> 00:34:59.619 beginning, 00:35:00.379 --> 00:35:01.259 if your 00:35:01.259 --> 00:35:01.619 body is 00:35:01.619 --> 00:35:02.000 still pretty 00:35:02.000 --> 00:35:02.359 healthy, 00:35:03.359 --> 00:35:03.899 if you 00:35:03.899 --> 00:35:04.179 seem to 00:35:04.179 --> 00:35:04.480 be doing 00:35:04.480 --> 00:35:04.879 okay, 00:35:06.099 --> 00:35:07.039 if you're 00:35:07.039 --> 00:35:07.219 in your 00:35:07.219 --> 00:35:07.759 20s, 00:35:08.759 --> 00:35:09.000 you can 00:35:09.000 --> 00:35:09.179 pull 00:35:09.179 --> 00:35:09.839 all-nighters, 00:35:10.839 --> 00:35:11.639 do all 00:35:11.639 --> 00:35:11.980 that good 00:35:11.980 --> 00:35:12.599 stuff that 00:35:12.599 --> 00:35:13.879 people in 00:35:13.879 --> 00:35:14.379 their 30s 00:35:14.379 --> 00:35:14.819 and 40s 00:35:14.819 --> 00:35:15.159 shouldn't do 00:35:15.159 --> 00:35:15.559 anymore, 00:35:15.559 --> 00:35:21.259 well friends, 00:35:21.320 --> 00:35:21.599 you need to 00:35:21.599 --> 00:35:21.940 hear this 00:35:21.940 --> 00:35:22.199 too. 00:35:25.059 --> 00:35:25.659 You need 00:35:25.659 --> 00:35:26.279 to see what 00:35:26.279 --> 00:35:26.579 sort of 00:35:26.579 --> 00:35:27.320 future God 00:35:27.320 --> 00:35:27.920 has in 00:35:27.920 --> 00:35:28.360 store for 00:35:28.360 --> 00:35:28.519 you. 00:35:28.619 --> 00:35:28.900 You need 00:35:28.900 --> 00:35:29.360 to see 00:35:29.360 --> 00:35:30.000 that the 00:35:30.000 --> 00:35:30.500 indwelling 00:35:30.500 --> 00:35:31.019 of the 00:35:31.019 --> 00:35:31.500 Spirit 00:35:31.500 --> 00:35:33.019 means 00:35:33.019 --> 00:35:34.039 that what 00:35:34.039 --> 00:35:34.559 lies ahead 00:35:34.559 --> 00:35:34.920 of you 00:35:34.920 --> 00:35:35.639 in Christ 00:35:35.639 --> 00:35:37.219 is not 00:35:37.219 --> 00:35:38.119 something 00:35:38.119 --> 00:35:38.940 less 00:35:38.940 --> 00:35:39.400 physical, 00:35:40.099 --> 00:35:40.340 less 00:35:40.340 --> 00:35:40.799 joyful, 00:35:41.219 --> 00:35:41.699 less 00:35:41.699 --> 00:35:42.139 thrilling, 00:35:42.139 --> 00:35:43.739 but more. 00:35:47.139 --> 00:35:47.759 What's 00:35:47.759 --> 00:35:48.420 ahead of 00:35:48.420 --> 00:35:48.699 you 00:35:48.699 --> 00:35:49.579 in 00:35:49.579 --> 00:35:50.119 Christ 00:35:50.119 --> 00:35:52.379 is 00:35:52.379 --> 00:35:53.039 life. 00:35:57.039 --> 00:35:57.900 So when 00:35:57.900 --> 00:35:58.199 you are 00:35:58.199 --> 00:35:58.699 tempted 00:35:58.699 --> 00:36:00.379 to trade 00:36:00.379 --> 00:36:01.679 Christ 00:36:01.679 --> 00:36:03.179 for the 00:36:03.179 --> 00:36:03.579 pleasures 00:36:03.579 --> 00:36:04.039 of this 00:36:04.039 --> 00:36:04.400 world 00:36:04.400 --> 00:36:05.239 now, 00:36:06.699 --> 00:36:07.679 when you 00:36:07.679 --> 00:36:08.759 are faced 00:36:08.759 --> 00:36:09.500 with that 00:36:09.500 --> 00:36:10.579 bargain, 00:36:10.579 --> 00:36:13.759 remember 00:36:13.759 --> 00:36:14.719 where the 00:36:14.719 --> 00:36:15.099 Spirit 00:36:15.099 --> 00:36:15.980 of God 00:36:15.980 --> 00:36:17.099 is taking 00:36:17.099 --> 00:36:17.960 you. 00:36:19.460 --> 00:36:20.079 Remember 00:36:20.079 --> 00:36:20.799 that this 00:36:20.799 --> 00:36:22.159 life isn't 00:36:22.159 --> 00:36:22.900 your only 00:36:22.900 --> 00:36:23.940 shot at 00:36:23.940 --> 00:36:24.259 joy, 00:36:25.079 --> 00:36:25.759 that this 00:36:25.759 --> 00:36:26.619 life isn't 00:36:26.619 --> 00:36:27.299 the terminus 00:36:27.299 --> 00:36:27.980 of all 00:36:27.980 --> 00:36:28.679 your desires, 00:36:29.759 --> 00:36:31.019 that the 00:36:31.019 --> 00:36:31.519 days of 00:36:31.519 --> 00:36:32.420 your youth 00:36:32.420 --> 00:36:33.019 aren't the 00:36:33.019 --> 00:36:33.860 only chance 00:36:33.860 --> 00:36:34.319 that you 00:36:34.319 --> 00:36:35.299 get to 00:36:35.299 --> 00:36:36.119 enjoy 00:36:36.119 --> 00:36:37.400 life and 00:36:37.400 --> 00:36:37.639 have 00:36:37.639 --> 00:36:38.199 pleasure. 00:36:38.199 --> 00:36:40.319 you see, 00:36:40.379 --> 00:36:41.399 the Spirit's 00:36:41.399 --> 00:36:41.919 indwelling 00:36:41.919 --> 00:36:43.119 presence means 00:36:43.119 --> 00:36:44.199 that you 00:36:44.199 --> 00:36:45.199 are destined 00:36:45.199 --> 00:36:45.899 for the 00:36:45.899 --> 00:36:46.460 new heavens 00:36:46.460 --> 00:36:47.039 and the 00:36:47.039 --> 00:36:47.539 new earth 00:36:47.539 --> 00:36:48.199 and the 00:36:48.199 --> 00:36:48.579 resurrection 00:36:48.579 --> 00:36:49.119 of the 00:36:49.119 --> 00:36:49.599 body where 00:36:49.599 --> 00:36:50.179 the present 00:36:50.179 --> 00:36:52.079 joys of 00:36:52.079 --> 00:36:52.719 this present 00:36:52.719 --> 00:36:53.460 age will 00:36:53.460 --> 00:36:54.299 be seen 00:36:54.299 --> 00:36:55.079 as just 00:36:55.079 --> 00:36:56.139 the foretaste 00:36:56.139 --> 00:36:56.739 that they 00:36:56.739 --> 00:36:57.179 are. 00:37:01.179 --> 00:37:02.079 It's almost 00:37:02.079 --> 00:37:03.000 impossible for 00:37:03.000 --> 00:37:03.339 us to 00:37:03.339 --> 00:37:03.839 imagine 00:37:03.840 --> 00:37:06.280 what it 00:37:06.280 --> 00:37:06.500 will be 00:37:06.500 --> 00:37:07.720 like to 00:37:07.720 --> 00:37:08.960 live in 00:37:08.960 --> 00:37:09.380 a renewed 00:37:09.380 --> 00:37:09.920 creation 00:37:09.920 --> 00:37:10.360 that's been 00:37:10.360 --> 00:37:11.500 liberated from 00:37:11.500 --> 00:37:12.700 sin and 00:37:12.700 --> 00:37:12.980 death, 00:37:13.039 --> 00:37:13.320 that's been 00:37:13.320 --> 00:37:14.079 liberated from 00:37:14.079 --> 00:37:15.019 evil and 00:37:15.019 --> 00:37:15.440 injustice, 00:37:15.620 --> 00:37:15.900 that's been 00:37:15.900 --> 00:37:16.660 liberated from 00:37:16.660 --> 00:37:18.559 shame and 00:37:18.559 --> 00:37:18.940 guilt. 00:37:19.900 --> 00:37:20.860 It's almost 00:37:20.860 --> 00:37:21.960 impossible for 00:37:21.960 --> 00:37:22.300 us to 00:37:22.300 --> 00:37:24.600 imagine how 00:37:24.600 --> 00:37:26.400 rich it 00:37:26.400 --> 00:37:27.760 will be to 00:37:27.760 --> 00:37:29.059 drink the 00:37:29.059 --> 00:37:30.260 joys that 00:37:30.260 --> 00:37:30.980 God, our 00:37:30.980 --> 00:37:31.400 Creator, 00:37:31.620 --> 00:37:32.539 intended us 00:37:32.539 --> 00:37:33.699 to drink 00:37:33.699 --> 00:37:40.440 and to 00:37:40.440 --> 00:37:41.880 drink in 00:37:41.880 --> 00:37:43.699 these, in 00:37:43.699 --> 00:37:44.219 our bodies. 00:37:47.779 --> 00:37:48.659 After all, God 00:37:48.659 --> 00:37:49.679 created us in 00:37:49.679 --> 00:37:50.360 a body, didn't 00:37:50.360 --> 00:37:50.659 He not? 00:37:51.519 --> 00:37:52.279 He redeemed us 00:37:52.279 --> 00:37:53.019 through a body, 00:37:53.099 --> 00:37:53.519 the body of 00:37:53.519 --> 00:37:54.039 Christ that's 00:37:54.039 --> 00:37:55.000 been resurrected 00:37:55.000 --> 00:37:56.219 and His future 00:37:56.219 --> 00:37:57.259 for us will be 00:37:57.259 --> 00:37:59.279 in the body 00:37:59.279 --> 00:38:00.019 made totally 00:38:00.019 --> 00:38:00.380 new. 00:38:02.539 --> 00:38:02.980 joy. 00:38:03.980 --> 00:38:04.699 And it 00:38:04.699 --> 00:38:05.179 means all 00:38:05.179 --> 00:38:05.940 the things 00:38:05.940 --> 00:38:09.400 that you 00:38:09.400 --> 00:38:09.699 want to 00:38:09.699 --> 00:38:10.739 enjoy and 00:38:10.739 --> 00:38:12.400 experience in 00:38:12.400 --> 00:38:13.259 this body. 00:38:15.119 --> 00:38:16.360 The rightful 00:38:16.360 --> 00:38:17.259 enjoyment of 00:38:17.259 --> 00:38:17.880 those things 00:38:17.880 --> 00:38:18.960 will not be 00:38:18.960 --> 00:38:19.539 withheld from 00:38:19.539 --> 00:38:20.480 you in 00:38:20.480 --> 00:38:21.119 God's future. 00:38:26.340 --> 00:38:26.900 Following 00:38:26.900 --> 00:38:27.219 Christ, 00:38:27.340 --> 00:38:27.480 friends, 00:38:27.539 --> 00:38:27.860 doesn't mean 00:38:27.860 --> 00:38:28.400 less joy, 00:38:28.500 --> 00:38:29.159 but more, 00:38:30.119 --> 00:38:31.440 infinitely more, 00:38:31.440 --> 00:38:31.860 and He's 00:38:31.860 --> 00:38:32.440 put His 00:38:32.440 --> 00:38:33.200 Spirit in 00:38:33.200 --> 00:38:33.940 you to 00:38:33.940 --> 00:38:34.780 make sure 00:38:34.780 --> 00:38:35.619 that He 00:38:35.619 --> 00:38:36.039 gets you 00:38:36.039 --> 00:38:36.320 there. 00:38:41.360 --> 00:38:41.840 So, 00:38:41.920 --> 00:38:42.039 friends, 00:38:42.079 --> 00:38:42.260 if you 00:38:42.260 --> 00:38:43.099 belong to 00:38:43.099 --> 00:38:43.599 Christ, 00:38:44.619 --> 00:38:45.220 if you 00:38:45.220 --> 00:38:45.920 belong to 00:38:45.920 --> 00:38:46.240 Him through 00:38:46.240 --> 00:38:46.679 faith and 00:38:46.679 --> 00:38:47.179 the Spirit 00:38:47.179 --> 00:38:47.720 of God, 00:38:48.320 --> 00:38:48.820 the very 00:38:48.820 --> 00:38:49.320 Spirit of 00:38:49.320 --> 00:38:49.900 the living 00:38:49.900 --> 00:38:51.659 God dwells 00:38:51.659 --> 00:38:52.079 in you, 00:38:52.159 --> 00:38:52.400 and that 00:38:52.400 --> 00:38:52.880 means life, 00:38:52.980 --> 00:38:53.500 life now 00:38:53.500 --> 00:38:54.179 and life 00:38:54.179 --> 00:38:54.579 to come. 00:38:54.579 --> 00:38:57.840 So, 00:38:57.920 --> 00:38:58.319 let me wrap 00:38:58.319 --> 00:38:58.659 up by 00:38:58.659 --> 00:38:59.099 asking, 00:39:00.059 --> 00:39:01.519 do you 00:39:01.519 --> 00:39:02.039 have that 00:39:02.039 --> 00:39:02.420 life? 00:39:05.239 --> 00:39:05.880 Do you 00:39:05.880 --> 00:39:06.460 want it? 00:39:11.500 --> 00:39:12.079 In your 00:39:12.079 --> 00:39:12.539 more sober 00:39:12.539 --> 00:39:12.900 moments, 00:39:12.960 --> 00:39:13.259 do you see 00:39:13.259 --> 00:39:14.079 how lifeless 00:39:14.079 --> 00:39:15.239 your life 00:39:15.239 --> 00:39:15.699 has been? 00:39:15.699 --> 00:39:19.779 then, 00:39:19.859 --> 00:39:20.039 friends, 00:39:20.159 --> 00:39:21.460 hear the 00:39:21.460 --> 00:39:22.299 call of 00:39:22.299 --> 00:39:22.879 the gospel 00:39:22.879 --> 00:39:24.339 that Jesus 00:39:24.339 --> 00:39:24.639 says, 00:39:24.839 --> 00:39:25.439 I've come 00:39:25.439 --> 00:39:26.439 that you 00:39:26.439 --> 00:39:26.779 might have 00:39:26.779 --> 00:39:28.000 life and 00:39:28.000 --> 00:39:28.500 have it 00:39:28.500 --> 00:39:29.179 to the 00:39:29.179 --> 00:39:29.519 full. 00:39:31.599 --> 00:39:31.879 Jesus 00:39:31.879 --> 00:39:32.119 says, 00:39:32.119 --> 00:39:32.679 everyone who 00:39:32.679 --> 00:39:33.439 comes to 00:39:33.439 --> 00:39:33.779 me, 00:39:34.079 --> 00:39:35.099 out of your 00:39:35.099 --> 00:39:35.819 heart will 00:39:35.819 --> 00:39:36.759 flow a 00:39:36.759 --> 00:39:37.599 river of 00:39:37.599 --> 00:39:38.779 living water 00:39:38.779 --> 00:39:39.599 by which He 00:39:39.599 --> 00:39:40.319 meant the 00:39:40.319 --> 00:39:41.159 Spirit who 00:39:41.159 --> 00:39:41.859 dwells within. 00:39:41.860 --> 00:39:45.340 a life 00:39:45.340 --> 00:39:45.740 that will 00:39:45.740 --> 00:39:46.980 start to 00:39:46.980 --> 00:39:47.460 overflow 00:39:47.460 --> 00:39:48.380 its bounds 00:39:48.380 --> 00:39:49.099 of our 00:39:49.099 --> 00:39:49.640 old way 00:39:49.640 --> 00:39:50.160 of being 00:39:50.160 --> 00:39:52.039 until in 00:39:52.039 --> 00:39:52.460 the future 00:39:52.460 --> 00:39:53.019 to come 00:39:53.019 --> 00:39:53.720 it will 00:39:53.720 --> 00:39:54.360 overflow 00:39:54.360 --> 00:39:57.220 and transform 00:39:57.220 --> 00:39:58.000 even our 00:39:58.000 --> 00:39:59.059 very physicality. 00:40:02.640 --> 00:40:03.120 Friend, 00:40:03.160 --> 00:40:03.480 you want 00:40:03.480 --> 00:40:04.079 that life, 00:40:04.760 --> 00:40:05.180 and if you 00:40:05.180 --> 00:40:05.579 want that 00:40:05.579 --> 00:40:05.860 life, 00:40:05.920 --> 00:40:06.120 then you 00:40:06.120 --> 00:40:06.680 must come 00:40:06.680 --> 00:40:07.700 to Christ, 00:40:07.940 --> 00:40:08.420 the life 00:40:08.420 --> 00:40:08.720 giver, 00:40:09.260 --> 00:40:09.620 the one 00:40:09.620 --> 00:40:10.200 who died 00:40:10.200 --> 00:40:10.780 and rose 00:40:10.780 --> 00:40:11.360 again for 00:40:11.360 --> 00:40:11.740 you so 00:40:11.739 --> 00:40:11.979 you could 00:40:11.979 --> 00:40:12.419 be right 00:40:12.419 --> 00:40:12.919 with God 00:40:12.919 --> 00:40:13.459 and so 00:40:13.459 --> 00:40:13.779 you could 00:40:13.779 --> 00:40:14.500 receive His 00:40:14.500 --> 00:40:14.839 indwelling 00:40:14.839 --> 00:40:15.719 Spirit and 00:40:15.719 --> 00:40:16.259 have that 00:40:16.259 --> 00:40:16.619 life. 00:40:17.519 --> 00:40:18.399 Life now 00:40:18.399 --> 00:40:19.619 and life 00:40:19.619 --> 00:40:20.000 to come. 00:40:21.539 --> 00:40:22.059 Let's 00:40:22.059 --> 00:40:22.259 pray. 00:40:27.299 --> 00:40:27.839 Father, 00:40:27.919 --> 00:40:28.219 we pray 00:40:28.219 --> 00:40:28.619 that you 00:40:28.619 --> 00:40:29.079 would help 00:40:29.079 --> 00:40:29.799 us to 00:40:29.799 --> 00:40:30.559 grasp more 00:40:30.559 --> 00:40:31.339 deeply the 00:40:31.339 --> 00:40:33.079 reality of 00:40:33.079 --> 00:40:33.519 the indwelling 00:40:33.519 --> 00:40:34.319 Spirit within. 00:40:36.500 --> 00:40:37.019 And, 00:40:37.099 --> 00:40:37.239 Father, 00:40:37.339 --> 00:40:37.799 as we've 00:40:37.799 --> 00:40:38.619 meditated this 00:40:38.619 --> 00:40:39.159 morning on 00:40:39.159 --> 00:40:40.539 some of the 00:40:40.539 --> 00:40:41.039 truths that 00:40:41.039 --> 00:40:41.719 this brings, 00:40:41.739 --> 00:40:41.799 things, 00:40:43.000 --> 00:40:43.199 Lord, 00:40:43.259 --> 00:40:43.599 I pray that 00:40:43.599 --> 00:40:43.839 you would 00:40:43.839 --> 00:40:44.579 help us 00:40:44.579 --> 00:40:46.619 to see that 00:40:46.619 --> 00:40:47.139 begin to 00:40:47.139 --> 00:40:47.839 shape our 00:40:47.839 --> 00:40:48.299 lives, 00:40:49.239 --> 00:40:49.559 shape how 00:40:49.559 --> 00:40:50.019 we think, 00:40:50.219 --> 00:40:50.500 shape how 00:40:50.500 --> 00:40:51.139 we act, 00:40:52.139 --> 00:40:52.459 shape how 00:40:52.459 --> 00:40:53.019 we love 00:40:53.019 --> 00:40:53.259 and how 00:40:53.259 --> 00:40:53.919 we long. 00:40:55.879 --> 00:40:56.519 But most 00:40:56.519 --> 00:40:56.799 of all, 00:40:56.859 --> 00:40:57.039 Father, 00:40:57.099 --> 00:40:57.359 in this 00:40:57.359 --> 00:40:57.699 moment, 00:40:58.079 --> 00:40:58.500 we just 00:40:58.500 --> 00:40:58.779 give you 00:40:58.779 --> 00:41:00.559 thanks and 00:41:00.559 --> 00:41:01.000 we give you 00:41:01.000 --> 00:41:02.759 praise that 00:41:02.759 --> 00:41:03.000 you would 00:41:03.000 --> 00:41:03.639 look upon 00:41:03.639 --> 00:41:04.239 us, 00:41:05.159 --> 00:41:05.599 guilty 00:41:05.599 --> 00:41:06.559 sinners, 00:41:06.559 --> 00:41:06.739 sinners, 00:41:07.239 --> 00:41:08.840 and you 00:41:08.840 --> 00:41:09.860 would choose 00:41:09.860 --> 00:41:11.119 to take up 00:41:11.119 --> 00:41:11.759 residence 00:41:11.759 --> 00:41:12.159 within, 00:41:13.460 --> 00:41:13.820 that you 00:41:13.820 --> 00:41:14.519 would come 00:41:14.519 --> 00:41:15.239 and you 00:41:15.239 --> 00:41:15.860 would dwell 00:41:15.860 --> 00:41:16.659 within us, 00:41:17.500 --> 00:41:19.360 and that 00:41:19.360 --> 00:41:19.900 where we 00:41:19.900 --> 00:41:20.460 had chosen 00:41:20.460 --> 00:41:21.400 death again 00:41:21.400 --> 00:41:22.039 and again 00:41:22.039 --> 00:41:22.579 and again, 00:41:22.659 --> 00:41:22.920 you would 00:41:22.920 --> 00:41:24.860 come and 00:41:24.860 --> 00:41:25.639 free us 00:41:25.639 --> 00:41:27.119 to choose 00:41:27.119 --> 00:41:28.920 life and 00:41:28.920 --> 00:41:29.279 to be 00:41:29.279 --> 00:41:29.739 alive. 00:41:29.739 --> 00:41:32.459 Lord, 00:41:32.539 --> 00:41:32.899 help us 00:41:32.899 --> 00:41:33.139 as a 00:41:33.139 --> 00:41:33.500 church 00:41:33.500 --> 00:41:34.779 to be 00:41:34.779 --> 00:41:35.159 people 00:41:35.159 --> 00:41:36.539 who live 00:41:36.539 --> 00:41:37.539 by your 00:41:37.539 --> 00:41:37.899 Spirit, 00:41:38.039 --> 00:41:38.419 we pray. 00:41:39.379 --> 00:41:39.659 Amen.