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INTRODUCTION
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This chapter gives full assurance and absolute security to those who are in Christ Jesus. To those who are truly saved, nothing will be able to separate them from the love of God. To those who do not believe, their condemnation remains. And to those who want to find out if they are truly saved or not, this chapter will provide them some indication even as they reflect on their own lives. Nonetheless, it is still not too late to repent of their sins, truly turn to God and start walking according to the Spirit. It is possible that God could be using this article to warn them to repent. Please continue reading.
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ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY ON ROMANS 8
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Rom 8:1-4 (NASB95) states:
(1) Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (2) For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. (3) For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, (4) so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
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Rom 8:1-4 Commentary: The word, “Therefore” in verse 1 links Romans 8 back to the previous chapter, we have discussed how the flesh is always inclined to sin and that there is absolutely no way anyone can fulfill the Law no matter how hard the person tries. Salvation by the works of the Law is impossible. God had to send His Son to the cross to pay the penalty for all the sins of His sheep. All of their sins past, present including even future sins are fully paid for by Christ’s death on the cross. His sheep on their part is to die with Christ to their previous sinful lives and when they die with Christ, they die to the Law as well, through the body of Christ. Death with Christ releases His sheep from the Law, and they immediately get transferred from the previous “domain,” of under the law of sin and death, to another “domain” under the grace of God. In short, all true Christians are immune from the effects of the Law and will never be condemned, no matter what happens. But before people rejoice, they need to examine themselves to see if they are in the faith (2 Cor 13:5). Just because a person says he believes that there is one God, does not mean he is saved, because even demons believe and tremble (James 2:19). People can deceive themselves into thinking that they are true Christians, but the clearest evidence of their salvation is his or her continuous sanctification. The true Christian will become more and more holy and Christ-like over time. How will he do that? It is by walking according to the Spirit. Verse 4 tells us that the requirement of the Law is fulfilled in us when we do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. But conversely, if a person walks according to this flesh and NOT according to the Spirit, then the requirement of the Law is still NOT fulfilled. This person still has to fulfill the Law. But we have already said that no one can fulfill the Law no matter how hard that person tries. A person MUST die with Christ to his previous sinful life and walk according to the Spirit. Failure to walk according to the Spirit will lead to eternal destruction because he was never saved. How then are Christians to walk according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh?
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Rom 8:5-8 (NASB95) states:
(5) For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. (6) For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, (7) because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, (8) and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
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Rom 8:5-8 Commentary: The word, “walk” in verse 4 is referring to a person’s lifestyle, the way he lives his life, his habits and regular routine. So, walking according to the flesh does not include sins in moments of weakness or sins of ignorance. For example, lying habitually is different from lying inadvertently. Thus, to walk according to the flesh means living a lifestyle of sin and to walk according to the Spirit means living a lifestyle that is guided by Him. Every decision, every action, before it is carried out, the Christian will consider if it pleases God. If it does not, he will not do it. How then will the Christian know what are the “things of the Spirit?” John 14:26 (NASB95) states, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” Where can the Christian find all that Christ has said to him? Clearly, it is from the Bible! True Christians are to live their lives guided by the Bible. The Holy Spirit will never teach anything contrary to the words of Christ. The Bible is where Christians will find and know the things of the Holy Spirit. For this reason, it is obvious that an accurate version of the Bible is highly essential. It is where the Christian can understand what is taught so that he can set his mind on them. Verse 6 tells us that the mind that is set on the flesh is death. The death in verse 6 is referring to the second death because everyone will experience the first death regardless of whether he sets his mind on the things of the flesh or the things of the Spirit. In other words, worldly and fleshly persons will perish in eternal fire. But the one whose mind is habitually set on Him and His word, will obtain life and peace – and these are true Christians. But those who walk according to the flesh and set their minds on the things of the flesh are not Christians even if they think they are.
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Rom 8:9-11 (NASB95) states:
(9) However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. (10) If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. (11) But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
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Rom 8:9 Commentary: What does it mean when verse 9 talks about, “in the flesh” and “in the Spirit?” As verse 9 continues from verse 8, the meaning of “in the flesh” will have to be what was described in verses 5 to 7. That those who are “in the flesh” will be those who have set their minds on the things of the flesh, and this will follow on to also mean that those who are “in the Spirit” will be those who have set their minds on the things of the Spirit. In verses 5 to 8, Paul used the word, “those” but here in verse 9, he used the word, “you.” This is because he was speaking to the Roman believers as in, Paul was speaking to Christians only. He said, “However, you (being Christians) are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.” Essentially, those who live according to the flesh do not have the Spirit of God dwelling in them and if anyone does not have the Spirit of God in them, they are not Christians. Verse, 9 is very clear about this. Therefore in very simple terms, Paul is saying that those who live according to the flesh are not Christians at all.
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Rom 8:10 Commentary: Verse 10 said that for Christians, the body is dead because of sin. How then is Paul (who is also a Christian) able to write to the Roman Christians if he was dead? This is because the world considers a person dead only when he is no longer breathing and moving about. But God considers a person dead as soon as he sins. Rom 7:9-10 states, “I was once alive apart from the Law; when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died; and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me.” But verse 10 also states that the spirit is alive because of righteousness. 2 Cor 5:21 states that Christ was made to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Therefore, even though the bodies of those who are saved are dead and progressing towards total decay, their spirits are alive because they are righteous, and they are righteous only because of Christ.
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Rom 8:11 Commentary: All of our bodies are undoubtedly progressing towards full decay. We get slower and weaker as we age. But if the Spirit who raised Christ from the dead dwells in us, that is, in our mortal bodies, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to our mortal bodies through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. But this is not saying that only believers will be raised, and unbelievers are not raised. For all will be raised, some to eternal life and others to eternal punishment. As for those of us who are saved, we will have a “super-body” like Jesus’s resurrected body. Now before you accuse us of false teaching, let us provide the evidence from Scripture. Please see 1 Cor 15:47-49, 1 John 3:2 and Phil 3:20-21. We will have a body like Christ and like Christ, we should also be able to walk through walls, have conversations and still eat (Luke 24:36-43). And teleport from one place to another in an instant (Luke 24:31). And we will also be immortal and imperishable (1 Cor 15:42-54). Those are serious abilities.
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Rom 8:12-17 (NASB95) states:
(12) So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh – (13) for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. (14) For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. (15) For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” (16) The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, (17) and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with him.
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Rom 8:12-13 Commentary: In these verses, Paul reiterated the importance of not living according to the flesh. For those who live according to the flesh are not Christians. Those who live according to the flesh, are not saved even though they may declare vehemently that they believe in God. Those who live according to the flesh are still spiritually dead and eternal damnation still awaits them. Verse 13 states that those who live according to the flesh must die. This is obviously referring to the second death because all (regardless of whether a person is a true believer or not) will experience the first death (Rev 21:8 and Jude 1:12). But those who are not saved will receive the second death in addition to the first death. It is important that they repent immediately now, turn to Christ and live according to the Spirit, only then will they live. True Christians do not live righteous and holy lives in order to earn their salvation, for salvation cannot be earned. But their righteous and holy living resulting from walking according the Spirit is evidence of their salvation.
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Rom 8:14 Commentary: What does it mean to be led by the Spirit? It is to yield to the Holy Spirit’s control, follow His lead and allow Him to exert His influence over us. Many have said that one of the ways to tell if a person is truly led by the Spirit is to see if he bears the fruit of the Spirit that is found in Gal 5:22-23. This is true to a certain extent, but unbelievers can also claim to produce most, if not, all of the fruit of the Spirit. Are they also led by the Spirit? No. Thus, in addition to producing the fruit of the Spirit, he must also be obedient to Christ. John 14:24-26 states, “He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sent Me. These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” Therefore, those who are led by the Spirit will not only bear the fruit of the Spirit, but they will also keep and obey the words of Christ. Those who do these things, these are sons of God.
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Rom 8:15 Commentary: Within the context of this passage, the phrases, “spirit of slavery” and “spirit of adoption” do not mean actual immaterial beings of slavery or adoption. Rather the word, “spirit” in this verse means, “spiritual mindedness.” So, if we could paraphrase this verse, it would be, “For you have not received a spiritual mindedness that seeks to bring you back under slavery and fear to keep the whole Law (see also Gal 5:1-6), but you have received a spiritual mindedness of adoption as sons, given by the Holy Spirit, whereby we cry out to our to our heavenly Father, “Abba! Father!” Paul reminds the Roman Christians again not to seek to be justified by the law, but to focus on walking according to the Spirit and being led by Him. Those who are led by the Holy Spirit, these are sons of God.
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Rom 8:16 Commentary: The words, “testifies with” or in other translations, “bears witness with,” means to give evidence or to confirm by evidence. So, when the Holy Spirit testifies with our spirit, He is confirming by evidence with our spirit that we are children of God. The words, “testifies with” are collaborative where the witnesses (the Holy Spirit and our spirit) testify together in support of each other’s claims. Thus, if we said, “God is our Father,” God would also say, “Yes, these are my children.” But most of the time we do not hear an audible voice from God confirming our claim to sonship. So how then is the Spirit confirming by evidence with our spirit of our sonship? The answer is in the word, “children.” Whose children we belong to depends on who we are imitating. Those who belong to the devil, will want to do the desires of their father, the devil (John 8:44). Whereas the sons of God would be imitating God (Eph 5:1) and they would conform to the image of Christ (Rom 8:29). Additionally, they would also go through the process of sanctification (2 Thess 2:13) and be holy, just as the Father is holy (1 Pet 1:15-16). All these evidences are not hidden but highly noticeable to those who are observant. So, if we say, “God is our Father” the evidence is our imitation of Christ. And if the Spirit says, “These are My children” the evidence is that irresistible compulsion, drawing His children towards Christ and becoming more Christ-like. There is no mistaking this, no one will come to Christ unless the Father draws him (John 6:44).
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Rom 8:17 Commentary: Verse 17 says that we are heirs of God and since Christ is also an heir of God, we are fellow heirs with Christ. Other parts of Scripture have also said that we will inherit the kingdom of God (Luke 12:32, Dan 7:18 & Matt 25:34) as well as rule and reign with Him (2 Tim 2:12 & Rev 2:26-27). And even as Christ is the heir of all things (Heb 1:2), we together with Christ will also be given all things (Rom 8:32). But what is an heir of God in verse 17? It simply means that we are inheriting God Himself. Inheriting God certainly does not mean that he becomes subject to us. In Eze 44:28, the Lord said something similar with regard to Old Testament Levitical priests (of the sons of Zadok). He said, “And it shall be with regard to an inheritance for them, that I am their inheritance; and you shall give them no possession in Israel – I am their possession.” Thus, inheriting God is inheriting the right to be close to God, to come near to Him to carry out the work of royal priest (1 Pet 2:9). In the Old Testament, their work, amongst other things, includes teaching and judging disputes (Eze 44:23-24). It is highly likely that the work of God’s future royal priests, that is, those who are saved, will follow along the some job description as Old Testament priests except with regard to the Mosaic Law and other related ordinances. These royal priests will also assist God in governance (1 Cor 6:3), Rev 2:26-27 & Rev 3:21). Not that God needs assistance but that He wants us to be part of His work. But Paul also highlighted that if we are heirs of God, then we are also expected to suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. Suffering with Christ can take many forms. It can be suffering caused by persecution for the sake of righteousness (Matt 5:10), or persecution for living a godly life (2 Tim 3:12). Or general suffering for being a true follower of Christ (Matt 7:14). Or, sometimes the Lord may also allow us to suffer a medical condition in order to prevent us from sinning against Him (2 Cor 12:7). Or suffering for the gospel (2 Tim 1:8). As long as we are still in this world, it is certain that we will continue to suffer all kinds of trouble (John 16:33). But of course, this world is coming to an end soon. Our painful miseries will not last long brothers and sisters in Christ. Let us continue to focus on Christ and finish our race.
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Rom 8:18-25 (NASB95) states:
(18) For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. (19) For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. (20) For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope (21) that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. (22) For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. (23) And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. (24) For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? (25) But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.
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Rom 8:18 Commentary: Paul could not have known the difference between the sufferings of this present time and what is going to happen in future, unless the Holy Spirit revealed it to him. Only God will know about these things. Through this chapter in this epistle, the Holy Spirit is telling all of us who are saved to look forward to the future as the day approaches.
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Rom 8:19 Commentary: Again, Paul could not have known that creation was eagerly waiting for the revealing of the sons of God, unless the Holy Spirit told him about it. We doubt that it would even cross Paul’s mind to think about the rest of creation. Thus, if the rest of creation is eagerly waiting and anxiously longing for the sons of God to be revealed, then they are not as clueless as we may have thought they are (Num 22:28-33).
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Rom 8:20-21 Commentary: Here we see that the rest of creation was “subjected to futility” by God Himself, that is, the rest of creation was cursed by God to decay alongside with man. The reason stated was that it was done “in hope” that creation will also be “set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God” that is, God will remove the curse of decay from the rest of creation once the children of God are revealed. Which still does not explain very much, actually. Why must the rest of creation decay alongside men in the first place? We can understand why men and the serpent are decaying, but what has the rest of creation done to deserve this? Some of quoted Gen 3:14 and Gen 3:17-19 in their commentary as possible answer to the question. But Gen 3:14 refers only to the serpent (not all of creation) and Gen 3:17-19 refers only to the ground in relation to Adam and Eve where they would have to toil in order to eat of it. Thus Gen 3:14 and Gen 3:17-19 do not offer a good explanation for the curse God has placed on the rest of creation. In our view, the said curse was likely due to the initial command given to man. God’s intention was that man should rule over the rest of creation (Gen 1:28). Since there are no other commands superseding Gen 1:28, it is likely that God still intends for man to rule over the rest of creation, even after the fall. Thus, if God did not cause the rest of creation to decay alongside man, then man is certainly going to find it impossible to rule over them. Imagine if lions and other powerful animals do not decay, while man decays over time, it will not be long before man is over powered by them. Thus God had to subject the rest of creation to futility in tandem with man’s fall, so that they are rebalanced to still go under the rule of man. But the day approaches when the rest of creation will also be set free from the decaying process in tandem with the children of God when they are revealed.
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Rom 8:22 Commentary: This verse tells us that the entire creation is groaning and suffering, as it were, the pains of childbirth. The “pains of childbirth” analogy is used, possibly because Paul wanted his readers to know that the sufferings although intense will come to an end completely once the baby is delivered, that is, the sufferings will stop once the true sons of God are revealed. But now, the pain continues, and it is coming and going in waves just like labor pains.
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Rom 8:23 Commentary: When Paul talked about having the first fruits of the Spirit, he was referring to his team and himself, as they were considered the first batch of Christians who walked according to the Holy Spirit and were among the first to have the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-25). Hence his emphasis on, “we ourselves.” Paul said that even they themselves being the first batch of Christians, groan within themselves because they had a deep longing for their own adoption as sons. But readers might ask, “But if they are saved, they are already sons of God as it is written earlier in verse 14, why then are they still waiting eagerly for their own adoption as sons? Well, this is because if you notice in this verse, Paul was referring to the adoption as sons, in terms of the redemption of their bodies and not the adoption process itself as they being Christians, are already sons of God. This would invariably lead us to another question, “Why the redemption of our body?” Some might feel that their bodies are so old, so well-decayed and so poor in health that it is beyond redemption. But that is exactly what Paul was trying to explain. The word, “redemption” means regaining what was lost. Our bodies will be lost to decay and death. But we will regain it back from God. In fact, what will be regained back will be much better than the existing one. The new body from God will be eternal and imperishable. Please see 2 Cor 5:1-5.
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Rom 8:24-25 Commentary: The first part of verse 24 (in KJV) says, “For we are saved by hope…” Some may misread this and get confused because hope cannot save us. Let us explain. Eph 2:8 (NASB95) says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” So, we are saved by God’s grace through our faith in Him, where even the faith that we have to believe in Him, came from Him. What then is faith? Heb 11:1 (KJV) says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” No faith is required if the thing that is hoped for is already in our hands, or in front of us. But if it is not in our hands nor in front of us, but coming to us sometime in the future, then this requires faith. So, hope is like a subset of faith. To say that a situation has no hope is to say that we have no faith in whatever the situation is. Therefore, in the case of our salvation, if we have no hope that God will save us, then reasonably, it is because we have no faith in God. It will not make sense to say that you have no hope, yet you have faith. But you can certainly say you have hope because you have faith in God. Hope and faith are tied up together. This is the reason why Rom 8:24 says that in hope we have been saved, or in the case of Rom 8:24 (KJV), “we are saved by hope…”
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Rom 8:26-27 (NASB95) states:
(26) In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; (27) and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
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Rom 8:26-27 Commentary: Here we see that the Holy Spirit intercedes for those of us who are saved. It is true that our flesh is weak (Matt 26:41). But in these verses, the weakness is not referring to the weakness of the flesh but referring to us not know how to pray as we should. The Holy Spirit intercedes for us without words but with groanings. This is inter-trinitarian wordless communication that transcends language. When the Spirit intercedes for us, there is no need for words because the Father knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He prays for us according to the will of God. God is three distinct Persons in one Godhead. God the Father is not the same as God the Son is not the same as God the Holy Spirit. They are one God, but the oneness of the three Persons is referring to their unity and not to numerical oneness. This is the reason why the Holy Spirit is able to intercede for the saints. He intercedes for us without words to God the Father.
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Rom 8:28-30 (NASB95) states:
(28) And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (29) For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; (30) and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.
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Rom 8:28 Commentary: In our view, verse 28 serves as a kind of counterbalance to verse 17. Yes, in this world those who are saved will likely suffer with Him and experience tribulation. But this verse also tells us that God will cause all things to work together for good to those who love Him and called according to His purpose. As long as we are still in the world, we are going to experience trouble (John 16:33). In fact, those who think they are saved but are having a blast most of their time here, should be worried because something may not be right (Luke 6:24-26). Everyone should examine themselves to see if they are in the faith (2 Cor 13:5) especially if everything is going very well and they are mostly tribulation-free.
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Rom 8:29 Commentary: There are many verses in Scripture supporting the doctrine of predestination. Some called it John Calvin’s idea of predestination. Well, it is not John Calvin’s idea. It is God’s word. Yet many disagree with it and find it hard to accept. They asked, “How can man have freedom of choice and free will when God has already determined his life from a long time ago? And if God has predestined some for salvation, it would also mean that the rest are predestined for condemnation. People asked, “How can a good and loving God predestine so many for condemnation?” They find this doctrine hard to accept because they are not seeing it the right way. Jesus said in Luke 9:60, “…Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.” How can dead people bury dead people? But Jesus was really calling a spade, a spade. Those who are not saved are already dead. People preaching the gospel, often view themselves as those who are on a lifeboat pulling those who are drowning to safety. This is why they are confused with this doctrine. Those “in the sea” are not drowning, they are already drowned and totally dead. There is nothing those in the lifeboat can do to save them. But God in His mercy has predestined some of the dead people to live again. God knew that Adam would bring death on himself and his posterity. But God has decided that He was going to save some by sending His own Son to the cross.
A spiritually dead person can still make decisions such as what to eat or what to wear, etc. This is free will. Yet in their free will, they will never choose to come to God because they are spiritually dead (Rom 3:10-13 and Eph 2:1). John 6:44 (NASB95) states, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.” Some unbelievers will never come to Christ, even if we preached to them a million times a day. John 6:44 tells us clearly that no one can come to Christ, unless the Father draws him. So, it is not that God has predestined some to be condemned, it is that they are already dead and condemned because of their own sin. The question is whether God has decided (from a long time ago) to save him. Arguably, this can be considered double predestination. But it is important to emphasize that God did not simply save some and the rest He sends to hell. It is that all are worthy of eternal punishment (and on their way to hell) but He in His mercy and sovereign decision decided to save some, but not others. Once again, a person comes to Christ only because the Father draws him to Christ. And when he comes to Christ, he will live and will conform to the image of His Son because he follows Christ. So does that mean we do not have to preach the gospel? No, we continue to preach as we are commanded, but we have to leave the rest of the work to God after we have done our part.
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Rom 8:30 Commentary: Predestined, called, justified and glorified. The 4 phases of the “Order of Salvation” are in chronological order. Predestined – those who are saved, were predestined to be saved before the world was created. It was God’s decision to choose them (Eph 1:4-5). They did nothing and could do nothing to influence His decision to save them because they did not exist back then. Called – as time progresses, those who were predestined to be saved came into being across time. These were called and drawn to Christ by the Father (John 6:44). Justified when they turn to Christ (and they will turn to Christ), they are justified by their faith in God, where even their faith in God, came from God Himself. Glorification – after turning to Christ, those who are saved are transformed by sanctification to be just like Christ so that they emanate the same glory of the Lord (2 Cor 3:18 and 1 John 3:2). This is the reason why those who are still living a lifestyle of sin, but think they are Christians, are self deceived. They were never saved at all. They just assumed they are saved. The true Christian will go through sanctification and he or she will sin lesser and lesser, and becoming more and more like holy and Christ-like over time – this is certain.
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Rom 8:31-39 (NASB95) states:
(31) What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? (32) He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely gives us all things? (33) Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; (34) who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. (35) Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (36) Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” (37) But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. (38) For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, not angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, (39) nor height, nor depth, not any created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
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Rom 8:31-39 Commentary: All of these nine verses tell us that if God has determined from a long time ago to save those He has decided to save, who can stop Him? And who can bring charges and condemn the elect? Absolutely no one. What circumstances can frustrate God’s plan for the elect? Absolutely nothing. So, the question then should not be about whether a Christian can lose his or her salvation, but whether a person is truly saved in the first place. This is because those who are truly saved will never lose their salvation. They belong to God and God Himself belongs to them. Absolutely nothing and absolutely no one can separate a true Christian from God because it was God who has determined to save him. As it is written in Isa 43:13, “Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”
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CONCLUSION AND SUMMARY
3.1
True born-again Christians will never lose their salvation as they have been set free from from the law of sin and death. To put it in another way, they have been transferred OUT from being under the law to another domain that comes under the grace of God, so that the law of sin and of death no longer applies to them. But how does a person know if he or she is a true born-again Christian?
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Saying the “sinner’s prayer,” attending church regularly and serving in various ministries are encouraged but they are not evidence of a person’s salvation. A clear indication that a person is saved is his continuous progressive sanctification over time. He becomes more holy and Christ-like as each day passes. He walks according to the Holy Spirit and not according to his flesh. And he sins lesser and lesser until it becomes more and more difficult to sin as he walks with God every day. This is not to say that salvation is by works. No, salvation is never by works. It is by God’s grace through the person’s faith in God (Eph 2:8-9). So if salvation is not by works, what is the point of good works, some may ask. The answer lies in Eph 2:10. The elect are created in Christ for good works. To put it in current language, the elect are “hardwired” for good works, they are His workmanship for good works so that they would walk in them. So the good works are evidence of their salvation. Conversely, those who are walking in sin, are evidence that they are not saved. Finally, life in the world is usually difficult and problematic to say the least (John 16:33) . But the elect is certain to be with Christ in future. So hunker down, support one another, pray for one another because the storm will pass. It will not be long before He comes back for us, just a He said He would (Act 1:11, Rev 22:20).