PODCAST
The Spirit Gives Us Freedom
September 18th, 2017
Romans 8:1-17
In the ancient world, few political ideals were more important than freedom. Freedom allowed a person to vote in the assembly, to own property, and to remain free from the chains of slavery. Even today, stories of men and women who risk their lives to live in freedom inspire us.
Paul was a citizen of the Roman Empire in which people lived under the heavy hand of Caesar Augustus and his rule of Pax Romana (the Peace of Rome). Paul desired freedom, but something was more valuable than political freedom. His gospel declared that a person could be set free from the hopelessness of spiritual death.
Freedom originates in the death of Jesus Christ (see Romans 5:6-8), and the Holy Spirit enables the believer to experience its spiritual reality. In Romans 8:2, Paul refers to the “law of the Spirit of life.” He notes that the work of the Spirit is carried out in cooperation with the work of Christ. To believe in Christ and to be set free from the law of sin and death allows the believer to live according to the Spirit (v. 9) and to be free from the dictates of the flesh.
Author: Robert W. Smith
