Wednesday, 9 July 2025

Romans part 94 - Victory Over Sin 33

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Romans 8:10 But if Messiah is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the Spirit is alive because of righteousness.

"The body is dead ... yet the Spirit is alive." This is life from the dead! It is the promised new life in Messiah Yeshua. Paul is continuing his three chapter treatise on victory over sin (Romans 6, 7, & 8). He's writing here to us as individuals in need of victory over sin. Soon he will write three chapters (Romans 9, 10, & 11) on the universal value of receiving the children of Israel into the family of God. He will ultimately call that victory "life from the dead" also. (See Romans 11:15)

For now, the Spirit of Messiah in you means death to our fleshly sinful desires. Paul puts it beautifully to the Galatians: Galatians 2:20 and it is no longer I who live, but Messiah lives in me. And the life I now live in the body, I live by trusting in Ben-Elohim - who loved me and gave Himself up for me. The "life I now live" is a spiritual one, born again of the Spirit of Messiah.

Yeshua explained this to Nicodemus. John 3:3,5-6 Yeshua answered him, "Amen, amen I tell you, unless one is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God." ... Yeshua answered, “Amen, amen I tell you, unless one is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit."

Finally, our subject verse ends with the phrase, "the Spirit is alive because of righteousness." The question is "Whose righteousness?" Certainly not yours or mine. You know, it must be Yeshua's righteousness. The question remains, "How do we make His righteousness our blessing?" The obvious answer is, "By faith." The evidence (or fruit) of our faith is obedience. We prove we love God by loving what (who) He loves. 1 John 5:2 We know that we love God's children by this - when we love God and obey His commandments. In this way, "the Spirit is alive in us."