◄ What Does Romans 8:11 Mean? ►

Romans carefully and systematically spells out every aspect of our great salvation; the universal sinfulness of man, our individual need of a Saviour, the terms and conditions of redemption, and what it means to be justified, sanctified, resurrected, and glorified. It details the beautiful harmony of New Testament revelation with the Old, and identifies the Person of Christ; His work, His sacrifice, and His victory.

It tells of the practical benefits we gain, the way to live godly in Christ Jesus, the place of the Law in our lives, and how the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus has set us free from the Law of sin and death. And in this section, we are privileged to discover the amazing power of the Holy Spirit in each of our lives and the power He gives for holy living. 

Perhaps this chapter is the pinnacle of Paul's epistle, for we discover there is no condemnation to those that are in Christ Jesus, and what the Law was unable to do for sinners has been done for us, through Christ's sacrificial death and glorious Resurrection. We rejoice to know that the mind-set of those walking in spirit and truth is life and peace, through the power of the indwelling Spirit, and that by His grace we have been made alive, through Christ Jesus our Lord. 

The simple truth is that we who were once dead in our sins and at enmity with God, have been made alive by faith in Christ Jesus, brought near to the Father, adopted as His children, and indwelled by His Spirit: "And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in us, that same Holy Spirit will also give life to our mortal bodies, through the Spirit who dwells within each of us." 

Christ was raised from the dead by the almighty power of God and will never die again. We who have been positioned in Him through faith, will, in like manner, be raised from the dead both spiritually and physically, for the Holy Spirit is the One Who gave us spiritual life when we were born again and He is the same Spirit Who will give life to our mortal bodies at the resurrection of the dead. He is indwelling our bodies and empowering our lives.

Our mortal bodies are simply a tent in which to house our immortal spirit and eternal soul, and as part of the old creation in Adam, they remain subject to death. But the glorious truth in this verse is that we have hope in Christ, for the same Spirit which raised Him from the dead will also raise us up; spirit, soul, and body. We are a new creation in Christ, such that His death becomes our death and His Resurrection becomes our resurrection, for we are united with Him eternally, and have become one in Spirit with Him.

Being redeemed has a number of elements; past, present, and future; spirit, soul, and body; justified, sanctified, and glorified; positional salvation, practical salvation, and perfected salvation. And is it ours by grace, through faith in Christ.

FIRST: We were JUSTIFIED the moment we trusted Christ as Saviour. We were saved by grace through faith in Him and at that moment of salvation our human spirit was made alive and we were positioned in Christ. We are POSITIONALLY JUSTIFIED with Him, through time and into eternity.

SECOND: We are being SANCTIFIED throughout this earthly life. We are going through a day by day process of practical sanctification, where our soul-life is being conformed into the image and likeness of Christ. We were POSITIONALLY SANCTIFIED at salvation but are also going through a lifelong PROCESS of PRACTICAL SANCTIFICATION.

THIRD: We will be GLORIFIED at the resurrection/Rapture of the Church, when the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead and who dwells in our mortal bodies will also give life to our body through His Holy Spirit. We were POSITIONALLY GLOROFIED at salvation but will be FULLY and FINALLY GLORIFIED when we go to be with Jesus and receive an immortal body, like unto His glorious, resurrected, eternal body.

Never let us become complacent about the incredibly great salvation; spirit, soul, and mortal body, which is ours by faith in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Heavenly Father, how I praise and thank You that the Spirit of Him Who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead, is living in me. Because He lives, I too will receive His immortal life. May I never lose the wonder of this truth and become complacent or lukewarm about my great salvation. Open the eyes of those who have been blinded by the god of this age, and convict men and women of their need of a Saviour. Use me in whatsoever way you choose. This I ask in Jesus' name, AMEN.