Louie Giglio - Epicenter - Part 1
Romans 8:1, it says, «Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so He,» God, «Condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit».
Now, the chapter opens with, «Therefore». And we know that whenever something opens with therefore, you have to ask what it is there for. And so that means, typically, that you have to rewind and understand what is the foundation that is allowing us, now, to make this big pronouncement, «No condemnation for those who are in Christ». How can we say that? What are we standing on when we make that claim? And to understand that, you have to go back to the beginning, and to go back to the beginning would take a lot of time but let’s do it quickly. The word of God has a few main purposes. The first main purpose of the word of God is to tell us what God’s purposes for life are.
So if you wanna know why you’re on planet earth and what your life is all about, what life is all about, the word of God tells you that. But, the word of God also tells us that there is a problem. Not only that there are plans and purposes, but secondly that there is a problem and the problem is man’s sin. The third thing the scripture tells us or gives us a clear image of is the plan of God to restore man to Him. And then the last big purpose of God’s word is to show us how God is in the process of perfecting all things.
So, God has a plan, there’s a problem called man’s sin, God has a purpose, there’s a problem called man’s sin but then God has a plan to reconnect man, sinful man, to Himself. And then ultimately God’s big purpose plan that we see in scripture is to perfect all things, including you and me, and the world, and the Heavens and everything else. So let’s just break that down a little bit. What is the big purpose? The purpose is paradise with God, that was the purpose. It’s being created by God and for God.
So you have Adam and Eve in the garden with God, that was the plan and the purpose. But then there was a problem and the problem was sin. And sin simply is my way over God’s way. And it’s not simply about a transaction, like I did this and I wasn’t supposed to do that. Or I made this choice and I was really supposed to make that choice. That’s not really at the heart of sin. At the heart of sin it’s not transactional, it’s personal. Adam and Eve didn’t trust the intentions of God. But here we all are today, all of us in the wake of Adam and Eve’s sin but we’re all adding to it pretty well on our own. Amen? No? Amen? And so, a lot of us can identify with the «Therefore».
When you rewind from chapter 8 and you come to the end of chapter 7 you get some thoughts that I think a lot of us will relate to. Paul said, «I do not understand what I do,» Just a show of hands. «For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate, I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me,» Which is true but it’s also a nice way of pointing the finger somewhere else.
«It’s not me, it’s the sin that’s in there that’s doing it». «For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good,» Hello? «But I cannot carry it out». You’re like, «Why have I not been memorizing this passage? This is my story». «For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I do the evil that I do not want to do. This I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it but it is sin living in me that does it».
In other words, whatever happened in the garden now has a domino effect going into all of humanity and I am in that domino effect, I am now in the line of sin. I am now adding to it by my own choices but I was born into it as well. There is a powerful law working in me and it is called sin, and it is a problem. And Paul understands this. And so he says, «Now if I do what I do not wanna do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is the sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work. Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law, but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am».
And then out of desperation, «Who will rescue me from this body,» That’s got all this sin going on, and it’s sinful nature that’s causing me to do all the things that I don’t wanna do and not do all the things that I do want to do and I keep on doing that even though I don’t wanna do that. «Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death»? And then he obviously is teeing us up for the gospel. «Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin».
So, purpose, with God in paradise, the problem, man’s sin, but then we see in scripture the plan. And what is the plan? The plan is that there would be a divine exchange in our lives that would free us from the penalty of our sin. Now what Paul is saying is that there are laws working in life. There is the law of the spirit and there is the law of the flesh. There is the law of God that our minds can come around and there is law of sin that our flesh wants to coalesce around, that is in us and in our flesh.
What he’s saying, ultimately, is what that… The great church father Bob Dylan said, «You might serve the Devil, or you might serve the Lord, but you’re gonna serve somebody». And there might be somebody that’s gathering today and you’re like, «Okay, great. So I’ve got sin in my flesh, maybe it started with Adam and Eve, I don’t know. But I do know that I do things I don’t wanna do and I don’t do things I do wanna do. But you know what? That’s just life. And, you make choices, you roll along, what’s the big deal? I’m just deciding what I wanna do. And yeah, I don’t do the right thing all the time but what’s the big deal»?
The big deal is you were still created by and for God. And there’s gonna be a reckoning in your life when you come to God at the end of your life. The scripture says, «All things are from Him, all things are through Him, and all things are to Him». That’s what Romans is telling us in another place. So even if your mindset is, «Hey, I’m not really, you know, hurting people, and I’m just making decisions and they’re not all great decisions, but that’s just me. It’s my life, and I’m rolling through and living my life. What’s the big deal with that»?
The big deal with that is, you are on a collision course with the God who made you, and that God isn’t relative, He’s Holy. And when holiness meets sinfulness, it isn’t pretty. And that’s called the wrath of God. It’s not God wanting to be mean to you, it’s God’s holiness meeting up with your sinfulness. And that’s a reality that is in the «Therefore». So, now we come to Romans 8, therefore. «Therefore,» because God has a purpose for your life even though you have a problem called sin, He had a plan to reconcile you to Himself even though you had sin and He has the power to ultimately perfect you through Christ in the end.
«Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus, the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death». I am not going to Hell, A. And I am not under condemnation one second of my life on earth. There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. But it’s specifically for some people. So here we go with the fact that the gospel is narrow. Anyone can come through the door of the gospel, hello? Anybody. But it’s a little door. Anyone can come through it, but it’s a little door and I’ll show you why it’s important that it’s a little door in a minute. But, «There’s no condemnation for those who are,» what? «Who are in Christ Jesus».
That’s who’s not condemned, those who are in Christ Jesus. In other words, it doesn’t say there’s no condemnation for those who are in the church, nope. It doesn’t say there’s no condemnation for those who are in a denomination. «We’re Lutherans». Well fantastic. It doesn’t say that there’s no condemnation to those who have got religion. It doesn’t say there’s no condemnation to those who prayed a prayer. You’re like, «Well we do that at Passion City».
I know, but it’s important that you know that you can’t just base your whole eternity and your life on earth by going, «I raise my hand at the end of the gathering, and I pray along with the pastor». Well did you understand that prayer? Did you onboard that prayer and now can you unpack that prayer? And are you walking out that prayer? And do you know the implications of that of that prayer? Because the implications of that true faith, if that’s what was in that prayer, is that you are now in Christ. So, it’s so that you’re in a church, in a denomination, that you prayed a prayer, that you tried your best.
«I tried my best, Father». Great. A lot of people who tried their best have condemnation at the end of their story. «I was a good person». Yes, but were you perfect? Were you holy? Were you without fault? «Well, no, but I was a good person». «I believed in God». But what kind of belief? Mental belief? Like I believed in George Washington? Or belief of faith where I put all my hope on Him for salvation? It doesn’t say that there’s no condemnation for those who are in church, for those who believed in God, for those who were a good person, tried their best, prayed a prayer, had religion, were a part of some denomination. It says there’s no condemnation at the end of the day for those who are in Christ.
So obviously there’s a big question looming over the gathering right now and that is are you in Christ? It’s about, ultimately, your position more than it’s about your performance that gets you no condemnation. The no condemnation isn’t connected to your performing, it’s connected to your position, and we’ll see that really clearly. Performing is about the law and the law couldn’t do it. This is what we read. Verse 3, «For what the law», put it down simple as the ten commandments, «Was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature,» So there wasn’t a problem with the law, there was just a problem with us.
«What the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering». In other words, obeying the law can’t get us out of the problem. In fact, the law just reminds us that we have a problem. The law isn’t the pathway to get out of our sin, the law just reminds us that we have a problem called sin. That’s what Paul was saying in Romans 7:7. He said, «I would have not known what sin was had it not been for the law».
See, the law is good, but the law has a counteracting influence called sinful flesh. And so the law couldn’t do it. So I love the way this comes down in this verse, it’s so powerful. Notice what he says, «For what the law was powerless to, God did». Can you just say, «God did»? We don’t do a lot of this at Passion City, but can you tell your neighbor, «God did». God did. The law was powerless to do, but God did. I was powerless to do, but God did. You were powerless to do, but God did. This is the gospel, God did. Not I did, God did. Not I can, God can. Not what I did, but what God did. God did.
The law couldn’t do, God did. God did. We’ve talked about this so many times but if you wanna simply explain what we’re celebrating today to somebody, it’s this, «The law was powerless to do». Do, do. And a lot of people. that’s their whole message of getting to God, it’s what you do. You gotta do this, you gotta do this, you gotta do this a certain number of times, you gotta do this a certain way, you gotta do this in a certain place, you gotta do. It’s what you do.
And that’s why a lot of people say, «Well I feel okay 'cause I’m a pretty good person, you know? I’m doing pretty good». It’s what you do. But I’m telling you, you can’t do anything to get into the presence of a perfect God. So you need to forget the «Any» in «Anything». You need to get on board with NE. Not the any. You hear my voice? The NE. Not the any, the NE. Can you say that with me? Not the any, but the NE. You understand? Can you hear it? You got the little difference there? Can you say it? Not the… (any). But the… the NE. The NE is what we’re looking for. We’re looking for the NE, not the any.
What else can I add? What else can I do? What more can I say? Is there anything else I can do to make this right with God? You’re not looking for the any, you’re looking for the NE I’ll show you. For the NE. The NE. Looking for the NE. The NE. This is religion and this is grace. What the law was powerless to do, God did. It says, «What the law was powerless to do, God did». Well how did He do it? «By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so He condemned».
Notice that the condemnation didn’t go away? The condemnation just got redirected. And it went from you to Christ. So God didn’t just say one day, «You know what, everybody’s tried really hard so let’s just scrap that whole righteousness and holiness thing, and let’s just start all over again». No, He didn’t do that 'cause He’s a just God. He said, «There has to be a payment for the problem of man’s sin. So I need a man… who I can put sin on. Therefore I need a innocent man so that I can put the sin of man on an innocent man, and the condemnation that was coming your way is gonna go His way».
«So He condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us». What does that mean? It means if somebody asked me, «Well, were you ever holy»? I’d be like, «No I wasn’t, but now, in Christ, I am». That’s what it says later in the chapter. I gotta cruise through this and wrap this up. But it says, «What shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us,» We all love this part of Romans 8 by the way, verse 31, «Who can be against us»? But this is all in the context of what we’ve just been talking about.
In other words, «If God has taken the condemnation that was coming my way and put it on Christ in human flesh, then who’s gonna come against me with anything? 'Cause if He’s for me, who’s gonna be against me? This is isn’t just like, you know, conflict resolution scripture, this is an eternal position scripture. If God’s for me, who’s gonna be against me? If God’s for us, who’s gonna be against us? He,» And here it comes, «Who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all. How will He not also, along with Him,» His Son, «Graciously give us all things»? He’s already given you Jesus, trust me, He’s not gonna hold back in giving you every good thing He has.
«How will He not graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died, more than that who was raised to life is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us». So, the question is, who can condemn? The answer is, no one. Why? Because God has justified. And that takes us… Last text and we’ll close. It takes us back to Romans 3, «For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God».
One of the most famous verses in the Bible, unfortunately it’s not a verse in the Bible, it’s a part of a verse in the Bible. Yes it has a number by it but it also has a comma at the end of it. «And,» what a beautiful conjunction. «Are all justified for free by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus». All are justified. Your label now, in Christ, is not «Not condemned». You’re now walking around going, «Not condemned. No one come against me. Don’t even think about coming against me, not condemned, not condemned, not condemned. No, no, no, no, no. Not condemned, thank you very much. Not condemned. Putting that sign on me? not condemned. You can shut the bulldozer off, not condemned».
That is not my label in Christ. My label in Christ is «Justified». Justified. The way I learned it was just as if I’d never sinned. Just-i-fied. In Christ, justified. So I’m walking around and I’m like, «Justified. Oh yes I was guilty, but I’m justified». The verdict is in, «not guilty». The question today is, are you in Christ?
Dear God, I’m asking you, are you in Christ? You’re like Him in church, great. Doesn’t count. It’s good, but it’s not gonna get you out of condemnation. Are you in Christ? And if you are not in Christ, please I implore you, receive the grace of God in Christ today. Confess your sin, admit it to God, turn away from it in repentance, and run to God who is waiting to put His arms around you, to lavish His grace and love on you, to say, «I forgive you and I wipe your slate clean. And I put my Spirit in you so that you got a new law that you can live by and that is the law of the Spirit of Christ who is in you».