Praying Through Romans 8نموونە

Take a moment to stop and breathe. As you turned on this podcast, there were certainly many things on your mind, vying for your attention and stealing your focus away. Responsibilities, to-do lists, and anxieties can overwhelm us. We forget that pausing and praying for God to work in our lives is far more effective than rushing ahead and trying to do all of the work ourselves. Whatever those troublesome things may be, stop for just a moment and tell the Lord what they are.

Now, ask the Lord to go before you in those things. Ask Him to be your provision and your strength today. Cast your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you.

Thank the Lord for His active presence in your life today. Ask Him to increase your awareness, sensitivity, and obedience to the Holy Spirit as you go through your day.

It can be discouraging, trying to walk with the Lord and follow His commandments while our flesh wages a war against what the Spirit is leading us to. We want to focus our hearts and minds on Christ, but the worries of the world or our own desires get in the way. This week we’re going to read and pray through the eighth chapter of the book of Romans and consider what Paul has to say about living our lives in the Spirit, and not in the flesh. To begin, we’ll read today’s passage in its entirety, before going back to focus on specific themes and verses. Listen now to the book of Romans Chapter 7, verses 14, through Chapter 8, verse 4, and pay attention to what things stand out to you.

“14For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. 15For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 17So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me."

"21So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25“Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh, I serve the law of sin."

"8:1There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

Romans 7:14 - 8:4

As you listened, what parts of the passage stood out to you? Were there any statements or ideas that you relate to? Take a moment to pray and discuss your thoughts with the Lord.

Now, we will listen again to the passage in smaller sections and consider more closely the ideas Paul presents. At the end of Romans 7, Paul expresses the anguish he feels over his own disability to abide with Christ and walk according to the Spirit. As you listen to this passage, think about how you might relate to what Paul says, and how it might apply to your own life.

"14For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. 15For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 17So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me."

"21So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?"

Romans 7:14-24

As you listened to Paul’s self-examination, did you see yourself in it? Do you find yourself having trouble doing what you feel you ought to? Are not the things that you hate doing the very things that continue to ensnare you? For a moment, stop and pray. Tell God what your unwanted behaviors are.

Now that you have expressed those behaviors, ask God to forgive you for them and to help you keep from continuing in those unwanted behaviors.

When we look inward, and we dwell on ourselves and our own inability to obey the Law of Christ, there’s no doubt we will find ourselves discouraged. The same was true for Paul, as he expressed in verse 24; “Wretched man that I am!” He says. “Who will deliver me from this body of death?”

The answer is found in the following passage, Chapter 7, verse 25, through Chapter 8, verse 4. Consider the good news of the Gospel, and how this passage answers Paul’s desperate question;

“25Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh, I serve the law of sin.

"8:1There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

Romans 7:25 - 8:4

The grace of God, the forgiveness of sins through Christ Jesus, and the active presence of the Holy Spirit are God’s beautiful answer to our despair. Though we continue to struggle against the flesh, because of the grace of God there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ.

Pray now, and thank God for His grace toward you, in Christ Jesus.

Consider the glorious fact that God holds no condemnation for you. Ask Him now to undo any false ideas you might have of how God views you.

Now, ask God to help your unbelief, that you might be able to comprehend and believe the depth of love He has for you.

Believing in the complete, perfect love of God for us in Christ can be difficult. How could he love us completely, when we continue to struggle against our flesh and constantly fail to attain his perfect standard? The less we consider our own insufficiencies and the more we dwell upon the sufficiency of Christ, the more we will find ourselves enamored with a King who loves us and has offered us freedom in himself. Take a moment and ask the Lord to help you remember His sufficiency for you, and the rest, peace, and freedom that He gives you today.

Today, do not try so hard to be like Him. Just behold Him. And in doing so, you will find yourself becoming like Him all the more.

This week, we will continue to read through the book of Romans, as Paul expounds on what it looks like to live our lives in the Spirit and thereby find real, tangible freedom from our flesh.