Romans - Part 4: SPIRITSample

Don’t Settle

Christians, please do not settle for living a life as a Romans 7 Christian. Romans 7 is where Paul basically says, “I do what I do not want to do and I do not do what I want to do.”

Romans 8:1-13 answers how you can overcome that state of living. “There is therefore, now, no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, to those who do not walk according to the flesh, but, according to the Spirit.”

If you want to live a life free from condemnation, then you need to live ‘in Christ.' In verse 5, Paul defines walking in the spirit as ‘setting our minds.’ Romans 8:5 says:

“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.”

"What are you setting your mind on?” Are you setting your mind on toxic thoughts: events that produce or re-live anger, resentment, lust, pride, addictions, co-dependence, etc.?

In the late 1980’s- early 1990s, scientists used MRI technology to discover that the brain has an attribute called ‘neuroplasticity.’ They observed that certain physical neural pathways actually grew, the more we thought about something over and over. This means the brain can reinforce the thought habits of the soul, either for good or for bad. God designed the brain to help enforce His command in Romans 12:2:

“Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” If you are trying to destroy toxic thought patterns that lead you to ‘walk after the flesh,’ you will need discipline.

Here is a question, “What does the New Testament call a disciplined person?”

Answer: A disciple.

A disciple, a disciplined person, can start off the day with prayer, ‘setting their mind’ on who they are in Christ, as revealed in the New Testament. Then, they use that identity during the day to confront the temptation toward toxic thought patterns. If they apply this discipline over time, even the toxic neural pathways of the brain will disintegrate and new neural pathways will be created to help reinforce their new identity in Christ. This is part of how we live according to the Spirit, as Romans 8:13 states, “If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”

In John 6:63, Jesus says His words are spirit and life. In prayer, and in disciplining our thought life, by replacing toxic thoughts with who we are in Christ, we can put to death the deeds of the body and break out of the Romans 7 mindset.

-Steve Burke