SCRIPTURE: Romans 8:9-11 (ESV)
DATE: 7-5-20
It’s great to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And the one thing I want all of you to know — no matter if you’re worshiping with us in person or online — the one thing I want you to know is that God loves you and that I love you too.
REOPENING NEXT WEEKEND
Now hopefully you’ve heard that next weekend — July 11 and 12 — we’re beginning Phase 2 of our reopening process. For worship, Phase 2 will include live worship services at our North Main and County Road 9 campuses. I’m not going to get into all of the details now as they’re posted on our website and have been communicated in emails, video announcements, on social media, and our app.
But here’s what I do want to say. I want to say thank you. Thank you to those of you who have been patient with us in this whole reopening process.
When we closed back in March — the first thing I thought was, “Well reopening is going to be an advantage to the small church because us larger churches won’t be able to open up as fast as they do.” And I was right. You see — there are a ton of benefits of being part of a large church.
- Your teenager has a bunch of other teens in the youth program.
- The kids ministry is something your elementary and preschoolers want to go to.
- Multiple service times and campuses that fit your schedule.
But there are benefits to being part of a smaller church.
- For instance — in a small church you may have direct access to the pastor.
- Or you know everyone’s name in the church.
- Or when your state starts to reopen after a pandemic — you can reopen quickly.
The smaller churches are like the small businesses in our community. As soon as they were able to reopen, they were able to bring the majority of their staff back on location — in the office or in the store. But think about some of the larger businesses in our community. They haven’t brought back all of their employees into the office yet — at least not all at once. Many still have employees working from home or they have odd schedules where some people are in the office while others are still working from home. And that’s because it takes longer for a large business to reopen whereas a smaller business can bring all of its employees back into the office much more quickly.
And — I think — Gateway’s the biggest church in town. So things are slower for us. It’s just the nature of being a big organization. Even churches that are half our size have been able to do things we want to be doing, but haven’t been able to move as quickly due to all of the complexities of being — well — bigger.
So all that to say thanks to those of you who have been so gracious and patient with us as we’ve been navigating reopening. I promise you that the elders have spent hours talking through, reading up on, discussing, and praying over what each phase should look like as we reopen. We’re trying to do our best to do what our job is as your elders — to represent the mind of Christ as we lead you.
But mark your calendars for next weekend and be sure to RSVP. Cause I sure hope to see people as I preach next weekend.
SERIES INTRODUCTION
Now let’s get to the sermon. After a short two week break, we’re jumping back into the book of Romans. And I want to thank pastor Ben — Gateway’s founding pastor — and Shaun Meloy — our worship director — for preaching God’s Word to us the last two weeks. But after a quick break we’re back in Romans.
And in previous years we’ve already gone through the first seven chapters — but now — we’re slowing things down — and taking nearly 20 weeks — over the course of two years — to work our way through Romans chapter 8. And we’re taking this much time because this is a pivotal chapter in Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome and — in many ways — this is a pivotal chapter in all of Scripture. So we’re slowing things down and soaking ourselves in the wonderful truths that we find before us.
ANNOUNCE THE TEXT
So if you have your Bible please, turn with me to Romans chapter 8. We’ll be looking at verses 9-11 together today. We’re in Romans chapter 8. Beginning in verse 9.
You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. (Romans 8:9-11 ESV)
THE DESIRE TO BELONG (INTRODUCTION)
One of the bigger questions in life — that people are wrestling with these days — is “Where do I belong?” How would you answer that question?
- Some of us might think of the family we belong to or our church.
- Maybe it’s your hometown or your college fraternity or sorority.
- Maybe it’s a club or organization you belong to — or the company you work for.
- Where do you belong?
Author and professor Brené Brown has said, “A deep sense of love and belonging is an irreducible need of all people. We are biologically, cognitively, physically, and spiritually wired to love, to be loved, and to belong. When those needs are not met, we don’t function as we were meant to. We break. We fall apart. We numb. We ache. We hurt others. We get sick.”
I think we all feel this innate desire to belong that she’s speaking of. And — let me say — I think this desire to belong is good. Christian or not — belonging is fundamental to what it means to be human. But — obviously — if this desire is something wired in us — where we can’t function as we’re meant to without this need being met — then obviously what or who we belong to is extremely important.
Now — in our search to belong — we’re really searching for an identity. A purpose. A something beyond ourselves that we’re living for — that we belong to. But that’s a lot of pressure to put on — say — a spouse or a child or a sorority, right?
- Where you look to your spouse for your identity.
- Or to your child for your ultimate purpose in life.
- Or to your friends in your sorority for an unshakeable sense of belonging.
- They just can’t handle that kind of pressure. You’ll smother your spouse or child or sorority friends if you put on them the weight and responsibility of giving you an unshakeable identity or sense of belonging.
And that’s the problem for most of us. We try to find an answer to this desire we have to belong in people and things that can’t give us what we’re looking for. For a while, we may think, “Well this is it. I’ve finally found where I belong” only to discover disappointment or emptiness as we discover — yet again — that we still haven’t found where we belong.
And this is where something counterintuitive comes in. What do I mean? Well — honestly — the path that most of us naturally want to avoid is actually the path that leads to an assurance of belonging that we’re all longing for. You see — even though we’re all fairly open to finding a sense of belonging in a spouse or in our children or in different organizations — belonging to God — finding our identity and purpose in God — though unnatural to us — though often the last place that many will ever look — belonging to God is the only belonging that comes with an assurance that’s unshakeable. You see the gospel shows us that belonging to God — through our faith in Christ — belonging to God — which is confirmed to us by the Spirit of God indwelling in us — which we’ll look at in a moment — but belonging to God is where we find a sweet, unshakeable assurance for our souls.
So let’s go back to our verses and see how we find this assurance — this belonging we’re all looking for — a sense of being known and loved and welcomed. Let’s discover how this belonging is possible in Christ.
IS THE SPIRIT OF GOD IN YOU? IF YES, THEN YOU BELONG!
Now as we return to our verses — in many ways — and especially with us having had a two week break from our chapter — we need to remind ourselves of what Paul has already said. Especially as our verses begin with the words, “You, however…” as that implies that we’re comparing something — in our verses — with something that was said prior. So since it’s only eight verses — here’s what we’ve already encountered in our chapter. We’re back in verse 1.
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For 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, 4 in 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. 5 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 set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:1-8 ESV)
And that’s the transition statement — verse 8. Verse 8 contains words that make us uncomfortable because they’re offensive to our inclusive loving ears — “those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” But in contrast — to those disturbing words — Paul writes assuring words…
You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. (Then back to some uncomfortable words…) Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. (Romans 8:9 ESV)
Now there’s a big “if” here. “You are not in the flesh” implying that — unlike people who are in the flesh — who cannot please God — you being not in the flesh — can please God. How so? Because instead of being in the flesh you are in the Spirit. But there’s a big “if.” You are in the Spirit “if” the Spirit of God dwells in you. So there’s Paul’s point. As someone has said, “The accent falls on God’s Spirit residing — or dwelling — in the believer. Which is in contrast to sin residing — or dwelling — in our flesh.”
And then Paul gives us a “belonging” statement. If you don’t have the Spirit in you — you don’t belong to Christ. The implication being that if you do have the Spirit in you — you do belong to Christ.
So a big “if” here — a huge “if.” If the Spirit of God dwells in you then you belong to Christ. So does the Spirit dwell in you? No Spirit in you — no belonging to Christ. Also — so we’re clear — if the Spirit is in you — there’s no not belonging to Christ — that’s a double negative. If the Spirit is in you — you cannot not belong to Christ. Which — as it’s been said — means that “the normal state of the believer…is [being] Christ’s possession.” Being a Christian means belonging to Christ.
This is why — to a different group of Christians — Paul writes, “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.” The issue in Corinth was sexual sin. And Paul’s argument against various kinds of sexual sin is that the Christians in Corinth had the Holy Spirit residing in them — living in them — taking up residence in them. And because the Holy Spirit is in them — well that means they don’t belong to themselves — they can’t just do whatever they want — sexually — with whomever they want. They must honor God with their bodies. Why? Because they belong to God. Why? Because he bought them with a high price — the blood of his beloved Son.
Now I know “belonging to God” can sound oppressive — but it shouldn’t. It should sound like glorious freedom. Why? Because of all that God’s done for us in order to make a “there is therefore now no condemnation” life possible. Your spouse hasn’t made that no condemnation life possible for you. Your kids haven’t. Your sorority hasn’t. No one else has done what God has done for you. So your belonging to him — isn’t bad news — it isn’t oppressive news — it isn’t restrictive news — unless him restricting you from self-destructive, harming others, sinful ways sounds oppressive to you. Your belonging to God is great news! It’s hopeful news!
If you follow our devotionals on Facebook, this past week you saw some devotionals I did with my kids. And in one of them — I asked this question from the catechism I do with my kids. Catechisms are short questions and answers that teach simple truths of the Christian faith. The question I asked you was this. What is our only hope in life and death? Do you remember the answer? What is our only hope in life and death? That we are not our own, but belong to God.
You see, hope — real, lasting hope — is found in belonging. But it’s who we belong to that’s key. It’s not belonging to a particular club or group or having a certain employer or alma mater — it’s belonging to God that gives a person hope — both in life and in death.
Some of us are searching and searching for that one person or group that will give us purpose, give us worth, give us an identity. And — in the search — we believe that there’s a perfect belonging out there somewhere — that something or someone — out there in the world — is going to give you that perfect sense of belonging. And you’ve searched and searched and searched and you can’t find them. In fact, you’re pretty certain you’re never going to find them — at least not in this world. Know that — though the belonging you’re looking for isn’t of this world — it can be found. It’s found in Christ. It’s found by turning to him in faith — believing and trusting that he loves you and has proven his love for you by giving his life for you on a cross. And his arms are open wide and he’s ready to welcome you into his embrace — right where you belong. Your search can be over — turn to Christ and belong to him.
Others of us — in our desperation to belong — we look at others and think we see everyone else finding purpose and meaning and an identity — a sense of belonging — from the things this world offers — and because that’s what we think we see — we feel like we’re the only one missing out — so we get envious of others. But it’s all a lie — none of it’s true. Nothing this world has to offer can fulfill our need to belong. That’s why we need to look elsewhere — not to this world — but to Jesus — the one who sees you, and loves you, and values you because he made you. Jesus is the one in whom your need to belong finds its fulfillment.
And still others of us — when we think of our need to belong — all it does is make us feel inadequate — incompetent — even embarassed that you have such a dependence on someone other than yourself. Your need to belong may even feel unsafe to you because it means you have to trust someone else — and trusting isn’t exactly your strong suit. Know that Christ can be trusted. He’ll protect you. He won’t make you feel incompetent — though you will be dumbfounded by who he is. And there’s an assurance you’ll discover when you come to him — trusting that he will always be good and faithful and kind to you.
But we still haven’t discovered what it means to have the Spirit dwell in us. Well — as you may know — dwell — in verse 9 — means something like “live in” or “make a home in.” So the Spirit dwells in Christians — lives in Christians — the Spirit makes a home in followers of Jesus.
Think of the Old Testament and how God’s presence dwelled in the Temple. And — as Paul told the Christians in Corinth — now Christians are the temple in which God’s presence dwells. As one theologian has said, “Those in whom the Spirit comes to live are God’s new Temple. They are, individually and corporately, places where heaven and earth meet.” If you believe in Jesus — you are a place where heaven and earth meet, isn’t that amazing. And what’s so incredible about being part of a church is that we get to see heaven and earth meet in fellow Christians as well. We get to see what God is doing in others and be in awe of — be dumbfounded by his grace and mercy and kindness as he tells us and others, “You’ve found where you belong — you belong to me.”
So how do you know if the Spirit dwells in you? Have you experienced the new birth — what Jesus talks to a man named Nicodemus about in John chapter 3? “Well how do I know if I have, Josh?” Evidence that you’ve experienced the new birth is faith and repentance. Faith and repentance are the results of a spirit that’s been born of the Holy Spirit. As I’ve said in other sermons, we’re all born spiritually dead — not sick — not partially good and partially bad — but dead — and in need of God’s Spirit to resurrect our spirits. Three examples from Scripture that show this truth.
Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. 2 You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil — the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. 3 All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else. 4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) (Ephesians 2:1-5 NLT)
Paul’s point is that — prior to faith in Christ — a person is spiritually dead. Again, not spiritually sick. Not spiritually on life support. Spiritually dead yet physically alive. Thus we lived — but in sin. We lived — while obeying the devil. We lived — yet we were following the passionate desires of our sinful nature.
But God gave us life when he saved us.
As I mentioned earlier — Jesus explains this giving of spiritual life to a man named Nicodemus.
There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. 2 After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.” 3 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” 4 “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” 5 Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. 7 So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.” (John 3:1-8 NLT)
So in our humanity all we can give birth to is human life — not spiritual life. But the Spirit of God can give life to our spiritually dead spirits. And Jesus says there’s a mystery to this new birth — theologians also call the new birth regeneration. But this new birth — or regeneration — always results in repentance — turning away from sinful ways and desires — so the new birth always results in repentance and faith — turning to Jesus and living for him. Faith and repentance is what we mean when we say conversion — or that a person believes in Jesus Christ — but conversion comes after the new birth. Paul explains it in another letter this way.
Remind the believers to submit to the government and its officers. They should be obedient, always ready to do what is good. 2 They must not slander anyone and must avoid quarreling. Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. 3 Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. 4 But — When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, 5 he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. 6 He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. 7 Because of his grace he made us right in his sight and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. (Titus 3:1-7 NLT)
Paul says that there’s a way we used to live — prior to this new birth — and a way that we’re to live now — having been given new life by the Spirit of God. So there’s a response to the new birth — where we live in faith and repentance. But this new birth is an act done solely by God. It’s not something we participate in making happen — it’s simply God’s gracious gift to us. Conversion — we participate in — but not regeneration. And because of this gift of the new birth — we now live with confidence — with assurance. Why? Because God’s Spirit is dwelling in us which gives us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. For the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead will raise us up from the grave on the last day.
A GUARANTEED RESURRECTION (AKA BELONGING FOR ALL ETERNITY)
And this leads us to a guaranteed resurrection — a belonging that will last forever. Verse 10.
But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. (Romans 8:10-11 ESV)
Did you catch the guarantee? “If the Spirit…dwells in you” you will experience a resurrection. For that same Spirit — the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead — is the Spirit dwelling in God’s people today. And the Spirit of God gives life to all in whom he dwells. And not just life — he gives them eternal life — a resurrection life.
Paul’s asking the Christians in Rome, “Do you need some assurance about life after death?” — because things were hard back then. Persecution — like real life and death persecution — was a thing. Remember the guy writing this letter — prior to his faith in Jesus — he chased down Christians. He had them imprisoned. He even watched their execution. So he knows a thing or two about persecution. And he knows that the whole “life after death” was a question on their minds — maybe it’s a question on your mind as well.
And sometimes thinking about life after death can just suck all of the assurance out of us, can’t it? “So here’s some assurance,” Paul says. “If you believe in Jesus’ resurrection then know that your resurrection is certain. It’s guaranteed. It’s gonna happen.”
And there are implications of Jesus’ resurrection that should shape how we think about our resurrection. For instance, Jesus’ resurrection was physical. Jesus wasn’t some sort of spirit or ghost after his resurrection — he had a body. He could show the disciples the scars on his body from the crucifixion. He ate fish. He ascended to heaven with his body. And when he returns — he’ll be in his body and he’s going to raise up — physically from the grave — everyone who believes in him. So — as Matthew Anderson writes, “The resurrection of the body means that to be human with God is to be with him not as disembodied souls, but as people with noses, faces, arms, and legs.” Jesus’ resurrection was physical and our guaranteed resurrection will be physical as well.
Second, Jesus’ resurrection is called the first — implying that there are more resurrections to come. Paul says this — to those same Christians in Corinth. He writes, “But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.” Jesus’ resurrection is the first of a great harvest — meaning there’s a multitude of people who will experience a resurrection in the future. And — again — this is a guarantee. If you have faith in Christ — God’s Spirit dwells in you. And if God’s Spirit dwells in you — you will experience a resurrection.
But — and this is one of those mysteries of our faith — sort of like the mystery of the Spirit giving us new life — the Bible describes the Christian as already being resurrected. Paul mentioned this earlier when he said that we died with Christ on the cross. And we were raised with him in his resurrection. The Christian is described as being here on earth while — simultaneously — being seated in the heavenly realms with the resurrected Christ. So we’re able to live a resurrected life — now — because God’s Spirit is in us.
You see — the Spirit — though often neglected — often misunderstood — often ignored by Christians — the Spirit is key to living a life that honors God. And this too is following in the footsteps of Jesus. Jesus — though God — in order to meet the requirements of the law on our behalf — emptied himself of his Godness — meaning he was still God, but he didn’t use his “I’m God trump card” — but instead — he lived in his humanity empowered by the Spirit of God in order to be our perfect substitute. At his baptism, the Spirit of God descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove — anointing and empowering him to do the work that God had called him to do.
And that same Spirit — that empowered Jesus — dwells in every Christian — empowering us to do the work God has called us to do. Thus the “presence of the indwelling Spirit is central to living the Christian life.”
CONCLUSION
Are you still trying to figure out where you belong? Do you want an assurance in knowing, “Man this is it — this is where I belong?” Well you find that assurance by belonging to God. And you belong to God through faith in Christ, which is a wonderful gift of the Spirit of God. Because the Spirit gives you a new life with new desires and a new purpose with a new identity. In Christ, the search that all of humanity is on — the search for purpose, and identity, and being known and loved — is found by belonging to God.
But this belonging is experienced by faith. For it’s by believing in Jesus Christ — believing in the gospel that declares that Jesus has done for you what you could never do for yourself — he defeated sin and death by giving his life for yours — believing in Jesus and turning from your sin is where belonging begins.
But there’s more to belonging than just believing. You have to settle down. We live in a world on the move — not so much for the past few months — but we’re all anxious aren’t we — to get back on the move. But — to really belong — you have to decide to stay. Put down some roots. Now hear me — there’s nothing sinful about moving. But often — in the name of moving up the corporate ladder or moving to a new job or moving to a new community — often our moving never allows our roots to grow deep and this is detrimental to our souls. And belonging to God means we belong to his body the church. And a lack of commitment — a lack of belonging to a church — results in a lack of assurance when it comes to our sense of belonging to God.
And know that as you choose to stay — like the Spirit of God who dwells in you has chosen to stay — know that as we stay we’re to move in and live and dwell with God and his people. And as we begin to reopen next weekend, please don’t get back into the old habit of just coming and going — sneaking in late and sneaking out early — remaining unknown — not really belonging. And — instead — choose to belong.
Join a Life Group. Find a place to serve. Be known and know others and see what God’s doing in their life and share with them what he’s doing in yours. And watch and see and be dumbfounded by what God’s Spirit does in you — as you find assurance in knowing that you’ve finally found where you belong — because you belong to God — in life and in death — both now and forever. Let’s pray.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, thank you for your grace and kindness to us in giving us all a place to belong. Where the search we’re all on — to be known and loved — to have a purpose and identity — that true belonging is possible by belonging to you. For belonging to you is our only hope in life and in death.
Jesus thank you for making our belonging possible by giving your life for ours. You came to give us what we couldn’t give ourselves — freedom from our loneliness and the search for fulfillment. Forgiveness for our sin so that we could be reconciled with God. Thank you for the hope we have because of your resurrection.
Finally — Spirit of God — thank you for taking up residence in us. How awesome it is to think that we — through our faith in Christ and your presence in us — that we are a place where heaven and earth meet. Spirit give everyone who hears me assurance in knowing that they belong to God — both now and forever — both in this life and in death. And for anyone desiring to belong — may you give them the new life that we’ve learned about today. Resurrect their spirits so they turn to Christ in faith as they turn away from their sin. And we pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
BENEDICTION
May you go in full assurance — knowing that you’ve found where you belong — that you belong to God.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.