SCRIPTURE: Romans 8:12-13 (ESV)
DATE: 7-12-20
It is great to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And the one thing I always want you to know — and it doesn’t matter if you’re joining us in person or online — the one thing I want you to know is that God loves you and that I love you too.
SERIES INTRODUCTION
If you’re just joining us, we’ve been in the book of Romans for the past few years now. We’ve taken things pretty slow, looking at a few chapters each year and then taking a break from Paul’s letter to go and explore other books in the Bible.
And this year, we’re in the eighth chapter of Romans. The pinnacle chapter of the letter and — in many ways — of the entire Bible. So if you have your Bible please turn with me to Romans chapter 8. We’ll be looking at verses 12 and 13 together today. We’re in Romans chapter 8. Beginning in verse 12.
So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. (Romans 8:12-13 ESV)
OWING DEBT
I think most of us understand the concept of having debt. Could be the loan you have on your house or car or maybe the credit card bill that comes in every month. Well — and this may surprise you — spiritually — every single one of us — meaning every single person — is a debtor. But the question we’re going to be asking today is, “Who am I a debtor to?”
Now — in our verses — Paul lays out for us two options. We’re either a debtor to our flesh — another way of saying a debtor to sin — as he’s said earlier in this letter — a slave of sin — or we’re a debtor to God. Now to be clear — and I hope this will become evident in this sermon — when I say we’re a debtor to God I’m in no way implying that if we pay God enough of something — money, hours listening to sermons, time spent serving others — I’m not saying that we have some sort of debt to God that we must pay in order for him to love and accept us or to save us. But — as we’ll see — even though our salvation isn’t based on us paying God a debt we owe — having been saved by him — meaning having responded to all that Jesus has done for us to save us in paying our sin debt — we owe God a new kind of debt — a debt of living for him in response to him having saved us.
So let’s look at these two different options — being a debtor to sin and the flesh or being a debtor to God. We’ll begin by looking at what it means to be a debtor to sin and to our flesh.
DEBTOR NOT TO SIN AND THE FLESH
Let’s begin back in verse 12. So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die… (Romans 8:12-13a ESV)
Now Paul’s speaking to Christians here — to followers of Jesus — and he tells them that they are not debtors to the flesh. But he implies that some people do live as a debtor to the flesh. So I want to talk about this for a moment both to reassure those of us who are Christians, but also to challenge those of us who have not yet put their trust and hope in Christ alone.
To the Christians first. You owe sin nothing! You are not in debt to sin because Christ paid your sin debt in full.
- So again, if we understand the idea of debt through things like a house, car, or credit card debt — how many of you have plans to keep sending in a monthly check to your mortgage company once your house is paid off? Anyone?
- Anyone keep sending payments to the car company after you’ve paid off your car loan?
- Or that credit card debt — you went all Dave Ramsey on your credit cards and are down to the last payment and then what? You gonna keep writing Visa or Mastercard a check for a debt you don’t owe them? Of course not! Why?
- Because when a debt is paid in full you are no longer a debtor.
Well then. Did Christ pay your sin debt in full? When he said “It is finished” did he do a partial payment on the debt you had accrued because of your sin? Did he do a 20% down payment on your sin debt? Or when he died on the cross, did he pay the debt you owed in full? He paid it in full.
And — because of that — Paul says, “You owe sin nothing! You’re not a debtor to the flesh — to sin — any longer. Through your faith in Christ, his payment on the cross covers the debt you owed.” And so not only do you not owe any debt to sin, but now you don’t owe your flesh the satisfaction of living for sin either. For the flesh is in opposition to God. And though it’s still present in your life, you don’t owe it anything. For you’ve been set free from your debt to your flesh so you can now choose to not live for it’s wicked desires.
And here’s why this is important: Those who live for the flesh will die. And Paul’s not implying physical death here — though — because of sin — we all will die. What Paul is implying is that those who live for the flesh — who delight and find joy and satisfaction in living for their sinful nature — they will experience eternal death. Eternity separated from the love and goodness and graciousness of God. An eternity where all you will know and experience is the wrath and just judgment of God. That’s the eternal destiny for those who live for their flesh — who live in debt to their sinful nature.
Now — as I’ve said — for the Christian — Jesus has paid your debt in full. But for the unbelievers — and if this is you — even though this is revulsive to you — I beg you to listen for the sake of your eternity. For the unbeliever, without faith in Christ — Jesus’ “It is finished” isn’t for you. You’re still living under the infinite weight of your debt because you’re living for the flesh. But know that if you turn to Jesus — in faith — turning away from what you’ve been living for — yourself and this world that’s at war with God — if you turn to Christ trusting that he will gladly and joyfully pay your debt in full — if you turn to him giving him all of who you are because he gave all of himself for you — if you turn to Christ — his “It is finished” becomes the final and only payment that will ever rid you of your debt to your flesh.
Now it would be the ultimate sign of ingratitude — wouldn’t it — to not accept the offer of friends who want to pay off the medical bills you owe but have no way to pay it on your own. Though we love our independence, we all know that a gracious offer of friends — to pay off a debt like that — is to be received with thankfulness — not rejected. So if rejecting their help shows ingratitude, how much more so is it to reject the offer that Christ is putting before you today to pay your sin debt in full? Does it require something of you? Yes, which we’ll look at in a moment. But to not receive the gift will require your life. For to reject Jesus’ offer is to reject life with him for eternity. It means that — instead — of receiving eternal life you choose eternal death.
DEBTOR TO GOD
But now let’s look at the other debt I mentioned — what does it means to be in debt to God? And since we only have two verses, let’s read them both again. So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. (Romans 8:12-13 ESV)
Now to feel the full weight and force of us Christians not being debtors to the flesh, we need to remember the words that the “so then” — that verse 12 begins with — what does this “so then” refer to? Verse 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 8:11 ESV)
So then — Christians — if God’s Spirit is in you — if the Spirit of God who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you — you belong to God. And that means you’re not a debtor to the flesh, but you are in debt. There is an expectation of you. It’s not “believe in the Lord Jesus Christ — and live however you want — and you shall be saved” — that’s not how the verse goes. The Bible teaches that believers in the Lord Jesus Christ have an obligation to live for him — there’s a debt we owe — not to pay him back for what he’s done — but a debt we owe to love him in response to all that he’s done.
One pastor who lived centuries ago said these words to his congregation to explain what this debt to God means for their everyday lives. This is a lengthy quote but — I think — it’s worth it. “Brethren, we who know and love the Lord, are debtors, not to one creditor, but to many. We are debtors to the past…the ancient saints in their much frequented [prayer] closets, the brave preachers in their pulpits denouncing error, and the faithful pastors reproving wrong. To such who have preceded us we owe the purity of the Church, and to them we are debtors. Methinks I see the martyrs and confessors rising from their tombs — I mark their hands still stained with blood, and their bodies scarred with the wounds of persecution. They tell me that they of old maintained the truth, and preached it, in the midst of fire and sword — that they bore death in defence of the cause of God, that they might hand down his holy word [pure] to us! I look on them, and see among their glorious ranks, some whose names are celebrated in every Christian land as the bold “lions of God,” the immovable pillars of truth; men of whom the world was not worthy, whose praise is in all the churches, and who are now nearest the eternal throne. And as I look on them, and they on me, I turn to you all and say, “Brethren, we are debtors.”…we are debtors to the sacred ashes of the thousands who have there followed Jesus even unto death; we are debtors to the headless bodies of those who were beheaded for Christ Jesus; we are debtors to those who dared the lions in the amphitheatre and fought with wild beasts at Ephesus; we are debtors to the massacred thousands of the bloody church of Rome, and the murdered myriads of her pagan predecessors; we are debtors to them all…Shall we not, in some degree, repay the immense debt of our obligation by seeking to make the future also debtors to us, that our descendants may look back and acknowledge that they owe us thanks for preserving the Scriptures, for maintaining liberty, for glorifying God? Brethren, we are debtors to the past…We are debtors to the present…The enemies of truth are more numerous and subtle than ever, and the needs of the Church are greater than at any preceding time…Brethren, we are debtors to the hour in which we live. Oh! that we might stamp it with truth….We are debtors to the future…If [we allow] God’s truth to be dishonored, future generations will despise and [condemn] our name. If we now suffer the good vessel of gospel truth to be drifted by adverse winds upon the rock, if we keep not good watch to her helm, and cry not well to her great Master that she may [lead] to a prosperous end, surely those who are to succeed us will look on us with scorn, and say, “Shame on the men, who had so great and glorious a mission, and neglected it, and handed down to us a beclouded gospel and an impure Church.” Stand up ye warriors of the truth, stand up firmly, for ye are debtors to the future, even as ye are debtors to the past. Sow well, for others must reap. You are fountains for coming generations; O, be careful that your streams are pure. May the Spirit of God enable you so to live, that you can bequeath your example as a legacy to the future…
[And then he said these cutting to the heart words. But…] I owe nothing to the past, I owe nothing to the future, I owe nothing to the rich, and nothing to the poor, compared with what I owe to my God. I am mainly indebted to these because I owe so much to my God…Christ has paid the debt his people owed. I am a debtor to God’s love, I am a debtor to God’s grace, I am a debtor to God’s power, I am a debtor to God’s forgiving mercy; but I am no debtor to his justice — for he, himself, will never accuse me of a debt once paid. It was said, “It is finished!” and by that was meant, that [whatever] his people owed was wiped away forever from the book of remembrance. Christ, to the uttermost, has satisfied divine justice; the debt is paid, the hand-writing is nailed to the cross, the receipt is given, and we are debtors to God’s justice no longer.
But then because we are not debtors to God in that sense, we become ten times more debtors to God than we should have been otherwise. Oh! Christian, stop and ponder for a moment! What a debtor thou art to Divine Sovereignty! Consider how much you owe to his forgiving grace, that after ten thousand affronts he loves you as infinitely as ever; and after a myriad [of] sins, his Spirit still resides within you. Consider what you owe to his power; how he has raised you from your death in sin, how he has preserved your spiritual life, how he has kept you from falling, and how, though a thousand enemies have beset your path, you have been able to hold on your way!…Though thou hast changed a thousand times, he has not changed once; though thou hast shifted thy intentions, and thy will, yet he has not once swerved from his eternal purpose, but has held thee fast. Consider thou art as deep in debt as thou canst be to every attribute of God. To God thou owest thyself, and all thou hast. “Brethren, we are debtors.””
So if you’re new to the Christian faith — maybe you’ve recently believed in Jesus — part of what it means to be a Christian — of committing one’s life to Christ — is to be in debt to God. And part of what it means to live for God — as a debtor — as we see in our verses — is not just to recognize sin in your life — we must fight against sin — resist it — kill it when sin pops its ugly head up in your life. We’ll talk about how we kill sin in a moment.
But maybe you’ve been a Christian for some time — and your philosophy to most things in life has been to “let time pass and hope things work themselves out.” You value peace and comfort and stability — which are great things — until they’re more important than standing with God and his Word — which often results in conflict. So though you love peace and comfort know that sometimes our personal peace and comfort must be sacrificed as we live as debtors to God.
HOW WE FIGHT AGAINST SIN
But back to our verses. It’s been said that there’s a real warning — in our verses — and a real promise. The warning is that “if you live for the flesh you will die.” No exceptions. No fine print to get out of this. It doesn’t matter your gender or race or age or occupation. It doesn’t matter if you call yourself a spiritual person or an atheist or a Christian. If you live for the flesh you will die — that’s the warning.
The promise is this. “If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” And again, no exceptions. No fine print saying this is true only for some Christians. It doesn’t matter your gender or race or age or occupation. It doesn’t matter what you call yourself — Christian, Jesus follower, or if the name evangelical makes your cringe. “If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”
So here’s the question: how do we do that? How do we — by the Spirit — put to death the deeds of the body? How do we fight against — and kill — sin?
First, notice that this is “by the Spirit.” As one pastor has said, “Holiness of life…[living by the Spirit] is achieved neither by our own unaided effort — [this is] the error of “moralism” or “legalism” — [so that’s one error] — nor by the Spirit apart from our participation — as some who insist that the key to holy living is to “surrender” or to “let go and let God” — [that’s the other error…so how are we to live by the Spirit?] — by our constant living out the “new life” placed within us by the Spirit who has taken up residence within.”
Paul’s already spoken about this supernatural work in the life of the Christian. Back in chapter 6, he wrote, “Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires.” He says, “Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God.” And the reason why we can obey these commands — to not let sin control the way we live nor to let any part of our body become an instrument of evil — the reason we can obey these commands is because “We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.”
“Well OK Josh. I get it. The Holy Spirit is in me. If I have faith in Jesus — my old self was crucified with Christ and sin no longer has power over me. But tell me this preacher man — how come I seem completely incapable of overcoming _____” fill in the blank with your sin of choice. Have you ever done something you regretted — even hated — and yet found yourself doing it again and again? You felt like you couldn’t stop doing it — whatever it is.
- Could be looking at porn.
- Or lying.
- Or being jealous of others.
- Or holding a grudge against someone.
- Or demanding you get your own way.
- You hate it — but it keeps coming back again and again.
- I think we can all relate to that — at least if we’re honest — I think we can all relate to something like that.
Well our sinful nature wants us to despair. It wants us to give up the fight. It wants us to feel defeated — when we’re the victor in Jesus Christ! But our sinful nature wants us to despair because when we do — we give up — we stop fighting — we despair — and we give in to sin and start living for it.
But the gospel shows us that we’re able to live according to the Spirit. And part of what living according to the Spirit means is putting to death the deeds of the body — the things of the flesh. That by the Spirit’s power and presence in us we can fight against sin. How?
You go to war against it. As John Owens famously said, “Be killing sin or sin will be killing you.” And this killing of sin is violent. It’s messy. This is no peace time parade. This is all out war against the sin that is in you. So how do we kill sin?
First — as Paul told us earlier in this chapter — we’re to “set our minds on the things of the Spirit.” Remember this is killing of sin — this isn’t something like, “Sin, can you please stop that? Temptation, can you please go away?” That’s way too polite for the war we’re in. You say, “No” to sin! But — even more than just saying no to sin — you have to set your mind — your entire being — on the things of the Spirit.
But what are these things of the Spirit we’re to set our mind on? In another of his letters, Paul gives us a clue. “When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters, I didn’t use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan. 2 For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness — timid and trembling. 4 And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. 5 I did this so you would trust not in human wisdom but in the power of God. 6 Yet when I am among mature believers, I do speak with words of wisdom, but not the kind of wisdom that belongs to this world or to the rulers of this world, who are soon forgotten. 7 No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God — his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began. 8 But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. 9 That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” 10 But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us. 13 When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. 14 But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 15 Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. 16 For, “Who can know the Lord’s thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him?” But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 2:1-16 NLT)
Did you catch what Paul was pointing the Christians in Corinth to — when speaking of the things of the Spirit? What was he pointing them to? Words that he spoke by the power of the Spirit. Words of God that he — and others — wrote down. The Word of God — Scripture — the Bible. So to kill sin — we set our minds on the things of the Spirit. And the things of the Spirit — are the very words of God that we find in the Old and New Testaments. And the reason why this is so important — in our understanding of how to fight against — and kill our sin — is because the Word of God is a weapon of war.
“Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:13-17 NLT)
One offensive weapon in our spiritual armor — the sword of the Spirit. And what is this sword of the Spirit? It’s the word of God — the Bible. And the Spirit uses his sword — in our life — to resist the enemy — to help us stand firm against the devil — to kill sin in our life — because this book is a weapon of war.
This is why you hear me speak over and over again about the importance of this book in your life. For this book is the Word of God. This book is the sword of the Spirit — a weapon to be used to defeat sin — to kill it — in your life. Christians are people who live under the authority of God’s Word and live empowered by the Spirit of God.
But some read this book and are not changed — they read this book and don’t fight against their sin — for many — this book is not a weapon. Why? Because there’s one more element in our fight against sin — in our war against sin. What am I talking about? Faith. Paul writes, “How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? 4 Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it? 5 I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ. 6 In the same way, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” 7 The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God.” (Galatians 3:3-7 NLT)
Faith — trusting in God. Believing that he is who he says he is. That he will do all that he has promised to do. That he — who began a good work in you — will see it to its finish. You can read this book — study it — memorize it — but if you do all of that in your own human effort — and not by faith — Paul says that’s the way of the fool. But the way of the Christian — the way of people who have faith in Christ — is that we come to this book in faith. Trusting God to do a work in us by his Spirit and his Sword. And God’s people trust — and celebrate — that he is doing a work in our fellow brothers and sisters too.
CONCLUSION
For some of us — even those of us who claim to be followers of Jesus — we hear all of that — all that it means to fight against sin — and think, “Well that doesn’t sound all that fun. It kinda sounds like I’m going to miss out on all of the fun things that others will get to experience.” Like one author has said, “Everything sinful is glamorous these days, isn’t it?” But this is a critical test to see if our faith is genuine.
Does living for Jesus seem dull or boring or like it’s a good option — but maybe not the best option for your life?
- If so, you may still be a debtor to sin and not to God — you may still be living for the things of this world.
- But positioning your life to revolve around created things instead of the one who created you — is to position yourself on the path that leads to eternal death.
- All while the God who created everything — from the farthest planets and stars in the universe to the creatures in the depths of the oceans to the great Redwood trees to the beautiful tropical islands and all that’s in between — the God who created everything entered into his creation to pay the debt you owed.
- Have you taken time to ponder the enormity of the truth that the God who’s created everything has promised to take care of you?
- He’s promised to be good to you.
- To guarantee that you won’t miss out on what you really need for life and hope and fulfillment and even eternal happiness.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, “When all is said and done, the life of faith is nothing if not an unending struggle of the spirit with every available weapon against the flesh.” So if life feels like a struggle against sin — well good news — the struggle means that you’re alive. That you’re not enslaved to sin because those enslaved to sin don’t know there’s a war to be fought.
But if you feel the pain and sorrow of the war against sin that you — and all of God’s people are in — be encouraged. Not because the war is fun or a joy — be encouraged because you are not alone — you’re not the only one struggling. We’re all in this war together.
And be encouraged because Jesus has paid your debt in full — he paid it all. And that means you owe sin nothing. But because Jesus paid it all — as the song reminds us — all to him we owe. Though we’re no longer debtors to sin — we are debtors to the One who has taken the crimson stain of our sins and washed us white as snow. Let’s pray.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, thank you for the glorious truth that we owe sin nothing. We are no longer debtors to our flesh or to sin. We don’t owe them anything.
Jesus thank you that your words “It is finished” were not a downpayment on our sin debt — but the payment in full. To fathom the depth of your love for us in those words — “it is finished” — will take all our eternal days.
And Holy Spirit, help us to live — not as debtors to our flesh — but as debtors to our God. Living in response to God’s great love for us. Help us to be living illustrations of the words, “Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe.” Spirit help us to live “all to him I owe” lives. And help us to use your sword — the Word of God — as a weapon in this war we’re in — and use it with great faith and trust and hope in Christ alone.
Finally, for anyone listening to my voice who is still in debt to sin and their flesh — who is still in debt to your justice — God draw them to you right now. Give them new life by the power of your Spirit. May they turn to Jesus in faith and turn from their sin in repentance as they receive the Good News that their sin debt has been paid in full. And we pray all of these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.
BENEDICTION
May you go knowing that you owe sin nothing — and go knowing that you owe God everything. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.