the four laws

Living Stream Ministry Podcast ::

Romans chapters 7 and 8 are (in my opinion) the most crucial chapters to every Christian in understanding how to live a vital Christian life. Paul was speaking frankly concerning his experience…what he was doing…what he could do and what he couldn’t do. If ever there was a man that could be good…that was equipped to be good…to fulfill the law and be obedient…this would have been Paul.

And yet, he met with such experience that he ended up crying “Oh wretched man that I am. Who will deliver me from the body of this death!” And I think many many believers identify with that. We feel that we have tried…that we have worked…tried “plan A” and then “plan B.” And we go from plan to plan…thinking that something is going to finally make this Christian life vital and real to all of us. And some things help a little bit and then it seems like somehow the thing gets shorted out and sometimes disastrously so…and yet many times we get up and start again.

We have come to the most deep, most meaningful, crucial point. In all these verses, I would say three crucial words are repeatedly mentioned. (1) the word law. (2) the word life. (3) and death. Law, life and death. We all have to realize…even scientifically speaking…these three things are the hardest thing for the scientists to explain. Who could define life? Could you? Could you tell me in any university…any kind of prominent famous professor that could explain to you what is life? Not only life…even this ugly thing…death…is a hard thing to explain.

You may think death is somewhat too abstract, but in the Bible, death is very concrete. Why? Revelation 20 says death eventually will be cast into the lake of fire. The first thing which will be cast into the lake of fire is Satan. And following him you have Hades. And this proves how Satan is a solid person and how Hades is a solid place. This matter of death should be also something solid.

Then, of course we all know the matter of law is a profound thing. The thing that surprises me is that 2,000 years ago, Paul the apostle understood the matter of law. If you look into it, firstly it denotes the ten commandments of God. The law of God. But Paul says in my mind there is a law. What is this? And he says also there is the law of sin and of death. What is this? Not only so, you also have the law of the Spirit of life. The law and life are good enough for us to be troubled. Now he put also the Spirit. The law of the Spirit of life. What is this?

The first time through Romans on the life-study of the Bible, we touched these four laws that are mentioned in chapters 7 and 8. To really understand this portion of scripture, we need to be clear that there are two different types or kinds of law. We have to underline that to get into the experience that Paul got into, we need to have the understanding that he had. And this is why I appreciate brother Lee and brother Nee getting into this in a spiritually scientific (if one can say that) method of looking at the laws that are operating. And Paul used the word laws.

Certainly, the first time the law is mentioned it refers to the law of God. That is an objective written standard that God spoke to the children of Israel for their behavior on this earth. That is the law outside of ourselves. Then Paul comes to the law of doing good in my mind. And that refers to an innate law or innate ability or capacity…desire that man wants to do good. And we do. We are created in God’s image and we are created that way to be those kind of beings. So there is something in our mind…a law…a propensity…e.g. the dogs bark, the fish swim, the birds fly. Every life has a law, and part of the human life is wanting to do good.

Then there is the law of sin in our members, and this law is the other side of doing good. This law comes from man’s fall where Satan tempted man to partake of the knowledge of good and evil. And by that partaking, man not only disobeyed but partook of something that brought another law into his members…into his flesh of his body, and that is the desire to do evil.

The fourth law that we have looked at in Romans 7 and 8 is the law of the Spirit of life. And this is another law that is within us. It’s another innate ability within us that comes from regeneration. That comes from God Himself dwelling inside of us as the Spirit of life. When this operates, this law sets us free from the law of sin and death. We don’t wrestle with that problem of good and evil. We just go to the law of the Spirit of life which is resurrection life…which takes us into the realm of God and of enjoying God…instead of being occupied with the matters of good and evil.

So we have talked about these four laws. The law of God outside of us. And then inside of us three…the law of good in our mind to do good. The law of evil in our members to do evil. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus in our spirit to bring us into the realm of God Himself.

Living Stream Ministry

There’s something in us that makes us passive and weak to the things of God

Living Stream Ministry Podcast ::

Today in Romans chapter 8, we’re going to talk about being free from sin and death.

Romans 8 is a chapter of experience, and the death here is NOT the physical death to which we are subject in the old creation. So when we talk about being freed from death, we’re not talking about some kind of miraculous cure for our mortality. Or some premature deliverance from the power of death in a physical way.

Death in Romans 8 is a terrifying and powerful spiritual source and force that has its source in Satan, the origin of death. In Hebrews 2, Paul talks about the Devil…the one who has the might of death. The death in Romans 7 and 8 is that issue of sin in the flesh which weighs upon us and weakens us and darkens us and eventually deadens us…especially as we endeavor to pursue the Lord.

Sin with its law incites us in the flesh to do things contrary to God. But death works to weaken us when we are interested or burdened in carrying out something in the Lord and for the Lord.

There’s something in us that makes us passive and weak to the things of God. We need to call it by its right name; it’s death, and God and His organic salvation has a way of deliverance from it…a way to overcome it…in Christ as our resurrection life. So we need to pay attention to this. It has a lot to do with our daily experience of Christ in Spirit.

Living Stream Ministry

God is making sinners into sons

Living Stream Ministry Podcast ::

The central thought or message of Romans is that God is making sinners into sons to be the members of the Body of Christ expressed in local churches.

At the beginning of the book, we have a thorough exposure of fallen human kind. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Then we have a marvelous revelation of God’s complete salvation…His judicial redemption. And then according to Rom. 5:10 much more we are saved in His life. Now we are becoming sons of God,…those mature in the divine life…to be members of that Body of Christ described in Romans 12. And the universal Body of Christ which is uniquely one is expressed in all the genuine local churches on the earth. This is the message of Romans. It’s not just about justification. It’s about sinners who are sons. These sons are members of the Body of Christ, and the Body of Christ is expressed in the church life.

Living Stream Ministry

Saints, the Bible reveals to us three (3) big enemies to our Christian life…sin, Satan and death.

Living Stream Ministry Podcast ::

Saints, the Bible reveals to us three (3) big enemies to our Christian life…sin, Satan and death. And all of these 3 take advantage of our fallen flesh to frustrate us, but God’s approach to our flesh may surprise you. Check out today’s podcast on the book of Romans for insight into our experience of dealing with the flesh and the secret of how to reign in life over these 3 enemies.

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