Your Life In Christ Jesus

Meditations on Romans 

August 17, 2021

Your Life In Christ Jesus

Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.

Romans 7:6

Read: Romans 7:1-6

I first encountered the power of the verse quoted above when I led a study of Dr. Larry Crabb’s book, The Pressure's Off: Breaking Free from Rules and Performance. I highly recommend the book and learning to live with the pressure off by serving God in the new way of living in the Spirit. My mission to seek the life in Christ as my way of life is informed by this translation of Philippians 2:5, “Let your bearing towards one another arise out of your life in Christ Jesus” (New English Bible, 1961). My mission could just as easily have been informed by Romans 7:6.

Paul was absolutely persuaded that Christ had delivered to us an altogether new life and a new way to live. Our new way of living in the Spirit is the way we let our relationships with one another arise out of our life in Christ Jesus. In most of Chapter Seven, Paul will demonstrate how God’s people failed to be His witness to the fallen world through the keeping of rules and regulations. However, he begins Chapter Seven by showing us that there is a way to be a faithful witness for God. He will return, in a very powerful way, to this theme in Chapter Eight. For now, let’s just hold firm to this truth: God has given us a new way of living in the Spirit.

My Takeaway: The translation of Philippians 2:5 above is a perfect example of reckoning (I discussed reckoning last week on August 11). I love the way it is stated as fact, “…your life in Christ Jesus.” My reckoning is my choosing to let my bearing towards others arise from my life in Christ. This is the new way of living in the Spirit.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2021 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.