Romans 8:5-17

Romans 8:5-17

Beginning in v. 5, Paul divides people into two categories--those dominated by the sinful nature and those controlled by the Holy Spirit. Before we trusted Jesus, we were all dominated by our sinful nature (the flesh). Now we have a choice. According to v. 6, we can let the sinful nature control our minds or we can let the Holy Spirit control our minds leading us to life and peace.

When you trusted Christ for your salvation, He promised you the Holy Spirit who would come and live inside you. He leads us to live a life that pleases God, and He gives us power over sin as well as power to serve God. Therefore since we do have the Holy Spirit in us at all times, we are under no obligation to do what our sinful nature urges us to do. v. 12 We can literally regard sin as dead. v. 13

We have seen salvation called the "new birth" (John 3 for example) whereby we are born into God's family with all the privileges of a royal child. Now in v. 15 salvation is compared to adoption whereby God adopts us as His own children and we can call Him by the intimate term "Abba, Father"
which means "father" or even "daddy." Wow! I love this. God tries in every way to help us understand that we are safe and secure "in the family." We will see later in this chapter that can never change. The Holy Spirit (v. 16) assures our spirit that we are indeed God's children and His heirs (co-heirs with Christ). We share in His glory but also in his suffering.

1. My Father is rich in houses and lands,
   He holdeth the wealth of the world in His hands!
   Of rubies and diamonds, of silver and gold,
   His coffers are full, He has riches untold.
   • Refrain:
     I’m a child of the King,
     A child of the King:
     With Jesus my Savior,
     I’m a child of the King.
2. My Father’s own Son, the Savior of men,
   Once wandered on earth as the poorest of them;
   But now He is pleading our pardon on high,
   That we may be His, when He comes by and by.
3. I once was an outcast, a stranger on earth,
   A sinner by choice, an alien by birth,
   But I’ve been adopted, my name’s written down,
   An heir to a mansion, a robe and a crown.
4. A tent or a cottage, why should I care?
   They’re building a palace for me over there;
   Though exiled from home, yet still may I sing:
   All glory to God, I’m a child of the King.