Unpacking Condemnation

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:1 MKJV)

I like the way another translation phrases it.

There is, therefore, now no condemnation for those who are in union with Christ Jesus; (Romans 8:1 TCNT) I believe this brings out a link back to the earlier part of chapter 7 where he is talking about the intimate union found in a marriage relationship. Those who allow themselves to become intimately involved with Jesus at the heart level will find themselves free from the sense of condemnation that has plagued them throughout all of their previous religious life when their intimacy was with the Law and their focus was on performance and keeping of rules.

The question that I want to explore right now is, “What is condemnation?”

I know that most of us believe we are familiar with the feeling and quite likely we are. But that does not necessarily mean we have an understanding of what it actually is or even where it comes from. When I ask myself this question I suddenly realize that there are gaps in my own library in my head when I look for the definition of this word. I certainly have some strong feelings and emotions and memories associated with it, but that does not mean I really know what it means, especially from heaven's point of view. So I ask again, what does this word really mean, both in a narrow and broader definition?

It may seem rather negative to dwell on such a word at length when there is so much exciting power and freedom waiting to be learned and absorbed from chapter 8. But I want to be thorough in my study through this book so that my heart as well as my mind can become saturated with the truths and the reality described here. If God says that I do not have to feel condemnation when I am in Christ, then I want to know just what it is so that when it tries to sneak into my experience deceptively or force itself onto my heart and manipulate my emotions, I will recognize it clearly for what it really is and have a better sense of how to respond to it.

To start with as I many times find helpful to do, I went back to look at the Greek word that was used to come up with this English word condemnation. Here is what I find in Strong's definitions.

Katakrino – from kata and krino; to judge against, i.e. sentence:--condemn, damn.

Krino – properly, to distinguish, i.e. decide (mentally or judicially); by implication, to try, condemn, punish:--avenge, conclude, condemn, damn, decree, determine, esteem, judge, go to (sue at the) law, ordain, call in question, sentence to, think.

As I look through these words and phrases I get the strong sense of a very negative disposition, of an adversarial relationship of one person against another. I see two things taking place in this word. First, a decision is being made about something or someone and second, the decision made is very negative and possibly even arbitrary. What I see here is what I realize that billions of people believe in their hearts and minds about what they think God is like and His disposition toward them to a great degree. Unfortunately it is also the attitude that many Christians display to a lesser or greater degree toward those who do not go along with their beliefs or accept their doctrines and lifestyle. However, Christians certainly do not have a corner on condemnation; every human being is capable of treating others with this kind of attitude and usually do at some point or another. Many religions make this almost the cornerstone and foundation of the way they relate to those around them.

What I also see embedded in this definition is the roots for a great deal of bias and bigotry. Not too many people are willing to admit that they have bigoted opinions about others, but in their actions and attitudes are betrayed the fruits of bigotry and exclusiveness that creates feelings of condemnation in those who are not in harmony with them. Again, a very great number of people believe, either consciously or unconsciously that this is a fitting description of the God of Heaven. It is too often deeply embedded in the attitudes of strict religionists and is institutionalized into the framework of many systems of belief.

But does condemnation really come from God? Does condemnation serve a useful function in motivating people into a saving relationship with God? Is condemnation a legitimate tool for raising healthy children into productive and mature adults? The correct answers to these questions are not necessarily self-evident to many who may be confronted with them.

I would also like to know what kind of feelings and internal results condemnation produces in a person's life. I would like to take time to ask people for reflective and honest responses to that query. If any of you would like to share your thoughts and stories on this word I would be very interested. I do not yet have a comprehensive grasp on this word and want to understand it better. I need input from other perspectives even if I don't agree with them. Condemnation is such a pervasive element of our society and especially of most religion that I think it will be very helpful to spend a bit of time unpacking it more thoroughly.

According to this verse, those who are really in Christ Jesus do not have to experience whatever it is that this word means. I also cannot help but remember the statement that Jesus said, “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:17 NRSV) Quite clearly, whatever this word really means it is an experience and feeling that God has no intention of imposing on the world. And yet it is so pervasive in our world and is generally attributed either directly or indirectly back to originating with God that something is terribly wrong here. Somebody is lying and an awful lot of damage and pain is being inflicted on hearts generation after generation, and too often in the name of God.

The very fact that this verse in Romans 8:1 insists that those who are in Christ are not under condemnation while at the same time so many Christians live with the feeling of condemnation indicates that something is very wrong, something is out of place and there is a lot more confusion than many would like to admit. Some would take this statement as an excuse to insist that any Christian who feels condemnation must not be in Christ. But sometimes the very way they say it comes across as condemning and the question then becomes whether or not they themselves are in Christ.

There is also the phenomenon of false guilt that needs to be addressed. This is where we may feel guilty and condemned when in fact it is not true at all. This verse does not say that a person “in Christ Jesus” will never feel condemned; it simply says that there is no condemnation for them. We live in a world where there is a miasma of swirling deceptions that constantly confuse and distort reality and truth. Spiritual darkness and error are the realities of the world we live in and only truth and light from heaven can dispel the confusion and false feelings that we experience.

My little children, let's not love in word only, neither with the tongue only, but in deed and truth. And by this we know that we are of the truth, and persuade our hearts before him, because if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. Beloved, if our hearts don't condemn us, we have boldness toward God; (1 John 3:18-21 WEB)

(next in series)

Phase 3: My Latest View of Job

As I was driving yesterday I listened to some of the talks from the web site I recently found and linked on this site – HeavenlySanctuary.com. I have downloaded all of the audios that I could find on their site onto my computer so I can listen to them over time, especially as I am driving. I find this a very helpful activity for longer drives for several reasons. First of all I have a chance to fill my mind with better perspectives about God than I can ever get from listening to the radio and secondly it makes the time fly by much faster and long trips seem much shorter that way.

Anyway, as I was listening to one of the speakers talk about Job I began to sense that it was time for me to think again about my opinion of Job. There was still something much deeper and more profound than I have seen yet up to this point and whatever this next step was it had something to do with my concept of God as well as my understanding of what He thinks about me. After the message had finished I just drove along quietly (that is a relative term in my old car with the windows down) and contemplated what I had just heard while I discussed it with God. As the truth began to really soak into my head and heart I was soon overcome with emotion and had to respond by speaking out loud my feelings of awe and amazement at the goodness of God and the incredible faith that He had in Job. But that is getting ahead of myself a little bit.

Phase 1

To understand the context of where I am coming from I feel I need to explain the first two phases of my understanding of this much-abused book of the Bible. Phase 1 for me was what I suppose is the most typical and widely accepted view of the character and personality of Job that most Christians share. Most people have not spent much time reading or studying this book and what little time they do

spend in it they read the beginning and ending and think they have the gist of the whole story. Usually a few verses are plucked out of context from the middle of Job in addition and presented to make him appear quite noble and heroic (Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him... Job 13:15) and that is pretty much the end of it. For most people it seems like it would be far too much work to spend time trying to figure out all the confusing things his combative three friends have to say to him. Worst of all some of the most egregious ideas they present are sometimes lifted out of context and quoted as sound advice and pious platitudes for addressing our problems today. I have since become very wary of anything quoted from the book of Job and realize that we need to at least check to see which person we are quoting before we think it is useful or valid advice. But again, I am getting ahead of myself.

Generally speaking most people assume that Job is nearly the epitome of the perfect example of what a man of God should look like, think and how to respond to adversity. We make him out to be the hero of the story without any question as to his theology. We base this hazardous assumption on the verse where God declares that Job is a blameless and upright man. (Job 1:8) With a recommendation like that from such a highly reliable source, very few dare to challenge the integrity of anything Job says no matter how confusing or contradictory it may seem to other things we know about God in the Bible. This was certainly my take and opinion on Job from simply accepting what was taught me for most of my life. When I read the book at various times I simply interpreted everything through the filter of the assumptions that had been handed me and ignored anything that seemed too confusing. It makes for a good story and most people are quick to identify themselves with Job when a lot of bad things come into their life with sudden frequency. With Job they feel obliged to say “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord” without thinking of what that implies about how God treats us.

Phase 2

My unchallenged ideas about Job went through dramatic transition when a few years ago I listened to a series of messages by James Rafferty that undermined a great deal of my previous assumptions. Then a year or two later I listened to some more talks from Craig Hill that not only reinforced what James had said but took it much farther. During those periods of time I decided to take my own journey back into this book and make a much more thorough and skeptical examination of what was really there. I carefully spent time looking at the content of each of the friends presentations and began to note the differences between them which are sometimes significant. I wanted to get a better picture of their individualities and beliefs. I jotted down many notes in my Bible as I studied and also took a much harder look at the ideas and beliefs that Job was trying to defend. I realized that Job had some very serious flaws in his picture of God and my opinion of him quickly toppled off the pedestal that he had been on for most of my life. Though I did not usually think about it or talk about it very much, in my heart I began to feel a bit of disdain toward Job and wondered how he got such glowing reviews from God in the light of all the dirt that was becoming obvious to me in his ideas about God. As my own picture of God was changing quite dramatically I felt that Job had let me down in his stilted and self-righteous attitudes about his relationship with God. As I more closely examined his questionable testimony I wondered what had led God to make such a statement about Job considering all the false and incriminating notions that Job consequently propounded about God. What was God thinking anyway?

This phase was a very dramatic shift for me and stimulated a lot of discussion, questions and rearranging of beliefs and ideas in my own mind. It was refreshing to see Job in an entirely new light and the story made far more sense for me. I was a little puzzled by the lack of recognition for the fourth friend considering that he seemed to be the only person in the whole story that had a decent concept of God's character. While he was a genuine friend to Job and did not shrink from dismantling the false (but all too familiar) religious theories proposed by the other three, he also challenged Job to reconsider his own self-centered religious ideas and directed him to question his underlying assumptions. He presented God in a light that was so different than any of the others had even considered that by the time he got near the end of his thoughts he had created an atmosphere so conducive to the presence of God that God indeed showed up personally to take over the dialog.

There were a number of other very enlightening insights that I received from listening to these messages as well as in my own study, but that is basically where I have been up until very recently.

Phase 3

For some reason I have been sensing, almost subconsciously, that there was still more to this story. Maybe it was because of a little discomfort with my critical feelings about Job's attitude and my questions about God's gushing recommendation in spite of Job's obvious and serious flaws. This made for a feeling of unresolvedness (is that a word?) in my mind and I didn't really know what to do with it. So I just left it alone until it came to me on this trip and I realized it was time to face it. I still wasn't sure about the nature of even my own questions but I knew there was something I needed to learn. I also sensed that God would use it to say something to my heart, but I was surprised how strong and emotional it was when it suddenly broke onto my consciousness.

What I had to finally admit was that the beliefs that Job was living under and attempting to defend that I was so critical about were really quite similar to some of the feelings that my heart still has about God. This, in spite of the fact that my head has learned many things to the contrary that have made my heart glad and changed my view of God. But what I have to admit is that there is still a part of me somewhere inside still clings to the self-righteous and typical religious ideas about my relationship with God that is so common and that Job needed to be divested of. God wants to take me to another level of trust and wanted to reveal something about Himself to me in this story that dropped a number of puzzle pieces into place that have been assembling over the past few months.

What I suddenly realized was that God knew exactly all about Job's messed up picture of God when Satan showed up and asked for a showdown. God knew Job had some very immature and even incorrect ideas about religion and would say some things that would be quite wrong and even very self-righteous. But the most amazing thing is that God took the gamble anyway and let Satan throw everything at Job while allowing Job to spout off his false ideas about God before the whole universe, even after God declared that He considered Job perfect and upright. (That should make everyone step back and seriously question their preconceived ideas about what God might mean by those words. I suspect our ideas and definitions of perfection need some serious revision in light of this story.)

But the truly shocking part of this revelation to me is the nature of God to act like a seemingly reckless high-roller in a game of gambling. He is actually bragging about Job and putting His own reputation on the line while fully aware of the flawed thinking and self-righteous attitudes and immaturity that Job will demonstrate throughout this experiment. Somehow God looks past all of that and sees that even though Job may even cling to God throughout this experience for all the wrong reasons, he will still cling to God. And evidently that is what gets God excited more than anything else including any amount of correct theology or even glowing testimony in favor of God's character. God was demonstrating an incredible amount of faith in a very flawed man that He would have to come down and make some serious corrections in near the end of the story. Job would have to rethink everything he ever believed about God and reorient his feelings and relationship to God in light of the revelations he would experience. But God put His bet on Job and laid it all out on the table.

In short, the real transition for me was from a focus on Job's achievements to an appreciation of God's faithfulness. In phase 1 I thought of the book of Job as a description of a person who had such a strong spiritual will that he could determinedly outlast anything the enemy could throw at him. He grit his teeth and forced himself to have faith in God even in spite of his perception that all these bad things were coming from God and not from another source. Job was some kind of superhero that I was supposed to emulate as well as a victim who piously refused to give up his belief in God and in the process won God's approval even though God scolded him in the end. That was a tall order to fill, a tough act to follow.

In phase 2 my glossy view of Job's beliefs and character began to be seriously tarnished as I saw more clearly the many lies he believed and promoted about God. In many ways he shared the same confused notions about God that his sorry friends had but just argued them from a different angle. I received much more encouragement from the words of Elihu, the last and youngest witness to show up on the scene, than I did from most of Job's declarations and self-righteous defensiveness. I then viewed the book of Job as a mixed bag of platitudes and occasional nuggets of truth reflecting to a great extent the kind of world I live in. Job was no longer a superhero but more of a religious traditionalist with a strong stubborn streak that somehow God used for His glory.

Now in phase 3 I am starting to see the book of Job as a story about a man with faulty beliefs all too much like mine that God used to magnify His own faithfulness and goodness. The book is not about Job so much as it is about a God who is so proud of His children even in their immaturity that He is eager to brag about them to anyone willing to listen, even His enemies. He is so confident in His own work in their heart in spite of their confused ideas about Him that He is willing to take frightening risks that I would never imagine taking on anyone. This book is not about Job's achievements at all but primarily about a God who is passionate and bold and almost reckless in the risks He is willing to take because of His trust in us. I can't understand a God like that but it sure makes things much more interesting. It reminds me of what C.S. Lewis wrote in one of his parables of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, “Is he safe? Oh no! He is not safe – but He is good.”

As I thought about this in amazement while driving down the highway I asked God if that is what He thinks about me. Does He have that same kind of seemingly reckless faith in me? Does he trust me to cling to Him from a heart still full of confused notions about Him? Then I realized that even my questions tended to put the pressure back on me again. The questions implied that I was expected to perform by demonstrating faith and come through for God because of His faith in me. I can't trust myself to perform and that kind of pressure is overwhelming. What I immediately said was, “God, You are the one with all this faith. You're the one that is doing this work inside of me and I have to trust You to reproduce Your faith by living in me and living Your faith through me.”

I also began to sense that the more I realize this unbelievable notion of God's faith in me, like He had in Job, that I would be enabled to begin to invest that same kind of faith in others. I will be able to believe more and more in God's power to do the seemingly impossible in other people's lives and my faith will grow as I see more clearly the faith in the heart of the Source of all faith – the faithful One Himself.

Tears came to my eyes and about all I could do was worship and sit in amazement thinking about a God who is so full of faith and love for each one of us. This is the extravagantly reckless God who pours out blessings with abandon and desires to ravish our hearts with His passionate love. The limitations for experiencing this are not on His side but on mine. My willingness to believe and to receive is so shallow and dull that I am ashamed.

God, increase my faith. Increase my capacity to perceive and receive Your faith. Thank-you for this moment of light and for touching my heart the way You do. I want much more of You. I am getting more hungry to live in Your presence more often and to be more open to allow You to reveal Yourself through me. Forgive me for my slowness of heart and my lack of faith. I place myself in Your hands to continue Your work of shaping me for Your glory.

Analyzing Pieces of the Puzzle

Romans 7:9-24. I want to further flush out more clearly the various elements presented here and their relationships.

The Law is good.

Nothing good dwells in me.

Therefore the Law must not dwell in me. Why?

Is the Law not written in my heart like God promised?

Or is the Law something that inherently doesn't “dwell” anywhere?

(but maybe is written inside)

Since the Law is simply a description of the Source of life it is not life-giving in itself.

What dwells in me?

Sin dwells in me.

Since nothing good dwells in me and sin dwells in me then there is nothing good in sin.

This dwelling place inside of me must be designed to be the entrance where I get life into myself, my receptacle for receiving life. The Law does not fit into that receptacle and cannot give me life anyway. It has a different role to play and this is not it. Whatever is supposed to fit in this spot is missing and I will feel empty and dissatisfied until it is filled with what it was designed for. I am looking for something that gives life and fits correctly into this dwelling spot within me. What I find is that sin has taken up residence in that dwelling place and purports to be my source of life and satisfaction. The problem is that the results from this arrangement in my life are far less than really satisfying.

Willing is present in me but doing good is not.

Since nothing good is dwelling in me then the willing must not count as good.

There is a “principle” that evil is present in me.

My will agrees with the Law and wants to do good.

Sin is evil and is also present in me and evidently manages the doing part of me.

What part of me is it that joyfully concurs with the Law of God in the inner man?

According to what is already described it must be my will.

Now I run into mention of at least 3 laws, maybe 4.

The Law of God – external and also written in my heart(?)

A different law (the principle of evil from v.21) – waging war against the law of my mind.

The law of my mind.

The law of sin – by which I am held prisoner after being made so by the “different law”.

What is the relationship between all of these elements?

Which ones are different descriptors for the same thing?

What is the mental and emotional condition of the person described in this passage?

The presence of the Law seems to produce in me the very things it prohibits.

When the Law came I died.

Sin deceived me and killed me.

I am enslaved to sin.

My will wants to do good but my doing comes out opposite.

I intellectually believe the Law is good.

My inner man joyfully agrees with the Law that it is good.

I am a prisoner of war.

I feel wretched!

I do not feel free.

I am trapped in/with a body of death.

There is much debate about what stage of growth or conversion this chapter describes. I firmly believe that since Paul is writing to people who are already Christians and a sub-group of that being those who know the Law (probably converted Jews), then by exclusion he is not describing a person who is not yet a Christian. Many have tried to argue strongly that this could not be describing a real Christian or they would not be having all this internal conflict and have sin dwelling in them. But that is based on some strong delusions about realities in the Christian life.

Just because a person has entered into a relationship with God and trusts Jesus as their Lord and Savior does not mean that they are free of the internal struggles that Paul describes in this chapter. In fact, the very reason I believe it is describing a sincere Christian is that the will described here agrees with the Law that it is good and continuously wants to do good. A person who has no use for God would not be struggling with that. Their will would not be wanting to do good or to please God. They would not joyfully concur with the Law of God in the inner man. Instead, this is a clear description of many who have started on the Christian walk with God and become very discouraged and frustrated as this internal conflict between their will and this principle of indwelling sin intensifies.

This is also very good news for people who see sin dwelling in their inner life after they tried to start following Jesus. It is saying that just because we feel this intense internal war going on does not mean that we are not real Christians. It is also a warning to not judge, either others or ourselves, when we see sin dwelling inside. The presence of indwelling sin is not a sign of failure in the Christian life but is an indication that another step needs to be taken that Paul is about to discuss and describe at length. But first he has to make clear our present condition before we are able to understand and relate to our great need to move into the next condition.

(next in series)

Ingredients for Frustration

But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. (Romans 7:16-18)

As I think and pray about these verses and seek to really understand with my heart how they apply to my own life and experience, I see more clearly the elements of conflict that struggle internally for control of my destiny. The part of me that is called the flesh is in the original called the “sarc”. This is a part of human nature that somehow became infected and corrupted when sin entered the human race and has been a source of confusion ever since. It is also the handle or access point through which the fallen supernatural forces of evil have been able to manipulate and deceive every one of us for thousands of years. It purports to work for our good, but when we follow its promptings we discover after it is too late that we have been misled and have become disenfranchised to enjoy the bliss and joys of heaven.

Most people desire to have enjoyment and peace in their life. They long to feel connected emotionally to others and to be loved and cherished. That is what we were created for – to be the objects of affection for the Creator God who is overflowing with love and compassion. We were also designed to imitate Him in passing on the same kind of treatment to others and connecting the circuit of love which makes the whole universe pulse in harmony and life.

The Law is simply a schematic describing the layout of what that circuit looks like and how it functions. The Law is not the circuit itself but simply a very brief description of the circuit. However, sin has inserted many viruses and false ideas into our thinking that distort the truth about life, about how life can be fulfilling and how to stay in harmony with life. Through the access point of our fallen nature, the flesh, sin has taken up residence inside of us and multiplies its diabolical lies and distortions like a virulent virus to contaminate our original design and corrupt all of our “programming”.

Human beings were created to be the dwelling place of God. Repeatedly throughout the Bible and ending in the last chapters of Revelation God talks about dwelling with us and in us. That is the goal of salvation – to restore us to a condition of wholeness, to repair us so that we can be safe “houses” for God to live in, to become sanctuaries for God to dwell in. It is a very fascinating subject and is one of the central themes of the Bible.

But I see here in this text that sin dwells in me. Several times throughout this chapter Paul mentions the fact that he sees sin dwelling inside. That creates a real problem, because when sin and God get too close to each other it always creates fireworks, quite literally. The closer the proximity the greater and more intense the fire and discomfort.

That is precisely why there is so much frustration described in this chapter. Since the Law is a description of God and becoming a Christian means, among other things, acknowledging the authority and validity of the Law of God, we immediately find ourselves in a state of tension between what is still dwelling inside of us (in our flesh) and what has taken up residence in our real heart (the presence of God). Paul is describing the experience of anyone who is passing through this phase of salvation but he only refers to himself so that he does not come across as accusing or condemning of anyone else. He knows that if we are honest that we will be able to identify with what he is describing as he leads us to see how to grow beyond this stage of spiritual maturity.

So to simplify the description of the problem I look carefully at these verses and try to see what is going on inside. There are several key words that I focus on.

The Law –

• it is spiritual and good

• I agree with it

• my will wants to obey it but I find myself not obeying it.

My flesh –

• it is an inescapable part of me

• through it I am in bondage to sin

• sin dwells in me there.

Sin –

• it is a slave-driver that controls me against my will

• it dwells in my flesh

• it is doing things through me that I don't want to do in violation against the Law

• it is manipulative, it is not good.

My will –

• it is present inside of me

• as a Christian my will agrees with the Law

• it believes the Law is good

• it desires to do good in harmony with the Law

• its desires are being overridden by sin that dwells inside of me.

As I think about this mixture I can see a pretty clear recipe for frustration. I believe that this whole chapter, particularly the last half, is an emotional description of what life is like when a person is trying to be a Christian but still finds himself stuck in bondage to sin. I do not mean that as harsh or condemning in the least. I believe that it is a natural stage that very many pass through in their growth journey toward deeper spiritual maturity. Does it have to be that way? I don't have the answer for that and I think only God knows. Either way, it is a reality in millions of hearts and lives and Paul is showing us the way through it to more perfect freedom on the other side. I want to dig out the glowing truths and gems that Paul is presenting in this passage and implement them in my own experience as I study and pray my way through these verses.

I know I have taken a long time dwelling on this chapter, but maybe I am just dense and slow of heart. I have decided to not go any faster in my study than I can feel I am really absorbing. There is so much here that will enrich me if I take the time to listen to what the Spirit has to share with me. I resist the urge to rush on to the exciting things in chapter 8 because I want to be very clear and open about my real condition first.

This particular chapter itself has been a source of frustration and confusion for me most of my life and I am determined to not rush past it until I have a much better sense that I am appreciating and understanding it not only with my intellect but with my heart even more importantly. I believe that since this is a very good description of how I have felt for most of my life that God has also put the solution in these passages as well. If I am willing to take to time to immerse myself in His word, marinate in the juices and absorb the flavors into my very being, then they will stay with me much better and these truths will become a permanent part of me instead of just a theological exercise or a set of proof texts.

(next in series)

Fearful Wives or Terrified Slaves

For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. (Romans 7:14)

As I look over the context of this chapter and then the larger context back into the last chapter I see a circle being closed in this verse. Paul is addressing those who have been brought up to trust in religion and rule-keeping and external performance for salvation just like he had been, These kind of people would be very easy to shut down mentally if one tries to tell them they are slaves – that would be so offensive to them they would immediately dismiss it as ludicrous. Instead, Paul uses the marriage analogy which is much more interesting to them, particularly since they have spent years arguing about the technicalities of valid reasons for divorce.

After carefully drawing in their attention and making some very unexpected declarations in that context, he goes on to relate his own experience and feelings as one who has a very similar experience to theirs. He knows what it feels like to grow up legalist and he also knows the emotions and frustrations of trying to make the transition to being a real Christian from that beginning. The assumptions and beliefs deeply embedded in the mind and heart of one who has been brought up in a strict, conservative religion have a strong influence over one's thinking even after they accept becoming a new Christian and are converted, at least as much as they can be externally, to following the teachings of Jesus.

That is just where much of the problem lies, however. Many people, even today, have become converted to “believing” and following the teachings of Jesus but they have little heart connection with Him. This is not to accuse or condemn them (I am one of them myself) but is simply to point out their condition and where they are in their journey. For a person to switch from one set of beliefs to another really involves very little heart work, though there may be initially an awakening that prompts them to make the switch at first. This is why so many people describe their Christian experience by retelling the story of their conversion over and over again but do not have a great deal to say about anything new and fresh flowing out of their heart. It is because their heart has again gone into hiding and the head, or left brain, has again taken the control (which is what they have always been taught to do); there is little to no growth in emotional maturity and intimate bonding to Jesus at the personal level.

Throughout the rest of this chapter Paul describes the affects this kind of living has on the religious experience. In one word it could be described as extremely frustrating. And it is perfectly normal to be frustrated, for the left brain was never designed to perform the functions that the right brain (the heart) was created to do. Anytime something or someone is expected to perform in a way they were not designed for there will always be the potential for a lot of frustration. Paul experienced this frustration to the point of crying out in total desperation by the end of the chapter for someone to deliver him or he will die. If we want to get un-stuck in our own experience we too will need to come to the point of frustration that is great enough to cause us to cry out in helplessness and desperation for supernatural intervention. We have to come to the point of realization that our methods, beliefs and attempts to be righteous, impress or influence God, or whatever other angle we are trying to leverage with Him are completely ineffective at doing anything for our long-term salvation. Our only hope is to completely give up on our form of religion and throw ourselves totally on the mercy of God to save us.

In this chapter I also see Paul doing something very interesting and important in the area of how our brain functions. While the left brain learns by words, reading, intellectual processing etc., the control center of our brain – the right side – cannot learn by those means. The right brain assimilates and learns how to act and respond to situations primarily by imitation, stories and pictures that evoke emotion, and also music. As I look at this chapter it suddenly occurs to me that Paul is taking these left brain-dominant people on a track they are not used to following by relating his own story. He is sharing his emotions (right brain) of what it feels like to be a frustrated Christian just like they are, and then in the story he relates to the intensity of their own emotional frustration that they have likely been suppressing for most of their life in their attempts to live out a left brain dominant religious experience. Joining them in their own emotions, Paul is drawing them out as he identifies with their feelings. This is the most effective way to help someone find a resolution to an emotional sand-trap. They need someone to join them in their predicament and then show them how to return to peace and joy since they have never “learned” with their right brain how to get out of that problem. Paul is joining them in their despair, expressing it more eloquently than they themselves have ever done, and then going on in chapter 8 to “show” them how to return to joy in the Holy Spirit.

Another thing I would like to notice in the text from the beginning of this post is the idea implied in the word “bondage”. The base of that word is “bond”, which alerts me to the two kinds of bonds that all of us experience and which binds us to each other and to God. There are two basic categories of bonds – fear bonds and love bonds. Much of which is passed off as love bonds are only fear bonds in disguise parading as love. These bonds are linked to the deepest levels of our brains and influence nearly everything we do, think, feel and become. I have come to realize some time ago that fear has been substituted for love in most religion and has come to be accepted as the correct motivation for linking us to God. That is one of the worst lies of the enemy which keeps us deceived and trapped in the very frustrations that Paul is describing in this chapter. God is not interested in service from fear, force or intimidation; there is no love or pleasure in that kind of bonding. We cannot “please” God (bring pleasure to His heart, a spontaneous smile to His face) by fear-motivated performance of duty or any other kind of fear-based activity or beliefs. This is a very useful filter that I have used many times to expose problems in otherwise very correct-sounding presentations of “truth”. When I begin to detect elements of fear-motivation as a means of manipulation by the presenter I immediately feel red flags going up and become quite skeptical of the validity of the message, no matter how perfectly substantiated it may be with proof-texts and sound, logical arguments.

Recently I wrote about the Law being an external description of the internal essence of God. Being in the external realm the Law is used as a communication tool to tell us the truth about who God is. But because it is in the external realm it also lacks the power and influence to draw us into a saving relationship with God. In fact, as Paul points out in this chapter, it appears to have almost the opposite effect when it comes in proximity to sin. Sin uses the presence of the Law to trigger hidden explosives in our flesh that cause us to react in sinful ways even when our mind knows better. This seems to be the main source feeding the frustration described in this chapter.

But I look at this verse and question why Paul says that the Law is spiritual. I think that maybe it would be helpful to say that the Law is describing something/Someone that is spiritual – maybe that is what the meaning is here. I'm sure there are a lot of other things to draw from this, but that seems to make sense to me right now.

The circle that I see Paul bringing back to close in this verse is the idea of slavery and being sold into bondage. In the previous chapter he spent a great deal of time addressing the other group from chapter 1 while the chapter 2 group may have felt a bit of disdain and distance from their predicament. The Jews particularly were very sensitive and strongly reactive about any notion of them being in slavery. When Jesus implied that the Jews needed freedom from slavery they reacted very violently, protesting that they needed no such deliverance. They answered Him, "We are Abraham's descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, 'You will become free'?" (John 8:33)

But I see in this verse in Romans Paul again putting his finger on the real underlying problem that every human being cannot escape. These people who find themselves married to the wrong “husband” and living in a stern, straining religious life are in fact at the roots no different that the other group of open sinners who more easily recognize their condition of enslavement. Paul personalizes it by sharing his own experience of transition through this same phase of growth and explains that as long as we are living in the flesh, whether we are open sinners or very good-looking religionists, we are in the same quandary of being in slavery, sold into bondage to sin. The key ingredient that is common in this bondage is the fear-bonds that hold both groups tightly in the flesh. Though the external symptoms may look radically different, the internal problem is the same. As long as our hearts look at God through the filters of fear we will remain stuck in the flesh, sold into bondage to sin.

That is the problem with our relationship to the Law. The reason that the Law seemingly activates the worst in us instead of causing us to love God and come to Him is because we see it (and Him) through the eyes of fear to some degree or another. This is involved in creating the two main groups that Paul is addressing in this book. The first group reacts in fear by openly rebelling against their skewed picture of God and plunging into all sorts of sin and self-indulgence to try to find satisfaction for their emptiness. The religious “right” take a different tack, but because they are still viewing God through eyes of fear they plunge into a life of attempted obedience, appeasement, manipulation or even Spirit worship in their attempt to get themselves saved. But because their hearts and minds are still viewing God through distortions and lies of the Accuser they have the underlying motive of fear which always brings torment to their hearts in one way or another.

There is only one way to enter into salvation and it does not use fear to bond us to God and to each other. God is love, and His Son Jesus is a perfect reflection and demonstration of that love. That is why the only way to heaven and to God is through Jesus. We must be swallowed up in that love and flushed clean of all the fear and its associated torment. Ultimately the great divide will not be drawn between those who performed well and those who didn't, but between those who have allowed love to suck them up into its vortex of passion leaving everything else behind, and those who cling to their fears and reject the notion of love being enough.

Father, this is too big for me to wrap my mind around. Please capture my heart, my affections and suck me up into the passion that You have for me. Make me an instrument of influence, and example of Your transforming grace and the power of Your love today. Live in my heart and make these words a reality in my life.

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