We are facing a terrible disease and we even face possible death, however because Christ was condemned so we do not have to be, as Christians who are in Christ our condemnation was dealt with on the Cross, we will never face any condemnation.
Romans 8:1-4 (ESV)
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
Paul began this part of his letter with a thunderous declaration of freedom in 8:1.
“There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Like always when studying the Bible when we see the “therefore” we must ask what the “therefore” is there for. In this case it is pointing back to what he says so triumphantly in verse 25 of the previous chapter. Paul proclaims what was the solution to his battle with besetting sin. Paul had been attempting with all his human strength of will and mind to keep the Law and serve God. But he continually fell short and sinned and did not serve God as he wanted to. Is God going to condemn Paul for all his failures in his struggling? Is God going to condemn Paul because he failed to do the will of God in his flesh? No!
“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” God never condemns us for striving to serve Him. Even if like Paul we attempt to live out of the power of the flesh. In our attempts to serve God we might fail and fail, but God will not condemn us for it when we stand before the judgement seat of Christ.
Yes there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For those of us who have accepted Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Lord, for those who have transferred their trust for their eternal salvation from themselves and from anything they can do to Christ. Who place their faith in who He is and what He has done – there are no condemnations. God will not judge us for our sin, He will judge us concerning what we have done for Him. The Christian’s judgment is one of ascertaining rewards (Mk. 9:41) not a judgment of condemnation.
We do not need to fear what comes after death because we do not face a judgement of condemnation. Whatever happens to us during this pandemic, sickness even death none of this will lead to condemnation but instead to a judgement of reward. As believers we do not need to fear what the Coronavirus can do to us because it will only end with us receiving a reward in heaven.
But for those outside of Christ Jesus they will be condemned, for there is salvation in no one else. For there is no other name given among men whereby you must be saved. God will condemn those who reject His love offered in the dying of His Son on the Cross for their sins and acceptance. Those who are not saved should fear this disease, death is final for them and a judgement of condemnation is coming. Therefore, as believers we should be striving even more during this period to reach out to them in love and tell them of their only hope in Christ and the only way to escape fear.
Consider
- Have you truly discovered what Paul has here? That sin rules over our old nature, our flesh.
- Will you, like Paul, make a decision. Will you live in ourselves in our old man or we can yield to God and live in Christ Jesus.
Respond
Like Paul, we also often fail, but our failures, like his, will not be held against us for we have found the way of forgiveness and victory. Like Paul we must surrender and live a life “in Christ.” In this time when death can seem so close let’s remember how Paul expressed this same discovery in Philippians 1:21, “to live is Christ to die is gain”.
Let’s listen to the words of this song and make these words from Philippians take hold of our lives…
For those who may have lost loved ones, fellow believers, to this virus think of the truth song in the second verse.
And though we grieve for those we love
Who fall asleep in Christ
We know they’ll see the Saviour’s face
And gaze into His eyes
So now we grieve, yet we don’t grieve
As those who have no hope
For just as Jesus rose again
He’ll raise His own
And let us all remember that we have no reason to fear the things of this world.