The Christian Life - Research Paper Example

? THE CHRISTIAN LIFE First Middle initial and Number and March 24, TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………….……3 II. THESIS STATEMENT.……………………………………………………………….……3 III. JUSTIFICATION AND SANCTIFICATION..…………………………………….……...3 IV. INDWELLING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT…………………………………………………..4 V. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE INDWELLING HOLY SPIRIT AND CHRISTIAN OBEDIENCE………………………………………………………. …………….………..5 VI. HOLY SPIRIT AND THE LAW………………………………………………………...….9 VII. PAUL’S TEACHING REGARDING OFFERING OUR BODIES TO GOD…………….10 VIII. PAUL’S TEACHING REGARDING TRANSFORMATION OF THE BELIEVER.……11 IX. VIEW OF CONTEMPORARY EVANGELICAL CHURCH ON THE HOLY SPIRIT....12 X. CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………..………………...13 XI. BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………………….……14 Introduction Throughout the scriptures, God is referred to as Holy and His holiness provides the motivation for sanctification – a process by which God has chosen to create a people for Himself. God is not only the “motivation for holiness, He is also the agent of holiness”1. Since God is holy, He requires His children also to be holy and it is He who enables them to become holy with the help of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is therefore the sanctifying agent that enables believers to be transformed. It is of vital importance that believers cooperate with and obey the Holy Spirit to experience Christ like living. Even though the Holy Spirit empowers the believers, the transformation into Christ like living will not manifest unless they willingly surrender and cooperate with the leading of the Holy Spirit. This is important as the goal of every conversion is for believers to be transformed into the likeness of Christ. This is clearly stated in Romans 8:29 (New International Version) which says, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Holiness involves putting to death the sin nature which God has already sentenced to death on the cross and living the new life that is indwelt by the Holy Spirit.2 Thesis Statement Accepting the scriptural truth that a believer is united with Christ and has the power to walk the victorious Christian life by surrendering to the indwelling Holy Spirit is the key to be transformed into the image of Christ. Justification and Sanctification In the book of Romans, Paul introduces two aspects pertaining to holiness – justification or positional sanctification (Rom 1-5) and experiential sanctification (Rom 6-8). Justification is the legal title declaring that a believer is now holy and righteous and is accomplished by the believer simply placing their trust on the finished work of Christ at the cross, whereby God’s holiness and righteousness is imputed on the believer. Experiential sanctification is the process of being made holy to align with the new legal identity of the believer and is manifested by the believer’s surrender and obedience to the Holy Spirit. It is therefore an important aspect of God’s redemptive plan and the primary work He does to develop godly character in His people. Indwelling of the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit is central to Paul’s theology. Throughout his writings, Paul emphasizes that the Holy Spirit is granted to all believers in Christ. He underscores that being a Christian is not just accepting certain truths about Christ but rather to have an indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This is clearly recorded in Rom 8:9 which reads, “You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.” Therefore having the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the distinguishing characteristic of a Christian and to be without the Spirit is proof that we do not belong to Christ. The indwelling Holy Spirit indicates three things3: 1. Intimacy: When the Holy Spirit resides in a believer, He begins to manifest His power and presence in the believer. 2. Constancy: The Holy Spirit dwells in the renewed heart of the believer as an inhabitant and therefore they are His permanent abode. Therefore His influence is constant and continual and not short term. 3. Sovereignty: The sanctified heart of the believer becomes the residence of the Holy Spirit where He commands and governs according to His will. Therefore flesh and sin has no part in the life of the believer. Therefore, within the believer, the Holy Spirit promotes the desires, attitudes and behaviors which are in harmonious relationship with the person and teaching of Jesus Christ. However, these changes in the believer can be accomplished only when they choose to obey the direction of the Holy Spirit instead of the prompting of fleshly desires. Relationship between the Indwelling Spirit and Christian Obedience The book of Romans was written to believers, as is indicated by the term ‘saints’ (Rom 1:7) and ‘in Christ Jesus’ (Rom 8:1). Paul uses the term ‘In Christ Jesus’ to refer to justification or positional sanctification. In Romans 7, Paul highlights his agonizing struggle with sin which prevented him from accepting his new spiritual identity of being a “saint” who is holy and righteous. In Romans 7:18-20 Paul makes this confession, “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do – this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.” The gap between being justified and the manifestation of the new spiritual nature is highlighted in the above verses as the old sin nature still seems to be very dominant. Romans 7 ends with a cry of desperation and a great revelation on Gods solution to overcome this situation which results in Paul thanking God when he writes, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” One of the key doctrines of sanctification is that the believer understands his true identity of being united with Jesus Christ. Prior to becoming a believer, the person is united with Adam and shares the nature of sin and condemnation. This relationship with Adam is severed at conversion and the believer is united to a holy and sinless representative - Jesus Christ with His sinless nature becoming the believer’s true nature. The implication of this is the believer is ‘dead to sin’. In Romans 6:3, Paul says, “Or don’t you know all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?” Paul elaborates further saying, “Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Rom 6:11). The reality therefore is that “We were therefore buried with him through the baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life” (Rom 6:4). At this point of a believer’s life when he/she is united with Christ, the Holy Spirit begins to work in the inside and the believer begins to work it out. Therefore sanctification is a process of working out the implications of the believer’s union with Jesus Christ and that is why we can say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13). In Romans 8, Paul goes on to explain in detail on how the believer’s transformation to their new spirit nature takes place and thereby presents the process of the believer experiencing sanctification (experiential sanctification). In Roman 8:1-17, Paul describes the freedom a believer experiences from the law of sin by the Holy Spirit and stresses on the importance of obedience to the Holy Spirit, the agent for transformation, and the futility of living a carnal life in accordance to their old nature. An exegetical look at Romans 8: 1-2 will help understand how the Holy Spirit works in believers to help them lead a life of Christian obedience. Paul writes, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.” These versus clearly emphasize that there is nothing a believer can do to become sanctified but it is what God has already done in them through the agency of the Holy Spirit as a result of the finished work of Christ. Paul elaborates on living a life led by the Holy Spirit by declaring that “there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:1). This verse is followed by the reason why this declaration is true and “sums up in a striking way Paul’s teaching on sanctification.”4 Paul writes, “Because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death” (Rom 8:2). The word ‘law’ in this verse is most likely not in reference to the Torah or any of the Old Testament commands but symbolically refers to the law of sin or the control that is exercised by sin on the fallen world. The inevitable consequence of being under the authority of the law of sin is death. However, Paul says that “in Christ Jesus”, i.e., based on what God has done in Christ, the authority exercised by the Holy Spirit has liberated the believer from the authority of the law of sin. In Romans 6:22, Paul writes, “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.” Just like the freedom from sin mentioned in this passage leads believers to holiness and eternal life, freedom from the law of sin mentioned in Romans 8:2 was affected in Christ Jesus and the benefits of this freedom is applied to all the believers by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.5 The phrase “through Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:2) underscores the prior work of Christ based on which the Holy Spirit can work. Romans 8:1-2 refers to the Holy Spirit as “the Spirit of life”. This is the most important description of the Holy Spirit since it represents the Spirit of the living God and the source of life to all who live, especially the believers.6 This life therefore comes as a result of the transforming encounter that people have with Jesus Christ, an encounter which is guided by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the Holy Spirit makes the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ real in an experiential way to the believer, which in turn liberates them from their sinful life. When the victory of Jesus Christ over sin becomes a reality for the believer, they are able to live in Christian obedience and stop sinning (Rom 8:2). Jack Hayford (1995) describes this experiential sanctification as “The work of God’s grace by which the believer is separated from sin and becomes dedicated to God’s righteousness. Accomplished by the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, sanctification results in holiness, or purification from the guilt and power of sin.” He goes on the say that, “Sanctification is instantaneous before God through Christ and progressive before man through obedience to the Holy Spirit and the Word.” Sanctification therefore is a progressive work done by the indwelling Holy Spirit over the course of our entire life and not something that happens instantaneously. This process of being made holy would result in a changed lifestyle for the believer. In the Greek, “has set free” (Rom 8:2) is written in the past tense thereby affirming that this freedom has already been accomplished.7 Once a believer is liberated from the law of sin and death, they are now empowered by the Holy Spirit to obey – something which they could not do when they were slaves to sin. However, although believers live under this new order, they sill have to live in a world which is under the old authority. Therefore, the Holy Spirit brings believers to a point where the reign of sin in their life has ended but its presence has not yet been eliminated.8 Paul writes that, “Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation – but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live” (Rom 8:12,13). The use of the term ‘flesh’ is central to Paul’s theology and reflects the old and weak human nature which is in direct confrontation to the new spirit nature. Paul elaborates further that the Holy Spirit causes believers to understand and do the desires of the Holy Spirit and disregard the desires of the flesh. He tells us that during the process of sanctification, God the Father begins to set us apart for Himself and transforms us into becoming more holy instruments of righteousness for His use. This is however not an easy process since the ‘flesh’ that was crucified with Christ can be a hindrance to the believer. The victorious Christian life that comes with this new life is therefore a life of choosing to obey the guidance of the indwelling Holy Spirit. As believers live a life under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and grow in their Christian faith and obedience, they begin to manifest the life of Jesus in their lives and live a transformed and victorious life. Therefore, in his writings Paul teaches that sanctification is very important in the life of a believer and it can be brought about only by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. It not only brings people to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ but it also imparts Jesus to them and directs them to live a life of Christian obedience. Believers also have a role in the sanctification process and that is to choose to follow the direction of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Believers are therefore not forced by the Holy Spirit but they are enabled by the Holy Spirit to demonstrate the person and character of Jesus Christ in their lives. This is the relationship between the indwelling Holy Spirit and Christian obedience that Paul emphasizes throughout his writings. Holy Spirit and the Law God’s law reveals the standard of righteousness and this law is holy, righteous and good. However, the strength of sin and weakness of flesh does not allow a person to attain this standard of righteousness. That is the reason why Paul states that the flesh cannot please God (Rom 8:5-8). In Romans 8:3-4 Apostle Paul writes, “For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” In these versus Paul explains that the purpose of God sending His Son was “to condemn sin in the flesh” (Rom 8:3b) in order that the requirement of the law may be fulfilled in “us” (Rom 8:4a). Therefore God sent His Son to do what the law could not do in securing salvation and He sent the Holy Spirit to do what the law could not do in terms of attaining true righteousness.9 The Holy Spirit therefore is God’s provision for righteous living and encourages every believer to obey the demands of the law. In fact, this is precisely what God had promised in Ezekiel 36:27 where He said, “And I will put my spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” Therefore, the indwelling Holy Spirit helps the believers to do what God has decreed and this is something that the law could never do. The purpose of the “law” therefore is to expose sin, prompt repentance and lead the sinner to the saving grace of Jesus Christ who gives eternal life to all believers. Obedience to the law in itself does not help in attaining Christ-like holiness but it is a guide to the Christian life. Progressing in the Christian walk is a gift of grace through faith and not the works of the law. Therefore the law allows believers to know God’s will while the Holy Spirit empowers them to live and do things in accordance to their identity in Jesus Christ. Paul’s Teaching Regarding Offering our Bodies to God Paul emphasizes in his writings that believers are not obligated to the flesh but to the Holy Spirit that dwells inside them. He reminds believers that giving in to the flesh causes one to sin and fear condemnation. In Romans 6:21 Paul questions, “What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!” He emphasizes that the flesh instigates us to do things that we will later be ashamed of and finally leads us to death. On the other hand, if we are obligated to the Holy Spirit, then we will have eternal life. In Romans 6: 13, Paul writes, “Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourself to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness.” Through this verse Paul informs the believers that they have a choice to either live in obedience to the Holy Spirit or give into their old nature i.e flesh. Paul emphasizes that although the believers are empowered by the indwelt Holy Spirit, it has little effect if believers do not choose and act accordingly. Once a believer chooses to follow the Holy Spirit, they are dead to their fleshly desires and as they follow the prompting of the Spirit they offer their bodies to God as living sacrifices. Paul emphasizes that offering one’s body as a living sacrifice is “holy and pleasing to God” and that “this is your true and proper worship” (Rom 12:1). Paul qualifies the sacrifice that believers offer with their bodies with the adjective “living” which refers to the very “nature of sacrifice: one that does not die as it is offered but goes on living and therefore continues in its efficacy until the person who is offered dies.10 Paul’s Teaching Regarding Transformation of the Believer In Romans 12: 2 Paul says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” The word “transformed” is present passive indicating that it is not something that the believers have to actively pursue but rather passively receive. Paul states that the Holy Spirit is God’s instrument to accomplish this transformation in the lives of every believer. The Holy Spirit is the sanctifying agent and He is always in warfare against the desires of the flesh. However, the Spirit is more powerful than the flesh and can progressively put it out of action in those believers whose lives are yielded to the Spirit.11 That is the reason why Paul says in Romans 7:22 that the new spirit-nature in the believer “delights in God’s law.” The transformation of the believer can be compared to the horticultural process of grafting where once a twig is grafted on a stock, the stock looses its identity and the tree begins to be called by the name of the new engrafted twig. Similarly, the new nature manifested by the indwelling Holy Spirit begins to dominate the old sinful nature. The indwelling Holy Spirit which takes up residence in a new believer is far more dominant and powerful to overpower the hold of the sin nature. Believers, who recognize this awesome truth of the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, will automatically begin to cooperate with the Holy Spirit knowing that they can truly be sanctified. However, this is a conscious choice that the believer has to make. Therefore, the key to a changed life lies in the transformation of the will of every believer since we choose what we prefer.12 View of Contemporary Evangelical Church on the Holy Spirit One of the prominent issues in contemporary evangelical churches is the struggle of believers accepting the legal declaration that they are justified and that they are indwelt by the Holy Spirit. They constantly find themselves overpowered by their old nature. This has led to the evangelical ‘seeker friendly’ churches to place lesser importance on preaching of the cross and justification and on the other hand to give greater importance to ‘righteousness by works’ and ‘seeking the Holy Spirit’s presence’ in a latter experience. Superficial understanding of one's sinfulness will lead only to shallow repentance. The believer will continue to be under the illusion that he is essentially good at heart and therefore his salvation will rest on his efforts to be holy rather than trusting the finished work of Christ.13 As a result believers have attempted to make themselves holy through human efforts and got trapped in the bondage of legalism. Paul in his teachings clearly state that believers are legally justified i.e., they are declared holy and righteous simply because of their faith and not by any acts of righteousness. In fact, Paul emphasizes that “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom5:1). He also says, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom 8:1). These foundational truths can only be realized in a believer if he/she simply accepts it by faith. Everything in scripture, including justification (salvation) is manifested only through faith. Paul states in Ephesians 2: 8-9 that, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” Therefore contemporary evangelical church has a view point that is opposite to what Paul taught in Romans. In order to correct this situation, churches need to place great emphasis on proper Bible teaching where the authority of the word of God is placed at the highest level and the experience of believers at a lower level. As justification is a spiritual experience with no outside manifestation, believers need to be taught to place their faith on the Word of God rather than their feelings. It is only by faith that they will begin to experience the out flowing of the indwelling Holy Spirit which will empower them to align with the sanctification process in obedience to the Holy Spirit which God intends. Conclusion In Romans, Paul assures believers of their unity with Christ and the certainty of the sanctification process for a surrendered life to the indwelling Holy Spirit. Paul lays the foundation of a believer’s true identity that they are ‘dead to sin’ and no longer in Adam but in Christ under the influence of the Holy Spirit. By choosing to obey the direction of the Holy Spirit, the believer can progressively overcome their fleshly desires as the Holy Spirit is far more powerful than the flesh. The Spirit initiates, guides and empowers the actions of the believer so that they transform into the image of Christ. Every believer therefore is obligated to surrender to the direction of the Holy Spirit over the desires of the weaker flesh. The importance therefore is not on whether the believer can but whether the believer is willing to surrender daily to the Holy Spirit. Bibliography Bruce, F. F. Flesh and Spirit. The Highway. (n.d.). http://www.the-highway.com/ articleAug03.html (accessed March 22, 2012). Cottrell, Jack. The College Press NIV Commentary: Romans. USA: College Press, 2005. Cranfield, Charles E B. Paul's Teaching on Sanctification Reformed Review 48 (Spr 1995): 217- 229. Fee, Gordon. God's Empowering Presence. Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994. Ferguson, Sinclair. The Holy Spirit. Dowers Grove: IVP, 1996. Hayford, Jack. Hayford’s Bible Handbook: The Complete Comparison for Spirit-Filled Bible Study. Thomas Nelson, 1995. Holloman, Henry. The Forgotten Blessing. Nashville: Word Publishing, 1999. Hutchinson, Fred. The Crisis of Christianity: Part 2 (June 2009), Renew America, http://www.renewamerica.com/analysis/hutchison/090601 (accessed March 23, 2012). Moo, Douglas J. The Epistle to the Romans. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1996. Peterson, David. Possessed by God: A New Testament Theology of Sanctification and Holiness. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995. Pink, Arthur W. The Holy Spirit. Grace Baptist Church of Woodstock, 2002. http://gbcwoodstock.com/eBooks/pdf/Pink-HolySpirit.pdf (accessed March 19, 2012). Schreiner, Thomas R. Paul, Apostle of God's Glory in Christ. InterVarsity Press, 2006. The Holy Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Bible Publishers, 1978. Read More