Outline
Ⅰ
God’s eternal economy is to dispense Himself as the law of the Spirit of life into man so that His divine attributes of righteousness, holiness, and glory would become man’s human virtues for God’s corporate expression as the reality of the Body of Christ in the local churches to consummate the New Jerusalem as the city of righteousness, holiness, and glory—Gen. 2:9; John 10:10b; 14:6a; 1 Cor. 15:45b; Rom. 8:2; 2 Pet. 3:13; Rev. 21:2, 9-11:
A
God’s desire is to work Himself into us to the extent that He becomes us and we become Him, that we and He become completely identical in life, nature, and image; this is the pinnacle of His economy—John 1:12-13; 2 Pet. 1:4; 2 Cor. 3:18.
B
Man was created in the image of God as a living vessel to receive and contain God as life for the reproduction, the duplication, of God in life—Gen. 1:26; 2:7; Rom. 9:21, 23; 2 Cor. 4:7; John 12:24.
Morning Nourishment
Rom. 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life has freed me in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and of death.6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace.
This term [the Spirit of life] is used only once in the entire Bible. In the book of Romans the term the Spirit of life is not revealed until 8:2. However, before chapter 8 we do have several references to the divine, eternal, uncreated life. The first occurrence of this word life in the book of Romans is in 1:17, which says that the righteous shall have life and live by faith. The word life in this verse denotes the divine life. The second occurrence of this word in Romans is in 2:7, where we are told that “to those who by endurance in good work seek glory and honor and incorruptibility, life eternal.” If we continually seek God, He will give us life eternal. Romans 5:10 says that we will be saved in His life, and 5:17 tells us that, after receiving the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness, we will reign in life. Romans 5:18 mentions justification of life, and 5:21 says that grace might reign unto eternal life. In 6:4 we are told to walk in newness of life. Romans 6:22-23 says that eternal life is the end of sanctification and that the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Thus, in the first six chapters of Romans, there are many references to the divine life. Life is the goal of God’s salvation. God has redeemed us, justified us, and reconciled us so that we might share this life. Once we receive it, we should be saved in life, reign in life, walk in newness of life, and be sanctified in life. (Life-study of Romans, pp. 162-163)
Today’s Reading
In Romans 1 through 6 Paul refers to life nine times. Now, in Romans 8:2, he suddenly joins life with the Spirit in the phrase the Spirit of life. The way to have life is the Spirit. The way to be saved in His life is the Spirit. The way to reign in life is the Spirit. The way to walk in newness of life is the Spirit. The way to be sanctified in life is the Spirit. The Spirit is the way. Life belongs to the Spirit, and the Spirit is of life. These two are actually one. We can never separate life from the Spirit, nor the Spirit from life. The Lord Jesus Himself said, “It is the Spirit who gives life…the words which I have spoken to you are spirit and are life” (John 6:63). In this word the Lord Jesus connected the Spirit and life. If we have the Spirit, we have life; if we do not have the Spirit, we do not have life. If we walk by the Spirit, we walk in life, but if we do not walk by the Spirit, we do not walk in the newness of life. Thus, the way to experience the divine, eternal, uncreated life is the Spirit.The word life is used four times in Romans 8. Verse 2 mentions the law of the Spirit of life. Romans 8:6 says that the mind set on the spirit is life. In Romans 8:10 we are told that if Christ is in us, our spirit is life because of righteousness. Romans 8:11 says the indwelling Spirit will give life to our mortal bodies. The first time life is mentioned in this chapter, it is connected to the Holy Spirit, the second time it is related to our mind, the third time it is associated with our spirit, and the fourth time it is a matter of our body. Romans 8 unveils a fourfold life. First, life is the Spirit. Then the Spirit comes into our spirit to make our spirit life. Then the Spirit spreads from our spirit into our mind to make our mind life. The Spirit even imparts this life into our mortal bodies to make the body of sin a body of life. We have a fourfold life. The focus of it all is the Holy Spirit indwelling our spirit. This life will spread from our spirit into our mind and throughout our whole soul, even reaching all the members of our body. Eventually, our whole being will be filled with life, and we will be a man of life. Have you ever seen this? We may call this the fourfold life. The Spirit is life, our spirit is life, our mind is life, and even our body is of life. Thus, the connection between Romans 8 and all the foregoing chapters is life plus the Spirit. (Life-study of Romans, pp. 163-164)
Further Reading: Life-study of Romans, msg. 14