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Longing for Something, Part 3
It’s time! We’re finally going to look together at the long-awaited conclusion of Romans 8! These verses are full of comfort, promise, and peace, and I can’t wait to share them with you. But glory shines brightest against the dark backdrop of sin, and Romans 8 is no exception. I think the dismal context of these magnificent verses is Romans 7, where Paul is lamenting his seemingly-incurable addiction to sin.
“Wait, what?” some of you may be thinking. “Last week you said that it was unbelievers who set their minds on the things of the flesh. Believers set their minds on spiritual things, right? Surely Paul was exaggerating his struggle with sin.” Believe me, I’ve thought so too. But when you read the verses that I’m talking about and really consider your own heart, you might find that his lament is pretty relatable.
The Sickening Draw of Sin
See, he’s been talking about the difference between the Law (the commandments and expectations of God) and sin itself (the breaking of these laws). He wanted to clarify that it’s not the Law’s fault that he keeps on sinning. It’s the fact that he’s made out of flesh and lives in a fallen world with sinful desires. “For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate” (Rom. 7:14-15).
He doesn’t want to keep on sinning; in fact, he hates it! But he says, “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. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want” (v. 18-19). No wonder he cries out in despair, “Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?” (v. 24)
Who Will Set Me Free?
And honestly, who hasn’t felt that way before? We are weak, miserable, fallen creatures in a world 
full of temptations and seductions of all sorts. We’re like Christian and Faithful in Pilgrim’s Progress, surrounded by the dazzling city of Vanity Fair. But rather than replicating the spiritually-mature response of Christian and Hopeful, we fall prey to the enticements. We sell our innocence for some entertainment and our convictions for a laugh. We know better, but still we do it. Often, we too should find ourselves crying out, “Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free?”
And this question, dear friends, leads us to an answer more astounding and glorious than we’d ever have the gall to imagine on our own.
No Condemnation in Christ
The One Whom we have disobeyed, dishonored, and disowned is the One Who willingly paid for those sins. God Himself offered His only Son, and Jesus Himself offered His life willingly in order to break the power of sin and death over us.
The One we want to hide from is the One who sought us out in order to forgive us! That’s why Paul answers his own question of who will deliver him with the shocking reply, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (v. 25a)
And that verse leads directly into chapter 8, where Paul begins his discussion about our longings with this unbelievably-comforting truth: “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). Wait, did you get that? There is NO CONDEMNATION for believers! We deserve the ultimate punishment for rebelling against the ultimate King. And yet, because of what Jesus did on the cross in our place, we face NO CONDEMNATION! Now that’s something worth celebrating.
A Better Longing
Chapter 8 goes on to discuss our new longings in light of this truth: when we fully realize the reality of our position not as slaves to sin but as sons and daughters of God, we will gradually replace our addiction to sin with a longing for perfect completion in Him. Will we still struggle to want the right things all the time? Absolutely. But will our deepest longing continue to be for the trinkets offered at Vanity Fair? By God’s grace, absolutely not. We will still struggle daily with sin, but our deepest longing for consummation—for being conformed to the image of Jesus—will daily get deeper.
That’s why, after discussing the depths of our longing for consummation and deliverance, Paul is able to confidently affirm that “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28). Yes, we are still living in a fallen world with sinful desires, but that’s not our ultimate destiny. If we love God, it’s because God Himself predestined, called, and justified us in order that He may glorify us in the end (v. 30). All things, even our brokenhearted longings, will work together for our good and His glory.
A Glimpse of the Glory
Guys, I wanted to take a hundred more paragraphs to really unpack the ending verses of Romans 8. I wanted to revel together in the truth that God is for us, that Christ intercedes for us, and that the Spirit assures us that nothing—nothing—can separate us from the love of God. I wanted to spend forever talking about the unfathomable truth that God gave His own Son for us and will therefore also freely give us all things. I wanted to celebrate the way that, in Christ, we are more than conquerors in our struggles, turning what should distance us from God into tools that drive us closer to Him.
But then I realized that, not surprisingly, Paul says it better. So rather than watering down the potency of the passage with my own words, I think I’ll leave you with the ending verse of Romans 8. I pray that your heart will be amazed by this fabulous fireworks finale and that your love for God will be deepened by His love for you.
Romans 8:31-39
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?
Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.
Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, ‘For your sake we are being put to death all day long; we were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.’
But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
2 Comments on “Longing for Something, Part 3”
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AMEN!!! Nothing can separate us from the love of God! We have such power over our sin but we struggle to tap into that. Our flesh is always waring against us. It’s so easy to see that when you read these powerful passages from Paul. Thank you for this awesome reminder from Romans 8!