Daily Devotions
Filled with the Holy Spirit
"Not in the flesh but in the Spirit..."
Text: Romans 8:9
AN IMPORTANT REMINDER
We have an important reminder as to who we are, if we truly speak of faith in the Lord.
“But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit,
if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.
Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ,
he is not His.”
Romans 8:9
1. It is important that we remind ourselves that we are the children of God
a) We have received Christ Jesus as our Saviour and Lord.
b) We have been born again of the Spirit of God.
c) We express our faith in Christ by following Him as His disciples.
2. “But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit”
a) The contrast must be borne in mind consciously.
b) “In the flesh” suggests that the individual is carnally minded.
c) “In the Spirit” suggests that the individual is conscious of the Spirit of God in his life.
3. “If indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you”
a) The word “if” does not express doubt.
b) It was written as a conditional sentence for good reason.
i) If indeed the Spirit of God indwells.
ii) And He does dwell in the true believer.
iii) This being the case there should be positive ramifications.
iv) It is astonishing that the Spirit of God would indwell the believer at all.
4. “Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ”
a) The use of the word “if” does not suggest doubt or uncertainty.
b) The individual should be able to tell whether the Spirit of Christ is indwelling him.
c) If he has truly come to faith in Christ he has become a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17).
i) Old things have passed away (one of those things is “the carnal mindset”).
ii) All things have become new (This means the individual will be “spiritually minded”).
5. “He is not His”
This is a sobering word to read. To be carnally minded means that we do not have the Spirit of Christ indwelling us. It further means that we do not belong to the Lord Jesus Christ at all. The Spirit of God is then not our Seal nor our Guarantee of salvation in Christ Jesus!