Romans 8:9–12 (ESV)
Life in the Spirit (Part 2)
9 You, however,
are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
In today’s
reading, it says “the Spirit of God dwells in you!” Wow! In fact, it says “Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.” I look at this that it is like a light switch. It is either on or off.
There is no kind-of-sort-of. The Lutheran Study Bible states: “Because Christ justifies sinners, God’s life-giving Spirit dwells in believers. He frees us from the bondage of sin and death. Those who are preoccupied with satisfying their
selfish desires often become angry with God and rebel against Him. God promises release from this deadly cycle and brings life and peace.”
I pray: O Father, by Your Spirit, direct our hearts to
Christ, where true joys are found. Amen.