The Holy Spirit frees and helps us
Daily Scripture
Romans 8:1-5, 22-27
Did You Know?
When the apostle Paul dictated this letter, he did not pause after Romans 7:25 and say, “Chapter 8.” “In the early 13th century, the Archbishop of Canterbury… Stephen Langton invented a new way to subdivide the books of the Bible into a more digestible format: the chapter.” * Romans 8:1 was not a new subject, but the result of Jesus’ salvation laid out at what we call “chapter 7:24-25.”
1 So now there isn’t any condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 God has done what was impossible for the Law, since it was weak because of selfishness. God condemned sin in the body by sending his own Son to deal with sin in the same body as humans, who are controlled by sin. 4 He did this so that the righteous requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us. Now the way we live is based on the Spirit, not based on selfishness. 5 People whose lives are based on selfishness think about selfish things, but people whose lives are based on the Spirit think about things that are related to the Spirit.
22 We know that the whole creation is groaning together and suffering labor pains up until now. 23 And it’s not only the creation. We ourselves who have the Spirit as the first crop of the harvest also groan inside as we wait to be adopted and for our bodies to be set free. 24 We were saved in hope. If we see what we hope for, that isn’t hope. Who hopes for what they already see? 25 But if we hope for what we don’t see, we wait for it with patience.
26 In the same way, the Spirit comes to help our weakness. We don’t know what we should pray, but the Spirit himself pleads our case with unexpressed groans. 27 The one who searches hearts knows how the Spirit thinks, because he pleads for the saints, consistent with God’s will.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
Paul contrasted a life oriented toward self (Greek “life in the flesh”) and a life the Holy Spirit oriented toward God. “When Paul uses the word ‘flesh’… he does not intend us simply to think of the ‘physical’ world…. ‘flesh’ refers to people or things who share the corruptibility, mortality and rebellion of the world…. ‘Spirit’, by contrast, usually refers to God’s own spirit, the holy spirit.” ** He saw the Spirit as a constant companion, connecting us with God even when we’re not sure what to say or how to pray.
- In Romans 8:3, Paul wrote that God sent “his own Son to deal with sin.” Moralistic religion often deepens guilt by implying it’s your job to “deal with sin” on your own. He also said in 8:26-27 that when you feel overwhelmed or unsure how to pray, the Spirit “pleads your case.” How might acknowledging the Holy Spirit’s presence give you greater peace and confidence when you face difficult situations or moments of uncertainty in your daily life?
- In Romans 8:23 Paul called the Holy Spirit the “first crop of the harvest.” Elsewhere he called the Holy Spirit the Greek word arrabōn (“down payment”). “When God anoints someone with the spirit, Paul declares, this is the first part of the gift which will be completed in the resurrection itself. If the Christian hope is founded on Jesus’ own resurrection, that hope becomes a real possession within us through God’s gift of the spirit.” ** Can you trust that every good life change the Spirit brings is a “down payment” on your eternal resurrection life with God?
Prayer
Gracious God, how I look forward to eternity with you. Thank you that your presence with me in the Holy Spirit lets me begin to “taste” what that glorious eternity will be like. Amen.
GPS Insights
Brandon Gregory
Brandon Gregory is a volunteer for the worship and missions teams at Church of the Resurrection. He helps lead worship at Leawood's modern worship services, as well as at the West and Downtown services, and is involved with the Malawi missions team at home.
I have bipolar disorder. I’ve written many times about my depression, but I’ve rarely spoken of the other side of the disorder: mania. Depression is a problem with the brain’s serotonin and dopamine receptors, so things that are supposed to give you feelings of happiness or accomplishment instead make you feel nothing. The problem is reversed with mania: the brain’s serotonin and dopamine receptors are hyperactive. It can sometimes feel like a superpower. But with unfounded happiness comes recklessness; with unearned accomplishment comes arrogance. Depression is dangerous, but mania can be dangerous in completely different ways.
Medical descriptions aside, bipolar has given me a unique perspective on faith. Since I run hot and cold, I cycle through periods of overconfidence and self-doubt. I’ve noticed that the more overconfident I am, the better I assume I follow the rules. Depression makes me hyper-aware of my flaws. It’s a whirlwind readjusting my self-image, but I get a very clear look at two tendencies we all struggle with in our faith.
Unlike me, Paul was a certified expert in Biblical law—he knew very well what was considered God’s will and what was not. In today’s passage in Romans, Paul admits that his confidence in the law was overconfidence and even the best understanding of the law was not only insufficient but could be actively harmful. He says that even a religious expert like him doesn’t know what to pray for without the Holy Spirit’s help. This is a radical change of position for Paul.
When I was growing up, I really struggled with this passage. How could I not know what I needed to pray for? I thought I knew exactly what I should pray for. I knew it better than anyone else. I was much older when I realized that my confidence in knowing what I should pray for was based on overconfidence in my understanding of what God wanted and needed. I had to realize the same thing that Paul did: no level of Biblical knowledge and pontificating provided a 100% foolproof means of knowing what God’s will was in every situation.
If Paul’s knowledge of the Bible was insufficient, we all need help. The Holy Spirit is admittedly a difficult concept to grasp, but simply knowing that God’s listening even when we’re not saying the right words is deeply reassuring. I still run through my periods of hot and cold, but we all struggle with being overconfident at some times and doubtful at other times. The times I feel nothing could possibly be wrong are the times I need to be the most careful. Overconfidence requires hypervigilance. But even when I fail and God’s will goes right over my big head, the Holy Spirit makes sure God knows what I really need—and makes sure it’s available to me.
© 2024 Resurrection: A United Methodist Church. All Rights Reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References
* From https://www.biblegateway.com/learn/bible-101/bible-verses-and-chapters/.
** Wright, N. T., Paul for Everyone: 2 Corinthians (The New Testament for Everyone) (p. 14). Westminster John Knox Press. Kindle Edition.
