Romans 8: No condemnation

Captain Richard Nunn considers the possibility of living guilt-free.

Key text

• Romans 8:1–17

Whenever I read the start of Romans 8, I always find myself singing a song. Back in the 1700s, a man called Charles Wesley wrote a hymn in celebration of his newfound faith in Jesus. He would go on with his brother, John, to found the Methodist Church, in which The Salvation Army had its roots. The hymn is called ‘And Can It Be That I Should Gain?’ (SASB 241) and reflects Paul’s words found in Romans 8:1: ‘Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.’

Pause and reflect

• Take a moment to sing or read Wesley’s hymn. Then meditate on the lyrics: ‘No condemnation now I dread; / Jesus, and all in him, is mine. / Alive in him, my living head, / And clothed in righteousness divine, / Bold I approach the eternal throne / And claim the crown, through Christ, my own.’

In Romans 8, Paul starts by talking about the weight of sin and mistakes. He explains that the Law that God put in place was intended to help people know right from wrong, and that this also addressed how to deal with the problem of sin. Often, this is called the Old Covenant that is found in the Old Testament. God made promises to love and care for his people, but also gave clear guidance on how they should live. The Old Covenant recognised that people just can’t help themselves and will always mess up. However, God provided a way for people to repair the relationship with him through sacrifices and rituals. The Old Testament tells of the cycle of people being right with God, only to fall back into old ways of sin. They would then have to go through the rituals and practices that would put them right with God according to the Old Covenant laws. This happened, time after time, for generations.

Then, Jesus became human with a mission to address the strained and broken relationship between God and humankind. Jesus came to show the world that God was active in love and faithful in presence. Jesus also came to free the world from the weight of sin, through his death and resurrection. Throughout the Old Testament, there are many verses that foretell Jesus’ mission. His mission was to bring in a New Covenant that removed all barriers between God and his people.

Living on the small island of Jersey, where we are surrounded by amazing beaches and turquoise water, I feel very connected to the sea. The island has so many beautiful beaches. It also has one of the biggest tidal ranges in the entire world. Some days, the difference in sea level changes by 12 metres from low to high tide. At high tide, the waves are splashing over the sea walls. At low tide, some beaches stretch out for up to two miles. Twice a day, we have enormous high tides that retreat to reveal new, spotlessly clean, sandy beaches. The power of the sea is relentless as it cleans the beaches and washes away anything in its path.

One of the Old Testament passages that resonates with me points towards the coming of Jesus and his mission: ‘You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea’ (Micah 7:19). Think of the sea clearing the beaches, day in and day out, and it can help us begin to understand the extent of forgiveness that Micah expresses. God washes away our messups, bad choices and selfishness, leaving behind something spotless and perfect, again and again. We are made clean – we no longer face condemnation.

Pause and reflect

• Take a moment to picture sea washing over a beach, leaving it clean and perfect.
• Ask God to take away those things that you know leave your relationship with God strained or damaged and to give you a fresh start.

In our study passage, Paul goes further, describing the biggest turnaround we can imagine. God does not stop at removing any condemnation towards us. As we put our trust in Jesus and allow the Holy Spirit to dwell in us, God gives us a new identity. We go from the fear of judgement and condemnation to being welcomed and adopted into God’s family as his children. Paul reminds us: ‘Those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God… The Spirit you received brought about your adoption… The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children’ (vv14–16).

We are no longer weighed down by our past, nor are we excluded or cut off from God. Instead we are elevated to be members of God’s family and co-heirs with Jesus himself. FF Bruce in his commentary Romans explains that, in the Roman world of the first century AD, the image of slaves being set free would have been easily understood. Bruce then explains that an adopted son was a son who was deliberately chosen by his adoptive father to perpetuate his name and inherit his estate. The adopted child was in no way inferior to a biological child, and there was something incredibly special about being chosen. We are chosen to be co-heirs with Jesus. How mind-blowing is that!

Pause and reflect

• Look at yourself in the mirror.
• You are loved so much that God restores rather than condemns you.
• God welcomes you as a valued and beloved member of his family, totally forgiven and accepted.
• Remember God’s promise and remind yourself – you are the child of a King.