Read: Romans 8:1-8
By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh. (v. 3)
The word “condemnation” appears three times in Romans 8. First, as the assurance of our faith: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (v. 1). Last, to remind us who alone has the right to condemn. “It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn?” (vv. 33-34). In between comes confirmation for us of the reality that condemnation has already occurred. “He condemned sin in the flesh” (v. 3).
The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, which sets those who believe in Christ free from the condemnation their sinfulness deserves, did not do away with condemnation altogether. Instead, God has redirected the object of condemnation, shifting it from those who do the sinning to sin itself. “He condemned sin in the flesh.” Sin gets what it deserves. Sin is given its own consequence. Sin experiences itself what it intended for all of us, namely, condemnation.
God the Son took on flesh and blood to do for us what we could not do for ourselves. He condemned sin in the flesh, that is, in his own flesh, by dying. Christ’s death earns forgiveness for sins and at the same time puts sin itself to death. The good news of the gospel is that not only are we free from condemnation but also the sin that seeks to destroy us has been sentenced to death.
As you pray, thank God for doing for you what you could not do for yourself.
About the Author
Jonathon Brown is the lead pastor of Pillar Church in Holland, MI. Jon and his beloved wife, Kristyn, are the proud parents of four daughters.
