No Condemnation-Romans 8:1 ESV

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

This verse of encouragement follows on the heels of the apostle Paul describing the spiritual struggle he experiences in Romans Chapter 7. In Chapter 7 Paul states that he agrees that the law is good, but he doesn’t seem able to obey the law. He states that what he wants to do he cannot do, and what he does not want to do, he does.

We all struggle from this same predicament. We want to do what is right but somehow end up doing the wrong we do not want to do. This is known as internal spiritual warfare. Every believer suffers from this.

Isn’t it encouraging to know that the apostle Paul had the same struggles that we do? However, the apostle Paul knew where these struggles came from and who the answer to these struggles is. The answer is Jesus Christ. When Paul asks in Chapter 7 who can deliver him from this body of death, he then answers the question by acknowledging Jesus Christ as the answer.

Jesus took our sins to the cross with him and paid the penalty for them. Because of his redemption, we have no condemnation, even though we still sin. The difference between the redeemed and the unredeemed is that the redeemed realize they are sinners and do not want to sin, even though their sin nature is still active.

As Paul says: Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord we are able to serve the law of God with our mind even though we serve the law of sin with our body unwillingly. The redeemed person’s desire is to serve the law of God, the unredeemed serves the law of sin with no thought to do otherwise. The unredeemed will be condemned, the redeemed will not. Come to Christ today and receive God’s forgiveness.