Paul’s approach to the Gospel was from a point of view somewhat different from today’s religious teachers. Today’s teachers tell us to accept Christ so we will be “forgiven and go to Heaven and escape hell.” This type of teaching of escapism leaves out the real purpose of the gospel. Yes we are forgiven but what about the ability to live an abundant spiritual life through Christ? What about our becoming Kings and priests as the Word states? Paul teaches us as believers to embrace deliverance from the body of this death, not just forgiveness through Christ. The deliverance which Paul experienced was not available under the Law of Moses. Paul’s goal was the pursuit of the high calling of God in Christ which is to become a king and priest. The Word tells us if we are Christ’s that we have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts not that it will be. Our part is to believe God that we are free to live life sinless.
Gal 5:24 24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
What this scripture is telling us is that through baptism into Christ, the power of our flesh has been removed. The knowledge of the Law is what gives our flesh its strength to bring us into sin. It is Satan who tempts us and it is our own lust that draws us away to sin. When we transition from the Law to Grace through Christ we are free from the power of sin and death. In Christ we are free to choose to make righteous decisions of faith in following the Spirit of God. Take Abraham’s example of belief in what God had said to him. Abraham knew if he sacrificed his son God would raise him up. Why? Because the nations would be blessed in Isaac as the promised son that Christ was to come through. . It was Abraham’s belief in what God has promised that was accounted to him for righteousness.
Romans 4:3 3 For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness."
Like faithful Abraham when our actions follow our belief then our belief is accounted to us for righteousness. If we continue in sin our belief is lacking truth and our actions demonstrate this to the world. When we believe God’s spoken word we are free from sin and death and our lives demonstrates this belief.

When we choose to make decisions after the flesh we are giving place to the devil and this gives him the opportunity to devour us. We are to submit to God and resist the devil.
1 Peter 5:5-10 5 Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for
"God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble."
6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. 8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. 10 But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.
It is Faith or belief in God’s Word that says we are free through Christ. It is residing under grace that maintains our freedom from the powers of darkness. Possessing all of the world’s goods will not bring peace, joy and righteousness in the Kingdom of God. We must find contentment in all of our circumstance. Unless we experience both lack and abundance how can we say “I know how to be abased and I know how to abound?” True happiness is not found in the abundance of things we might possess. The true pursuit of life, liberty and happiness is in God through Christ, not in things of the world. It is the cares of this world that choke out the truth and our life in Christ.
Mark 4:19-20 19 "and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20 "But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."
Phil 4:12-13 12 I know how to be abased and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
It is godliness with contentment that is to be counted as great gain. Possessing and abundance of this world’s good does not prove godliness or a lack of godliness in anyone’s life. The abundance of the world’s riches may just choke out the life of God.

Until we understand Paul’s teaching thoroughly about the need to abstain from sin, we will keep on with our destructive interpretation of truth that says we are saved by faith alone. We say “I believe therefore I am saved.” I say, “I am saved therefore my faith is demonstrated by my life.” What is misunderstood is that “saved” is not a position in Christ but my present condition of being free from sin and its consequences by grace through faith. We are saved by grace through faith, not by faith alone as some believe and teach. Grace to stand free is accessed by faith. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.” To say we are saved by faith alone rejects the power of grace to save or justify us from the sins committed under the law. We are delivered or saved from this body of death through Christ who is the life giving Spirit who quickened our body to life. It is under the power of grace through the seed of faith that we are saved from fulfilling the desires of our sinful nature.

If the Law has the power to make sin abound, then grace has the power to make freedom abound. Under the Law we are led by the knowledge of “thou shall not.” Without the knowledge of the Law we would have not known sin.
Romans 7:9-11 9 I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. 11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me.

When today’s teachers say that we must tithe because it is in the Law, to do so would not make anyone righteous. The danger is that this action could make sin abound in their life. Our righteousness is in Christ apart from the Law to those of us who believe. Is it wrong to tithe, no? Is it expedient to teach tithing from the Law, no? Let each one give as he purposes in his heart. This freedom under grace gives us the choice.
2 Cor 9:6-7 6 But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.
Because we are at liberty under grace to remain free from the knowledge of sin we must be free to follow the Spirit.

Under grace we are led by the Spirit and our knowledge is freedom from sin and death. It is in residing under grace and following the Spirit that we have overcome the evil one and maintain our body a living sacrifice. Looking to the Law for dos and don’ts will make sin abound. Sin will abound because the commandment will be revived and sin will abound once again. We are at peace with God through Christ not through the Law.
Romans 5:1-2 1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
The faith of Christ gives us access to saving grace which gives us the ability to stand justified from the power of the Law of sin and death. Now having been justified from all things under the Law we can choose to be led of the Spirit and be free from the desires of the world, flesh and the devil. It is in the knowledge of God written in our heart and placed in our mind that the Spirit leads us and that makes us free.
John 8:31-32 31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
It is in the power of grace through faith that we are able to stand free after having been delivered from the body of this death. Having been delivered from this body of death is the state of having been justified from sin and death under the law. This state of justification or “saved” is from the power of sin and death that came through the knowledge of the commandment.

Now that we are saved or justified we are a new creation in Christ. It is our new creation that must be led by the Spirit to remain free from being entangled again by the body of this death. If I continue in my old habits after receiving Christ I fail to fill my new wineskin with the new wine of the Spirit. New wine must be placed in a new wineskin. The new wine will cause the old wineskin to burst. Until I follow after the new wine of the Spirit I cannot remain free from sin and death. My new nature must be filled with the living word of God to maintain this new Eternal life in me.

It appears that Paul and those he preached to were coming to the Lord from a somewhat different point of view than today’s believers. Paul taught that we could be free from our sinful nature not just forgiven. Because Christ is the fulfillment of the law there remains no more sacrifice for our sins if we continue in sin willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth. Now we must confess our sins one to another and pray one for another that we might be healed. Why do I say this, because once we give place to the devil there are times we need each other to speak in faith for our release from darkness.
Heb 10:26-27 26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.
James 5:15-16 15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
To be found in the righteousness of Christ we must be free from sin because there will never be another sacrifice for sins. Now that we have accepted the reconciliation to the Father through Christ, if we sin we must confess and repent by bringing our sins to our advocate for the blood to cleanse us.
1 John 1:8-10 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
The Word of God is written to those who have become believers not to the world. When the teachers of today say our sins do not matter because we are under “favor,” they turn grace into a license to sin. Grace is not the liberty to continue in sin but the freedom to live life sinless through Christ. The teachers who say our sins do not matter are deceived and are deceiving the body of Christ. We do not experience having crucified the body of this death by ignoring our sinful nature. It is because of our refusal to acknowledge our sins that has caused many to be weak and sickly among us in the body of Christ.
1 Cor 11:28-32 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. 30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
It is the lack of knowledge of God that has caused many to be weak in the faith and become sickly. There really is a famine on the Word of God today. We can no longer say that our sins do not matter unless we want to be judged accordingly at the judgment seat of Christ. If our sins of today do not matter as some teach, why is there so much stated in the Word about the consequences of sin under the new covenant of Grace?
Heb 10:29 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?
Our sins do matter because by remaining in sin we reject the ability that God gives us to live life free from sin in Christ. The free gift in Christ is the power to experience the beginning of Eternal life now. The payment for continuing in sin is the loss of an abundant spiritual life now.
1 John 2:28-29 28 And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. 29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.
Eternal life is free and the Word tells us to reign in our life sinless through this free gift of grace. We cannot earn eternal life. We must learn to follow in the footsteps that lead to life in Christ.

Christ’s gift to us is the inheritance of eternal life; spirit, soul and body. There is very little said in the Old Testament or the New about God's salvation having to do with gaining eternal residence in Heaven when we fall sleep. There is however scripture stating that we will be receiving a glorified body at the return of Christ if we accept the reproving of our sins now we will be sons of God now. Those who have presented their bodies a living sacrifice now will receive a glorified body at Christ’s advent. What we must begin to understand is that there are those who will be the nations of them saved and those who have become sons or kings and priests.
Rev 1:6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Paul is reasoning with us who know the Law concerning the conflict between our sinful nature and the desire of the Spirit of God. Presenting our body a living sacrifice is a Decision that we must make every time the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life attempt to draw us into sin. If we are drawn into sin we must confess so the blood of Christ can cleanse us. If we refuse to acknowledge our sin we are rejecting the free gift of righteousness in Christ because our belief is not based on the Word of God.
Gal 5:17 (NASB) 17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.
Paul’s conclusion is that the Law, because it could not make any one perfect pertaining to the flesh, produces death without providing a means of deliverance from the knowledge that forces us to continue in sin. The provision in the Law was a yearly remission of sins, not the deliverance from the power of sin. If it had provided freedom from the knowledge of sin there would have been no need for another sacrifice. Paul is speaking of a salvation that would deliver him from the power of his sinful nature, deliverance from yielding the members of his body to sin that caused death in him. Paul could not resist the law of sin and death as long as he maintained the knowledge of the Law in his mind. Paul is seeking to reign over his sinful nature and not to be overcome by sin. Paul found this freedom from the law under grace through faith in Christ.
Romans 5:16-17 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. 17 For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.
Romans 5:20-21 20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
Heb 10:1-2 1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. 2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.
Paul makes this statement, "Who will deliver me from the body of this death?" His intention in this statement is to point us to the deliverer, Christ not for us to serve the Law. Our choice is to serve righteousness or serve sin. Which ever one we serve, its servant we become. What we must understand is that Paul was not seeking forgiveness at this time. His desire was for deliverance from the power of sin that tempted him to serve sin. Paul knew that forgiveness or remission of sin was in the blood of Christ. Paul now acknowledged experiencing the deliverance from the power of sin and death when he thanked God for Christ. Paul had now experienced the freedom in Christ from that which made him do what he didn’t want to do and not to do what he wanted to do.

Paul knew, as we should, that our deliverance from the power of sin is in surrendering to the power of grace. Christ delivered us from the power of the Law when we were baptized into His death, burial and resurrection. It is in this baptism into Christ that we leave the power of the law of sin and death and move under the liberty of grace. Grace is not the liberty to sin without consequences. It is the freedom to live life sinless which is “spiritual life and that life more abundantly.”

5 For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. 6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.
Romans 7:5-13 7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. 8 But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence (a longing for what is forbidden). For without the law sin was dead. 9 For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. 11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me. 12 Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. 13 Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.
For years Christianity has been preached as a means for the forgiveness of our sins without confessing them. This forgiveness without confessing is for the sins committed under the Law before we came to Christ. As we first come to Christ we do not need to confess our sins, just acknowledge that we are sinners in need of a savior.
Romans 3:25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,
What has not been preached is the empowering of believers to be free from the body of this death from the Law. Now days the Lamb of God is presented as the One who forgives the sin of the world rather than the One who takes away the sins of the world. In Christ we not only have forgiveness of sins but the ability to live sinless in this life by residing under grace and by obeying the leading of the Spirit. Part of the leading of the Spirit is to reprove us of our sins when needed. Under grace all things are legal but all things are not expedient or profitable for eternal life. This is why we need to be led by the Spirit so that we do not fall into condemnation because of our liberty. This is why the Word says not to use our liberty for an occasion for the flesh.

What is preached today is mostly “Law”, the power that draws us back into sin and death. The Law is not our guide in Christ, the Spirit is. We are supposed to leave the Law behind and serve righteousness after the Spirit. If we continue to serve the Law we are not able to serve Christ in righteousness because the law draws us into sin. Because we are found to be sinners we are serving sin instead of righteousness. God’s provision to us is the power of grace to serve righteousness and live life in spiritual abundance.

What purpose would it serve to forgive our past sins under the Law and leave us bound to our sinful flesh to live in continual spiritual death through sin? There would be no “life and that more abundantly” if we were left bound to our sinful nature. Paul answered his own question of “who shall deliver me?”
Romans 7:24-25 24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.
Paul is saying he was delivered from the power of the commandment that produces all manner of sin and death in him. Through Jesus Christ we are free from sin and death if we follow the leading of the Spirit. Paul is not saying he is bound by the dominion of sin any longer because he is bound to Christ and surrendered to grace. Paul reiterates the problem of sin and the need for us to find this same deliverance in order to live life sinless through the Spirit of life in Christ.
Romans 8:2-3 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
Paul is not stating he is remaining bound to his sinful nature but just the opposite. What Paul is saying is as long as he allows his mind to be bound to the Law of Moses he is bound to sin and death. Paul is telling us that it is through the law of the Spirit of life in Christ that he is free from the power of the law of sin and death. Does this sound like someone who is still bound to his sinful nature? I think not. Can we still believe that there will be no consciences for our sins of the flesh? Hardly.
Romans 7:14-25 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. 16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. 17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.
Paul answered his question of who was going to deliver us from this body of death. The answer is Jesus Christ has already delivered us from the power of sin and death. I say this because we are not under the dominion of the law but under the dominion of Grace if we are led by the Spirit? When we surrender to grace we discover the freedom to choose obedience that the righteousness of faith requires. The righteousness of Christ was His complete obedience to the Father. The gift of righteousness is the ability to obey the Spirit strengthened by grace.
Romans 8:1-4 1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: 4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
What the Apostle is telling us is that we will not experience condemnation if we walk not after our flesh but after the Spirit. As we walk after the Spirit we no longer serve sin but serve righteousness. Paul’s question of who is to deliver me is identifying who he was before he received Christ not after. After we receive Christ we are no longer bound to our sinful nature if we avoid the Law and obey the leading of Spirit to maintain new life in our body. The key to our liberty is faith in the Word of the living God. The Word says we are free, so we must be free.

If we do sin the blood is there to cleanse us as we confess our failures to obey righteousness that faith requires. What does the righteousness of faith require? It requires that I reign in this life through Christ. How do I reign? By obeying the Spirit as He leads me in the paths of righteousness I reign in life. This is what it means when it says “the just shall live by faith.” To be just I can not look to the Law of commandments for my righteousness. To be just I must believe that I am free from sin and death and live righteously.

If we continue in sin where the faith is we boast so much about possessing? It is not as though our flesh does not exist because it does. But because of the indwelling Christ and the power of grace we are free to serve God in righteous behavior. The righteous acts of faith do have a glorious purpose in God and Christ. Our righteousness acts are what keep our garment clean and white.
Rev 19:7-8 7 "Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready." 8 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
I guess the question I would ask is, If the bride’s fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints and the body is still living in sin, what is the bride clothed in?

So the Apostle Paul, after identifying the need for deliverance from his sinful nature, proceeds to tell us how deliverance from the power of sin and death comes through obedience to the Spirit and receiving the abundance of grace. Paul assures us that even though we are not observing the letter of the Law of Moses, we are without condemnation and guilt if we obey the Spirit. This imparting of the gift of righteousness comes only as we obey the voice of the Spirit of God instead of looking to the Law for righteousness.

The error of today's Christian preaching is that God assigns righteousness to us merely because we have made a profession in Christ. This belief is not complete because faith without works is dead. To say we believe and continue in sin would be faith that is dead because it has not the righteous works that faith requires. Paul’s teachings demonstrate to us that our righteousness of faith is based on our obedience to the Holy Spirit in avoiding sins of our flesh.
Romans 8:3-4 For what the law could not do, in that rather it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: 4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
The righteous requirements of the Law are fulfilled in us only on the condition that we are not living life according to our sinful nature. To be of faith we must live life according to the Spirit of God. For us to live without the consequences of sin remaining in the present we must confess our sins and be cleansed as the Spirit reveals them to us. If we confess our sins we are cleansed and are living sinless because our sins are under the blood of Christ.

We see from Paul’s experience that the battle is in our mind. What fills our mind is what controls our actions? Is the law filling our mind to judge and condemn others and ignore our own sins? Is our mind filled with the things of the world and the desires of a carnal mind? Or is our mind filled with the things of the Spirit of God that produces life and liberty through faith?

Yes, we have been forgiven through the blood of Christ for the sins committed under the Law of Moses. Now we must learn to live life under the law of the Spirit of life in Christ. We too can live a life free from sin if we pursue it in Christ and appropriate it through the provisions supplied by God in Christ.
Romans 8:5-9 6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. 8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. 9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man has not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
In America we are plagued with spiritual death all around us. There is a vacuum caused by moral decay drawing the weak into sin. The emphasis on material success and the gaining of great wealth produces spiritual death because it draws us away from Christ. Much of what is taught in the public schools and universities produces spiritual death to those who don’t know the difference.

We are to come out of the world and touch not the unclean thing. Even in America, we can work in this world or go to school, and in our heart and mind be separate from this world. It is not easy to live in the world and be not of it, but it is possible as we go to the throne of grace and ask for help in time of need. One of the problems in the world is the lust for everything we see. We don’t need it but we covet it.

Heb 4:15-16 15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
We see that God has not left us to struggle without His strength. The good fight of faith is to present our bodies a living sacrifice without spot or wrinkle to Christ. These spots and wrinkles are from following our fleshly nature. God has provided everything we need to live a life that is pleasing to Him. The Father did not sacrifice Christ so we could continue in an unrighteousness life style. The gift to us is His Spirit by which we are made in His image. Christ lived sinless by His obedience to the Father. He freely gives us the ability to live our life in obedience to our Father. We too, will learn obedience by the things we suffer. Through this suffering we will become the sons of God as well.

The world will never obtain life and peace because the path to life and peace is through the Spirit of life in Christ. When our mind is surrendered to the Spirit we are able to experience an abundance of grace. We find peace, joy and righteousness in the Kingdom of God through the Spirit of God. We cannot enjoy the fruit of the Spirit until we experience having been delivered from the body of this death. We will not experience freedom until we believe it is ours in Christ. One of the ways to be carnally minded would be to disagree with the truth just because we have not experienced it. The truth will not be experienced until it is believed and acted upon.
Romans 8:7-8 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is n

Today’s teachers tell us to accept Christ so we will be “forgiven and go to Heaven and escape hell.” This type of teaching of escapism leaves out the real purpose of the gospel. Yes we are forgiven but what about the ability to live an abundant spiritual life through Christ? What about our becoming Kings and priests as the Word states? Paul teaches us as believers to embrace deliverance from the body of this death, not just forgiveness through Christ.
 

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