Romans 8: 12 - 17
Brothers and sisters!
So then, brothers and sisters, we are obligated, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh - for if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs: heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if we in fact suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
How would we answer if someone came to us with the question: Do you still want to live? Maybe there are people among us who are already tired of life, for whom life is more of a burden and they no longer enjoy life. But I think most of us would answer this question with a resounding yes. I still want to live because... And then there are many different answers. Some people still want to enjoy life; the other still has a lot to do; the other wants to expand his business; another wants to accompany his children through life, at least until they are independent. Why do you actually want to live?
Today it's about the purpose and the meaning of our lives - how would you describe the purpose of your life? It's about us living in such a way that at the end of our lives, and who knows when that will be, we can say that it was a meaningful life - my life was worth it. So, the question really is: How do I have to live not to miss this purpose of my life?
Our text tells us today: We get a worthwhile life, the life we are actually looking for, through the Spirit of God. We will live, it says, when we put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit. If we ask: How should we live, the answer is contained in this one sentence. This sentence contains the core message about the behavior of a Christian and therefore it should not be misunderstood. You will live if you put to death the deeds of the body through the Spirit. Here we are talking about a fight, a fight against the actions of the body. In this context I would like to share an experience of a missionary from New Guinea.
In New Guinea there was a custom that if the Papuans, the local population, wanted to become Christians, they were given lessons so that they could get to know Jesus, his work and his message. These students were all baptized together on a Sunday. It was always a big celebration. Many heathens also came to witness it. But the crucial thing happened the evening before. A large fire was lit and those who were to be baptized came to the fire. In their arms they had all their idolatry stuff, objects of their witchcraft and their idols. They went to the fire and threw these signs of their old life into the hot flames to burn them and separate themselves from them for good. One day, there was a young woman. She also came to the fire with an armful of idols. But at the moment when she wanted to throw everything into the fire, she couldn’t do it. She must have thought that this is how my ancestors lived, this is what my entire past is connected to, and I can't separate myself from it. She returned and went back again. But then it occurred to her: But then I can't belong to Jesus! She then took three steps forward again, but again she could not separate herself from it and went back once more. The missionary then went to her and said: Think about it again, you can register for the next baptism. The woman thought for a moment and quickly took three steps to the fire, threw the things into the fire and collapsed, unconscious. She had endured a harrowing battle.
Dear congregation, our lives are also about such an absolute struggle. It says we will live when we put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit. The deeds of the body, in Paul, are the things we do when we obey our own voice, the voice of another person, the voice of the world, and not the voice of God. We too have our secret idols. We too must give up our idolatry. For one person it is his own self, for another it is her reputation, status or position in the community, for another it is his money, possessions or success.
We are to put to death the deeds of the body. Does this mean that we should make even more effort to fight evil, make even more effort to lead a decent and exemplary life, have more love, patience, more truthfulness and honesty, more loyalty and devotion, more selfless service and have to make and show greater sacrifices? If we understand this sentence like that, then we are enslaved and eternally unfree people, because then we would never know whether and when we have done enough and can show enough. Then we would be under the demanding and accusing law.
If we have understood this sentence in this way, then we, like thousands of others, have misunderstood one of the most important statements in Christian preaching. The battle in our lives is not that we should defeat and eliminate evil by our efforts, for it is written: We should put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit! So, the fight is completely different, much deeper! It is a battle with God himself. It is the battle over the question of who should be the master in my life, who has the authority in my life, who should rule in my life - God through Jesus Christ, or myself? It is the battle over the question of whether I allow my life to be determined by the Spirit of God or whether I want to determine my life myself. Either the spirit decides or I do. Just as we can't get on a plane with one foot and fly while standing on the airport with the other foot as a precaution, we can't let the Spirit of God and ourselves dictate our lives. Either we get on board completely and fly or we don't get on at all and stay behind. Either the Spirit or me - there is nothing in between. Isn't that often the problem that we are often so lukewarm because we would rather stand in between, a little bit of God and a little bit of ourselves?
I would like to use another illustration: Faith is not about having a beautiful cake with lots of individual pieces. Faith is just not one part of this cake and then there are the many other pieces next to it, such as our thoughts, our circumstances, our injuries and our vindictiveness, our finances, our family, our work, our hobbies and our vacations. No, faith is more like leaven – it permeates everything, it is in every piece of the cake and influences every area of our lives, also, so that there is no difference in our behavior between everyday life and a Sunday. During the week one cheats in the business and on Sunday one sits piously in church, as if the one had nothing to do with the other.
And now one last thing: Does this all mean that we no longer have to do anything? We can answer this with a very clear, and especially as Lutherans, “yes”. The only thing we have to do is let the Spirit of God come into our lives. This is certainly the hardest battle in this world, dying to ourselves so that Christ can live in and through us. So, we are no longer under the pressure of the law, under a bondage that constantly forces us to lead a better life. No, we belong to Christ and allow him to determine our life, our whole life, then we want to praise, thank, glorify and serve him with our whole life - with our money, with our time, with our effort - there is no compulsion any more, but his love drives us. The Spirit of God gives us a new freedom to want to do what is right.
We are children of God - therefore we are also his heirs, heirs of his work of salvation, heirs of his forgiveness, heirs of his love. This is what makes us happy and gives us meaning in life. Isn't that enough reason for us to face the future with all hope and courage, no matter how dark it may seem?
Let us take up the spiritual battle against ourselves, entrust ourselves to Christ so that we can become free and live. Jesus himself expressed these thoughts like this: “...but whoever loses his life for my sake will gain it.” (Luke 9:24).
Prayer: O Lord, let your spirit overcome my spirit. I commit my spirit into your hands. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, may rule and guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen
