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Scripture Reading: Rom. 8:6, 10-11
Romans 8 is a rich, mysterious, and abstract word. The first eighteen verses are especially abstract and mysterious because the main components of these verses are the Spirit and life. We may know that this chapter covers the two spirits—the Spirit of God and the spirit of the believers—but these two spirits are mysterious and abstract. The Spirit, who indwells us as the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, and the Spirit of the resurrecting One, is altogether mysterious and abstract. Furthermore, our spirit is the most abstract and mysterious part of our being. First Peter 3:4 says that our spirit is the hidden man of the heart; therefore, it is something within our heart. Our heart is quite mysterious and abstract, but within our heart is our spirit, which is more abstract and mysterious. Life also is abstract and mysterious. Even our physical life is difficult to comprehend. Scientists and medical doctors cannot adequately define the human life. Romans 8 speaks of the divine life, the uncreated life of God, that was given to us at the time we believed in Christ. Such a life is much more mysterious than the human life.
The first half of Romans 8 concerns mainly the Spirit and life, which are critical, central, and practical. However, most Christians rarely consider the Spirit and life. Even when we are revived and stirred up to love the Lord, we usually do not consider the Spirit or life. Instead, we spontaneously consider our behavior, deeds, and conduct. When we are cold toward the Lord, we do not care much about our conduct. However, when we have a heart for the Lord and begin to care for the spiritual things, we immediately begin to consider our behavior, conduct, and deeds. We often make up our mind and pray for the Lord’s grace and mercy to help us behave better and improve our conduct. Perhaps we make up our mind to be kind, respectful, and loving toward our family members. To consider behavior and conduct rather than the Spirit and life shows that we are superficial and childish in the spiritual things.
God’s way is the way of life. Life is not conveyed to us by teaching or doctrine but is imparted to us through, by, and with the Spirit. Romans 8:2 uses a unique title for the Spirit—the Spirit of life. The threefold Spirit mentioned in verses 9 and 11—the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, and the Spirit of the resurrecting One—is the Spirit of life. In a phrase such as the Spirit of life, according to Greek grammar, the nouns are in apposition. Thus, the expression the Spirit of life indicates that the Spirit is life, that the Spirit and life are one. In the same principle, the expression the Spirit of God means that the Spirit is God, and the expression the Spirit of Christ means that the Spirit is Christ. Likewise, the expression the Spirit of the One who raised Jesus from the dead indicates that the Spirit is the resurrecting One. Therefore, the Spirit is life, God, Christ, and the resurrecting One.
Verse 2 also reveals that the Spirit conveys life. Just as the current of electricity conveys electricity, the Spirit of life conveys and imparts life into our being. The Spirit who indwells us infuses the divine life into every part of our being. Our concept is that we need to improve our behavior, conduct, and deeds, but God’s concept is to infuse Himself into us as our life supply. Therefore, we must have a change in our concept. When we are revived, we should not think about our behavior but should pick up God’s concept to consider the inner life supply.
Our spirit needs the supply of life. Our mind, emotion, and will—our entire soul—also need the infusion of the divine life. Our body also needs the life supply. Verse 10 says, “If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness.” Christ is in us, and He is the life supply to our spirit. Verse 10 does not say that our spirit is living but that our spirit is life. Living is a condition, but it is not life itself. Our spirit is life because Christ, who is within us, supplies our spirit with life, causing our spirit to become life. Verse 6 says, “The mind set on the spirit is life and peace.” Thus, our mind also is life. Verse 11 says, “He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies.” Life is supplied to our spirit, mind, and mortal body.
When we contact the Lord in the morning by reading His Word or praying to Him, we do not need to consider how to improve our behavior, conduct, or deeds. Instead, we should consider only our need for the life supply. We need to realize that the life supply to our body for the things of God is very lacking, the life supply in our mind is insufficient, and even the life supply in our spirit is quite poor. To think about our behavior or conduct when we touch the things of God is a distraction and a subtle deception from the enemy. Whenever we touch the things of God, we need to realize that God wants to supply us with life and that the life supply is within us. In order to receive the supply of water from a water hose, we need to open the hose. Likewise, we need to touch our spirit to receive the bountiful life supply of the Spirit who flows within our spirit.
When our spirit is short of the life supply, it is like a flat tire, which is short of air. We need to open our mouth and our entire being and cry to the Lord from the depths of our being, “O Lord Jesus!” If we are concerned about the sound of our voice bothering others, we can call softly yet intensely. When we cry in this way, we will immediately sense life flowing from the depths of our being to supply, refresh, water, and strengthen us. This is life supplied to our spirit. When we begin to receive this supply, we need to stay open to allow the supply of life to come in for as long as possible so that we may receive more of the life supply.
Paul wrote Romans 8 not only according to his vision and revelation but also according to his rich experience. In verse 6 he says that the mind can be life by being set on the spirit. According to verse 5, to set our mind on the spirit is to mind the things of the Spirit. The spirit is mysterious and abstract, but the things of the Spirit are solid and concrete. According to the revelation in Romans and 1 Corinthians, the things of the Spirit are the things concerning Christ. In John 16:13-14 the Lord said, “When He, the Spirit of reality, comes, He will guide you into all the reality...for He will receive of Mine and will declare it to you.” This means that everything the Lord is, has done, and will do has been given to the Spirit. The Spirit’s responsibility and function are to reveal to us all the things concerning Christ. Christ is both God and man. He is the Redeemer and the Savior, and He became the life-giving Spirit in resurrection. Christ was with the Father in eternity, and He has been given the Father’s glory. We need to set our mind upon such things, the things concerning Christ.
Very few of us constantly set our mind upon the things concerning Christ. However, the human mind is never vacant. Our mind is always busy and occupied with something. The lowest people have their mind occupied with gross sins. Others’ minds are occupied with money and material things. Still others are occupied with their academic or professional accomplishments and positions. Some are occupied with fashions and style. Many years ago in Shanghai during a message Brother Watchman Nee asked a sister, “How many buttons are on your dress?” She was able to answer immediately, but when he asked her how many chapters there are in Matthew, she was unsure. This proved that her mind was occupied with her clothing but not with the Word of God. We need to set our mind on the spirit by setting our mind on the things concerning Christ. Morning to evening, whenever we are awake, we need to set our mind on Christ and the things of Christ.
The mind set on the spirit is life and peace (Rom. 8:6). With our spirit there is only the need of life (v. 10), but for our mind we need life and peace because our mind is complicated and is a troublemaker. If our mind is set on the flesh, we have death and enmity (vv. 6-7). Death is versus life, and enmity is versus peace. We do not have peace with the Lord when our mind is occupied with things other than the Lord. Our mind should be set on Christ even while we are driving our car. Christ should be the sole occupant of our mind. When our mind is occupied by other things, our mind is full of enmity with God, others, and even ourselves. However, when we set our mind on the things of Christ, we enjoy peace with the Lord, with others, and with ourselves.
The flaming darts of the evil one always come through our mind (Eph. 6:16), but our mind will be protected if we set it on the things of Christ. When we set our mind on Christ, we will sense that our mind is refreshed, enlightened, and made sober and transparent. When our mind is refreshed and enlightened, it refreshes and enlightens our heart and the rest of our being. Life supplied to our mind is enlightenment, transparency, peace, and tranquil enjoyment.
It is easy to see from our experience that we need life to be given to our mortal body. We may feel that we are tired and need to rest when we try to read the Bible or pray, but if we begin to read the newspaper or receive a phone call, we may suddenly feel that we have more energy. For the things of the flesh and entertainment, our body is very strong, but for the things of God, such as prayer, reading the Bible, and fellowshipping with the saints, our body is dying. This is because we lack the life supply in our mortal body. If we open to the Lord, the all-inclusive Spirit within us will transfuse life into our weakened body. Our body will be strengthened and full of life energy for the things of God. Thus, the typical situation will be reversed—if we are strengthened with life, we will feel tired when we pick up the newspaper, but we will feel enlivened when we pick up the Bible. We will feel weak and exhausted if we stay home from a meeting, but we will be vigorous and full of energy if we attend the meeting. We need life to be supplied to our three parts—spirit, mind, and body—by the all-inclusive Spirit of life.
When we come to the Word and the meetings, what we need is the life supply. Teaching alone does not work. A sister may be taught for years that wives should submit to their husbands. After hearing this teaching once again, she may repent and pray for the Lord to help her to submit to her husband. However, it will not be long before she rebels against her husband again. It seems that we cannot make it. When we pray, we open to the Lord, and the life supply flows within. Then, because we are filled with life and peace, we believe that we can behave according to the teachings in the Bible. However, we receive the life supply only when we are praying. When we rise up from prayer, the supply ceases. Thus, it is easy for us to fail and be discouraged. The secret is to keep ourselves open.
We need to open to the throne of grace, which is within us because the all-inclusive Spirit dwells in our spirit. If we simply remain open to this indwelling Spirit, the life supply will continually spring up from within our spirit. The more we turn our mind to the things of Christ and dwell on the things of Christ, the more supply of life we will receive. Our mind will be renewed, transformed, and made transparent, becoming the mind of Christ. The life supply in our mind will then water our entire being.
Thus, the way to live the Christian life is simply to remain open to the life supply from the Spirit in our spirit and to set our mind on the things of Christ. In this way, wives will spontaneously submit to their husbands, and husbands will spontaneously love their wives in a genuine way. We will be supplied not only in our spirit and in our mind but also in our mortal body. Many times I have been too exhausted to speak a message, but the life supply was given to my mortal body. Then as I ministered the word of God, my mortal body was supplied with strengthening life. The all-inclusive Spirit supplies life to our spirit, mind, and body.
The more supply of life we receive, the more we will be transformed. Transformation is not outward improvement but real change from within. A spiritual metabolism will work in our entire being to change us by supplying a new element and discharging the old element. The proper Christian life is not to change our outward conduct but to be transformed by the all-inclusive Spirit of life supplying the divine life with its new element into every part of our being.
