This continuation of "Don't Be a Romans 7 Christian" focuses on Romans 8:6, "The mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace." This statement articulates the intentional effort required of every believer to engage the mind on the Spirit. We are free to engage either one, and intentional choices to live for Christ lead to substantial victory over the flesh. The victorious message of Romans 8:2 is that Christians have ACCESS to a higher, more powerful source to live according to the Spirit, "The Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death." All believers experience the tug-a-war between these two competing principles (Romans 7:14-25), but Christians who INTENTIONALLY engage the mind set on the Spirit access the power to get victory over the flesh. Unfortunately many believers resign themselves to being Romans 7 Christians because they are unaware that they've been liberated. This freedom however requires intentional engagement with the Spirit. The last 20 minutes of the episode provides practical tips on how to set the mind on the Spirit.
Another casualty of sin-obsession: love of neighbor
This episode builds on the last two, in which a misplaced focus on sin distorts the central purpose of salvation, which is to serve the living God. In addition to rehashing the consequences of this misplaced focus, whether one apparently gets the victory over sin or not, this episode addresses how this approach undermines love of neighbor. Being sin-focused and not God-focused gets projected on one's neighbor, potentially leading to a judgmental attitude towards neighbor because the primary lens for the self-absorbed Christian has become victory over sin. A service orientation towards God is much more conducive to love of neighbor.
Evil within is the Real Issue
This episode unpacks the Micah 6:8 inversion that characterizes the misplaced focus of identity politics. Micah 6:8 commands believers to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with their God. The distorted version of Micah 6:8 operative in identity politics, and sadly to say among many carnal evangelicals, is "demand justice from others, love mercy for yourself (not so much for others), and use God accordingly. Solzhenitsyn noted the tendency among all men to address evil out there without dealing with the evil within.