What does it mean to be alive to you? Do you distinguish between merely existing and really living? Is that distinction based on what you do or the possessions you have? Is it based on the relationships you have? Is one of those relationships your relationship with God?
We hear about quality of life. We may think of it from several different perspectives. Perhaps as part of end-of-life care. Perhaps as a work-life balance. It may include the location and size of the house we live in. It may include the job we have and the salary we receive.
Living the lives we are given includes many facets of life. For most of us, it does not include living in fear for our lives because of our faith in Christ. However, as Paul was writing to the Christians in Rome, persecution was a real concern. The early church was often misunderstood by those who were not part of it. They were accused of incest, being cannibals, and being atheists to name a few.
When Paul writes to the church in Rome the Spirit gives them life, he was trying to allay their fears. He was encouraging them to hold on to their faith. It is also an encouragement for us. To know the Holy Spirit gives us life is a comforting thought. The promise Paul repeats in today’s passage is a promise of resurrection. The same promise Jesus gave in John 11:25-26. It is a promise of eternal life spent with God. It was a reminder that the life we currently live is temporary, regardless of its length of time.
One other facet of the reminder Paul gave the church in Rome is that Christ has set us free. He not only set us free from our sins, but He set us from the oppression of this world. As we listen for the Holy Spirit and follow his guidance, we are set free from the desires to follow along with cultural norms. We can live a life that is truly free.
I pray we all take comfort in knowing the Holy Spirit gives us life. I pray we allow the Spirit to guide our lives. I pray each one of us realize we have been set free and live in our freedom. Be comforted. Listen for the Spirit’s guidance. Know you are free. Live in the freedom Christ has given you.
Romans 8:11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.
Marty Pressey 