Romans 6:6 speaks of “the body of sin” and 7:24, of “the body of this death.” The body of sin is very active and energetic in doing sinful things. In doing the things of God we often feel tired, sleepy, and in need of rest. But when there is the opportunity to do something sinful, the tiredness disappears because the body of sin is so powerful. Although the body of sin is strong, the body of death is weak. In going to worldly amusements the body of sin is active, but in going to the church meeting the body of death is weak. The body of death may cause us to say, “I can’t go to the meeting. I don’t feel well, and my child kept me awake last night. I’m so weak and tired. I need to stay home and rest.” Depending on what it is related to, the same body may be either the body of sin or the body of death. In relation to sin, it is strong; in relation to God, it is weak. When our spirit is quickened, living, and exercised, our body is not tired. But when our spirit is cold, or even lukewarm, we may not desire to go to the meeting, but prefer to stay home and rest. Some sisters may say, “I have been so busy for the last three days that I am exhausted. I can’t go to the meeting; I need to rest.” Although this appears to be a fact, it is actually a false excuse.
As we have seen, in 7:24 Paul cried, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death?” The way to be free from this death is found in 8:2. It is by the Spirit of life. We need to turn to our spirit and walk according to our spirit. Do not believe your feelings of tiredness. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, such feelings are a lie. When it is time to go to a meeting, do not say that you are tired. That is a lie, and you should not believe it. Neither should you try to make up your mind to do something, for that will not work. What we need to do is actually very simple: Turn to the spirit, stay in the spirit, and act, behave, and walk according to the spirit. If we do this, the Spirit of life in our spirit will give life even to our mortal bodies. Those who are burdened by the Lord to fast may go for days without eating and feel neither hungry nor tired, because they are living not by their physical strength but by the strength which comes from within their spirit. The spirit within becomes the source of the power for their living. If unbelievers fast in this way, they may be deadened after just one or two days. But if we, the believers, are led of the Lord to fast and if we fast in the spirit, we may go for many days without any problem. During that time we are living not by our physical strength but by the strength which comes from our spirit. From within our spirit the indwelling Spirit gives life to our physical body. It is in the same principle that we are freed from death.
If we are silent in the meetings, it is a sign that we are under the killing, the deadening, of death. At such times we must turn to our spirit and praise the Lord. If we are tired of attending the meetings, praying, or fellowshipping with the saints, this also is a sign that we are under the killing and weakening of death. If we want to be free from this, we must turn to our spirit and say, “Praise the Lord! Lord Jesus! Hallelujah! Amen!” Immediately you will sense that power and strength from the fountain in your spirit are being transmitted into your mortal body.
Romans 8 is a deep chapter, not only in doctrine but also in experience. The more we experience it, the deeper it seems to become. As far as doctrine is concerned, it is very easy to recite the verses in this chapter. But the experience contained in it is unfathomably profound. It is impossible, for example, to exhaust the experience in verse 11: “But if the Spirit of Him Who raised Jesus from among the dead dwells in you, He Who raised Christ Jesus from among the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit Who indwells you.” This verse reveals that the indwelling Spirit gives life to our mortal body. We must take this verse along with the preceding verse, which says, “If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is life because of righteousness.” Because Christ is in us, our spirit is life, although our body is dead because of sin. Verse 11 says that this Christ, who is the Spirit, must not only be in us, but also indwell us. To have Christ in us is one thing, but to have Christ indwell us is another. In verse 10 we have the word “in”; however, in verse 11 it is no longer just a matter of “in,” but of indwelling. Is Christ merely in you, or is He dwelling in you? We need the indwelling of Christ. For this, we must give Him the ground in our being. Christ is in you, but He may not be dwelling in you because He does not have the ground, the room, in you. If you allow Christ to dwell in you, the indwelling Christ, who is the indwelling Spirit, will impart life from your spirit into your mortal body. This means that the indwelling Spirit will spread Himself from your spirit into the members of your body.
After the indwelling Christ enlivens your spirit, He wants to quicken the members of your deadened body. I have the confidence that you have Christ in your spirit and that your spirit is life, but I am concerned that Christ has not been able to impart life into the members of your deadened, mortal body. On the one hand, our body is a deadened body; on the other hand, it is a mortal body. Praise the Lord that in 8:11 we see the way life can be supplied to our deadened body! The way is to allow Christ to dwell in us, to make His home in us. The Greek word translated “dwells in” is not the word for abide. It is from the same root as the word used in Ephesians 3:17 for Christ making His home in our heart. This root means house or home. Hence, it is not the ordinary word for abiding, but a weighty word related to Christ making His home in us.
Christ wants to gain more ground in us and to make His home in us. But He may not be free to settle down in us. Undoubtedly, our spirit is life, but we may not have life in our body. We may have Christ in our spirit, but not express Him. Some have said that shouting and praising are vain. But if they are vain, why is it some can say, “Praise the Lord!” and others cannot? Many pastors cannot say this because, in a sense, they have been killed. A few years ago a young man stood up in a conference and said that he did not agree with calling on the name of the Lord Jesus. But as he was speaking, he spontaneously called, “O Lord Jesus!” There have been many cases like this.
Many do not praise the Lord because their spirit is weak and their body, which has not been enlivened by the indwelling Christ, has been deadened by the indwelling death. However, if we allow Christ to gain even an inch of ground within us, life will be ministered to our mortal body. It will spread out of our spirit into our deadened members, and we shall begin to praise the Lord. The more we praise the Lord, the more our whole being is empowered.
We cannot deny that the elements of sin and death are in us. How we thank the Lord that we also have the element called “the Spirit of life.” Furthermore, we have the element of the indwelling Christ. Having all these elements within us, the question is which shall we use in our “cooking.” A sister has many elements in her kitchen, but everything depends on which elements she chooses to cook with. We need always to turn to our spirit and to live according to our spirit. If we do this, the indwelling Christ will be real to us, and we shall see how unlimited He is. Eventually, He will spread Himself from our spirit into our deadened, mortal body. In this way we shall be completely freed from death.
When we are freed from sin, the law, the flesh, and death, we are truly liberated people. As such persons, we are no longer under sin, the law, the flesh, and death. The way to be free from all these things is to have our old man crucified, to have our old husband buried, and to turn to the spirit, set our mind on the spirit, and walk according to the spirit. If we do this, we shall eventually be freed completely. This word may be rather simple and brief, but if we practice and experience it, we shall see that it is unlimited, unfathomable, deep, and profound.