In this message, the burden is the function of the law of life or the scientific working of the law of life. We have to see how the law of life works in a scientific way. Even in such an ancient time, two thousand years ago, this scientific word, law, was used by the Apostle Paul. The goal of modern science is mostly just to find out the natural law of certain things. For example, the earth has the greatest attracting power, and eventually the law of gravity was discovered. Today, even the elementary students know about the law of gravity. All the scientific studies are studies of natural laws. Is it not a wonder that two thousand years ago such a writer as Paul used the word law in this way? He did not use it in the way of the Ten Commandments, but in the way of a scientific principle.
In Romans 8 the law of the Spirit of life refers to a scientific law. It is used in the same way in chapter seven, where Paul indicates that there is a law in his flesh that always tends to sin, that works to sin (Rom. 7:23). In the last message, we saw that Romans 8 actually is on this scientific law. It is talking about the law. You should not pick up any word or any point other than the law as the subject of this chapter. Romans 8 is a chapter on the law of the Spirit of life. The term, “the law of the Spirit of life,” is only mentioned once, but then in the definition it is not mentioned. This indicates that whatever chapter eight talks about is a description or an explanation of this law. This is somewhat like Genesis 1. The first verse mentions God’s creating, and then the rest of the chapter is a definition, an explanation, a description of God’s creation. In like manner, the entire chapter of Romans 8 is a definition, description, explanation, and presentation of this law. Whatever is mentioned after verse 2 is something related to the law. It is a little part of the law. By this you can see that it is altogether right to say that the law of the Spirit of life is nothing less than the Triune God processed and dwelling in us. The Triune God is this law, and this Triune God is the One who has been processed and who is now indwelling us. Processed indicates that something happened; indwelling indicates that something is still going on. The Triune God who has been processed and who is now dwelling in us is Himself the law.
Before God became incarnated, He could not come into us. He was nothing less than God—He was the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. He was the Triune God. Even in Genesis 1 the pronoun used for God is not only in singular number, but also in plural number—our image. This indicates that the very God who created the universe was triune. Even before the creation began there was a kind of counsel or consideration between the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. “Let us make man.” God said this to Himself. But at that point He had no way to come into man. Furthermore, He could work only by activities; He could not work by law. To work by activity is one thing, and to work by law is another thing. Today so many automatic things work by law. For example a water sprinkler works not by activity, but by law. Many lamps also work not by activity but by law. Certain lamps automatically come on when it becomes dark. This is a working by law, not by activity.
Our stomach digests food, not by activity but by law. There is no need for us to ask our stomach to digest food and to tell it to stop when it is finished. No, digestion in the stomach works by law. Why does it work by law? Because life is there. Why do the sprinklers and the lamps work by law? Because the power is there through a governing principle which has been set up.
Before God was incarnated, He did a lot of things among men by activity. When God came to Abraham, that was an activity. When God was sitting there with Abraham and eating with him, that was an activity (Gen. 18). But today God is no longer working in the way of activity because He has installed Himself into us as the life and as the power. When I pray, I sometimes like to pray that the Lord would come to visit us and grant us a gracious visitation. Although this is a very good prayer it is altogether according to the Old Testament. Many times after praying in this way, I was rebuked by the Lord. It seemed He said to me, “I’m here. Don’t you know I’m here? I have been installed into you.” Once electricity has been installed into a building, there is no need to consider and hope that the electricity will come again tomorrow to visit. No, it is permanently installed into the building. Once installed, it continues to operate according to law. In his Epistles, Paul tells us clearly that since the time we believed in the Lord Jesus and received Him, He has come into us. Using a modern term, He has been installed into us. Even He has been born into us. From the time of that birth, the Triune God no longer works on us, in us, and with us merely by activity. He also works by law.
Romans 8 uses this term, the law of the Spirit of life, to describe how the Triune God after having been processed and having been installed into us has become a law in us. He becomes something automatic. He becomes not only something organic, but also something automatic. Whatever this processed and installed and indwelling God does in us, with us, and on us is the function of the law. Our God is no more an objective worker, working by activities outside of us and beyond us. Our God today has become a subjective law working all the time within us not by activities but by law. This working is altogether scientific. The law always works in a scientific way. If you work by duty, that is not scientific; if you work by law, that is scientific. How wonderful that our God today has become a law within us—an automatic principle!
The circulation of your blood is according to law. It is not an activity. While I am acting and moving, blood is circulating within me. The circulation of the blood is a law. The best medical doctor is one who is the best scientific student of all the principles and laws of the human body. The law of cancer has not yet been discovered. If you could find the law of cancer, you might get a Nobel prize. Surely there must be a law related to cancer. I use these illustrations to help you realize that in the Bible at least one chapter talks about such a law. It speaks of such a law being the Triune God, the processed God, the installed, and the indwelling God. Wonderful! Dear saints, you must see this! If you see this, it will save you to the uttermost. This is a kind of foundation to help us go on to see the scientific function of this automatic law.
Modern drugs such as antibiotics are a good illustration of the law of the Spirit of life. The pharmaceutical companies make the modern drugs in a scientific way. When you take a certain drug into you, it works in you scientifically. You have an illness because a certain kind of germ is in you, also working by a certain kind of law. Then you take an antibiotic with an element in it that works anti the law of the germ in you. The law of the Spirit of life is just God in His Trinity processed, installed, and now indwelling us. This dear One is the scientific drug with a lot of scientific elements which are anti the negative elements within us. These negative elements include the old nature, the flesh, sin, and Satan. After we were saved—forgiven by God of our sins and washed by His blood—we began to try our best to please God. Then we found out that there were a lot of negative things within us. Then we wanted to overcome. We were taught many ways to overcome, but eventually none of the ways worked.
The way of deliverance, of rescue, is the law in you. The law of the Spirit of life with all the elements working scientifically is the way of deliverance.