He Condemned Sin in the Flesh

1. Read: Romans 8:1-4

2. About the Text:

1) The book of Romans isn’t the easiest book to understand.

2) We have to study to show ourselves approved to God (2 Timothy 2:15).

3) There is a phrase in Romans 8:3 that I would like to explore.

4) God condemned sin in the flesh.

5) What does this mean? How is sin condemned? What does this mean for us?

3. Ref. to S, T, P, O, and A.

1. The sin of Adam and Eve brought sin and death into the world.

1) “And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die’” (Genesis 2:16-17).

2) “Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken.”

2. Sin and death became the ruler of man.

1) Cain let sin rule over him and he murdered Abel. “So the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it’” (Genesis 4:6-7).

2) “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6).

3. Sin and death reigned over man.

1) Read Romans 5:12-21.

2) Notice verse 14 – Death reigned from Adam until Moses.

3) Notice verse 17 – Death reigned.

4) Notice verse 21 – Sin reigned unto death.

5) Hebrews 2:15 says that Jesus came to deliver them who “through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.”

1. Jesus lived a sinless life so that death would have no power over Him.

1) “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

2) “And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin” (1 John 3:5).

2. Jesus destroyed the one who had the power of death delivering us from sin and death’s control.

1) “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage” (Hebrews 2:14-15).

2) “who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, 10 but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel” (2 Tim.1:9-10).

3. Jesus did what the law could not do to make us righteous.

1) “For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:3-4).

2) “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous” (Romans 5:19).

1. Today, we do not have to be ruled by sin, but can rule over it, as God instructed Cain to do.

1) “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:12-14).

2) “The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:56-57).

2. We are able to rule over sin through the grace of God and the forgiveness that is in Christ.

1) By grace, God accepts us in Christ — “To the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7).

2) Read Hebrews 10:12-18.

3. Sin has been condemned through Christ and no longer has power over us if we are in Christ.

1) Read Romans 5:12-21.

2) Read Romans 8:1-4.

1. What does it mean that God condemned sin in the flesh?

1) Before Christ Sin and Death Reigned

2) Christ Destroyed the Power of Sin and Death

3) Christ Reigns Today, Not Sin

2. Invitation

1) Who is in Christ?

2) “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:26-29).