Penalty and Reward
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"For if you live after the flesh—you shall die; but if you through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body—you shall live" Romans 8:13
Profession is not possession; and many who profess to be religious are destitute of the vital principle. Like the foolish virgins, they have the virgin's garb and the lamp; but they have no oil in their vessels: and so when the Bridegroom comes, they will be found unready, with their lamps gone out. To prevent this, the apostle often writes so as to awaken suspicions, and lead to self-examination. He guards the professed followers of Christ against carnal security, and is most careful to insist upon the essentials of experimental and practical godliness. "Be not high-minded—but fear," he writes to these Romans. "Let us therefore fear, lest a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it," he writes to the Hebrews. And in the passage that now comes under our consideration, with an almost unusual sternness he says, "For if you live after the flesh—you shall die; but if you through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body—you shall live" (Romans 8:13).
Carnality and its Penalty. By "the flesh," he intends corrupt nature, or nature as under the power and direction of corruption. Hence he says of himself, "In me, that is, in my flesh, dwells no good thing." It is corrupt—wholly corrupt—always corrupt. We must be delivered from it, and it must be destroyed in us.
To "live after the flesh," is to allow the sensual appetites to rule us, as they do the unregenerate, and once did believers; as we read, "All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath."
It includes also being under the government of corrupted reason, and of the depraved will. He connects all the three in Galatians 5:19-21: "Now the works of the flesh are obvious: (and he begins with the sensual appetites,) sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; (and he closes with the depraved will,) hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God!" Galatians 5:19-21
In our natural state, the flesh in one form or other governs: "For we ourselves also were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another." First, foolish—then disobedient—and then deceived. This is always the case: the man that gives way to folly, will disobey God; and then, for a time, at least, God gives him up to deception. As the Lord said by the prophet, "They have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighted in their abominations. I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them."
Now, if we live after the flesh, or allow the flesh to govern us; if we make it our business to gratify it, minding the things of the flesh; if we make its gratification our end or business—we shall die. Some did, to whom Paul alluded when he said, "Many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ; whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things."
Our Lord also gives an instance of one such in the person of a Jew: "And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' "Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry."' "But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' "This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." Luke 12:16-21
Here is one specimen of living after the flesh. If we habitually consult the flesh, and live in the indulgence of it, in any one of its forms—either yielding to the sensual appetites, or allowing corrupted reason to direct or control our minds, or yielding to the depraved will in our conduct and behaviour—we shall die.
The death intended is the second death—eternal death. This is required by the justice of God; for all who so live are at enmity with God—they refuse the gospel remedy which God has provided for their moral malady, and prefer the indulgence of the flesh, though they know that the end of these things is death. Now, if a man, out of enmity to God, refuses to make use of the remedy which God at an infinite expense has provided for his guilt and depravity, and prefers going on in the course that leads to death—does he not deserve to be punished with death! And will not, must not, justice award to the man his desert!
The prevalence of the principle must decide our condition: if the principle that prevails and rules us be the flesh—then we are carnal, and must die; but if the ruling principle be the Spirit—then we are spiritual, and we shall live. Here is, then,
Spirituality and its Reward. "If you through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, you shall live." The deeds of the body must be mortified. By "the body," some understand the sin that dwells in us, which is compared to a body. It is called "the body of this death." And our apostle speaks of "the body of the sins of the flesh;" and exhorts the Colossians thus, "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived." Colossians 3:5-7
Therefore it is added, "But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. But Christ is all, and is in all." Colossians 3:8-11.
But as the affections of the mind—are manifested by the deeds of the body, it may be best to take the words in their literal and general sense, "If you mortify the deeds of the body." Hence Paul said before, "I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as you have yielded your members servants to uncleanness, and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. For when you were the servants of sin, you were free from righteousness." You felt yourselves under no obligation to mortify sin, and live a holy life.
To "mortify" is to put to death, or destroy; and the mortification of sin consists in a constant opposition to it, and warfare with it, until it dies. But sin dies slowly; its life seems to be all but immortal. The believer finds that in mortifying sin, he has to groan under it: "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" It is a clog to him, a burden upon him, a constant hindrance to him in his course: "We who are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened." He has to strive against it: "For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other; so that you cannot do the things that you would."
The flesh longs for what is carnal, and the Spirit longs for what is spiritual; the flesh strives for the mastery, and the Spirit strives for the mastery; and these being absolutely and always contrary to each other, there is an almost incessant conflict within, and will be, until the weaker dies.
He has also to starve it. Hence our apostle exhorts, "Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof." Imitate Christ; clothe yourself with Christ; aim always to do as Christ did, or would do; and make no provision to gratify the flesh. He has to put it off, refusing to accommodate it, or live in the practice of that which indulges it: "That you put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind: and that you put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness."
He has to subdue it, as Paul did, who says, "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection; lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." He was striving for the mastery, he was fighting and running for a prize; and as the body clogged and hindered him, he disciplined it, subdued it; lest, when he appeared before the Judge who awarded the prizes, he should be disapproved of, and not be adjudged entitled to the prize he had aimed at.
He has to die to it—that as the dead man loses his interest in, and relish for, the things of this life, so should he in reference to sin. So we read, "Likewise reckon you yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin—but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof."
And now, lest the believer should be discouraged, because the work is so arduous, sin being so strong, and we being so weak; and because, by reason of habit, it has become like a second nature; the apostle reminds us that we have a divine and almighty helper, even the Holy Spirit!
"If you through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body." Sin is first pardoned, then mortified. The Spirit, therefore, first leads us to the cross, and after that to do battle with our inbred foes. The Spirit is the sanctifier of the Lord's people; but in the work, they are not passive—but active. God gives the Spirit: "I will put a new Spirit within them; and I will take away the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: that they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God."
The Spirit communicates grace, by which he subdues our iniquities. He applies the word, and we are sanctified through the truth, cleansed as in the laver of the word. He uses providence, which, like the gardener's pruning-knife, prunes the branch in the living Vine and makes it fruitful; or, like a strong wind, cleanses the floor.
Under the gracious teaching of the Spirit, we make use of means for the mortification of sin; not such as the poor blind Pagan or the superstitious Papist would use—but such as God's word directs us to employ: as prayer; like Paul, who, when the messenger of Satan came to buffet him, "besought the Lord thrice that it might depart from him:" and the word, which has a cleansing power; as Jesus said, "You are clean, through the word which I have spoken unto you."
There are special seasons when this work of mortification may be more successfully carried on; as, when God embitters sin, saying, "Your own wickedness shall correct you, and your backslidings shall reprove you; know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that you have forsaken the Lord your God." As when the Spirit works in us under the word, producing hatred to sin, ardent longings for holiness, and inciting to oppose and overcome the corruptions that work within; as Peter represents it, "Seeing you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto sincere love of the brethren, see that you love one another with a pure heart fervently." Also after a fall, as was the case with David, as we read in Psalms 38 and 51.
"If you through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, you shall live;"—live a life of grace—in communion with God and devotedness to God; and you shall live a life of glory—in the presence of God and of the Lamb forever!
Sin must die—or the sinner. Both cannot live, therefore let us strike at the root of sin, and not be satisfied with lopping off the branches. Thus Paul distinguishes between those who are Christ's and others: "Those who are Christ's, have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts." Crucified it! not only sentenced it, or allowed it to starve—but put it to the most painful, shameful, and lingering death.
Let us aim at pleasant sins, at those into which God's people are most prone to fall, and those in which our flesh finds most pleasure. If we are not at war with sin—we are at war with God. We cannot be at peace with both. God utterly hates and abhors sin; and in his word we read, in the plainest terms, that "without holiness no man shall see the Lord." O for grace to carry on the work of mortification vigorously and successfully!
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