Chapter 8
By way of introduction we
call this chapter “The new life.” The title comes from
Romans 6:4. The principle of this passage is very simple: the plan of
God is greater than any condemnation, any sin, any failure, any personal
suffering or adversity, any historical disaster, any problem of life. The new
life is greater than anything in life. In other words, by the intake of
doctrine on a consistent basis we have something that is greater than life, and
we stay above life and on top of life, and life never crushes us, destroys us,
or breaks us. We may bend but we never break. That is the principle in this
chapter.
Outline
Paragraph one: The new life in sanctification, verses 1-17.
Paragraph two: The new life and suffering, verses 18-30.
Paragraph three: The new life and its challenges, verse 31-39.
Before proceeding with this chapter we must have clearly in mind the general doctrine of sanctification.[1]
Verse 1 – the result of positional sanctification. “There is therefore now no condemnation.” It begins with the nominative singular adjective o)udeij, the word translated “no,” sometimes “not,” and is always a very strong negative. With that is the inferential and illative particle a)ra which demands conclusions from the preceding chapter, and translated “therefore.” Plus the adverb of time, nun, which means it is time to get cracking, time to start advancing. You have enough information now, and will receive enough briefing in this chapter eight so that there is no excuse for any more retreat. “Therefore now.” Then, since o)udeij is a nominative singular adjective used as a substantive and emphasising the negative, it becomes a predicate nominative. “There is no” is what it means. The word “condemnation” is mistranslated in the KJV. Condemnation and judgment are two different things. Condemnation is the passing of the sentence; judgment is the execution of the sentence. The verse is talking here about execution. The sentence was passed on us at the moment of birth by the justice of God through the imputation of Adam’s original sin to the genetically formed old sin nature, resulting in spiritual death. That is condemnation. So it is ridiculous to say there is no condemnation when obviously there is condemnation. We are born condemned. This is the nominative singular katakrima, the predicate nominative noun meaning punishment following sentence. It means doom or judgment. Condemnation is the correct word for the sentence. We were sentenced at birth by the imputation of Adam’s sin, so we are already condemned. So the word is not condemnation, the word is “judgment,” and it is referring to the lake of fire.[2] There is quite an elapse of time between the condemnation at birth and the judgment of the lake of fire. The corrected translation is, “Therefore now there is no judgment.” The sentence for condemnation at birth is not carried out for those who have been born again. Being born again means a new life; that is the subject—John 3:18, “is not judged.”
“to them which are in Christ Jesus” – the dative plural indirect object from the definite article, used as a demonstrative pronoun emphasising believers in Christ and translated “to those.” Plus the preposition e)n with the locative of the proper nouns Xristoj and I)hsouj—“to those who are in Christ Jesus.” The rest of this verse as seen in the KJV is not found in the original Greek.
Translation: “Now therefore there is no judgment to those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Verse 2 – “For the principle of the Spirit [ministry of the Spirit at salvation] who is the source of eternal life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the principle of the sin nature and resultant spiritual death.”
Verse 3 – “For what was impossible from the law, because it was weak through the flesh [OSN, first marriage], the God by having sent his own Son [deity of Christ] in the likeness of the flesh of sin [perfect humanity of Christ], and for a sin offering [the work of Christ on the cross], judged the sin nature in the flesh:”
Verse 4 – the triumph of the second marriage. Three principles to be noted: 1) If God provides something with a limited purpose (like the Mosaic law) He also provides something with a total purpose (like salvation through faith in Christ or spirituality through the rebound technique); 2) This verse 4 is a purpose clause, a continuation of the sentence begun in the previous verse and it is designed to express the triumph of that divine righteousness imputed after salvation in phase two; 3) The triumph of imputed righteousness in the attainment of spiritual maturity, and the means of that triumph through the filling of the Spirit, are all stated in one purpose clause.
“That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us” – the conjunction i(na plus the subjunctive mood introduces the purpose clause, the final clause to denote aim, objective, or purpose. With it is a nominative singular subject dikaiwma which means requirement or commandment. The noun connotes the legal act corresponding to an ordinance or requirement. Hence, it is what might be classified in modern English as the actualisation of justice. “In order that the legal requirement of the law.” The legal requirement of the law is that in order to receive blessing from God you have to be as good as God is, and God is perfect righteousness. This is a legal requirement which cannot be fulfilled in the energy of the flesh, by keeping the law.
1. The integrity of God, composed of divine righteousness and justice, is the guardian of the attributes of God. The attributes of God cannot be compromised in God’s dealings with His creatures. Therefore the righteousness of God is the guardian of His justice, and the justice of God is the guardian of all the divine attributes.
2. There must be no compromise of attributes in the function of the essence of God. That is why divine righteousness demands perfect righteousness and divine justice demands perfect justice. Righteousness, justice demands justice in the function of the divine integrity toward mankind.
3. To avoid compromise and inconsistency a principle of doctrine becomes axiomatic: divine justice can only bless divine righteousness. Without the imputation of divine righteousness at salvation there could be no blessing in time or eternity.
4. Righteousness is the principle of divine integrity while justice is the function of divine integrity.
5. God cannot accept anything less than perfect righteousness, and God cannot bless anything less than perfect righteousness.
6. Therefore the justice of God, the source of all direct blessing from God, is only free to provide such blessing where God’s righteousness resides. God’s righteousness resides in the believer by judicial imputation at salvation.
7. Therefore the imputation of divine righteousness is absolutely necessary for any blessing from the justice of God.
8. God loves His own integrity composed of His divine righteousness and justice.
9. Therefore, what righteousness rejects justice condemns. When divine righteousness accepts or approves divine justice blesses.
10. This fulfils the principle that the justice of God administers what the righteousness of God demands.
11. At the moment of faith in Christ the individual believers receives divine righteousness by judicial imputation.
The ablative singular from nomoj plus the definite article refers to the Mosaic law. The ablative of means with the definite article denotes a previous reference, and it should be translated “In order that the legal requirement demanded by [or, of] the law.”
1. The legal or righteous requirement of the law is that divine blessing which demands perfect righteousness for imputation.
2. Divine justice can only bless perfect righteousness.
3. The Mosaic law demands perfect righteousness for blessing from God.
4. At salvation perfect righteousness is imputed so that at maturity the blessings from the justice of God are imputed.
5. The law states many blessings which demand perfect righteousness for fulfilment.
6. God supplies the perfect righteousness—His own—through judicial imputation at salvation adjustment to the justice of God.
7. Therefore God supplies through logistical grace the necessary doctrine and the means of the filling of the Spirit through rebound to provide the completion of a real imputation of divine blessing.
8. Remember that real imputation must have an object, a point of affinity which we simply call a home or a target. The object is the righteousness of God prepared by imputation at salvation.
9. Divine blessing has an affinity for divine righteousness, for what the righteousness of God demands the justice of God executes.
10. Divine blessing, the fulfilment of the legal requirement of the law, becomes the reality when maximum doctrine resident in the soul results in maturity adjustment to the justice of God.
The legal requirement of the law is the exploitation of imputed righteousness at
salvation by advance to maturity through the filling of the Spirit and the perception of Bible doctrine—maturity adjustment to the justice of God through Bible doctrine and the filling of the Spirit. The advance to maturity, then, results in the justice of God imputing divine blessing to the righteousness of God. All of these blessings flow through the grace pipeline, and only the status of maturity provides the capacity for blessing necessary for glorification of Christ and the appreciation of the source of real imputation.
“might be fulfilled in us” – the aorist passive subjunctive from the verb plhrow. First of all, plhrow means to fill up a deficiency. At salvation the believer’s deficiency is maturity adjustment to the justice of God. At salvation the problem is that we have the greater without the less. The greater is the imputation of divine righteousness; the less, blessings from the justice of God in time. The deficiency emphasises the lack of balance which is only implemented by a fortiori—the justice of God will not withhold the less: blessings in time through maturity adjustment to the justice of God. Secondly, plhrow means to fully possess. Maximum blessing from the justice of God must fully possess the believer who is fully possessed by the Spirit and fully filled with Bible doctrine. A third meaning of the word is to fully influence. Bible doctrine must fully influence the life for the believer to have capacity for blessing. The fourth is to fill with quality, to fill with a specific quality. The believer is filled with the highest quality of blessing as a result of divine righteousness imputed at salvation, and divine blessing imputed at maturity. Translation: “In order that the legal requirement of the law might be filled up in us.” The morphology: this is an aorist passive subjunctive. This is a culminative aorist. The aorist tense brings out the fact that the legal requirement of the law is divine righteousness and blessings to match. We receive divine righteousness at salvation, and we must have blessings to match at maturity. The only thing that will match divine righteousness is blessing in time from the justice of God. The culminative aorist views the advance to maturity in its entirety, it gathers into one entirety everything it takes to get to maturity but emphasises the result: blessing in time. The passive voice: the believer receives the action of the verb, from the filling of the Spirit plus the daily function of GAP, resulting in maturity adjustment to the justice of God and resulting in maximum blessing from the justice of God as a real imputation from divine justice to divine righteousness imputed. The subjunctive mood is potential, because there are a lot of believers who are not even going to come close to maturity. The potential subjunctive, then, depends on two functions: rebound when necessary and the function of the GAP consistently under the filling of the Spirit.
Usage is important, and the verb plhrow has a tremendous amount of usage. It is used for the believer controlled by the Holy Spirit—Ephesians 5:18. It is used for the pastor communicating doctrine to his congregation—Colossians 1:25. The purpose of having the gift of pastor-teacher in every generation is to fill up a deficiency that all sheep have. All believers have a great deficiency of Bible doctrine. The third use is found in Romans 8:4 where it is used for the mature believer receiving the imputation of divine blessing at maturity. It is also used for maturity adjustment to the justice of God through the construction of the edification complex of the soul—Luke 2:40, where “becoming full of wisdom” is plhrow. Wisdom is doctrine. Cf. Ephesians 3:19—“filled up with all the fullness from God.” Colossians 1:9. The fifth use of plhrow is capacity for happiness in the mature believer. Perception of doctrine resulting in capacity for happiness—1 John 1:4. It is used for the priestly function of giving in Philippians 4:18. It is used for the mature believer’s production of divine good—Philippians 1:11; Revelation 3:2.
“in us” – the preposition e)n plus the locative plural from the personal pronoun e)gw.
1. The deficiency in us at salvation is divine blessing from the justice of God. There is an affinity between divine blessing and divine righteousness so that the imputation of divine righteousness at salvation demands a real imputation. It becomes the divinely prepared home for a real imputation which occurs at maturity whereby the justice of God imputes all divine blessings of the righteousness of God.
2. The imputation of divine righteousness demands the imputation of divine blessing to complete it. That is why these divine blessings are called the fullness of God.
3. The possession of divine righteousness and/or justification demands the imputation of divine blessing.
4. The deficiency at salvation is divine blessing.
5. This deficiency is filled up, implemented, when the believer cracks the maturity barrier through maximum doctrine resident in the soul.
6. This deficiency cannot be filled up in status quo carnality or reversionism.
7. Therefore, the next phrase emphasises the fact that we must be walking by means of the Spirit and not by means of the flesh. If we get out from the control of the Holy Spirit for very long we are going to wind up in sin, good, evil, the trends of the ex-husband.
8. The Mosaic law demands perfect righteousness for blessing from the justice of God. “In order that the legal requirement of the law might be filled up in us.”
9. The legal requirement of the law is divine blessing to match the imputed righteousness of God at salvation.
10. Therefore maturity adjustment to the justice of God fills up the life of the believer with blessing imputed from the justice of God.
“who walk not after the flesh” – the locative plural from the definite article used as a relative pronoun [o(j] whose antecedent is the locative plural from the personal pronoun e)gw. Plus the present active indicative from the verb peripatew which means to walk. The customary present tense denotes what habitually occurs in the lief of the believer who is positive toward doctrine, consistent in its perception, and rebounds every time it is necessary. The active voice: the positive believer produces both the negative and the positive action. He walks not after the flesh but after the Spirit. The indicative mood is declarative representing the verbal idea from the viewpoint of reality. The negative side: the negative particle mh with the prepositional phrase kata plus the accusative of sarc—“not according to the flesh [OSN].”
“but after the Spirit” – the adversative conjunctive particle a)lla sets up a contrast between the two clauses, between the old sin nature and the Spirit. Plus kata, plus the accusative of pneuma—“but according to the Spirit.”[3]
Translation: “In order that the legal requirement of the law might be filled up in us, who keep walking not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”
1. We cannot keep the law by keeping the law. We can only keep the law through the filling of the Spirit and the daily function of GAP, eventuating in maturity adjustment to the justice of God.
2. Maturity or experiential sanctification fulfils the legal requirement of the law: blessing from the justice of God.
3. Blessing from the justice of God is a real imputation. The source is divine justice; reception: divine righteousness where capacity through doctrinal inculcation exists. This imputation cannot occur apart from maximum doctrine resident in the soul.
4. The law requires blessing for perfect righteousness.
5. The law cannot provide blessing, only state the requirement.
6. The requirement is filled at two points in he adjustment to the justice of God.
7. The divinely prepared home for the imputation is provided at salvation. So the first part of the provision is salvation accompanied by imputation of divine righteousness.
8. The actual imputation occurs at maturity adjustment to the justice of God.
9. Under the principle of a fortiori the greater is provided at salvation, the less is provided at maturity.
10. If God has provided the greater at salvation, i.e. justification, it follows a fortiori that He will provide the less, i.e. divine blessing at the point of maturity.
11. Maturity adjustment to the justice of God completes the divine requirement stated in the law. Divine justice can only bless perfect righteousness.
Verse 5 – While “according to the flesh” is a literal translation, kata in this case means to be under the authority of, and so we translate, “For those believers who are dominated by the old sin nature keep thinking abut the things of the old sin nature; but those believers who are dominated by the Holy Spirit keep thinking about the things of the Spirit.” The things of the Spirit refer to Bible doctrine.
Principle
1. What the believer thinks depends upon who and what dominates his life. [What: the OSN; Who: the Holy Spirit]
2. Either the old sin nature dominates the life, concentrating on sin, good and evil, or the Holy Spirit dominates the life, concentrating on Bible doctrine and divine viewpoint.
3. The old sin nature dominates the believer through rejection of rebound and negative volition toward Bible doctrine.
4. The Holy Spirit dominates the believer through rebound when necessary, and constant positive volition toward Bible doctrine.
5. Attitude toward Bible doctrine is the contrast between the two clauses of verse 5.
6. The thought pattern of the believer which pleases God depends on the relationship with the Holy Spirit. This includes maximum doctrine resident in the soul.
7. This is the same as the ingredients for the attainment of experiential sanctification, which is the filling of the Spirit plus maximum doctrine resident in the soul equals maturity adjustment to the justice of God. Maturity and experiential sanctification are synonymous terms.
8. These interchangeable terms for nomenclature are going to be used in Romans 8.
9. Experiential sanctification is related to two post-salvation adjustments to the justice of God: a) Rebound; b) Maturity.
Verse 6 – “For to be carnally minded is death” begins with the inferential use of the conjunctive particle gar, translated “Consequently” or “So then.” Plus the nominative singular subject from the noun fronhma, which means thinking or thought pattern—“Consequently the thought pattern.” Then the possessive genitive singular from the noun sarc, which sometimes is used for the human body and other times for what indwells the body. Here it refers to the old sin nature. Since this is ellipsis we include the present active indicative of e)imi, and then comes the predicate nominate singular from qanatoj, used here for the sin unto death to the reversionistic believer—“is death [sin unto death],” which means that the human viewpoint of life results in the sin unto death. The sin unto death is maximum discipline from the justice of God to the reversionistic believer. The reversionist is under the complete domination of the old sin nature, therefore the justice of God cannot bless, but only discipline such a believer.[4]
“but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” – the postpositive conjunctive particle de is used to connect two clauses which are antithetical. The contrast is intended, and here the contrast is between the thought pattern of the old sin nature, which is human viewpoint, and the thought pattern of the Holy Spirit as the marriage counsellor of the second marriage which is divine viewpoint. This is followed by a nominative singular which is used as the subject, the noun is fronhma, referring to thinking, and is a reminder that what you think is what you are. It is obvious that we are given doctrine in order to think the divine viewpoint of life. Satan is the ruler of the world and the old sin nature is the ruler of life, and between them we are caught in a squeeze in which we are easily destroyed unless we take in Bible doctrine. Then follows the possessive genitive from the noun pneuma, used here for God the Holy Spirit—“but the thought pattern of the Spirit.” This is a reference to Bible doctrine. This is ellipsis and a verb is inserted, the present active indicative of e)imi—“is.” Plus the predicate nominative from zwh, meaning the function of life, a reference to phase two or God’s plan for the believer after salvation and before departure from this life. The emphasis here is capacity for life from maximum doctrine resident in the soul of the mature believer. Then a second predicate nominative, the predicate nominative from e)irhnh which does not mean peace but does mean prosperity. The purpose for keeping us in this life is to bless us. Until there is something coming to the righteousness of God imputed at salvation from the justice of God through the grace pipeline, until the blessings flow there, Jesus Christ is not glorified by your life. The glorification of Jesus Christ is the justice of God imputing as a real imputation to God’s righteousness imputed.[5]
Translation: “Consequently the thought pattern of the old sin nature is dead; but the thought pattern of the Spirit [Bible doctrine resident in the soul] is life [capacity for life] and prosperity.”
Verse 7 – “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God.” The causal conjunction dioti plus the nominative singular subject fronhma which means “thought pattern,” plus the possessive genitive of sarc used for the old sin nature, then ex-husband, the culprit of the first marriage. However, in the second marriage both Christ and the Holy Spirit as the marriage counsellor are perfect, and the wife-believer in carnality or reversionism is always the culprit. Then the predicate nominative e)xqra which means hostile or enmity, plus the prepositional phrase e)ij plus qeoj, minus the definite article—“Because the thought pattern of the flesh [OSN] is hostile toward God.”
1. The carnal believer is not the believer who sins but the sinning believer who rejects or neglects the rebound technique.
2. The carnal believer never rebounds, and therefore never recovers the filling of the Spirit, which is an absolute necessity for spirituality, as well as the mental attitude of winners.
3. What you think is what you are. Without doctrine in the soul your thinking is hostile to God. This hostility of thinking can only be rectified by means of maximum doctrine resident in the soul.
4. There are three categories of thinking which are hostile to God: a) Sin. Mental attitude sins are hostile thinking toward God—arrogance, jealousy, bitterness, hatred, fear, worry, implacability, vindictiveness, guilt complex, etc.; b) Human good; c) The function of evil which combines with good to form the policy of Satan in the rulership of this world and the function of the old sin nature as the ruler of life.
“for it is not subject to the law of God” – the explanatory use of the postpositive conjunctive particle gar is used as an explanation. The explanation combines what we have seen in mental attitude with the principle behind good mental attitude. Says Proverbs says, “What you think is what you are.” The key word to mental attitude is the believer’s concept of authority, his response to authority. It comes up in the present passive indicative of the verb u(potassw plus the negative o)u—“For it is not subordinate.” The thought pattern of the old sin nature is hostile toward God because it has rejected authority. The present tense is retroactive progressive present denoting what has begun in the past with either carnality or reversionism and continues into the present time. The carnal or the reversionistic believer receives the action of the verb. With the negative o)u it refers to a continual insubordination to divine policy. The indicative mood is declarative representing the verbal action from the viewpoint of reality. Principle: This insubordination to divine policy is based upon both neglect of rebound and negative volition toward Bible doctrine. The status of carnality and reversionism is insubordination to the ultimate in authority—God’s authority Himself. Insubordination in one area always overflows to other areas. Reversionistic or carnal believers are disoriented to life through rejection of or resistance to authority.
“the law of God” – the dative singular indirect object from the noun nomoj, which sometimes means law and sometimes means principle. Here it refers to policy. It is divine policy that is mentioned here. Bible doctrine is God’s policy. It is not ours, it belongs to God for we have a possessive genitive from the noun qeoj—“of God.”
Translation: “Because the thought pattern of the old sin nature is hostile toward God, because it is not subordinate to the policy of God.”
1. Doctrine reveals the plan of God.
2. Doctrine provides the basis for executing the plan of God.
3. The believer must be subordinated to doctrine or he cannot fulfil the plan of God.
4. Without doctrine in the frontal lobe the believer cannot be guided by God.
5. Without doctrine in the right lobe the believer cannot grow spiritually, cannot advance to the objective, and cannot be blessed by God.
Through lack of Bible doctrine in the soul the believer not only fails to attain the objective of the Christian life in spiritual maturity, but at the same time becomes the actual enemy of God during his life time.
Verse 8 – this brings us to the inability and the incompetence of the carnal and reversionistic thought pattern. Nothing is more incompetent than the thought pattern of reversionism. “So then they that are in the flesh” – the transitional use of the postpositive conjunctive particle de should be translated “Moreover.” The nominative plural from the definite article is used as a personal pronoun, “they.” The present active participle from the verb to be, e)imi, “Moreover they who are.” The progressive present signifies action in progress, linear aktionsart in present time. The active voice: both carnal and reversionistic believers produce the action of the verb. The participle is circumstantial. Then the prepositional phrase, e)n plus the locative of sarc, referring to the old sin nature—“in the flesh.” “Moreover they who are in the old sin nature.”
1. This phrase refers to both carnal and reversionistic believers under the authority of the ex-husband, the old sin nature. The carnal and the reversionistic believer can be defined as those who continue to recognise the authority of the OSN after divorce from it.
2. This phrase could (but it doesn’t here because the believer is in view) refer to the unbeliever who is also said to be “in the in the flesh.” It is true that the unbeliever is still married to the old sin nature. The unbeliever, then, is under the policy of good and evil, under the authority of the old sin nature who function is good and evil.
3. The unbeliever is in the flesh, or under the authority of the old sin nature, through the marriage that took place at birth.
4. In view here, however, is the believer. The carnal of reversionistic believer is under the control of the old sin nature because he has neglected the filling of the Spirit and he has neglected or rejected the teaching of Bible doctrine by his right pastor.
“cannot please God” – present passive indicative of dunamai with the negative o)u, “not able.” The present tense of dunamai is a static present, it represents a condition as perpetually existing. In other words, as long as the believer is under the control of the old sin nature, following the trend toward sin, evil or human good, there is no way that he can please God. The passive voice: this is a deponent verb which is passive in form but active in meaning. It means here that the carnal or reversionistic believer is producing the action of the verb. Both are under the control of the sin nature, the ex-husband. The indicative mood is declarative, representing the verbal action from the viewpoint of reality. With this is an aorist active infinitive of the verb a)reskw which means to please or be pleasing. The aorist tense is a constative aorist which gathers into one entirety the action of the verb. The active voice: in this passage it is the carnal or reversionistic believer producing the action of the verb, though in principle the same thing applies to the unbeliever. The infinitive is an actual result infinitive. Then the dative of indirect object from qeoj. Qeoj is anartharous here, emphasising the quality of the person mentioned.
Translation: “Moreover they who are in the flesh [under the authority of the OSN] are not able to please God.”
Verses 9-10, the issue of the frustration of the fulfilment of the divine purpose in life on the part of most Christians.
Verse 9 – how the Christian way of life can be fulfilled, how our major logistical support is the indwelling presence of God the Holy Spirit. “But ye are not in the flesh” – the nominative plural subject from the proleptic pronoun su has great emphasis. While the unbeliever continues to be dominated by the old sin nature, for the sin nature is the ruler of human life, the believer through the baptism of the Holy Spirit and being divorced from the old sin nature is now free; no longer, therefore, positionally under the domination of the old sin nature. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is the basis for the divorce from the old sin nature, the old husband, through retroactive positional truth, and the marriage to the new husband, the Lord Jesus Christ, through current positional truth. The word “you” comes first in this sentence in the Greek, it is proleptic and it means you and only you, emphasising you as a believer. Plus the postpositive conjunctive particle de which joins two clauses where a contrast is intended. Here it acts as an adversative conjunction. The difference is the divorce that took place at salvation through the baptism of the Spirit. The word de as a conjunctive particle sometimes has an emphatic or an intensive meaning, especially when it follows and emphatic or proleptic pronoun. Therefore the translation can start out, “In fact all of you,” referring to believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Then comes the present active indicative of e)imi followed by the negative o)u. This is a retroactive progressive present tense, denoting what has begun in the past at the moment of salvation and continues forever. It is a reference to retroactive positional truth in which the believer through the baptism of the Spirit is identified with Christ in His spiritual death, which is rejection of the old sin nature as the first husband, identifying with Christ in His physical death which is separation from the old sin nature as the first husband, and identified with Christ in His burial which is divorce from the old sin nature as the first husband. The active voice: the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ produces the action of the verb. The action occurs at the moment of salvation: the baptism of the Spirit. The indicative mood plus the negative emphasises the reality of the divorce, our positional separation from the old sin nature through the baptism of the Holy Spirit. “In fact all of you are not.” Plus the preposition e)n and the locative singular of sarc, referring to the old sin nature—“in the flesh” or “under the control of the old sin nature.” So this statement views the Christian way of life from the standpoint of the baptism of the Holy Spirit and resultant positional truth. The adverse result is the great inner conflict in which the old sin nature indwelling the body is fighting against the Holy Spirit who indwells the body. The battle ground is the soul; both seek to influence the soul.
“but in the Spirit” – the adversative conjunction a)lla sets up an emphatic contrast between the ex-husband, the old sin nature, and the marriage counsellor of the second marriage, the Holy Spirit. Plus the prepositional phrase e)n plus the locative of pneuma, referring to the fact that God the Holy Spirit indwells us at salvation, and one of our commands is to be filled with the Spirit.
Then comes a phrase that indicates that the believer should understand the various ministries of God the Holy Spirit. The phrase doesn’t set up any doubts if you are a believer but merely indicates where the emphasis will lie in this passage: “if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.” The compound conjunction e)iper is translated “if indeed” or “if after all,” and sometimes “since.” Here it is used in its debater’s sense, “assuming that.” The assumption is based on reality since the Holy Spirit indwells every believer of the Church Age. The nominative subject is pneuma, this time with the possessive genitive qeoj emphasising the deity of the third person of the Trinity. The present active indicative of o)ikew means to indwell or to inhabit. The present tense is a static present for a condition which perpetually exists. The active voice: God the Holy Spirit produces the action. The indicative mood is declarative for a dogmatic statement of fact. Plus the preposition e)n plus the locative plural of su, indicating all believers have this same status quo—“assuming that the Spirit of God dwells in all of you.”[6]
“Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ” – the emphatic use of the postpositive conjunctive particle de, translated “In fact.” Then the conditional conjunction e)i introducing the protasis of a first class condition, assumption from the basis of reality, plus the enclitic indefinite pronoun tij, the subject of this sentence in the nominative case. “In fact if anyone.” The category here is the unbeliever who does not possess the indwelling of Christ. Plus the present active indicative of e)xw plus the negative o)u—“does not have.” The present tense is a static present representing a condition which will always exist, no unbeliever is indwelt by the Spirit. The active voice: the unbeliever produces the action. The indicative mod plus the negative states the reality of the fact. The accusative singular direct object pneuma—“the Spirit,” plus the ablative of source from Xristoj, it was Christ who sent the Spirit—“from Christ.” “In fact if anyone does not have the Spirit from Christ.” This is the ablative of source which emphasises the doctrine of procession.
“he is none of his” – the nominative singular subject is the demonstrative pronoun o(utoj, “this one,” referring specifically to the Holy Spirit, plus the present active indicative of e)imi with the negative o)u, “is not.” This is a customary present for what does not occur regarding the unbeliever. The active voice: the unbeliever produces the action. The indicative mood plus the negative states the reality of a point of doctrine. Then a possessive genitive from the intensive pronoun a)utoj used as a personal pronoun emphasising the identity of God. This is an idiom which is correctly translated “he [the unbeliever] does not belong to him [God].”
Translation: “In fact you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, assuming that the Spirit of God dwells in you. In fact if anyone [unbeliever] does not have Spirit from Christ [Holy Spirit], he [unbeliever] does not belong to him [God].”
1. The unbeliever has no relationship with God. In the Church to have a relationship with God one must be indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The only way this can happen is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.
2. The indwelling of the Spirit, therefore, occurs at the moment of salvation.
3. Like the baptism of the Spirit is a salvation blessing which flows from the justice of God to the righteousness of God.
4. Furthermore, this verse implies that it is impossible for the unbeliever to execute the Christian way of life through his own talent or ability.
5. Principle: The Christian way of life is a supernatural way of life which demands a supernatural means of execution.
6. Therefore anything the unbeliever can do or accomplish is not the Christian way of life.
7. The fact that the believer is indwelt by the Spirit and provided by logistical support to be filled with the Spirit emphasises the grace provision for attainment of the objective—maturity adjustment to the justice of God.
8. To whom much is given much is expected. The Holy Spirit is given to the royal family of God in the Church Age with great expectation—advance to maturity.
Principle #2
1. All the commands of the Christian way of life through relationship with God the Holy Spirit.
2. Apart from the ministry of the Holy Spirit to the royal family there is no pleasing God, no accomplishing of the objective of phase two which is maturity adjustment producing glorification of Christ.
3. Therefore frustration or fulfilment of the plan of God depends upon the believer’s relationship with the indwelling Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit’s communication of doctrine to the positive believer.
4. The teaching of doctrine by one with the gift of pastor is useless apart from the ministry of the Holy Spirit and the function of GAP.
5. All perception of doctrine depends upon the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
6. All application of doctrine depends upon the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
7. All the execution of divine commands and obedience to divine will depends upon the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
8. All attainment of objectives depend upon the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.
9. Therefore the difference between frustration and the fulfilment of the divine plan in the believer’s life depends upon the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and the ministry which results from that indwelling.
Verse 10 – the fulfilling of the same concept through the indwelling of Jesus Christ. “And if Christ be in you” – the intensive use of the postpositive conjunctive
particle de is translated “In fact.” The conditional particle e)i plus the indicative introduces a first class condition, an assumption from the viewpoint of reality. Then the prepositional phrase, the nominative singular Xristoj is the subject, referring to the second person of the Trinity, and e)n plus the locative of su—“In fact if Christ is in you.” This is a first class condition and is assumed to be true as far as all believers in the Lord Jesus Christ are concerned.[7]
“the body is dead because of sin” – there is something that is not translated here, an affirmative particle men used correlatively with de. For some reason men was not translated in the KJV. Men and de is translated “on the one hand, and on the other.” The nominative singular subject swma with the definite article is the word for the human body which is the headquarters of the old sin nature, the ex-husband. With it is a predicate nominative neuter singular from the adjective nekroj—“death,” referring here to the believer’s status in carnality, also called temporal death or being out of fellowship and not using rebound. It can be either carnality or reversionism. Cf. Rom. 8:10; Luke 15:24, 32; Eph. 5:14; Jas. 1:15; Rev. 3:1. Then dia plus the accusative of a(martia—“because of death,” referring to the old sin nature as the ex-husband. Formerly the believer as an unbeliever was spiritually dead from birth, being married to the old sin nature. But through salvation the great divorce occurs and we are separated from the old sin nature as far as positional truth is concerned. When the believer as the wife of Christ returns to the old sin nature the status is called death—temporal death or being out of fellowship.
“but the Spirit is life” – de is used correlatively with men, so it should be “on the other hand.” Then the nominative singular neuter subject pneuma, used here for God the Holy Spirit received at salvation. It is a reference to the indwelling of the Spirit. Plus the predicate nominative from zwh, referring to life compatible with Christ which is the indwelling and the filling of the Spirit. So this is the new life which is compatible with the new marriage. A new marriage means a new life for the woman. The first marriage was tyranny for all of us under the old sin nature; the second marriage is great blessing because of the new life involved.
“because of righteousness” – dia plus the accusative of dikaiosunh, referring to the righteousness imputed at salvation. Everywhere we go in the Scripture we always get back to the fact that the big thing that God did for us, and the greatest thing, was to give us His own perfection. Imperfection cannot please perfection. But through the judicial imputation of divine righteousness at salvation we are now in a position to please Him because we carry around with us the perfect means of doing so. The only thing that we have that is perfect is God’s perfect righteousness. The whole issue of the Christian way of life after salvation is the imputation of divine blessing to the target or the home which is God’s righteousness.
Translation: “In fact if Christ is in you, on the one hand the body is dead [temporal or reversionistic death] because of the sin nature; but on the other hand the Spirit is life because of imputed righteousness.”
1. We do not have in this phrase experiential righteousness. This is imputed righteousness.
2. Maturity provides the missing link between the judicial imputation of divine righteousness at salvation and blessing from the justice of God at maturity.
3. The missing link between salvation and maturity is capacity for life from doctrine.
4. The imputed righteousness of God at salvation completes the grace pipeline encapsulated by the integrity of God.
5. On the originating end of the pipeline is the justice of God. On the receiving end of the pipeline is the righteousness of God. His justice gives to His righteousness.
6. The combined attributes of divine justice and righteousness form the holiness or the integrity of God.
7. Since righteousness and justice demands justice, and since the justice of God does what the righteousness of God demands, it follows that this pipeline is necessary for blessing from the justice of God to the mature believer.
8. These blessings can be provided for the mature believer without any compromise to the attributes of God. In fact, these blessings given to the mature believer are given to God’s righteousness, thereby avoiding any compromise of any kind.
Now we suddenly go from the discussion of the great inner conflict, as well as some of the objectives of the Christian life, into the future. We all sooner or later have to face the fact that unless the Rapture occurs in our life time we are going to depart from this life through physical death. The Lord has appointed a way for each one of us to die. The dying is no problem provided that we have lived our life under Bible doctrine, for God provides the most wonderful blessing in dying, even greater than the blessings of living. So it is, then, that we go beyond death and penetrate into the screen of the eternal future to see how all of these things relate. We have been discussing imputation, the indwelling ministry of the Holy Spirit, and the great inner conflict of mental attitude, i.e. divine versus human viewpoint. Now all of these things come together in an application from ultimate sanctification, the future possession of a resurrection body minus the old sin nature and minus human good.
Verse 11 – application from ultimate sanctification. “But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you” – the transitional use of the conjunctive particle de is translated “now.” With it is also a conditional conjunction called the particle of the first class condition, e)i—“Now if.” Plus the nominative singular subject referring to the third person of the Trinity, God the Holy Spirit—pneuma, and an ablative singular of source from the definite article used as a personal pronoun for God the Father who sent the Holy Spirit in the doctrine of procession. “Now if the Spirit from him.” Then a reference to resurrection: the aorist active participle of e)geirw, a verb for resurrection. The aorist tense is a constative aorist for an instantaneous action of resurrection, the resurrection of the humanity of Christ. The active voice: it is God the Holy Spirit who actually produces the action of raising Jesus Christ from the dead. A circumstantial participle rounds out the verb. The Holy Spirit, then, had a part in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This was a part of His sustaining ministry of our Lord during His earthly ministry. The name “Jesus” is the accusative singular direct object from I)hsouj and it emphasises the humanity of Christ since the deity of Christ was not resurrected. Plus the generic use of the definite article emphasising the fact that the humanity of Christ is absolutely unique, different from all other members of the human race. Then the preposition e)k plus the ablative of nekroj in the plural minus the definite article to indicate the qualitative aspect of the two deaths of Christ on the cross—“from deaths.” This is resurrection from His spiritual as well as His physical deaths. When our Lord’s humanity was raised from the dead the Father and the Spirit both raised Him, so both are agents in the resurrection of Christ. The fact that God the Father is the agent of resurrection is found in Colossians 2:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Peter 1:21. The fact that God the Holy Spirit is also the agent of resurrection is found in Acts 2:24; Romans 1:4; 8:11; 2 Peter 3:18. The preposition e)k is a special one because it has with it a definite article instead of being anartharous. If it had no definite article it would imply that Jesus was raised from among dead ones. But because there is a definite article here it indicates that this is from the two deaths which He died on the cross. “Now if the Spirit from him [God the Father] who has raised up the Jesus fropm deaths [spiritual and physical].” Then “dwell in you” is a present active indicative of the verb o)ikew, meaning not only to dwell but to reside, or with the preposition e)n to indwell—“indwells you.” The present tense is a static present for a condition which perpetually exists. The active voice: the Holy Spirit produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative for a dogmatic statement of fact. The final preposition phrase indicates that not only does God the Holy Spirit indwell us for a purpose now but He also indwells us for a future purpose as well. The preposition e)n plus the locative plural of su, indicating all believers. There is another purpose of the Spirit, it has to do with the future. The Holy Spirit indwells us in the present as a down payment on our future resurrection body. The resurrection body is going to be the target, the home, or the residence for future blessing. All of the rewards and blessings of eternity are imputations from divine justice and they must be imputed to a home or a target. The home or the target is the resurrection body minus the old sin nature, minus human good. For all blessing from God is a real imputation.
“he that raised up Christ from the dead” – this is God the Holy Spirit. This is the aorist active participle of the verb e)geirw. The aorist tense is a constative aorist for an instantaneous action. The resurrection of the humanity of Christ was instantaneous, it was accomplished by God the Holy Spirit. The active voice: the Holy Spirit produces the action of the verb. The participle is circumstantial. It is followed by the prepositional phrase e)k plus nekros—“he who raised Christ Jesus from the deaths.”
“shall also quicken” – the future active indicative of the verb zwopoiew [zwoj means to be a living thing or being; poiew = to make or to do] literally means to make alive or to give life to. When it is followed by a dative case it means to give life to. If it is followed by the accusative, as here, it means to make alive. This is a predictive future tense meaning this is going to happen in the future, after death at the time of the Rapture. The active voice: the Holy Spirit produces the action of the verb in providing a resurrection body for each one of us. The indicative mood is declarative for a dogmatic statement of fact. The one who indwells us is also going to give us a resurrection body. The adjunctive use of kai means “also.”
“your mortal bodies” – this indicates the fact as to why the Holy Spirit indwells us now, and then fashions us a new body later on. It indicates our infirmities. The word “mortal” is found in the accusative plural direct object from qnhtoj. It is correctly translated “mortal” in the sense of being subject to the frailties of life. With this adjective is the noun swma for the body.
If God the Holy Spirit can sustain us in the devil’s world where Satan is not only the ruler of this world but the old sin nature is the sovereign of life; if He indwells us to sustain, to protect us, to give us capacity for life, to keep us in the perspective of grace, to keep us from arrogance and inordinate ambition, then obviously He has a future relationship with us.
“by his Spirit that dwelleth in you” – dia plus the ablative means “by his Spirit” but it is an unusual construction, dia plus the ablative of pneuma. The ablative is used here to express means, and the reason for it is because we have the expression of means accompanied by the implication of its source. Since the Holy Spirit is also the source as well as the means we have a very unusual prepositional phrase. The ablative of source always brings in the means. The one who indwells us, God the Holy Spirit, is also the means of fashioning that resurrection body with which we stand before the Lord Jesus Christ for evaluation.
Translation: “Now if the Spirit from him [God the Father] who has raised up Jesus from deaths [spiritual and physical] indwells you [and He does], he who raised Christ Jesus from deaths will also make alive your mortal bodies by the agency of his Spirit who resides in you.”
This verse completes the principle that the Holy Spirit has a part in every phase of God’s plan for the believer.
Verse 12 – a negative approach. For positive believers who are positive toward doctrine and interested in honouring the Lord the negative approach is not necessary, but there are some people who never can understand a positive command, it always has to be given to them in a negative manner. “Therefore, brethren,” we are debtors.” The verse begins with an inferential illative particle a)ra. It is a rare particle designed to express inference when used with an inferential conjunction. So immediately following is the more common word o)un, also designed to express inference. Then a vocative of address directed toward those who are called a)delfoj which means brother. Here it is in the vocative plural which means many brothers, translated “brethren.” It refers to the royal family of God and could just as legitimately be translated that way: “Consequently, royal family.” The royalty of the Lord Jesus Christ explains why we are in the Church Age. He is calling out a royal family for Himself. Next is a verb of clarification, the present active indicative of e)imi, the verb to be which is correctly translated “we are.” The present tense is a progressive present indicating the action in a state of persistence, linear aktionsart in present time. The active voice: the royal family of God, believers in the Church Age, produce the action of the verb. The declarative mood represents the verbal action from the viewpoint of reality. The word that follows will indicate just exactly why a negative command is necessary. The predicate nominative plural indicates that all believers are involved in this designation prior to a negative command. The designation is the predicate nominative plural from o)feilethj, the word for a debtor. This doesn’t mean that we are in debt to God, that we owe God something special. It is much greater than that. The word “debt” doesn’t go too well with royal family connotation. It really has the connotation of obligation. We are debtors only in the sense of obligation, and royalty has always had obligation. There are certain obligations that go with high rank and this is what is meant here. We have the highest rank in life because the moment that we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ we were not simply born again but we were born into the royal family of God, therefore we have great obligation. So this opening phrase introduces a negative obligation of the Christian way of life which is related to the divorce from the first husband, the OSN, which occurred at salvation through the ministry of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
“not to the flesh, to live after the flesh” – the negative adverb o)u denies the reality of the fact. The OSN alleges obligation after the divorce. This is a part of the function of the OSN inside of each one of us, alleging that there is responsibility which we have to the OSN. This, of course, is not true. Divorce means death, and death means no further obligation on the part of the wife—in this case, the believer. The problem with the word “flesh,” sarc, is that we think of the OSN as merely being inside of us and sort of isolated from everything else in life. But there are many ways in which the OSN destroys any sense of obligation. The word “to live” is a present active infinitive from zaw. Zaw deals with our life, what we are. It is what makes up the real person. The perfective present tense of zaw denotes the continuation of existing results of the baptism of the Spirit and retroactive positional truth. The active voice: the believer produces the negative obligation. The infinitive of intended results indicates the fulfilment of a negative obligation. This is also an articular infinitive in the Greek, and the definite article with the infinitive is an Attic Greek idiom. The definite article is therefore translated “that”—“that we should live.” Plus kata with sarc, “according to the flesh.”
Translation: “Therefore, brethren, we are not debtors to the old sin nature, that we should live according to the flesh.”
1. Negative obligation prepares the way for the statement of alternatives in the next verse.
2. Negative obligation implies that we can miss the purpose for which we continue to live after salvation.
3. Therefore negative purpose helps to define the positive objectives of the Christian way of life.
4. The solution to the problem of the old sin nature is found in each stage of the plan of God. Phase one, salvation: retroactive positional truth breaks the power and the authority of the OSN; phase two, the believer in time: the experiential power of the OSN as the ex-husband is broken through maturity adjustment to the justice of God. That involves two adjustments: rebound when necessary and a consistent positive attitude toward Bible doctrine; phase three: the OSN is eliminated from the resurrection body, along with the destruction of good and evil at the judgment seat of Christ.
5. Both carnality and reversionism ignore this negative obligation.
6. Carnality emphasises the old sin nature’s trend toward sin.
7. Carnality is not the believer’s sinning but the sinning believer’s failure to rebound, failure to utilise the grace solution.
8. Reversionism is the believer’s rejection of doctrine and his involvement with good and evil.
9. Consequently, the believer is not obligated to the ex-husband to follow the policy of sin, good, and evil.
10. Having no obligation to the sin nature as the ex-husband clears the decks to follow the policy of the new husband, the Lord Jesus Christ.
11. The policy of the Lord Jesus Christ for the believer in time is maturity adjustment to the justice of God through the filling of the Spirit and the daily function of GAP.
Verse 13 – the alternatives of the Christian way of life. It begins with the first alternative which was prohibited in the previous verse. “For if ye live after the
flesh.” It begins with the conditional conjunction e)i plus the indicative, it introduces the protasis of a first class condition, supposition from the viewpoint of reality. The protasis presents a fact which conditions another point of doctrine. The fact of the protasis is either carnality or reversionism, or both. The word “for” is the emphatic use of the postpositive conjunctive particle gar which means “indeed” here. Plus the present active indicative of the verb zaw, which in the previous verse was an infinitive. It is referring to living the Christian life or phase two, the life between salvation and death. The retroactive progressive present tense denotes what has begun in the past and continues into the present time. In this case we are looking at carnality or reversionism, or both. The active voice: the reversionistic believer produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative for the protasis of a first class condition. Then the phrase kata plus the accusative of sarc. “Indeed, if you live in relationship to the flesh [or, according to the flesh].” Even better: “under the authority of the old sin nature.” This is a first class condition, a supposition from the viewpoint of reality [and it is assumed that you do]. The old sin nature dominates the life of the believer when the believer is either carnal, minus rebound, or reversionistic and involved in the function of good and evil.
“ye shall die” – the present active indicative of the verb mellw, a verb that means to be about to, to be on the point of doing something, to be destined. Translation: “you are destined.” For the person who is negative toward doctrine, the person who is careless about the teaching of the Word of God, or who wants to emphasise works and functions of good and evil, this person is destined for something. The present tense is a futuristic present denoting the fact that maximum discipline, the sin unto death, has not yet occurred but is on the verge of occurring, or is contemplated as occurring in the near future. The active voice: reversionistic believers produce the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative representing the verbal action from the viewpoint of reality. There is a supporting verb in the infinitive form, the present active infinitive of a)poqhnskw, used here for maximum discipline of the believer in time. The only time that God can discipline a believer is in time, and this refers to the sin unto death. The perfective present denotes the continuation of the existing results of reversionism. The active voice: the reversionist produces the action. He is a believer who possesses eternal salvation, and cannot lose his eternal salvation, but he is still going to go out in this way. The infinitive is conceived result assumed as a consequence of reversionism. “Indeed if you live under the authority of the old sin nature [and you do], you are destined to die.” This is the sin unto death.[8]
1. The first option presented to the believer in phase two is rejection of rebound plus neglect of Bible doctrine resulting in varying stages of divine discipline.
2. When the old sin nature dominates the believer the trends of the sin nature result in sin, good, and evil.
3. The believer following one or more of these trends enters into either carnality or reversionism through the function of human good, but inevitably winds up under the concept of reversionism under the influence of evil.
4. All the good deeds, all the personality improvements, all the self-righteousness, all the dedications, do not stop the avalanche of reversionism.
5. Only the function of rebound and the daily perception of Bible doctrine protects the believer against reversionism and the ultimate discipline of the sin unto death.
6. The believer cannot afford the option of living under the authority of the old sin nature.
7. The a fortiori begun at salvation with the imputation of divine righteousness is never completed with maximum blessing from the justice of God to the immature believer. The only way that those blessings can be imputed to the glory of God is for the believer to crack the maturity barrier.
8. Lacking the blessings from the justice of God in time the believer in eternity has nothing above and beyond ultimate sanctification. Therefore a principle: To lose out in time, as far as reward and blessing is concerned, means to lose out in eternity, as far as reward and blessing is concerned.
9. There is no loss of salvation, only loss of blessing and reward above and beyond imputed righteousness in time, and the resurrection body in eternity.
The second alternative deals with the phrase, “but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body” – the adversative conjunctive particle de sets up a contrast between two clauses, between the reversionist who neglects Bible doctrine and the believer who is positive to doctrine and grows in grace. There is also the conjunctive particle e)i which is used as a conditional particle for the protasis of a fist class condition. Se we have an assumption which is based on reality. So long as the believer is alive he can always recover from reversionism and exercise the option of maturity adjustment to the justice of God. Then the instrumental of means from pneuma, referring to God the Holy Spirit who has everything to do with teaching us doctrine if we option for it. So the Holy Spirit not only controls the believer’s soul under rebound/the filling of the Spirit but He is the means of understanding doctrine so that we can grow—“but if by means of the Spirit.” Plus another word for death. Paul has just said that if the believer lives under the authority of the old sin nature he is destined to die—the sin unto death. But he says that while the believer is still alive he can put some things to death and cancel out any possibility of dying the sin unto death. So next is the present active indicative of qanataw, and old Attic word which means to kill, to deliver up to death, to condemn to death, or to recognise as dead. It is the latter meaning that is important here. Paul says the believer has an option to die the sin unto death, or while still alive to put something to death so that death will never be feared—“but if by means of the Spirit you recognise as dead [or, condemn to death].” That is a present active indicative. Plus the accusative plural direct object from pracij which means action, function, plus the ablative of source singular from swma—“function from the body.” We have been discussing human good, and that is exactly what has to be renounced: any system of self-righteousness, any system or panacea for improving the devil’s world.
The morphology: the retroactive progressive present of qanataw which denotes what must begin at salvation and continue throughout the believer’s life, namely rebound for the filling of the Spirit and the daily function of GAP to stay away from the evils of self-righteousness, judging, maligning, trying to improve the world with good. The active voice: the believer must produce the action of the verb. This will result in rejection of human good as a system, for human good is the greatest temptation to the believer and the means of distraction from Bible doctrine. Recognising human good as dead and therefore as a part of that divorce which occurred at salvation is the basis of avoiding the greatest deterrent to the Christian life, i.e. human good. The indicative mood is a potential indicative of obligation. In other words, this is the only way to live the Christian way of life. You have to condemn human good. The morphology of qanataw, the present active indicative, explains the instrumental of means of pneuma. The Holy Spirit takes doctrine resident in the believer’s right lobe and applies it in all of these areas where we get sucked into human good. The believer must store doctrine in his right lobe in order to avoid the temptation to get off into human good and self-righteousness. Principle: All blessing from God comes through the grace pipeline. No one ever receives blessing from God through being good.
“ye shall live” – future middle indicative from the verb zaw. The future tense is progressive, it denotes the idea of progress in future time. Hence, the progressive future connotes the advance to maturity—maturity adjustment to the justice of God—and resultant glorification of Jesus Christ, and the receiving of blessing. In other words, it is a reference to living the new life of phase two, the new life which is unfolding in Romans 8, the life that belongs to the royal family of God. The middle voice is a direct middle in which the believer acts with a view toward participating in the results of the action: blessing from the justice of God, glorification of Jesus Christ. Therefore the believer participates in the results of advancing toward maturity. The indicative mood is declarative, representing the verbal idea from the viewpoint of reality—“you shall live,” in the sense of blessing in maturity.
1. This is a reference to living a new kind of life, a life which is related to God’s plan and completely eliminates both preconceived notions and human good motivation. In other words, this means to live life in compatibility with the character of God rather than in compatibility with our own concepts of human character.
2. This means to erase human standards and substitute divine standards.
3. Maturity is the objective of the Christian way of life.
4. Maturity means the glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ.
5. In glorifying Christ, for the first time we receive great blessing from God—true blessing. Remember that logistical grace may appear to be blessing but it is sustaining us until we reach maturity.
6. It is impossible to advance to maturity when one is entangled with systems of human good and asceticism.
7. All believers are tempted at some time in some way to enter a program of human good which is deviation of purpose in this life.
Translation: “In deed, if you live under the authority of the old sin nature, you are destined to die [maximum discipline], but if by means of the Spirit you recognise as dead the actions from the body [human good], you shall live.”
1. In this verse the alternatives of the Christian way of life are defined. They are defined as far as final objectives are concerned.
2. Either the sin unto death from reversionism or divine blessing from maturity. Reversionism is maladjustment to the justice of God, while maturity is total ment to the justice of God.
3. Either you adjust to the justice of God or the justice of God will adjust to you.
4. If you adjust to the justice of God [to advance to maturity] the justice of God will provide for you the real imputation of divine blessing.
5. But if you are maladjusted through reversionism then the justice of God will adjust to you by divine discipline and punishment.
6. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil is just as dangerous to us today as it was to our first parents in the garden.
7. We must avoid the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
8. This verse commands to recognise as dead the actions of the body or human good because they are dealt with in the divorce from the old sin nature.
9. This death, then, to the old sin nature is divorce. Positionally the power of the ex-husband has been broken. Experientially this is exploited through the foiling of the Spirit and the daily function of GAP.
10. Maximum exploitation of victory occurs at maturity adjustment to the justice of God.
Verse 14-17, the results of the second alternative which is maturity adjustment to the justice of God. The first result, in verse 14, is divine guidance. Only the believer who is positive toward doctrine and only the mature believer is actually guided by God.
Verse 14 – “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God.” The postpositive conjunctive particle gar is used to express a cause or a reason. The nominative plural from the correlative adjective o(soj refers to those believers who attain maturity through the filling of the Spirit and maximum intake of doctrine. Then the present passive indicative from the verb a)gw, meaning here to be led—“For as many as are led.” The present tense is a retroactive progressive present, denoting what has begun in the past and continues into the present time. The mature believer is definitely led by the Lord. The passive voice: the mature believer receives the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative, it is a dogmatic statement of fact that the mature believer is definitely guided by God. The means is said to be the Spirit—the instrumental of means, pneuma. Plus the descriptive genitive singular of qeoj—“by the Spirit of God.”
Divine guidance is the doctrine of determining the will of God for your life: on specific things, on general things, on modus vivendi. Divine guidance is the communication of God’s will through God’s revelation. Divine revelation in our dispensation is limited to the Word of God. The canon of Scripture contains everything related to divine guidance. Divine discipline and human disaster as a classification of guidance from God is limited to a very negative aspect. There is guidance from God in a sense for the reversionist who receives warning discipline, then intensive discipline. This discipline merely tells him he is on the wrong road. The only classification for positively knowing the will of God is related to Bible doctrine, and the principle of guidance, then: You cannot know the will of God apart from knowing the Word of God.[9]
“they are the sons of God” – “these are,” referring to mature believers. The active voice: mature believers produce the action of the verb, though all believers
are the sons of God and royal family. The indicative mood is declarative for a dogmatic statement of fact. Plus the predicate nominative plural of u(ioj, used here in its correct Greek sense of “mature son.” The absence of the definite article with u(ioj helps us to understand that this is used here for mature sons. U(ioj is an anartharous construction. The absence of the definite article in the Greek means the high quality of the noun involved. Therefore it emphasises the mature believer here.
Translation: “For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are mature sons of God.”
1. God only guides His children, the royal family of God in this dispensation. Maximum guidance, however, is the prerogative and the blessing of the mature believer.
2. Guidance through maximum doctrine in the soul and the filling of the Spirit begins when you are positive but it is actually for mature believers.
3. For the immature believer guidance comes through divine discipline as a warning to get back to Bible doctrine. The carnal believer is guided through discipline.
1. One of the results of maturity adjustment to the justice of God, then, is divine guidance through the filling of the Spirit making application of resident doctrine in the soul.
2. This results in the believer becoming spiritually self-sustaining, i.e. not depending on anyone by being counselled, not consulting with other believers and getting misinformation about any given course of action or what decision should be made. The worst thing that can happen to any believer is to start depending on other believers for their guidance or counsel.
3. Only the mature believer is completely spiritually self-sustaining, making his own correct decisions and possessing total confidence about the will of God in any situation or circumstance of life.
4. When it comes to knowing and doing the will of God there is no substitute for being a mature believer.
5. The mature believer does not use others as a crutch, i.e. he does not depend upon the advice of others.
6. Seeking guidance from others is a sign of weakness and a lack of spiritual growth.
7. The mature believer does not seek guidance or counsel, however he often provides it for others.
Verse 15 – “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear.” This begins with the explanatory use of the conjunctive particle gar. Then the aorist active indicative of the verb lambanw which means to receive, plus the negative o)u. The constative aorist tense gathers into one entirety all of the negative action here. The active voice: the believer produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative representing the verbal action from the viewpoint of reality. Then the accusative singular direct object from pneuma. Pneuma can refer to the Holy Spirit, the human spirit, breath, and is also used for a state of mind or disposition of life and that is the meaning here: “you have not received a life.” Plus the descriptive genitive singular from douleia which refers to slavery. This is slavery to the old sin nature. The adverb palin is used here for falling back into a previous state or returning to a former manner of life. It is translated “back” or “again.” The previous activity is a slavery to a mental attitude. Then the prepositional phrase e)ij plus the accusative of foboj—“for the purpose of fear.” “For you have not received again a life of slavery for the purpose of fear.”
1. The new life in Christ Jesus is not designed by God to be a life of slavery to fear. God has not provided all of these things to frighten us, nor does He ever intend to frighten by anything in the world.
2. We were not born again to become worry worts and little frightened people.
3. Assurance and confidence are characteristics of the normal Christian way of life. However, it isn’t self-confidence so much as confidence in the integrity of God and assurance based on doctrine resident in the soul.
4. The life of the unbeliever is obviously going to be unstable. The more unstable the historical situation the more unstable the unbeliever will be.
5. The life of slavery here is marriage to the old sin nature, but we are divorced from the old sin nature through retroactive positional truth and this has freed us from the life of slavery.
6. Furthermore, the purpose of our life has changed. The purpose of our life is the glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ as members of the royal family of God. This can only be accomplished by receiving the real imputation of maximum blessing from the justice of God imputed to the righteousness of God.
7. Therefore fear is incompatible with this purpose and not required for the royal family of God.
8. Fear[10] and instability in the believer indicate lack of the filling of the Spirit and failure to assimilate Bible doctrine on a consistent basis.
“but ye have received the spirit of adoption” – the adversative conjunction a)lla sets up a contrast between the two clauses and between the first and the
second marriages. The first marriage to the old sin nature is characterised by fear. The second marriage to Christ is characterised by the Spirit of adoption. “But you have received” – the same aorist active indicative from the verb lambanw, which means to receive. It is a constative aorist referring to the instantaneous action which occurred at salvation, the baptism of the Spirit and current positional truth by which we entered into union with Christ. The active voice: the believer produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative representing the viewpoint of absolute reality. This is followed by the accusative singular direct object from pneuma, this time with a slightly different meaning. It refers to God the Holy Spirit as the author of the baptism of the Spirit at salvation. Plus a descriptive genitive which is translated “adoption” – u(ioqesia [qesia = from tiqhmi, to place; u)ioj = to place as an adult son] which means to place as an adult son, and it follows the Roman custom at the time of writing. The Romans had a custom of adopting their own children at the point of maturity, and it refers to that. It doesn’t refer to the adoption of a baby which was born to other parents, but to the Roman custom of adoption.[11] The “spirit of adoption” means in this case the ceremony by which you come to recognise the first person of the Trinity as your own personal Father in a special way.
“whereby we cry, Abba, Father” – here is a preposition plus the instrumental singular from the relative pronoun o(j, correctly translated “by whom.” Then the present active indicative of the verb krazw which means to shout, not to cry. It means a shout of victory, a shout of happiness. This is the expression of great happiness when we finally realise that God has a perfect plan for us, and that is includes a day-by-day plan in life, and that it provides everything in a wonderful way, and that there are no accidents and all things work together for good for those who achieve the plan which is maturity adjustment to the justice of God. Nothing can ever work out to anything but good to the mature believer. The shout is “Abba” which is actually Jewish [the Hebrew is Ab] but the Hellenistic form of the Aramaic word for “Father.” When Paul finally caught on to adoption, as he did right here, he shouted out “Abba” is the Jewish language and then he went to the language in which he was writing—Greek, and then he went to Pathr. Paul is by race Jewish even though he is a Roman citizen. He is recognising for the first time as a mature believer the great structure of the plan of God, and he is using the Roman system in order to recognise it. Adoption has the connotation of great blessing. It means plan, purpose, power, blessing, and eventually glory. So here is the expression of this wonderful plan, this wonderful relationship we have with God. Cf. Galatians 4:6. Doctrine in the right lobe causes the believer to realise what a fantastic plan it is.
Translation: “For you have not received again a life of slavery for the purpose of fear; but you have received the Spirit of adoption, by whom [the Holy Spirit] we keep shouting, Abba, my Father.”
“Abba” is the customary Aramaic title of God. We learn how important this word is from Mark 14:36. Our Lord was contemplating His death on the cross the next day and He said to God the Father: “Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt.” That is, Your plan, Father, not mine. He recognised that the justice of the Father had a plan in taking all of the personal sins in human history and imputing them to Christ on the cross for judgment. When He said “Abba” to the Father, He made it clear to the Father that He understood the plan. Abba, then, is the vocative of the mature believer who has maximum category #1 love for God the Father, who understands where he has been—the daily intake of doctrine resulting in maturity, who understands where he is going and is now beginning to receive the great blessings that come his way—spiritual blessings, material blessings, blessings by association, historical impact, blessings of the imputation of undeserved sufferings.
Verse 16 – if you are ever going to be related to reality as a believer Bible doctrine must come into your life. It must be related to your life, not as an academic subject but as a part of your life. “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit” – the nominative neuter singular subject pneuma refers to God the Holy Spirit. The nominative neuter singular from a)utoj, the intensive pronoun, refers to a person so we say “himself.” This is a reference to the third person of the Trinity. Plus the present active indicative from the compound verb summarturew [sum is the preposition sun = with; marturew = to testify, to bear witness] which means to confirm or testify in support of someone or something. “The Spirit himself confirms along with” is the corrected translation. This is a historical present tense in which a past event is viewed with the vividness of a present occurrence. The active voice: the Holy Spirit produces the action of the verb, along with other sources of confirmation, namely the human spirit. The point is, the Holy Spirit plus the human spirit is inserting doctrine into the life, for remember that doctrine not only resides in the right lobe but it also resides in the human spirit. The Holy Spirit takes doctrine in the human spirit and inserts it into the reality factor. The instrumental of association from pneuma is the human spirit, used this time for where doctrine resides for the construction of the edification complex of the soul and also for insertion into reality. Then the possessive genitive plural from the personal pronoun e)gw: “The Spirit himself testifies together with our spirit.” It is a mutual testimony: ‘In the mouths of two witnesses it shall be established.’ Reality is established here by God the Holy Spirit and the human spirit. This is the combination necessary for reality as well as advance to maturity. The filling of the Holy Spirit plus Bible doctrine resident in the human spirit constructs the edification complex of the soul, and the ECS becomes an insertion into reality with Bible doctrine. You cannot face reality properly as a believer unless you face it from the divine viewpoint. The divine viewpoint demands the insertion of doctrine into any given circumstance or situation.
Corrected translation of 1 Corinthians
2:12-16
Verse 12 – “But we have not received a cosmic spirit, but the spirit [human spirit] from the source of God; in order that we might have permanent knowledge of things [doctrines] having being graciously given to us under the authority of God.”
Verse 13 – Which things [doctrines] also we communicate by categories, not by teaching from the source of man’s wisdom [human IQ], but by teaching from the source of the Holy Spirit, combining with the human spirit to teach spiritual phenomena [through a spiritual apparatus: GAP].”
Verse 14 – “But the soulish man [unbeliever] does not acquire things [doctrines] from the Spirit of God; for to him they are foolishness [he has no frame of reference], and he is not able to get knowledge because they are discerned [perceived] from the source of the [human] spirit.”
Verse 15 – “But the spiritual man [the believer with GAP] discerns [perceives] all doctrines, but he himself is discerned under the authority of no one [doctrine in the human spirit cannot be evaluated by human viewpoint].”
Verse 16 – “For who has come to know the Lord’s mind [learn doctrine], who shall instruct him? We keep on having the mind of Christ.”
Doctrine is the mind of Christ. Doctrine is learned by the ministry of the Holy Spirit, and this becomes resident in the human spirit as well as the right lobe. Doctrine in the human spirit causes us to have two witnesses to insert what is reality.
“that we are the children of God” – the conjunction o(ti after verbs of confirmation, plus the present active indicative of the verb e)imi. The perfective present denotes continuation of existing results, namely every believer is a child of God the Father. The active voice: the believer produces the action of the verb by constantly being a child of God. The indicative mood is declarative, it is a reality. However the word for “sons” here is teknon, accusative plural direct object. The word ordinarily refers to a child in relationship to parents, but here it refers to the fact that every believer is the child of God the Father. Positionally every believer is u(ioj, an adult son, we have that under adoption. Experientially we start out as teknon. Plus the genitive of relationship singular “of God.” Awareness of our family relationship with God has two sources of testimony: the filling of the Spirit and Bible doctrine in the soul.
Translation: “The Spirit himself testifies together with our human spirit, that we are children of God.”
1. The reality of any spiritual phenomena is the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit. The subject taught by the Holy Spirit is Bible doctrine.
2. The reality comes from that Bible doctrine resident in both soul and spirit. The scripture for the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit: John 14:26; 16:12-15; 1 Corinthians 2:9-16; 1 John 2:27.
3. Reality about our relationship with God, our purpose in the plan of God, the mechanics of the plan of God, and our objectives for life on this earth after salvation, originate from the transfer of Bible doctrine from the page of the Scripture to the soul and the human spirit of the believer. This is accomplished through the ministry of God the Holy Spirit.
4. Reality from doctrine becomes the basis for confidence and security in our relationship with God.
5. The reality of God, the integrity of God, the plan of God, blessings from God, all stem from the same root: doctrine resident in the human soul and human spirit.
6. Doctrine resident in the soul and the spirit is the reality of relationship with God in time, as well as the above and beyond blessings from God in eternity.
7. Therefore, for the believer walking through this life—he is in full time Christian service, and ambassador for Christ, a royal priest—there is no substitute for Bible doctrine resident in the soul and the spirit through the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit where doctrine is communicated by authorised persons. And there is no way to get it there apart from God the Holy Spirit.
8. Illustration: “In the mouth of two witnesses it [a fact] is established” – Deuteronomy 17:6; 19:15; Matthew 18:16; 2 Corinthians 13:1. In the mouth of two witnesses: the Holy Spirit takes the Word of God and inserts it into the human spirit.
9. The two witnesses are the Holy Spirit and the human spirit. The testimony of the two witnesses is Bible doctrine. By that joint testimony there is the insertion of Bible doctrine into your circumstances.
Verse 17 – a transitional verse. It deals with two subjects. The first sentence deals with relationship; the second sentence is the transitional sentence that starts
us with undeserved as a blessing to the mature believer and ends up with glory.
“And if children, the heirs” – the postpositive conjunctive particle de puts together thoughts. Paul is going to take all of these great thoughts in the first part of the chapter and put them together with something which seems to be antithetical and incongruous. He is going to put them together with suffering. In order to head into it properly we must have one more sentence on the fact that we are related to God in a special way, and that we are dealing with the justice of God which is never unfair. Next is the conditional particle e)i which introduces the protasis of a first class condition, an assumption from the viewpoint of reality. The supposition is based on a statement of the previous two sentences: all believers are children of God, hence the first class condition. There is no verb in this first sentence, it is totally elliptical. An ellipsis applies to any idea which is not fully expressed grammatically, and leaves it to the reader to supply a self-evident omission. Generally it is the verb to be, as here, the present active indicative of e)imi—“Now if we are.” Plus the predicate nominative plural from teknon, the word for a son under the authority of his tutors, his parents; the son in a period of learning and understanding—“children” in the sense of being under authority, in the sense of having a lot to learn. The first class condition indicates that we are. The adjunctive use of the conjunction kai is translated “also.” Then the natural result of being a child under the authority of parents and being adopted at the same time, the predicate nominative plural of klhronomoj which is correctly translated “heir.” It is in the plural so all of us as believers are the heirs of God. Plus the genitive singular of relationship from qeoj, this heirship is “of God.” God the Father is in view. Then a second de, “on the other hand.” Then a predicate nominative plural from a compound noun, sugklhronomoj [sug = the form of the preposition “with”; klhronomoj = heir], “fellow-heirs,” plus an ablative singular of Xristoj—“with Christ.” “Now if, on the one hand, we are the heirs of God the Father, and on the other hand we are fellow-heirs with Christ.” The instrumental case is generally used to express means. But the ablative is also used when the source in implied. Since Christ is the source the ablative is used—“with Christ.” Christ is the source and the means of our heirship with God, and this emphasises again the baptism of the Holy Spirit, current positional truth, all of the principles involved with the baptism of the Spirit.
1. Not only does the doctrine of heirship come into focus, but again such doctrines as positional sanctification, royal family of God, baptism of the Spirit, current positional truth.
2. Heirship demands blessing. To be the heir of the God of the universe requires comparable blessing. These are available and a part of God’s plan. The only thing missing is that the justice of God cannot impute these blessings until there is capacity.
3. Heirship, then, is related to the concept of blessing from the justice of God in time and in eternity.
4. The imputation of divine righteousness is the first step in providing blessing from the integrity of God.
5. All blessing from the justice of God must be a real imputation from divine justice to divine righteousness.
6. To be a fellow-heir with Christ demands blessing, but blessing demands capacity.
7. Capacity for blessing only comes to those who have Bible doctrine resident in the soul and the spirit.
8. Blessing in eternity from the justice of God is a series of a fortiori principles beginning with the imputation of divine righteousness at salvation.
The transitional sentence introduces the next paragraph which is the new life from suffering to glorification, verses 18-30. It begins with suffering of the present time and terminates in verse 30 with glorification.
The first phrase of this second sentence reads, “if so be that we suffer with him.” The compound conditional conjunction e)iper is one of the connecting links used by Paul, made up of two particles: e)i, used with the indicative for a first class condition, and per with the intensive force, hence “if as is supposed” or “if indeed.” With it is the present active indicative from the compound verb sumpasxw [sum is from the preposition sun = with; pasxw = suffer], which means to suffer with or to suffer the same as. Plato used this verb to mean to suffer at the same time, or to suffer with, or to suffer the same as, but primarily to suffer at the same time but not to the same degree or content. One thing should be eliminated immediately; this is the stumbling block of this great transitional sentence: there is no parallelism between the suffering of Christ on the cross and the suffering of Christians in time. The sufferings of Christ on the cross were absolutely unique, as unique as the person who was hanging there. Therefore there is no possibility that this verb denotes a common participation of Christ and the believer in a common suffering; there is no such thing. This is where, of course, asceticism and others try to read themselves into the picture. The sufferings of the mature believer cannot be compared with the suffering of the unique God-Man, Jesus Christ. Furthermore, the word Xristoj or an equivalent pronoun, a)utoj, is not used. There is no Xristoj in this passage. Remembering, then, that there is no third person personal pronoun in this passage, nor no Xristoj, translators have been presumptuous, and their presumption has led to the incorrect translation of this passage. Notice in the KJV that “him” is italicised as though somehow it is speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ, which it is not doing. In Philippians 1:29 the believer is said to suffer for the sake of Christ, but not with Christ. Suffering in behalf of is not the same as suffering with. What this transitional sentence is saying is simply this: Capacity for blessing from maturity means capacity for suffering from that same maturity. That is what sumpasxw means: suffering in the status quo of the mature believer, just as Christ suffered in the status quo of impeccability. The believer is not impeccable but he does have undeserved suffering. Being in the status of capacity for life the mature believer has the ability to meet any suffering, any disaster, any situation in life, and handle it perfectly as God would have it handled. Therefore while we will sin as long as we live one of the areas we do not sin as mature believers is in the area of maximum pressure, maximum disaster, maximum suffering. The compound conjunction e)iper assumes maturity adjustment to the justice of God which not only provides capacity for blessing but also capacity for undeserved suffering. Translation: “if indeed we suffer with maturity status.”
The principle: Capacity for blessing from maturity adjustment to the justice of God means capacity for undeserved suffering in maturity. Therefore the compound verb sumpasxw refers to suffering in the status quo of maturity.
In the verb we have a present tense, a retroactive progressive present denoting the attainment of maturity in the past and the continuation of maturity in the present. The active voice: mature believers produce the action of the verb, namely suffering for blessing. The indicative mood is declarative for supposition from the viewpoint of reality and maturity adjustment to the justice of God. This is telling us that from now on until we get through verse 30 we are talking about mature believers. It is telling us what we can expect once we reach maturity, and how to handle it as a mature believer.
1. Suffering with maturity status is a supposition from the viewpoint of reality, i.e. the protasis of a fist class condition. In other words, there is such a thing.
2. Therefore this protasis makes two assumptions: a) Maturity adjustment to the justice of God through maximum doctrine resident in the soul and the spirit results in the real imputation of divine blessing to its target, +R; b) Along with the imputation of blessing comes the imputation of undeserved suffering, an imputation just as much from the justice of God as those things we generally categorise as great blessing. Therefore to the mature believer undeserved suffering only has one purpose: a greater blessing than can be derived from the accoutrements of life.
Principle
3. The undeserved suffering of Christ was the status of impeccability. The undeserved suffering of the born-again believer is in the status of maturity.
4. There is a vast difference between the impeccability of Christ and the maturity of the believer.
5. The difference includes imputed sin, the old sin nature, the function of the trends: sin, good and evil.
6. The undeserved suffering of the impeccable Lord Jesus Christ is unique.
7. The undeserved suffering of the mature believer is designed to demonstrate that capacity for blessing (from doctrine in the soul and the spirit) also means capacity for suffering from that same doctrine in the soul. Capacity in itself means the ability to suffer without the pain being paramount. Instead, doctrine is paramount.
8. Therefore the undeserved suffering of the mature believer contributes to the rewards and blessing of eternity. All undeserved suffering is God’s down payment on future blessing. It is God telling the believer in time that He has great things for him in heaven.
9. Just as the blessing imputed from the justice of God is the basis for blessing beyond ultimate sanctification in eternity, so the suffering from the justice of God to the mature believer is the basis for reward beyond ultimate sanctification in eternity.
10. Maturity status in time is the result of the filling of the Spirit plus maximum doctrine resident in the soul and spirit.
11. Maturity status is the place of occupation with Christ and the resultant capacity for life and suffering.
12. Occupation with Christ in blessing means capacity for that blessing.
13. Occupation with Christ in undeserved suffering means capacity for that suffering. The justice of God provides something for which you have capacity.
14. Suffering (undeserved), then, is a blessing for believers in mature status. Capacity for blessing means capacity for suffering.
“that we may be glorified together” – the other side of the picture. Undeserved
suffering in maturity; glorification in eternity. The word “that” is i(na with the
subjunctive mood and it introduces a final clause to denote an objective, aim, or goal. The adjunctive use of kai used as an adverb means “also.” Plus the aorist passive subjunctive from the compound verb sundoxazw, which means to be glorified with someone, to be fellow-glorified ones. It means also to share in someone else’s glory—“that also we might be glorified with Christ.” The aorist tense is a culminative aorist, it views the glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ in its entirety but regards it from the viewpoint of existing results. Therefore the culminative aorist denotes the attainment of an end. The fact that Christ is glorified means that the way is now open for any member of the royal family to share in His glory. But the believer must be mature and the justice of God must impute to him suffering. The passive voice: the believer receives the action of the verb, including the rewards and blessings of eternity above and beyond ultimate sanctification. The subjunctive mood is the potential subjunctive, it depends on the believer in time attaining maturity adjustment to the justice of God. Cf. 1 Timothy 2:12.
Translation: “Now if we are children, we are also heirs; on the one hand heirs of God the Father, and on the other hand fellow-heirs with Christ; if indeed we suffer with maturity status, that also we might be glorified with Christ.”
Principle
15. Suffering for blessing in time means reward and blessing in eternity. But it must be undeserved suffering and suffering in mature status.
16. Undeserved suffering, along with imputed blessings from the justice of God, is the basis for the greater blessing of eternity.
17. This explains and anticipates what Romans 8:28 is all about: the mature believer in undeserved suffering.
18. The mature believer has undeserved suffering in time which is parlayed into reward and blessing from the justice of God in eternity. So that reward and blessing in eternity is a real imputation.
Principle
1. All suffering in the status of maturity is undeserved suffering designed to glorify God, and at the same time to demonstrate that capacity for life and happiness also means capacity for suffering.
2. Capacity for suffering comes from Bible doctrine resident in the soul. In other words, capacity for suffering is characterised by occupation with Christ during that suffering or adversity.
3. This capacity is emphasised in Romans 8:28, which in this context emphasises and applies to the mature believer only .
4. Undeserved suffering and adversity is provided by God to confirm future blessings to the mature believer in phase three.
5. When we realise that time is just a drop in the bucket compared to eternity this suffering becomes a demonstration of the wisdom of God, the dynamics of the grace of God, and the perfection of the justice of God. All underserved suffering is from the justice of God.
6. The suffering of maturity status is designed for future blessing and reward in phase three.
7. Undeserved suffering of the mature believer anticipates the glorious inheritance of the future. Every time that the mature believer has undeserved suffering it is God’s guarantee, God’s reminder, of the great blessing and rewards he is going to have for all eternity.
Verses 18-30, the new life from suffering to glorification.
Verse 18 – the comparison of present suffering to eternal glory. “For I reckon that the
sufferings of this present time” – the explanatory use of the postpositive conjunctive particle gar, followed by the present middle indicative of the verb logizomai, a word which is frequently mistranslated. When God is the subject it means to impute; when man is the subject it means to conclude. In the Attic Greek this verb meant to deliberate on the basis of facts and to draw conclusions on the basis of logic. It was used, then, for non-emotional thinking. Hence, it emphasises a rational course of thought divorced from emotion, therefore able to utilise the facts. When you tangle up the facts with your emotion you draw erroneous conclusions. Emotion does not originate thought; emotion can only appreciate thought. But when God uses this verb, He did all of the thinking in eternity past, so we translate it “impute.” God acts on the basis of the facts and therefore he imputes life to the soul. At the same time the justice of God thinks and imputes Adam’s sin to the genetically-formed old sin nature so that we could be condemned at birth and have a chance to be blessed in life and for all eternity. (No imputation of Adam’s sin; no chance of the person who dies before reaching accountability being saved) All of the imputations are based upon divine thinking, not foreknowledge. Foreknowledge is a result of the decrees but not the means of the decrees. Omniscience is the means; foreknowledge is the result. Foreknowledge makes nothing certain, it merely recognises what is certain. “For I conclude.” The present tense is a retroactive progressive present denoting a conclusion begun in the past and one that continues in the present time. The middle voice: this is a deponent verb which is middle in form and active in meaning. Paul as the human author produces the action of the verb through cognisance of doctrine. The indicative mood is declarative for a dogmatic conclusion from doctrine. Then comes the conjunction o(ti which is used instead of the infinitive in order to give the content of a conclusion from a correct system of thought. Plus the subject, the nominative plural from paqhma—“For I conclude that the sufferings.” Then the adverb of time nun which refers to the believer in phase two and brings him face to face with all of these great imputations which are the outline of this passage and our life. The life of the believer is outlined through imputation. With this is the genitive of time singular from the noun kairoj which refers to both a point of time and a period of time. Here it refers to a period of time, i.e. maturity adjustment to the justice of God. The genitive of time singular from the definite article also must be considered. This is the generic use of the definite article representing a special category of suffering: undeserved suffering for the purpose of blessing. It is suffering which leads to glory as well as blessing.
At this point it is necessary to insert what has been left out because of ellipsis, the present active indicative of e)imi, and we say, “For I conclude that the sufferings of the present period of time are not.” The negative adverb o)u denies the reality of the alleged fact. Then the predicate adjective a)cioj, meaning comparable or worthy of—“are not comparable to.” The phrase “to be compared” is not there in the original, it was simply used by the translator to try to clarify an ellipsis.
“the glory” – proj plus the accusative singular of doca should be translated “face to face with the glory.” The glory refers to the eternal blessings for the mature believer.
“which shall be revealed in us” – the present active participle of mellw which here means to be about to be, to be on the point of and therefore to be destined: “which is destined.” This is a futuristic present denoting an event which is not yet occurring, i.e. the rewards of eternity to the mature believer, but is regarded as so certain in thought that it is contemplated as already occurring. The active voice: the glory or the blessings and rewards in eternity from the justice of God produce the action of the verb. The participle is circumstantial. Then the aorist passive infinitive of a)pokaluptw which means to be revealed. This is a gnomic aorist for something which is absolutely certain, i.e. eternal rewards and blessings for every mature believer. The passive voice: the mature believer receives the action of the verb: in the future, great blessing and reward of eternity. The infinitive is the infinitive of actual result. With it is the prepositional phrase e)ij plus the accusative plural of e)gw—“to us.”
Translation: “For I conclude that the sufferings of the present period of time are not comparable to the glory which is destined to be revealed in us.”
This verse contains the outline of the paragraph, verses 18-30. Basically there are two thoughts: a) the sufferings of the present time, verses 19-27; b) the glory which is destined to be revealed in us, verses 28-30. In this outline we see three categories of present suffering, described by three groans: the groan of nature, verses 19-22; the groan of the mature believer, verses 23-25; the groan of the Holy Spirit, verses 26-7. After these three groans a promise to the mature believer in verse 28. Then follows the glory which is destined to be revealed in us, verses 29-30.
Three things to remember: a) There is no comparison between suffering as a mature believer and the rewards and blessings to that mature believer in eternity; b) No suffering in maturity is greater than the capacity of doctrine resident in the soul or in the spirit. No suffering in maturity is greater than the rewards and the blessings of surpassing grace in eternity; c) Time is just a drop in the bucket compared to eternity, and suffering in time cannot be compared to blessing in eternity.[12]
The first groan of suffering: in nature, verses 19-22.
Verse 19 – “For the earnest expectation of the creature” begins the with explanatory conjunctive particle gar. Then the nominative singular subject from the triple-compound noun a)pokaradokia [a)po = away, away from, or from; kara = head (in Ionic Greek); dokia = taken from dexomai = to take or to stretch] which means to stretch the head forward. This comes to mean intense concentration. It means also “confident expectation.” It has the connotation of security. You are not living a normal Christian life if you are insecure in any field. There is no place in the plan of God for insecurity. Insecurity means you are ignorant of the character of God, the attributes of God, and how these attributes function in the plan of God for man. Before you reach maturity you must have eliminated every insecurity area. This noun is only used here and in Philippians 1:20, which indicates that Paul coined the word. It means intense concentration resulting in confident expectation. We translate it that way here: “confident expectation.” This is talking about nature, and the question arises: Does nature think? Next comes the genitive singular of ktisij which means “creation” and refers to the material universe. “For the confident expectation of the material universe [of the creation].”
“waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” – the verb is the present middle indicative from the compound a)pekdexomai. In secular Greek this meant to draw a conclusion, but it was used also for another meaning: to await a conclusion to be drawn by someone else. When it came into Koine Greek the verb meant to wait for someone, and it is used by Paul for the expectation of a conclusion which God will draw, or the expectation of the end of the matter. In other words, how God is gong to turn it all out. In other words the material universe stands in an attitude of expectation, waiting for God to work it all out; to work out their undeserved suffering for blessing. Nature knows what we do not: that all things work together for good. And even though nature is under a curse at the present time, that curse will be removed at the second advent. So nature, between Adam’s fall and the second advent, is under undeserved suffering, a perfect illustration of what is coming up in this paragraph—blessing by undeserved suffering. God demonstrates to a few—those who crack the maturity barrier—that happiness can be just as easily related to unpleasant circumstances, and that you can be just as happy in suffering as you are in what we commonly call prosperity circumstances. And also, that there is no circumstance in this life which is greater than divine provision for the mature believer, the one who is being blessed by undeserved suffering. “For the confident expectation of the material universe [of the creation] waits eagerly [or, stands in eager anticipation].” The present tense is a customary present to denote what may reasonably be expected to occur in the material universe. The middle voice: this is a deponent verb, therefore middle in form but active in meaning. The material universe produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative, viewing the verbal action from the standpoint of reality.
Next is the accusative singular direct object from the noun a)pokaluyij. The word means disclosure, revelation, the revealing of something—“for the revealing.” This is a reference to the second advent of Christ where the Church as the royal family of God and the Old Testament believers will be presented in resurrection bodies. The Church receives resurrection bodies at the Rapture. At the second advent another resurrection occurs: the Old Testament believers. All are brought together for a big manifestation. The “sons of God” is a descriptive genitive plural from u(ioj—adult sons, plus the possessive genitive of qeoj with the definite article—“sons of the God.”
Translation: “For the confident expectation of the material universe waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.”
“Sons of God” fall into two categories here: the royal family of God or the Church Age believer who receives a resurrection body at the Rapture,[13] and the Old Testament believer, both Jew and Gentile, who receives a resurrection body at the second advent. This is the revealing of the sons of God.
Verse 20 – “For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly.” This begins with the postpositive conjunctive particle gar which introduces a cause or a reason for the material universe eagerly anticipating the revealing the sons of God at the second advent. For when the Church is presented as the bride a shocking thing is going to occur with regard to nature or the material universe while the wedding feast is occurring. There is going to be a complete and total change, so that when the Church steps outside from the wedding feast it is going to see a brand new world. When Adam sinned nature was put under the curse—undeserved suffering—and it continues in that status until the revelation of the sons of God, the bride, the royal family. The next word is the nominative singular subject ktisij—“creation.” Remember that nature in undeserved suffering is an illustration of the mature believer in undeserved suffering. The undeserved suffering provides great blessing. The verb is the aorist passive indicative of u(potassw, which means to be subordinated to, to submit to, to be under authority. The preposition u(po means under authority of; tassw means to be in a military formation. “For the creation [material universe] was subordinated.” The aorist tense is a constative aorist, it refers to that point of time when Adam sinned—Genesis 3:17, “being cursed,” the qal passive participle of the verb arar, “constantly being cursed is the ground because of you.” Undeserved suffering came to nature, but it came as a blessing to man as well as a blessing to nature because this is the source of our food, our aesthetic appreciation of the material universe. The constative aorist refers to an action extended over a period of time, a succession of events gathered up into one entirety. This action occurs from the fall of man to the second advent of Christ. The passive voice: nature or the material universe receives the action of the verb, sharing in the results of Adam’s original sin. Nature was innocent but nature suffered along with man. The indicative mood is declarative, representing the verbal action from the viewpoint of historical reality.
“to vanity” – the dative singular indirect object from mataiothj, which means here futility, emptiness, vacuum, purposelessness, and in the Attic Greek, nothingness. Here the noun does not refer to the vacuum created in the soul through the absence of doctrine, as noted in Ephesians 4:17, but to the state of futility which exists in nature after the fall. So we translated it, “to futility” which means void of purpose. Nature was originally perfect but is now void of purpose.
“not willingly” – the negative o)u plus an independent nominative singular from the adjective e(kwn, meaning against its own will. The independent nominative names an idea rather than an object. When an idea is conceived independent of any particular verbal relation the expression of it may be left standing alone in the nominative case. This isn’t a subject.
“but by reason of him” – the adversative conjunction a)lla which always joins two sentences where there is a contrast. It sets up a contrast between the futility of man apart from God and the futility of nature apart from God. Then the preposition dia plus the accusative singular of the definite article which is used as a personal pronoun referring to God the Father, the author of the divine plan of mankind—“but because of him.”
“who hath subjected the same in hope” – aorist active participle of u(potassw, meaning to subordinate. The constative aorist completes the action of the verb in its entirety. The active voice: God the Father produces the action of the verb at the second advent. The participle is circumstantial. We add the word “it” to complete the sentence in English; “it” refers to the material universe. Plus the preposition e)pi and the locative of time from e)lpij—“in the time of hope.” This is a reference to the second advent. The time of hope is that activity of the second advent in which nature is redeemed, as per Isaiah 35.
Translation: “For the creation [material universe] was subordinated to futility against its own will, but because of him [God the Father] who has subordinated it in the time of hope [second advent].”
Isaiah 35:1 – “The desert and the wilderness will be ecstatic [qal imperfect of the verb gil, which means to dance around in a circle] in great happiness; and the desert will rejoice and blossom like a crocus.”
Verse 2 – It will blossom profusely [the qal imperfect of parach. The doubling of the verb is an intensity factor and it means to blossom profusely], it will both rejoice with rejoicing and sing with happiness; the glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the Lord, the majestic royalty of our God.”
The material universe suffered when Adam committed the original sin, and since then the material universe has been in bondage, undeserved suffering, waiting eagerly to be delivered at the second advent. The undeserved suffering has great blessing connected with it, and that is where we see the glories of nature in agriculture, the food that is produced, and so on. The second advent of Christ introduces His millennial reign in which nature will be restored to its pristine beauty in keeping with the perfect environment of the Millennium. Therefore nature anticipates the second advent, the time of the revealing of the royal family of God is resurrection bodies. Nature shared in the curse of man, therefore nature will share in the glory of the royal family in resurrection. Nature’s subordination to futility is obedience to the integrity of God who has linked the destiny of man with the destiny of the restored earth. The corruption and disorder in nature at the present time, then, represents and parallels the corruption and disorder in man from the sin nature and from spiritual death. The redemption/resurrection of the believer’s body is also accompanied by the redemption of nature in the restored Millennium.
The Millennium
1. The Millennium is promised—2 Samuel 7:8-17.
2. The Millennium is prophesied primarily in Isaiah (Chapters 2, 11, 35).
3. The Millennium is presented in the Gospels.
4. The Millennium is postponed by the New Testament epistles.
5. The Millennium is plagiarised by the Tribulation with its political and religious organizations of the beast and the false prophet.
6. The Millennium is proclaimed by the angelic heralds of Revelation 10, and by human heralds in Revelation 11.
7. The Millennium is perfected, as per Revelation 11, 19.
In the Millennium the perfect environment is going to exist because Satan is bound. Demons are removed from the earth and therefore there is no religion in Christ’s kingdom. The absence of religion is absolutely necessary, for religion is a part of human good and evil. Religion combines the functions of human good with evil. Christianity is not a religion. Religion is man by man’s works seeking to gain the approbation of God. So perfect environment cannot exist as long as Satan is operating in this world. In the Millennium there is optimum spirituality among believers. In that day the believers will take their place as the true aristocracy of life they were intended to be—Isaiah 65:24; Joel 2:28,29; Zechariah 14:16,17. In that day the filling of the Spirit will be quite different from the filling of the Spirit today. Israel is restored as a nation in the Millennium—Isaiah 5:26-30; 10:19-23; 11:11-16; 65:19; Joel 2:16ff; Zechariah 8:20-23. There will be the fulfilment of all the unconditional covenants—Daniel 9:24. The nations of the earth will enjoy perfect environment under the realm of the universal reign of Jesus Christ. There will be universal peace—Psalm 46:9; Isaiah 2:4; Hosea 2:18; Micah 4:3. There will not be any lengthy peace ever in the devil’s world and therefore we must be prepared for war in order to guarantee the establishment principles of peace on our own nation. There will be universal prosperity—Psalm 72:7,16. Free enterprise will operate, and the secret to free enterprise will be competition. Motivation will be competition and profit, an honourable principle. The perfect world government under Christ will exist for the first time. There is no such thing as a perfect world government until Christ rules—Isaiah 11:1,2; Zechariah 14:9. There will be a universal knowledge of God—Isaiah 11:9. There will be perfect objectivity in the administration of justice, an absolute must for perfect environment—Isaiah 11:3,4; Psalm 72:12-14. Perfect environment will exist in nature. Creation is released from the bondage of sin—Romans 8:19-22. Plant life will abound—Isaiah 35. Animals will lose their ferocity—Isaiah 11:6-9; 65:25. There will be a great human population explosion in the Millennium. The baptism of fire removes all unbelievers at the end of the Tribulation from the earth’s population, and therefore the necessity of repopulating the earth under a new civilisation—Ezekiel 20:34-38; Matthew 25:31-46. The Gog revolution will terminate this perfect environment, just as it was in the time of Adam and Eve, with a revolt against God, therefore a revolt against perfect environment. (Revolution is never designed to improve man’s environment; revolution is always a group of have-nots stealing from those who have it. It is a power-grab, the stealing of power, the overthrow of authority) –Revelation 20:7-10.
Verse 21 – “Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption.” The conjunction dioti is a compound used to introduce an inferential clause. Where the inference is going to involve an analogy following you have dioti rather than o)un because o)un merely takes preceding information and draws a conclusion. But this is a conclusion to set up for the analogy to undeserved suffering in the Christian life, therefore Paul uses the correct word. Then the nominative singular subject from ktisij, referring to nature or the material universe, followed by the adjunctive kai, meaning “also.” Plus the attributive use of the intensive pronoun a)utoj—“itself.” “Therefore the material universe itself also.” The verb is the future passive indicative of e)leuqerow which means to be set free. In the future passive it is translated correctly “shall be set free.” The predictive future tense refers to the second advent and the time of the Millennium. So this is a reference to the wonderful change which will occur in nature. The material universe or nature receives the action of the verb at the second advent of Christ at the beginning of the Millennium. The indicative mood is declarative representing the verbal action from the viewpoint of future historical reality. Then a prepositional phrase, a)po plus the ablative of douleia the word for slavery or bondage. Plus the genitive of reference singular from fqoraj for “corruption.” “Therefore the material universe itself also shall be set free from the slavery to the corruption.”
1. The corruption is based on Adam’s original sin. The corruption is the trend toward sin. Good and evil.
1. The material universe or nature shares the bondage of Adam.
2. The material universe or nature under the curse still points mankind to the existence of God—Romans 1:20.
3. However, nature’s slavery to corruption results in man having to work for a living. Man must till the ground. The material universe shares man’s condemnation through Adam’s original sin.
4. This is why there are thorns in nature. This also explains the crown of thorns which our Lord wore during His crucifixion.
5. Because nature or the material universe is now in slavery to corruption it becomes necessary for God to provide laws for nature as He has provided laws of establishment for corrupt humanity.
“into the glorious liberty of the children of God” – the preposition e)ij plus the accusative singular from e)leuqeria, “into the freedom.” Plus the descriptive
genitive singular from the noun doca, which refers to the same glory mentioned in verse 18, and a genitive plural of reference teknon—“with reference to the children,” believers in the process of learning, under the authority of Bible doctrine. Then the possessive genitive singular of qeoj—“of the God”. The phrase: “into the freedom of the glory with reference to the children of God”—the believer in ultimate sanctification—the resurrection body minus the old sin nature, minus human good, and a reference also to the second advent of Christ when the believer not only has his resurrection body but the believer of this age is revealed as the royal family of God or the bride of Christ. During the Tribulation the Church as the royal family is being evaluated; after the Tribulation the manifestation of the children of God.
Translation: “Therefore the material universe [nature itself] also shall be set free from the slavery to the corruption into the freedom of the glory with reference to the children of God.”
1. Nature not only shares the condemnation of mankind but at the second advent shares the glorification of mankind.
2. Just as the justice of God turns cursing into blessing for mankind, so the justice of God turns cursing into blessing for nature or the material universe, the illustration for undeserved suffering.
3. Christ is the glory of God.
4. The mature believer is the glory of Christ.
5. Nature at the second advent is the glory of the mature believer.
6. While nature shares in man’s condemnation and corruption, nature will also share in man’s glory at the redemption of his body and the manifestation of it.
7. The elevation of the believer through the principle of ultimate sanctification means the elevation of nature through ultimate restoration, i.e. restoration to the pristine glory which existed between the time the Holy Spirit renovated the earth up to the time of man’s fall.
9. The beauty of nature at present is analogous to the beauty of the mature believer, both are in the principle of undeserved suffering and yet both have a fantastic beauty that comes out of it. So just as beautiful nature suffers as personified in the groaning of the next verse, so the beautiful mature believer suffers as dramatised in verse 23.
Verse 22 – “For we know that the whole creation groaneth” begins with the explanatory use of the postpositive conjunctive particle gar, plus the perfect active
indicative of o)ida is used as a present tense for perception. Perception of doctrine has occurred in the past and is emphasised as a present reality. From this perception comes the personification. The active voice: Paul and believers produce the action of the verb when they understand the principle of undeserved suffering in maturity. The indicative mood is declarative for the reality of cognisance of doctrine which turns great cursing into blessing. The conjunction o(ti delineates the content of what is known. Then the nominative feminine singular adjective paj plus the nominative subject ktisij, referring to the entire material universe or the realm of nature. Plus the verb, the present active indicative of sustenazw [suj = the preposition sun, meaning together with; stenazw = to groan], to groan together with someone else. It means more than one person involved in the suffering. It doesn’t mean to groan in unison but it means to be under the same affliction. “For we know that the entire material universe groans.” The present tense is a static present representing a condition perpetually existing until the second advent and the Millennium. The material universe shares in the condemnation of man—Genesis 3:17, so the groaning of nature looks back to the fall of man. The active voice: the material universe produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative representing the verbal action from the viewpoint of reality.
“and travaileth in pain together until now” – the present active indicative from sunwdinw, which means to suffer the pains of child birth, and with sun in from of it means along with others who are suffering intense pain. The customary present tense is what habitually occurs until the Millennium. Nature is like a woman in labour; she is in agony until delivery takes place. The birth occurs at the second advent; in the meantime there is the intense suffering of nature. The active voice: nature or the material universe produces the action. The indicative mood is declarative for the reality of this condition and the fact that the material universe illustrates the principle which is seen in the following verses. The improper preposition a)xri with the genitive of the definite article and the adverb of timenun follows, and is translated “until the present” or “until now.”
Translation: “For we know that the entire material universe groans along with us and suffers the pains of child birth together with us until now.”
1. From the fall of man to the present nature has shared in man’s condemnation at the fall, and has shared undeservedly.
3. Nature shares undeservedly the curse of mankind. But since nature was designed by the Holy Spirit to be the glory of man, when man lost his glory at the fall nature had to go along with it.
4. Nature will continue under the curse throughout the rest of the Church Age and the Tribulation.
5. At the second advent nature will be redeemed for the perfect environment of the Millennium. Why? Because nature is the glory of man.
6. Therefore while the groaning of nature looks back to the fall of man the travailing, or the pains of child birth, looks forward to the second advent.
7. Once the mother gives birth to the child the birth pains are over. The birth is related to the second advent and Millennium when nature will be redeemed and brought back to perfection.
8. Once the second advent occurs nature’s curse and suffering are terminated permanently.
Verses 23-25, the second groan of suffering: from the mature believer.
2. Since this category of suffering is a real imputation from the justice of God to the divinely prepared home or target, the justice of God gives to the mature believer [to +R] undeserved suffering. Since this category of suffering is a real imputation from the justice of God to the divinely-prepared home or target, the righteousness of God, it is neither earned nor deserved.
3. Therefore this suffering must be distinguished from divine discipline and punitive action from the justice of God.
4. The suffering is real but is designed for great blessing.
5. The suffering for blessing category follows two general trends: a) Personal catastrophe and disaster; b) National catastrophe and disaster.
6. While mature believers suffer from divine discipline for personal sins this suffering is not included in the special blessing category.
7. When suffering comes to the mature believer it is not designed to detract from blessing but to add blessing to blessings.
“which have the firstfruits of the Spirit” – present active indicative of the verb e)xw.
The present tense is a static present for a condition which perpetually exists. The active voice: while it is true of all believers this verse refers to the suffering of mature believers as a part of a real imputation from the justice of God. This is a concessive participle and should be translated “though possessing.” Then the accusative singular direct object from a)parxh which means firstfruits. It is in the singular, however, and is used in the sense of being collective. Plus the ablative of source from the noun pneuma, referring to God the Holy Spirit: “though possessing the firstfruits from the Spirit.” The adjective of source implies that the original situation, the indwelling of the Spirit and the filling of the Spirit, contributes in some way to the present character or state of maturity. In other words, the ministry of the Holy Spirit and the function of GAP contributed to maturity adjustment to the justice of God where blessing divine blessings are imputed to the mature believer.
1. The firstfruits from the Spirit are tantamount to blessings imputed to the believer at the moment of maturity adjustment to the justice of God.
2. These blessings are a real imputation based on two judicial imputations: JI#1 + JI#2 = the reality of these blessings in time.
3. The judicial imputation of all personal sins to Christ on the cross plus the judicial imputation of divine righteousness at salvation provides the basis for the real imputation of divine blessing at maturity.
4. In other words, it takes two judicial imputations to provide the real imputation of divine righteousness.
5. The first judicial imputation involves the justice of God imputing all the personal sins of history to Christ on the cross. These personal sins are not antecedently His own. There is no affinity between our sins and the perfect, impeccably sons of God.
6. The second judicial imputation finds the justice of God imputing divine righteousness to the believer at the moment of faith in Christ. The perfect righteousness of God is not antecedently our own. There is no affinity between the righteousness of God and the believer with his old sin nature.
7. Therefore at salvation the greater in a fortiori blessings from the justice of God is accomplished through two judicial imputations: the imputation of our sins to Christ on the cross; the imputation of divine righteousness at salvation.
8. Therefore, at maturity the less in a fortiori blessing from the justice of God is accomplished through a real imputation. Divine blessing is imputed to its target, imputed righteousness.
9. If the justice of God provides the greater at salvation to the judicial imputation of divine righteousness, it follows a fortiori that the justice of God will not withhold the less at maturity through the real imputation of divine blessing.
1. The phrase “firstfruits from the Spirit” imply a second a fortiori of divine blessing.
2. The firstfruits refers to the real imputation of divine blessing at maturity.
3. These blessings are firstfruits, a down payment of blessing and rewards in eternity. They are called firstfruits because they are merely the down payment.
4. The blessings and rewards of eternity are also a real imputation in which the justice of God imputes both reward and blessing to the divinely-prepared home or target, the resurrection body minus the old sin nature.
5. Therefore the firstfruits from the Spirit are not only the best thing in life but the only thing in eternity.
6. The best things in life glorify the Lord Jesus Christ in time and are parlayed into eternal rewards and blessings which glorify the Lord Jesus Christ forever.
8. Consequently, the blessings of maturity are the firstfruits of the blessings of eternity.
9. Again, these blessings are from the Spirit in the sense that only God the Holy Spirit can cause grace perception necessary for the accumulation of doctrine in the soul, necessary for the maturity adjustment to the justice of God.
What about the blessings, or apparent blessings, during the interval between salvation and maturity adjustment to the justice of God? The answer is given in four principles:
a) What appears to be blessing between salvation and maturity is the divine support of logistical grace.
b) Logistical grace includes many wonderful spiritual things, such as the provision of a right pastor, the teaching of Bible doctrine under the principle of GAP.
c) Logistical grace includes many wonderful things temporal, such as food, shelter, clothing, transportation, loved ones, friends.
d) While these things are wonderful beyond description they cannot be compared to the blessings imputed at maturity adjustment to the justice of God.[14]
“even we ourselves groan within ourselves” – nominative plural from the intensive pronoun a)utoj, translated “ourselves,” “even we ourselves.” Why do we have the intensive pronoun used in a reflective sense? Because we have reflexive pronoun as the object of the preposition coming up immediately after the verb. The verb is the present active indicative of stenazw—“groan.” The customary present tense denotes what habitually occurs when the mature believer is given undeserved suffering. The active voice: the mature believer produces the action of the verb in suffering for blessing. The indicative mood is declarative for the reality of undeserved suffering in the life of the mature believer. Then the prepositional phrase e)n plus the locative plural from the reflexive pronoun e(autou—“within ourselves.” This groan is also described in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. Strength in adversity is a blessing from God to the mature believer.
1. The groan is the reality of undeserved suffering from the justice of God to the mature believer.
2. To be suffering must hurt, therefore the groan. The groan personalises the suffering.
3. But no matter how great or what the category of suffering may be to the mature believer it is a blessing designed for a greater blessing. It is given at a time of blessing to intensify blessing. It is given in time of blessing to demonstrate the power of God as greater than the power of the ruler of this world. It is given in time of blessing to demonstrate, to guarantee, future blessing in eternity, and it is a down payment on that future reward.
4. When suffering can only be a blessing the believer is on top of life.
5. If the mature believer can take the worst of life, obviously he can take the best of life. The extremes demonstrate the stability and confidence of maturity.
6. The worst and the best all come to the mature believer.
7. No disaster can trap the mature believer.
8. Under the principle of undeserved suffering to the mature believer neither personal nor national disaster can trap the believer and enslave him to the suffering or the disaster.
9. Undeserved suffering does not trap the mature believer but frees him to new spheres of blessing. He is free rather than trapped.
10. Undeserved suffering follows two general trends, i.e. personal catastrophe and disaster plus national catastrophe or historical disaster.
11. Such undeserved suffering cannot trap the believer, for undeserved suffering to the mature believer is a real imputation from the justice of God to the righteousness of God.
12. Therefore undeserved suffering to the mature believer is neither earned nor deserved but simply designed by the justice of God as an imputed blessing.
“waiting for the adoption” – the present middle participle from the compound verb a)pekdexomai. It is used in secular Greek literature to mean to draw a
conclusion. However, the Roman writer Heliodorus set a precedent for it by using the verb to denote waiting. That is where the Koine Greek picked it up. It connotes the idea of waiting for someone and is used by Paul in the sense of confident expectation. Therefore he means here to anticipate or to stand in eager anticipation—“waiting eagerly” or “standing in eager anticipation.” The present tense is a customary present, it denotes what habitually occurs when the mature believer faces adversity and suffering. The middle voice: a deponent verb, middle in form but active in meaning. Therefore the mature believer produces the action of the verb. The participle is circumstantial for the attitude of the mature believer in time for undeserved suffering. Plus the accusative singular direct object from u(ioqesia which is technical for adoption—“eagerly anticipating the adoption.” Here the adoption refers to the believer in ultimate sanctification.
“to wit, the redemption of the body” – the accusative of apposition from a)polutrwsij which means redemption, plus the descriptive genitive singular from swma referring to the human body in resurrection, plus the possessive genitive from the personal pronoun e)gw—“the redemption of the our body.” This phrase must be distinguished from the redemption of the soul at salvation.
Translation: “And not only nature, but ourselves also, though possessing the firstfruits from the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly anticipating the adoption, the redemption [resurrection] of our body.”
Verse 24 – “For we are saved by hope” is the postpositive conjunctive particle gar used as an explanatory conjunction, plus the word for hope, a dative of reference from e)lpij, a future reference relating to the resurrection body. The noun mean hope, expectation, or prospect. So we can translate it, “For with reference to that expectation.” This is the anticipation of the redemption of the body or resurrection. There is a definite article used as a demonstrative pronoun. Next is the aorist passive indicative of the verb swzw, referring to salvation adjustment to the justice of God. This is a constative aorist for a momentary action of faith in time. The constative aorist gathers up into one entirety the action of the verb. The action of the verb can be momentary or prolonged. Here it is momentary: faith in Christ. The passive voice: at the moment of faith in Christ the individual receives salvation. The indicative mood is declarative representing the fact of the verbal action being a reality. So the content of that future hope is the resurrection body; “we were saved” – we were saved for the purpose of having a future.
“but hope that is seen is not hope” – the postpositive conjunctive particle de used here as a transitional conjunction, not setting up a contrast as it usually does, and we translate it “now.” Plus the nominative singular subject e)lpij which is anartharous to emphasise the quality of hope, our prospects. Plus the present passive participle of blepw, “being seen.” This is a tendencial present used for an action which is purposed but not actually occurring. The passive voice: the believer receives the action of the verb theoretically. This is a temporal participle. So, “now when a hope is seen.” This is followed by the negative o)u plus the present active indicative of e)imi, and then add the word e)plij as a predicate nominative: “ . . . now when a hope is seen it is not a hope.” This phrase is a definition for the purpose of emphasising that e)lpij or hope means prospect or expectation. This definition emphasises the future concept of ultimate sanctification.
“for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?” – the inferential use of gar means “so” or “then.” The nominative singular subject from the indefinite pronoun tij is used in a general sense as representing a category. Plus the accusative neuter singular relative pronoun o(j, translated “For what.” Then the present active indicative of that same verb, blepw: “For what anyone sees” or “For what he sees.” This is a pictorial present tense which presents to the mind something in the process of occurrence. The active voice: the indefinite category of persons produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is potential of condition. It all depends on whether the believer knows doctrine or not. Then the nominative neuter singular from an interrogative pronoun, tij, and a present active indicative from e)lpizw. This is an aoristic present, punctiliar action in present time. The indefinite category of persons produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is interrogative. So, “who hopes for what he sees” is the correct translation. In other words, expectation is not a present but a future reality. Therefore hope must be defined in this context as the future reality of phase three. We cannot see heaven and all of its details, but anticipate the reality of heaven, the reality of eternity, and as mature believers we anticipate the rewards and blessings, a real imputation.
Translation: “For with reference to that future hope we have been saved: now when a hope is seen it is not a hope: so who hopes for what he sees?”
Hope, then, is confidence of reality before the reality is seen.
Verse 25 – “But if we hope for that we see not.” Again, the word de, a postpositive conjunction simply translated “Now”; e)i introduces the protasis of a first class condition, “Now if.” Then the present active indicative of e)lpizw, “Now if we hope.” This is a customary present tense which denotes what habitually occurs or is reasonably expected to occur in the life of the mature believer. The active voice: the mature believer produces the action of the verb as an extension of his faith-rest modus operandi. The indicative mood is declarative, the reality of the first class condition. The accusative singular from the relative pronoun o(j is translated “for what.” The negative o)u plus blepw in the present active indicative comes to mean this: “Now if we hope [confident anticipation] for what we do not see [and we do].” At salvation we do not see the blessings of maturity, but the possession of imputed righteousness gives us some hope of having those blessings. At maturity we do not see the blessings and rewards of eternity, but the possession of the imputed blessings gives us confident anticipation. In other words, one imputation gives confidence for the next imputation. Just as imputed righteousness is the hope for blessing in time, so the resurrection body is the hope for blessing in eternity. Imputations are stepping stones to glory.
1. Hope is confidence of reality before the reality occurs.
2. This is why e)lpij is not only translated “expectation” or “prospect” but “confidence” as well.
3. Once the reality occurs the expectation or hope or confidence is replaced by the reality.
4. Therefore hope is confident anticipation prior to the reality of fulfilment.
5. In time every believer, because of the judicial imputation of divine righteousness, immediately possesses the first of a series of hopes.
6. This hope of confident anticipation is based on the reality of the possession of God’s very own righteousness.
7. There is an affinity, then, between blessing from the justice of God and divine righteousness.
8. At maturity every believer has an additional hope or confident anticipation.
9. For the possession of divine blessing through the real imputation of maturity, this anticipates the whole concept of a fortiori of the future, the second a fortiori of blessing.
“then do we it with patience wait for it” – this is the apodosis. We have a conditional clause, and in a conditional clause there is a statement of supposition in the protasis which is the basis for the conclusion in the apodosis. This conclusion begins with the prepositional phrase dia plus the genitive of u(pomonh which means patience, fortitude, endurance, steadfastness, perseverance—“through fortitude.” It take fortitude and perseverance to keep on taking in doctrine every day. Then the present middle indicative of a)pekdexomai which means to wait eagerly, to eagerly anticipate, to stand in eager anticipation—“we stand in eager anticipation.” The present tense is a perfective present, it denotes what is begun in the past and continues into the present as an existing result. This is the continuing existing result of being a mature believer—eager anticipation, the new hope out in the future. The middle voice: this is a deponent verb, middle in form but active in meaning. The mature believer produces the action. This is the declarative indicative mood representing the verbal action from the viewpoint of reality.
Translation: “Now if we hope [possess confident anticipation] for what we do not see [and we do], then through fortitude we stand in eager anticipation.”
1. The first two imputations at birth: human life is imputed to its divinely prepared home, the human soul. Human life will be in that soul forever. Then Adam’s original sin is imputed to the genetically-formed home, the old sin nature. The fact that you have these two together forms a potential. These two imputations for up to provide a potential for salvation adjustment to the justice of God.
2. The justice of God must condemn mankind before the justice of God can save mankind. Our first parents were condemned by original sin at the fall, and they were saved after the fall.
3. Therefore the justice of God provides two imputations at birth which add up to condemnation.
4. Condemnation must precede salvation.
5. The two real imputations at birth are the potential for salvation. So we can say, then, that the whole human race from the point of birth to the point of salvation has hope. A person who dies before the point of accountability automatically goes to heaven.
6. Two imputations combine to condemn us but the condemnation has its own hope.
7. The two judicial imputations, i.e. all human sins to Christ on the cross and divine righteousness at salvation are the potential for blessing in time from the justice of God.
3. Therefore hope is confidence, anticipation prior to reality or fulfilment.
4. For example, the judicial imputation of righteousness at salvation is the basis for hope or confident anticipation of temporal blessing.
5. Hence, the judicial imputation of righteousness at salvation is not only the greater in a fortiori, plus the target of temporal blessing from the justice of God, but the hope of blessing from the justice of God in time.
6. The real imputation of blessing at maturity provides the next hope: the confident anticipation of eternal blessing and reward at the judgment seat of Christ.
7. A factor, then, is noted. Each imputation becomes the hope of the next imputation.
8. Therefore the real imputation of divine blessing at maturity is not only the greater in the second a fortiori but the hope of blessing from the justice of God in eternity. In other words, +R imputed at salvation is the hope of blessing in time. Blessing in time imputed at maturity is the hope of blessing and reward in eternity. When hope is replaced by reality a new hope is formed until the judgment seat of Christ. All hopes are based on cognisance of doctrine, inculcation of doctrine.
There are three points at which the justice of God provides blessing for mankind: salvation; at maturity, blessing in time; at the judgment seat of Christ after the resurrection of the Church. These three form the whole principle of hope in the human race. X + Y + Z = the glory of God.
X includes the imputation of human life to the soul + the imputation of Adam’s original sin to the genetically-formed old sin nature = the first potential, salvation. While we are born condemned by the justice of God the potential of salvation is the hope for the human race. The potential is not a hope without cognisance, so the understanding of the gospel becomes the hope which comes from the first potential.
Y includes the first and the second judicial imputations which equal the second potential. The first judicial imputation is the imputation of all of our sins to Christ on the cross. The second judicial imputation is the imputation of divine righteousness to the believer at the moment of salvation adjustment to the justice of God. These two form the second potential which is blessing in time.
Z eternal life, a real imputation, is imputed to the target or affinity, regeneration. Plus the next real imputation, the blessing in time imputed to God’s perfect righteousness imputed to us = the third potential, blessing in eternity, the blessing and reward that comes to us at the judgment seat of Christ.
Put together and that equals the glory of God. God is ultimately glorified by the royal family at the judgment seat of Christ. That glory is the result of what is contained in these three radicals. This is the whole plan of God.
Verse 26 – God does not groan. The Holy Spirit is God; the Holy Spirit does not groan. It is impossible for perfect God to groan. This is an anthropopathism, a way of expressing, communicating a function of the third person of the Trinity in human terms so that human beings can understand. When a person groans it means they are in pain or agony. God the Holy Spirit is not in pain. This dramatises, just as nature’s groan dramatises, the principle. The only real groan is the mature believer in undeserved suffering.
“Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities” begins with the adverb w(sautoj which means “in the same way” or “in a similar manner.” In a similar manner the Holy Spirit groans under certain conditions which are specified in this context. Next is the postpositive conjunctive particle de, used as a transitional conjunction meaning “and”—“And in the same way.” Then the adjunctive use of the conjunctive particle kai, but it is used here as an adverb and translated “also.” Plus the subject, the nominative neuter singular from pneuma, used for God the Holy Spirit—“And also in the same way the Spirit”—and the present middle indicative from the compound verb sunantilambanomai [sun = with; anti – against or instead of; lambanomai = to receive], which means to aid or to assist, hence to come to the aid of, to help with. Here it means to give a helping hand. In the Attic Greek the word a)ntilambanomai meant to grasp, to take up a matter, to take it up helpfully. The preposition sun added to it meant to give a helping hand. The present tense is a customary present, it denotes what may reasonably expected to occur in the life of a mature believer. This is the indirect middle voice, emphasising the agent, the Holy Spirit, as producing the action of the verb rather than participating in the results of the action. It is translated “the Spirit himself.” The indicative mood is declarative for the special ministry of the Holy Spirit to the mature believer only. Plus the dative singular indirect object of the noun a)sqeneia, meaning “to our weakness.” “Also in the same way the Spirit gives a helping hand to our weakness.” This is the weakness of the mature believer, the weakness of the great believer. All people are weak no matter how great they become. People have a tendency to depend on great people rather on the source of their greatness which is God Himself.
1. This is a reference to the mature believer in undeserved suffering, the mature believer under the great pressure of undeserved suffering which is designed to bless him.
2. In undeserved suffering thew adversity is great, the pressure is maximum, the reason for the catastrophe is not apparent.
3. Therefore even the mature believer may go into shock, panic, fall into a state of hysteria or agitation, which makes effective prayer impossible.
4. Therefore God the Holy Spirit gives a helping hand. This describes the Holy Spirit’s ministry of intercession in terms of an anthropopathism.
1. The weakness is not the suffering, the adversity, the catastrophe encountered by the mature believer. The weakness is inability to offer the proper prayer for the suffering. No one knows how to pray for undeserved suffering.
2. The next phrase amplifies the weakness as inability to offer proper prayer on the occasion of undeserved suffering.
3. Note that the word “weakness,” a)sqeneia, is in the singular. This emphasises not a weakness in suffering but a weakness in prayer.
4. When the mature believer in the midst of great blessing and prosperity from the justice of God encounters a great catastrophe, a disaster, an adversity, his weakness is related to his prayer function.
5. When undeserved suffering is given to the mature believer as a part of his blessing and prosperity, such a believer cannot pray for the removal of the suffering or even the strength to bear the suffering.
6. In other words, the mature believer does not know how to pray, so the Holy Spirit takes a hand in offering intercession. This intercession is dramatised by the anthropopathism, “groaning.”
“for we know not” – the explanatory conjunctive particle gar, the negative o)u, perfect active indicative of o)ida, actually a perfect form used as a present: “for we do not know” is probably better English. Ordinarily, ignorance has no excuse. But here there is stated justification for ignorance on the part of the mature believer, ignorance in relationship to undeserved suffering, whether it is a personal catastrophe or historical adversity. The present tense of o)ida is the perfective present, it denotes the continuation of existing results of ignorance, i.e. a weakness in the function of prayer in time of maximum disaster. The active voice: the mature believer produces the action of the verb—ignorance of proper prayer in time of undeserved suffering. The indicative mood is a potential indicative for a state or condition which implies that not all mature believers actually have this problem in underserved suffering. But this is not about the ones who do or the ones who do not, it is about the great ministry of God the Holy Spirit in giving a helping hand in undeserved suffering.
“what we should pray for as we ought” – the nominative neuter singular from the interrogative pronoun tij is used as a relative meaning “what.” The aorist middle subjunctive from the verb proseuxomai means to pray, with emphasis on intercession or petition in prayer. The constative aorist tense, regardless of how long it lasts, gathers into one entirety the undeserved suffering for blessing to the mature believer. The middle voice: the mature believer who generally understands prayer, produces the action of being ignorant as to how to pray when facing maximum undeserved suffering. The undeserved suffering is strictly a blessing from God, but you have to understand how this blessing works. The whole purpose is to stimulate hope. Hope is confident expectation. The subjunctive mood is a potential subjunctive. The next phrase, “as we ought,” includes an adverb of manner, kaqo. We can pray all right, but to pray precisely, correctly, perfectly, what we should pray in time of disaster, is the problem. There is also an impersonal verb dei which denotes duty, a responsibility to pray the right prayers in time of great adversity as a mature believer—“as is proper” or “as we should” or “as it is necessary.” Even for the mature believer undeserved suffering for blessing comes as something of a shock. The shock cuts down on thinking. The proper prayer to offer on such occasions is not always instantly apparent. Since God has designed the undeserved suffering for our blessing the Holy Spirit offers the proper prayer. The obvious blessing from such prayer is the intensification of confident expectation of eternity.
“but the Spirit itself” – the adversative conjunction a)lla, plus pneuma for the subject, “but the Spirit.” Then the nominative neuter singular from the intensive pronoun a)utoj, used here as “himself”; “maketh intercession for us” – the present active indicative from the compound verb u(perentugxanw [u(per = on behalf of; e)ntugxanw = to make intercession]—“but the Spirit himself intercedes on behalf of us.” The iterative present describes what occurs at successive intervals in undeserved suffering. The active voice: the Holy Spirit produces the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative, this is a reality.
“with groanings which cannot be uttered” – the instrumental of means in the plural from the adjective a)lalhtoj which means “wordless, unexpressed, or unutterable.” Plus the instrumental of means plural from the noun stenagmoj which means a groan or a sigh. This can be translated “with wordless groans” or “with groanings too great for words.”
Translation: “And also in the same way the Spirit himself gives a helping hand to our weaknesses: for we do not know how to pray as we should: but the Spirit himself intercedes with groanings too great for words.”
1. God’s plan is greater than any suffering, catastrophe, or adversity of life.
2. When undeserved suffering causes a breakdown in the mature believer’s prayer communication with God, then the Holy Spirit steps in with the right prayer.
3. The Holy Spirit takes over the ministry of intercession for those circumstances which are beyond our cognisance and control, i.e. the mature believer’s.
Principle #2
1. So important is prayer that God the Holy Spirit makes intercession for the wisest of believers.
2. Mature believers are the greatest believers.
3. God the Holy Spirit makes intercession for mature believers in order to convert their undeserved suffering into blessing in the same way that the justice of God imputes prosperity to the mature believer.
4. The intercession of the Holy Spirit provides category #5 blessing, paragraph SG3.
5. This is the same pattern as Romans 8:28 which is also for mature believers.
6. Cursing is turned into blessing, and that concept is the concept behind the intercessory ministry of God the Holy Spirit on behalf of the mature believer when he is in undeserved suffering.
7. The groans of the Holy Spirit are far beyond human comprehension.
8. Man comprehends in words, vocabulary, human language.
9. The Spirit’s ministry of intercession is not in man’s words, man’s language; it is far beyond man’s use of words and sentences in prayer.
10. The greatest of all prayer ministries in this dispensation, then, belongs to the Holy Spirit in His intercession for the mature believer in time of catastrophe and adversity.
11. The prayers of the Holy Spirit are answered and the undeserved suffering is converted into blessing. Hope is stimulated, and the third hope, the greatest of all, penetrates the barriers of eternity. There is confident anticipation of great blessings for ever and ever imputed to a forever body, the resurrection body.
12. Therefore only God can turn cursing into blessing. Only God the Holy Spirit can offer prayer that turns cursing into blessing for the mature believer in undeserved suffering.
13. This is similar to the title of the Holy Spirit found in 1 Kings 19:12. He is called “the voice of silence.”
Verse 27 – “And he that searcheth the hearts” is the transitional use of the postpositive conjunction de, the present active participle of e)raunaw which means to search, to investigate, to examine something in the mind, to analyse. The verb is used also for philosophical investigation. In the Koine Greek it connotes a thorough investigation. It was used by the apostle John for searching or investigating the scriptures. But here it is used of God’s omniscience having total cognisance of a facts before God’s justice blesses or condemns in any given situation. The specific situation here is undeserved suffering; maturity later. Then the accusative plural direct object kardia, for the right lobe, many right lobes, where all spiritual growth and attainment of maturity occurs. The right lobe, along with the human spirit, is the place of the residence of Bible doctrine which is necessary for growth. The omniscience of God knew in eternity past everyone who would ever have any doctrine in his soul’s right lobe—like 1 Samuel 16:7; Hebrews 4:13. This is a perfective present, it denotes what has occurred in the past but is emphasised as a present reality. The active voice: God the Father produces the action. This is a circumstantial participle for the function of divine omniscience. “And he [God the Father] keeps searching the hearts.”
“knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit” – o)ida again, and with it the nominative neuter singular from the interrogative pronoun tij, used as a relative pronoun. But here we have the nominative singular subject fronhma for thinking” “knows what the thinking of the Spirit is.”
1. Omniscience communicates with omniscience. While the intercession of the Spirit in the previous verse is described as groaning too great for words, these groanings are clearly understood by God the Father with regard to their thought content.
2. The words do not have to be uttered for the omniscience of the Father to pick up the understanding and thinking of the omniscience of God the Holy Spir
4. The integrity of God the Father responds to the intercessory ministry of God the Holy Spirit providing great blessing in the suffering of the mature believer. The blessing which comes to us as mature believers in suffering comes from the intercession of God the Holy Spirit.
“because he maketh intercession for the saints” – the causal use of the conjunction o(ti, plus e)ntugxanw, the simplified form of the verb to make intercession. The customary present denotes what habitually occurs when the mature believer is in undeserved suffering, catastrophe and adversity. The active voice: God the Holy Spirit makes intercession, producing the action of the verb. The indicative mood is declarative, it really happens. Then a prepositional phrase, u(per plus the genitive of a(gioj. This is specifically a royal family thing. A(gioj represents the high quality of the believer involved, a mature believer. It is also used for royal family.
“according to the will of God” – kata plus the accusative of qeoj, “according to God.” Corrected translation of the last phrase: “because according to God he makes intercession in behalf of saints.”
Translation: “He [God the Father] who keeps searching the hearts knows what the thinking of the Spirit is, because according to God he makes intercession in behalf of saints [mature believers].”
1. The intercessory ministry of God the Holy Spirit in behalf of the mature believer meets all of the requirements of the perfect divine standards.
2. No intercession is made which is not totally compatible with the divine decrees of eternity past.
3. God the Holy Spirit is perfect, therefore His intercession on behalf of mature believers is also perfect.
4. Furthermore, God the Father always answers the prayers of God the Holy Spirit.
5. The Holy Spirit has a perfect batting average in His ministry of intercessory prayer in behalf of mature believers.
6. This intercession is responsible for turning the suffering in adversity into the grace blessings derived from adversity, as per this passage.
[1] See the Doctrine of Sanctification.
[2] See the Doctrine of the Last Judgment.
[3] See the Doctrine of the Filling of the Spirit.
[4] See the Doctrine of the Sin unto Death.
[5] See the Doctrine of Imputations.
[6] See the Doctrine of the Indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
[7] See the Doctrine of the Indwelling of Christ.
[8] See the Doctrine of the Sin Unto Death.
[9] See the Doctrine of Divine Guidance.
[10] See the Doctrine of Fear.
[11] See the Doctrine of Adoption.
[12] See the Doctrine of Suffering.
[13] See the Doctrine of the Rapture.
[14] See the Doctrine of Logistical Grace.
[15] See the Doctrine of Hope.
[16] See the Doctrine of Election.
[17] See the Doctrine of Divine Decrees.
[18] See the Doctrine of Election.
[19] See the Doctrine of Imputations.
[20] See the Doctrine of Ascension.