Romans 8: “Life in the Spirit and the Glory to Come”
1. “There Is Therefore Now No Condemnation”
“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Rom 8:1)
This is the Gospel in one sentence: no condemnation — not because sin is ignored, but because it is forgiven and conquered in Christ.
We stand acquitted not by innocence, but by union with the Innocent One.
St Augustine writes:
“In Christ there is no condemnation because there is no separation from grace.”
(On the Spirit and the Letter 52)
St John Chrysostom adds:
“He does not say, ‘There is no accusation,’ but ‘no condemnation’; for accusations remain, but grace destroys their sentence.”
(Homilies on Romans XIII)
To be “in Christ Jesus” is to live in His life — to abide in the new Adam, not the old.
2. “The Law of the Spirit of Life”
“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.” (v. 2)
Here “law” means principle or power: two forces at work — sin leading to death, and the Spirit leading to life.
Grace is not the absence of law, but the higher law of love.
St Ambrose explains:
“The old law restrained by fear; the new law moves by love. What was impossible by command is now possible by charity.”
(On the Spirit II.14)
The Spirit is the new principle of order in the soul — the divine life acting within.
3. “God Has Done What the Law Could Not Do”
“For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do.” (v. 3)
The Law was holy but powerless to heal; grace accomplishes what commandment could only reveal.
Christ assumes our flesh to condemn sin in it — the Incarnation as the remedy for the fall.
St Augustine:
“The physician became the patient; by taking what was ours He healed what was ours.”
(Sermon 191)
Christ fulfilled the Law’s demand in His obedience unto death.
4. “In Order That the Just Requirement of the Law Might Be Fulfilled in Us”
“Who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” (v. 4)
The Law is fulfilled not by external compliance but by inward renewal.
The Spirit enables the believer to live God’s will in freedom.
St Bede the Venerable:
“The Spirit writes on hearts what the Law wrote on stone; what fear could not compel, love now delights to perform.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.35)
5. “The Mind Set on the Flesh Is Death”
“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.” (v. 5)
“Flesh” here means fallen nature — the self turned inward.
To live “according to the flesh” is to be dominated by desires detached from God.
To live “according to the Spirit” is to be oriented toward the divine.
St John Chrysostom:
“The mind makes the man; as the mind is, so is the life.”
(Homilies on Romans XIII)
St Augustine adds:
“He who loves earthly things is earthly; he who loves heavenly things is already heavenly.”
(Exposition of Psalm 121)
6. “The Mind of the Spirit Is Life and Peace”
“To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” (v. 6)
The Spirit not only gives life but harmony — peace within, peace with God.
Sin divides; grace unites.
St Ambrose:
“The mind of the Spirit is peace because it rests in the will of God, which no storm can disturb.”
(On the Duties of the Clergy I.15)
7. “You Are in the Spirit”
“You are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you.” (v. 9)
The believer is a temple of the Holy Spirit.
Grace is not external influence but divine indwelling.
St Augustine says with awe:
“If you are in the Spirit, the Spirit is in you; He is the guest who makes the house His own.”
(Sermon 268)
This verse reveals the mystical intimacy of Christian life — not imitation of Christ but participation in Him.
8. “If Christ Is in You”
“If Christ is in you, although your body is dead because of sin, your spirit is alive because of righteousness.” (v. 10)
The body remains subject to mortality, but the soul lives by grace.
The life of the Spirit anticipates the resurrection.
St Bede:
“The body dies that sin may die with it; the soul lives that righteousness may reign in it.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.35)
9. “He Who Raised Jesus Will Give Life to Your Mortal Bodies”
“If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus will give life to your mortal bodies also.” (v. 11)
The resurrection power of Christ operates already in believers.
What God did for the Head He will do for the members.
St Augustine:
“The same Spirit who raised Christ raises the Christian — first in soul by grace, later in body by glory.”
(Enchiridion 84)
10. “We Are Debtors, Not to the Flesh”
“So then, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.” (v. 12)
We owe nothing to sin — it has given us only death.
Our true debt is gratitude to grace.
St John Chrysostom:
“You owe the flesh nothing but burial.”
(Homilies on Romans XIV)
11. “If by the Spirit You Put to Death the Deeds of the Body”
“If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” (v. 13)
Mortification — the active cooperation with grace — is the way to life.
The Spirit is both gift and taskmaster: He empowers the fight against sin.
St Ambrose:
“He who kills sin in himself lives by the Spirit; every act of self-denial is a resurrection.”
(On the Spirit III.10)
12. “All Who Are Led by the Spirit Are Sons of God”
“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption.” (vv. 14–15)
This is the heart of the chapter: divine adoption.
Christ shares His sonship; the Spirit reproduces it in us.
St Augustine rejoices:
“He became Son of Man that we might become sons of God.”
(Sermon 185)
We are not slaves driven by fear, but children guided by love.
13. “Abba, Father”
“When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is the Spirit Himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God.” (v. 15–16)
The Spirit prays within us the prayer of Christ.
“Abba” is the language of intimacy, the cry of filial trust.
Faith matures into love that speaks with the voice of the Son.
St Bede the Venerable:
“We say ‘Abba’ not by nature but by grace, yet grace so transforms us that God hears His own Son in our cry.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.35)
14. “Heirs of God and Fellow Heirs with Christ”
“Provided we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him.” (v. 17)
Adoption leads to inheritance, but the path to glory passes through the Cross.
Suffering with Christ is the mark of true sonship.
St John Chrysostom:
“He did not promise us only crowns but also contests; the athlete must wrestle before he triumphs.”
(Homilies on Romans XIV)
15. “The Sufferings of This Present Time Are Not Worth Comparing”
“The sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” (v. 18)
The balance of eternity outweighs every affliction.
Glory is not compensation but transformation — the fulfilment of divine sonship.
St Ambrose:
“He weighs time against eternity, dust against gold.”
(On the Duties of the Clergy II.24)
16. “Creation Waits with Eager Longing”
“For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.” (v. 19)
All creation shares our hope; the cosmos groans for renewal.
Sin disordered nature; redemption will restore it.
St Augustine explains:
“The whole creation is in labour until the new birth of the world, when the sons of God shall be revealed.”
(City of God XX.16)
Christ’s victory is cosmic, not merely personal.
17. “Creation Was Subjected to Futility”
“Not of its own will but by the will of Him who subjected it in hope.” (v. 20)
The futility of decay is temporary; hope governs history.
Even the natural order shares in the plan of redemption.
St Bede:
“The creature groans not in despair but in desire; its bondage is the prelude to glory.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.35)
18. “We Ourselves Groan Inwardly”
“We ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.” (v. 23)
The “first fruits” are the present grace of the Spirit — pledge of future resurrection.
The soul already adopted waits for the body’s share in glory.
St Augustine:
“We are saved in hope: we have begun to be sons, but we shall be sons indeed when even the body shares in immortality.”
(Enchiridion 98)
19. “The Spirit Helps Us in Our Weakness”
“For we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words.” (v. 26)
Prayer originates in God.
The Spirit prays within us, shaping our desires into conformity with the will of the Father.
St Ambrose says movingly:
“He groans in us when we cannot; His silence is more eloquent than our speech.”
(On the Holy Spirit III.19)
This is the hidden mysticism of grace: divine life breathing through human weakness.
20. “All Things Work Together for Good”
“We know that in everything God works for good with those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.” (v. 28)
Providence governs all.
Even evil, by divine wisdom, is turned to the good of the saints.
St Augustine declares:
“He makes all things work together for good, not that all things are good, but that He is good who turns them.”
(Enchiridion 11)
This is the deepest peace of faith — nothing is wasted, nothing random.
21. “Those Whom He Foreknew He Also Predestined”
“To be conformed to the image of His Son.” (v. 29)
Predestination is not fatalism but vocation.
God’s eternal purpose is to shape us into Christ’s likeness.
The pattern is the Son; the means is grace.
St Bede:
“To be predestined is to be foreknown in love, chosen to bear the image of the Beloved.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.35)
22. “Those He Called He Justified and Glorified”
“Those whom He justified He also glorified.” (v. 30)
In God’s eternal plan, glorification is as certain as justification.
Grace begins what glory completes.
St Augustine:
“Between justification and glory there is no interval in God’s will, though in time there is a journey.”
(On the Predestination of the Saints 16)
23. “If God Is for Us, Who Can Be against Us?”
“He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also give us all things with Him?” (vv. 31–32)
The unanswerable question of faith: divine generosity proven by the Cross.
Nothing can diminish the love that gave the Son.
St John Chrysostom exclaims:
“He spared not His own Son; what then will He deny? He gave the greater, He will not withhold the lesser.”
(Homilies on Romans XV)
24. “Who Shall Bring Any Charge against God’s Elect?”
“It is God who justifies; who is to condemn?” (vv. 33–34)
Divine acquittal is irreversible.
Christ intercedes eternally as priest and advocate.
St Ambrose:
“Christ is both our judge and our defender; who then shall condemn us when the judge Himself pleads our cause?”
(On the Mysteries VIII.47)
25. “Who Shall Separate Us from the Love of Christ?”
“Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” (v. 35)
The Apostle lists every terror to prove the invincibility of divine love.
The Christian is not spared suffering but preserved through it.
St Augustine:
“He does not say we shall not suffer, but that we shall not be separated.”
(Sermon 46)
26. “We Are More than Conquerors through Him Who Loved Us”
“For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities… nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (vv. 37–39)
The great crescendo: no separation.
Grace begins with “no condemnation” and ends with “no separation.”
Between them lies the entire Christian journey.
St Bede concludes:
“The chain of salvation begins in mercy and ends in love; it is forged by God, and no creature can break it.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.35)
St Augustine’s final word:
“Love is the weight that carries the soul upward to God; nothing can drag it down when Christ holds it.”
(Confessions XIII.9)
27. Theological Summary
| Theme | Revelation |
| No condemnation | Justification through union with Christ |
| Life in the Spirit | Freedom and peace replacing bondage |
| Adoption | Believers made sons and heirs of God |
| Creation’s renewal | The cosmos shares in redemption |
| Prayer in the Spirit | Divine intercession within human weakness |
| Providence and predestination | God’s plan orders all for good |
| Unbreakable love | Nothing can separate us from Christ |
28. Moral and Spiritual Application
Live as one forgiven. “No condemnation” means no despair.
Walk by the Spirit. Let grace, not flesh, guide your desires.
Cry ‘Abba, Father.’ Remember your adoption in prayer and trust.
Hope in suffering. All creation groans toward glory.
Rest in love. Nothing can separate you from Christ’s Heart.
29. Closing Prayer
O God of infinite love and mercy,
who sent Your Son to free us from sin
and poured Your Spirit into our hearts,
grant that we may live as Your children,
walking not according to the flesh but the Spirit.
Renew creation in hope,
strengthen us in suffering,
and bring us to the glory You have prepared for those who love You.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
St. Mary's, St. John Bosco and St. Edward's 