Two Different Laws

Here's the Headline: The Power That Broke the Chain

Have you ever felt completely trapped by your own bad habits? You promise yourself you will not get angry, or slip back into that old compromise, yet you find yourself doing it anyway. It feels like a physical law, like gravity pulling you down.

The Apostle Paul understands that feeling. But in Romans 8:2, he introduces a stronger law:
"For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death." (LSB)

Think of it like aerodynamics overcoming gravity. A massive airplane belongs on the ground according to the law of gravity. But when the engines start, a higher law takes over, lifting the plane into the sky.

As a pastor, I often see believers trying to fight the "law of sin" by sheer willpower alone. You cannot white-knuckle your way out of spiritual gravity. You need a higher power.

The Holy Spirit is that power.

The Puritans called this "the expulsion of the affection by the power of a new affection", or "the expulsive power of a new affection". John Owen famously wrote that we must be killing sin, or sin will be killing us. But how do we kill it? Not by looking at the sin, but by looking at Christ. By setting our minds on the Spirit of life.

Let the Holy Spirit lift you today. Spend time admiring Jesus, and you will find the heavy gravity of sin losing its pull over your heart.

Read Colossians 3:2 today and consider how to Shift Your Focus...

* Action: Spend 5 minutes reading a Puritan prayer or a psalm of praise.

* Practice: Look at the beauty of Christ rather than inspecting your own flaws.

* Prayer: "O gracious Father, replace my old sinful desires with a fresh love for Jesus today."