Romans 8:1-4 (#26.2025.06.15)
Scott continues the study of Romans with Romans 8:1-4, focusing on the assurance and confidence that come from understanding there is “no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” The discussion addresses common human fears—fear of punishment, shame, abandonment by God, and death—and explains how these fears are answered through the work of Jesus Christ. Scott shares personal stories and practical insights, helping listeners grasp that freedom, assurance, and a close relationship with God are available through faith, rather than adherence to law or performance.
He also covers the transformation that occurs for believers: sin and death are rendered powerless, and instead of guilt and shame, God offers forgiveness and acceptance. The difference between earthly consequences for sin and God’s eternal forgiveness is discussed, emphasizing that discipline from God is rooted in love, not wrath. Scott also explains how God’s character guarantees His promises—He will never abandon or forsake those who are His, and His love is immeasurable. Listeners are encouraged to rely on the presence of the Holy Spirit, who assures believers of their status as God’s children.
Download the Insight Sheets Here:
Insight Sheet Blank: https://drive.google.com/file/d/15d6Aym8GlpZplq0BSg26HvHEPVhVL3kt/view?usp=drive_link
Insight Sheet With Answers: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ytSoJ9o9RIU2AuA5irIoEZ6HW3Iqq56y/view?usp=sharing
Key Topics Discussed:
• Romans 8:1-4 explained
• The reality of “no condemnation” for believers
• Fear of punishment versus God’s discipline
• Dealing with guilt, shame, and fear of abandonment
• Understanding consequences versus eternal forgiveness
• The finished work of Christ: freedom and transformation
• Assurance of God’s continual presence
• The Holy Spirit’s role in assurance and sonship
• The difference between conviction from God and accusation from the enemy
• Death’s defeat and eternal life through Christ
Transcript
Hi.
Scott Keffer [:If you're looking for greater hope, assurance and confidence through the shifting sands of life, then join me on today's episode as we dig deep into the Bible to discover rock solid truth for life and living from the God of the Bible. I'm your host, Scott Keffer. Hi and welcome to today's episode. As always, for a deeper experience, you can go to the show notes and download the blank insight sheet. Fill in the blanks along with the group. Depending on how you're listening to this, there will be a link to the episode website@beholdingbibletruth.com and a sheet with the answers is included as well. Enjoy today's episode.
Scott Keffer [:I don't know about you, but I am naturally all my life wired to be fearful. Some people don't seem to be. My first business coach, Chuck Longenecker was a Army Ranger. And I said to him, you have a whole lot of courage. And he said, no, no, you don't understand. Army Rangers have no fear. He said, it's not like we're, we're very courageous. He said, we just don't feel fear.
Scott Keffer [:There is no fear in us. He said, it makes us great soldiers, just makes us terrible at life because we break everything right without thinking about it. And he said, really, courage is really about fear and doing it anyway, right is understanding fear and doing it anyway. And so as we go through Romans, and particularly today, we're going to deal with some core fear that every human being has. So stand with me, if you will. We're going to read the first four verses in Romans. Verse 4 verses in Romans. Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Scott Keffer [:But the law of the Spirit of life has set you free from the law, sin and of death, what the law could not do, weak as it was to the flesh of sinful flesh, but according to the Spirit, word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Great section of scripture. And I always remind myself, of course, this is just a letter written by the Spirit of God through the apostle Paul sent to churches both for then and for now. There are no verses in the original Greek. There's no grammar or punctuation per se. It just is a letter, right? And in the midst of it, he says, therefore. Therefore always pulls us back to say, what was that? Therefore, it's the past pulling into the future, often with conclusion.
Scott Keffer [:Therefore, as a result of. In. In order to right? So that he says, therefore there is now underlined now. There is therefore now really important. There is therefore now as in. In this Moment as in eternally, in this moment. There is therefore in Christ no condemnation. I try to remind myself that the essence of sinfulness is often where we take the great and glorious things of God and they become.
Scott Keffer [:I know that one. And as evangelicals, we start to think about Christianity as a multiple choice test where it's about getting the right answer. Yes, we know the answers. We all know the answers. Right. And the divine and glorious things of God become pedestrian when I think that I know them. And so I'm reminded every time I come to Scripture, Lord, give me fresh eyes, right, to see it again and a fresh heart to embrace it again. So he says, no condemnation.
Scott Keffer [:That's only powerful if you've been in a place where of condemnation. There's no good news in that. Unless I come from condemnation, there's. There, there's no release. Right. Unless I have felt the weight of condemnation. So how many came to Christ before age 10? Young, very young. Okay.
Scott Keffer [:It may be likely that you know a time of condemnation or not if you came to Christ early on, Right. How many came in their teenage years? How about in their 20s? We were in our 20s, late 20s, 30s, above. Beyond that, 30, 40. So you know about condemnation. I was 28. I know about condemnation because I lived a life worthy of condemnation. Because condemnation is fundamentally to be judged, to be judged against. And as a consequence, the.
Scott Keffer [:The consequence of your, Your, your actions, if you will. Right. It's the punishment. Do you? It's the punishment. Do you? And so in Christ, no condemnation has no glory, has no power, has no joy, unless I felt the weight of condemnation. Right. As Christian said, the weight fell off of his back. Right.
Scott Keffer [:And I do remember in that first few months of coming to Christ, when he called me out of darkness, it was as if I walked about three feet higher. Just what kind of walking on air? You know, you can beat me with a board and nothing seemed to bother me, you know, he says, therefore, if any man is in Christ, he's a new creature. Think about that. Some take the Greek word and say creation same way. But we're a new creature. New creature, new creation. The old has. It's gone.
Scott Keffer [:The new has come. The old is gone. The new has come. The old is gone. The new has come. There's no condemnation. I love it. David Goodsick said the verdict is not less condemnation.
Scott Keffer [:Think about that. He said that's where many believers are thinking our standing has improved in Jesus. Right. I'm better off than I was before, right. I go. Went from a D to a B plus. No. He says, there is therefore now no condemnation.
Scott Keffer [:It has not been improved. It's been completely transformed. Don't forget that. That's the gospel. Every day I have been completely transformed. The old has gone, right? There's remnants of it in our right, in our battle with it. But the old is gone. Not less condemnation.
Scott Keffer [:It's no condemnation. Hey, Kepher, I can go home with that. Can hang my head on that. So he says, you are not condemned because Jesus condemned sin in the flesh. You're not condemned because Jesus condemned sin in the flesh. Ellicott said that which the law was hindered from doing by the whole which sin had upon our flesh. We were plagues to sin, unable to break the power of sin, unable to free ourselves, unable to get ourselves out of the prison of sin. It said that hold is made to cease through the participation of the believer in the death of Christ.
Scott Keffer [:In Christ we have died with him, we've been buried with him, and we are raised with him with all the benefits. So he says, sin is, as it were, brought into court and the cause is given against it. It loses all its rights and claims over you. It is dispossessed. As one who is dispossessed of property, it's as if it's brought into God's court. He has condemned it. And sin has no more power, no more hold and no more authority over you. He condemned sin in the flesh.
Scott Keffer [:Is that good news? No, the great news. So he says, in Christ you are set free. Free again, free is not a powerful word unless I understand and have been imprisoned. It's only if I've been in chains. It's only if I've been in slavery that freedom is so he says, it was for freedom that Christ set you free. So he says, therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery. Don't go back and try and use the law as your basis for righteousness. Use the law as your basis for approval from God.
Scott Keffer [:Use the law as a basis to way to say, yes, this is who I am and this is why I should be approved, if you will. Don't go back to the law. He said, that's slavery. That's what you've been freed of. In Christ you are set free for whom the sun sets free is free indeed, is free indeed. Christ, you are set free. There's therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. So I thought about that.
Scott Keffer [:So there's a couple things here if you think about right in Christ, Christ Jesus put sin's power to death. We put the power of sin to death. He condemned sin in the flesh. And along with that, two things. Sin has by its nature two components or two results for each of us. Guilt and shame. Guilt and shame. Guilt and shame.
Scott Keffer [:And so guilt is about the punishment of God. So I asked her, how much do you struggle with fear, the fear of punishment by God? If I fall short, God's gonna take care of me. I fall short, God's going to take care of me. He's going to punish me for that. How many still struggle with it? Come on. How many having trouble telling the truth? The do. It's that it's nature. We will struggle with guilt.
Scott Keffer [:Guilt means I'm still guilty. I could still be brought up for punishment, for falling short. For the wages of sin is death. Can I still be paid? Can I still be paid? Soon this whole part of you goes like, oh, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. Here's another one. You're getting paid back today for what you did back then. How many Start with that, right? The Lord, you're. That's why you can't.
Scott Keffer [:That's why you don't. That's why God is paying you back for what you did back then. That's guilt. That's guilt, yes. What's the difference between guilt in consequence? What's the difference between guilt, in other words, having a consequence for what you did and having feelings of guilt with. With the consequences? I mean, that, that seems to fit right here. Yeah. What we're talking.
Scott Keffer [:So as a believer, are there consequences if I. If I sin? Yes. Yeah, there can be. Yes. Yes. Am I guilty before God? No. So it's difference between justification? Well, yeah. I mean, can I be brought to cord, if you will.
Scott Keffer [:Can I be judged guilty, which is the wrath of God, which is the consequence for my sin? Yes. Can that happen after I'm a believer? No. Are there consequences for sin? Yes. Does God mitigate those? At times, yes. Does God allow him at other times? Yes. He says that's his training, that's his discipline. So, yes, there are consequences. Well, guilt is.
Scott Keffer [:Can God bring me. Right. Is the wrath of God. Can I be judged for my sin? Judged guilty. What's the consequence of sin? Separation from God. Right. Can I be brought up for my sin? No, no. In Christ? No.
Scott Keffer [:That's what he's saying. No. There's no condemnation, there's no judgment and there's no penalty for that. In that sense, a father disciplining us, the consequence of Sin. He's training us. Right. Does he allow us think about that to. To sow everything we reap.
Scott Keffer [:Reap everything we. So reap everything we sow. Do you get every consequence that you're saying? Oh, no. Understand the mercy of God. If God were allowing you to have every consequence. Just. Yeah. So in mercy, there are consequences for our sin.
Scott Keffer [:But it is God in his love and his commitment that he's teaching. He's teaching us discipline is a good word in the Greek word. That's where he's training us. Right? He's training us, sanctifying us, bringing us to a place that we're more like him. Because he is teaching us that sin is not good, but it feels good for a time. Yes. The way I look at it is kind of the difference between eternal. Which is set.
Scott Keffer [:No eternal judgment. The consequences could be in a here and now that we've gone through. Yes, yes. Consequences can be here and now. Yes. Could. Yes. Can be not all.
Scott Keffer [:Could be not all, fortunately. But that would go along with second Timothy 3, 16. He rebukes. He corrects training and righteousness. Yes. Well, per rebuke. Exhort. Yes.
Scott Keffer [:Great regret. Yeah. That's the consequence of sanctification, right? Yeah. Sanctification. Yeah. So the fear of guilt. What's the fear of guilt? That I'll be brought up on charges again. There's a part of the law that is based upon the kingdom of God and God's nature.
Scott Keffer [:It's called double jeopardy. Where did that come from? There is no double jeopardy. You can't be charged twice for a crime. Where did that come from? The heart of God. The nature of God. That's a kingdom principle. So one, the fear is I'm going to be punished or God is punishing me either for my present or my past behavior. He's punishing me.
Scott Keffer [:So let's see what scripture says. There is no fear in love. Huh? Why not? Because perfect love does what? Pass out fear. Well, what is fear? Fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected. So the fear is punishment. I'm going to be punished for my sin. That's what fear is. Right.
Scott Keffer [:So he said, my fear is that I will be punished. He says God's love does what? It casts it out. Which means there's no punishment. Well, let's see. How does he say that? For as high as the heavens are above the earth. Okay, how is that, Chris? How high is that now? He's getting bigger. 90 billion light years. Way beyond.
Scott Keffer [:We can even see 60 miles an hour 24. Seven, driving my car, never stopping. Four and a half months I've gone. How far? Light travels in one second. Now take light and shoot it out there and let it go. Not for a minute, not for an hour, not for a day, not for a year. Go 90 billion years. How far would it go? Fairly far.
Scott Keffer [:He says, okay, I want you to understand. That's my yardstick. That's my physical demonstration for you to understand. That to hear that's the height of my love. That's a demonstration for you to understand. That's my love. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his passage, his covenant love, his dedicated love. That's his high for those who fear him.
Scott Keffer [:As far as the east is from the west, how far is that? It's infinite, right? That's the whole idea. There is no east and West. It's just right. Keeps circling. It's infinite. What is that? So he says, here's this, so you understand my loving kindness. Here's this, so you understand what? What's he saying? As far as the east is from the west, so far as he removed my transgressions from me, how far is that? It's infinite. It can never come back.
Scott Keffer [:He said. That's why he's put it behind his back. He remembers them no more. And then he says, in case you don't get it right, just as a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him. You. For He Himself knows your frame is mindful that you are but dust. Is that a good picture? Yeah. 90 billion light years.
Scott Keffer [:That's my love. Infinite. That's sin, Father, to a child. I know your frame. That's him. Rest in that. Rest in that. Widow.
Scott Keffer [:Sin. Servant, he said, that's. I want you to understand. That's it. You fear punishment. My love. My love. Casts out your fear.
Scott Keffer [:Casts out your fear. So sometimes when it feels like the Lord is punishing or the Lord is paying you back, that is not truth. He says, remember my universe, remember the Earth. And remember, as a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him. He is mindful. We are but death. So fear of punishment is one. How about the fear of abandonment by God? That's shame.
Scott Keffer [:Get away from me. Get away from me. You're worthless. I don't want anything to do with you. Right. Fear of abandonment. So stop and say, okay, on a scale of 0 to 10, where am I? Fear of punishment. Fear of abandonment.
Scott Keffer [:Will God Leave me. Will God say, enough, enough. So he says in Hebrews, I will never leave you or forsake you. But the amplified version says, you miss the power of the Greek. So in the amplified version, it says, be condemned. For he has said, I will never under any circumstances desert you, nor give you up, nor leave you without support, nor will I in any degree leave you helpless. Nor will I forsake or let you down or relax my hold on you. Assuredly not.
Scott Keffer [:That's the greed in the amplified version, right? He just. He pounds this home, I will never leave you nor forsake you. He said it to Joshua. He said it to the people in the Old Testament. He's saying it to us in the New Testament. Assuredly not. This is God's exclamation point. Assuredly not.
Scott Keffer [:God gonna leave me. They ever feel like that. You're gonna leave me, abandon me. Well, if you have a great relationship, if you had a great relationship with the earthly father, you think, oh, I can understand. Great Father as a father has compassion. If you had an okay relationship, if you had a bad relationship, you think, is God the Father? Like that, father? God the Father, like that Father? He's not. He's not in any way at all. He's not in any way.
Scott Keffer [:He is your heavenly Father. Heavenly Father. Nor will he forsake you or let you down or relax his hold upon you. God's exclamation point, Assuredly not. Is that good news? That's great news. Great news. Not because this is really important. It seems counterintuitive.
Scott Keffer [:Not because anything per se, in you, it's because of who he is, which is why it will never change. If it were based on you, he could change when you change. But it's not based on you. You don't merit it. If you merited it, you have to keep earning it. It's based on his character. That's why he says, I will never. Yeah, but what about me? He says, I will never.
Scott Keffer [:Assuredly not. Well, so what's going on? Because who is accusing you? You felt the accusations, right? You're guilty. You feel shame. He's not gonna. He's. He's gonna let you go. He's called the accuser of the Brethren. So he asked him later on here, he says, okay, so who will bring a charge? So what does that mean? This deals with this idea of justice.
Scott Keffer [:This is guilt. So who can bring a charge against you? Who can say, oh, you're guilty. Oh, you're guilty. You didn't deserve it. You didn't earn it. Look what you're doing now. You are guilty. So he's saying, who can bring a charge? We say, well, first of all, how about God the Father? God is the one who justifies.
Scott Keffer [:Who justified you? God the Father. So he said, if God justified you. If God says God the Father, there is no condemnation. He says, who is the one who condemned you? It's not God the Father. So he said, if God the Father upon his throne justified you, who is the one? Well, the enemies. And there's a bit of me and the enemy. Me and the enemy. You've heard right.
Scott Keffer [:A devil's advocate. He doesn't need an advocate. Stop being his advocate. When you agree with him, you're his advocate. I'm just being a devil's advocate. Stop being a devil's advocate. So he says, okay, God the Father is the one who justified. Well, how about Christ Jesus? No, he's the one who died.
Scott Keffer [:He died for your justification? Yes. Rather, he was raised. He's at the right hand of God. What's he doing? He intercedes for you. That so? Who's bringing a charge? He's saying, if God the Father isn't charging you, he's justified you. Christ Jesus bought your justification. Who's bringing the charge? Me and the enemy. Me and the enemy.
Scott Keffer [:Stop. So a reminder that conviction leads back to God. Conviction leads back to God. Confession, forgiveness, repentance, peace, joy, renewal. If we confess our sins, the word means hama legeo. Say the same thing. Agree with God that I have sinned. He said, if any man says he doesn't have sin, he's a liar.
Scott Keffer [:So he says, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive and cleanse. Forgive and cleanse. Cleanse is about guilt. Cleanse is about guilt. And also to empower us to. To resist cleanses us. And he says, by the way, if you sin, we have an advocate. Who's your advocate? Who stands for you? Christ Jesus.
Scott Keffer [:Where is he? At the right hand of the Father. What's he doing? Interceding for you? Huh? And he's Jesus Christ, Righteous. He's advocating, by the way. He himself is the propitiation. He is the very reason that you're justified. He atoned for you, paid for your sins. So accusation leads away from God. It leads away from God you don't deserve.
Scott Keffer [:You better clean yourself up before you get back to God or. I can't believe you're doing that again. Is that the 77th time today? Is that more lust? Is that more envy? Is that more greed? Is that more anger? Is that more hatred? Yeah, that's just in the last hour. It does, isn't it? You don't deserve to go back. Guilt, shame, fear, despair. Hiding from God. Hiding from God. I'm going to wait to get in shape before I go to my trainer.
Scott Keffer [:I'm going to wait to get well before I go to the doctor. I'm going to wait to get clean. To go before I go to the one who cleanses things crazy, doesn't it? So where does that come from? Me and the enemy. Me and the enemy. The sorrow that's according to the will of God. Produces what? Repentance without regret, leading to salvation. Sorrow. The world produces death.
Scott Keffer [:Just remember, the enemy wants to keep you from him. The enemy wants to keep you in darkness. The enemy wants to keep you alone. Alone in darkness. He wins. Alone in darkness. He wins. He wins.
Scott Keffer [:He's the prince of darkness. Alone in darkness. He wins. So Christ Jesus put sin to death. The foger, he also put death to death. So sin's biggest fear is guilt and shame. Death fear. Right.
Scott Keffer [:Christ put death to death. And the fear of death. So how much do you struggle with the fear of death? How much do you struggle with the fear of death? I don't hang around. Older you get, the more it the days get closer, friends get fewer. Right? Hang around in a group for a while. And guess what? Thanks for the year number of people have faced death. Fear of death. Fear of death.
Scott Keffer [:Fear of death. And I think with fear of death also death has by its nature separation. Fear of death. We are separated from our health, we're separated from. Right. We lose things as time goes on. That's a fear, isn't it? We just don't want to get old, right? I don't want to get old. Dang.
Scott Keffer [:Fear of death. So he says the children, you and I, we share in flesh and blood. Jesus himself likewise also partook the same that through death he might render powerless. What did he render powerless? Him who had power of death. Who's that? Yeah. And might deliver those who through fear of death were afraid. And by fear of death we become slaves all our life. Because when you're afraid to die, you're afraid to live.
Scott Keffer [:You're afraid to die, you're afraid to live. Hey, 2020. Stay home. Yeah. Die quietly. Safety. No, I mean I say that kind of jokingly, but understand the promise was safety. Stay home.
Scott Keffer [:Safety. So in order stop living in exchange for safety. That understand that there's more going on than what you think by that the enemy's saying, don't take risks. Don't take risks, Right. Protect yourself. So he's saying fear of death leads to slavery. If we don't have fear of death, we step into life with a sense of no risk. What do we risk? Our days are ordained.
Scott Keffer [:When is yet there is one. They said if you don't fear death, Right? Don't fear death. That's why art of war, right? They talked about soldiers. They said to be a great soldier. You can't fear death. If you fear death, you can't live. You fear dying, you will not live. You'll just stay home.
Scott Keffer [:Stay home. Do everything in the names of safety. Just be safe. Let's be safe. Just put a big bubble around you. Stay home quietly. Right? There's a message there. As Christians, he's saying you shouldn't fear death.
Scott Keffer [:Which means we can live life fully. So he says, but now has been revealed by the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus. He would be due to death. He abolished it. What does abolished mean? It's gone. And what did he give us? Life and immortality. So understand God's character. He's the blessed and only sovereign who alone possesses immortality.
Scott Keffer [:God alone possesses immortality. He brought that to us. He brought immortality to us. Immortality, life and immortality to life. Through the gospel. That's who we get. Death is swallowed up in victory. The sting of death is sin.
Scott Keffer [:The power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. There's victory in death. Apart from Christ, you should be afraid of death. But the enemy gets people, right? Turn up, turn up the music. Turn up life. And do this all day long. Then you'll won't consider death.
Scott Keffer [:Just stay high on dopamine. So Christ Jesus has transformed death for us. Christ Jesus has transformed death for us. Well, that seems weird. What does. What does God the Father say? Precious in the sight of Yahweh is the dad really precious? Precious. When somebody dies, we think that's precious in the sight of God. Precious.
Scott Keffer [:How's that? Because death is life. Yeah. There is no death. There is no death. It's swallowed up in victory. So for. For to me, right? The apostle Paul says, to live is Christ, to die is gain. That means death is better than life.
Scott Keffer [:Well, that's weird, huh? The apostle Paul said, hey, you know, I want to go and be with Christ. I'm staying for you, but I want to go, right? For me to live as Christ. So here's the point in here. If you fear death, you will never live to the fullest. Then life will be fearful. All in the name safety, right? So he's saying, do you fear death? Don't need to fear death. So Jesus Christ has put together the answer for our fears. Fear of guilt, fear of shame, fear of death.
Scott Keffer [:He says, because what the law could not do, the scripture says literally, God. For what the law could not do, God. Now the translators put God did, but literally the word is just. God for what the law couldn't do. God, I love that. What the law couldn't do, God. Isn't that cool. Manson said, moses, law has right but not might.
Scott Keffer [:Sin's law has might, but not right. The Spirit has both right and might. Very good. Both the power, both the rightness and the power. So God planned, purposed and sent forth His Son. And he did it in love. And love. That's pretty cool, huh? By this, by what? The love of God, it was made known, manifested, brought to light, exposed, brought out into the open in us that God sent His only begotten Son into the world so we might live.
Scott Keffer [:He's saying, live. When we fear, we don't live. We fear, we don't live fully. When we fear, we hold back. We said that you might in this is love. Not that we love God, but that he loved us. We think, yeah, I accepted Christ. I gave the price.
Scott Keffer [:I love God. Right? I told you about the guy. He said, oh, you. Sounds like what? How do you say that? You know God. Yeah, I think he said, sounds like you know God. I said, I do, but better. He knows me. That's what he's saying.
Scott Keffer [:You love God, know better. God loves you. But then he loved us. And he sent His Son to be the payment, the propitiation for our sins in love. He planned it, he purposed it. Before all time. He wrote your name in a book. He sent forth His Son to purchase your name, to purchase you for himself.
Scott Keffer [:What? How did he do that? He sent Jesus Christ in the likeness of sinful flesh. It says, in the likeness of sinful flesh. Not sinful, but in the likeness, in the thorn of sinful flesh. Resemblance or form? So Jesus Christ is fully human. My phrase is the uncontainable stepped into a container. The uncontainable one stepped into a container. The word became flesh. Flesh and tabernacle.
Scott Keffer [:Literally, the tabernacle of God among us. It says that Christ emptied himself, taking on the form. This is important. The form of a bond. Servant willing to take on the form of a bond. Servant being made in the likeness, it's the same thing of man. He looked like a man. Looked like a man.
Scott Keffer [:He was fully human in that sense. Being found in appearance as a man. He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death on the cross. Cursed is the man who hangs on the tree. Cursed is the man who hangs on the tree. He hung on the tree for you and for me. So he's fully human in the likeness of sinful flesh, yet fully divine and sinless. Well, how does that work? I had no idea.
Scott Keffer [:It doesn't seem possible, does it? How is that? I don't know. The uncontainable one stepped into a container, bringing his divinity is sinlessness into a fleshly container. And Scripture says he is the radiance of his glory and the exact representation of his nature. That's why Jesus, when he was on the earth, he said, if you've seen me, you've seen the Father really see me. You've seen the Father. No one has seen God at any time, it says in John. But the only begotten God, the Son, has brought him out into the open. We beheld his glory.
Scott Keffer [:Glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. For it pleased the Father for all the fullness to dwell in him. All the fullness of deity to dwell in him. And so now we have a high priest who. It's not one who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who's been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. He's a high priest. We go to the high priest. He understands.
Scott Keffer [:He empathizes, he sympathizes. He understands. He has faced every temptation. There's not a temptation you can face that he has not stared down and overcome. So he's not wanging his finger at you. He's saying, come forth for mercy and for grace to help in time of need. So come, come, come. How often do you come? How often do you come? He's offering mercy for you.
Scott Keffer [:Fell grace to help at time of need. Which is, by the way, the reason I fell is because I didn't come to him early for grace to help in time to me, because I got it so, or I don't want to come to him. I don't want to ask him, because I'll. I'll go this path on my own. So go to him. Go to him. Go to him. Well, what did he accomplish? That the righteous requirements of the law would be fulfilled in us.
Scott Keffer [:The righteous requirements of the law. Six hundred and whatever commandments you haven't studied the law. That's like understanding. No, condemnation is only when I understand condemnation. If you study the law of God and you think, I mean, I'm doomed, ain't no way I'm doing all that. That's every day, every minute of every day, even. Oh, yeah. Love the Lord.
Scott Keffer [:You got all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Oh, yeah, I do that. Love your neighbors. I got that one. He says, this is what it looks like. 630 commandments. Well, that isn't what I thought he meant by that. I thought when he said, love the Lord, you got all heart, my soul, mind, and strength is what I do.
Scott Keffer [:Not that. So then you start to understand. Whoa. The righteous requirement of the law has been fulfilled. How's that happen? He made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf without being sinless. He is sinless. But to be sin. What, in order that so that what's the purpose we might become? Not just righteousness, the righteousness of God.
Scott Keffer [:That's the character and nature of the righteousness of God. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. That means that they're at the core of God's character. How do you become that righteousness? It's like becoming like the sun in power, and I mean the physical sun. 10,000 degrees at the. At the. At the surface, hundreds of thousands of degrees, millions of degrees at the core. How would you become like that? So he's saying you become of the same nature as God, what he made him, who knew no sin to be sin.
Scott Keffer [:And he said, now you have the Holy Spirit. Well, I don't understand the Spirit, but he says, you have the Holy Spirit. Yeah, but sometimes I don't have spirit, right? So, like, what's the Holy Spirit? But he says, you have the Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is God's Spirit. He is the Spirit of life, and he's the Spirit of adoption. Holy Spirit's confusing, isn't it? Where is the Holy Spirit? What's the Holy Spirit? He's the Holy Spirit. Right? But he says, do you have it? How do I know you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit? So he says, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him. If you are in Christ, you have the Spirit of God.
Scott Keffer [:If you don't have the Spirit of God, you're not in Christ. You're saying it's not. It's not confusing anymore. In the Old Testament, The Spirit of God came and then went. In the New Testament, if you. If you are in Christ, you have his Spirit. He dwells in you. He's put his Holy Spirit as a deposit, as a down payment, as an engagement ring that God will fulfill the Holy Spirit.
Scott Keffer [:You are sealed with the Holy Spirit. You are indwelled by the Holy Spirit. Very clearly, if you're in Christ, you have the Holy Spirit. And he's not a spirit of slavery. What's the spirit of slavery lead to fear again? So that fear pops up. It's not from God. It's not from God. Spirit of slavery, you receive a spirit of adoption.
Scott Keffer [:What? Adoption is sons by which we cry out. Yeah. Abba. Father, Papa, Father, Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God. There's. There's an internal testimony. Spirit of God testifying with our spirit. Spirit of life, Spirit of adoption.
Scott Keffer [:So he's saying there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ. In Christ. In Christ. Understand? In Christ. All that's happened. So I wrote that the unimaginable has been eternally accomplished. The unimaginable has been eternally accomplished. And it's been accomplished for us.
Scott Keffer [:And if you sum it up, we are sons of God. We are sons of God. Not gender. Male, female, sons of God. In the sense of your relationship with God. So the Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool. God, the Father says to the Son, sit at my right hand in the position of favor, in the position of right. His relationship and all that.
Scott Keffer [:That means firstborn. All the fruits of the firstborn, right, the inheritance that comes to the firstborn. The name, the favor, all of that. That is what he's sharing with you. Because he's the firstborn among many brethren. Because of that, we are his brethren. We're the children of the Father and the brother and of the Lord Jesus Christ. What? We are sons of God.
Scott Keffer [:Well, what's that about? In love. He predestined. I don't like that word. I don't know what it means. I don't like that word. I know. Okay. It's in here.
Scott Keffer [:It's in the Bible. He predestined us to what? Adoption as sons. How do you do that? Through Jesus Christ, to himself, to God the Father. According to what? The kind intention. Are you glad? His people read through Scripture and they say, oh, God the father. Oh, he's scared. You go in the Old Testament, he's scary, you know. No, he has the kind intention of his will.
Scott Keffer [:You have to study Old Testament. You'll see his grace and his favor and his mercy throughout it. The problem in the Old Testament isn't God the Father from the Old Testament are the Jews and the people. That's the problem. His mercy is clear through there. It's the kind intention of his will. And what is it pointing to? To the praise of the glory of his grace. It's pointing to his grace.
Scott Keffer [:Well, how do we get that? I paid for it. I earned it. I deserved it. No, he said he freely bestowed it upon you. How? In the beloved Son. This is my son, in whom I'm well pleased. You are now in the beloved. You're now in my Son.
Scott Keffer [:What does all that mean? I don't know. But it means, right? It means unimaginably more than we can even comprehend. It's not like, oh, that's really good. No, it's like as high as the heavens are above the earth. Because it's in love. In love. It came as a result of his love for you. The unimaginable has been eternally accomplished.
Scott Keffer [:Eternally accomplished for you. We're sons of God. That's the point here. That's why there's no condemnation. We are sons of the. Of the Most High. We are sons of the Most High. All right, Write down the insight.
Scott Keffer [:Nah. Oh, my. That's good. A holy smoke it. So you pray to God the Father, Right? And the Spirit of God comes to your rescue. Right? Spirit of God is within us. He will bring to light is what Jesus said. He will bring to light.
Scott Keffer [:He will testify of the things of me. He will make known to you the things of Christ. So Spirit of God reveals Jesus Christ. Right? So we pray to God the Father, the Spirit is our help. We don't know how to pray. Right. The Spirit helps us. The Spirit is testifying.
Scott Keffer [:You're a child of God. You are a child of God. Testifies in your spirit. Spirit of God is the Spirit of truth. He takes the word of God and applies it. When. When a scripture comes to mind, it's the Spirit of God who's delivering it. Yes.
Scott Keffer [:Right. Yeah. It's confusing, of course, but. Well, there was an offense against Uriah. Offense against Bathsheba, offense against his kingdom, offense against the wall of. There were offenses all around, right? It wasn't just that. So all of that. But at the end of the day, sin is against thee and the alone.
Scott Keffer [:He said, right? He said, for I. For I've sinned against thee and the alone understand that that core of it sin, although I may offend someone else, is is I am my sin is against God. Yes. And may God the Father who in love send His Son so that we would be sons may he bless you. May he keep you. May he cause his face to shine upon you. May he lift up his countenance and grant you his peace, his shalom, the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension that you may walk with him and live with him and wait for him always, always, always. Amen.
Scott Keffer [:Thanks for listening. I hope you have greater hope, assurance and confidence in your life and a deeper trust in the God of the Bible and His Son Jesus Christ. Until next time. May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. And may the Lord lift up his countenance on you and give you his peace, his shalom in your soul and in your life. Until next time. May God bless you and keep you.
