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“Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.
For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh.”
— Romans 8:1–3 (NASB)
The central theme of this song is one of the greatest declarations in the New Testament: no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. It deals with three great spiritual laws:
1. The law of sin and death
2. The law of Moses (the written Law)
3. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus
The lyrics simply echo the inspired words of the Holy Spirit. They move us from the hopelessness of our sinful nature under the Law, into the liberty and security of the believer in Christ, under the rule of the Holy Spirit.
We are not dealing with feelings. We are dealing with a legal verdict issued from the highest court in the universe:
“There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Everything in the Christian life flows out of understanding this verdict correctly.
---
Romans 8 stands at the climax of Paul’s teaching on sin, law, grace, and the work of the Holy Spirit.
“Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?” (Romans 7:24)
The answer comes immediately:
> “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25)
Then Romans 8 opens with a mighty proclamation:
> “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1)
We must hear the “therefore.” It connects to all that precedes. Paul has demonstrated:
Into that struggle, God speaks:
No condemnation now. Not later, not in heaven only, but now—for those in Christ Jesus.
The Roman believers lived under the shadow of Rome’s legal system and Caesar’s authority. They understood verdicts, sentences, legal standing. Paul uses that language to declare: God’s court has already issued the final ruling over the believer in Christ. The case is closed.
---
Let us look at two key words in Romans 8:1–2 that shape the message of this song.
### 1. “Condemnation” – *katákrima* (κατάκριμα)
The Greek word translated “condemnation” is katákrima.
It is a legal term. It does not simply mean “a feeling of guilt.” It means:
In other words, Paul is not merely saying, “You do not have to feel condemned.” He is saying:
The legal sentence of God’s judgment against you has been removed.
Why? Not because God lowered His standards, but because the sentence was carried out on another—Jesus Christ.
This changes how we interpret the lyrics:
> “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.”
This is not psychological comfort. It is legal reality. The Supreme Judge has pronounced a verdict over everyone who is in Christ:
No sentence. No penalty. No legal claim of judgment remains.
### 2. “Law” – *nómos* (νόμος)
In Romans 8:2 we read:
> “For the law (*nómos*) of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law (*nómos*) of sin and of death.”
The Greek word nómos means “law,” but it is used in several senses:
1. The Law of Moses – the commandments, statutes, and ordinances.
2. A principle or ruling power – like a law of operation, a controlling force.
In Romans 8:2 Paul is not talking about written commandments, but spiritual laws or ruling powers:
The image is something like gravity and aerodynamic lift. Gravity is a law; it always pulls downward. But another law, when applied (lift and thrust), can overcome gravity and cause an airplane to fly. Gravity is still present, but its power is overridden.
Likewise, the law of sin and death is still present in this world and in our mortal bodies, but a stronger law has been set in motion: the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.
So when the lyrics say:
> “For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death.”
They are echoing this truth:
You have been transferred from one ruling spiritual system (sin and death) into another (Spirit and life). This is not willpower. This is law against law, power against power.
---
### Verse 1
> “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.”
This is Romans 8:1 in simple form. Note four key aspects:
1. “So now” – This points to a decisive change. There was condemnation before; now there is not. This “now” is grounded in the finished work of Christ (Romans 3:24–26; 5:1).
2. “There is no condemnation” – Not less condemnation. Not reduced condemnation. None.
This aligns with John 5:24:
> “He who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”
3. “For those who belong to Christ Jesus” – Literally: those who are “in Christ Jesus.”
This is one of Paul’s main expressions: *en Christo*. It speaks of:
2 Corinthians 5:17 echoes this:
> “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
4. This is conditional, not universal.
Not everyone is free from condemnation, only those who are in Christ. Outside of Christ, the wrath of God remains (John 3:36). Inside Christ, condemnation is removed.
This verse confronts two common spiritual errors:
The song is for those who truly belong to Christ Jesus.
---
### Chorus
> “For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death.”
This echoes Romans 8:2:
> “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.”
We see here:
1. Two powers, two laws, two spiritual dominions:
2. The agent of liberation: the Holy Spirit
The Spirit is described here as “life-giving.” This aligns with:
The Holy Spirit applies the finished work of Christ to us. What Christ accomplished for us on the cross, the Spirit works in us experientially.
3. The means: “through Christ Jesus”
The Holy Spirit does not act independently of Christ. Everything He does is based on:
Outside of Christ, the Spirit does not free anyone from the law of sin and death. His liberating ministry is in Christ Jesus.
4. Freedom from an enslaving law, not freedom from all law
We have not been moved from “law” to “lawlessness.” We have been moved from one controlling principle to another. From:
To:
Galatians 5:16–18 clarifies this:
> “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh… But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.”
Being led by the Spirit places us under a new regime, a new law, which brings life instead of death.
So when we sing:
> “For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you…”
We are declaring an accomplished spiritual reality. The believer is no longer under the dominion of sin and death as an unbreakable law. Another, stronger law rules.
---
### Verse 2
> “The law of Moses could not save us, because of our sinful nature.”
This reflects Romans 8:3:
> “For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did…”
We must be very clear:
The problem was not in the Law itself. The Law was holy, righteous, and good (Romans 7:12). The problem was in us—in our flesh.
“Flesh” (*sarx*) in Paul does not mean the physical body alone. It means fallen human nature, the totality of man as he is descended from Adam, dominated by sin.
So:
Romans 3:20 says:
> “…through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.”
The Law is like a perfect mirror. It shows us our dirt, but cannot wash it off. It can condemn, but it cannot justify. It can command, but it cannot empower.
Thus, the lyrics state rightly:
> “The law of Moses could not save us, because of our sinful nature.”
This is crucial in spiritual warfare and deliverance. Many sincere believers remain in bondage because they try to overcome sin by law-keeping, by rules, by willpower, instead of shifting into the realm of the Holy Spirit and grace.
Where the Law fails (through the weakness of our flesh), God does something else.
---
### Chorus (repeated)
> “But God put into effect a different plan to save us.”
This is a simple summary of Romans 8:3:
> “…God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh.”
We see three great truths:
1. “God did” what the Law could not do. Salvation is not man reaching up to God; it is God reaching down to man.
2. “Sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh”
Note the precision:
3. “As an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh”
Notice carefully:
God did not condemn you in Christ.
God condemned sin in the flesh of Christ.
This is why there can be no condemnation left for those in Christ. The condemnation has already taken place—at the cross.
This is God’s “different plan to save us.” Not by Law, not by human effort, but by substitution: Christ condemned in our place, that we might stand uncondemned in Him.
---
### Outro
> “No condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.”
This returns full circle to the opening declaration. Repetition is important in spiritual warfare. The enemy accuses; the believer answers with the Word:
What is our testimony? It must agree with God’s Word:
Where believers continue in self-condemnation, they are often agreeing more with Satan’s accusations than with God’s verdict. The Outro is not mere repetition; it is warfare proclamation.
---
This truth must be applied. Merely hearing it will not change you. We need to respond in specific, scriptural ways.
### 1. First, we must accept God’s verdict by faith.
Stop arguing with God’s Word. If He says, “There is now no condemnation,” do not say, “But I still feel condemned, so it must not be true.”
“I believe what God has spoken, even when my emotions say the opposite.”
Action:
Regularly confess Romans 8:1–2 aloud, especially when feelings of guilt or accusations arise. Say:
> “There is now no condemnation for me, because I am in Christ Jesus. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death.”
### 2. Second, we must renounce self-righteousness and law-trusting.
Many believers still try to be accepted by God on the basis of:
This keeps them under condemnation, because the Law can only condemn the flesh, not transform it.
Galatians 3:3 asks:
> “Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”
Action:
Specifically renounce trust in your own righteousness. Say:
> “Lord, I renounce every attempt to be justified by my performance. I receive Your righteousness as a gift through Jesus Christ.”
### 3. Third, we must yield to the Holy Spirit’s law of life.
Freedom from condemnation is not an excuse to live according to the flesh. Romans 8 makes clear: the same Spirit who frees us also leads us into a new lifestyle.
Romans 8:4 says:
> “…so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”
To walk “according to the Spirit” means:
Action:
### 4. Fourth, we must distinguish between conviction and condemnation.
Many believers confuse the two:
When you sin, the Holy Spirit will convict. But once you confess and forsake the sin, condemnation has no legal right to remain.
Action:
When you feel accused, ask:
Then respond and be cleansed.
Then reject it as condemnation and declare Romans 8:1 over yourself.
---
### Proclamation
Say this aloud, thoughtfully and deliberately:
> **I proclaim that God’s Word is true.
> There is now no condemnation for me, because I am in Christ Jesus.
> I have been transferred from the law of sin and death into the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.
> The sentence against me has been removed, because God condemned my sin in the flesh of Jesus on the cross.
> I do not trust in my own righteousness, but in the finished work of Christ.
> The Holy Spirit lives in me, gives me life, and empowers me to walk in obedience.
> I refuse the voice of condemnation. I submit to the conviction of the Holy Spirit.
> I belong to Christ Jesus, and over my life God has written: “No condemnation.”
> In Jesus’ name, Amen.**
### Prayer
Lord God,
I thank You for the clear verdict of Your Word: there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. I choose to agree with Your judgment and to reject every accusation that contradicts it.
Father, I acknowledge that the Law could not save me because of the weakness of my flesh, but You have done what the Law could not do. You sent Your own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin. You condemned my sin in His flesh, that I might be justified in Him.
Holy Spirit, Spirit of life, I invite You to rule in me. Work in me the law of life in Christ Jesus. Deliver me from every remaining influence of the law of sin and death. Teach me to walk not according to the flesh, but according to You.
Where I have lived under guilt, shame, or self-condemnation, break those yokes now. Let the power of the blood of Jesus and the truth of Your Word set me free. Establish me in the liberty of those who are in Christ.
I receive, by faith, my place in Christ Jesus, and I step into the freedom of “no condemnation.”
In the name of Jesus,
Amen.
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