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Cataclysm

         There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:1)

Yesterday’s passages were for a category called “Hope Chest.” Today’s goes in the “Comfort Food” category, but it’s often misapplied because it’s often pulled out of context. In chapter 7, Paul wrote about his struggles. The things he wanted to do; he didn’t do; while the things he didn’t want to do were precisely the things he did do.

Oo, God’s will or God’s Word …Oh look! A squirrel!

I’m going to eat healthfully… Oh look, a treat.

I’m going to read Scripture… Oh look, Facebook!... Oh look, the Internet is down, again.

I’m going to trust that God causes all things to work for good… Oh look, a windstorm…a lack of sleep…a battle with a bad attitude (AKA: I’m just soooo tired, whine, grumble.)

I checked out the Greek words from which our English words are translated. The interesting one was the word we read as condemnation. It is the Greek word from which we get cataclysm. It’s a perfect word to describe the clash between flesh and spirit from the previous chapter. At the end of chapter seven, we’re standing at the center of a civil war battlefield, with devastation in every direction.

It’s only then that we can understand the change described in today’s passage. It describes what happens when we are in Christ Jesus, when we are walking according to the Spirit. But, it’s not an instantons thing – no magic wands are waved that make everything practically perfect. It’s more like we become Moses, leading ourselves toward the Promised Land.

Dallas Willard describes God’s goal as being to repair the damage we’ve done to ourselves and to fix damaged souls. But even if the repairs have been accomplished and the cataclysm ended, we don’t know how to live in the new life we have. Our flesh still has to learn to function properly. It’s like trying to learn to write with your other hand, or drive a car with a manual transmission. It doesn’t mean we get a free pass. It means we are able to learn to live in the way we lacked the power to live before. 

Over time, if we learn, we come to experience the oneness that means "no condemnation."

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