Romans 8:8-17
Brothers and sisters: Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you.
Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is alive because of righteousness. If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.
Consequently, brothers and sisters, we are not debtors to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
For those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a Spirit of adoption, through whom we cry, “Abba, Father!”
The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
Chosen without Exception
God chooses each one of us, without exception. But many people may not feel chosen by God. Often, our experiences of life’s burdens weigh us down, so that we don’t feel special at all. Sometimes, we feel the very opposite, neglected, forgotten, or even abused. Walking through life without God leaves us like orphans. So, where could we turn when things get rough? Some people look to themselves, others to escape, and others just to pretending that everything’s fine. But ultimately, nothing works. The power of sin and death overcomes all of us.
Life gives us clues that there is a way out. The beauty of the world can take our breath away. The joys of love and friendship show us that we’re not alone. The wonder of life itself, the whole universe, and just that we are, reveals some kind of hidden mystery. There’s more to life than just what we can see, or figure out on our own.
Paul writes about living according to the flesh, meaning, living as this is all we’ve got, as if there’s no hope. But he offers us the incredible possibility that God offers us more. God sends us his Holy Spirit, the person of God who breathes new divine life into us. The Holy Spirit draws us into a new way of knowing God, as “Abba, Father!”. Only in the Spirit of God can we be adopted to become his children. It is Jesus, sacrificing himself for us on the cross, rising to overcome everything that drags us down, who asks the Father to fill us with his Spirit. And then everything is new, everything is different. We belong, we matter.