power of death

Submission to God

Paul explained in his letter to the Romans that it was Adam’s disobedience that caused sin and death to come into the world (Romans 5:12). Paul indicated that Adam “was a type of the one who was to come” (Romans 5:14). What Paul meant by a type of the one who was to come was that Adam showed us by example how substitution works in God’s plan of salvation. Paul  stated, “Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous” (Romans 5:18-19). Jesus’ obedience was in a sense undoing the result of Adam’s disobedience. Obedience requires compliance or submission to the authority of another person (G5218). Jesus told his followers that he came down from heaven not to do his own will, but the will of his Father and then, said the will of his Father was “that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life” (John 6:38-40).

Jesus’ submission to God involved him humbling himself to the point that he was willing to do something that no one else could, die for the sins of the world. Paul talked about Jesus’ example of humility in his letter to the Philippians. Paul said that believers should:

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:3-11)

Jesus was looking to the interests of others when he became obedient to the point of death. Jesus explained his motive for doing this when he told his disciples, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone would lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).

Jesus never waivered in his commitment to submit himself to his Father’s will, but on the night before his death, Jesus asked God to spare him from the suffering that was ahead. Matthew tells us, “And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me, nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.’ And he came to his disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter, ‘So could you not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.’ Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, ‘My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.’ And again he came and found them sleeping for their eyes were heavy. So, leaving them again, he went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again” (Matthew 26:39-44). Even though Jesus was human, he was not subject to the same human nature that caused his disciples to fall asleep instead of praying for him (Hebrews 7:25). Jesus exists as “one person with two distinct natures, fully divine, and fully human without any mixture of the two” (The Doctrine of Jesus Christ, The Standards of Doctrine of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors). Hebrews 4:15 states, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

Jesus’ perfect submission to God resulted in his Father putting everything in subjection to him. Hebrews 2:7-8 states, “You made him for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor, putting everything in subjection under his feet. Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control.” The fact that at a predetermined point in the future nothing will be outside of Jesus’ control is why “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11). The writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus partook of the same things that all humans do so “that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery” (Hebrews 2:14-15).

Submission to God as opposed to lifelong slavery to the devil due to fear of death is a choice that each individual must make. Paul encouraged people to accept God’s free gift of salvation because it releases them from the law of sin and death (Romans 7:1-6). Paul stated, “But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:15-17).

Led by the Spirit

Paul associated being led by the Spirit with being children of God (Romans 8:14). Paul said, “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him” (Romans 8:16-17). Being led by the Spirit implies that action or motion is taking place and that believers are the ones who are following. Paul talked about in his own life how he had finished his course and had kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7). Paul also said in his letter to the Ephesians that before we were saved, we were dead in the trespasses and sins in which we once walked, “following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience, among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind and were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind” (Ephesians 2:1-3).Paul contrasted the course of his life with following the course of this world to show us that being a child of God should change the course of our lives and that this is evidence that we have truly been saved.

Paul made the distinction between walking according to the flesh and walking according to the Spirit to illustrate his point that we must make an intentional effort to align ourselves with God’s will. Paul said:

For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:3-8)

The Greek word that is translated set their minds, phroneo (fron-ehˊ-o) means “to exercise the mind, i.e. entertain or have a sentiment or opinion; by implication to be (mentally) disposed (more or less earnestly in a certain direction); intensive to interest oneself in (with concern or obedience)” (G5426).

The indwelling of the Holy Spirit makes it possible for believers to set their minds on the things of the Spirit. Paul said, “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you” (Romans 8:9). The Greek word that is translated dwell, oikeo (oy-keyˊ-o) means “to occupy a house, i.e. reside (figurative, inhabit, remain, inhere); (by implication) to cohabit” (G3611). Paul referred to believers as God’s temple in his first letter to the Corinthians. Paul asked, “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). Jesus told his followers that the Holy Spirit would come and would dwell in them. Jesus said, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper. To be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you” (John 14:16-17).

Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as “the Spirit of truth” (John 14:17) and said, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth” (John 16:13). The Greek word that is translated guide, hodegeo (hod-ayg-ehˊ-o) means “to show the way” (G3594). When believers are led by the Spirit, the Holy Spirit shows them the way that they need to go. Jesus identified himself as the way, the truth, and the life, and said, “No one comes to the Father except though me” (John 14:6). The Greek word hodos (hod-osˊ), which is translated way, means “a road; (by implication) a progress (the route, act or distance); (figurative) a mode or means” (G3598). The book of Hebrews tells us the way or means that Jesus was referring to, was the way of access into the direct presence of God (Hebrews 9:8). It says, Jesus, “entered once for all into the holy places not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption” (Hebrews 9:12). The writer of Hebrews tells us the truth about all of this is that Jesus, “offered himself without blemish to God, purifying our conscience from dead works to serve the living and true God” (Hebrews 9:14).

Paul’s declaration that believers must suffer with Christ, “in order that we may also be glorified with him” (Romans 8:17) provides insight into why it is difficult for us to be led by the Spirit. Speaking of the believer’s future glory, Paul said, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (Romans 8:18-21). The sufferings of believers serve the purpose of setting God’s creation free from its bondage to corruption. Sufferings are things that believers go through that produce hardship or pain (G3804). Bondage is the condition of those who are subject to death and of those who are subject to the fear of death (G1397). Hebrews 2:14-15 indicates that it is the devil who has the power of death and that he makes those who fear death subject to lifelong slavery. Through suffering, believers are delivered from the fear of death and are perfected in their faith (Hebrews 2:10-11), resulting in their future glorification with Christ (Romans 8:17, 30).

Paul encouraged believers to look at the suffering that leads to their future glorification through the lens of God’s everlasting love. Paul compared the redemption of believers’ bodies to the process of childbirth and said that the Spirit intercedes for us according to the will of God. Paul said:

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. (Romans 8:26-30)

Paul indicated that believers are called according to God’s purpose, which is to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29). Being conformed into the image of Christ means that there should be a likeness between us, our lives should resemble his (G1504).

Paul described the process of being conformed into the image of Christ in his letter to the Colossians. Paul said believers must put off the old self and put on the new self through intentional acts of obedience to the leading of the Holy Spirit. Paul stated:

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. (Colossians 3:5-17)

Paul said that we must put off anger, wrath, malice, slander and obscene talk from our mouths and put on love, “which binds everything together in perfect harmony” (Colossians 3:8, 14). The goal of believers being led by the Spirit through the process of sanctification is to achieve perfect harmony.

Paul assured believers that their sufferings could not separate them from the love of Christ (Romans 8:35). Jesus alluded to this when he told his disciples that the Helper would be with them forever (John 14:16). Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27). Paul said that believers have the assurance that they will be victorious in their sufferings because of God’s everlasting love. Paul asked, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? No in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:35, 37). Paul concluded his discussion of being led by the Spirit with the statement about the Holy Spirit’s ability to keep us connected to God’s love. Paul said, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

Finishing the course

Jesus didn’t keep it a secret that he knew at the end of his ministry he was going to be crucified. On one occasion, Jesus told his disciples, “the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death” (Matthew 20:18). Jesus followed this comment with a declaration of his purpose for coming into the world. Jesus said, “But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:26-28).

Jesus referred to his mission to save the world as a course that he would finish on the day of his resurrection. Jesus told the Pharisees who were harassing him, “Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow and the third day I finish my course” (Luke 13:32). The Greek word that is translated course, teleioo (tel-i-o’-o) means “to complete, make perfect by reaching the intended goal. Particularly with the meaning to bring to a full end, completion, reaching the intended goal, to finish a work or duty” (G5048). The Apostle Paul used the same word when he spoke to the Ephesian elders stating, “And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and affliction await me. But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:22-24).

The course that both Jesus and Paul intended to finish is actually a process that is common to everyone that is a member of God’s family. The writer of Hebrews talked about this process in the context of Jesus being the founder of our salvation. Speaking of God putting everything in subjection to Jesus, Hebrews 2:8-15 states:

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying,

“I will tell of your name to my brothers;
    in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.”

And again,

“I will put my trust in him.”

And again,

“Behold, I and the children God has given me.”

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

According to the writer of Hebrews, the fear of death makes us subject to lifelong slavery (Hebrews 2:14). It was because of this slavery that Jesus died, so the one who has the power of death would no longer be able to terrify us. Fear of death was considered to the primary problem that needed to be addressed by the salvation that Jesus provided. One of the innate characteristics of humans is self-preservation. Just the thought of death is enough to trigger a fearful response.

Paul’s statement, “But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself” (Acts 20:24), was counterintuitive to his human nature. Paul had become so wrapped up in his effort to finish his course that he had lost sight of everything that we would normally think to be important in life. When Paul said he did not account his life of any value, he was referring to his soul “as the vital principle, the animating element in men and animals” (G5590). The soul and the spirit are immaterial parts of humans that are both sometimes referred to as life in the Bible because they are necessary for existence. Generally, the spirit is thought of as distinct from the body and soul. In 1 Thessalonians 5:23, pneuma the spirit, psuche the soul, and soma the body are listed together in describing the whole man (G4151). So, when Paul said he did not account his life (psuche) of any value, he meant that his soul was not important to him or the most important part of his being. Paul realized that what really mattered was his spiritual development, which he identified as the course that he needed to finish.

The Greek word teleioo, which is translated course in Luke 13:32 and Acts 20:24, is “used in the epistle to the Hebrews in a moral sense meaning to make perfect, to fully cleanse from sin, in contrast to ceremonial cleansing. Moral expiation is the completion or realization of the ceremonial one (Hebrews 7:19; 9:9; 10:1, 14). Also used of Christ as exalted to be head over all things (Hebrews 2:10; 5:9; 7:28); of saints advanced to glory (Hebrews 11:40; 12:23)” (G5048). Chapter 10 of Hebrews speaks of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross as being once for all. It begins with the statement, “For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near” (Hebrews 10:1); and then, concludes, “And every priest stands daily at his service offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering, he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:11-14). The writer of Hebrews refers to being perfected, teleioo in the past tense, indicating that the course was finished when Christ died on the cross and was resurrected three days later, but then applies this to “those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14). The Greek word that is translated sanctified, hagiazo (hag-ee-ad’-zo) means “to make holy” and is “spoken of persons: to consecrate as being set apart of God and sent by Him for the performance of his will” (G37). In this context, both Jesus and Paul’s intention of finishing the course had to do with God’s will being done on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).

Jesus told his followers, “You therefore must be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). In this instance, Jesus used the word teleios (tel’-i-os) to describe the state of perfection that his followers were expected to reach. Teleioo is derived from the word teleios, which is used “specifically of persons meaning full age, adulthood, full-grown” and figuratively, “the will of God” (G5046). From this standpoint, being perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect, would mean that you are performing God’s will just as he would perform it himself, an indicator that you are an adult or a full-grown child of God.

When Jesus was asked the question, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” He responded:

“Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil.’ In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last” (Luke 13:24-30).

We know from Matthew’s gospel that Jesus’ reference to people coming from east and west, and from north and south, had to do with Gentiles entering the kingdom of God rather than the Israelites who were considered to be the rightful heirs of God’s kingdom (Matthew 8:10-12). The descendants of Jacob, whom God renamed Israel (Genesis 32:28), were tasked with overthrowing the nations that were occupying the land God promised to Abraham, and establishing a kingdom for him on earth, but they failed to do everything God wanted them to. Eventually, the Israelites were taken into captivity, and at the time of Jesus’ birth, the kingdom of Israel no longer existed.

One of the misunderstandings that Jesus’ disciples had was they thought that he was going to establish God’s kingdom on earth immediately. They were shocked and filled with dismay when they witnessed Jesus being crucified by the Roman government. The disciples didn’t think it was God’s will for Jesus to die (Matthew 16:22). Speaking through the prophet Isaiah, God revealed his plan of salvation to the people of Israel hundreds of years before Jesus was born, but it still wasn’t clear to them what God wanted them to do when their Messiah arrived. God explained, “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the righteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:6-9).

Finishing the course is counterintuitive for us as humans because we have to act the way that God acts in order for us to perform his will. Jesus told his disciples, “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 10:39). In this instance, find means, “To find for oneself, i.e. to acquire, obtain, get for oneself or another” (G2147). I believe what Jesus meant when he said we must lose our life in order to find it has to do with the affect that being saved has on our soul. Our souls exist in darkness before we are saved. When we are born again, it’s like a light switch has been flipped and we are able to see things that we never saw before. As our souls are exposed to the light of God’s word, we begin to see ourselves more clearly and can understand what sin has been and is still doing to us as a person. If we try to fix ourselves with self-help techniques or rely on diets or other methods of improvement to change the things that we think are wrong with us, we miss the point of God saving us in the first place. Jesus wanted his followers to understand that being saved is not about us becoming a better person, although that is the result of us acting more like God. Losing our life means that we don’t focus on what will make our lives better, but rather getting to know God and understanding more what he is really like by studying the Bible. Paul said in his letter to the Romans, “I appeal to you therefore brothers by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:1-2). Renewal of the mind is what makes a person different than in the past (G342) and as this renewal process continues, we become more and more able to discern God’s will and to finish our course.

Paul’s second letter to Timothy is the last writing of Paul’s that is included in the Bible. Paul wrote this letter “from a prison in Rome toward the close of his life (2 Timothy 2:8)” (Introduction to the Second Letter of Paul to Timothy). Paul wrote to Timothy, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge will award me on that Day, and not only me but also to all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8). In the King James Version of the Bible, verse 7 of Chapter 4 is translated, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” In this translation, the race is referred to as “my course.” As Paul looked back at the end of his career, his course may have seemed more like a race to him because of the speed at which it passed or because of the intensity of his activity. It seems likely that Paul felt worn out and perhaps tired at this point because of all that God had given him to do. Paul’s significant contribution to the content of the New Testament of the Bible shows that he had covered a lot of ground in his spiritual growth and his discernment of God’s plan of salvation. Just as Jesus, when he was hanging from the cross, said, “It is finished” (John 19:30), Paul concluded from his prison cell in Rome, that he had finished his course and would receive the crown of righteousness in recognition of his accomplishment.