The Salvation of the Triune God (4)
[Romans 8:1-4]
Look at Romans 8:4: "In order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit" [(Modern translation) "This is so that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not live according to the flesh, but according to the Holy Spirit"]. In Leviticus 16, it speaks about the Day of Atonement. This is the day when the sin offering is made, once a year. The high priest (Aaron) (v. 3) enters the Holy of Holies once a year to offer the sin offering. He selects two goats (v. 5) and places them in front of the Lord at the entrance of the Tabernacle (v. 7). Then, a lot is cast for the two goats: one lot is for the Lord, and the other is for Azazel (v. 8).
"Azazel" seems to be a compound word from "azal" (meaning "to go away") and "ez" (meaning "goat"). It seems to imply "departure" or "sending away," or perhaps "complete removal." "Azazel" symbolizes the scapegoat that carries the sins and iniquities of Israel and is driven into the wilderness. The priest would go up the mountain and confirm that the goat had disappeared far away, thus declaring, "Your sins have disappeared" (Internet). Look at Psalm 103:12: "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." Look at Isaiah 38:17: "Behold, it was for my welfare that I had great bitterness; but in love you have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back." Look at Jeremiah 31:34: "And they shall not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the Lord, "for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."
The high priest Aaron, for the goat chosen for the Lord, would offer it as a sin offering. The goat chosen for Azazel was left alive before the Lord, and after the sin offering was made, it was sent into the wilderness for Azazel (vv. 9-10). The goat for the Lord was slain, and its blood was taken by the high priest into the Holy of Holies and sprinkled (v. 15). The goat for the Lord represents the offering made to restore the relationship with God, symbolizing liberation from the punishment for sin, and the sacrifice is made once for all by the shedding of blood. This points to the justification we receive through the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross (Internet). The goat for Azazel, after the high priest Aaron laid both his hands on its head, confessing all the sins of the people of Israel and transferring those sins to the goat, was then entrusted to a designated person who would take it into the wilderness (v. 21). When the Azazel goat had carried the sins of the people of Israel into the wilderness, it was released (v. 22). The goat for Azazel represents the separation from Satan, signifying freedom from the presence and influence of sin, and this sacrifice is performed gradually. This points to the work of sanctification, whereby the Holy Spirit leads us to practically cut off sin in our lives (Internet).
God is love (1 John 4:8, 16). The God of love, "while we were still weak" (Romans 5:6), "while we were still sinners" (v. 8), "while we were enemies" (v. 10), offered us salvation by sending His only Son, Jesus Christ, as the atoning sacrifice (1 John 4:10) and Savior of the world (v. 14). By His death on the cross, He has made us alive again with Christ, who was spiritually dead because of our sins (Ephesians 2:4-5). God the Father has saved us from sin, from death, and from eternal destruction. We were destined to receive eternal punishment, living forever in hell, but through the atoning death of Jesus Christ on the cross, God has saved us and given us eternal life.
Having received the salvation of Jesus Christ the Son (Romans 8:1), the salvation of the Holy Spirit (v. 2), and the salvation of God the Father (vv. 3-4), how then should those who are saved in Christ Jesus live?
First, we should not live according to the flesh.
Look at Romans 8:4: “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” [(Modern Translation) “This is so that the requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not live according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”]. Living according to the flesh refers to following the ways of this world and obeying the ruler of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2). In other words, according to the Modern Translation, living according to the flesh means following the evil ways of the world and obeying the devil who rules over the realms under the heavens (v. 2, Modern Translation). This refers to the life of people who were spiritually dead due to disobedience and sin before their salvation (v. 1, Modern Translation), living according to the desires of the flesh, doing whatever their flesh and mind desired (v. 3, Modern Translation). The Bible tells us that we, who are saved in Christ Jesus by the love of the Triune God's salvation (Romans 8:1-3), should not live according to the flesh (v. 4). We should not do the works of the flesh.
Look at Galatians 5:19-21: "Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousy, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."
Second, we should live according to the Holy Spirit.
Look at Romans 8:4: “who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit” [(Modern Translation) “we who live according to the Holy Spirit”]. Living "according to the Spirit" means living by following the Holy Spirit. Look at Galatians 5:16, 22-23: “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh... But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law.” The purpose for which the Triune God has saved us, so that we no longer live according to the flesh but only according to the Holy Spirit, is to fulfill the requirement of the law in us (Romans 8:4, Modern Translation).
To fulfill the requirement of the law means that we should live in obedience to the double commandment of Jesus. Look at Luke 10:27: "So he answered and said, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.’” Look at Romans 13:8-10: "Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ‘You shall not covet,’ and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.”
Through the salvation we have received from the Triune God, who does not condemn us (Romans 8:1), and through our liberation from the law of sin and death (v. 2), we enjoy freedom to live according to Jesus' double commandment. We must love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind, and we must love our neighbor as ourselves. Look at Romans 5:5: "Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
By the Holy Spirit that God has given us, He has poured His love into our hearts. The more we love, the more God continues to pour His love into us, filling us. The indwelling Holy Spirit continues to bear the fruit of love (Galatians 5:22).
According to Jesus' prophecy, because iniquity is increasing, the love of many is growing cold (Matthew 24:12). Many people are currently suffering due to a lack of love. As those who have received the saving love of the Triune God, we must love those who are suffering from this deficiency of love with the same saving love we have received. We must preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes (Romans 1:16). And, with the assurance of our own salvation, we must earnestly pray to God for the salvation of their souls (Psalm 55:1, 16-18).