If you are at home with Jesus, you are at odds with sin, not because being at odds with sin makes you at home with Jesus, but because being at home

with Jesus makes you at odds with sin.

Are you living in debt to sin or are you waging war against it? In this episode of light and truth, John Piper

opens Romans 8, 10 to 17 to call those who have been justified by faith to fight sin with confidence.

This sermon was originally preached at Bethlehem Baptist Church on February 3, 2002.

Let's read these verses. Romans 812. So then, brethren, we are under obligation. Literally, we are debtors.

Not 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 are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

This text says, you've got to stop paying debts to your slave master flesh.

Why pay for your destruction? Isn't that an amazing phrase? We are debtors, not to the flesh.

To do pay the flesh the flesh asks for your affection and your bondage you don't pay you owe the flesh nothing but enmity you owe the flesh nothing but war.

You know what the flesh is, don't you?

I know this is a biblical, fancy, religious word.

The flesh is not your skin.

The flesh is the old, rebellious, self-sufficient, proud, make it yourself, do your own thing, nature that we all have.

And guess what?

You don't owe him anything.

Except war.

Make war on him.

So if we're going to be justice pursuing coronary long-term Wilberforce like get-up when you're knocked down kinds of Christians,

then we have to not be in a pay-off your debt to the flesh mentality, but rather a wartime mentality.

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