12 - Flesh vs. Holy Spirit in Romans 8: Both/And or Either/Or

In Romans chapters 1―5, Paul addresses salvation, positional sanctification or justification. In chaps. 6―8, Paul moves on to teach experiential sanctification or how believers are to live the Christian life. In chap. 8, he specifically focuses on the spiritual life of believers. In Romans 8:1–17, Paul teaches believers they have an option: to live the spiritual life or live a carnal life, to walk according to the Spirit or according to the sin nature. But, as this paper will demonstrate, at no time does Paul address the unbeliever nor is his purpose simply to contrast the unbeliever and believer. Instead, Paul focuses on the struggle that every believer faces―to live a life pleasing to God or a life indistinguishable from the unbeliever. ...