The Spirit of Bondage

The text

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

Romans 8:15–17 KJV

At a glance

Summary of the sermon

Here the trouble is subtler. The believer is perfectly clear that he was justified by faith, but without noticing it he has begun to treat sanctification as a great task to be achieved by rules, disciplines and sheer effort. Monasticism is the extreme historical form of this, but Lloyd-Jones finds the same spirit among evangelicals who add self-imposed regulations to the Christian life — the very thing Paul warns against in Colossians 2 and 1 Timothy 4.

The result is what Paul calls a spirit of bondage. It shows itself as fear: a wrong, servile fear of God as a distant taskmaster; fear of the sheer size of the task; an exaggerated fear of the devil's power; and a morbid fear of indwelling sin. Such Christians are always mourning, never rejoicing, and they give the world a picture of Christianity as a heavy yoke.

Paul's cure is the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, in two aspects. First, the Christian is not left to live the Christian life in his own strength: the same Spirit who empowered Christ dwells in him, and it is God who works in us both to will and to do. The law is not weak; the flesh is — like a spade with a strong iron blade and a rotten wooden handle — and the Spirit supplies the strength the flesh lacks. Second, the Spirit bears witness that we are children, adopted sons who cry 'Abba, Father', and heirs with Christ. Sonship changes the motive for obedience from law-keeping to love, and the certainty of coming glory both purges fear and produces holiness.

Key points

• After being clear on justification, believers can quietly turn sanctification into a new law.
• This breeds a spirit of bondage: wrong fear of God, of the task, of the devil and of one's own sin.
• The indwelling Spirit supplies power; we are not left to live the Christian life alone.
• The Spirit witnesses to adoption: sonship, not slavery, reframes obedience as love.
• The certainty of being heirs with Christ drives out fear and produces holiness.

Illustrations the preacher uses

• Monasticism as holiness turned into a full-time legal undertaking.
• An evangelical woman who gave up eating meat as a self-imposed law.
• The old preacher's spade — a strong iron head fitted to a weak wooden handle.

Related Scripture

• Colossians 2:16–23
• 1 Timothy 4:1–5
• Galatians 4:6
• Philippians 2:13
• 1 Corinthians 6:19
• 1 John 3:1–3
• Romans 8:38–39

For reflection and discussion

1. In what ways might you have turned some part of holy living into a new law rather than a response of love?
2. How does knowing yourself to be an adopted child, rather than a servant under law, change your motive for obedience?
3. What would change if you remembered each day that the Spirit's power, not your own effort, sustains your walk?