By Jared Warner
Willow Creek Friends Church
May 26, 2024
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Romans 8:12–17 (ESV)
12 So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 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.
To many the letter Paul wrote to the Romans is one of their favorite portions of scripture. When my great-grandpa Craven passed away I inherited his set of commentaries, as I was the only great-grandchild that entered into ministry. I love this set of books but I must admit that I rarely speak out of Romans. And the reason is not what you might believe. I love this letter. It has so much theology and encouragement within its pages. But since early in my ministry the only commentaries I possessed and could use for study were those that I inherited from my great-grandfather, I faced a dilemma. My great-grandfather loved Romans. I know this because the vast majority of the volumes of this set of commentaries are in pristine condition except for a few. One is Matthew, another is John, and then Romans. In fact the volume covering Romans was so worn by use that I was afraid to even open it for fear that I would ruin the book completely.
Romans is an important book. It is clear to me that my great grandfather spoke from Romans regularly throughout his life. He spoke, from the condition of the book, almost exclusively out of Romans. And yet I neglect this book out of sentimentality.
One might wonder why we within the Evangelical church hold Romans in such a regard. Why of all the books do we know so much more about this one letter than the others? If the book of my ancestors show anything, previous generations spoke on Romans more. But I think it goes deeper. Romans more than any of the others letters seems to connect the philosophies of the gentile nations with the history of the faith of the Hebrews. It is through this letter, through the words of Paul that the western concepts of live are united or grafted into the church.
“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh.”
In this one statement we see this grafting. We are so accustomed to this merging of philosophical ideas in our western world that we may not even notice it. We also may not be able to see this because of how languages are translated.
I say this because what comes to mind when we see the word debtor?
In our twenty-first century mind when we think of debt, we think of the amount of money I charged on my credit card, or possibly the loan that I took while obtaining my degree. We see the word as something owed to another. This is not wrong, it is actually a proper way of regarding this word as it means obligation. If I have taken out a loan I have an obligation to repay it based on the contract that I signed. The problem comes from our culture. We, especially in the Untied States, do not have as full of an understanding of what obligation means as other cultures. Our lack of understanding of this very concept can skew our understanding of what Paul is writing to the Romans. It also skews our understanding of the gospel in general.
When we think of debt in a transactional manner, we naturally develop within our minds that there was some negotiation of sorts that must have occurred, and both parties agreed to terms. This is a very western understanding of debt. We are transactional. Our theological understandings of salvation often revolve around transactional concepts, because we emerge from cultures where the transaction is important.
If you were to go out and ask people within our community how one would get to heaven, the most common answer would sound similar to the balancing of one’s checkbook. I have done more good than bad so if there is a heaven I would be accepted. More good than bad, or I have more credit than debts.
We in the western world have a transactional worldview. It is not surprising really because our entire culture revolves around transactions. The most common degree Americans obtain is a business degree, have you ever wondered why that is? We as a culture have built our concept of self worth on having more good than bad. More credit or capital than debts.
I want us to take a step back from that manner of thinking for a moment. I want us to consider a different concept for debt or obligation. I want us to do this because Paul came from a different cultural understanding, yet he spoke into a culture that held many of those ideas.
The Hebrew people had a different overall understanding of obligation. Their obligation, their debt, what they worked for was not for the repayment of expenses but the tribe. Much of the teachings within the law that we so often regard from a transactional mindset, to them were seen as lessons on life within a family or community. We see the commandments as sin. If I commit a sin I must find some way to repay that debt. But what if we look at it from a different perspective?
Consider the teaching surrounding bearing false witness. We look at this and assume that lying is bad, it is a sin. This is a transactional interpretation, credit and debt. We get a credit for honesty and a debt for a lie. The Hebrew people regarded this teaching a bit differently. In their mind personal “sin” was not the central focus, instead their focus was on how falsehood would harm the family, or others within the community. The moral obligation within the teaching or commandment of not bearing false witness is not merely being honest but to protect the reputation of others. It is our obligation, our duty, or our debt to protect not only our reputation, but that of our neighbor.
We understand this to some degree. When I was in elementary school getting ready to go on a field trip our teachers would hold us all on the bus to give us a speech every single time. “Be on your best behavior because the way you act personally reflects on the whole school.” I am sure you have heard a similar speech yourself. Our obligation our debt can be community driven. What we do and say can affect the reputation of not just yourself but everyone connected to you in some manner.
Paul tells the people of the Roman Church, we are not debtors to the flesh. He is saying our obligation, our responsibility or duty is not to the flesh.
Which brings us to another philosophical concept, the flesh.
This is something that can see looked at in many different ways. One is flesh and blood, or physical. Paul might also be speaking to the philosophical concept of Plato or Stoicism. In these philosophical ideas the soul is good and the flesh is bad. Those that indulge the flesh are corrupting the soul but those who in a transactional sense do more good than bad the soul can be released uncorrupted after death.
These concepts were present at the time of Paul’s writing, and many theologians use portions of these philosophies, even the few Friends theologians have had a positive view of these Greek and Roman ideas. The problem arises when we go back and try to rationalize them with Hebrew scripture and concepts. At times they work but at other times it seems as if they contradict.
This is one of those passages where the east and west meet. Paul does speak in a Platonic sense within Romans, but he puts a Hebraic spin to it. “Brothers, we are debtors,” he says, we are have an obligation, not to the flesh, or the body.
The Hebrew concept of the body is different than the Hellenistic view. As mentioned before the Greek understanding is that the body and spirit are separate, in the Hebraic understanding it is united. In Genesis God formed humanity from the dust of the earth, and then God breathed into Adam the spirit. This is an interesting concept if we take a step back. Were we alive before God breathed into Adam’s nostrils? Many would say no, but I ask were the animals alive without God breathing on them? I do believe what the writer of Genesis is saying is that God formed humanity from what was already at hand, and then he gave us spirit. He made us different than all the other animals by connecting us to both the physical and spiritual aspects of life. It was the spiritual aspect of life that died during the fall. Not necessarily die but we became disconnected like a worn out phone charging cable that we have to hold just right for it to work.
To the Greeks the body is a imperfect vessel for the spirit, and for the Hebrews the body is disconnected from our original state. There is not much of a difference which is why western philosophies can often be found in theological texts. The greatest difference though is how we interact with our bodies. In the Platonic sense we are individuals, where as in the Hebrew mindset we are community. We see this in Cain. God asked him where his brother was, and Cain replied am I my brother’s keeper. The western thought is no Cain is not his brother’s keeper which is why we focus on the murder. Hebrew thought is that yes he is his brother’s keeper and because he refused to live in community with his brother he justified murder.
We have an obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die. Paul is bringing both the eastern and western thoughts together here. Yes it is true that there is spirit and body, pneuma and flesh. But he is also saying there is the individual and community. The concept of flesh could be interpreted as the self indulgent or the selfish one. This is where Paul takes the concepts of Plato and turns them back to the God of the Hebrews. In the Platonic view we are individuals, everything we do is focused on self. I can indulge or I can abstain. By indulging I am harming my spirit and if I abstain from things I am purifying my spirit. These ideas are not necessarily wrong, but they are incomplete. It is like we are trying to hold the charging cable in just the right position, all of our effort is focused on ourselves as we attempt to reached that virtuous state by our own strength. What happens? Eventually we look away for an instant and now we are back where we started, trying again and again to restore the broken connection.
That is the selfish life, the moral life. That is the legalistic, platonic, or stoic life. I am making the effort. I am good. But we are working with a broken connection and no matter how much we work we cannot do it ourselves.
This is where the Hebraic mindset comes in. The Hebrew mind knows that the self cannot do it alone. In their mind we are in debt or obliged to the community. They are their brother’s keeper. They protect the reputation of others, they will not allow themselves to covet their neighbor’s property because their neighbor is just as important to them as you are to your neighbor. When we put to death the idea that we can do it ourselves and recognize that we need those around us we are beginning to move from death to life.
“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of Slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, Abba! Father!”
As we begin to recognize that we are community beings and not mere individuals the Spirit of God begins to urge us, or more accurately drives us deeper into community. We begin by asking one person a question, and then that person encourages us to become part of a wider community as they introduce us to others.
Paul then reminds us of the Exodus of Israel. It was while they were in slavery that they began to unite together crying out to God. They were not alone, together they cried, and God brought them Moses. Together they endured and God brought them out of the land of bondage. Together they wondered and God made them into a nation. They were not alone. They were not individuals striving for their own personal redemption. They were a community. They were a nation brought together by God. Gathered like a flock of sheep by a working dog and driven to green pastures and still waters.
This is what Paul is reminding us of. This is what Paul is calling us to. The western world is built on the concepts of individual effort and morality, but we do not exist as individuals. We are social beings, created to live in community. But fear keeps us in bondage. Fear prevents us from speaking to our neighbor because they might take what is mine. Fear prevents us from pursuing greatness because I might fail. Fear urges us to violence because we must protect ourselves. Fear and selfishness builds a kingdom of death. It builds a society of exploitation, envy, and hate. Paul urges us to listen to that still small voice so that we can be driven into God’s community.
A community where all people are brothers and sisters united in Christ. A community where we care for the needs of those that cannot help themselves. A community were we are our brother’s keeper. Israel became the God’s people when they became a community when they looked at each other not as individuals or tribes but as one nation under God. And this is what God wants for all people. He wants each of us to be able to cry out to God just as we would our own mother or father, or our closest friend. He wants us to be part of his family. No longer disconnected but restored and renewed.
Jesus, God Incarnate, come to live among humanity. He came to live within a community. He came to show us life with God as he made it his custom to worship, withdraw to isolated places to pray, and to minister to the needs of those around him. Jesus showed us true life. This life that Jesus lived revealed something else. It revealed the darkness within us. It shows us that all to often we do not live our lives devoted to community instead we live to the flesh. We live looking for what is best for me, with little regard for how our actions affect those around us. This darkness that Jesus revealed in the hearts of man caused many around him to react as a spot light was shown on their own actions and people began to see the hypocrisy of the moral selfish life. And the religious leaders began to plot and the high priest said, “You know nothing at all. Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.”
Jesus came to restore the connection, he came to reunite the physical and spiritual. He came to restore true community and life. He took the injustice of the kingdoms of men on himself, he suffered, died and was sealed in a tomb.
This weekend we celebrate Memorial Day. It is a day that I have mixed feelings about. On one hand it is a day where we celebrate the sacrifice of those within our nation that have died in service to our nation. We celebrate those that gave their lives. And on the other hand I mourn the loss of those lives because it is a testimony that we as nations still live bound in the bondage of fear, and do not see each other as children of God. That is the reality of our human condition. We celebrate and morn. We use force to change the minds of others, but we often fail to see the truth of what Jesus did.
He did not fight. He did not use force. They did not take his life but he laid down his life. He laid down his life as he stood against the injustice of the kingdoms of men. That flesh focused life will continue within each of us, within our neighborhoods and nations until someone stands and breaks the cycle. Until we recognize that we are our brother’s keeper and we die to our own selfish desires and treat other better than ourselves. Jesus suffered, died and was buried. But the story does not end there. He rose again to life. And he promises that we too will be glorified if we take on his life and lifestyle. When we no longer just cry out in self righteous morality and live life with our brothers and sisters equal in the eyes of God.
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By Jared Warner Willow Creek Friends Church April 19, 2026 Click here to join our Meeting for Worship Click to read in Swahili Bofya kusoma kwa Kiswahili 1 Peter 1:17–23 (ESV) 17 And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time…
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