Commentary on Romans, Biblical exegesis 1 · Chapter 8 · Section 3 · Subsection 1 – Subsection 2
Quest. 1. Who are said to be in Christ.
v. 1. There is no condemnation to those, &c. 1. P. Martyr here well obserueth the wisedome of the Apostle: who before speaking of the humane infirmities, and of the force of sinne, in our members, gaue instance in himselfe: that no man, though neuer so holy should be thought to be freed altogether from sinne in this life: but now comming to set forth the priuiledge of those which are in Christ, he makes it not his own particular case, but inferreth a generall conclusion, that there is no condemnation, not onelyonly to him, but not to any, that are in Christ Iesus: And here the argument well followeth from the particular to the generall: for like as that which is incident by nature to one man, is common to another: so the priuiledge of grace is common to all that are sanctified. 2. to be in Christ, Tolet interpreteth, to hauehave the grace of regeneration whereby we are deliuered from the seruitude of sinne; and so the Syrian interpreter, seemeth to thinke, who ioyneth the words thus together, which walke not after the flesh in Christ: but these are two diuerse effects, to be graft into Christ, which is by faith, and not to walke after the flesh, which is the fruits of faith: per fidem facti sumus vnum in Christo, we are by faith made one with Christ: Beza, insui per fidem, graft in by faith. 3. indeed vponupon this coniunction with Christ followeth a materiall coniunction: that as we are made one flesh with him, so also one spirit: he is not onelyonly partaker with vsus of the same nature, but we doe receiue of his spirit: that like as the braunch doth receiue not onelyonly substance from the vine, but sap and life: as in matrimonie, there is a coniunction not onelyonly of bodies, but euen of the affections: so is it betweene Christ, and his members: but this is onelyonly the materiall coniunction, as Pet. Martyr calleth it: the formall coniunction is by faith.
Quest. 2. What is meant by the law of the spirit of life.
1. The law of the spirit of life. 1. Chrysostome by the law of the spirit vnderstandeth the holy spirit, whereby we are sanctified: and this difference he maketh betweene the law of Moses, and this law, that is said to be spirituall, because it was giuen by the spirit; but this is said to be the law of the spirit, quia spiritum suppeditat, because it supplieth the spirit to those which receiue it: So also Bellarmine vnderstandeth it of the spirit, which is shed into our hearts, enabling vsus to keepe the law: lib. 4. de iustificat. likewise Thomas, interpreteth it to be spiritus inhabitans, the spirit that dwelleth in vsus, and sanctifieth vsus: so also Tolet annot. 2. Pere. And these make this grace of the spirit infused, a cause of our spiritual deliuerance from sinne. 2. Calvin also vnderstandeth the grace of the spirit, which sanctifieth vsus: but this is added, saith he, not as a cause, sed modum tradi quo solvimur à reatu, but the way is shewed, whereby we are freed from the guilt of sinne: so also Hyperius: Piscator vnderstandeth here the spirit of sanctification: But seeing our sanctification is imperfect, this were a weake ground for vsus to stay vponupon, to assure vsus, that we are farre from condemnation. 3. Beza neither taketh this for the law of the spirit, nor for the law of faith, but he vnderstandeth perfectam naturae nostrae in Christo sanctificationem; the perfit sanctification of our nature in Christ, whereby we are deliuered: But this righteousnesse of Christ, if it be not applied vntounto vsus by faith, how can it deliuer vsus. 4. Some by the law of the spirit of life, doe interpret with Ambrose, legem fides, the law of faith, and with Haymo, gratiam sancti Euangeli, the grace of the holy Gospel, which teacheth faith: Pareus, Faius, the doctrine of the Gospell is called the law of the spirit and life, because it is the ministrie of the spirit and life: the law was spirituall, in as much as it prescribed and commanded spirituall obedience: but was not the ministerie of the spirit and life, but rather of death: Pareus, so also Osiander: doctrina euangelij side apprehensa, the doctrine of the Gospel apprehended by faith, doth deliuer me: likewise Rolloc: liberatio hac non est regeneratio, sed peccatorum remissio, this dedeliuerance is not regeneration, but remission of sinnes; and his reason is, because the Apostle speaketh of a full and absolute deliuerance from sinne and death, which is in remission of sinnes, not in regeneration, which is but in part. 5. But I rather ioyne both these together, regeneration, and remission of sinnes, from the which we are deliuered by the grace of Christ: as Augustine comprehendeth both; for sometime he expoundeth the Apostles words of the remission of sinnes, lib. 1. de mixt. & concupis. c. 32. how hath he deliuered vsus? nisi quia concupiscentiae reatum, peccatorum omnium facta remissione, &c. but that the spirit of life hath dissolued the guilt of concupiscence, remission of all sinnes beeing made: sometime he applieth them to this worke of regeneration: the law of the spirit of life hath deliuered thee from the law of sinne, and death: ne scilicet concupiscentia, &c. re in peccatum & mortem pertrahat, &c. lest concupiscence challenging thy consent, should draw thee into sinne and death: lib. 1. cont. 2. epist. Pelagian. c. 10. And Calvin also though he cheefely insist vponupon the second, as he is alleadged before, yet he omitteth not the first: by the spirit of life, vnderstanding the spirit of God, which hath besprinkled our soules with the blood of Christ: not onelyonly to cleanse them, à labe peccati, quoad reatum, from the staine of sinne in respect of the guilt, sed in veram puritatem sanctificat, but to sanctifie vsus with true puritie, &c. And the ioyning of these two together doth best fit the occasion of these words, and most agreeth vntounto the words themselues: for the Apostle hauing before spoken both of our iustification in Christ, and our sanctification in not walking after the flesh, now bringeth in this as a reason of both: which is the spirit of life in Christ, applied vntounto vsus by faith: and concerning the words, the spirit of regeneration answereth to the law, that is the force of sinne, and the life of grace to the law of death: from the first we are deliuered by the spirit of sanctification, from the other by the life of righteousnesse in our iustification.
6. But Origens exposition is farre wide, who by the spirit of life vnderstandeth the spirituall sense of the law: and so he will hauehave in the law both literam occidentem, & spiritum vi…ificantem, the killing letter, and the quickning spirit: for the Apostle here directly against the law opposeth the spirit of grace and life in Christ.