Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.
In yesterday's reading, Paul spoke of those of 'us' who do not walk in the flesh, but in the Spirit and now he examines the two separate manners of living. Living according to the flesh isn't just living out the worst sins that we can identify. Jesus rebuked Peter saying "your mind is not set on the things of God but the things of men" in Matthew 16:23. Peter wasn't being sinful, but looking at life from the world's point of view, rather than from God's point of view. Paul would tell you that all of that is encompassed in the verb he used here. There are many good people who do not have the mind of God. They still live according to the flesh and will find that this leads to death.
On the other hand, those of us who choose to live according to the Spirit, no longer live according to the world. And here is where Paul finally says what we've been waiting to hear. He has written all along that sin bring death and everyone knows that there is no one who escapes death. Paul writes "even though your body is subject to death because of sin; the Spirit gives life because of righteousness" (Romans 8:10).
The body will die because death is the result of sin and we are by nature, sinful beings. However, when we are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1) and the Spirit of God lives within us … that is the Spirit of righteousness and Paul tells us in Romans 8:10 that although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. The Spirit that is within us gives life to our mortal bodies and it is this life and this righteousness that translates from death to eternal life.
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