Romans 8:8
So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
Truth to Learn
Only those who are walking in the Spirit can please God.
Behind the Words
“Cannot” is translated from “ou dounanti.” Ou expresses absolute negation (there is a different word, me, which implies conditional or hypothetical negation). Dounanti is a form of dounamai, meaning “to be able” or “to have the power to do something.” In other words, those who are in the flesh do not have the ability or the power to please God.
The word “please” is from areskō, which is thought to be derived from an old verb arō, meaning “to fit, adapt, or please.” The notion of areskō is “to be content with” or “to soften one’s heart toward” someone else. Those who are in the flesh are not able to soften God’s heart toward themselves.
Meaning Explained
Paul now takes this argument one step further. He has just said that the person who is fleshly minded, the one who is preoccupied with and controlled by the desires of the flesh, is openly hostile toward God and is not subject to His laws. Therefore, He says, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
Now we have to ask ourselves, “What does Paul mean by the expression, “in the flesh?” He is not talking about everyone who has a body of flesh. He is talking about those who are fleshly minded. Their every waking moment is occupied with satisfying the desires and needs of the flesh. This is a description of unregenerate mankind, those who are not saved. We know this because in the following verse he will contrast them with the Roman Christians who are saved.
Paul is telling us that unsaved people, who are controlled by their own flesh, cannot possibly please God. It doesn’t matter how many “Hail Mary’s” they say, and it doesn’t matter how many good works that they do “for God.” It doesn’t matter how often they pray or read their Bible. It doesn’t matter how many years they have been a member of a church or how regularly they attend the services. If they are not genuinely saved, it is not possible for them to please God, and they are, therefore, God’s enemies.
In the previous chapter Paul bemoaned the fact that he didn’t always do the things that please God. He told us that the law is spiritual but that he is carnal (fleshly). He then opened this chapter with:
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
His point is that unsaved people are always controlled by their sin nature (their flesh) and are not able to please God. Those who are saved, however, can please God, but we don’t do it all the time. When we are walking “in the Spirit” we are pleasing to God, but when we are walking “in the flesh,” we are not pleasing to God.
Application
We should always strive to be pleasing to God, so our aim should be to walk in the spirit. Let’s all recommit ourselves to spending more time walking in the Spirit and not in the flesh!
In God’s service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2010 Will Krause. All rights reserved.
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