- So Jesus has come, sin got its butt kicked, and we're not slaves to the law. Huzzah!
- Now, Paul explains, Christians live under "the law of the Spirit." This is kind of like the laws of the Torah, but without worrying about following all 613 individual rules. Circumcision, for example, is optional (which is good news for male converts).
- In Jesus, God did what the law couldn't—he punched sin in the face and reunited the world with him again. Nice work, God.
- Non-believers don't share in this, though. They just walk around like ordinary, puny humans, thinking of ordinary, puny things. They can't possibly be thinking of God or following his laws because they don't believe in Jesus.
- But believers have lives and hearts that are filled with the spirit of God. And they're going to be best buds with God forever because of it.
- Believers have been adopted into God's family. They're his sons and daughters and he would totally do anything for them. (If anyone wants to get into Harvard, now's the time. We hear God writes a pretty awesome recommendation letter.)
- Sure, it's true, Paul says, people are suffering. But all that's fine. It's gonna work out. Really. Plus, later, the rewards are going to far outweigh all the bad stuff everyone has been going through. Fingers crossed, right?
- Every part of creation is waiting for God. Soon, everyone and everything is going to be set free from sin and death and evil. It's all going to be awesome-sauce.
- And the people who are tight with God now—well, things are gonna work out for them big time, Paul tells us.
- Seriously, God sent his son to die for us. Don't you think he'll help us with all the other stuff we're going through? The Big Guy always has your back.
- It doesn't matter if Christians are arrested or persecuted or condemned or even killed—nothing is going to separate them from the love of God.