Romans 8:11
But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
If the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead lives in a person, that same Spirit will give life to that person's mortal body. This is fulfilled when the Lord comes from heaven and the dead in Christ rise to everlasting life with Him, their bodies raised incorruptible, glorious, powerful and spiritual at the last trumpet. Those in whom that Spirit dwells are no longer in the flesh but in the Spirit and belong to Christ, with the body dead because of sin but the spirit alive because of righteousness. The same life-giving power also gives present life to those dead in sin, freeing them from sin's slavery and remaking their character into the image of God as obedient, regenerated servants who delight in His law. That indwelling is not mere profession or theory but true conversion and sanctification, shown in mortifying the deeds of the body, keeping God's commandments, and living in brotherly love and unselfish daily service as those led by the Spirit.
Resurrection Promise and Comfort
The Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead, dwelling in believers, will also give life to their mortal bodies by that indwelling Spirit. It is the same life-giving power that raised Jesus that works in the believer, and the indwelling Spirit is both the means and the power of that life to the mortal body. This indwelling is tied to the Spirit-led life described around the verse. The promise is fulfilled when the Lord descends from heaven and the dead in Christ rise to everlasting life with the Lord. It is a word of comfort about the resurrection and everlasting life with the Lord.
The promise gives bereaved people hope in the resurrection and comfort amid grief. Submission to God in bereavement can coexist with joy, peace, and faith because the dead in Christ will live again. In the resurrection, bodies sown in corruption, dishonor, weakness, and as natural bodies will be raised incorruptible, glorious, powerful, and spiritual. Christ claims those who believe in Him, the Spirit's life-giving presence joins each believer to Christ, and the power of the Saviour who dwelt in them during life brings them from the dead. The dead in Christ are kept safe until the first resurrection, when the Life-giver calls them forth at the last trumpet.
Indwelling Spirit Transforms Life
Those in whom the Spirit of God dwells are not in the flesh but in the Spirit and belong to Christ, while those without the Spirit of Christ do not belong to Him. Those in the flesh cannot please God but cut themselves loose from Him as unfit to serve His interests. Those who have Christ within have the body dead because of sin but the spirit alive because of righteousness.
This indwelling is not mere theory of truth or partial confession but true conversion with wholehearted service to God. It is shown in daily life by unselfish actions and kindly words, by brotherly love, by mortifying the deeds of the body through the Spirit instead of living after the flesh, and by being led by the Spirit as sons of God. The verse is among the passages that give light to those seeking conversion, with the Spirit applying the truth about Jesus to the understanding and Christ's atoning sacrifice providing cleansing and restoration for the sin-stricken soul.
The same life-giving power that raised Christ gives present spiritual life to those dead in sin who recognize their helplessness and confess their sins in faith, freeing them from sin's slavery and bringing the heart into activity and hope. The Spirit alone can reform character, expel corruption, and establish godly virtues where human ability cannot. This work transforms them from death in sin into people whose characters bear again the lost image of God as obedient servants born again, regenerated, and sanctified through the truth, who delight in God's law.
This means being cleansed, renewed, sanctified and made in character like Christ, seeking the glory of God in all that is done and keeping His commandments with a consecrated heart that wills to do His will, so God can cooperate with them and entrust His work to them as safe guides who watch for souls. Such true sanctification was taught by Christ in the Sermon on the Mount and shown in His holy life as the pattern, coming after being crucified with Christ and buried with Him and filling the believer with Christ's life. The Spirit must dwell within as a vitalizing power like blood circulating through the body, as an indwelling Divinity co-working in the heart.
That indwelling means full dependence on God rather than on human wisdom, theories, inventions and plans and refusal to rely on men who discard the divine manifestation. It gives transforming energy that makes men pure and true and holy, stirs the soul, gives light and wisdom, and creates aspiration and crying out for the living God and for the Comforter, which is felt by others and lifts them into a pure and holy atmosphere instead of dragging down. Mere profession is of little advantage unless a person keeps in view running the race in hope of receiving an everlasting spiritual victory, which is essential to be worthy to share life with Christ and the fullness of the immortal inheritance. The daily fructifying influence of the Holy Spirit must quicken purposes into life and productiveness, or a person will fall back into the same channel as past life.