Romans 8 is my favorite chapter in Scripture.  When I was baptized in the early 80’s, I confessed this as I came out of the water:

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.  Romans 8:2 

THE SPIRIT

In the Greek, “spirit” is  πνεῦμα = “pneuma” (wind, spirit, breath).

On Biblehub, of the eight versions of the Greek in Romans 8:2,   the word “spirit” is capitalized one time, but uncapitalized 7 times!  The Textus Receptus from 1550 AD shows it uncapitalized.

For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus …  Romans 8:2 

I previously thought that Romans 8 was referring ONLY to the Holy Spirit as God.  Now, I think that if it is not capitalized in the original, you could properly read this as the lower case “spirit” being both the Holy Spirit and your new-born spirit acting AS ONE.  If you are walking in the spirit, you should not do anything against the Spirit of God.  We ACT AS ONE.

So, we could read this from Romans 8:

9 But you are not in the flesh but in the spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.

On Biblehub, there are eight versions of the Greek concerning Romans 8.  None of them have this first “spirit” capitalized!  If there IS a qualifier, it refers to the Holy Spirit.

“But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”  Romans 8:11  (These all have qualifiers identifying them as the Holy Spirit.)

This may seem a little technical.  Yet if there is not a qualifier that describes it as the Holy Spirit, it would be beneficial to see “spirit” as both the Holy Spirit and your spirit acting AS ONE.  Is this not what we are supposed to be doing, acting AS ONE with the Holy Spirit, acting AS CHRIST.  In other words, “WHAT WOULD JESUS DO?”

Various versions have “spirit” capitalized but it may or not be in the original.  How do we know which it is?  Unless you’re a scholar (and I am not), I would FIRST ask myself if this has a qualifier.  Secondly, I would see if it makes sense to say that this is both the Holy Spirit and your spirit acting AS ONE.

ROMANS 8:26a

So let me give an example: Romans 8:26.

26a Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses.

26a Likewise the spirit also helps in our weaknesses.

Yes, definitely the Holy Spirit does help us in our weaknesses.  He comes besides and “joins to help” (G4878) but our born-again spirits are not inactive!   When I had a stroke and couldn’t speak a word of English, the Holy Spirit and my spirit rose up in me and I was speaking in fluent tongues even in the hospital!  As Jesus Christ taught, “The one believing in Me, as the Scripture has said: ‘Out of his belly will flow rivers of living water.'” (Berean Literal Bible)  I was unable to speak more than a sentence in my own language and these prayers edified me in my extreme weakness.  (See book “Joy Is a Jewel”.)

“For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.“  1 Corinthians 14:2

So we see that this is both the Holy Spirit and your spirit acting AS ONE.

ROMANS 8:26b

26b For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

Have you ever interceded with groanings?  These groanings  “cannot be uttered” OR better yet, cannot be “expressed”, as is a further understanding of this word in the Greek.  (If it is a “groan” then there is a sound!)  Several versions say it is “too deep for words”.  I think that this is a better choice because I have had this happen in intercession!  It is something so critical and heartfelt that words do it no justice!  But it is you, and your willingness to be used by the Holy Spirit.  You, being in the spirit, are the one who is actually interceding  “with groanings too deep for words.”  

So it is both the Holy Spirit and your spirit AS ONE!  You cannot go into this kind of intercession without the Holy Spirit AND you must be willing to be obedient to the Holy Spirit through it!

We need this type of intercession! May you be willing to enter in, led by the Holy Spirit.   The world needs this heartfelt intercession as we are in the last days of the end times.

“He saw that there was no man, And wondered that there was no intercessor …      Isaiah 59:16

Are you called to be an intercessor?

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Some original songs from Romans 8: “Arise” and “Your Love!

All Scripture are from the New King James Version unless noted.