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.

(11) 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.  (12) Therefore, brethren, we are debtors – not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.  (13) For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

The letter to the Romans was written by the Apostle Paul in preparation for his visit to the Christians in Rome.  The verses we study today in Chapter 8 of Romans are basically a continuation and amplification of Chapter 7.  Paul there argued that the “Law” was incapable of producing sanctification or peace with God.  Man’s works are never enough to merit grace – the following of the law can never make man right with God.  Paul goes on to show that the application of law only produces conflict.  But belief in the gospel can produce that which the law cannot – i.e. salvation for the faithful. The completed work of Christ Jesus delivered man from condemnation because of sin and faith results in justification of the believer.   True belief informs the behavior of the  Christian.

So the “function” of faith in Christ Jesus is to pardon and the “function” of the Law is to condemn.  There is no condemnation under the gospel for those who are united in Christ – who conduct their lives NOT under the flesh or corruption of this world. To be worldly minded is death –  those men cannot please God and are utterly irreconcilable with the law of God.  They love what God hates.   To be spiritually minded is eternal life – to submit to the influence of the Spirit  That is the power of the gospel.