Romans

Freed from the law; Sin's Advantage in the Law; Law cannot save from sin.

Romans 7:1

Even as a slave to sin, wages were paid.  But these wages weren’t to sustain life but to end it.  The wage of sin was death.  The contrast of these wages to the free gift of God that brings eternal life is stunning.  This free gift is priceless.  Nothing can purchase it.  It’s never been for sale.   In Christ we are to not let sin reign because it no longer has authority (6:12-14).  We are to present ourselves, like a living sacrifice to the Lord for works of righteousness.  Paul made a statement in the last chapter that he wants to go back and build on:

¹⁴ For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace. (Romans 6:14)

When you present yourself as a living sacrifice, we still are law breakers.  We are imperfect and subject to penalty of the law, aren’t we?  No, in fact, since we died in Christ, we are under His beautiful umbrella of grace and the law no longer has any authority over us.   Paul sets us up to see another analogy.  As long as we are alive, we are subject to the laws of those in authority over us.  We are released from that authority when we die.  It’s like the police coming to investigate a crime and finds out the person is guilty but they are also deceased.  No one ever knowingly brought charges against a dead person.  No jail sentence had to be carried out after a person passed away.  All debts are canceled for the deceased and they are released from all contracts.  Death is a great liberator.

 

Romans 7:2-3

Paul uses the analogy of marriage to show a person’s relationship of the Law.  The marriage law only applied when both parties were alive.  When your spouse died, you’re no longer married.  A woman who marries another man is an adulterer, breaking the law.  But if the husband died, she is released from that contract and free to marry another man.    

The analogy made sense for anyone in Christ but it ran a little deeper for the Jews.  Their Mosaic law was like a first spouse and they were married to the law, legally bound to it.  Then they died to the law when they died with Christ.  At death the legal binding of that marriage is broken.  Therefore, they were no longer bound to the law. 

In a similar way, God created man and righteousness would have been accomplished through obedience to God; in essence the keeping of God's commands.  But when man rebelled and disobeyed, sin entered in.  Now the law only brought awareness of sin, no righteousness was found in the keeping of the law.  The law now establishes us as lawbreakers; that we've sinned and that leads to death.  When our death is found in Christ, we are freed.

 

Romans 7:4

These believers may have finally grasped justification by faith, but thought one had to keep the law in order to maintain this relationship with God.  They were not only free from sin, but Paul tells them they are also free from the law because we died with Jesus Christ.  That legal binding to the law has expired.  Death ends all contracts.

Now that are free from the first spouse, we may be married to another.  In Christ, we are free from the law, but not free to live for ourselves.  Now, as the church, in our new freedom, we are married to another.  We are now the bride of Christ and now we bear fruit to God.

 

Romans 7:5-6

In the law there was no way to bear that good fruit.  All the law could do was inform us of how much trouble we were in.  It informed our sin; in a way telling on us; saying that we had sinned and a penalty of death was on us.  The law did nothing to bring righteousness.  The law could not help us.  It could only bring condemnation and in doing so point to our desperate need for a savior.  In the law we bore fruit of shame, death and condemnation. 

The word ‘passions’ in verse five means propensity.  In our flesh, our sinful propensity was awake, like a 2 year old looking for trouble.  If we see a sign that says “Stay Out” it is our desire to go in.  If someone says, “Don’t” we desire to do!  This is our propensity.  This propensity bears fruit to death, which is no fruit at all. Galatians 5 put it this way:

Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, ²¹ envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like. (Galatians 5:19-21)

Now, in our death with Christ, just as we died to sin, we also died to the law.  When we died to the law, we were delivered from it.  We were once held by the law because in the law we were lawbreakers.  In the law we were found guilty and deserving of death.  Now we have been delivered from the law that condemned us.  We died to what we were held by and its time to let go of the laws we once held dear and once held us.  We don't let go of the law so we can serve ourselves; that would be a disaster.  We now need to serve God with the newness of spirit.  We should grasp the newness of spirit and serve with the same zeal we used to serve sin and the law.  If we were all as good a Christians as we used to be sinners, the world would be a different place.

We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹ persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—¹⁰ always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. (2 Corinthians 4:8-10)

Life under the law and life in Christ within the boundaries of the law may look morally and ethically very similar.  Under the letter of the law, one would attempt to keep the laws to find righteousness.  All that could be found is failure and disappointment.  The law was, and still is a cruel taskmaster.  In Christ, we are righteous by His reckoning to us because he died in our place.  We now live in newness with a desire to be obedient to the One who died for us.  We desire to be like Him.  All our future failures are just as forgiven as our past ones.

 

Romans 7:7-12

Is the law sin?  Again, this is the imaginary objector asking questions that Paul had been asked previously by Jews.  They loved the law.  Imagine them asking in astonishment, “Are you saying the law is sin?”  For so long, they had found their hope in the law.  Now, as Christians, their hope was in Christ and they were trying to find the place for the law while living in grace.  They had previously thought the law led to righteousness and good standing with God.  Now they hear Paul say it led to death. 

No, the law wasn’t sin.  At the same time, it did nothing to make you righteous.  The law was to prove to you that you were a law breaker.  It absolutely is not sin!  If it hadn’t been for the law, Paul wouldn’t have known sin.   His example was covetousness.  The law says, ‘You Shall Not Covet.’  Because that law was posted, so to speak, Paul knew he had broken that law and become a lawbreaker.  Just like a speed limit sign doesn’t make you a speeder.  The law didn’t make Paul covet, it just showed him that he was covetous.

Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. (Galatians 3:24-25)

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ²³ For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; ²⁴ for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.  (James 1:22-24)

Paul used covetousness as his example.  Was this the only law he broke?  (Maybe we get to shout, “Certainly not!” in this case).  Some say it was the only law that was not actionable in a court of law.  No one could bring a charge of coveting against you and prove their case.  You can commit this sin to your heart’s desire and no one will know but you and God.  This is not to say that this sin won’t lead to other sin, as most do. 

For Paul, when he was a Pharisee, may have appeared to be one who kept the law.  It may be that no one had evidence against him of being a law breaker.  He didn’t lie, steal, he honored his parents, and he honored God by being religious.  While those around him saw him as a very devout man, he was coveting.  When Gamaliel was teaching him to be a good Pharisee, he was full of covetousness.  Before he came to Christ, he examined himself with the intent of removing any evidence of guilt and he found that it was too late.  He had become a lawbreaker.  The law had served its purpose.  It had done its job.

The normal response of many of the folks Paul wrote to may have been typical of most Jews.  They trusted in the law.  They attempted to keep the law perfectly.  When in reality the law was just to prove we were lawbreakers in need of deliverance from the judge.

 

The Opportunity, sin setting up camp

Verse 8 says ‘But sin, taking opportunity’.  The word ‘opportunity' is a military term meaning base of operations.  The verse might well read, “But sin, setting up camp.”  The commandment gave sin a base of operations.  It’s like sin saying, “Now that I know what I’m not supposed to do, I know where to set up camp.”  Now that the rules are established, we know exactly what we have to do to break them.

Paul said the commandment wakes up some sinful desire in us.  Without the commandment, there was no desire to touch the forbidden thing, because it wasn’t forbidden.  Therefore sin was dead.  It was quiet or dormant, just waiting in the dark to rear its ugly head.  Once the law was known, sin rises up and sets up camp at the law and commandments. 

Though we have been freed from the control of sin, we have not been freed from the contest with sin. (Kenneth Boa, Holman Commentary)

When Paul was ignorant of the law, he didn’t feel the death of sin, ignorance was bliss.  However, he was still walking in his sin and, as he walked in sin, he thought he was alive.  The commandments they thought were to bring life actually brought death by way of sin.

When you are swimming on a beautiful beach and look up and see a sign that says “No Swimming!” a law points to our transgression.  Prior to seeing that sign you were ignorant to your transgression, even though you still transgressed.  When you see the sign, you may not agree or you may not necessarily understand why swimming is forbidden.  You might be angry at the sign.  It isn’t the signs’ fault; it isn’t the laws fault.  Your life was completely content swimming away in the forbidden zone.  Until we see the sign and the sign made you a lawbreaker.  Our sin is revived, bringing rebellion and guilt and bringing death.  Sin now says that I’ll swim if I want to; I was swimming before I saw the sign and it was okay; everyone else is doing it, so it must be okay.  Sin is revived; there is a surge of rebellion.

What you didn’t see as you continued to swim in sin was the small print on the sign that said “Danger, hungry Sharks!”  The sign, or the law, was there to keep you safe and lead you to life.  But the sign also gave a home base for sin and an opportunity for sinful rebellion.  And the sin of breaking the law brought about death. 

Sin found that base camp of operation in the commandment and the law.  It was awakened at the restriction.  Then sin makes promises to us.  Sin promises us a favorable outcome and we continually fall to the deception.  Part of our sanctification process is to learn to recognize the deception and promise of sin.  Sin makes us promises of a sufficient excuse; escape from punishment or judgment; or satisfaction so desirable we are willing to risk it all.  Even if we witness the damage sin has done to hundreds before, we somehow believe we can handle the sin and gain a favorable outcome.

We live by faith.  That faith is the obedience has a better outcome.  Even when sin is enticing us with an outcome our flesh desires.  While sin offers its deceptions, obedience promises life; Christ-like and growing in righteousness.  The law is holy and perfect.  The commandments are the standards of a holy God.  This is like God putting up the primary boundaries up around our life.  The law isn’t bad; we are bad, too bad to keep it.  The law did its job.  It showed us where we stand with God and it brought each of us to the point where we die to our self.

The law is perfect and holy in that it never fails to show man how he has fallen short.  The law didn’t make you righteous.  You have no righteousness.  Your righteousness was given to you by Jesus and the law can’t keep you righteous.

 

Romans 7:13

Paul anticipates the valid question from the imaginary Jewish Christian.  Did this holy law bring about death?  It is a valid question because there is an appearance that the law is the problem.  Paul answers, “Certainly Not!!  Sin actually brought the death.  The law brought the sin to light.  Sin produced the death through the holy law. 

We see similar thoughts today in a culture that has forgotten God and failed to think for themselves.  They’ve lost the ability to think critically and reason things out.  We arrive at crazy conclusions; writing laws and mandates where there should not be any and cancelling laws and eliminating laws where there should be.  We end up with:

1. Government mandates of masks, vaccines, lockdowns, etc. as though doing it for our own good.
2. At the same time we legalize marijuana, continue to fight for the right to kill babies in the womb while watching the decline of test scores, cognitive ability and so on.  This doesn’t mention the increase in mental health issues and suicide. 

So much of these things are centered around the government, as though we can no longer take responsibility for anything but instead call for the government to relieve us from anything that impedes on our life or happiness.  Meanwhile:

1. Thousands come across the border and are allowed in the country illegally with no health screen.
2. At the same time people are being fired for not letting others mandate health issues.
3. “My body, my choice” was the cry from those who kill babies.  But the same cry doesn’t apply when the government mandates a Covid Vaccine.

American and much of the world has lost its way.  If we don’t like the idea of sin, we just eliminate the law and pretend there are no consequences.

 

*****

It’s as though our sin was hidden in the dark.  The law was the light of perfect holiness.  The light came on and suddenly the hidden sin came to light.  Now sin can be recognized and dealt with.  That which is good, the law, brought recognition to the sin.  That sin would be recognized as exceedingly sinful.  The law creates a contrast.  It shows you the holy standard against your unholy deeds.  When the standard of holiness is viewed, it becomes abundantly clear that sin is the opposite of this holy law.  It is exceedingly sinful and absolutely unholy.

 

Romans 7:14

Carnal means ‘of the flesh’.  It’s the person who can and should do differently, but doesn’t.  Paul recognizes the law is spiritual, for all the reasons we just talked about.  Paul recognized his own flesh drove him to sin; the proclivity to sin from Adam.  This recognizing of the flesh comes as the result of God doing a work in his life.  As he is being transformed, he becomes more aware of the lusts of the flesh.

Paul knew he was guilty and the law made its case against him.  Even after salvation, the law can’t help him.  We fall into sin, even after we are saved.  The standard of God’s holiness is still out there and we are still carnal.  Our old nature is still present.  Striving to keep the law of your own power is useless.  Trying to be a good person will frustrate you because in your flesh and by your power you can’t do it.

We’ve all been here.  We don’t understand the very things we do, the words that come out of our mouth and the thoughts that flash through our mind.  We know what we ought to do.  The problem isn’t having correct desires because we desire to do them, yet we don’t end up doing them.  Our failure in our effort to avoid sin and keep the law prove the laws value and worth.  Paul isn’t shaking off the responsibility for his sin.  He’s recognizing that regardless of his will power and desire and even in his new nature, the flesh drives him to sin.

It all sounds so confusing, because it is.  We have a new nature living in the old flesh.  There is a struggle going on all the time.  The flesh is of sin and always will be of sin.  Our flesh will never change.  Nothing good dwells in our flesh, yet the Holy Spirit lives in us (our spirit).  We have a desire but not the ability to perform the goodness we desire. 

When we are born again, the real you has a new nature born of Christ.  However, it lives in the old wrapper, or tent.  These two natures are at odds.  Our new nature is spiritual affecting change on the physical.  The old nature is physical affecting change on the spiritual.  These two clash violently in the middle. 

 

The Two Principles at War Within Us

• The first principle is the presences of evil within the person who wills to do good.
• The second principle is our flesh is at war with the mind and making us captive to the law; dragging us back into servitude to sin. 

What is a person to do?  At the time Paul wrote this he had been in Christ 25 years.  Paul, almost in a fit of frustration cries out a common statement of frustration and angst.  This is a struggle of this life, a tension that won’t go away once we recognize it.  As many philosophers did in those days, Paul cried out.  They considered themselves wretched and trapped in a mortal body where the only escape is death.  Paul doesn’t disagree but cries out, how do I get out of this awful predicament!  “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?

 However, Paul is then different from the philosophers who believed the only deliverance was death.  Paul is moved to praise because he knows exactly who will delivery him.  He said, “ I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!”  It’s not by willpower, trying really hard, reading self-help books, watching Oprah or Dr. Phil or any other knowledge but through Jesus Christ our Lord!  It is by the death of Christ we are delivered.

Note: the word translated ‘wretched’ is only used twice in the New Testament; here by Paul in Romans and then in Revelation 3:17 by John in the letter to the lukewarm Laodicean church.  They did not know they were wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked.  The word means distressed and miserable, inciting pity because of conditions coming through trial.

There is an ancient Latin, epic Poem called Aeneid.  It was written by Virgilsome time between 29 and 19 BC.  It tells a story in its 9800 lines of poetry.  Later in the story of Aeneis, the main character, the poem tells of the Trojan War.  After the fall of Troy, King Mezentius punished the living captives by tying them face to face with a decomposing corpse that was killed in battle.  They would remain bound together until the living captive died. 

 

The living and the dead at his command

Were coupled, face to face, and hand to hand,

Till, chok’d with stench, in loath’d embraces tied,

The ling’ring wretches pin’d away and died.

—Virgil’s Æneid, Book Eight

 

We can't be sure this is what Paul intended, but this gruesome picture is an adequate picture of the struggle we live in.  We are a new person in Christ but we still exist in this life in a body of flesh that keeps being drawn back to the sin that once ruled it.  We are all wretched in this way.  Who can deliver us from this body of death?  We can thank God that it is possible through Jesus Christ!! 

 

“When it is a question of our justification, we have to put away all thinking about the Law and our works, to embrace the mercy of God alone, and to turn our eyes away from ourselves and upon Jesus Christ alone.” (John Calvin)

 

©2008, 2014, 2021 Doug Ford, Calvary Chapel Sweetwater