Daily Bread 2011 - Romans 7
Daily Bread 2011 – Romans 7
14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[c] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
What Does This Mean?
Paul continues to teach the Romans on the use of the law and its purpose in our salvation and afterwards. Paul makes several key summary points about the nature and use of the Law. 1.) The Law is good, just and holy. I.e. If we lived according to the Law, we would be blessed and have a great life. 2.) The Law arouses the sinful nature in us and exposes our true weakness as we are born of the flesh (same word for sinful nature). The main purpose of the Law is that it shows us that we need Christ and are not by nature good. We may want to do good, and even on occasion do good things, but in the end we are in bondage to our sinful nature and cannot free ourselves. Any honest person who accurately assesses their life will come to this conclusion. 3.) The Law leads us and drives us to Christ, where we can be rescued from our body of death. It is only as we realize that we are a sinner that we realize our need for our Savior and come to faith and are set free to become the people God created us to be.
What Does This Mean For Us?
This gets at the heart of why “self-help” and other methods of “self- improvement” never work. They don’t get at the root issue of our intrinsic nature, which is sinful. Yes we are made in God’s image, so that we are valuable and loved by God; but yet being born of Adam, we are born with nature that is bent in on itself (the definition of sin)! For periods of time we can “be good” or eliminate behaviors, but over time we usually fall back into old patterns and feel defeated. This is struggle Paul describes in his own life.
If you remember Paul was a very religious guy. He was a Pharisee of Pharisee and trained under Gamaliel, one of the greatest teachers of the Law. Paul knew religion. He knew religious codes and what he should and should not do. The problem was he had no power to carry out what he knew he should do or not do. In chapter 8, Paul will describe the transformation that takes place as we are rescued from this condition through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Gracious God, thank you for freeing us from the power of sin and setting us free to be people of God, born not just of a natural birth, but born of God! As we live each day help us to die to sin and live in our new calling to be your representatives and show that we have been brought forth from death to life! Amen.
14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[c] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
What Does This Mean?
Paul continues to teach the Romans on the use of the law and its purpose in our salvation and afterwards. Paul makes several key summary points about the nature and use of the Law. 1.) The Law is good, just and holy. I.e. If we lived according to the Law, we would be blessed and have a great life. 2.) The Law arouses the sinful nature in us and exposes our true weakness as we are born of the flesh (same word for sinful nature). The main purpose of the Law is that it shows us that we need Christ and are not by nature good. We may want to do good, and even on occasion do good things, but in the end we are in bondage to our sinful nature and cannot free ourselves. Any honest person who accurately assesses their life will come to this conclusion. 3.) The Law leads us and drives us to Christ, where we can be rescued from our body of death. It is only as we realize that we are a sinner that we realize our need for our Savior and come to faith and are set free to become the people God created us to be.
What Does This Mean For Us?
This gets at the heart of why “self-help” and other methods of “self- improvement” never work. They don’t get at the root issue of our intrinsic nature, which is sinful. Yes we are made in God’s image, so that we are valuable and loved by God; but yet being born of Adam, we are born with nature that is bent in on itself (the definition of sin)! For periods of time we can “be good” or eliminate behaviors, but over time we usually fall back into old patterns and feel defeated. This is struggle Paul describes in his own life.
If you remember Paul was a very religious guy. He was a Pharisee of Pharisee and trained under Gamaliel, one of the greatest teachers of the Law. Paul knew religion. He knew religious codes and what he should and should not do. The problem was he had no power to carry out what he knew he should do or not do. In chapter 8, Paul will describe the transformation that takes place as we are rescued from this condition through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Gracious God, thank you for freeing us from the power of sin and setting us free to be people of God, born not just of a natural birth, but born of God! As we live each day help us to die to sin and live in our new calling to be your representatives and show that we have been brought forth from death to life! Amen.
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