seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Romans 7:1 Do you not know, brothers and sisters—for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law has authority over someone only as long as that person lives? 2 For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law that binds her to him. 3 So then, if she has sexual relations with another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress. But if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is not an adulteress if she marries another man.
4 So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. 5 For when we were in the realm of the flesh,[a] the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in us, so that we bore fruit for death. 6 But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.
7 What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.”[b] 8 But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead. 9 Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10 I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. 11 For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death. 12 So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good.
13 Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! Nevertheless, in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good to bring about my death, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.
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 For I know that good itself does not dwell 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 I do not do the good I want to do, but 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: Although 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 me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature[d] a slave to the law of sin.
a. Romans 7:5 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit.
b. Romans 7:7 Exodus 20:17; Deut. 5:21
c. Romans 7:18 Or my flesh
d. Romans 7:25 Or in the flesh
I try to be good... honestly.... but it's nearly impossible. This is from the easy English site.
Before we became real Christians, sin controlled our lives completely. A cruel husband acts as if his wife is a mere slave. And sin had a similar effect on us. We wanted the law to free us from sin. But the law was unable to achieve this. In other words, our best efforts to obey the law could not free us from sin. Instead, the law declared that we were guilty. And it declared that the punishment for our sin was death.
But, because of God’s grace, Christ died for us. By baptism we take part in the death of Christ. So, like a woman whose husband has died, we are free from the law. Sin used to control us like a cruel husband. But death has ended that situation. And we have chosen to love Christ. Our relationship with him is also like marriage. But it is a good relationship. We want to belong to him. We want to serve him. And we shall live with him alway
Because of our human nature, our desires were sinful. We wanted to do what the law forbids. So we did not obey the law. The result of this is death. But because we are now free from the law, we can serve God in a new way. The law told us that we must be loyal to God. So we obeyed the law because we were afraid of punishment. But now we belong to Christ. So we obey him because we want to. We obey Christ because we love him.
Once again... Paul is talking over my head. I'm going back to the "sin pandemic" idea that I used yesterday. During the "sin pandemic" God was forced to give humans rules to live by.... humans had become so wicked with sin that they were killing each other...... they were spreading sin everywhere they went.
Because the humans had turned so stupid over sin.... God had to give them the "law" to control the sin. The problem with the law was.... it used terror to work. If you do this or that.... this or that horrible thing will happen to you. People were afraid to spit in a napkin without checking the law to find out if they would loose their nose for sneezing wrong..... [yes that was a made up example.... but I hope it worked]. Sin was ruling..... and everyone was so terrified of doing wrong that they were offensive to each other.
Then came Jesus.... with the antidote.... the vaccine..... God knew that Eve gave Adam that rotten apple and Adam started spreading sin everywhere they went..... and Jesus had to come with the vaccine to end all this sin......
Jesus was good to humans. Even though He was God's Son.... He agreed to put on a human body..... test it against temptation..... and then He agreed to be beaten and murdered so that He could be laid in a borrowed tomb. In order to beat the "sin pandemic" Jesus had to walk out of the tomb. A law is no good if it's unenforceable...... death didn't mean anything once Jesus used the antidote..... that whole "sin pandemic" can be put behind us..... if everyone would just believe that what Jesus is offering will work.
Jesus used kindness to spread the vaccine to death. He fed, healed, and taught thousands and thousands of humans. He included anyone who would come. He understood that not everyone would believe that this was the way to get rid of the plague they were suffering. Those who refused to listen..... were allowed to do as they pleased.... after all.... not everyone will wear a mask or take a vaccine..... not everyone will accept a hand up or a way out.
So..... Paul, I think, is saying..... we can live in fear of doing something wrong........ or....... we can live with a desire to love and be loved......and do something right.
