When we last left off in Romans, Paul had painted a dismal picture of the reality we all face. Although we want so badly to do the right thing, each time we try we fail miserably. At the end of verse 24, Paul desperately cries out for freedom. The question is, “What is freedom and how do we achieve it?” I venture to say that freedom for Paul was an entirely different concept than that of our society. To our society, freedom is the ability to do whatever you want to. It means they are free to do drugs, drink, have sex with whoever or whatever they want, it means that kids are free to do whatever they want, and it means adults can do whatever is necessary to get ahead. To Paul freedom meant to be set free from the very things society considers to be freedom. If we are really honest we can admit that each of these exercises of freedom are really a sign of slavery, those very things that are at the root of the vicious struggle in which we are engaged. To Paul freedom was being set free from the power of sin so he could live the way that he truly desired. In our text Paul shows that although the picture is dismal there is still hope. We have been provided all of the spiritual resources that we need to enjoy the freedom that has been provided by God’s grace. Today, we want to examine the dangers of this struggle and the resources that have been provided to enable us to be free.
I. The negative effects produced by our struggle.
A. Physical, mental and spiritual exhaustion.
1. The Greek word translated wretched is talaipōros which reflects the idea of being pulled in two different directions at the same time. The term describes Paul’s frustration.
2. He has tried everything possible to gain victory over his situation now he is left feeling miserable and hopeless.
3. Paul’s efforts have brought him nothing but exhaustion and now he realizes that there is nothing that he alone can do to change his situation.
4. The words written in verse 24 is a desperate cry which shows that he has reached the end of his rope.
B. A sense of hopelessness.
1. Like us Paul realized that his attempts at living a righteous life has fallen far short and he wonders if there is any hope for change.
2. More than anything Paul wanted to rid himself of his sinful nature and his hopelessness is revealed in the cry, “Who can save me?”
3. Whenever we attempt to live a Godly life on our own the result will be failure and ultimately hopelessness.
4. Nothing can make a person feel more hopeless than being defeated time and time again.
C. Belief that there is absolutely no escape.
1. The body we now live in is doomed to death through our union with Adam and along with that the sinful nature is doomed to death.
2. The question “Who will save me?” also reveals the sense that Paul was feeling like he was trapped.
3. If you cannot find the answer to that question, you most definitely will resign yourself to the fact that there is no escape.
4. The truth is that we can exhaust all human efforts and still never find an escape from the struggle.
D. The feeling of condemnation.
1. Paul realized that if he could not find a way of escape that he was condemned to continue to fruitlessly struggle and ultimately lose the struggle with sin.
2. Undoubtedly an image of a common Roman penalty for murder came to his mind. The murderer would have the body of the one whose life he had taken strapped to him face to face, being forced to carry it with him until his life would end.
3. Paul felt like the sinful nature was like having a corpse hung around him. Doomed to walk through his life a condemned man.
4. Although he wanted to obey the higher nature, the weight of the sinful nature condemned him to defeat.
E. Paul offsets the negative effects with a brief word of hope.
1. As you reach verse 25, Paul loudly exclaims that the Gospel is the remedy for our situation.
2. Jesus is presented as the source of our rescue from the struggle that consumes our lives.
3. Paul leaves no doubt that the plight he is describing is that of a Christian. The struggle is hopeless if we try to face it through our own power.
4. Each of the resources that he presents in chapter eight are gifts given by the resurrected and exalted Christ.
II. The Spiritual resources that God provides for our aid.
A. In response to our struggle God provides encouragement.
1. Paul has a very radical change of tone, he moves from utter despair to the great encouragement that we can gain through what God has done.
2. Romans 8 is perhaps the greatest chapter in the Bible because it encourages us by telling us that we are God’s dearly loved children and live under the protection of His hand.
3. As if that is not enough Paul goes on to announce that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ. Our sins have been taken away and we stand before God not guilty.
4. If we are not condemned why do have to continue to deal with this struggle? Paul is providing encouragement that we can rest assured that the final victory has already been won by Jesus Christ.
5. We have been set free from the penalty of sin and death through Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross.
6. There is no reason for us to continue to frustrate and exhaust ourselves by trying to do what Jesus has already done for us.
B. Recognizing that we cannot win the struggle on our own, He provides us with the Holy Spirit to help us.
1. Paul also in chapter eight introduces us to the Holy Spirit and begins to explain what life in the Spirit is like.
2. The ongoing presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is vital and its importance cannot be stressed enough. This is seen in the fact that Paul refers to the Spirit twenty-two times in Chapter 8.
3. Paul provides a contrast for us between life in the flesh that brings death and life in the Spirit which brings eternal life.
4. The Holy Spirit provides us with the power to endure the ongoing struggle with the sinful nature and helps us to grow in Christ.
5. When we rely on the Spirit’s help to live the Christian life it is then that we will begin to bear fruit.
III. Lessons that we can discover in our text.
A. Struggles are an inevitable part of living life in this fallen world.
1. Struggles are not the exception for the Christian, we need to understand that as long as we live in this fallen world we will face struggles.
2. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world.” (John 16:33—The Message)
3. Jesus clears up any misconceptions that living the Christian life is a smooth journey. He is upfront with the idea that we will have difficulties in this world.
4. The struggles are only temporary, Jesus has won the ultimate victory and one day we will be freed from these struggles for all eternity.
5. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:17-18—NIV 2011)
B. Victory and relief can only be found through surrender.
1. As long as we try to fight the struggles by our own strength we will experience frustration and defeat. Victory can only be achieved by surrendering to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
2. In the human viewpoint surrender equals admitting defeat but in God’s view surrender guarantees the victory. God’s logic is completely opposed to that of the world.
3. We will only experience defeat if we fail to tap into the resources that have been provided to us through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
4. “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5—NASB)
5. The question is, “Do want to go down in defeat or do you want to be guaranteed the victory?”
Closing:
There was a woman who was going through some very difficult and trying circumstances. She was experiencing major distress in her marriage, her job was very unfulfilling and was causing her heartache. She became so distraught over her circumstances that she felt like just giving up. She felt lonely, dejected and very isolated. She had tried everything she could to better herself, her marriage, things at work, but it seemed everything turned out horrible for her. Finally she came to the point of exhaustion and felt there was no way out of her terrible circumstances and there would never be any more joy in her life.
One day she was sitting in her kitchen very frustrated and lonely. She sat there for a long time and just wept. Then she noticed a small sparrow had somehow gotten into her kitchen, so she opened the door thinking the sparrow would simply fly out the door. To her surprise the sparrow kept flying into the closed window that was just above the door. This distraught woman noticed several times that the sparrow would fly directly into the top of the window thinking it was an opening to freedom and each time colliding into glass of the window. This small sparrow after each time hitting the window would become weaker and weaker. The woman also noticed the sparrow hitting the window lower and lower each time he flew into the window until he got so weak that he couldn’t even fly, all he could to was walk. Then she noticed this little sparrow very slowly, simply walked through the door to freedom. As she observed this little bird walk through the door, the sparrow began to regain his strength and he flew off into the air free again.
It was as though God literally opened her spiritual eyes. She realized in just about every area of her life she was behaving just like this sparrow. She was trying in her own way to get out of the confining situations she was in, each time being knocked down in defeat. In reacting harshly to her family members - knocked down! Not giving her best at work - knocked down! Paying back evil for evil done to her - knocked down! Saying and doing things she knew were wrong - knocked down!
She finally realized that all she had to do was do just like this sparrow - to very humbly walk in the power of God’s grace and mercy and allow Him to work out all her heartaches and difficulties.
