Book of Romans
Lesson # 16
By Rev. James May
In this lesson we will begin studying Romans chapter 7, but let me remind you that when the Book of Romans was first written it could have been written in either Latin or Greek before it was translated into the English language. In the original text there were no chapter or verse divisions. In fact the only divisions would come as Paul would enter a new thought. Therefore, when we study this book let us keep in mind that man’s insertion of chapter and verse distinctions should not be taken as part of the inspiration of the Word spoken. Those divisions were inserted, not for the sake of changing the word written, but simply to allow for an easier method of study and reference.
With that in mind, let’s once again read the final verse of chapter 6 to see if there is a continuing thought into chapter 7, or if it is a totally new vein of thought with little or no connection.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
This verse is quoted time and again by nearly every minister and every Christian I know. It is a verse used as a building block to lead many to Christ for once a man knows of his sin, he must know also that death awaits him. Into the depths of condemnation and conviction for sin is given the good news of God’s wonderful gift of eternal life that is given to every man who will confess that sin, turn from it in repentance and accept Jesus Christ as Lord.
Sin brings death due to the law being broken and Christ rejected; but God gives life to those who are Born Again by the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ. When we die to the law, it has no more power over us, and when we are risen again with Christ then we are forever free in him.
Now Paul continues this same vein of thought as enter into chapter 7, verse. Perhaps you will see something in these verses that you haven’t seen before even though I know it’s been preached many times.
Romans 7:1 Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?
Again, Paul is speaking to the saints that are in Rome. Among those saints in Rome are both Gentile believers and converted Jews, Messianic Jews if you will.
Paul is addressing those converted Jews specifically in this verse. The Jews know the law, which is referring to the Law of Moses. They had been taught this law from the moment of their birth in the Jewish nation. Now Paul was going to make it a point for them to realize just where the power of the Law ceased to have rule over them.
The Law of Moses was given for man to follow and obey to the letter in order to have the presence of God remain with Israel. But who could obey that Law? If a man had been born, and died before the law was given, how could he know that law, and how could it have rule over his life, commanding him to anything? Likewise, if a man knew law and kept that law, and the rule of the law over him lasted a lifetime, he would keep the law, obey the law and ever be concerned with fulfilling its requirements. But on the day that he died, where was the power of the law then?
Does a dead man have to worry anymore about the provisions of the law? Of course not! There is not one person lying in a grave in the cemetery out back, or in any other cemetery in the world who will ever be affected by any law that is passed among the living. Do you think it matters to a dead man that we put up a stop light at a new intersection, or that we change the speed limit on the highways, or that we pass a new law saying it’s legal to smoke all the marijuana you want as long as you aren’t caught driving under the influence of the smoke? No; those who dead are beyond caring about any law that we might pass, no matter how dumb it is.
And so it is with anyone who is born again in Christ Jesus, their old man is dead and buried with him and arisen again to eternal life in him. So then the law that is written to convict and condemn the hearts of sinful man, no longer has power over him. He is a new creation in Christ and subject now only to the Lord himself. As long as we serve the Lord, the law has no power to condemn, but if we turn away from God, go back to that old life, renouncing the salvation that Christ offers, then we put ourselves back under the law and its sentence of death once again.
Romans 7:2 For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband.
As we study through these next few verses let’s remind ourselves of Paul’s original thought, but also consider that these are laws of God that still regulate the lives of living people.
Paul uses marriage to illustrate his point concerning the law. In the Law of Moses it is written that a woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives, but once he is dead, that bond is forever broken in this life. When he dies the law has no more power over her and she is free to live as a single woman once again, choosing her own way.
Romans 7:3 So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man.
But as long as her husband is alive, she is obligated by that same Law of Moses to be faithful to her husband. If she tries to marry another man, while her husband is yet alive, she would be breaking the law and placing her life in jeopardy as an adulteress, which was a crime punishable by stoning. But if her husband died, the law did not have power and could not be applied to her. She could marry whosoever she wills.
We often use these same scriptures even in our modern world, or at least we should. These are often used in teaching marriage seminars, and in pre-marriage counseling, and in the office of Christian marriage counselors all of the time.
God hates divorce, and in the mind of God, the only truly acceptable way of separating anyone in a marriage is by the death of one of the spouses. This was God’s intent all along, and it was only because of the hardness of the hearts of men that God allowed Moses to give other reasons for divorce later on. And many of the reasons that people are divorced today are not acceptable reasons in God’s eyes. I won’t go into that in detail right now, perhaps later on. This is not the main focus of the teaching for tonight on these verses.
In any case, Paul’s primary message in these verses was not to teach about marriages, but to use the law pertaining to marriage as an object lesson concerning our relationship with the Law while we were dead in sin, and now that we are alive in Christ.
When we were lost in sin, we were bound as one with sin and death. We cannot serve two masters; neither can we ever be the “wife” of two husbands according to God’s own law. So then if we are dead to sin through being born again, then we are free to become the Bride of Christ, for Christ will only be the husband of one ‘Bride”.
In our day, many people are trying to say that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene while he was on the earth. Nowhere in the Bible is this taught. In fact the Bible teaches that Jesus is espoused to only one Bride, and we are that Bride of Christ. How then could Jesus have a bride already in Heaven, because Mary Magdalene became a Believer and is in Heaven, and yet the church will also be in Heaven at the Rapture for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. We are the only Bride of Christ and there is no other.
Romans 7:4 Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
Now here is the crux of the matter concerning what Paul has said. You who are now alive in Christ, and have become a part of the living body of Christ, have “divorced”, or “have been permanently separated” from your old life of sin by identifying in the death and burial of Jesus Christ. We are no more a part of the death of sin, but we are live in Christ, joined together, both all who are part of the Body, and with Jesus, as “one in all things” through the blood of Jesus. We are now alive in him and therefore should bring forth fruit, or be producing things that are useful and profitable for God’s kingdom.
Romans 7:5 For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death.
When you were living in sin, seeking only to fulfill the desires of the flesh, you were under the power of the Law. The power of the law in you served only to produce fruits that carried the death penalty. When you cursed, death was in the words. If you lied, death was the penalty. If you lusted, death was the penalty. If you stole, death was the penalty. Whatever your hands chose to handle; wherever your feet walked; whatever your mind thought; whatever your eyes saw – it was all producing fruit, no matter how good it may have seemed to you, that only had one real end – the penalty of death. The Law ruled over you, condemning your soul to death, and there was nothing you could do otherwise.
Romans 7:6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.
Have you been saved? Are you washed in the Blood of Jesus? Have you asked God for forgiveness for your sin, and repented of your old way of live? Have you surrendered your will to God’s will, and have you confessed that Jesus Christ is Lord, the very Son of God who died, was buried and arose from the grave, and is alive forever more? Have you asked Jesus to come into your heart and then given him the full command and Lordship of your life?
If not, then my friend, you are still dead under the Law and without hope, and in need of a Savior! This is your day; your truly lucky day! You can come to Jesus now!
And if you have accepted Jesus, then you are delivered from the power of the Law. You were once prisoner of the death that the law carried. But now you are set free to serve as a new man, with a new life, and you are no longer under that old covenant, but under a new covenant in the blood of Jesus.
Romans 7:7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.
Is it right; is it possible then to say that God’s perfect law is sin because it condemns every lawbreaker to death? Of course not! The Law was given for a purpose; and its purpose is holy and right and just. Its purpose is to let us know that we have sinned and offended the Holy God of Heaven. Its purpose is to show us that we are dead and sentenced to eternity without God. Its purpose is to let us know that we need a Savior who can resurrect us from the dead and give us the hope of a new and eternal life!
If we didn’t know that lust was a sin, why should we repent of it? If we didn’t know that coveting was a sin; how could we seek to make it right with God?
Romans 7:8 But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead.
The sin that was in me was revealed by reading and understanding the perfect Law of God. That Law showed me all manner of abuse, of degradation, of lawlessness, of evil deeds that was already in my life. There was no more ignorance of my sin, and no more denying its existence. If I had not known the law, I knew not what was sin; and was dead under its power already. In fact I was so ignorant and dead in my sin that I thought it was normal to be that way and that’s the way life was supposed to be lived.
Romans 7:9 For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.
Without knowing the Law, I could enjoy my sin, live my life the way I pleased, fulfill my own desires, and think that this is the way life should be. But when I discovered God’s law, the sin was revealed and its power over me was seen, and I knew I was dead to God.
Romans 7:10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death.
Romans 7:11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me.
Discovering the Law carried with it a great paradox for humanity. The law of God was given that men may find the way to life in God; but in reality it revealed how truly dead we were. Sin’s power, through knowing the law, was revealed and I realized that I had lived a life of deception being blind to the true nature and power of sin. In my ignorance; and in my own decisions by my own will I had sinned and that sin had destroyed my life. I was already dead!
Romans 7:12 Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good.
It’s not the Law that is bad. The Law of God is perfect.
This is how David said it in the Psalms:
Psalms 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
Psalms 19:8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
Even David, after it had been brought to his attention, all of the sin that he had committed by the hearing of the Law of God, said that the Law of God was perfect, sure, right and pure! We can only agree with that! God’s law is not the problem – WE ARE!
Romans 7:13 Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.
Was the goodness of the law transformed into the power of death in my soul? NO, the goodness of the law served only to reveal my sin that was already bringing me to death. The good words, and the teaching that the Law has is still good, but its perfect goodness perfectly revealed my absolute sinfulness.
Romans 7:14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
The law is not to be considered as a system of external rites and ceremonies. Neither is it just a set of rules to teach us to live morally. The Law of God is a spiritual system. It reaches to the most hidden parts of the heart and mind. It reveals exactly who and what we are. It cuts through the smoke and mirrors of our own blindness and deception and reveals the clear picture of our spiritual condition. It convicts and condemns for everything, even the smallest of things in us, that are contrary to the holiness and perfection of God. Then the Law lets us know that somehow, there’s a price to be paid for what we have done. That’s the first step to salvation – realizing that we are already dead in sin.
And now we look at some of the most famous verses in the Bible.
Before I begin the remainder of this chapter, let me inform you that there is somewhat of a controversy over what Paul says. The question has been whether it describes the state of Paul before his conversion, or afterward. I’m not going to go into depth to explain this controversy, or to discuss it.
I regard it as describing the state of a man under the gospel, as descriptive of the operations of the mind of Paul subsequent to his conversion.
The reasons are:
1) It seems to be the most obvious meaning that this is after Paul’s conversion.
2)Paul’s arguments show that the Law does not produce sanctification and grace through its knowledge and adherence, but only points to someone greater who can do that, even in the life of a Christian.
3) Because I know that in the mind of every Born Again Christian, there is still a battle that rages. It’s a spiritual warfare, and part of that warfare is with the forces of darkness, while a part of it is with our own fleshly desires of this carnal man. We aren’t housed in a glorified body that’s above temptation yet!
Romans 7:15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
All of us when we hear these words of Paul, can quickly identify with what the Apostle is saying.
Paul says,”The evil which I do, the sin of which I am conscious, and which troubles me. I really don’t want to do it. I don’t approve of sin. Not even within my own heart, and though I know I’m not perfect, I want to be. I don’t wish to sin, and my whole purpose and reason for living is to serve God in righteousness and never commit an evil deed; and yet I do!”
This is not willful and habitual sin, but things that cross our minds, things that we say or do without thinking sometimes, or attitudes that we may develop that rear their ugly heads at just the wrong time, or perhaps a grudge we let develop, or a temper tantrum, or any sort of sin that we know will come, but that we really don’t want to do.
On the other side of that struggle with myself and in this spiritual battle is the fact that all too often I fail to do that which I really know is right and good to do. And I know that in failing to fulfill my duty in those regards the Bible teaches that, “To know to do good, and do it not is sin”. Therefore, either way, I still find myself committing sin that I really don’t want to commit. That’s not what I’m about! I hate sin! I hate failing God! Yet I do so all too often!
Romans 7:16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.
When we do those things that we don’t want to do, and we know are wrong, how does it make you feel?
This very struggle that we have with evil shows that we don’t love sin, but that we really do love the Law of God and want to obey it. Yet the thing we love, the Law of God, tends to make us feel so much guilt and shame for having failed.
If we don’t have a real grasp on what’s going on here, the battle against sin in our own lives can bring us to a place where we will even begin to doubt our own faith and salvation in Christ.
But understand this: The very fact that you are struggling against evil, and the desire you have to be free from it, and to overcome it, and the worry and grief that it causes, is all evidence that we do not love it, and that we are the friends of God. Nothing in the world can test your faith in God and make you doubt your salvation more than a long, drawn out and painful struggle against something in your life that you know is wrong, and yet you can’t seem to overcome it.
Don’t give up the faith, and keep on with the fight against it. In time, through prayer, fasting and continuing to fight the battle, the victory will be won and your faith will grow tremendously through it all. As long as you don’t give up and just resign yourself that you’ll never break free, the victory will come. But when we give up and choose to just let that sin reign in us, then that sin will cause us to lose our salvation through our own choice to stop the battle and give in.
Romans 7:17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Sin cannot have dominion in the heart of a Christian. Sin may be present, but it cannot control you unless you allow it to. And when sin is allowed to control you, then that sin will stay and dwell in your heart. Remember this, where sin abounds, grace is greater, and you can overcome it. Don’t allow that sin to be the overcomer.
Your flesh is still part of this corrupted, sinful world. As long as we dwell in this body, sin will always be a part of who we are, but it should not reign over us. You’ll have a constant struggle to overcome it, but that’s what growing in sanctification and in the faith is all about. It’s all about crucifying this body of flesh, spiritually speaking, so that it finally realizes that you are not going to live according to the desires of the flesh, but according to the will of God. This is a large part of why there is fasting and prayer. Fasting is to put down the desires of the flesh, and prayer is to strengthen the spirit man within.
Romans 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
Paul had a lot of good qualities in his life. He was a called, anointed, sanctified, holy and chosen man of God. He was an Apostle of Jesus Christ, preaching the gospel everywhere he went. How then can he say that in him dwelleth no good thing?
In his new man, that spiritually reborn heart and soul that was hidden in Christ, he was made righteous by the blood of Jesus. Yet his fleshly body was still trapped in this carnal world, and in that part of him there was nothing good. In his spirit man he wanted to always please God and do that which was expedient for the Kingdom of God, but somehow the flesh kept getting in the way. Paul was struggling, just as we all do, to overcome the needs, wants and desires of the flesh, so that the spirit could have its way in his life.
Romans 7:19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Paul is repeating what he said in verse 15.
Romans 7:20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Paul is not excusing himself for the sin that he does, and neither should we. On the contrary, he is acknowledging that the carnal nature is still in him, and in his flesh there is still the power to sin because sin dwells in this world, and in his body that is part of this world.
That’s one reason that this body of flesh cannot enter Heaven. God will have to destroy this body of flesh with its desire to sin, and with the sin that dwells in it that is always trying to war against the spirit. In its place we will receive a new body, glorified and free of the effects of the sin nature, and no more will there be a struggle between the flesh and the spirit. The new body will live through the power of the spirit and not the power of corrupted blood from this fallen creation.
Because the desire to sin still dwells in the fleshly body, that sin will often cause the spirit man to be in great conflict, and sometimes the flesh will win the battle.
Paul says that sin does enter the picture in the life of a Christian, but that it isn’t the spirit man within the Christian that desires the sin; it’s the sin corrupted flesh that does it. Either way, we are still both flesh and spirit, and that sin must be dealt with and cannot be allowed to remain.
That’s why we must ever be in a state of repentance. Many times we sin, and we don’t even realize it until the Holy Spirit speaks to us with conviction over it, or we hear it in the law of God’s Word. But regardless of whether you are aware of it or not, it never hurts to simply ask God to forgive you for whatever you may have done, whether you’re aware of it or not. That shows that the spirit man is truly in control and desiring to win the battle.
Romans 7:21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
Romans 7:22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
The fact is that there is that law of nature that when I want to do something good for the kingdom of God, somehow my evil nature in this body of flesh always seems to get in the way. I delight in the Law of God, and the inward man, that spirit man, always wants God’s best, but the flesh is always in the way. We cannot escape it!
Romans 7:23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
In our body of flesh, there is always a war going on. The war is for power and control of your mind! The war wages every day trying to bring you under captivity by focusing your thinking on the wrong thing in any way it can. That’s why it’s so vitally important to guard what enters into your mind, and to be so careful of what you dwell on in your thinking.
If you think on the sin too long, it will begin to gain control. If you think of the things of God, that will begin to gain control. Sooner or later, you will become like that which you think about all of the time.
Why do you think that there are many people today who become murderers, thieves, rapists and such? It’s because they allowed their mind to dwell on those things that bring them to this sin.
On the other hand, how is it that two people going to the same church, hearing the same messages, and living for God can be so different in their spiritual understanding and maturity? It’s because one of them spends a lot more time thinking on the things of God and meditating in his Word. Perhaps more time in prayer. It takes a lot more than being in church for 2, 4 or even 6 hours a week.
Whatever enters the mind will determine which side gets the upper hand for control of your mind, be it spiritual or fleshly.
Romans 7:24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
While we dwell in this body of flesh we can all say as Paul says, “Oh how wretched I am!” We all fight this battle every day that we live. Some days it’s not too hard, but on other days, it’s a major battle to bring this flesh under submission to Christ.
Our cry goes out – Oh God, how can I finally overcome this battle? How can I win when my flesh is so strong against me? How can I be delivered from this constant war with self?
There is hope! There is an answer! There is a power to help us not only overcome the flesh, but to be set free from its power to war against us!
Romans 7:25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.
The battle is won because of what Jesus did at Calvary! Through his shed blood, and the grace of God that is given to me, I am already an overcomer! Jesus has already fought this battle, forgiven me of every sin, and overcome the power of the flesh! In Him, I have victory!
With my mind, and my inner man, I will serve the Lord and desire to serve his Law and live by his word. Yes the flesh, with its sin will be with me until that day God calls me home, but the flesh will not be victor! I will not yield to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye and the pride of Life! I will subdue my flesh and force this body, through the power of the Holy Ghost, to do that which is right in God’s eyes. And if I fail, then I will force this flesh to submit once again through repentance.
Through the power of Jesus Christ I am set free from the power of sin and the power of the flesh to rule over me! I am free to serve the Lord and by his grace I am made righteous and given freedom from the power of sin to destroy me.
