Romans 7 Part 1 (Dar anf Kate)
- Teaching 11.9.10
- Romans 7:1
- “Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives?”
- If you are alive and charged with law breaking, you will go to court
- But if you are dead, you will not go to court
- In Romans 6 we have died with Christ
- The law has no jurisdiction in our life
- “Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives?”
- Romans 7:2-6
- “For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband. So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.”
- We have been freed from the law
- How can this be?
- Is this not God’s law or define His moral character?
- We have to understand what God gave us the Law in the first place
- He gave the Law to the non-Christians
- The Law defines what sin is
- “For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband. So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.”
- Romans 7:7-8
- “What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “YOU SHALL NOT COVET.” But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead.”
- There is such a thing as right and wrong
- The Law let us know what sin is and stimulates us
- Surprising?
- Romans 5:20
- “The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more”
- The Law came so that sin might increase
- The forbidden is more exciting
- You want freedom from sin, you take the Law away
- “The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more”
- “What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “YOU SHALL NOT COVET.” But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead.”
- Galatians 3:24
- “Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.”
- The Law is a tutor to lead us to Christ
- So that we can be justified by Christ, not works
- “Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.”
- Galatians 3:3
- “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”
- All of Galatians is about coming to Christ because you cannot get to heaven by works
- Even for Christians…
- After you accept Christ, you still try to follow the Law by works
- “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”
- Galatians 2:19
- “For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live to God.”
- When you accepted Christ
- You were no longer under the Law
- “For through the Law I died to the Law, so that I might live to God.”
- Romans 7:9-18
- “I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died;”
- Sin is always with you
- “I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died;”
- Romans 7:10-11
- “ and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me; for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me.”
- You try to do the right thing but you fail
- Your walk seems dead
- “ and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me; for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me.”
- Romans 7:12-13
- “So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by affecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful.”
- The problem is not the Law
- The problem is me
- The Law has a purpose
- Suppose to show us how much we need God
- “So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by affecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful.”
- Romans 7
- “We know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.”
- Deep down we still think WE can do it
- But we cannot
- We redefine sin so that it does not seem so bad
- “I did not steal, I borrowed”
- “We know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.”
- Romans 7:19-20
- “For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.”
- Sin is inevitable
- When you start to depend on yourself that is when things go wrong
- “For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.”
- Romans 7:21-24
- “I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which Is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?”
- The wretched man I am… who will set me free???
- Real faith in God happens when we stop depending on ourselves
- “I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which Is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?”
- Galatians 5:17
- “For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”
- You have the flesh which is under the Law
- You have the Spirit which is under grace
- You cannot live under both
- Live under the Law or grace
- Must choose!
- Legalistic M.O.
- Changing the outside only
- Changing the ‘What’
- Grace M.O.
- Changing your character and heart
- Changing the ‘Why’
- “For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”
- Romans 7:25
- “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.”
- He understands that he cannot fulfill the Law on his own
- Is so happy for God’s grace!
- “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.”
- Legalistic person
- Create a picture of Christianity
- They May follow these rules and guidelines to keep this picture
- Put these rules on EVERYONE
- These rules do not work all the time
- Grace person
- They understand that they cannot follow these rules
- They are sinful
- Humans cannot do things right most of the time
- Knows that they cannot fulfill the Law
- Understand that they have a sinful nature
- Because they are not physically dead and in heaven, they have to deal with all these sinful problems
- They understand that they cannot follow these rules
- Key to Spiritual Growth
- Legalistic
- Obedience to the rules is how they grow
- Grace
- Understanding that they cannot follow the rules
- But it is cool because they have a new identity in Christ
- They can start transforming our character
- We need to come to the Lord based on grace
- Legalistic
- Failure
- Legalistic
- Not a pretty site
- Get really shocked
- “How could this have happened to me?!”
- Make a lot of promises and vows so that we will not sin again
- Sin issue is not that big of a deal
- Tuck it away underneath their bed
- After so much hiding, the rules become watered down
- Basically like not having those values anymore
- Grace
- “Oh yeah I was expecting this to happen”
- “I know that I am a sinner”
- “I know that I am going to fail”
- Legalistic
- Success
- Legalistic
- Gets really proud and arrogant
- Become intolerable
- Have a hard time having compassion for people
- Grace
- They realize that it is not because of anything they did
- God did it!
- Very thankful for the Lord letting them be a part of this
- Know that there is a lot left to work on
- Because they can have compassion
- You want to help others
- They realize that it is not because of anything they did
- Legalistic
- Eventually…
- Legalist
- Inside they will be ruled by hypocrisy
- Cannot follow the Law to the ‘T’
- Humans are not good at following rules ever
- Everything in us wants to go against the rule
- Grace
- Get to experience a Christ-like mindset
- Be able to love people the way Christ does
- It is a real beautiful thing
- Motivated by grace
- Go love people
- Do not feel obligated
- But WANT to do it
- Legalist
- Come to God because you want to
- Not because you feel obligated
- He wants to give you His love and acceptance
- All you have to do is ask and accept Christ
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