Romans,
Chapter 7
© Copyright 1998 Darroll Evans-all rights
reserved
As we begin to look at this chapter, we will
do it in a way that is not usual. The
first fourteen verses seem to be separated from Paul’s message to the Gentiles,
and instead it is aimed at those under the Law.
That is not a popular slant on this section of scripture.
At the time Romans was written, Jews were the
ethnic the majority within the Church.
They came out of a legalistic system and into freedom of worship in
Christ. It must have been a great
culture shock. Gentiles had no history of life under the Levitical system.
Paul used divorce as his example against
legalism. Divorce was never part of the
Ten. It was given by Moses as
part of the Levitical law. Later,
divorce was rejected (with one exception) as ungodly by Christ Jesus.
Matthew
19:8 He saith unto them, Moses
because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but
from the beginning it was not so.
Divorce was the result of Moses adding to the
Law.
Matthew
5:32 But I say unto you, That
whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth
her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced
committeth adultery.
Jesus said that “fornication,” sexual misconduct,
is the only valid reason to seek divorce.
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?
This section may have been written to the
Jews within the Roman Church. This seems to be written in support of legalism,
but look again. Prior to coming to
Christ we live according to the Law, the Ten.
After coming to Christ and the abiding of the Spirit we are led by the
Spirit.
Romans
8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life
in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Romans
8:14 For as many as are led by the
Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
Whether the Law of the Ten, or the Law of the
Spirit, we care always led by law. Being
“led” is not legalism. Not being led is
anarchy.
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.
Many say that Paul was appealing to Romans
and Jewish Law as he begins this teaching.
It was not Paul’s style, nor the style of Christ to appeal to Roman
law. Only twice in his ministry did
Paul appeal to Roman (Gentile) law. He did it once in Philippi and again in
Jews had legal divorce proceedings. They were
not used in the manner of today’s staggering divorce rate. At the time of my commentary, 50% of all
marriages end in divorce. That means
that one-forth of all people taking marriage vows in the
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.
If a woman marries another while her husband
is alive, according to the Bible, she is an "adulteress." If her
husband dies, she is free under the law to remarry. In this matter the law of the Torah and the
Law of the Spirit are in agreement.
“Married”: Please read my commentary on that
as part of the next verse.
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.
Which of the Levitical laws did the Apostles
of Paul’s time put on Gentiles?
None!
The Apostles did not burden the Gentiles with legalism.
Acts 15:27-29
27 We have sent therefore Judas and Silas, who shall also tell you the same
things by mouth.
28 For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater
burden than these necessary things;
29 That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things
strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do
well. Fare ye well.
The Gentiles started with a clean slate. The Jews still had to shake off the effects
of legalism. Gentiles embraced grace
while Jews were still debating it. Jews
were married to sin under the legalistic abuses of the Levitical law.
The word “married” is unfortunate! “Married” (Gr. genesthai-genesqai) is a false
translation that comes from the Greek root “ginomai.” That root
word is NOT translated
married except in this case and in the previous verse.
The J.P. Green, Sr. translation, the LITV, of
this verse is far superior to any other translation.
“So that, my
brothers, you also were made dead to the Law through the body of Christ, for
you to become another's, to the One raised from the dead, so that
we may bear fruit to God.” (LITV)
The Greek text
should have been translated “become.”
Any reasonable student of the Greek language knows that!
The Church is the
body of Christ!
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.
“Motions” speaks of passions in the form
of suffering. "Motions of sin"
denotes sufferings of deviancy, hardship of pain, an affliction. Sin is an
affliction of the Spirit that may result in an affliction of the physical
body. Whenever we deviate from God’s
plan, we suffer. Legalism is deviancy!
2 Corinthians 3:6b for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
Legalism keeps us in a state of servitude to
sin. The grace found only in Christ Jesus frees us from legal servitude,
slavery. However, grace is not nor does
it condone anarchy. Grace is not
lawlessness.
Rom
8:1-2
1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who
walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the
law of sin and death.
When we depend on grace we operate under
law---the Law of the Spirit!
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.
At this very moment our freedom in Christ is
a real. At this very moment we are
delivered, or set fee from the law that was nailed to the cross, including the
Ten. God blotted the Law out of our
lives with the cross.
Colossians
2:14---“Blotting out the handwriting
of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of
the way, nailing it to his cross.”
The only use for the ten now is to point to
sin to bring repentance and the knowledge of Christ. All Christians are to serve God in newness,
renewal of the Spirit, and not in the oldness, or obsolescence of
the letter of the law.
Romans 7:7-8
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.
8 But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of
concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead.
Here, Paul includes the Ten, which is evident
in his remark, "Thou shalt not covet." The Law points out sin. Paul quickly says that
he learned that knowledge of sin comes from the Ten.
“Concupiscence” is plain old-fashioned sexual
lust. The Law pointed out sin, but abuse
of the Law brought is sin.
Then, Paul says something that is remarkable,
"For without the law sin was dead."
Apart from Law there can be no sin! But,
why?
I John
3:4---“Whosoever committeth sin
transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.”
Romans 7:9 For I was alive without the law
once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.
If there is no law to break, there is also no
sin. The commandments brought the
knowledge of sin.
“Sin revived.” How did that happen?
Sin (Gr. hee hamartia-h amartia) in verse 9
literally means, “the sin,”
(i.e. the sin nature) revived, or came back to prominence.
Whenever we add any rules to grace, sin will abuse those rules and gain a
foothold in our lives.
Eph
2:8-9
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is
the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Grace cannot be abridged by works---any
works! While sin is a transgression of
the Law of God (not Moses), grace overcomes all sin.
Romans 7:10-11
10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death.
11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew
me.
The purpose of the Law was not to bring us
life, but to bring us to
Life, Christ Jesus. When a lawyer came
to Christ and asked what he should do to inherit life. Jesus asked him with
what the law said. The lawyer quoted the Ten. Jesus told him, "Thou hast answered
right: this do, and thou shalt live" (Luke 10:28). Instead of bringing righteousness, the law
brought the knowledge of personal sin.
Paul writes that sin used the commandment to
thoroughly deceive him. It does the same with us. It points out the completely
fallen state of man without the grace of God.
There is no hope in the Ten.
Jesus answered the lawyer by telling him to do something that is humanly
impossible, but the lawyer did not know it was impossible. In his fallen state, he considered it logical
that he could "do" the commandments. He could not, and we
cannot!
Romans 7:12 Wherefore the law is holy, and
the commandment holy, and just, and good.
The problem is not within the commandments!
The problem is its use by sin-filled man! The commandments point out sin.
That is what they are supposed to do.
When we see our sinful fallen state, we are to come to Christ to ask for
mercy. It is just that simple!
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.
“Made” means “came into being as.” The Law makes us realize our sinful state,
but it offers no remedy. Verse 12 told
us that the commandments are holy, just and good. But, they do not offer a solution to our
carnality and penchant to sin. They just
point out the problem. Only Christ’s
grace offers a solution to sin that is highlighted by the commandments.
1 Tim
1:8 But we know that the law is good,
if a man use it lawfully;
How do we “lawfully” use the Law? It points out the sin, so that we may turn to
Christ for remission of sin.
Rom
3:25 [Christ Jesus] Whom God hath set
forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his
righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance
of God;
Gal
3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster
to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Paul said “that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.” That is a confusing statement from the
Apostle of grace to the Gentiles.
How can the commandments of God become the
source of sin?
We come to Christ by faith, not by the
commandment. And yet, once we are
accepted into “Christian” fellowship we find a bunch of “thou shall nots”
waiting to be followed. We know that we
are not under the law, but nevertheless many look to “thou shall not” as the
gold standard.
As Christians we are to be led by the Holy
Spirit (Romans 8:14). That leading of
the Spirit is accomplished only through faith in Christ Jesus.
We are told that we can do all things through
Christ who strengthens us. However,
Christ Jesus does not strengthen our carnal “I can do this” attitude.
Satan will strengthen us in that area, but Christ will not!
When we focus on “our” ability to do
anything, we take the focus off of faith in Christ Jesus, and that which was
thought would bring freedom in Christ Jesus actually brings bondage in a focus
away from Christ and onto the carnal.
Romans 7:14 For we know that the law is
spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
“Carnal” indicates something that is fleshly,
or under the control of human emotions.
When we read this section of Scripture, we must understand that Paul
wrote this after he was saved and filled with the Holy Spirit. And yet, he still wrote, “I am carnal”.
The fact contained here is that we are sold
as slaves to sin, the sin nature. Some
teach that after we are baptized, we are perfect in every way. That teaching is based in spiritual
ignorance! That teaching is put forth by
those who espouse ungodly, anti-New Testament regenerational baptism.
If we are so perfect why would the Bible tell
us that we have an advocate with the Father?
If we are so perfect, we would no longer need an advocate!
I John
2:1 My little children, these things
write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with
the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
In John 2:1, “any man” includes saved, born
again, Spirit-filled Christians! We
never lose our need for Christ Jesus! Because we are living in a fleshly body,
we must contend with our flesh. The Ten
are based on the spiritual, but we are carnal! Therefore, we often misinterpret
and misapply them.
ANY attempt to keep the Ten Commandments (or any man-made
set of rules and regulations) is nothing more than a vain attempt! You cannot keep the ten except through faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross! And, man-made rules are nothing more than
man-made rules!
The fact is that God’s Law (the Ten) is
spiritual, and may only be lived on a spiritual basis. And, we are carnal!
Romans 7:15-16
15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but
what I hate, that do I.
16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is
good.
This was written by a born again,
Spirit-filled child of the Living God!
The “natural” unregenerate man does not hate sin. He admires sin and longs to sin! We need the Law of God, the Ten, to point out
our sins, but not to correct them!
When we accept Christ Jesus as Lord of our
lives, the battle for the mind goes into full swing. Let's look at those two
verses in the New American Standard.
Romans 7:15-16
15 For that which 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.
16 But if I do the very thing I do not
wish to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that it is good. (NASB)
Practicing refers to repetition. Do you “practice” Christianity? Practice makes us mature in the faith.
Do you do sinful things and then regret
them? Do you understand why you do
sinful things? Paul is addressing that
situation, because he went through the same conflicts as we now do, and with
the same lack of understanding, until God showed him the why it was taking
place, and how to overcome the wrongs he was committing.
Romans 7:17 Now then it is no more I that
do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Even though we are led by the Law of the
Spirit, we are not totally free from the human emotions. Proverbs 23:7 tells us that "as a man
thinks in his heart, so is he." It
is difficult for us to comprehend, but God separates the heart from the
mind. The flesh controls the mind, and
the spirit (Spirit) controls the heart.
“Sin dwells in me” speaks of the sin nature
that is part of the old man that still controls our minds even though we have
the Spirit of God dwelling in us. “Dwelleth” (Gr. oikousa-oikuosa) is present tense
indicating that although Paul was a Christian and a called appointed and
anointed Apostle, the sin nature still lived within him. As long as we are in the ‘flesh,” or pot of
clay, we call a body, we will be dealing with the sin nature that is fueled by
fleshly lusts. However, that sin nature
does not need to dominate us, but in cases of immaturity is does. As we mature, we lean to deal with our
carnal, fleshly, sinful human nature.
Dealing with sin and the sin nature has nothing to do with how many
Bible verses you can recall and quote. I
know some who can quote many verses and put few of them into practice.
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.
“Perform” speaks of working out something to
completion. Many times we just don’t understand how to "work things
out."
Romans 7:19 For the good that I would I do
not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
This was written by a saved, born again,
Spirit-filled Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ!
Have you ever felt as if you were going in the wrong
direction? Before meeting Christ
that is exactly what each of us did. We can battle, fight with the flesh,
or rest in Christ Jesus. As we mature, we learn to rest!
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.
We may be led by
the Spirit, but occasionally we follow the flesh. We may fall away from Christ, but He cannot
fall away from us.
Hebrews 13:5b---“I will never leave thee,
nor forsake thee.”
The Greek text in
Hebrews 13:5 indicates that there is no set of circumstances that will cause
God to abandon Christians!
Romans 7:21 I find then a law, that, when
I would do good, evil is present with me.
We have responsibility because we take
responsibility. When we finally
"let" God be God within our hearts, He takes
responsibility. Satan’s job is to
make Christians think that God will abandon them.
Romans 7:22 For I delight in the law of
God after the inward man:
Paul’s spirit/heart did one thing, and his
mind did another. Every human being is like that.
We know that the Law, the Ten, is a delight
to God, however, Paul continues the next verse with “but.”
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.
Paul was human, saintly but human. Whenever he wanted to do God's will, Satan
was there to whisper in his ear an alternative plan.
Here is a point that must be understood, Satan
is not omnipresent. He
has demons by the score, but he is not omnipresent. Personally, I doubt that the archangel
Lucifer has appeared to any in today's crowd.
He is waiting for a more formidable opponent. His demons are hard at
work. Plus, men of corrupted values are
doing all the sinful things they can.
In verse 22 Paul says, "I delight in the
law of God after the inward man." Paul reached a maturity that allows him
to say, "Within my reborn spirit, I delight in the law of God. Sin is resident in our carnality.
Romans 7:24 O wretched man that I am! who shall
deliver me from the body of this death?
Who shall deliver
us from death? Christ Jesus!
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.
“Our Lord” speaks of a personal Lord. Lord
indicates an owner or proprietor. It is
not my car’s responsibility to take care of itself—it is my responsibility to
take care of my car, because I am the owner!
This verse is not a cry of defeat. It is a
declaration of a Saint under maturing construction.