Romans 07(07–25)

Introduction

This is not the first time I’ve preached or spoken about this passage. And every time I’ve preached or spoken about it, I’m always said that Paul is writing about the inner conflict he experienced and which every believer experiences in our daily lives. We love God’s law and we want to do God’s law, but we find ourselves disobeying God’s law. We want to do good, but often, when we try to do good, we end up doing evil instead. And we end up doing evil, not because we want to do evil, but because of indwelling sin. Sin is inside me and it wages war against what I want to do with my mind, so that I end up doing evil. What wretched people we are, because of the conflict we suffer day by day. But thanks be to God, because we know that Christ our Saviour will rescue us from this battle with sin whenever we’re made perfect in God’s presence in the life to come. And even now, God is willing to forgive us for our sins and shortcomings because of Christ, who gave up his life to pay for our sins and who shed his blood to cleanse us.

That’s generally how I’ve always interpreted these verses and it’s generally what I’ve always said about them. I’ve preached these things and many, many, many other preachers have preached the very same things.

However, the last time I preached on this passage, which was at the midweek in 2015, I mentioned that there are other ways to interpret these verses and there are different views as to who Paul means when he refers in the passage to ‘I’. I mentioned some of the different views at the midweek, only to dismiss them. But the surprising thing is that I’ve now changed my mind and I’m no longer convinced that Paul is describing the inner conflict he experienced as a believer and the inner conflict which every believer experiences with sin. I’m no longer convinced that that’s how we should interpret these verses. And I’ve changed my mind largely because of what Paul has already been teaching us about sin. In chapter 6, he taught us that when we first believed in the Saviour and were united to him in his death and resurrection, it’s as if our old life of sin died and we were raised with Christ to live a new life of loving obedience to God. Sin is no longer our master the way it once was before we believed. Sin’s authority over us has died. Or, as Paul says in verses 17 and 18 of chapter 6, we used to be slaves to sin. We used to be slaves to sin, but we have now been set free from sin and we have become slaves to righteousness. We used to be enslaved to sin so that we did what it wanted, but now we have been set free from sin.

And since that’s the case, how can Paul say in verse 14 of chapter 7 that, as a believer, he is sold as a slave to sin? How can Paul say about believers in chapter 7 that we’re slaves to sin when he’s just told us in chapter 6 that believers have been set free from sin?

And so, I’m now more inclined to go along with those scholars who say that Paul is describing his own experience before he was converted to faith in Christ. And it’s the experience of Paul’s fellow Jews who loved God’s law, but who were unable to keep God’s law.

And so, when Paul refers to ‘I’, he’s not referring to himself as a Christian believer. He’s referring to himself as he once was and he’s referring to himself as a kind of representative Jew.

And, as one of the commentators is careful to point out, the focus of today’s passage is on the law and how the law cannot help us to fight against sin in our lives. The law might tell us what to do, but it doesn’t help us to do what it commands. That’s why we need the help of the Holy Spirit. And we receive the help of the Holy Spirit through faith in the Saviour, who loved us and who gave up his life to deliver us from all wickedness and who gives us his Spirit to make us more and more willing and able to do God’s will here on earth. And that’s what Paul will go on to write about in chapter 8. But in today’s passage, he’s describing his life before he was converted to faith in Christ. And he’s describing the life of his fellow Jews.

Verses 7 to 12

Let’s turn then to the first part of today’s passage, which is verses 7 to 12.

In the previous verses, Paul was saying that instead of restraining sin, the law actually arouses our sinful passions. So, before we believed, we would hear a command from God and something inside us made us want to disobey him.

Since that’s the case, is the law sin? Is the law evil? If the law arouses our sinful passions, is the law evil? That’s the question Paul poses in verse 7 and he answers it with a resounding no. ‘Certainly not!’ he says. No way. Not at all.

And in the rest of verses 7 to 12 Paul teaches us that there’s nothing wrong with God’s law. God’s law is good. The problem lies with us. Until we’re converted to faith in Christ, sin makes us do evil.

And so, he defends the law by saying that he wouldn’t have known what sin is without the law. And what he means is that the law makes clear to us what God requires from us. The law tells us which actions are sinful and which actions are not sinful. And so, it shows us what sin is.

And Paul gives us an example in verse 7. He says that he wouldn’t have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, ‘Do not covet.’ So, the tenth commandment about coveting forbids every sinful desire for what belongs to our neighbour and it requires us to be content with what God has given us. And Paul is saying that he didn’t realise that coveting was wrong until he heard that commandment. Until he heard the tenth commandment, he probably thought desiring his neighbour’s property was normal and acceptable. And so, the law is good. It’s good because it shows us what God regards as evil.

However, Paul discovered something about himself when he heard the law. He discovered that sin inside him would use the law to stir up his sinful passions and desires. Sin, he says, seized the opportunity afforded by the law and produced in him all kinds of covetous desires. Sin hijacked the law and used the law for evil, instead of for good, by using the law to stir up his own sinful desires.

And then Paul says at the end of verse 8 that ‘apart from the law, sin is dead’. And according to the interpretation I’m now following, what he means is that, before God gave the law to the Israelites at Mount Sinai in the days of Moses, sin didn’t have the same power over the people as it had over them after the giving of the law. And that’s because, after the giving of the law at Mount Sinai, sin sprang to life and it began to arouse their sinful passions. So, think of a plant that is withering in the sun. It’s dying. But then someone sprinkles the plant with water and it springs to life again. And without the law to water their sin, sin was dead. Or it was dormant. But when the law came at Mount Sinai, it caused sin within the people to spring to life and it made them do evil.

Paul is clear that the law itself is holy. It’s holy because it’s from God who is holy and it expresses his holy will for his people. And the law is righteous and good. We can’t fault God’s law. God’s law, like God himself, is perfect.

But the problem is that we’re not perfect. And when we hear God’s law, sin inside us wants us to break God’s law.

And remember: Paul is describing his experience before he was converted to faith in Christ. And this is the experience of his fellow Jews. They loved God’s law, but they kept breaking God’s law because of sin living inside them.

Verses 13 and 14

Let’s move on to verses 13 and 14 where Paul asks another question: ‘Did that which is good … become death to me?’ When he refers to that which is good, he means God’s law or God’s commandment. So, did God’s good commandment produce death in me? And he again answers that question with a resounding no. ‘By no means!’ he says. No way.

And in the rest of verses 13 and 14 Paul essentially repeats the same two ideas as before.

So he once again makes clear that God’s law is good. It’s good because it shows us what sin is. In fact, the law makes clear to us that sin is utterly sinful. It shows us that sin is not something insignificant or unimportant. It is not inconsequential. Sin is a serious matter.

And so, the law is good because it makes this clear to us. And the law is good because it is spiritual. And when Paul says that the law is spiritual, he means that it’s from God. It comes from him.

So, the law is good. And therefore the problem lies with us. The problem lies with us, because we’re slaves to sin. Do you see that in verse 14? And when Paul says he’s a slave to sin, he’s referring to the way he once was, before he was converted to faith in Christ. And this is true for his fellow Jews. And it’s true for every unbeliever. Every unbeliever is enslaved to sin and sin bosses them around and makes them do evil.

And so, there’s nothing wrong with God’s law. The problem lies within us. And so, it’s not the law which produces death in us. It’s sin that produces death in us. Unbelievers stand condemned before God, not because of the law, but because of their own sin.

Verses 15 to 20

Paul goes on in verses 15 to 20 to describe what life was like for him before he was converted to faith in Christ. And in describing his own experience, he’s describing the experience of his fellow Jews.

And he does so by using a series of contrasts. And so, if you glance down through the verses, you’ll see that he says something and then there’s a ‘but’. So, what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. That’s in verse 15. It is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. That’s in verse 17. I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. That’s verse 18. What I do is not the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do, this I keep on doing. That’s verse 19. It is no longer I who do it, but it’s sin living in me. That’s verse 20.

Let’s look at these contrasts. First of all, he says in verse 15 that he does not understand what he does. And there are lots of people like that: people who don’t understand themselves and what they do and what they don’t do. I suppose that’s why lots of people visit therapists these days or they read self-help books or they turn to other people for advice. We don’t understand why we do the things we do and we want someone to help us to understand. And Paul describes the problem he had which he does not understand: What he wants to do, he doesn’t do. Instead he ends up doing what he doesn’t want to do. He means he wants to do what God’s law commands. He wants to do whatever is good in God’s sight. But he doesn’t do it. Instead he does what he knows is evil.

In verse 17 he says that it’s not I myself who does what is wrong, but it’s sin living in him. So, if you were to ask Paul what he wanted to do before he was converted to Christ, he would say that he wanted to obey God’s law. He wanted to obey it, because he knows it is good. If you asked him, he would say that yes, God’s law is good and I want to keep it. But he ends up disobeying God’s law. Why? It’s because there’s something inside him which makes him do evil. And what is that something inside him which makes him do evil? It’s sin. But Paul is not excusing himself here. He’s not saying that sin is to blame and he isn’t. He’s not saying that, because he knows that the sin is inside him. It’s his sin. It’s his sinful self which is drawing him to evil. And so, he goes on in verse 18 to say that he knows nothing good lives in his sinful nature and while he may have the desire to do good, he’s unable to carry out that good desire. And he’s unable to carry out that good desire, because of sin which makes him to what is evil.

Again he says in verse 19 that what he does is not the good he wants to do. Instead he ends up doing the evil he does not want to do. And the reason he ends up doing the evil he does not want to do is because of sin which is living inside him and which is making him do evil.

What a terrible existence! But this what Paul’s life was like before he trusted in Christ for salvation. It’s the experience of all his fellow Jews who agree that the law is good and they want to keep it, but they can’t. And it’s the experience of so many people before they trust in Christ for salvation. There are lots of unbelievers who have good intentions. They want to do good. They have high moral standards. They know what’s right and they know what’s wrong and they want to do what is good and right and commendable. They want to live well. But they find themselves doing evil all the time. What an awful existence! Can you imagine the inner conflict? Can you imagine the despair and self-loathing? Can you imagine how people must hate themselves when they find themselves doing what they don’t want to do? They must be so frustrated and angry with themselves. Why am I like this? Why do I keep doing what I know is wrong? Why do I keep doing what I don’t want to do? Why can’t I control myself and my desires? Why am I like this?

Well, Paul has come to see why he used to be like that. Now that he’s a Christian he can look back on his former life and his former self and he can say that the reason he always ended up doing what he hated to do is because of indwelling sin. Sin was inside him and sin was his master and he couldn’t stop himself from doing what sin wanted.

Verses 21 to 25

And in verse 21 he begins to wrap things up. He says that he has discovered this law or this rule. This is a lesson he has learned about his life: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. And he wants to do good, because in his inner being he delights in God’s law.

However, as well as loving God’s law with his mind, he also knew that sin was at work in him. And sin was working against what he thought about God’s law. Sin was fighting against his love for God’s law and sin was keeping him a prisoner. And so, there were these two competing forces in his life at that time: the law of his mind telling him that God’s law is good; and the law of sin telling him to do evil. And, as he says right at the end of verse 25, in his mind he’s a slave to God’s law. He wanted to do it. But because he wasn’t yet a Christian, then he was also a slave to the law of sin.

And so, who will rescue him from this body of death? Who will rescue him from himself and his own weakness? Who will rescue him from his own evil desires? Who will rescue him?

And remember: according to the interpretation I’m following, Paul is not saying this as a believer. As a believer, as someone who trusts in Christ, he has died to sin and sin’s power over him has been broken. Sin is no longer his master and he’s been raised with Christ to live a new life of loving obedience to God. So, he’s not saying these things as a believer. He’s describing his former life, before he believed, when he tried his best to keep God’s law, but he continually frustrated his own best efforts because of sin living inside him.

And in describing his old life, he’s also describing the life of every Jew who loves God law but who is unable to keep it. And he’s describing the life of every unbeliever who wants to do good, but whose best intentions are continually frustrated by sin.

And so, who will rescue them? Who will rescue all those people today who are frustrated with their own weakness and who long to rise above their broken lives and their destructive habits and who are angry and frustrated with themselves because every time they resolve to do better, they end up stumbling and going back to the same old way of life? Who will rescue them?

God will rescue them. God will rescue them through Jesus Christ our Lord, who gave up his life on the cross to pay for our sins and who shed his blood to cleanse us of our guilt and who gives his Holy Spirit to all who believe. And his Holy Spirit works in us to renew us in the image of God and to enable us more and more to overcome the sinful desires within us and to resist the temptations that come at us from outside. The Lord Jesus sends his Spirit to bring God’s people to perfection so that one day we’ll be holy and blameless in his sight.

And if you’re a believer, if you’re trusting in Christ for salvation, then sin’s tyranny over you has already been broken. And you’ve been raised with Christ to live a life of loving obedience to God. And Christ has filled you with his Spirit to bring you to perfection. And as you present yourself to God Sunday by Sunday to worship him and to give thanks for his many blessings, the Holy Spirit uses the things we do here on Sundays to renew you in God’s image. He uses the reading and preaching of his word and the sacraments and our public prayers to remind us that sin is no longer our master and that Christ has saved us from the power of sin so that we will live lives of loving obedience. And so, the way to grow in holiness is to pray for God’s blessing on us as we come before him in church each Sunday, where he reminds us of what he has already done for us and where he works in us to bring us to perfection.