The Problem: Sin Within us
Notes
Transcript
Candle of Joy
Candle of Joy
Sing, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!
The Lord has taken away your judgments, He has cast out your enemy. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; You shall see disaster no more.
In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: “Do not fear; Zion, let not your hands be weak.
The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”
“I will gather those who sorrow over the appointed assembly, Who are among you, To whom its reproach is a burden.
Behold, at that time I will deal with all who afflict you; I will save the lame, And gather those who were driven out; I will appoint them for praise and fame In every land where they were put to shame.
At that time I will bring you back, Even at the time I gather you; For I will give you fame and praise Among all the peoples of the earth, When I return your captives before your eyes,” Says the Lord.
Scripture and Prayer
For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin.
For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.
If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good.
But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.
For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.
Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good.
For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.
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.
O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
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.
Intro:
Intro:
Paul has been spending some time in Romans 6 and 7 reminding us that sin has no authority over us any longer. For those of us who are in Jesus, sin does not have any authority over our lives, no power over our will, and it does not set up a home inside our hearts. Jesus is king over our lives now!
He has explained that we are justified by grace through faith, and that we are sanctified by grace. The Law was inadequate. It shows us where we are wrong, but it cannot conform us to God’s image.
Yet, in Romans 7:14-25 we read of battles that are taking place in the heart and life of the apostle Paul, and by the way, these are battles that we face as well.
I. Paul has learned that any attempt to keep the law leads to carnality (7:14–23).
I. Paul has learned that any attempt to keep the law leads to carnality (7:14–23).
1. The confusion (7:14–16):
There is some debate over who Paul is discussing.
Some say he speaks of his time before salvation.
Others that he was speaking of his life as a believer
The debate extends to the application: are we to consider this to address the lost or the believers?
As we see here, Paul is frustrated over the internal battle.
Someone who is willfully committing sin is not doing what he hates, because his mind approves of it. A lost person wouldn’t be conflicted over this so I believe he is addressing the believers battle with sin.
Paul’s frustration is twofold.
a. He doesn’t do the things he wants to do (7:14–15a, 16a).
For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin.
For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.
If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good.
Law is spiritual
It reflects God’s Holy character
Flesh is carnal
though redeemed, Paul, an we, still have a sin nature
Flesh and its nature is still with us
Sin no longer controls us, but it is present with us
This duality led to Paul’s frustration
It led to him failing in his bid to live perfectly
He desired to serve God and yet his flesh held him back and he didn’t always do what he wanted
b. He does the things he doesn’t want to do (7:15b, 16b).
This contamination went even further:
He did the very things he DIDN’T want to do
He sinned, just as we do
2. The corruption (7:17–20): He realizes the total corruption of his old sinful nature.
But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.
For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.
Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
The Gr. adverb for “no longer” signifies a complete and permanent change. Paul’s new inner self, the new “I,” no longer approved of the sin that was still residing in his flesh, like his old self did (cf. v. 22; Gal 2:20), but rather, strongly disapproved.
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
We are new, but our flesh has yet to be glorified and is still corrupted by sin
3. The conclusion (7:21–23):
I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good.
For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.
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.
He understands the daily struggle within him.
a. The old nature, always attempting to do wrong (7:21a, 23)
It is no longer at the core of his being like before being justified, but sin was always be present with him and with us.
Lust arises within us from the flesh
b. The new nature, always attempting to do right (7:21b–22)
The nature God gives wars against the flesh
Sanctification comes from God as He enables us to follow the new nature rather than our sinful one.1
Our new nature no longer sides with sin
II. Paul has learned that no attempt to keep the law can lead to spirituality (7:24–25).
II. Paul has learned that no attempt to keep the law can lead to spirituality (7:24–25).
1. The agony of Paul’s problem (7:24):
O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
In distress, Paul laments his sin
THIS is a key reason I think this describes the believer
A lost person wouldn’t hate sin like this!
IL: Tradition says that an ancient tribe near Tarsus tied the corpse of a murder victim to its murderer, allowing its spreading decay to slowly infect and execute the murderer—perhaps that is the image Paul has in mind.
John F. MacArthur Jr., The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2006), Ro 7:24.
That reminds me of this verse
Paul feels shackled to a dead body. “What a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin?”
Deliver me from this body of death
Paul wants us to understand that even though we are set free from the condemnation of the Law and even though sin has no power over us, there is still a battle going on between the good we want to do and the evil that seems to come so naturally.
IL: Remember those cartoons that showed a person who was going through a dilemma. On the one shoulder was an angel, on the other, a devil. Both the angel and devil would make their arguments trying to move the person in their direction. That’s the way we often feel.
First, this passage reminds us that we can do nothing in our own strength.
second, this passage is a reminder about God’s great love. Day after day we see ourselves stumble and fall.
We know we should not speak those negative words, but we do.
We know we should not respond in anger, but we do.
We know we should share the gospel message but we don’t
We know we should not entertain lustful thoughts but they still fill mind
We know we should address a problem but we don’t
We know we should do some act of service and compassion but we don’t
The verse is a cry for deliverance from the mortal nature, which is a combination of sin, death, and carnal appetite
How do we break out of this cycle?
The power of Jesus sanctifying us
2. The answer to Paul’s problem (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.
“Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Jesus can and does free us!
Deliverance from sin
God delivers people from sin in three stages through Christ:
The penalty of sin
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The power of sin
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
The presence of sin in heaven
heaven is free from sin, and that is the ultimate and final deliverance.
We won’t sin in Heaven for the same reason God doesn’t: He cannot sin. Our eternal inability to sin has been purchased by Christ’s blood. Our Savior purchased our perfection for all time.1233
Conc:
Conc:
References:
Randy Alcorn, TouchPoints: Heaven
Rev. Matthew C. McCraw, EdD, First Baptist Church, Bartow, Florida, https://fbcbartow.org/sermons/the-battles-romans-714-25/
Ray Pritchard, https://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/the-struggle/
https://activechristianity.org/truth-romans-7-not-want
Rev. Bruce Goettsche, https://sermons.logos.com/sermons/600036-an-encouraging-word-romans-7:14-25
MacArthur Study Bible NASB (Commentary)
The Outline Bible (Section Outline Seven (Romans 7))
