Bible Commentaries
Romans 7

Verses 1-12

12 A realization of our death to sin and life in Christ will give us power to cope with sin, always remembering that sin cannot bring us into disfavor because of the superexceeding grace.

14 Law, as we shall see in the next chapter, not only cannot deliver from Sin, but actually forges the fetters of Sin, and makes Sin's bondage more cruel and galling.

15 The law said, "Accursed is everyone who is not remaining in all things written in the Scroll of the Law, to do them." Grace says, Blessed are you, whatever you may do, for Christ has justified you and not one dare bring anything against you. The fallacious logic of the old humanity in immediately imagines that this gives license and encouragement to sin. But its actual effect is quite the opposite. Grace, not law, has power to deter us from sinning. No one who has an actual experience of grace, reasons that because there is immunity, therefore he will sin. The offender against law flies in the face of law. Its austere threats do not hinder him.

But the offender against grace feels the heinousness of his offense and flies from it.

16 All of us are slaves, however much we may vaunt our liberty. We are controlled either by Sin or by Obedience. It is a cause of thankfulness that we all have had service under Sin, for only so could we realize the nature of such slavery. But we have not been taken from Sin's service to become idle. We have been transferred to the service of Righteousness .

20 Slaves of Sin can produce only the fruits of sin and know that the only possible outcome is death. But slaves of Righteousness have a brighter outlook. Even though ashamed of their lawless deeds, they look for life eonian.

23 Sin, like slave holders, does not pay wages, but only supplies rations. This consists, at present, in an attitude toward God which is the equivalent of death, for all Sin's slaves avoid God's presence. Hence their deeds will result in destruction. Neither do we, as slaves, look for wages. God not only gives , but gives graciously , or gratuitously, the very reward which is only for those whose endurance in good acts merits it-eonian life, or life for the eons ( Rom_2:7 ).

1 The apostle now addresses particularly those who have been under law, that is, who were of the Circumcision. His appeal, however, is not to the law itself, but to the nature of all law, that it has jurisdiction only over those who are alive.

2 The law of wedlock is given as a well-known example. A woman's subjection to her husband lasts only for his life. During his life she may have no relations with other men. After his death the ties which bind her to anew husband are just as sacred as those which united her to the former one.

4 A wife and her husband are one flesh ( Gen_2:24 ), hence the wife dies with the husband, but the woman remains. Those united to Christ under law died with Him to the law. Union with Christ in resurrection is a new relationship beyond the sphere of the law.

6 Exemption from the law applies only to those who were under the law. As the law is not unjust, like Sin, but just and holy, they continue to serve, no longer in letter, but in spirit.

7 The mistaken deduction from the foregoing is that the law itself is sin. Else why cease to serve its letter? Or else how does it make sin more sinful and transform it into an offense? Sin is not known in its true character except through law. Instead of sin being ignorant inability, it becomes the opposite. It is active hostility. The law which seemed to be given to regulate, only roused it. Sin is dormant or dead until law comes and gives it life. The law which should have given the sinner life, gave life to sin . It should have been the death blow of sin , but it became the death of the sinner. All this shows how futile it is to try to reform or regulate or conquer sin. It not only acts in darkness and ignorance but transforms the very light into an agent of death. The law offered life to those under it, on terms which, apart from sin, were all that could be desired. But sin not only disabled them so that they could not take advantage of its provisions, but involved them in its condemnation by stirring their passions against its just decrees.

Verses 13-25

13 From the supposition that the law being holy and just and good, involved him in death. it seems that what is good may become the cause of death. But such is not the case. It was not the law which produced death, but sin, misusing law. The real law and apparent functions of the law are very different. And. in order to effect its real object, it was necessary that it should not appear on the surface. The apparent object of the law was to give life to all who consistently and constantly kept it. As it never gave life to anyone, for no one was able to fulfill its demands, it appears as if the law has failed of its primary object. And, further, as it revived the passions of sin which were dormant, it seems to have defeated its own aim. But the real object of the law was to reveal the inordinate sinfulness of sin, and in this it was most successful.

15 This is the experience of one who does not realize his death to sin and the law, but who is endeavoring to keep the letter of the law. He finds that the law of sin in his members is far more potent than the law of God which appeals to his mind. He wants to do good; but cannot.

He does things which he hates to do, hence charges his misery to the indwelling sin which has taken possession of his body. He is a wretched captive. This will be the experience of all who make an earnest effort to please God by obeying the letter of that law which was broken even before it reached the people ( Exo_32:19 ) .

24 What is the answer to this wretched man's cry? It is grace . There is no other deliverance possible. This brings us back to where this disgression began, the reign of Grace at the end of the fifth chapter. It is only as we recognize the imperial sway of Grace, putting us beyond all possibility of condemnation, whether we sin or not, that we have real liberty and power sufficient to effect not only what was demanded by the law, but those higher duties which far transcend the righteous requirements of Sinai. Then we will not be wretched and self occupied, but happy and exulting in God, in Whose favor we are basking, and Whose delight we are, in Christ.

1 Condemnation is utterly out of the question for all in Christ Jesus. This is infinitely more than the atonement or shelter provided for sin by the sacrifices offered under the law. It is far beyond the pardon, or forgiveness, contained in the proclamation of the kingdom. The atonement needed to be renewed year by year, the pardon might be recalled. but the justification we have in Christ Jesus is nothing less than God's righteousness, which is absolutely inviolable. It was not secured by any act of ours and cannot be marred by aught that we can do. Sin only enhances the graciousness of it, but cannot sully or impair it.

2 The spirit's law of life, in Christ Jesus, is the opposite of the law of Sinai. That said: Obey, and live; disobey, and die. The spirit's law imparts life for the eons as God's gracious gift, apart from obedience or disobedience.

4 We do not fulfill the law in its letter. Grace leads us to act far beyond its spirit. Its just requirements, love to God and man, are fulfilled only by those who walk in spirit.

5 The flesh is not able to be subject to God's law. It is useless to try to train it to please Him. We are not justified in flesh. It is only in spirit that we can count ourselves as beyond all condemnation. The flesh is after the things of flesh and leads to death. But the spirit is concerned with spiritual things and makes for life and peace.

9 All who believe Him are indwelt by God's Spirit. Christ, by His Spirit, is in us. Consequently, our spirit is life, yet our body, being absolutely unresponsive to their presence is death. Thus, while we have but one body, it is the home of three spirits- God's Spirit, Christ's Spirit, and our spirit. As a result the spiritual force at our disposal is far greater than the flesh. Our own spirit is the seat of our new life, because of righteousness. Christ's Spirit gives us communion with Him. God's Spirit gives us power over our dead bodies, just as in the case of Christ, He roused His body from among the dead. He is able to vivify these deathdoomed bodies, so that they respond to the dictates of the spirit.