Good morning and thank you for your patience yesterday when I had to miss our blog time to go to the doctor to get treatment for a large outbreak of poison ivy. I've blistered and broken out even more overnight in spite of the shot and the other medicines I was given yesterday, so I desire your prayers for healing. There is no question of me taking any sick days this week because we are too short-handed, but I trust that with God's help and your prayers I will make it through. Today we learn that God is working all things out for our good, so that means He can even use my current discomfort to accomplish something worthwhile.
We concluded Sunday's study with the Apostle Paul speaking about how humans and the entire creation are waiting for redemption. He says as we pick back up in Romans 8, "For in this hope we are saved." (Romans 8:24a) In consulting several commentaries it would appear that a more accurate rendering of the original text would be, "For we are saved by hope." What hope does the Apostle Paul mean? Our hope in Christ, for He is the only hope we have. We believe in Him and so we wait for the day when all the things He has promised us will be fulfilled. We believe He has redeemed our souls; we believe He will redeem our bodies as well.
"But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." (Romans 8:24b-25) What gives us this hope? Our faith, as the Apostle Paul says in his letter to the Hebrews, "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1) He's talking about a hope we can count on. He's not talking about the kind of hope we have when we say, "I hope it doesn't rain today.' or, 'I hope I got a good score on my test,' or, 'I hope I get that promotion at work.' He's talking about a hope that is already in our bank account, so to speak. We already have the assurance that the things Christ has promised us will be fulfilled, so our hope does not consist of wondering whether or not these things are going to happen. Our hope is an expectant, waiting type of hope such as, "It may be today, or it may be tomorrow, or it may be a thousand years from now. But Christ is going to do everything He says He's going to do. He is going to give me an eternal, incorruptible body like His. He is going to redeem the creation and make the world like Eden again. I accept on faith that these things are coming and I am able to rest securely in the knowledge that sooner or later these promises will come true."
Until the redemption of our bodies comes, God the Son helps us with the weaknesses we have in these mortal bodies. He helps us by giving us hope and by making intercession for us with God the Father. He also helps us by sending God the Holy Spirit to indwell us and guide us in our daily lives. "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God." (Romans 8:26-27) Christ performs intercession for us for our sins, the Spirit performs intercession for us for the guidance of our lives. We don't always know what is best for us. We pray for things that are not sinful in themselves but that don't always line up with God's plans for our lives, so the Spirit prays for us in accordance with the will of God. If we are in Christ, then the Holy Spirit dwells within us, and the Holy Spirit prays for us. There have been many times I was so upset or confused that I had no idea what to pray for. I wasn't in any condition to pray. I can remember several times in my life when I've thanked the Holy Spirit for praying for me. I couldn't pray for myself. Even if I'd been able to put sensible thoughts together I wouldn't have known what to ask for. But the Holy Spirit knew and I was able to take comfort in the fact that He was praying for me.
Right now I'm praying earnestly about something that could be a big and exciting change for my husband and me. I don't yet know the Lord's will in this matter. I know what I want, but I don't know what God wants. The only thing I know for sure is that God knows best, so although He may not answer my prayers in the way I want, He's still my God. If He says "no" I'm probably going to feel sad and disappointed, maybe even angry (because let's be honest: sometimes we get angry at God), but He's still going to be my God. When He says "no" it's because He sees the future and He knows whether or not the thing we are praying for is going to be good for us, as the Apostle Paul points out, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)
Not everything that happens to us is what we would call "good". Disappointment isn't good. Being wronged by our fellow man isn't good. Suffering isn't good. Death isn't good. But God is able to use these things in our lives to bring about something that is good. If it weren't for some of the bad things that have happened to me, I wouldn't be studying the Bible with you this morning. If I hadn't been through things that led me to Christ, I would have no desire to study the Bible. If I hadn't experienced some of the things that have happened since I've come to Christ, I wouldn't love His holy word the way I do. If He hadn't helped me in my struggles, I wouldn't be here reminding you He will help you in your struggles. Some troubles came about because Satan wanted to harm me. Some troubles came about because other people wanted to harm me. Some troubles came about because I brought them on myself. But the Lord is able to use anything that is given over to Him---even our troubles and pain and disappointment---to do something good in our lives.
Joseph, the son of Jacob, would have been in full agreement with the Apostle Paul's words. Joseph was despised and betrayed by his brothers and sold into slavery. He was falsely accused and imprisoned for many years for an act he didn't commit. But the Lord used the bad things in his life for good. If Joseph had never gone through his struggles, he would not have developed the necessary character or the relationship with the Lord that later made him fit for a position of high leadership in Egypt. This is why Joseph said these words to his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good." (Genesis 50:20) This is what we who love the Lord can say to any enemy or to any hardship that comes our way, "Your intention is to harm me. Well, the joke is on you, because God intends to use this for my good!"
Tuesday, June 12, 2018
Monday, June 11, 2018
DELAY IN TODAY'S POST FOR MEDICAL REASONS
I apologize for not getting today's blog post done on time. This weekend I've broken out with poison ivy on both legs and both arms with intense itching and swelling. It seems to be getting worse by the minute, so I've got to go to the walk-in clinic early this morning as soon as they open so that maybe they will give me a shot and I can manage to make it to work on time.
Thank you for your understanding. Prayers for fast healing would also be appreciated; this is even worse than the two times I had Shingles, and I thought that was pretty bad.
Thank you for your understanding. Prayers for fast healing would also be appreciated; this is even worse than the two times I had Shingles, and I thought that was pretty bad.
Sunday, June 10, 2018
The Letter Of The Apostle Paul To The Romans. Day 27, The Creation Redeemed
Christ came into the world so that man could be redeemed, and He also intends to redeem the entire creation so that the earth is returned to an Eden-like state. Paul speaks today of the glory that is ahead for us and for the creation.
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18) There was no suffering in this world before Adam fell from grace. It was sin that brought suffering into the world. Sin is the most deadly kind of pollution there is, and it has permeated everything. Becoming a Christian doesn't eliminate suffering in our lives; after all, Christ Himself suffered on this earth. Paul the apostle endured a great deal of suffering and eventually was martyred for his faith, so he knows what he's talking about when he speaks of suffering. But he also knows what he's talking about when he speaks of our future glory. The glory that is to come is going to be so overwhelming and so wonderful that it will have the power to make our sufferings seem like no more than a bad dream we once had.
The first time I recall ever reading verse 18 was in a hospital while I sat with a broken heart by my mother's bedside as she was losing her fight with cancer in 1996. I can't tell you how much this verse comforted me. She was in a great deal of pain and distress, yet Paul says no matter how bad the suffering is it isn't worthy of comparison to the glory that will someday be ours. My mother has been with the Lord for twenty-two years now and nothing in heaven or earth could entice her to return to an earthly body if it were possible for her to do so. Her suffering is over. She sees her Savior face to face. She will be in His presence forever, never again to have pain or sorrow. If we could ask her about the suffering she endured on earth, I believe she would say, "Oh, that? I'd almost forgotten about that. I don't spend any time thinking back on my struggles during my life on earth. I spend all my time rejoicing in my Savior and being thankful that I will live forever and ever and ever with Him."
We look forward to the day when we won't be subject to suffering and death any longer. The creation itself looks forward to that day. "For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the One who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God." (Romans 8:19-21) The world and everything in it fell into the bondage of decay when man fell from grace. Man brought sin into the world and brought the whole world down with him. But when the fullness of our redemption has come, and when the Lord Himself reigns as king over all the world, the curse of sin will be no more.
The prophet Isaiah foresaw the redemption of creation and said, "The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, and calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra's den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." (Isaiah 11:6-9)
In Genesis we learn that in the beginning humans and animals were vegetarians. Humans didn't prey on animals for food and animals didn't prey on each other for food. The Lord is going to restore man and the animals to a state of harmony with each other. Animals will be so tame that a rattlesnake could be petted in the same way we pet our dogs and cats today. The pastures will contain the amazing and delightful sight of cows and horses grazing along with lions and bears. If you are an animal lover, like I am, this knowledge will warm your heart. The Lord never wanted us to have to slaughter animals for food and He never wanted animals to have to kill each other for food, but the pollution of sin apparently changed the actual atmosphere in such a way that ever since the flood the earth evidently does not produce enough of the nutrients humans and animals need through plant life alone. Doctors and scientists say that meat is actually bad for us, yet most human beings and most of the animals of higher intelligence crave it. As much as I love animals, and as much as my little dog loves other animals, both of us would rather eat a steak than a baked potato. This is what sin and its pollution has done to us. Our natural bodies crave the taste of flesh. The plant materials of this sin-polluted world don't contain as much protein, iron, and other nutrients as evidently they once did, so our answer to this problem has been to eat the flesh of animals.
We know in our hearts that this world is not what it originally was. We know it was meant to be something more, something better. The animal kingdom knows it too. So both humans and animals eagerly await the day when our Creator redeems the entire creation. "We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies." (Romans 8:22-24)
If we are in Christ our souls have already been redeemed. Christ is going to redeem our bodies too. Just as He rose from the dead with an immortal and incorruptible body, we too will rise with immortal and incorruptible bodies. The Apostle John believed this with all his heart, and although he couldn't quite wrap his mind around what our glorious immortal bodies will be like, he looked forward to the day when we will have bodies like Christ's. "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him like He is." (1 John 3:2) The Apostle John saw the resurrected Christ in person. He talked with Him and ate with Him. But he didn't see the resurrected Christ in all His glory. John got a glimpse of the glorified Christ on the Isle of Patmos when he was given the prophecies of Revelation, but in his humanity he could not fully see the Lord as He is. I believe the Lord had to hold some of His glory back or else it would have killed John, for what John did see caused him to fall in a dead faint at the feet of Christ. (Revelation 1:17) But when Christ raises our bodies from the dead, we will be like Him, and therefore we will be able to see Him in all the fullness of His glory.
A day is coming when our perishable bodies will be made imperishable. The bodies we have used for dishonorable things will become completely honorable and incapable of sin. The bodies that become sick, that died, and that were buried in weakness will be raised in power. (1 Corinthians 15:42-43)
Christ has redeemed our souls. He will redeem our bodies too. He will redeem the creation. At that time the visions given to men like Isaiah and John will come true, and the earth will be Eden again---only better, because then the Lord will dwell on earth with those who have trusted in Him. "Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and His servants will serve Him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign forever and ever." (Revelation 22:1-5)
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18) There was no suffering in this world before Adam fell from grace. It was sin that brought suffering into the world. Sin is the most deadly kind of pollution there is, and it has permeated everything. Becoming a Christian doesn't eliminate suffering in our lives; after all, Christ Himself suffered on this earth. Paul the apostle endured a great deal of suffering and eventually was martyred for his faith, so he knows what he's talking about when he speaks of suffering. But he also knows what he's talking about when he speaks of our future glory. The glory that is to come is going to be so overwhelming and so wonderful that it will have the power to make our sufferings seem like no more than a bad dream we once had.
The first time I recall ever reading verse 18 was in a hospital while I sat with a broken heart by my mother's bedside as she was losing her fight with cancer in 1996. I can't tell you how much this verse comforted me. She was in a great deal of pain and distress, yet Paul says no matter how bad the suffering is it isn't worthy of comparison to the glory that will someday be ours. My mother has been with the Lord for twenty-two years now and nothing in heaven or earth could entice her to return to an earthly body if it were possible for her to do so. Her suffering is over. She sees her Savior face to face. She will be in His presence forever, never again to have pain or sorrow. If we could ask her about the suffering she endured on earth, I believe she would say, "Oh, that? I'd almost forgotten about that. I don't spend any time thinking back on my struggles during my life on earth. I spend all my time rejoicing in my Savior and being thankful that I will live forever and ever and ever with Him."
We look forward to the day when we won't be subject to suffering and death any longer. The creation itself looks forward to that day. "For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the One who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God." (Romans 8:19-21) The world and everything in it fell into the bondage of decay when man fell from grace. Man brought sin into the world and brought the whole world down with him. But when the fullness of our redemption has come, and when the Lord Himself reigns as king over all the world, the curse of sin will be no more.
The prophet Isaiah foresaw the redemption of creation and said, "The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, and calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra's den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." (Isaiah 11:6-9)
In Genesis we learn that in the beginning humans and animals were vegetarians. Humans didn't prey on animals for food and animals didn't prey on each other for food. The Lord is going to restore man and the animals to a state of harmony with each other. Animals will be so tame that a rattlesnake could be petted in the same way we pet our dogs and cats today. The pastures will contain the amazing and delightful sight of cows and horses grazing along with lions and bears. If you are an animal lover, like I am, this knowledge will warm your heart. The Lord never wanted us to have to slaughter animals for food and He never wanted animals to have to kill each other for food, but the pollution of sin apparently changed the actual atmosphere in such a way that ever since the flood the earth evidently does not produce enough of the nutrients humans and animals need through plant life alone. Doctors and scientists say that meat is actually bad for us, yet most human beings and most of the animals of higher intelligence crave it. As much as I love animals, and as much as my little dog loves other animals, both of us would rather eat a steak than a baked potato. This is what sin and its pollution has done to us. Our natural bodies crave the taste of flesh. The plant materials of this sin-polluted world don't contain as much protein, iron, and other nutrients as evidently they once did, so our answer to this problem has been to eat the flesh of animals.
We know in our hearts that this world is not what it originally was. We know it was meant to be something more, something better. The animal kingdom knows it too. So both humans and animals eagerly await the day when our Creator redeems the entire creation. "We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies." (Romans 8:22-24)
If we are in Christ our souls have already been redeemed. Christ is going to redeem our bodies too. Just as He rose from the dead with an immortal and incorruptible body, we too will rise with immortal and incorruptible bodies. The Apostle John believed this with all his heart, and although he couldn't quite wrap his mind around what our glorious immortal bodies will be like, he looked forward to the day when we will have bodies like Christ's. "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him like He is." (1 John 3:2) The Apostle John saw the resurrected Christ in person. He talked with Him and ate with Him. But he didn't see the resurrected Christ in all His glory. John got a glimpse of the glorified Christ on the Isle of Patmos when he was given the prophecies of Revelation, but in his humanity he could not fully see the Lord as He is. I believe the Lord had to hold some of His glory back or else it would have killed John, for what John did see caused him to fall in a dead faint at the feet of Christ. (Revelation 1:17) But when Christ raises our bodies from the dead, we will be like Him, and therefore we will be able to see Him in all the fullness of His glory.
A day is coming when our perishable bodies will be made imperishable. The bodies we have used for dishonorable things will become completely honorable and incapable of sin. The bodies that become sick, that died, and that were buried in weakness will be raised in power. (1 Corinthians 15:42-43)
Christ has redeemed our souls. He will redeem our bodies too. He will redeem the creation. At that time the visions given to men like Isaiah and John will come true, and the earth will be Eden again---only better, because then the Lord will dwell on earth with those who have trusted in Him. "Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and His servants will serve Him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign forever and ever." (Revelation 22:1-5)
Saturday, June 9, 2018
The Letter Of The Apostle Paul To The Romans. Day 26, Co-Heirs With Christ
We who are in Christ have new life in Christ. The body is still subject to death because the human race fell from grace, so we are "destined to die once". (Hebrews 9:27) But we are not destined to die twice! If we are in Christ, physical death is the only death we will ever have to face. We will not have to face the second death, which is still an eternal existence of the soul but is also an eternal separation from God. That is a fate far worse than death! Eternal separation from the presence of God is the eternal separation from light and love and hope. This is the most terrible fate than can ever befall a human being.
Paul speaks on the theme of death for the body but life for the soul by saying, "But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of His Spirit who lives in you." (Romans 8:10-11)
The fate of our eternal souls is up to us. We can choose Christ and experience only the physical death of the body, or we can reject Christ and experience the physical death of the body and a fate worse than death for our souls. "Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation---but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live." (Romans 8:12-13) We accomplished nothing worthwhile when we lived in rebellion toward God. The things we did while we served ourselves are things that brought us shame and not honor. So why live according to the flesh any longer? What use is such a lifestyle? But living for Christ has benefits both in this life and in the life to come. We owe our lives to Christ who loved us and gave Himself for us; we owe nothing to the flesh or to the world or to sin. Sin never did anything good for us; why should we serve it any longer?
Now that we are in Christ and Christ is in us, we are the sons and daughters of the holy God. He couldn't call us His children while we were slaves to sin. We belonged to our father the devil then. (John 8:44) But now that we have redemption through Christ, the One whom Christ called "Father" is our Father too. "For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by Him we cry, 'Abba, Father.' The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children." (Romans 8:14-16) A slave cannot call his master "father". He certainly cannot call his master "abba", which is a term that means something like "daddy" in English. But in Christ we are now the children of the living God, and the fear we feel is reverence, not the fear a slave might feel toward his master. Was I ever afraid my daddy would beat me or kill me if I made a mistake or if I came to him for help? Of course not; I had a daddy who loved me. As the children of God we don't need to be afraid to come to Him for help. Like any loving father, God wants us to come to Him for help. My daddy used to tell me that nothing was so bad I needed to lie about it. If I made a mistake he just wanted me to be up front about it, to get it out into the open, and to get past it. God is the same way. He wants us to come to Him and say, "Daddy, I made a mistake. I did something I shouldn't have. I want to tell You about it so I can get this heavy burden off my chest. I want to tell You about it because You can give me absolution for my sincere repentance. You can help me not to keep doing this wrong thing."
Paul is writing to Roman citizens, and in the Roman culture an adoption was irrevocable. When a Roman man adopted a son, that son no longer had any ties or any obligation to his old family. That son became a full heir of the Roman man's estate, just as if he were a biological child. That son had the same rights as any biological children the Roman man may have already had or may have had in the future. Any debts the son may have racked up before his adoption were cancelled. So now that we are in Christ we belong to the Father just as much as Christ (His biological Son) belongs to Him. We no longer have any ties to our old lives. The debt we owed God for our sins is cancelled. In every way we are new people with new lives, just as an adopted son in Roman society was considered to be a new man with a new life.
A Roman adoption was a legal proceeding that had to be witnessed. If at any time someone wanted to challenge whether the adoption had actually taken place or whether it was carried out according to the law, the witnesses would be called to give their testimony that they had in fact seen the adoption carried out properly. This is what the Holy Spirit does. He indwells us as a continual witness that we are the adopted sons and daughters of God. Because the Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity, and therefore known as God the Holy Spirit, there is no higher authority who can attest to our adoption. If God says we are adopted, there can be no argument about it. His testimony puts an end to any disputes regarding to whom we belong.
"Now if we are children, then we are heirs---heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory." (Romans 8:17) The fact that we are co-heirs with the perfect and holy Son of God is to me one of the most astounding statements of the Bible. We are so sinful and broken. We are so unworthy of being called the children of Christ. But God loved us in spite of our fallen condition and made a way for us to not only be redeemed from a life of futility and sin, but also to become His legal children and to share in the same inheritance He is going to give to His biological Son.
If we are the brothers and sisters of Christ, we must be willing to endure anything that our brother Christ endured. We must take part in whatever befalls the family of God. We can't expect the world to love us any more than it loved Christ. We can't expect to experience only the good times and never experience some hard times. Jesus Christ is the biological son of the living God, and He is holy and perfect, and He is the only human being who can truly be called "good", but He faced hardship and persecution in His life on earth. If the One who did no wrong didn't have it easy here, we can't expect everything to go our way. If we are part of His family, we must love Him enough to stand up for Him, just as He loved us enough to stand up for us.
Paul speaks on the theme of death for the body but life for the soul by saying, "But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of His Spirit who lives in you." (Romans 8:10-11)
The fate of our eternal souls is up to us. We can choose Christ and experience only the physical death of the body, or we can reject Christ and experience the physical death of the body and a fate worse than death for our souls. "Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation---but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live." (Romans 8:12-13) We accomplished nothing worthwhile when we lived in rebellion toward God. The things we did while we served ourselves are things that brought us shame and not honor. So why live according to the flesh any longer? What use is such a lifestyle? But living for Christ has benefits both in this life and in the life to come. We owe our lives to Christ who loved us and gave Himself for us; we owe nothing to the flesh or to the world or to sin. Sin never did anything good for us; why should we serve it any longer?
Now that we are in Christ and Christ is in us, we are the sons and daughters of the holy God. He couldn't call us His children while we were slaves to sin. We belonged to our father the devil then. (John 8:44) But now that we have redemption through Christ, the One whom Christ called "Father" is our Father too. "For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by Him we cry, 'Abba, Father.' The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children." (Romans 8:14-16) A slave cannot call his master "father". He certainly cannot call his master "abba", which is a term that means something like "daddy" in English. But in Christ we are now the children of the living God, and the fear we feel is reverence, not the fear a slave might feel toward his master. Was I ever afraid my daddy would beat me or kill me if I made a mistake or if I came to him for help? Of course not; I had a daddy who loved me. As the children of God we don't need to be afraid to come to Him for help. Like any loving father, God wants us to come to Him for help. My daddy used to tell me that nothing was so bad I needed to lie about it. If I made a mistake he just wanted me to be up front about it, to get it out into the open, and to get past it. God is the same way. He wants us to come to Him and say, "Daddy, I made a mistake. I did something I shouldn't have. I want to tell You about it so I can get this heavy burden off my chest. I want to tell You about it because You can give me absolution for my sincere repentance. You can help me not to keep doing this wrong thing."
Paul is writing to Roman citizens, and in the Roman culture an adoption was irrevocable. When a Roman man adopted a son, that son no longer had any ties or any obligation to his old family. That son became a full heir of the Roman man's estate, just as if he were a biological child. That son had the same rights as any biological children the Roman man may have already had or may have had in the future. Any debts the son may have racked up before his adoption were cancelled. So now that we are in Christ we belong to the Father just as much as Christ (His biological Son) belongs to Him. We no longer have any ties to our old lives. The debt we owed God for our sins is cancelled. In every way we are new people with new lives, just as an adopted son in Roman society was considered to be a new man with a new life.
A Roman adoption was a legal proceeding that had to be witnessed. If at any time someone wanted to challenge whether the adoption had actually taken place or whether it was carried out according to the law, the witnesses would be called to give their testimony that they had in fact seen the adoption carried out properly. This is what the Holy Spirit does. He indwells us as a continual witness that we are the adopted sons and daughters of God. Because the Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity, and therefore known as God the Holy Spirit, there is no higher authority who can attest to our adoption. If God says we are adopted, there can be no argument about it. His testimony puts an end to any disputes regarding to whom we belong.
"Now if we are children, then we are heirs---heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings in order that we may also share in His glory." (Romans 8:17) The fact that we are co-heirs with the perfect and holy Son of God is to me one of the most astounding statements of the Bible. We are so sinful and broken. We are so unworthy of being called the children of Christ. But God loved us in spite of our fallen condition and made a way for us to not only be redeemed from a life of futility and sin, but also to become His legal children and to share in the same inheritance He is going to give to His biological Son.
If we are the brothers and sisters of Christ, we must be willing to endure anything that our brother Christ endured. We must take part in whatever befalls the family of God. We can't expect the world to love us any more than it loved Christ. We can't expect to experience only the good times and never experience some hard times. Jesus Christ is the biological son of the living God, and He is holy and perfect, and He is the only human being who can truly be called "good", but He faced hardship and persecution in His life on earth. If the One who did no wrong didn't have it easy here, we can't expect everything to go our way. If we are part of His family, we must love Him enough to stand up for Him, just as He loved us enough to stand up for us.
Friday, June 8, 2018
The Letter Of The Apostle Paul To The Romans. Day 25, Governed By The Spirit
Now that we are in Christ Jesus we are to be governed not by our weak human natures but by the Holy Spirit who lives in us. We discuss today what it means to have the seal of the Holy Spirit on our lives.
Paul concluded yesterday's passage by saying that when Christ gave His life for us He condemned sin by His own flesh, "in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit". (Romans 8:4) We have already concluded that we have never been able to fulfill the law, so how is it that the righteous requirement of the law is now fully met by us who are in Christ? The requirement is met because we are in Christ and Christ fulfilled the law. We trust in what He did for us, not in what we can do for ourselves. If we got up every morning of our lives determined to keep both the letter of the law and the spirit of the law, we couldn't do it. We could keep some of it. We might even be able to keep all of the most important laws. But we couldn't keep all of them, so our only hope of righteousness is through Christ who perfectly kept the law and who offered Himself in our place.
Since we now belong to our Redeemer, we have the Holy Spirit to guide us. "Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God." (Romans 8:5-8) Before we knew our Redeemer we lived at a distance from God. We lived for ourselves. This is what Paul means by living according to the flesh. When we don't allow God to be Lord of our lives we actually make gods of ourselves. We can never please God while we live that way. But the one who has been redeemed by Christ has his or her mind on things bigger than anything in this world. The one who loves the Lord Jesus is aware of Him at all times and is taught about Him by the Holy Spirit. This is a life that is pleasing to the Lord: a life that honors His Son.
Paul says to his audience of believers, "You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ." (Romans 8:9) Christ sets His seal of ownership on us when we come to Him, and that seal is the Holy Spirit. How do we know whether we have the Holy Spirit? We can get a clear idea by how we answer the following questions. When we heard the gospel, did the Holy Spirit lead us to believe and accept it? Does the Holy Spirit teach us, guide us, and comfort us? Does the Holy Spirit cause us to love Christ and want to honor Him? Has the Holy Spirit changed our character and helped us to live in ways that make us look more like the Son of God than like sinful and broken mankind? If we cannot affirmatively answer "yes" to these questions, we need to reevaluate whether we belong to Christ at all, for the Bible says this of those who truly belong to Christ, "And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession---to the praise of His glory." (Ephesians 1:13-14)
The KJV says the Lord has given us the "earnest" of the Spirit, and I didn't clearly understand what that meant until some years back when my husband sold real estate for a while. When a person makes an offer on a house and the offer is accepted, he puts down earnest money. It's a deposit that clearly demonstrates his intention to keep his word and fulfill the contract by fully paying for the house he has committed to purchase. This is what the Lord has done. He has made a contract with those who have accepted His offer of salvation. He intends to fulfill that contract, so as proof of His ability to make good on His promises He has put down the "earnest money" of the Holy Spirit. Just as a man or woman puts down earnest money to guarantee he or she is going to go through with the purchase of a house, Christ has given us the seal of the Holy Spirit to guarantee He is going to go through with everything He has promised us.
If you have any doubts as to whether you are in Christ, you can make your salvation certain by letting Him be Lord of your life. You can pray a sincere prayer of repentance and ask Him to come into your life as your Savior. You don't have to use fancy words and you don't have to try and clean up your life before coming to Him. We've already established that none of us can clean up our life enough to be acceptable in the sight of God, and we don't have to---Christ does the cleaning for us. When you come to Christ you come just as you are right now with everything out in the open. You admit to Him that you've lived in opposition to His righteous laws. You admit to Him that you need Him to do what you aren't able to do. Then, when Christ has become your Savior, your life will begin to display the proof that Christ has marked you with His seal of ownership: the Holy Spirit.
Paul concluded yesterday's passage by saying that when Christ gave His life for us He condemned sin by His own flesh, "in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit". (Romans 8:4) We have already concluded that we have never been able to fulfill the law, so how is it that the righteous requirement of the law is now fully met by us who are in Christ? The requirement is met because we are in Christ and Christ fulfilled the law. We trust in what He did for us, not in what we can do for ourselves. If we got up every morning of our lives determined to keep both the letter of the law and the spirit of the law, we couldn't do it. We could keep some of it. We might even be able to keep all of the most important laws. But we couldn't keep all of them, so our only hope of righteousness is through Christ who perfectly kept the law and who offered Himself in our place.
Since we now belong to our Redeemer, we have the Holy Spirit to guide us. "Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God." (Romans 8:5-8) Before we knew our Redeemer we lived at a distance from God. We lived for ourselves. This is what Paul means by living according to the flesh. When we don't allow God to be Lord of our lives we actually make gods of ourselves. We can never please God while we live that way. But the one who has been redeemed by Christ has his or her mind on things bigger than anything in this world. The one who loves the Lord Jesus is aware of Him at all times and is taught about Him by the Holy Spirit. This is a life that is pleasing to the Lord: a life that honors His Son.
Paul says to his audience of believers, "You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ." (Romans 8:9) Christ sets His seal of ownership on us when we come to Him, and that seal is the Holy Spirit. How do we know whether we have the Holy Spirit? We can get a clear idea by how we answer the following questions. When we heard the gospel, did the Holy Spirit lead us to believe and accept it? Does the Holy Spirit teach us, guide us, and comfort us? Does the Holy Spirit cause us to love Christ and want to honor Him? Has the Holy Spirit changed our character and helped us to live in ways that make us look more like the Son of God than like sinful and broken mankind? If we cannot affirmatively answer "yes" to these questions, we need to reevaluate whether we belong to Christ at all, for the Bible says this of those who truly belong to Christ, "And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession---to the praise of His glory." (Ephesians 1:13-14)
The KJV says the Lord has given us the "earnest" of the Spirit, and I didn't clearly understand what that meant until some years back when my husband sold real estate for a while. When a person makes an offer on a house and the offer is accepted, he puts down earnest money. It's a deposit that clearly demonstrates his intention to keep his word and fulfill the contract by fully paying for the house he has committed to purchase. This is what the Lord has done. He has made a contract with those who have accepted His offer of salvation. He intends to fulfill that contract, so as proof of His ability to make good on His promises He has put down the "earnest money" of the Holy Spirit. Just as a man or woman puts down earnest money to guarantee he or she is going to go through with the purchase of a house, Christ has given us the seal of the Holy Spirit to guarantee He is going to go through with everything He has promised us.
If you have any doubts as to whether you are in Christ, you can make your salvation certain by letting Him be Lord of your life. You can pray a sincere prayer of repentance and ask Him to come into your life as your Savior. You don't have to use fancy words and you don't have to try and clean up your life before coming to Him. We've already established that none of us can clean up our life enough to be acceptable in the sight of God, and we don't have to---Christ does the cleaning for us. When you come to Christ you come just as you are right now with everything out in the open. You admit to Him that you've lived in opposition to His righteous laws. You admit to Him that you need Him to do what you aren't able to do. Then, when Christ has become your Savior, your life will begin to display the proof that Christ has marked you with His seal of ownership: the Holy Spirit.
Thursday, June 7, 2018
The Letter Of The Apostle Paul To The Romans. Day 24, No Condemnation In Christ
We've been studying about the human tendency to want to do the things we've been told not to do. Some do it out of a spirit of rebellion toward the Lord, but even those who genuinely love the Lord struggle at times with temptation. Paul admitted he had noticed the same problem in himself, so he concludes chapter 7 by saying, "So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in my sinful nature a slave to sin." (Romans 7:25b) Before he came to know Christ as his Savior, the Apostle Paul loved God. He wanted to honor God by keeping the law, but the more he thought about the law the more he realized he was breaking it. That's when he came to the conclusion that he was a wretched sinner, but that's what the law was intended to do: to make all of us conclude that we are wretched sinners who need the Savior.
Even after Paul met the Savior he wasn't a perfect man, though he must have been a far better man than he was before. He knows he still fails at times to live up to the Lord's standards, so he is thankful for this, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death." (Romans 8:1-2) We are condemned under the law because we are lawbreakers. But through Jesus Christ we are justified by grace through faith. Paul has already established the fact for us that when we accept Christ we are dead to our old lives, dead to serving our carnal flesh, and dead to the slavery of sin. But just as Christ rose from the dead, in Him we have risen to new life. We are alive in the Spirit where once we were dead in sins.
"For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering." (Romans 8:3a) The law was good and holy and perfect, but because we are weak we could not keep it. Therefore the law lacked the power to save us. But God sent the Son in our likeness and the Son kept the law perfectly in every way. This made the Son capable of making an offering of atonement for us that is acceptable forever in the eyes of God. If Christ had not come in our image, He would not have been an appropriate stand-in for us once and for all. The sacrificial lambs were not made in our image and were not capable of understanding or keeping the law, so they had to be slaughtered year after year after year because they were not like us and were not able to provide an atonement that would last forever. (Hebrews 10:1-4) But Christ, because He was made in our image, was able to make for us a sacrifice that makes us holy once and for all. (Hebrews 10:10)
God made Adam in His image, but Adam fell from grace and through him the entire human race fell. So God made Christ in man's image and through Him we are raised back up by the grace that comes by faith in Christ. When Christ gave His life for us, Paul tells us He "...condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit." (Romans 8:3b-4)
God would have been within His rights to condemn us, but instead He condemned sin through Christ. Because we had not met His holy requirements, He could have put us to death both physically and spiritually, but instead He sent Christ to give His life in our place. I can't comprehend the vast love that caused God to say, "These people are consumed by sins. No matter what I do and no matter what I say, they persist in doing wrong. They are unholy and deserving of death, but I'm going to send My holy Son to die in their place." No normal, loving parent would give their child's life for someone else's life, much less give a holy child's life for someone's unholy life. But that's what God did. That's how much He loves us. That's how much He was unwilling to let us perish.
How then could He ever condemn those of us who are in Christ? To condemn us would be to reject what His own Son did, and He cannot do that. The price Christ paid for us was too high and too holy for God to ever disregard it. We are not at liberty to live however we please, but when we do make mistakes we have the liberty as children of God to approach Him with a sincere heart of repentance and to obtain forgiveness for the sake of Christ. "Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:16) True repentance doesn't mean I can commit a sin today, tell God I'm sorry, then go right back to the same old sin. Biblical repentance is the Greek word metanoia, which means "to change one's mind, to turn back". For example, when we are driving in an unfamiliar area and realize we are going in the wrong direction, do we keep going in the wrong direction? No, because that would be pointless. We turn around. This is what repentance is: realizing we are going in the wrong direction and turning around. And when we do this, we find mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.
Even after Paul met the Savior he wasn't a perfect man, though he must have been a far better man than he was before. He knows he still fails at times to live up to the Lord's standards, so he is thankful for this, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death." (Romans 8:1-2) We are condemned under the law because we are lawbreakers. But through Jesus Christ we are justified by grace through faith. Paul has already established the fact for us that when we accept Christ we are dead to our old lives, dead to serving our carnal flesh, and dead to the slavery of sin. But just as Christ rose from the dead, in Him we have risen to new life. We are alive in the Spirit where once we were dead in sins.
"For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering." (Romans 8:3a) The law was good and holy and perfect, but because we are weak we could not keep it. Therefore the law lacked the power to save us. But God sent the Son in our likeness and the Son kept the law perfectly in every way. This made the Son capable of making an offering of atonement for us that is acceptable forever in the eyes of God. If Christ had not come in our image, He would not have been an appropriate stand-in for us once and for all. The sacrificial lambs were not made in our image and were not capable of understanding or keeping the law, so they had to be slaughtered year after year after year because they were not like us and were not able to provide an atonement that would last forever. (Hebrews 10:1-4) But Christ, because He was made in our image, was able to make for us a sacrifice that makes us holy once and for all. (Hebrews 10:10)
God made Adam in His image, but Adam fell from grace and through him the entire human race fell. So God made Christ in man's image and through Him we are raised back up by the grace that comes by faith in Christ. When Christ gave His life for us, Paul tells us He "...condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit." (Romans 8:3b-4)
God would have been within His rights to condemn us, but instead He condemned sin through Christ. Because we had not met His holy requirements, He could have put us to death both physically and spiritually, but instead He sent Christ to give His life in our place. I can't comprehend the vast love that caused God to say, "These people are consumed by sins. No matter what I do and no matter what I say, they persist in doing wrong. They are unholy and deserving of death, but I'm going to send My holy Son to die in their place." No normal, loving parent would give their child's life for someone else's life, much less give a holy child's life for someone's unholy life. But that's what God did. That's how much He loves us. That's how much He was unwilling to let us perish.
How then could He ever condemn those of us who are in Christ? To condemn us would be to reject what His own Son did, and He cannot do that. The price Christ paid for us was too high and too holy for God to ever disregard it. We are not at liberty to live however we please, but when we do make mistakes we have the liberty as children of God to approach Him with a sincere heart of repentance and to obtain forgiveness for the sake of Christ. "Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:16) True repentance doesn't mean I can commit a sin today, tell God I'm sorry, then go right back to the same old sin. Biblical repentance is the Greek word metanoia, which means "to change one's mind, to turn back". For example, when we are driving in an unfamiliar area and realize we are going in the wrong direction, do we keep going in the wrong direction? No, because that would be pointless. We turn around. This is what repentance is: realizing we are going in the wrong direction and turning around. And when we do this, we find mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.
Wednesday, June 6, 2018
The Letter Of The Apostle Paul To The Romans. Day 23, Paul's Struggle: Part Two
The apostle assures his readers that he is not saying anything is wrong with the law. "So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good." (Romans 7:12) He said in yesterday's passage that since human nature is perverse, knowing the law made him more aware of his sinfulness, yet at the same time it made him want to sin all the more. The fault was not in the law, but in him.
"Did that which was good, then, become death to me? By no means! Nevertheless, in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good to bring about my death, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful." (Romans 7:12-13) It's easy to see why the Apostle Peter once said of Paul, "His letters contain some things that are hard to understand." (2 Peter 3:16) Paul anticipates that some of his enemies might accuse him of saying the law itself is sinful since thinking about things we are forbidden to do often has the effect of making us want to do those things. But he says no, the law is holy and man is unholy. God was right to give us the law because without the law we would not have recognized sin as sin. We need to recognize sin as sin so we can admit our faults and failures to the God who is able to impute righteousness to us. We need to recognize sin so we will want to die to our old selves and be made new in Christ.
"We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer myself who does it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do---this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who does it, but it is sin living in me that does it." (Romans 7:14-20) Who sold Paul (and us) into slavery to sin? We sold ourselves! Paul already told us that we are slaves to whatever we have chosen to obey. (Romans 6:16) When we lived in sin before we came to Christ we were slaves to sin. Even after our conversion we sometimes have to struggle against temptation. We know what is right and we want to do what is right, but our carnal natures try to rebel against our spiritual natures. "For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh." (Galatians 5:17a) Before Paul came to Christ he understood that the law was good. He knew he ought to obey every single word of it. Yet no matter how much he wanted to obey the whole law, he couldn't. He was able to obey some of it, perhaps even most of it, but not all of it. This caused him to have to admit to himself he couldn't obtain righteousness on his own. He needed something more than his own pitiful efforts to make him right with God.
"So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me." (Romans 7:21) Satan doesn't attack us when we're living in sin because we are already right where he wants us. He attacks us when we're living for Christ. Or, as I once heard Dr. Charles Stanley remark, "If the devil isn't bothering you, you aren't bothering him." If we are living effective, fruitful Christian lives we can be sure that evil will be right there with us, trying to entice us into sins that will cause unbelievers to scoff at Christians and to scoff at Christ.
"For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me." (Romans 7:22) Paul used to be a Pharisee. That entailed spending every waking moment meditating on the law, debating the law, and applying to law to everyday life. Yet the more he studied the law the more he understood he was a lawbreaker. He loved God's holy word and desperately wanted to live a life that pleased the Lord, but his carnal nature caused him to do things he didn't want to do. He couldn't understand why he would do things he didn't want to do. I think by the time he met the Lord Jesus on the Damascus road he was in deep spiritual distress. I think he was a very troubled man who was angry with himself, which is likely why he took out his anger on the growing Christian movement. Now he is a new creature in Christ, and he knows that through Christ he can obtain grace for his failures when he asks forgiveness with a sincerely repentant heart. But as much as he loves the Lord Jesus, he still sometimes finds his flesh struggling against the Spirit. We can relate to that, can't we? We are far better people in Christ than we were before, but our flesh still struggles against the Spirit.
Coming face to face with his weakness and failures caused the Apostle Paul to cry out, "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?" (Romans 7:24) He came to a point where he admitted in horror, "I'm wretched! I'm corrupt! I can't make myself clean! What am I going to do? Who is able to help me?"
Who indeed can help any of us? Paul gratefully supplies the answer, "Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Christ Jesus our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in my sinful nature a slave to sin." (Romans 7:25) In other words, no one but Christ can solve the conundrum of us wanting to serve the Lord with the mind but wanting to serve sin with the body. No one but Christ can solve the problem of humans not being able to obtain righteousness by the law. No one but Christ has the power to offer a method of absolution and redemption that is acceptable to a holy God.
"Did that which was good, then, become death to me? By no means! Nevertheless, in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good to bring about my death, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful." (Romans 7:12-13) It's easy to see why the Apostle Peter once said of Paul, "His letters contain some things that are hard to understand." (2 Peter 3:16) Paul anticipates that some of his enemies might accuse him of saying the law itself is sinful since thinking about things we are forbidden to do often has the effect of making us want to do those things. But he says no, the law is holy and man is unholy. God was right to give us the law because without the law we would not have recognized sin as sin. We need to recognize sin as sin so we can admit our faults and failures to the God who is able to impute righteousness to us. We need to recognize sin so we will want to die to our old selves and be made new in Christ.
"We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer myself who does it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do---this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who does it, but it is sin living in me that does it." (Romans 7:14-20) Who sold Paul (and us) into slavery to sin? We sold ourselves! Paul already told us that we are slaves to whatever we have chosen to obey. (Romans 6:16) When we lived in sin before we came to Christ we were slaves to sin. Even after our conversion we sometimes have to struggle against temptation. We know what is right and we want to do what is right, but our carnal natures try to rebel against our spiritual natures. "For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh." (Galatians 5:17a) Before Paul came to Christ he understood that the law was good. He knew he ought to obey every single word of it. Yet no matter how much he wanted to obey the whole law, he couldn't. He was able to obey some of it, perhaps even most of it, but not all of it. This caused him to have to admit to himself he couldn't obtain righteousness on his own. He needed something more than his own pitiful efforts to make him right with God.
"So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me." (Romans 7:21) Satan doesn't attack us when we're living in sin because we are already right where he wants us. He attacks us when we're living for Christ. Or, as I once heard Dr. Charles Stanley remark, "If the devil isn't bothering you, you aren't bothering him." If we are living effective, fruitful Christian lives we can be sure that evil will be right there with us, trying to entice us into sins that will cause unbelievers to scoff at Christians and to scoff at Christ.
"For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me." (Romans 7:22) Paul used to be a Pharisee. That entailed spending every waking moment meditating on the law, debating the law, and applying to law to everyday life. Yet the more he studied the law the more he understood he was a lawbreaker. He loved God's holy word and desperately wanted to live a life that pleased the Lord, but his carnal nature caused him to do things he didn't want to do. He couldn't understand why he would do things he didn't want to do. I think by the time he met the Lord Jesus on the Damascus road he was in deep spiritual distress. I think he was a very troubled man who was angry with himself, which is likely why he took out his anger on the growing Christian movement. Now he is a new creature in Christ, and he knows that through Christ he can obtain grace for his failures when he asks forgiveness with a sincerely repentant heart. But as much as he loves the Lord Jesus, he still sometimes finds his flesh struggling against the Spirit. We can relate to that, can't we? We are far better people in Christ than we were before, but our flesh still struggles against the Spirit.
Coming face to face with his weakness and failures caused the Apostle Paul to cry out, "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?" (Romans 7:24) He came to a point where he admitted in horror, "I'm wretched! I'm corrupt! I can't make myself clean! What am I going to do? Who is able to help me?"
Who indeed can help any of us? Paul gratefully supplies the answer, "Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Christ Jesus our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in my sinful nature a slave to sin." (Romans 7:25) In other words, no one but Christ can solve the conundrum of us wanting to serve the Lord with the mind but wanting to serve sin with the body. No one but Christ can solve the problem of humans not being able to obtain righteousness by the law. No one but Christ has the power to offer a method of absolution and redemption that is acceptable to a holy God.
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