Romans – The Play Part 3 – Free From the Law: Romans 7, Grace, and the End of Christian Legalism

What shall we say then? Is the standard of the Christian life sin? Certainly not. But I would not have known what sin was, except for discovering what the Christian life was. For I would not have known that I, as a Christian, should not covet until I was told that the Christian life says, “Gene, you shall not covet.”

Sin took the opportunity, afforded by the Christian standard, and produced in me every kind of covetous desire there was. For apart from the Christian life—apart from the Christian standard—sin is dead. Once I was alive, alive apart from the Christian life. But when the Christian standard came in, sin sprang up to life, and I died. I found that the very standard of Christian living that was intending to bring life to me actually brought death. Sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the Christian standard, deceived me, and through the standard of Christian living, put me to death. Yes, the Christian life is holy, and the Christian standard is holy; it is righteous, and it is good. Did that which is good, the Christian life, become death to me? No, but in order that sin might be recognized as how sinful it is, sin produced death in me through the goodness of the Christian life, so that through the Christian standard, sin was revealed to be utterly sinful.

Now I know the Christian life is spiritual. It’s me that’s not spiritual. I’m soul. I’m a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do and why I do it. For what I want to do as a Christian, I do not do. And what I despise to do as a believer, I do it. And if I do what I do not want to do, I have actually proved that the Christian life is good. That’s proof of it.

As it is, it is no longer I who is doing these things wrong. It is sin that is literally living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me—that is, in my flesh and my sinful nature—for I have the desire to do what is good, but I just can’t carry out the Christian standard.

For what I do is not the good that I want to do. No, the evil that I do not want to do—this is what I keep on doing again and again. Now, if I do what I do not want to do, it’s not me who’s doing it. It’s sin living in me that does it.

So I have found as a principle working in me, when I want to do good, evil is standing right there by me. For in my inmost being, I delight to be a Christian. I want to be a Christian.

“Lord, I want to be a Christian when I die.”
“Lord, I want to be a Christian when I die.”
I want to be a Christian so bad. I want to live the Christian life so bad.
I CAN’T.

So, I see another principle working in the members of my body, waging war against the law—the concept, the principle—in my mind that I want to live up to. And it makes me a prisoner to the law and principle of sin, which works in my flesh.

I am wretched.
I am mixed up.
I am messed up.
I am confused.
I am in a state of wretchedness.
I am a wretched, wretched man.
I feel wretched.
I feel terrible.
I feel horrible.

I am living in the middle of Romans 7. I am a wretched man. Oh, wretched man that I am. Who!? Who will come and rescue me from this body of death? Hallelujah. I thank God I am delivered—not through the Christian life—
I am delivered through Jesus Christ, my Lord, and Him alone. Praise the Lord. Thanks be unto God.

In my mind, I am a slave to God’s law—to the Christian life.

But in my sinful nature, I am a slave to the law of sin. Strangest thing in the world.