Romans 7 | Sanctification and Victory Through Christ
V1-6
Paul is expounding on the reality that we are crucified with Christ when we are baptized into Christ (Spirit baptism).
The Law was binding before we were in Christ, because we were “alive” to it just as a woman is bound to marriage while she is alive. However, we are crucified in Christ. Christ paid the penalty for our sin according to the Law. We are protected from double jeopardy. In Christ it is as thought the “wife” is married to a new husband.
In this way, we are no longer under the Law. We belong to God and are to bear fruit for Him. This is important because while we were in sin our sin nature took “opportunity” with the Law to sin more. Now, we are in Christ and bearing fruit for God.
Now we walk in the Spirit to bear spiritual fruit (See Gal. 5:22ff).
V7-12
This brings up the question “ Is the Law sin?” since my sin was worse under the Law. The answer is an emphatic “no.”
Paul explains that the Law exposes sin. It is purely good.
However, sinful people like to sin. As the Law exposes sin, sinners like sin more and sin more.
V. 11 says that sin seizes an opportunity through the commandment and deceives the sinner.
Thus, the Law is good.
V13
This brings up the question: Did something good cause death? The answer is the emphatic “no.”
Sin is what brought death (just as in the first sin).
Note that the Law not only exposes sin, but it allows sin to become worse beyond measure. This proves sin to be sin. It is like when the villain of a story gets more power and becomes more wicked. It isn’t that he was not bad in the beginning. It is that his evil is manifest fully, showing him to be what he truly is at his core. In a similar way, the Law shows sin for what it is….evil beyond measure….leading to death.
V14-20
Paul has affirmed that the Law is good and spiritual, but that creates a problem for the person who still has a sin nature.
Note: there is a debate as to whether Paul is using the present tense to talk about the past life before Christ or speaking of the present after Christ. I personally believe (along with most scholars) that he is talking about the present life after Christ. He is pointing out how the believer wrestles with sin. Since Paul just pointed out that sinners don’t usually struggle with sin…they love it….it makes the most sense to me that Paul is talking about a believer’s struggle with sin.
Paul here talks about the battle between the sin nature and the spirit living in a person. You sense his frustration as he becomes exasperated that he still sins despite the fact that he’s died to sin and is alive in Christ.
He seems to point out that the fact that he struggles with the sin is proof that he loves God and is born of the Spirit (v19-20). This is a key reality. The “believer” who does not wrestle with sin or who does not feel guilt over it should be concerned. The believer who fights sin and struggles should be assured of his salvation!
V21-25
In this section, Paul’s struggle with sin comes to a climax as he says, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”
This is one of few (maybe the only) questions Paul asks in Romans that isn’t answered with an emphatic “no.” The answer is a victorious, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
This is some really good news. Jesus has paid our sin debt, and though we struggle with sin we have the victory in Christ. Not only is our sin debt paid, but we also have hope that we will ultimately be fully sanctified (details of that are in the next chapter). For now, Paul is setting us up to hope.
