Calvary Road Baptist Church
“THE JEW UNDER THE LAW - A GLANCE BACK”
Romans 7.13-25
The passage that we now turn to is (I must warn you) a theological battleground. I say that because the various interpretations of Romans 7.13-25 are usually determined more by the interpreter’s view of the Christian life than of a careful examination of the text within its context. This fact makes people very defensive of their particular interpretation. I would say that the Christian who enjoys considerable success in his Christian life would probably believe this passage to be a description of the lost man under conviction before turning to Christ. The Christian who doesn’t experience much joy (there are too many Christians who do not experience joy) would project his experiences onto this passage and would probably believe that the ongoing struggle the Christian has with sin is in view here by the Apostle Paul. But this is not always so.
The problems with this passage, Romans 7.13-25, as I see it, are twofold: On the one hand, there are sentences and phrases in this passage which closely parallel both the unsaved man’s experiences as he is convicted by the Holy Spirit, as well as approximating the struggle which every Christian does indeed have with sin in his daily life and ministry. If you do not recognize that you have a daily struggle with sin, you’re not doing it right. You are in neutral. You are coasting. On the other hand, both of these viewpoints are the result of an improper study of God’s Word. Both viewpoints come from diving into the passage and divorcing it from its context. Let us remember what we so often forget: Romans 7 comes after Romans 1-6. And Romans 7 comes before Romans 8-16. You simply must not study this passage apart from a thorough analysis of what comes before and what comes after. That doesn’t sound complex, but it is more challenging than people want it to be.
If you study this passage properly, and carefully weigh the context in which the passage lies, two things should become apparent to you: First, though the identity of whoever “I” is in this chapter is important, it’s not the most important matter in this chapter. Second, the main theme of the chapter and the particular passage that we look at today is the Law of Moses, those Ten Commandments and related rules of life given to Moses on Mount Sinai. Too often people overlook this important fact. Remember, however, that Paul’s readers included of some Jewish believers who had some very important questions regarding Paul’s understanding of the Law of Moses as it related to the Jewish people and as it related to the Jewish Christian.
Paul’s explanation of the relationship of the Law of Moses to the Jewish believer in Christ was given in Romans 7.1-6. His explanation of the relationship of the Law of Moses to the nation of Israel is what we are studying at present. What’s the relation of the Law now to Israel? In verses 7-12 Paul responds to those who would ask him if he thought the Law of Moses was sinful. In those six verses, Paul uses the account of the giving of the Law to forcefully deny that the Law, being of divine origin, is sinful. He does not call the Law sinful. It is closely associated with sin, but that is not the same as calling the Law sinful.
Today, in what may prove to be far too large a bite to chew properly, we examine the second question that Paul anticipates, in which he looks back as a typical Jewish Christian would look back on his Jewish life under the Law before he came to Christ. How would a Christian who is a Jew look back over his life before he came to Christ? Remembering that in Romans 7.9 Paul writes that “when the commandment came I died,” the question that Paul anticipates is whether he believes that the Law is, then, responsible for that death.
One final comment before we turn to our text. Paul has shown his readers that salvation does not come from the Law, that although the Law is of divine origin and has a divine purpose, its purpose was not to provide sinners a righteous standing before God. What he is now doing in Romans chapter 7 is convincing his readers that he does not hate the Law, that he is not opposed to the Law, and that he is not impugning the character of the Law in any way.
Let us now turn to our study of Romans 7.13-25:
13 Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.
14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.
16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.
17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
23 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.
24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
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.
Five main points:
First, THE INTERROGATION (7.13a)
“Was then that which is good made death unto me?”
Understand that Paul has been teaching this same doctrine for many years. So he knows what questions are going to be asked. He knows the sensitive areas and where all the soft spots are located. So the Holy Spirit has inspired him to anticipate this provocative question.
“Paul, you said that when the commandment came, sin revived, and you, who was without the Law once, died. Paul, are you trying to say that the Law caused your death? Are you saying that God’s holy Law is a killer, Paul? Is that what you are saying?”
INTERROGATION IS FOLLOWED BY DECLARATION (7.13b)
“God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.”
Paul responds, “Not at all. I am not saying that the Law killed me, spiritually. I am not saying that the Law killed the nation of Israel, spiritually.”
Notice several things Paul says in the last half of verse 13: First, notice that he describes the Law of Moses as “that which is good.” Paul wants no misunderstanding here. He believes the Law is good. In verse 12 he described it as holy and just and good. How many times does he have to say it? Second, notice what he says about sin. Remember that he said, in verse 11, that “sin deceived me?” Well, the Law had the effect of making sin appear sin. The Law showed sin for what it was. And not only that. Beyond showing that sin was sinful, the Law showed that sin was exceeding sinful. Paul’s answer to them that would interrogate him might be paraphrased in this way: “I’m not saying that the Law is what caused my spiritual death. For that to be true, the Law would have to be sinful. But the Law is not sinful. The Law is good. The Law is so good, in fact, that by comparison, it makes sin look exceedingly sinful.”
Third, WE HAVE PAUL’S EXPLANATION IN VERSES 14-23
You’ll notice as we go that Paul’s explanation comes as a series of lamentations in which, while looking back on the Jewish experience under the Law, he comments on certain painful truths:
The first lament is recorded in verses 14-17. Take note of Paul’s realization in verse 14:
“For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.”
That is quite a realization. Notice how Paul draws his readers into his argument by saying “For we know.” He makes sure that they see that both they and he are on the same page on this issue, agreeing that the Law is spiritual. But understand. To say that the Law is spiritual is to deny, in yet another way, the accusation that he is saying that the Law is bad or that the Law causes death. Paul did not hate the Law. He loved the Law. But he disagreed with his adversaries on the Law’s intended use by God. And what else does he realize? That he is carnal, sold under sin. Can this be a believer? No. Paul is stating the Jewish person’s realization that before the Jewish person came to Christ when he was in bondage to sin, the problem he had wasn’t with the Law. The problem the Jewish person had was sin. Take note, next, of Paul’s observation in verse 15:
“For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.”
How can you tell when your problem is with sin and not the Law? Take a look back at your behavior, at the way you lived. Though the deceitfulness of sin makes it very difficult to fully appreciate at the time, Paul’s look back fully revealed that the common experience of the Jewish person under the Law was to do what he didn’t want to do and to not do what he did want to do. Every Jew who ever lived found himself in violation of the Law, no matter how hard he tried. Does it seem like that’s a description of your present situation, Christian? Though it may seem so at times, remember, you are not sold under sin if you know Christ, according to Romans 6.7. But this man that Paul speaks of is sold under sin. Now, take note of Paul’s conclusion, verses 16-17:
16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.
17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
So the “I” there is not a Christian but a generic Jew before coming to Christ. There are two conclusions stated here: First, if I am unable to live up to the righteous standard of the Law I consent, or I agree by my shortfall, that the Law is good. And second, I recognize that the problem isn’t me. It’s the sin that dwells in me. Please understand, here, that Paul is not minimizing his responsibility by saying that it’s sin and not him, for he does admit that the sin is in him. He is not blame shifting, but focusing on reality. What he is alluding to here is that sin, though it is within the sinner, is actually foreign. God did not create man with sin. Sin was something that came later to influence man. All of this, of course, properly, reasonably, saddens Paul.
The second lament is recorded in verses 18-20: Again, we see Paul’s realization in the first half of verse 18:
“For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing.”
This is what an unsaved Jewish person would say. This is the realization that a man must come to before he turns to Christ, that he who comes to Christ must come with empty hands. Though most Jewish people do not realize what is realized here, those Jewish people who now know Jesus Christ look back on their life under the Law before coming to Christ and now they see this realization very clearly. Paul’s realization is followed by his observation, the second half of verse 18 and all of verse 19:
18 . . . for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Again, a statement of wanting to do good but never discovering how to accomplish same. A statement, too, of wanting to not do evil, but doing evil despite your best intentions. “Pastor, this sounds a lot like Christian living.” Of course, if the Christian is a legalist. Here, again, we may have those who feel that this describes their Christian experience. But Philippians 4.13 shows that this is not reality for the believer, but for an unbeliever, for the believer can do all things through Christ:
“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”
In the context, then, this is the reality for an unbeliever who is Jewish, as seen from the perspective of a Jewish person who is now a believer. It’s a Jewish Christian looking back on his life before Christ, a person like Paul or like Peter. And, finally, his conclusion in verse 20:
“Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.”
Again, the blame seems to be put upon sin. But remember, Paul is not seeking to absolve himself of responsibility. What he seeks to emphasize in this passage, as he did previously, is that the problem with not doing good is not a human problem. It’s a sin problem. That is to say, being a human being is not the problem. Being a sinful human being is the problem. And, sadly, we are all sinful human beings. Amen? There are some environmentalists who are persuaded that the worst evil in the world is humanity, not realizing that the problem is not humanity but sinful humanity.
The third lament is recorded in verses 21-23:
21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
23 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.
And it is here, probably for the first time since Romans 7.3, that the word “law” refers not to the Law of Moses in every case, but sometimes to a rule, sometimes to a principle. Following his established pattern, there is a realization in verse 21:
“I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.”
Here Paul uses the word “law” to refer to a rule or an observable pattern. He has observed that every time he would do good, and this is as an unsaved Jewish man, mind you, it is evil right there. At every single turn. What frustration. What hopelessness. What spiritual agony. What heartache. What disappointment. This is what causes some people just to give up. This reminds me of an interview with Dennis Prager and Allen Dershowitz, both raised in Orthodox homes, in which they admitted to leaving Orthodoxy. When Dershowitz was asked by an Orthodox rabbi why he left orthodoxy, he admitted, “I just couldn’t do it!” Then there is an observation in verses 22-23a:
22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind...
Here is where we get to that which is particularly Jewish about this generic lost man. He delights in the “law of God.” And to this day it is amazing to see the evidence of Jewish people’s love for the Law. The hours of study and devotion to the Law are quite literally beyond the comprehension of most Gentiles. However, there is this ongoing struggle, fighting for supremacy. This other law, this rule that is in effect, that wages spiritual warfare against the “law of his mind.” It was Paul’s experience, and it was the Jewish people’s national experience, that every time they understood in their mind what was expected of them by the Law of God, there would be opposition. And the last of Paul’s conclusions? The end of verse 23:
“and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.”
The Greek word for “bringing me into captivity,” aichmalootizoo, literally refers to being taken prisoner at the point of a spear.[1] The result is, you are under the unwilling control of someone else. And what happens here is just that. On the outside is this wonderful and demanding Law of God. And the impact of the Law of God on your thinking and desires is referred to as the “law of my mind.” But the conclusion that Paul comes to for the third time is that something that is in him, in his members, sin, messes things up, causing him problems that he cannot solve. So, what’s a Jewish unbeliever to do?
Fourth, WE HAVE PAUL’S RESIGNATION
Three laments. Three times Paul, writing as a Jewish Christian looking back on the experiences of an unsaved Jewish person, realizes the futility, observes the spiritual ineptitude, and concludes that his problem lies not with the Law but with sin. And the sin is inside him.
So, what does this unsaved Jewish man living under the unfulfillable demands of God’s holy Law do? He gives up and cries
“O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”
THE PASSAGE ENDS WITH APPRECIATION
“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.”
Notice the two parts of this last verse of chapter 7:
First, there is Paul’s thanks to God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Please be careful to note that this isn’t the logical conclusion to what Paul has been writing. This is Paul getting so excited about the Lord Jesus Christ that he can’t sit still. So, just before he gets to the logical conclusion of his argument, he breaks in with
“I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
The real conclusion is in the second sentence of the verse:
“So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.”
The only real obedience that the Jewish person under the Law can render is in his mind. He can’t really, in his unsaved condition, with his prevailing sinfulness, serve anyone or anything but sin.
As I have on occasion traveled the length and breadth of the modern state of Israel, and especially when in Jerusalem, my heart broke for the Jewish people. Especially the Hassidic Jews, with their ultra-orthodoxy and their 10 to 12 hours per day of the study of God’s Law. I remember the late Lou Roscoe’s rage when he went into the great so-called Christian cathedrals filled with their gold and velvet and their statues and pictures of idolatry, being reminded of his spiritual slavery and idolatry when he was a Roman Catholic. When I walked into those places, I was sickened and could barely remain civil and courteous. Sometimes I didn’t remain civil and courteous. But when confronted with the lost condition of the Jewish people who spent so many hours studying the Law, God repeatedly brought my mind to this passage of Scripture. No anger, as with the gross paganism of the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. Only sadness.
Though I am not a Jewish Christian, this passage gives me some of Paul’s perspective and gives to Christians some of his vantage points. He lamented over and over again the condition of the Jewish people under the Law. Oh, how they want to do good. Oh, how they try so hard to do good. But they cannot. You see, James 3.10 tells us that “whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.” My friends, they do so much better at obeying God’s Law than anyone I have ever seen. They are so dedicated. They are so diligent. They are so meticulous in their observances. But they are not delivered. They are captive to the law of sin. They are sold under sin. There is a war going on inside them which they cannot win. Because sin is inside them, they cannot win. They can desire to do good, but they cannot do good. They can desire not to do evil, but they do evil. So they are relegated to an existence of serving the Law of God only in their mind and serving the law of sin in their flesh. It’s so sad.
Is there no way out? Is there no deliverance? Yes, there is. Not through the Law, which though it is holy and good and just does not have the power to deliver. Deliverance only comes through Jesus Christ.
Think about that, my friend. Think about the miserable situation people find themselves in who are under the Law, who study it for hours on end, who expend tremendous amounts of energy and commitment to obey it but cannot. If they need Jesus Christ if deliverance for them can only come through Jesus Christ, what does that say about your situation? Surely, we who are not Jewish are in just as desperate straits as are they. Are we not?
That being true, why don’t you come to Jesus Christ?
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[1] Fritz Rienecker & Cleon Rogers, Linguistic Key To The Greek New Testament, (Grand Rapids, MI: Regency Reference Library, 1980), page 364.
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Pastor@CalvaryRoadBaptist.Church