Thoughts on Romans - Day 19

                                   Romans 7:14-25

We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. ¹⁵ I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. ¹⁶ And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. ¹⁷ As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. ¹⁸ 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. ¹⁹ For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. ²⁰ Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
²¹ So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²² For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; ²³ 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. ²⁴ What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? ²⁵ Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.


           Passages like this gave grace a bad name to me. Christian music artists love to write songs on this passage. I would review a new album and comment, another Romans 7 song. In other words," I'm a Christian and I want to do what is right but I keep sinning. Oh well, I'm only human - Grace." Grace is the theme of so many message series, the title of multiple books and the name of every 10th Christian church. To me, grace was a word used to describe the non-victorious Christian life and still feel spiritual and excused when you say it.

       When you read Romans 7, actually Paul is not justifying his behavior but lamenting it and actually longing for the day when this life is over and the sin nature is gone. He hates his behavior so bad that he is looking forward to his death. He hates his behavior so much that this freedom from his sinful behavior is what he first thinks about in regards to Heaven instead of the streets of gold, the beatific vision, eternal life, etc. I have wondered before, when we get to heaven and a million years from now, what is to prevent another rebellion like what occurred with Lucifer? I think the answer on our behalf is that our sin nature will be gone. On behalf of the angels- maybe seeing the rebellious 1/3rd in hell for all eternity is certainly a deterrent. Maybe the angels who remained voluntarily gave up their free will? Maybe God created Lucifer as a one of a kind? I have no idea.

       Here we see in Romans 7 the greatest Christian of all time almost sounding schizophrenic in regards to the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde inside of him. Was he really that bad? No, actually he was that good that he realized he was that bad. I got my wife a bathroom magnifying mirror once because I used one at a hotel and thought it was pretty cool. She yelled at me and made me take it back immediately because she said the last thing she wanted was to see herself up closer. This is what happened to Paul as he got closer to the Light. Martin Luther spent hours a day in confession and the confessional priest dreaded to see him coming. Why? Because he was getting so close to God that his sins were magnified. Enter grace. Grace is realizing how bad you are but rather than justifying your behavior, excusing it, or continuing it you are drawn to the wonder of God's love for you and fall deeper in love with Him. (thus the comparison to marriage early in the chapter)

             Thank you God that even though you see me as I am, you love me. Gracious!