THE PROBLEM WITH LAW
Romans 7:7-25
As we look back over the past couple of years, who could have predicted what this year would bring?
Y2K = 2000 – the year that wasn’t
Y2K + 1 = 2001 – the year that wasn’t suppose to be, but was much more than any of us imagined!
9/11 Events that impacted our church
And yet, with all the unexpected surprises– all the things that changed, some things never change!
The GOSPEL never changes!
Legalism/legalist has become a four-letter word.
If you want to shut somebody up, just say: “O, don’t be such a legalist! Don’t be so legalistic!”
When we announce we’re not under law, we’re under grace, as Paul taught in Rom. 6:14-15, we get the idea that the law is bad.
2 Cor. 3: refers to the law as “the letter” which “kills,” as opposed to the Spirit which “gives life” (3:6).
“the ministry that brought death.” (3:7)
“the ministry that condemns men.” (3:9)
That sounds different from the concept of the law David presents in Ps. 19:
7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. . . .
10 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.
David’s perspective sounds different from Paul’s perspective on the law!
Paul himself says this law he has been describing is glorious.
Nevertheless, someone reading his words could think, as many misinformed Christians DO think, that the law is A BAD THING!
Those who reject Paul’s idea of salvation by faith alone object, saying that’s the only logical conclusion.
If law can’t save us–if it only serves to condemn us, then the law MUST be bad!
That’s the third common objection Paul deals with in Romans 6-7.
Rom. 6-8: Implication of the gospel: SALVATION BY FAITH PRODUCES GODLY LIVING!
Apart from by-faith salvation we lack power to satisfy God's demands.
In Christ we have become new creatures–Christ gives us the power to live a different kind of life.
3 OBJECTIONS to salvation by faith.
OBJECTION CONCERNING GRACE 6:1-14
. . . The greater the sin, the more God's grace abounds.
Wouldn't it be better to sin so God's grace might be even more evident?
RESPONSE: We’ve died to sin and risen to new life with Christ.
Therefore, we can't go on living in sin.
OBJECTION CONCERNING LIBERTY 6:15-7:6
. . . We aren't saved by the law; we're saved by grace.
Doesn't that leave us free to break the law? 6:15a
RESPONSE: Faith in Christ doesn't give us FREEDOM TO SIN, but rather FREEDOM FROM SIN.
We’re FREE to serve God.
Why go back to old task master, when we enjoy freedom to serve God?!!
OBJECTION CONCERNING LAW 7:7-25
If salvation is by faith alone . . .
If works of the law can't save anyone . . .
If law only serves to reveal sin and provoke God's wrath . . .
. . . appears to demonstrate that the law is useless, and even bad.
The law can't save us; it only reveals sin and condemns us.
Doesn't that make the law a bad thing? 7:7a
RESPONSE: 7:7b-25
Paul again responds with an emphatic negative: No Way! “Certainly not!”
The law is good at accomplishing its purpose. 7:7b
1 Tim. 1:8-11: the law is good “We know that the law is good if one uses it properly.”
The law is good, IF you use it properly (=>legitimately => lawfully; according to the purpose of laws).
What is the right way to use law? 9 We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10 for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine 11 that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.
Law wasn’t given for the benefit of those who are just.
It wasn’t given to save the righteous.
It was given for sinful people.
Law was given to reveal sin.
LAW REVEALS SIN 7:7b-13
The law was given to demonstrate our sinfulness.
While people’s rebellious, disobedient nature may be just as rotten without law
People can still be ornery and cantankerous.
still feud with one another
still selfish and self-centered
still fight for their own rights.
But there are no violations; no one SINS, until someone writes laws.
So if you just take away all the laws, everything would be fine.
No one would ever break the law!
Wouldn’t that make this world a wonderful place to live?!!! NOT!!! NO WAY!
Law shows us how bad our sinful nature really is!
If God had never said: “Don’t covet! Don’t set your eye on your neighbor’s things! That’s wrong!”I wouldn’t know I had a problem!
But, the law is incapable of taking away sin.
The law reveals just how far man's sinful nature has gone–but it can’t remove it!
The law proves that we are all sinners!
Mark Twain: “Everyone is like a moon; we all have a dark side which we never show to anybody.”
History is filled with reminders we’d rather forget; we’re all infected by that virus
We can easily recall the atrocities of an Adolf Hitler
But we’d rather forget about Watergate or Monicagate—we resist till the end the thought of corruption in the Oval office!
We try to kid ourselves into thinking people are really pretty good–until 9/11!
Without law, there’s no standard to measure our rebellious attitude.
When God gave the law, it demonstrated that our nature always wants to do just what it has been told not to do.
Augustine: Tells of stealing pears from a neighbor’s vineyard. They weren’t hungry and didn’t eat the pears. They fed them to the pigs. Why? “They were nice pears, but it wasn’t pears my wretched soul coveted; I had better at home. I picked them in order to become a thief. The only feast I got was a feast of iniquity, and that I enjoyed to the full.... The desire to steal was awakened by the prohibition.”
Have you considered what would happen if one of the stores in town were to put out a sign: “Don’t throw stones through this window!” It wouldn’t last 24 hours!
Luxury hotel in Galveston: "Do not fish from balcony!" The first week 41 windows were broken.
Benches, bearing sign: “Wet Paint. Do not touch!” What do people do?
James Montgomery Boice: Principal heard rumor about children bringing firecrackers to school. He issued a strict warning not to bring them, or they’d be suspended immediately. They didn’t even have any! Within 45 minutes they remembered where there was one and sent a friend home to get it. (Unfortunately, it went off in the cloak closet!)
God gave commandments to show absolute holiness of His own character.
God’s people ought to reflect His character.
God gave the commandments to reveal how a holy person ought to walk.
Thus the law is holy, just and good.
What God gave to show us the path became a problem.
It condemned us; it proved we’re all sinners!
James 1:23-25. God's Word is compared to a mirror.
Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.
Like a mirror, God’s Word reveals condition of those who look at it.
It reveals our condition (it shows what we really look like!)
If mirror shows our face is dirty, is that an indication something’s wrong with the mirror?
On contrary, it demonstrates the faithfulness of the mirror.
It’s accomplishing the purpose for which it was made.
3 images describe purpose of the law.
First: dentist's mirror he sticks in patient's mouth. With mirror he detects cavities. But he doesn't drill with it or use it to pull teeth. It can show decayed areas, but it can't provide a solution.
Second, law is like a flashlight. If lights go out, it guides you to electrical box. When you point it at the fuses, it helps you see which one’s burned out. But after you remove bad fuse, don't insert flashlight in its place. You need a fuse.
Third, law is like a plumb line. When a builder checks a wall, he uses a weighted string to see if it's true. But if you find a problem, the plumb line can’t correct it. You need a hammer and saw.
Law fulfills purpose for which God made it—it reveals the standard
—it can show how far off the mark we are, but it can’t transform our life.
LAW LACKS POWER 7:14-24
Is this only true of unsaved people or is it true of US too?
Do only unsaved children touch something their mother said not to touch, and break it?
Do only unsaved high schoolers yield to peer pressure, or copy a friend’s test paper?
Do only unsaved people make unkind remarks? cheat on business deals? or fudge on taxes?
Paul knows what we’re going through! He lives there too!
He uses 1st person pronouns 47 times—describing his own experience—not that of some pagan!
He uses present tense verbs; he’s describing his present experience–not just his past life!.
Problem isn't the law; it's good. The problem is US!
Paul’s testimony is everyone’s testimony!
That’s why the ark builder got drunk.
That’s why the great leader of Israel flew off the handle–Moses blew up!
That’s why “the king after God’s own heart” committed adultery.
That’s why a prominent disciple denied his Lord
“Even though we wish to do good, evil is still present in us!!!”
The law was given to reveal sin, not to eliminate it.
The law doesn't have the power needed to produce obedience.
The law can produce the fear of God, but it can't create holiness.
It doesn't have the power to enable us to obey it.
We all affirm the goodness of God’s law, and yet we all, at times, rebel against it.
Why? Because that sinful nature, still resides within us!
It can no longer control us.
We are no longer its slave.But it’s still alive and well!
Paul says: “I am carnal.” “I am sold under sin.”
“I Do what I hate.” “Sin dwells in me.”
“Nothing good lives in ME, that is, in MY SINFUL nature.” —it’s still there!
“I cannot carry out [my] desire to do what’s good.”
“I keep on doing the evil I do not want to do.”
We desire to please God, but we still struggle: “I want what I want, when I want it!”
Have you learned what Paul learned: “In ME, dwells no good thing!
Or are you still kidding yourself, thinking if you just work hard enough you’ll please God?
With every good intention and all our effort, we still can't fulfill what God requires.
We eventually sound a cry of desperation like Paul:
WHO WILL FREE US FROM THIS BODY OF DEATH?
If it depends on obeying God’s standards in my strength, I’m in trouble!
Law can’t bring us justification; it can’t bring sanctification either!
Gal. 3: “If you started the journey by faith, do you think you can finish it by your own efforts, by law?”
WHO WILL FREE US FROM THIS BODY OF DEATH?
His cry appears hopeless. Is our plight, then, hopeless?
GOD PROVIDES WHAT LAW LACKS 7:25
Paul doesn't leave us without hope to face our frustration and failure.
The reality of Rom 7 drives us to the solution in Rom 8.
Not until we’re that desperate will we stop trying to live the Christian life in our own strength, —and lean on Jesus!
Ch. 8 speaks at length about the basis for our victory:
Only in Jesus can we find power to overcome sin and live a holy life.
He provides the power to obey.
Although our own efforts lead to defeat, and in the end, to death, Paul knows that the solution to our problem of weakness is found in Christ.
Who will rescue us? Jesus Christ our Lord!
When we are in Christ, we can live a holy life that will please God.
Jesus provides what the law lacks!
Pioneer missionary Ludwig Nommensen stressed this to Batak tribesmen of Southeast Asia. When he arrived, a village chief gave him 2 years to learn customs and convince them he had a message worth hearing. At the end he was asked how Christianity differed from their traditions. "We know what is right," said the leader, "we too have laws that say we must not steal, or take our neighbors' wives, or tell lies." The missionary answered, "But my Master supplies the power to keep these laws." The chief was startled. "Can you really teach my people to live better?" he inquired. "I can't, but if they receive Christ, God will give them strength to do what's right." He was given another 6 months. Nommensen preached the Gospel and taught God’s Word. At the end, the chief said, "Your God walks with men and gives them strength to do what He requires."
Run, run and do, the Law commands But gives me neither feet nor hands.
Better news the Gospel brings, It bids me fly and gives me wings.
Spurgeon sums up passage by looking at the spiritual conflict we all endure:
O yes, beloved, . . . this is what we hope for, this is what we pray for, this is what we fight for, this is what we would be willing to die for, that we might be conformed to the mind and will of God. We see that God’s law is good and delight in it...
[But] there is another law in the members.... I do not know whether the devil ever goes to sleep, but our sinful nature seems for a time to do so; not, indeed, that it is any the less sinful when asleep than when it is awake.... Gunpowder is not always exploding, but it is always explosive. Bring but the spark to it and it bursts out.... The viper may be coiled up doing no damage; but it hath a deadly virus beneath its fangs. It is still a viper even when it is not putting forth its poisonous tooth. There is within our nature that which would send the best saint to hell if sovereign grace did not prevent. There is a little hell within the heart of every child of God, and only the God of heaven can overmaster that mischievous indwelling sin....
[But] the Lord has struck a deadly blow at our sin. He has broken the head of it. It is a monster, and has immense vitality; but it is a broken-backed, broken-legged, broken-headed monster. There it is: it lies hissing and spitting, and writhing, capable of doing us much mischief, but He that has wounded it will smite it again and again, until at last it shall utterly die....
The Omnipotent is with us; the Invincible is for us. Forward to the charge, onward to the conflict, though the fight wax warmer and sterner still, onward ever, onward without fear or a moment’s hesitation. ‘He that loved us bears us through, and makes us more than conquerors too.’”
O to be saved from myself, dear Lord, O to be lost in Thee,
O that it might be no more I, But Christ that lives in me!
There’s nothing wrong with the law–but it will never get you to heaven!
Law reveals our sin but it lacks the power to change our lives.
The power to change a life is found in Christ alone!
Are YOU still trying to make it on your own–in your own strength?
You can’t get there from here!
You need Jesus!