I Belong Only to Him - Surrendering Guilt of sin and Accepting Forgiveness

Hello friends and welcome back to The Book of Romans Series. Today we are exploring chapter seven. Yesterday we talked about how we are no longer slaves to sin and how we should no longer obey it but instead become a slave to righteousness. Today Paul talks more about sin.

Do you not know, brothers and sisters – for I am speaking to those who know the one and only as long as that person lives? For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law that binds her to him. So then, if she has sexual relations with another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress. But if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is not an adulteress if she marries another man. (Verses 1-3)

So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For when we were in the realm of the flesh, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in us, so that we bore fruit for death. But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code. (Verses 4-6)

We died to the law through the body of Christ so that we no longer belong to the law – but to Him! I belong solely to Him! ‘We are released from the law so that we can serve in the new of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.’

What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin has had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead. Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to live and I died. I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. For sin seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and thought the commandment put me to death. So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous, and good. (Verses 7-12)

The law is important to keep in mind. Because without the law we wouldn’t know some of the things we should avoid. Just because we are no longer slaves to the law, doesn’t mean that the law isn’t holy or good.

We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 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. 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. 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. (Verses 8-20)

If you are thinking the same as me, right now you are saying “What in the world is Paul trying to say?!” From what I can gather, pretty much, naturally we are unspiritual because we are born slaves to sin, thus we are born blind. Because we were born blind, we cannot understand what we are doing.

When we want to do good, we end up doing evil – and when we do evil, we agree that the law is good because the law tells us the difference between good and evil. Because Christ died for us and freed us from sin, it is no longer us that does the sin but it is the sin living in us, for good does not live in us because of our sinful nature. We may have the desire to do what is good, but we cannot carry it out. When we commit sin and evil acts, it is no longer us that is doing that, but the sin in us.

So, I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 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. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 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. (Verses 21-25)

Even when we do good on this earth, evil is with us. These bodies we are in are subject to death. Thankfully, God delivers us through Christ. Stop what you are doing and thank Him right now for that – and raise the corners of your mouth. We are so undeserving of such grace.

It is not our good works that save us, thankfully, because just as Paul said, we are uncapable of doing good – but it is HIS WORKS! So today, I surrender my guilt of sin, because it is no longer I that commits it, but my sinful nature that is trapped in this body. I am forgiven! I repent and God clears me of it – COMPLETELY! What a wonderful God we serve.