(24) Struggle of a Saved Soul.
Romans 7:15-25
15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.
16 If, then, I do what I will not to do; I agree with the Law that it is good.
17 But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.
19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.
20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
21 I find then a Law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do well.
22 For I delight in the Law of God according to 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 men that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of 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.
Introduction
Several interpretations have been suggested for these verses:
1. A reflection of life before conversion.
2. The experience of the saved or unsaved, who seek merely to obey the Law.
3. A picture of the carnal Christian’s internal struggle between the spiritual nature’s desire to obey God and the fleshly nature’s desire to go one’s own way.
4. The process of growing sanctification, after conversion.
The latter, #4, seems to me to be the more probable idea. Even though the believer wants to be delivered from the guilt and penalty of sin, he will not be free from the presence of sin until he goes to be with the Lord or Christ returns. The struggle against sin continues throughout life on earth. The difference for the Christian, who has the mind of Christ, is that there is the hope of being rescued from our sins; and the hope of having the power to achieve victory over the sinful nature. Even though the struggle with sin remains while he is on earth, the Christian is no longer condemned before God, but stands righteous before Him.
Paul has exclaimed that the Mosaic Law is Spiritual. If it is holy and good, why can’t the Law bring holiness? Paul immediately gives the answer; I am carnal, sold under sin. In this section the apostle continues to speak in the first person singular. He uses the present tense. Here, there is inward tension evident that was not evident in his discussion of the Law (7:1–13). Autobiographically Paul points out that even the believer is constantly beset by the tugs and pulls of a self-seeking and self-centered ego. Paul designates this ego “the flesh.” This is no straw man which he sets up, but in fact the anguish of Paul’s own soul. He knows to do right and to obey the Law, but in himself he cannot do either.
15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.
For what I am doing, I do not understand. While recognizing that the Law is spiritual, because it is God’s Laws, Paul also must admit that he is carnal. As a slave to the power of sin, Paul recognizes that those things he wishes he could do, he cannot do; and conversely, those things he knows he must not do, he finds himself doing. Every morally sensitive person is aware of what Paul means here. Friend, I have been there; and though it pains me, I confess that that is my current situation.
Paul is not attempting to rid himself of the responsibility for his sin. He is aware that in the Christian there are two wills, that of the fleshly, sinful nature which causes him to sin, and that which is born of God which does not commit sin—“Whoever has been [1]born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God” (I Jn. 3:9).
Now the apostle describes the struggle that goes on in a believer. It is the conflict between the two natures. He describes a man trying to achieve holiness by personal effort, struggling with all his might to fulfill God’s “holy and righteous and good” commandments (v.12), only to discover that the more he struggled, the worse his condition became. It was a losing battle, and no wonder, for it is not in the power of fallen human nature to conquer sin and live in holiness.
Notice the prominence of the first-person pronouns—I, me, my, myself; they occur over forty times in verses 9–25. People who go through this Romans 7 experience have taken an overdose of “Vitamin I.” They are looking inside themselves, trying to find victory by their personal strength, which is not possible. People need to know that they have died with Christ and have risen with Him to walk in newness of life. Then, instead of trying to improve the flesh, they will consign it to the grave.
In describing the struggle between the two natures, Paul says, what I am doing, I do not understand. He is a split personality, a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He finds himself indulging in things that he doesn’t want to do, and practicing things that he hates
For what I will to do, that I do not practice;--Man is a mystery to himself. New sciences spring up continually to try to explain how he thinks or why he acts as he does, but all of today’s accumulated information has brought us no closer to understanding the human problem. The search for understanding may lead some to religion, but religion is not necessarily successful, as Paul’s long struggle as a Pharisee had taught him. As long as we live in this life, we will have warfare between the Spirit of God and the flesh.
but what I hate, that I do.—This is the statement of one who is baffled. But he is not ignorant as to what is wrong. The problem is how to overcome what is wrong. Paul is speaking of his personal experience with this problem, and at this place in his life he is a failure at dealing with it. The failure of Paul to achieve his purpose is found in the fact that he is attempting in his own strength that which can be accomplished only in the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. Eventually, we don’t know when, there came a day when there was victory, but Paul did not win it; Christ did. Paul learned that it was a matter of yielding, presenting himself and letting the Spirit of God live the Christian life through him.
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[1]Born of God. This phrase refers to the impossibility of one who has been born of God going on in sin. Some Bible students think that this verse refers to the believer’s new nature, and that while the old nature can and does sin, the new nature cannot sin. However, I believe that Paul is speaking of constant or habitual sinful behavior. The believer will sin on occasion or even frequently, but he does not have the sin habit. He does not defiantly continue to commit the same sin over-and-over again.
The reason is that His seed remains in him. There is also considerable disagreement among Bible students as to the meaning of this expression. Some think that this seed refers to the new nature, others to the Holy Spirit, and still others to the word of God. All of these are true, and therefore are possible explanations. I stand with those who believe that the seed refers to the new life which is imparted to the believer at the time of his conversion. Here, then, is a statement that the divine life remains in the believer. He is eternally secure. Rather than being an excuse for the Christian to go out and sin, his eternal security is a guarantee he will not go on sinning. He cannot sin habitually because he has been born of God. The new life of one who is born again, prohibits the possibility of continuance in sin as a lifestyle.
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16 If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the Law that it is good.
Once again, he is speaking of the Christian struggle, which believers constantly experience due to the conflict between the flesh and the Spirit. The Spirit is not something that everyone naturally has, but it comes to us from regeneration. This occurs the moment we are saved through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul agrees (believes) that the Law is [2]good. This verse, as with the previous verse, points to the experience of a believer (In this case it is Paul’s personal experience.). He finds himself in agreement with the Law as a result of his disapproval of that which is forbidden by it. The fact that he acts contrary to the Law is no evidence that he has a bad opinion of it. The conflict is not between the Law and the believer; it is between the believer and what the Law condemns. It is by committing acts which his better judgment condemns, that he is taking sides with the Law against himself, because the Law condemns them too. And by agreeing with the Law, he shows that he believes that the Law is good. He knows that the Law is not responsible for his sin, and he longs to honor the Law and to keep it perfectly.
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[2]The Greek word for “good” is “kalos” meaning beautiful, noble, excellent.
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17 But [3]now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
These words were spoken by a born-again man. It was not Saul of Tarsus who spoke these words; it was Paul the Apostle. He recognized the presence of the flesh.
Another way to say it is, “It is no longer I (new nature) who is doing these things, but sin (the old nature) living in me.” You see, Paul still had the old nature. His new nature no longer approved of the sin that was still residing in his flesh, like the old nature did—“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20). The new nature strongly disapproved of his sin. Actually, the apostle had already acknowledged personal guilt for his sin when he said this in 1 John 2:20: “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” Years ago, I met a very old man that told me he no longer sinned, and had been sin free for all of his adult life. Turns out he was a holiness preacher. I recited this verse along with Romns 3.23: "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." And then I brought up Paul's personal struggle with sin. Friend, if you say you are not a sinner; then all I can say is--YOU HAVE NOT READ YOUR BIBLE!
By consenting to the Law and knowing that it is good, the believer is led to the conclusion that the culprit is not the new man in Christ, but the sinful, corrupt nature that dwells in him. But we must be careful here. We must not excuse our sinning by passing it off to indwelling sin. We are responsible for what we do, and we must not use this verse to “pass the buck.” All Paul is doing here is tracking down the source of his sinful behavior, not excusing it.
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[3]The term “now” is used here to mean “this being the case.” It is not used here as an expression of time.
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18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells;--There can be no progress in holiness until we learn what Paul learned here—that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells. The flesh here means the evil, corrupt nature which is inherited from Adam, and which is still in every believer. It is the source of every evil action that a person performs. There is nothing good in it, and God does not have a program to reform it; it will live as long as we do; but praise God, it cannot live outside our flesh and blood bodies.
When we learn this, it delivers us from ever looking for any good in the old nature. It delivers us from being disappointed when we don’t find any good there. And it delivers us from being obsessed with ourselves. There is nothing to be gained by introspection. As the saintly Scot, Robert Murray McCheyne said, “For every look we take at ourselves, we should take ten looks at Christ.”
nothing good dwells;—Notice also, that after saying, “in me nothing good dwells,” he immediately adds the explanation, “that is, in my flesh.” What is the meaning of the clarification, “in me (that is, in my flesh?).” He is making a simple statement, “There is nothing good within me.” And there is nothing good within Tom Lowe, and there is nothing good within you. Now don’t get mad at me, because I am not the one saying it; it is God, and He says it again-and-again:
1. “I delight in the Law of God after the inward man…but I see another Law in my members, warring against the Law of my mind,” (Rom. 7:22, 23). He wants to do God’s will. But he sees a contrary principle at work in his life, striving against the new nature, and making him a captive of indwelling sin.
2. “Every imagination of man’s heart is only evil continually?” (Gen. 8:21). God destroyed mankind by a universal flood. But the problem with man’s heart was not solved by the Flood. The eight people who took refuge in the ark still retained a sinful nature, and their descendants would still exhibit that nature.
for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. — It is apparent, from the statement for to will is present with me, that the apostle is speaking of Christians, since only they, with the leading powers of the Holy Spirit, are inclined towards doing what is good; and who else has this struggle within himself, except those who are regenerated by the Spirit of God, but still have within them the remains of the flesh?
As Paul gains knowledge, he comes to realize that within himself he doesn’t have the ability to do good. He wants to do good, but he doesn’t know how to do it by his own abilities. He cannot do the will of God, because sin has dominance over him and his new nature doesn’t have the power to overcome it. Sin is his master, his lord, his king. By himself he cannot break it; he is a defeated Christian when he is [4]controlled by sin. Whatever may be considered good from the purely natural point of view is in reality void of that quality in the absence of a right relationship with God.
Let me make it personal. Anything that Tom Lowe does in the flesh, God hates. God won’t have it; God can’t use it. When it is of the flesh, it is no good. The Lord Jesus said, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh…” (John 3:6) (and that’s all it will ever be). He also said, “Whoever has been born of God does not sin…” (1 John 3:9). Isn’t that wonderful, that we are given a new nature, and that nature does not commit sin. I assure you that the new nature will not commit sin. When I sin, it is the old nature. The new nature won’t do it; the new nature just hates sin. The new nature won’t let me sleep at night; it says, “You have to make it right!”
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[4]“It is not the new man in Christ who carries on this life of defeat, but it is the sin-principle in him, provoked by the unyielded flesh and occupying the Lord’s temple as a trespassing squatter like the Tobiah whom Nehemiah expelled” (Neh. 13:7–9) (Gleason L. Archer, Jr., The Epistle to the Romans, p. 43).
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19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.
The conflict between the two natures rages on. He finds himself failing to do the good he wants to do, and instead doing the evil that he despises. He is just one great mass of contradictions and inconsistency.
Paul is baring his very soul, and he is telling us of an experience that is part of the human condition. He knew what was right and wanted to do it; and yet, somehow, he never could. He knew what was wrong and the last thing he wanted to do was to do it; and yet, somehow, he did. He felt like a man with a split personality. It was as if two men were living inside of him, pulling in different directions. He was haunted by constant frustration due to his ability to see what was good and his inability to do it; and his ability to recognize what was wrong and his inability to refrain from doing it.
20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
We might paraphrase this verse as follows: “Now if I (the old nature) do what I (the new nature) don’t want to do, it is no longer I (the person) who do it, but sin that dwells within me.” Again, let it be clear that Paul is not excusing himself or disclaiming responsibility. He is simply stating that he has not found deliverance from the power of indwelling sin, and that when he sins, it is against the desire of the new man.
21 I find then a Law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good.
He finds a principle or Law at work in his life which causes all his good intentions to end in failure. When he wants to do what is right, he ends up by sinning. The Law which is referred to here has been interpreted both as the Law of God (vs. 22) and the Law of sin (vs. 23). Either interpretation is plausible. It seems likely, however, that the Law to which he refers prohibits him from doing good, and therefore is the Law of sin.
How about you? When you are attempting to serve God in the Spirit, have you discovered that the old nature is right there to bring evil? Perhaps an evil thought will come into your mind. Every child of God, regardless of his state, must admit that in every act and in every moment sin is present with him. Failure to recognize this will eventually lead to failure in a Christian’s life.
The word Law in this verse refers to the Law of Sin which Paul speaks of as being “in his members”— "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” (v. 23). Dr. Scofield points out that there are six “laws” mentioned in Romans:
1. The Law of Moses—which condemns: “Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God” (v. 3:19).
2. Law simply as a principle—“I find then a Law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good” (v. 3:21).
3. The Law of Faith—which brings saving grace and excludes all works and self-righteousness: “Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. (v.3:27).
4. The Law of Sin in the members of the body which is victorious over the Law of the mind—“I find then a Law, that evil is present with me… warring against the Law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the Law of sin which is in my members. 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. (vs. 21, 23, 25).
5. The Law of the Mind, which agrees with the Law of Moses which is holy and righteous, but can’t keep the law because of the law of Sin in the members of the body—“If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the Law that it is good. 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.” (vs 16, 23).
6. The Law of the Spirit which delivers the believer from the Law of Sin and death—“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (v. 8:2).
22 For I delight in the Law of God according to the inward man.
This expression relates to “the mind,” as mentioned in the next verse. The Law of the mind guides the [5]inward man, that is, the inner self of the believer, to be appreciative of the Law of God. As far as his new nature is concerned, he delights in the Law of God. He knows that the Law is holy, and that it is an expression of the will of God, and he wants to do God’s will. This is the proper response of any believer to God’s Laws. Through the new birth, a man receives a new nature, and along with it he gets a capacity for loving the spiritual truths contained in God’s Word.
Paul delights in the Law of God. This delight is not seen in outward acts, which can be seen by men, but it is in the inward man, the new nature that comes into the heart when a sinner is born-again. It can be seen in the things he desires, in his obedience, and in his hate of those things the Law condemns. A proof of his delight in the Law is his persistent effort to keep the Law in spite of constant failure. Paul’s delight in the Law reveals that he is a saved man. An unsaved man doesn’t experience this inward struggle, since he only has one nature.
It is Paul’s desire, as it should be with every believer, to love and obey the Law of God. However, opposed to the Law of God is the Law of sin, which brings his members (that is, his body, his hands, his tongue, etc.) into captivity. Paul has come to the conclusion that as long as the believer is alive there will be a constant warfare between the old sinful nature and his [6]delight in the Law of God. Unfortunately, when the believer attempts to win that battle in himself, he is always defeated. Self-attempts to rid our members of the tyranny of indwelling sin, causes the frustration which underlies this passage.
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[5]“The inward man” is the new nature.
[6]“To delight” means to rejoice, and is stronger than “I agree” in verse 16. Paul delights in the Law of God.
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23 But I see another Law in my members, warring against the Law of my mind, and bringing me into [7]captivity to the Law of sin which is in my members.
Paul can see an opposing principle at work in his life that strives against the new nature, with its desire to do good, and makes him a captive of indwelling sin. His true self, the inward man, agreed with the Law and rejoiced in it. But there was another Law (the Law of Sin), that made him a captive and prisoner of sin. But before making him a prisoner it was at war with the Law of the Mind. He stresses that the sin that is in his members is a powerful force and no one should try to deny that fact.
Here the word “mind,” stands for the new nature which belongs to the believer, by virtue of the new birth. It stands in contrast to the flesh.
There are three different Laws mentioned in verses 21–23:
1. The Law of God—The Law written on the heart, God’s Word, Mosaic Law.
2. The Law of the Mind refers to the man who agrees with the Law of God. It is the new nature which wants to obey the Law of God—“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Cor. 5:17). The Holy Spirit influences the believer to first, live a life of obedience to God; and second to do good works.
3. The Law of Sin is a principle of evil, keeping the will captive. This law caused sin to revive and become active. It refers to that within a man which has sold out to sin. If it wasn’t for the indwelling Holy Spirit, the Law of Sin would dominate Paul’s life. This Law is also called “the flesh”—“For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Gal. 5:17, 24).
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[7]George Cutting writes:
The Law, though he (Paul) delights in it after the inward man, gives him no power. In other words, he is trying to accomplish what God has declared to be an utter impossibility—namely, making the flesh subject to God’s holy Law. He finds that the flesh takes care of the things of the flesh, and is very hostile to the Law of God, and even to God Himself.
You see, you don’t get rid of the old nature when you are saved. And yet, there is no power in your new nature.
“I see another Law,” the Law of Sin, which refers to the hostility of the old nature against the Law. This Law operates in the members of his body—that is, his unredeemed and still sinful humanness—waging war against his desire to obey God’s Law. It causes the child of God who is honest to cry out to God like Paul did in the next verse.
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24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
This is not an unsaved man who is crying out, O wretched man that I am!—this is a saved man that is exhausted from the struggle. Helplessly, Paul throws up his hands and exclaims what a wretched individual a believer is when he has not gained mastery over sin. O wretched man is an expression used in pagan Greek drama to express tragic misfortune and woe. Paul recognizes that he is in a helpless state of despair, due to his condition of defeat and frustration with sin, which makes him miserable, because he cannot rid himself of his inclination toward sinning.
Who will deliver me from this body of death?—Now Paul lets out his famous, eloquent groan. He feels as if he has a decomposing body strapped to his back. That body, of course, is the old nature in all its corruption. Tradition says that an ancient tribe near Tarsus tied the corpse of a murder victim to its murderer allowing its spreading decay to slowly infect and execute the murderer—perhaps that is the image Paul has in mind here.
This body of death probably does not refer to a physical body. Sin is much more deeply rooted than the body. Paul is speaking of human nature (or the old nature) which has inherited guilt and sin from Adam. He knows it is that old nature within him which is continually inclined towards thoughts and deeds that yield only death. Paul knows there hangs over his life a cloud of guilt and death which is imputed with sin.
The main purpose of this statement, however, is in the question who will deliver me…? Paul indicates that if he is to be delivered from the mastery of sin, that that deliverance must come from without. He is unable to live the Christian life in himself. He is incapable of gaining mastery over sin. He is helpless. His shoulders are pinned to the floor—he has been wrestled down. Like old Jacob, he has been wrestled down. He needs help that must come from outside of him. If Paul is to live a mature and godly life, and to delight in the Law of God, the strength to do so must come from outside of him. Whatever else the Law can do, it can’t deliver anyone from the flesh. We can be delivered from the Law and the flesh in only one way, that is, by being dead to it, and in Christ.
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.
The first half of this verse answers the question Paul has just raised (v. 24)—he is certain that Christ will eventually rescue him when He returns—“in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 15:52, 53, 56, 57). The second half summarizes the two sides of the struggle Paul has described in verses 14-24.
I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!—That is to say, “I thank God that deliverance will come through Jesus Christ our Lord.” This will take place when the Lord returns. Then the body will be redeemed. The apostle is anticipating, not death, but the Lord’s return. This expression of thanks foreshadows the references to His Second Coming in chapter eight.
So then, with the mind I myself serve the Law of God, but with the flesh the Law of sin.—these words summarize the conflict that exists between the two natures. With the renewed mind, (new nature), the believer serves the Law of God, but with the flesh (old nature) the Law of sin. It’s not until we reach the next chapter that we find the way of deliverance from the flesh explained.
Paul comes to the conclusion that only Jesus Christ can enable us to live a sanctified life. He would like to serve the Law of God, but his flesh causes him to serve the Law of sin. The Lord Jesus turns that around. Both salvation and sanctification come through Christ; He has provided everything we need.
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.
Law brings out the worst in us, but love brings out the best in us. The Holy Spirit within us helps us do what God wants us to do—“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit” (Rom 8:1-5). And the Holy Spirit helps us to be what God wants us to be—“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law” (Gal. 5:22-23). Keep your love relationship with the Lord live and exciting, and you will have righteousness instead of wretchedness.
Summary
Romans 7 are not a hypothetical case. It is an actual picture of the internal strife caused by the Law of sin warring against the Law of the Spirit in the Apostle Paul. This does not need be the normal Christian experience, because Paul has already instructed us how to avert this internal strife. Chapter 6 presented the proper way to sanctification; this chapter presents the improper way. To live a sanctified life we must know what Christ has accomplished for us in our justification; that we have died with Him and are alive unto righteousness; and yield ourselves completely to Him.
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[8]A Yielded Life
Romans 7:21–25 does not suggest that you live a divided life because that is impossible. You must choose your Master (6:15–23) and be true to your Husband, Jesus Christ (7:1–6). “The mind” refers to the new nature from God and “the body of death” the old nature from Adam. We cannot serve God with an old nature that is sinful (7:18), but the Holy Spirit enables us to do His will as we yield to Him. The human body is not sinful, but human nature is.