Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP000047A
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00:01 The Bible tells us, "In the beginning was the Word,
00:04 and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." 00:08 It says to receive 00:09 with meekness the implanted Word 00:12 which is able to save your souls, 00:14 and to be diligent to present yourself 00:17 approved to God 00:18 rightly dividing the Word of truth. 00:21 Join us now for the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:26 Our study today is Salvation by Faith Alone, 00:30 the Book of Romans. 00:33 Hello, and welcome to another 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:37 My name is Jill Morikone. 00:38 And we are delighted 00:40 that you are taking time from your day, 00:41 whether it's during the week 00:42 when we air or at Sabbath morning 00:44 to open up God's Word and to study with us. 00:47 We are in the midst of our discussion 00:49 on the Book of Romans, 00:50 Paul's epistle to the believers there in Rome. 00:54 And we are in lesson number eight. 00:56 Who is the man of Roman 7? 00:58 If you don't have the Sabbath school quarterly, 01:00 you can always go to the website, 01:02 that is ABSG.Adventist.org. 01:07 That stands for Adult BibleStudyGuide.Adventist.org. 01:12 You can download the lesson, 01:13 and you can follow along with us. 01:15 Or you can always go to your local 01:18 Seventh-day Adventist Church, 01:20 join a Sabbath school class there, 01:22 and get involved in fellowship 01:24 with others brothers and sisters. 01:26 We've a wonderful panel today 01:28 that I want to introduce to you at this time. 01:29 To my left Pastor John Lomacang, 01:32 and Pastor CA Murray, 01:34 Miss Mollie Steenson, and Miss Shelley Quinn. 01:36 And it's a privilege to open up the Word of God 01:39 with each one of you 01:40 because I know 01:42 that you're students of the Word. 01:43 And they are friends and mentors. 01:45 So I'm so blessed to be joining with them 01:48 for the Sabbath School Panel today. 01:49 Before we go any further, we want to open up with prayer. 01:52 And, Pastor John, would you pray for us today? 01:54 Sure. 01:55 Loving Father in heaven, 01:57 we bow our hearts and heads before You. 01:59 And as we dive into this book 02:02 that reminds us of our shallowness. 02:05 We pray that Your Spirit will pull us to the depth 02:08 of the knowledge, 02:09 necessary to reveal 02:10 to those listening and watching this program 02:12 the beauty of the saving grace of Christ. 02:15 Guide our hearts and minds, 02:17 bring the Word alive that all things 02:19 might be done to further your cause in the earth 02:22 and bring us to a saving walk with You, 02:24 in Jesus' name, amen. 02:26 Amen. 02:28 Thank you so much, Pastor John. 02:29 Romans 7 has been a topic you could say of controversy 02:33 among Christians for generations, 02:36 for a long time. 02:38 May be since it was written, I'm not even sure. 02:40 Some people say, is it autobiographical? 02:42 Is it about the life of Paul? 02:44 Is it maybe an experience writing about someone? 02:47 Is he converted? Is he unconverted? 02:49 And we're going to unpackaged 02:51 that here as we discuss Romans 7 here today. 02:55 You know, as I look at the Book of Romans, 02:57 when you begin 02:58 from the very beginning Romans 1, 03:01 Paul really follows 03:02 a wonderful theological progression of thought. 03:05 And Paul is a wonderful scholar, 03:07 he's a great writer. 03:08 And you see that progression Romans 1, 2, and 3 03:11 deals with the indictment of the world, 03:13 the judgment that comes over all the world, right? 03:16 Romans 1 is the judgment over the gentiles. 03:19 Romans 2, the judgment also extends to the Jews. 03:22 Romans 3, we all have sinned 03:25 and fallen short of the glory of God. 03:27 Then halfway through Romans 3 because we all have sinned, 03:31 we all are in need of a Savior. 03:33 And there is that concept of salvation of justification 03:36 by faith that Romans are so known 03:38 for that treaties on justification by faith. 03:41 Then when we get to Romans 6, 03:43 we begin the process of sanctification by faith 03:47 or being dead to that old man. 03:50 We talked about that last week, 03:51 that analogy of baptism into the watery grave 03:54 and then rising to newness of life. 03:57 We have Romans 7 and then Romans 8 04:00 of course is walking in the spirit 04:02 and the power of the Holy Spirit 04:04 to be dwelling in us to give us that victory over sin. 04:08 And then somehow between Romans 6 and Romans 8 04:12 we have Romans 7 04:13 which is our discussion here today. 04:16 It's the battle you could say between the flesh and the law 04:21 that takes place once we come to Jesus 04:25 because when we come to Jesus, 04:26 we don't even know sin unless we know the law, 04:30 unless we know Jesus. 04:31 And when we come to Jesus, 04:33 we see there is that battle between that flesh 04:36 and between the Spirit. 04:37 But praise the Lord, He can give us victory. 04:40 So we want to look at that. 04:42 I just want to look at two laws discussed here in Romans 7 04:45 and then we'd jump into Sunday. 04:47 In Roman 7 we see the law of sin and death 04:50 and then we also see God's law. 04:52 Let's look at the couple of scriptures. 04:54 Roman 7:7 04:56 and I know this will be discussed 04:57 in further detail on the panel today. 05:00 I just wanted to lay this foundation, Roman 7:7, 05:03 Paul says, "What shall we say then? 05:04 Is the law sin? Certainly not! 05:06 On the contrary, 05:08 I would not have known sin except through the law." 05:12 What law is he referring to? 05:13 It's very clear, 05:15 it's the Ten Commandment moral law 05:16 'cause he says, 05:17 "For I would not have known covetousness 05:19 unless the law had said, 'You shall not covet,'" 05:21 and that's one of the Ten Commandments. 05:23 And then verse 12, he says, "The law is holy, 05:26 and the commandment holy, and just, and good." 05:29 God's moral law shows us sin and His law is holy, 05:33 just and good. 05:34 But Paul introduces another law 05:36 that's warring in his members in this chapter. 05:40 In verse 25, he says, 05:42 "With a mind I myself serve the law of God..." 05:46 That's the Ten Commandment moral law. 05:49 "But with the flesh the law of sin." 05:53 So there's two different laws warring for master 05:56 you could say. 05:57 Verse 22, he says, "I delight in the law of God," 06:00 that's the moral Law. 06:01 According to the inward man 06:03 but I see another law in my members 06:06 warring against the law of my mind, 06:07 bringing me into captivity to the law of sin 06:10 which is in my members. 06:12 So let's jump into Sunday where we read our memory text, 06:15 that is Romans 7:6, and let's say that together. 06:20 "Now we are delivered from the law, 06:23 that being dead wherein we were held, 06:27 that we should serve in newness of spirit, 06:30 and not in the oldness of the letter." 06:34 So the portion on Sunday is Romans 7:1-6. 06:38 So let's take a look at that, Romans 7:1-6, 06:41 freed from the law. 06:42 And we're going to look at what law that is 06:44 'cause there's some controversy. 06:45 Some people say that means we're free from the moral, 06:48 the Ten Commandment law, 06:49 but we'll find out that's not the case here. 06:52 Romans 7:1, "Do you not know, brethren, 06:55 for I speak to those who know the law..." 06:57 He's writing to the believers 06:59 who knew and understood the law. 07:02 "That the law has dominion 07:04 over a man as long as he lives?" 07:06 And then Paul begins to unpackaged 07:09 this by an illustration of marriage. 07:12 He says verse 2, "For the woman..." 07:14 Now, we know in the Bible woman represents a church. 07:17 This could symbolically represent 07:19 the people of God or you and I. 07:22 "For the woman who has a husband, 07:25 is bound by the law to her husband 07:27 as long as he lives, but if the husband dies, 07:31 she is released from the law of her husband." 07:34 Let's read the next verse and then we'll unpackage this. 07:36 "So then, if while her husband lives 07:38 she marries another man, 07:41 she will be called an adulteress. 07:43 But if her husband dies, she is free from that law, 07:47 so that she is no adulteress 07:49 though she has married another man." 07:51 So the first time you read this, you might say, 07:53 "What in the world is Paul talking about here?" 07:55 This is an example, 07:56 an illustration but what does he mean, 07:58 the woman has a husband, 07:59 we would say the old husband or the first husband, 08:02 and then there's another husband. 08:05 So what exactly does that mean, and what does that mean, 08:07 the first husband dies, 08:09 and then she can be legally married 08:10 to the second husband. 08:12 So let's look at that. 08:13 We already talked about the woman represents you and I, 08:15 Christians, the body of believers, 08:19 the people of God. 08:21 Now let's look at if she is married 08:23 to the husband, 08:24 let's look at the first husband, 08:26 that is the law of sin and death 08:29 and we will unpackage that. 08:32 It's the habitual tendency to sin to the carnal 08:36 or fleshly nature from which man is freed 08:40 and to which he dies when he is connected to Christ. 08:44 1 John 3:4 says, 08:46 "Sin is the transgression of the law." 08:50 When we come to Christ, what would you say? 08:53 We die to sin. 08:55 Or we die to that old nature. 08:59 Once her husband dies, she can marry another man. 09:03 What does that mean her husband dies? 09:05 Let's look at Romans 6, 09:06 and I know we study this last week. 09:08 But Romans 6:2, 09:12 it says, "How shall we who die to sin, 09:16 live any longer therein?" 09:20 How shall we who die to sin live any longer therein? 09:25 If the first husband represents that law of sin and death, 09:28 the old man, and when he dies she is then freed from that law 09:34 of sin and death. 09:36 Romans 6:6, "Knowing this, 09:38 that our old man was crucified with him, 09:42 that the body of sin might be done away with, 09:45 that we should no longer be slaves of sin." 09:49 When the old man is crucified with him, 09:51 when it is put to death, we are no longer slaves to sin, 09:55 we're no longer married to that old husband, 09:58 that old husband, the law of sin and death. 10:01 Verse 7, "He who has died, has been freed from sin." 10:06 So when the old husband in Romans 7 died, 10:09 she was then free to marry another man. 10:12 She's been freed from that old husband, 10:15 that law of sin and death. 10:17 So when she dies to the old man, 10:19 then she is set free. 10:22 Romans 6:22, 10:24 "But now having been set free from sin..." 10:26 Meaning that old husband is dead. 10:29 "And having become slaves of God, 10:30 and have your fruit to holiness, 10:32 and the end everlasting life." 10:36 Romans 8:2, 10:39 "For the law of the Spirit of life 10:40 in Christ Jesus 10:42 has made me free from the law of sin and death." 10:46 So now what Paul does is he takes this principle 10:49 and he applies it to the believers. 10:51 Verse 4, "Therefore, my brethren, 10:53 you also have become dead to the law..." 10:56 Meaning to the law of sin, 10:57 he's not talking about the Ten Commandment law, 11:00 they're not dead to that law. 11:01 They're dead to the law of sin through the body of Christ 11:07 that you may be married to another, 11:09 that's the Lord Jesus Christ. 11:11 Remember when we're buried with Christ into baptism, 11:14 death of that old man, the man of sin, 11:16 that law of sin and death, 11:18 we're raised up to walk in newness of life 11:23 with the spirit. 11:25 "Become dead to the law of sin through the body of Christ 11:28 that you may be married to another, 11:30 to him who has raised from the dead 11:32 that we should bear fruit to God." 11:34 The only way we can bear fruit to God 11:36 is if we are connected to Christ, 11:39 if we are walking in the spirit not according to the flesh. 11:44 But now we've been delivered from the law, 11:46 meaning that old man, 11:48 the law of sin and death having died 11:50 to what we were held by so that we should serve 11:53 in the newness of the spirit, 11:56 and not in the oldness of the letter. 11:58 Now there's also another application 12:00 that we could give 12:01 and that is definitely given out there 12:03 in the lesson brought this out 12:05 that they could be talking about the old ceremonial laws 12:09 that were put to death 12:10 'cause remember Paul's writing to those 12:11 who are coming out of Judaism 12:14 and accepting Jesus Christ as the Messiah. 12:16 So it could be that old laws that you're putting to death. 12:20 And now we are living life in Christ Jesus, 12:24 not saying the moral law is put to death 12:26 but those old ceremonial system, 12:28 the sacrificial system 12:30 that pointed forward to the coming of the Messiah 12:33 that that is put aside, 12:35 and now we are walking in Christ Jesus. 12:37 So you have that analogy too, 12:39 maybe a dual application here that we could put there. 12:43 Matthew 6:24, last scripture 12:45 and then I'll turn it over to Pastor John here. 12:48 "No man can serve two masters: either we hate the one, 12:53 and love the other, or we love the one, 12:56 and hate the other. 12:57 We have to choose today." 12:59 Joshua 24:15, 13:01 "Choose you this day whom you will serve?" 13:05 And it's a daily battle and I know 13:07 as we go through the lesson today, 13:08 we will be discussing that 13:09 it's not just a once in a lifetime 13:12 we buried the old man, we come up resurrection, 13:14 newness of life 13:15 but we have a daily battle against our flesh, 13:19 against that fleshly nature 13:20 that strives or struggles for the supremacy. 13:24 So we'll take a look at that as we move forward. 13:27 And, Pastor John, you have the next one. 13:30 Thank you, Jill. 13:32 This topic of Romans 7 is probably one 13:35 of not only the most controversial 13:38 but it is one of the most revealing, 13:40 it talks about law, the law of sin and death, 13:42 the law of my mind, another law in my members, 13:46 the law of the spirit of life. 13:48 And what I want to begin it 13:49 by picking up on something you said 13:51 because unless you understand 13:56 what the law that Paul is referring 13:59 to that's really controlling him, 14:02 unless we understand what that law is, 14:04 then we could misconstrue thinking 14:06 that Paul is referring to the commandments 14:08 as being a bad thing or the ceremonial law 14:11 as being the capturing aspects of the Jewish economy. 14:15 We could almost put those two laws 14:19 in contrast to each other 14:20 or make them fight against one another, 14:22 when in fact God gave them both. 14:25 He gave Moses the Law of Moses, 14:27 and then he also gave the Ten Commandments. 14:29 And God wouldn't give two laws 14:31 that are out of harmony with each other 14:33 but one was designed to lead us to the coming Christ, 14:37 and the other one was designed to continue 14:39 to amplify the righteousness of the character of God. 14:43 One had a particular duration of time, 14:44 the law was added because of transgression, 14:46 Galatians 3:19. 14:48 But what Paul is talking about here, 14:49 he's talking about this thing we're born with. 14:53 When Adam and Eve sinned, 14:55 there was a transitional change and I want to go first, 15:00 we're going to talk about this husband. 15:01 Let's talk about the husband first 15:03 because the husband to me has a broader... 15:06 Jesus brought this picture into view in Genesis 3. 15:11 Let's go to Genesis very quickly. 15:14 He brought this view 15:15 and we know all of you who are women, 15:17 who are married, who have children 15:19 and you know that your husband's seed 15:23 was necessary to produce children. 15:28 Jesus made it very clear to Eve, 15:30 from now on this is going to be the condition of humanity. 15:34 You notice what he says in Genesis 3, 15:36 and I'm going to begin with verse 16, 15:39 then I'm going to go back to verse 15. 15:41 "To the woman he said, 15:44 'I will greatly multiply your sorrow 15:46 and your conception, 15:48 in pain you shall bring forth children.'" 15:51 In other words when these children come forth, 15:53 you're going to recognize the pain of these children 15:56 but then he said something in verse continuing, 15:58 he says, "Your desire shall be for your husband, 16:01 and he shall rule over you." 16:04 Now when you think about this, your desire and your husband, 16:07 Paul uses the same analogy as husband and wife 16:10 in Romans 7. 16:11 Now desire, this is huge 16:14 because the desire shall be for her husband. 16:18 In other words, she's going to prefer her husband, 16:20 and why would she prefer her husband, 16:22 because her nature has not been corrupted by sin. 16:26 And the Lord is immediately connecting 16:28 that to her husband, 16:29 but it gives our hope in the prior verse. 16:32 Let's look at verse 15 16:34 because he talks about the husband in verse 16, 16:36 and then he talks about the seed in verse 15, 16:40 he says, "Now I will put enmity between you and the woman, 16:44 and between your seed and her seed, 16:47 he shall bruise your head, you shall bruise his heel." 16:51 He brings seed, 16:52 woman and husband in these two verses together. 16:54 Now what do you need to produce fruit? 16:57 You need seeds. Absolutely. 16:59 The law that Paul talks about here 17:01 that's producing in our lives in Galatians 17:03 has two contrast, we look at all the... 17:06 Before we see the fruit of the spirit, 17:08 we see the works of the flesh. 17:10 And what I'm suggesting to you is the fruit of the spirit, 17:13 the fruit has seed, the seed is from Christ. 17:18 The works of the flesh also have seed 17:21 and that's from that husband who controls our desire. 17:24 Now we know the natural inclination 17:25 is to do wrong because we have Adam's nature. 17:28 As in Adam all die, 17:29 even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 17:32 So let's go now to Matthew 7 and let's look at the law. 17:35 Now this is particularly to me this law of sin and death 17:41 that Paul is talking about, 17:43 the law of sin and death 17:45 because as we are subject on earth to the law of gravity, 17:49 no one can break the law of gravity 17:51 within the confines of earth's atmosphere. 17:54 You've got to go a long way away 17:56 before the law of gravity 17:57 no longer has any power over you. 18:00 So what I'm saying is as long 18:01 as you're walking on terra firma, 18:02 the law of gravity has power, you cannot break that. 18:06 What I'm going to suggest now, 18:07 as long as you're walking in the nature of Adam, 18:09 you cannot violate that law, 18:11 it will produce in you the fruit that its seed 18:15 is intended to produce 18:17 which is Galatians 5 brings out all those, 18:20 you know, lying, stealing, adultery, 18:22 fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness... 18:24 They produce, that's what's going to happen. 18:27 And when you see it and when you see it 18:29 as the Bible says, 18:30 "In pain you shall bring forth children." 18:32 You're going to see all 18:34 these seeds of corruption in your life. 18:35 It's going to be painful to you. 18:37 But you can't change it 18:39 because you're married to that man 18:40 but as you said in Romans 7, 18:42 as long as that man is your husband, 18:44 he is going to produce that seed in your life 18:46 and that's going to be the end result 18:47 pain, and suffering, and death, and all those straits of sin. 18:51 But look at the principle of this law, Matthew 7:18, 18:55 "A good tree together cannot bear bad fruit. 18:59 Nor can a bad tree bear good fruit." 19:02 So here's the key. 19:03 Once the tree, that man of sin, 19:07 that old husband is still in control, 19:10 you cannot bear good fruit. 19:14 But when Christ is in control, 19:16 this is the beauty of the righteousness of Jesus. 19:18 When Christ is in control, you cannot bear bad fruit. 19:22 Amen. You cannot. 19:24 So what's the difference now? Let's go to Romans 6. 19:27 Romans 6. 19:29 There's a transition, 19:30 we've got a part to play in this 19:31 because some people may say, "Well, I'm a Christian, 19:33 so why are there bad fruits still showing up in my life?" 19:35 That's the challenge to all of us. 19:37 Well, Paul answers, we must die daily, 19:39 but I'm gonna deeper than that, 19:41 and use the writings of Paul to say that. 19:44 Romans 6:16, that's exactly where I'm going, Romans 6:16. 19:48 Here is what I was call and what Ellen White calls, 19:51 the right action of the will, you got to decide daily. 19:55 Joshua 24:15, "Choose you today, 19:59 this day whom you will serve." 20:00 Here it is, Roman 6:16, 20:03 "Do you not know 20:04 that to whom you present yourselves..." 20:07 The King James Version says, "To whom you yield yourselves, 20:10 slaves to obey, 20:11 you are that one slave whom you obey, 20:14 whether of sin leading to" what? 20:16 "Death, or of obedience leading to" what? 20:19 "Righteousness?" 20:20 And so the key is we've got to decide 20:22 as Christians daily 20:24 because the one thing that survives baptism, 20:26 you know, first of all we're safe 20:27 from the penalty of sin, that's justification. 20:29 That's when we give our lives to Christ dead, buried, 20:32 walking in the newness of life on the resurrection. 20:35 Then daily the sanctifying part is we are safe 20:38 from the power of sin but only as we yield, 20:42 choose you this day whom you will serve. 20:44 And so Paul in verses 19 20:46 he makes this clear what he's talking about. 20:49 He says, "I speak in terms 20:51 because of the weakness of your flesh. 20:55 For just as you presented your members as slaves 20:57 of uncleanness and of lawlessness 21:01 leading to moral lawlessness." 21:03 Now he says, 21:05 "You got to make a different decision, 21:06 you got to yield in a different direction." 21:08 So now present your members 21:09 as slaves of righteousness for what? 21:12 For holiness. 21:14 I like to read here in Ministry of Healing, 21:17 page 176, 21:19 and it is under the subtitle everything depends 21:21 on the right action of the will. 21:23 Now remember your desire shall be for your husband, 21:25 this is important because Ellen White uses the word, 21:27 desire for goodness and purity are right as far as they go. 21:31 But if we stop here, they avail nothing. 21:35 Many will go down to ruin while hoping and desiring 21:40 to overcome their evil propensities. 21:43 They do not yield the will to God. 21:46 They do not choose to serve Him. 21:48 And so I have recently over the last five, 21:50 six months or so, 21:51 I've adopted a new idea about this whole thing. 21:54 We cannot choose what to do but we can choose who to serve. 21:59 Because when we choose who to deserve, 22:00 he is the husband. 22:02 He's going to produce in us righteousness or lawlessness. 22:06 When Jesus is the husband, He produces righteousness. 22:10 But if we allow that old man to come back to life, 22:12 he's going to produce 22:13 all manner of evil as Paul says, 22:16 Romans 7:23, 22:17 "I see another law in my members, 22:19 warring against the law of my mind, 22:21 bringing me into captivity to the law of sin 22:24 which is in my members." 22:25 That law of sin is what I'm referring to, 22:27 that law of sin that controlling. 22:30 It is first an enslaving power and then a controlling power. 22:36 When we yield, we are enslaved. 22:39 And then he controls 22:40 and the seed naturally produces the results in our lives, 22:44 and Galatians brings out all those seeds. 22:46 But let me wind up on this point. 22:48 I like the fact that 22:50 the Lord has given us a way to break this. 22:51 Galatians 2:20, 22:53 "I have been crucified with Christ. 22:55 It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. 22:58 And the life which I now live in the flesh, 23:01 this flesh we have every day, 23:03 I live by faith in the Son of God, 23:05 who loved me, and gave Himself for me." 23:07 When we allow Christ to come in, 23:09 that old man is dead and daily the fruit is born 23:13 under the righteousness of Christ. 23:14 Amen. Pastor CA. 23:16 Amen. Amen. 23:17 I just have to add one thing 23:18 because that was so beautifully done. 23:20 I have a fairly extensive study on the world 23:22 using many of those same quotes 23:23 that we've been talking about among ourselves, 23:26 and I always, 23:27 it has always occurred to me 23:29 that to use the will not to do something is incorrect 23:31 use of the will. 23:33 If you have an addiction or something and you're saying, 23:35 I'm going to use my will not to think about this. 23:39 And it's incorrect use of the will. 23:40 There are some days 23:41 when you can put down a cigarette 23:43 through the force of your will. 23:45 Today I'm not going to smoke and you defeat it that day. 23:48 But tomorrow you lose to it 23:50 because your will is not enough to sustain you. 23:52 What you've got a will to do is serve Jesus 23:55 and then He works out His will through you, 23:58 then comes your victory, 23:59 that's the correct use of the will. 24:00 And if you put down 24:02 the cigarette today without Jesus, 24:05 who's going to turn for the cigarette 24:06 you smoke yesterday, or the day before that, 24:08 you still need Christ 24:09 because you cannot be righteous without Him, 24:11 so thank you, man. 24:12 We've talked about this 24:13 and we've gone through this before, 24:15 it's good stuff. 24:16 And I got to rebuttal, 24:18 it is giving your will over to Christ 24:19 and let him become no longer 24:21 I who live but Christ living in me. 24:22 Well said. Well said. 24:24 We could go back on this word for a good lifetime. 24:27 This is a two hour study, if we don't get an hour, 24:28 that's terrible. 24:30 Yeah, the law is holy I'm on to... 24:32 I'm going to try to stay in a very narrow lane 24:34 because there's so much stuff 24:35 and this is such a good study that 24:37 and it flows so easily one to the other. 24:40 I just want to read Romans 7:12, 24:44 it's a fairly short scripture 24:47 but it is pregnant with meaning. 24:50 "Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, 24:53 just and good." 24:55 As I said before, 24:57 you will find that Paul repeats, repeats, repeats, 25:00 of course, repetition does deepen the impression. 25:03 But since he's bringing 25:05 some radical new concepts into play, 25:08 he repeats them and comes to them 25:12 from many directions, 25:13 you know, in sermonizing 25:15 when you take your harmless glasses 25:17 and say try to hit it one way, 25:18 half will get it in and try to hit it another way 25:20 and then try to hit it a third way. 25:23 And some people will get it the first time, 25:25 some will get it in the second time, 25:26 some will get it in a third. 25:28 And so Paul is doing that. 25:29 Paul is dealing with the necessity of the law, 25:32 the value of the law, the purpose of the law, 25:35 the power of the law, the purview of the law, 25:38 and now he becomes very intellectually honest 25:40 by talking about man versus law. 25:43 How does what I have said to you 25:45 in the previous several chapters, 25:47 how do I relate to that? 25:49 And as such how can you relate to that? 25:51 So I like the fact 25:54 that he is intellectually honest, 25:55 he doesn't come to this discussion 25:57 as one saying, I got this all together. 26:01 He is showing us now in the next two chapters 26:04 that I'm struggling to now. 26:05 Some say this is autobiographical, 26:07 some say it is not. 26:09 That's not really the crux of the argument, 26:11 it's not really important. 26:13 What is important 26:14 is that somebody is going through this, 26:17 somebody was going through it then 26:18 and somebody is going through it now. 26:19 So whether it's autobiographical or not, 26:21 it's not really that important save to say 26:24 that all God's people will wrestle with these issues 26:28 at some point in their Christian walk. 26:30 You've got to ask 26:31 how much does Jesus mean to me 26:33 and how much am I willing to surrender my life to Jesus? 26:37 Success only comes through total 26:38 and complete surrender. 26:40 So the lesson asked the question at its outset. 26:43 How do I understand this text in light, 26:46 then in the context of what Paul 26:48 has been discussing? 26:49 Well, again he's talking about the necessity of the value 26:52 of the purpose of the purview and power of in man versus law. 26:58 The idea of law settles into a nice place 27:03 when we realize and reaffirm. 27:05 And Paul does this over and over again. 27:08 What the purpose of the law is 27:10 and that that's foundational to everything 27:13 that when you talk about coming out 27:15 from under the law or not being saved by the law. 27:19 When you understand what the law is supposed to do, 27:21 you can use a brick to drive a nail. 27:25 It's not the most efficient way 27:27 because that's not the purpose of a brick, 27:29 you can do it 27:30 but that's not the purpose of a brick. 27:32 So when we talk about the law and you try to use the law 27:35 as a means of righteousness you're trying to drive a nail 27:37 with the brick, 27:39 it's not what the law is intended to do. 27:41 It was intended to show you some other things. 27:43 So Paul returns to that in this particular passage. 27:49 And I want to just run through quickly. 27:50 Give you a bunch of text 27:51 that I don't have time to go through 27:53 but they all deal 27:54 with the necessity value purpose purview of the law. 27:57 We looked at Romans 3:20, 28:00 James 2:10, Ephesians 2:8-10, 28:04 we talked about that, and 1 John 2:3-6. 28:08 If I had time I would go through them all 28:10 but we got so much to say. 28:12 The law is holy just and good. 28:14 Now we know that he's talking about 28:17 and, Jill, you mentioned this before 28:18 that he's talking about the Ten Commandments 28:20 because he says, 28:21 "I would not have known covetousness," 28:22 so that, that establishes for us 28:24 what he's talking about, that is in Romans 7:7. 28:28 And then again it is repeated in 11:9, 28:30 so we know he's talking about the Ten Commandments 28:33 as being holy, just and good. 28:37 And I want to just run through holy, 28:38 just and good. 28:40 Holy, interestingly enough here the root word hagios, 28:44 or hagios is the same word that is used sometimes 28:47 for sanctification, for blamelessness, 28:50 and for consecration and sanctity. 28:52 So he's talking about something 28:54 that is holy and that helps us to be holy. 29:01 Same root words 29:02 so when you come from the same root 29:04 you're going to the same place. 29:07 The commandment is just. 29:10 The word deals with being equitable and innocent 29:14 and I really like that combination 29:15 if you study into the Greek, equitable and innocent. 29:18 The law is not trying to hurt anybody, 29:22 it's not trying to destroy anybody, 29:24 what it's trying to do is show you 29:25 where you're wrong. 29:27 It's innocent, it's hands are open, 29:28 there's nothing hidden, nothing secret, 29:31 it's just trying to keep you going in the right direction. 29:34 So it is equitable and innocent. 29:37 In other words, God is not planning, 29:38 trying to play any angle, Shelley. 29:41 He is not trying to keep you out, 29:42 He's trying to get you in. 29:44 You know, and we need to remember 29:46 that when we look at the law, He's trying to get us in. 29:48 So the law is innocent, it is what it is, 29:51 it is a transcript of the character of God. 29:53 It is a pure, innocent thing 29:56 that is trying to do its best to keep you in line. 30:00 That's what it does. 30:02 And that word is dikaiosyne. 30:07 And then good. 30:10 Several words but the one 30:14 that I like the best is beneficial, 30:17 the law is beneficial, it is of benefit to you. 30:21 It will make you better. 30:22 It will show you where you are going wrong. 30:25 It will keep you in the right way. 30:27 It will help you to walk with God and show you. 30:30 It's beneficial to your walk. 30:33 Not only it's beneficial, it's necessary to your walk, 30:36 you cannot walk straight... 30:40 apart from the law. 30:41 The law keeps you in the right... 30:45 Well, I'm tempted to tell a story 30:46 but I'm looking at the time, we can't do it. 30:49 The Bible says or the lesson says rather 30:52 because the Jews revered the law, 30:54 Paul exalted in every way possible. 30:56 In other words, the way to get to a man's heart 30:58 is through a stomach if he is a good eater. 31:00 The way to get to the Jews is to try to do it 31:02 through and exposition of the law. 31:04 So Paul is like Christ a tactician, 31:07 he knows his people, he knows his audience, 31:09 and he knows how to get through them, 31:11 trying to trash the law. 31:13 First of all it's biblically unsound, 31:14 but secondly it just wouldn't work 31:16 with these people, it just would not work. 31:18 So he's uplifting the law but he's giving them the way, 31:22 the law ought to be used. 31:24 Now quickly on my last... 31:25 Oh, my goodness, time. 31:30 Who does he blame? Who does Paul blame? 31:31 He blames the law in his own flesh, 31:34 or rather sin. 31:36 Got to get that straight, he bring sin in his own flesh. 31:40 The law is not weak, 31:42 he is weak through sinful flesh. 31:44 And that's what he's saying, that I want to do right, 31:50 the law shows me how to do right. 31:53 But if I try in my own flesh, I'm defeated before I begin. 31:57 How can an unrighteous person keep a righteous holy law 32:02 that is the expression of a righteous holy God? 32:05 It's just, it's non sequitur. 32:07 If an unrighteousness person is going to meet 32:10 the demands of a righteous law, 32:11 he's got to have the righteousness of that law 32:14 giver working in him. 32:16 And that's what Paul is saying, 32:20 "I don't have the ability to resist, 32:22 I don't have the ability to keep up with the law, 32:25 I don't have the ability to meet the dictates of law, 32:29 but in Christ I am more than a conqueror. 32:32 In Christ I can do these things. 32:35 In Christ I can meet the demands of the law. 32:39 And that segues my dear lady 32:42 into what you are going to be talking about, 32:44 in fact what both of you are going to talk about. 32:47 I am almost breaking a commandment, 32:49 I'm jealous because you get to go 32:50 into this good stuff, 32:52 so I'm almost covetous, and Paul says, 32:55 "I would not have known covetousness except, 32:57 I saw this and I know you got it, 32:58 so now I know covetousness, so, Mollie, take it away. 33:01 Well, the portion that I have is for a Wednesday 33:04 and it's the man of Romans Sabbath. 33:07 And the scripture that I'm going to cover 33:09 is Romans 7:16-20. 33:12 So turn to those scriptures if you will please. 33:16 Now I want you to know something 33:18 in these scriptures that we're about to cover, 33:21 Paul uses the word I 13 times, 33:25 and he uses the word may or might 5 times. 33:30 So again CA alluded earlier to the fact 33:33 that there is some controversy 33:35 and I'm going to look at that controversy here 33:37 in just a moment. 33:38 But right now let's read these scriptures again, 33:41 it's Romans 7:16-20. 33:44 "If then I do, what I will not to do, 33:48 I agree with the law that it is good. 33:51 But now it is no longer I who do it, 33:54 but sin that dwells in me, for I know that in me, 34:01 that is in my flesh, nothing good dwells, 34:05 for to will is to is present with me, 34:08 but how to perform what is good I do not find. 34:12 For the good that I will to do, I do not do, 34:15 but the evil I will not to do that I practice. 34:20 Now if I do what I will not to do, 34:23 it is no longer I who do it but sin that dwells in me." 34:30 Well, Paul could be speaking illustratively. 34:33 The most obvious way to take it 34:36 is that he is speaking of his own experience. 34:39 Now here's what the question are what some will argue 34:43 that this is before Paul was converted, 34:46 others will argue no, 34:47 this is after Paul is converted, 34:49 or if it's illustratively 34:51 it's before someone is converted 34:53 or after someone is converted, 34:55 and I'm not a theologian and I don't argue anyway. 34:59 Obviously his experience 35:02 is representative of the experience 35:06 of all who have struggled against sin. 35:08 So let me ask everybody on this panel, 35:10 have you struggled with sin? 35:12 Absolutely. 35:13 So it can, it is applicable to me in my 35:17 and I've made Jesus Christ the Lord of my life. 35:20 I love the Lord Jesus Christ. Do you know what? 35:24 There are times I want, 35:25 I have to say I'm going to do this and you know what? 35:27 I don't do it, 35:28 then those things I say I will never do, 35:30 I wind up doing. 35:32 But this is something that I think 35:35 we are all coming into the knowledge of... 35:37 And all of us must come into the knowledge, 35:40 within myself I can do nothing. 35:43 But we're going to look at a scripture, 35:45 I'll go ahead and share that scripture with you. 35:47 We'll look at it. 35:48 I can do all things, 35:51 but it's only through Christ as He strengthens you. 35:55 Let me finish this. 35:59 We all must learn from Paul's experience, 36:02 it's the same struggle we all contend with. 36:05 And here's what that struggle is, 36:08 how to live a yielded surrender life 36:13 as opposed to self sufficiency. 36:17 That's good. 36:18 Trusting in the Lord, in every area and relationship 36:22 and still that's trusting in I can do it myself. 36:26 And you know that's a hard thing to do 36:29 and we've talked in lessons past of how it is 36:33 so much easier for us to do something 36:38 to earn our salvation than to have faith, 36:42 faith you can't see. 36:44 And we as Christians must walk by faith, 36:47 not by sight, not by what we see. 36:50 And that faith in Him is something 36:53 that's a learning process. 36:55 So what I thought I would do today 36:58 is look at what the root problem is. 37:02 Let's go to the root. 37:03 What is the root problem in this situation? 37:07 And I think the root problem is 37:10 that in trying to do things in our own strength 37:14 what we don't realize 37:16 is the sinfulness of our own hearts. 37:20 We think we're about ready for sainthood. 37:23 When in reality we are selfish, or self-centered, 37:27 or self-seeking, or self-serving, 37:29 we can do it ourselves. 37:32 And so and I'm thinking of an illustration 37:36 that we have over in Exodus, 37:38 remember when God gave Moses the covenant 37:44 and he came and he presented that covenant to the people. 37:48 And what did the people in unison 37:50 all of them say concerning that covenant? 37:53 All that Lord has said we're gonna do. 37:57 Okay, how much longer was it 37:59 before they were dancing before a graven image? 38:02 Forty days. 38:04 Just in no time they had totally broken the covenant. 38:08 Sister White says this, 38:10 "The people did not realize 38:12 the sinfulness of their own hearts." 38:14 I'm concerned that's where we all can be 38:18 and that without Christ 38:20 it was impossible for them to keep God's law 38:24 and they readily entered into a covenant 38:27 with God feeling that they were able 38:29 to establish their own righteousness. 38:32 They declared all that the Lord had said 38:36 will we do and be obedient but they weren't. 38:39 Now, did they have good intentions? 38:41 Did they mean well? Were they? 38:43 You know, that's self deception, is it not? 38:47 What's the scripture say? 38:50 "Be a doer of the word, not a hearer." 38:52 The Amplified says, 38:54 "Not a forgetful hearer deceiving your own selves. 38:58 They were in self deception. 39:00 They were saying we can do this 39:02 but they couldn't and they didn't. 39:04 Jeremiah 17:9 says, 39:08 Remember we're looking at the root problem 39:10 because when I show you the root problem, 39:12 I want to show you also the root solution. 39:15 Don't come to me with a problem 39:17 if you can't come to me with a solution. 39:19 Root problem, Jeremiah 17:9, 39:22 "The heart is deceitful above all things 39:27 and desperately wicked who can know it?" 39:30 So Paul says that the very things 39:34 he means to do that he doesn't do, 39:37 and those things he has determined 39:39 not to do anymore he finds himself doing. 39:42 In our self-reliance, 39:44 we find ourselves doing those things. 39:47 And just ask yourself, 39:49 how many times have you said I just can't, 39:51 I can never do this, ever again, 39:53 I am never going to tell another lie. 39:57 And then you find yourself telling whopper gullies. 40:00 You all know what whopper gullies are? 40:02 Pagans. 40:03 And so, but when you go to God and say, 40:06 "God in my own strength I cannot overcome this, 40:10 but Lord if You will help me, then I'll overcome. 40:14 Then He will help you." 40:15 Amen. 40:16 Our only hope is coming to the realization 40:19 that in our ability we are destined to failure. 40:22 Now here's what we need to do, step number one, 40:26 on how to recognize that you have a sinful heart 40:29 and in your own strength you can't do it. 40:31 Step number one, you know what step number one is? 40:34 Repent of our self-reliance instead of God-reliance. 40:39 Repent would be 1 John 1:9, 40:42 "If we confess our sins, 40:44 He is faithful 40:45 and just to forgive us of our sins, 40:47 and then cleanse us from that lying, 40:50 from that cheating, from that stealing, 40:51 anything that you will give to God." 40:54 And that word repent doesn't mean... 40:57 To repent means to not just explain 41:00 or not just acknowledge that you've done. 41:02 It means to turn away from it. 41:04 And here are some scriptures 41:07 that I want you to write these down, 41:09 I'm going to quote them for you. 41:10 But it's Psalms 139:23-24, 41:15 here's some scriptures we can pray. 41:17 That would be, 41:18 "Search me, O God, and know my heart." 41:21 Now what is desperately wicked above all things? 41:24 That's your heart. 41:25 We do not know what's in our hearts. 41:27 Search me, O God, the Psalmist says, 41:29 "And know my heart, try me and know my anxieties, 41:32 that would be my thoughts. 41:34 And see if there is any wicked way in me, 41:37 and lead me in the way everlasting." 41:38 How many of you want God to show you the wickedness 41:41 that's in you so you can confess it, 41:43 repent of it, and turn away from it. 41:45 This is like having an investigative judgment 41:48 before the investigative judgment. 41:50 Let's get this stuff out of us while there is still time. 41:54 Don't be shortsighted, this isn't all there is, 41:56 there is an eternity to begin. 41:59 Psalms 139:13, 42:01 "Keep back your servant from presumptuous sins, 42:05 let them not have dominion over me, 42:08 then I shall be blameless, 42:09 and I shall be innocent of great transgression." 42:12 One last word one in that Psalms 19:14, 42:16 "Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart 42:21 be acceptable in your sight. 42:24 O Lord, my strength and my redeemer." 42:26 Doesn't really matter 42:28 whether the struggle is before or after salvation, 42:32 what is important is what we're doing now, 42:35 that we've made Jesus Christ the Lord of our life. 42:38 We've been transformed out of the kingdom of darkness 42:41 into the kingdom of God's dear Son. 42:43 Now let's live God like in Christ Jesus. 42:46 Amen and amen. 42:47 Mollie, perfect set up because, you know, 42:50 when you think about the law of God, 42:52 it was the moral law of God 42:55 was in place before Sinai, 42:59 then the Law of Moses was added 43:03 because of transgressions with all the civil laws 43:06 and it had to have the ceremonial laws. 43:08 And Moses thought this was such a glorious law 43:12 and that anybody who love God 43:13 should ought to be able to keep it. 43:16 But he didn't recognize 43:18 what Paul is about to say right now, 43:21 about this law of sin that's in our members. 43:24 But Paul being a good Pharisee of Pharisees, 43:31 he had a love for the Law of Moses. 43:35 Did he not? He of course did. 43:38 And now he's saying but I could never keep it. 43:42 It is important for us to recognize 43:44 that the Ten Commandments 43:46 were not just before Mount Sinai, 43:49 they were given in part of 43:51 the Mosaic covenant at Mount Sinai. 43:54 But they were also then later 43:56 written in stone by God and said, 43:58 "Put it inside the ark 44:01 because it's the foundation of His government, 44:03 and then they become the heart of the new covenant." 44:06 So we all have to figure out, how are we going to do this? 44:10 So let's look at Romans 7:21. 44:14 You know we're talking about 44:16 how we can be saved from this man 44:20 that this wretched man. 44:22 Romans 7:21, Paul says, 44:23 "I find then a law, that evil is present within me, 44:28 the one who wills to do good. 44:31 For I delight in the law of God according to my inward man. 44:36 But I see another law in my members, 44:38 warring against the law of my mind, 44:40 and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin 44:45 which is in my members." 44:48 This is a summary of man's spiritual experience 44:51 as far as I'm concerned. 44:53 There's a conflict between these two laws. 44:57 God's perfect holy moral law in our inward man, 45:03 all we want to keep it, 45:04 we desire to please God and do good. 45:09 Because His law reflects His character and His purity. 45:13 And yes, we know that this is outlining 45:17 the standard of the behavior that he expects. 45:20 But what happens is we've got this law of sin 45:23 that's warring against us 45:25 and it's very real, it's very present. 45:28 This is the indwelling propensity of sin 45:33 that comes to our members. 45:34 What is he talking about 45:36 when he says in my members, in my tongue, 45:37 in my hands, in my body, it brings my body, 45:41 this law of sin into captivity. 45:44 Even I would say self righteousness 45:47 is part of that 45:48 that will bring you into the captivity category. 45:52 So then what we see is there's this constant warfare 45:56 and it's not just the devil 45:57 who's trying to trip us up 45:59 although he is trying to trip us up day by day, 46:02 that's for certain. 46:04 But it's self, it's this self that, 46:08 so even though God gives us a new heart 46:11 when He gives us the new covenant, 46:13 writes His laws on our heart, in our mind. 46:16 We've got this flesh, we're dealing with the self. 46:19 And so what happens is the selfish nature of man 46:25 makes us vulnerable to sin. 46:27 And as Mollie so aptly put it, 46:30 if it is unsurrendered, if it is unsubdued, 46:34 if we're being self reliant 46:36 and that's where Christians get off into trouble 46:39 is we're self reliant. 46:42 You know, we want... 46:44 Oh yes, well, 46:46 I'm a good student of the Bible, I'll study, 46:49 I do my devotions twice daily, I go to church, 46:54 I'm on the Sabbath school, 46:56 you know, I teach Sabbath school, 46:57 I do this, I do that, I'm a good person. 47:01 And we're not totally relying on the Lord. 47:05 So what the only good that is within a Christian 47:10 is the Holy Spirit's presence in us. 47:13 So and it's by His power 47:15 that He pick us up when we fall, right, 47:17 and gives us the ability to overcome. 47:19 So now here's Paul saying, "Oh, yeah, that was me," 47:24 you know, I delight to do God's law, 47:29 but I find that there's this other law, 47:32 nobody's talked about 47:33 before this law of sin and death in me 47:34 and then he says in Romans 7:24, 47:38 "O, wretched man that I am!" 47:42 Can you hear the cry of the internal strife, 47:45 wretched man that I am? 47:47 "Who will deliver me from this body of death?" 47:50 He's got this propensity toward sin, 47:53 he's engaged in a constant conflict. 47:55 And if we're trying to do it in our own strength, 47:59 it is a helpless state of affair. 48:02 We are just besieged souls 48:05 and we can't overcome it in our own strength. 48:08 But in the middle of this heartfelt cry 48:13 of who can deliver me. 48:15 In verse 25, then here's what he says, 48:18 this is the crux of the matter, verse 25 he said, 48:22 "I thank God, through Jesus Christ our Lord! 48:28 Who can deliver me?" 48:30 Jesus Christ my Lord. 48:32 There's an outburst of praise 48:35 that shines in God's light 48:37 into this otherwise rather dark chapter, 48:39 would you not agree Romans 7 is a rather dark chapter. 48:43 The whole point that Paul is making 48:48 is that salvation belongs to God. 48:53 "Oh thank God, through Jesus Christ, 48:56 He's going to deliver me." 48:58 And then he goes on saying, 49:00 so then with the mind 49:03 I myself serve the law of God 49:06 but with the flesh the law of sin, 49:09 this is interesting. 49:11 Here he's just praise God saying here is what? 49:13 But now he's come back and he's kind of summarizing 49:16 what he's been saying throughout the chapter. 49:19 You know, he's basically saying, 49:21 "Hey, this is still going on in me 49:23 even though I'm a Christian," 49:25 you know, even though I belong to Jesus. 49:28 So what's the answer? 49:29 The answer is to surrender day by day, 49:33 moment by moment, to get our help from God. 49:38 It is to pick up that cross daily 49:41 to give over control of our wills to the Lord. 49:47 And, you know, I know that I have prayed in the past. 49:51 And I remember once 49:54 I was praying so hard to surrender 49:56 and then I said, "Lord, I delight to do Your will." 50:00 And He said, "No, you don't." 50:03 I mean, I just heard that, 50:04 it wasn't audible but I heard that. 50:07 "No, you don't." 50:09 And I said, "Well, Lord, I'm willing to do Your will." 50:14 "If you were willing, you would be doing it." 50:17 I said, "Lord, I'm willing to be made willing." 50:18 "That's all I ask." 50:20 See we can't even will to do good. 50:25 It is just a matter of us coming before the Lord, 50:29 giving Him our will, and say, 50:31 "Lord, work in me to will and to act 50:36 according to Your good purpose." 50:37 It is the Holy Spirit in you 50:40 that will take your will 50:43 that little unstable floppy will, 50:47 and he will line it up with God's will. 50:50 And as he causes you to will as God wills 50:54 to desire the things of God. 50:57 What happens then 50:59 is there's still one step that you've got to take, 51:03 you've got to step out in faith 51:07 on that new desire, that new will. 51:09 And as soon as you do, 51:10 the power of the Holy Spirit shows up 51:13 and God works in you to act. 51:15 So it is just, the battle is not over, 51:19 it is a daily surrender. 51:22 The battle continues the war is over. 51:24 There's great tension in the Christian life. 51:27 We agree with God's commands is being good 51:29 but we're painfully aware of our shortcomings. 51:32 So we've got this inward struggle 51:34 and it was as real for Paul as it is for us. 51:37 But when we feel overwhelmed as Paul did, 51:42 sometimes I don't know about you all, 51:44 I still go through periods 51:45 where I feel a little overwhelmed. 51:46 I just feel disappointed like, 51:48 "Oh, Lord, I'm disappointing you, Father." 51:50 But when I do, what I do is the same thing that Paul... 51:55 If I feel overwhelmed by my shortcomings, 51:58 I just claim the freedom that is in Christ Jesus, 52:02 I surrender to Christ, and I thank Him, 52:06 I start quoting scriptures. 52:08 And I just thank Him that He is the one. 52:13 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord, 52:16 that He is the one who will deliver me 52:19 from this law of sin and death. 52:21 Amen. Well done, Shelley. 52:23 Thank you each one of you. What an incredible blessing. 52:26 My mind has been open and expanded as we've studied, 52:30 and as we've shared together. 52:33 Few years ago, Greg and I took a canoe trip 52:36 to the Current River that's in Missouri, 52:39 I don't know if any of you have been to the Current River. 52:41 And we rented a canoe, and we floated down the river. 52:46 Now it comes from natural springs that bubble up, 52:48 it's got a nice little current. 52:50 We went down the river and it was a very pleasant. 52:53 Well, we went quite a ways and Greg kept saying, 52:56 "Jill, don't you think you want to turn around yet?" 52:58 "Oh no, I'm having a great time." 53:00 "Jill, you know we got to go upstream, 53:02 when we go back." 53:04 "Oh, I'm having a great time." 53:06 So when it came time to turn around, 53:08 we turned the canoe around, 53:10 we started back to where we had come from, 53:12 guess what happened? 53:13 Half way through I'm like, 53:15 "Sweet heart, don't you think you could paddle, 53:17 and I'll just sit and rest." 53:18 Now he'd been paddling the whole time 53:21 but I was getting tired. 53:23 The point is when you're going with Satan, with the world, 53:29 things can be kind of easy 53:30 because you're not fighting against Satan at all. 53:35 But when you make a decision to make Jesus Christ 53:37 the Lord of your life, 53:39 when you enter into justification 53:41 and begin this walk of sanctification, 53:44 what happens? 53:45 That war we have been discussing in Romans 7. 53:49 That battle between the law of sin and death, 53:52 that fleshly nature, 53:54 and the law of the Spirit of Christ 53:55 in Christ Jesus that begins. 53:57 And I'm full of hope today 53:59 even though you said it can be a dark chapter, 54:01 I'm full of hope because we can surrender, 54:04 we can die to the flesh, and we can live to the Spirit. 54:08 So I want to give you each 30 seconds or so 54:10 for a closing thought, 54:12 maybe if you want to say something about 54:13 your own part or something else. 54:16 Well, you know there's something that I mean 54:18 this is just my topic, I mean, I love it, 54:20 praise the Lord for that. 54:21 But I find two things that are very important 54:23 and in both cases you find the phrase, 54:26 "It is no longer I." 54:27 Romans 7 and Galatians 2:20. 54:30 In Romans 7, "It is no longer I, 54:33 is we're dead in sin." 54:34 In Galatians 2:20, 54:36 "It is no longer I, we're dead to sin." 54:38 Now in both cases this is a powerful point, 54:40 in both cases the production of sin 54:43 or righteousness says we are not in control, 54:46 so how we include it, 54:47 when we decide to yield one way or the other. 54:51 It is no longer I. 54:52 Here it is, Romans 7:7, 54:54 "It is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me." 54:57 Galatians 2:20, "It is no longer I who live, 55:00 but Christ lives in me." 55:02 In both cases it is no longer I, 55:04 so where do you come in? 55:05 You've got to decide who is going to be in control. 55:09 When you put your will on the side of Christ, 55:13 it is no longer you. 55:14 When you put your will on the side of the enemy, 55:16 it is no longer you. 55:18 In both cases we lose control to either sin or righteousness. 55:23 And both fruit will be produced based on the way 55:25 we decide to yield. 55:27 "Do you not know to whom you present yourselves," 55:29 Romans 6:16. 55:31 Amen. Thank you, Pastor. Pastor CA? 55:32 In looking at Romans 7, the backend of verse 6. 55:38 We have to be honest with ourselves. 55:41 The secret is realizing and being honest 55:44 with who you are. 55:47 And then a realization of who Christ is, 55:50 and they are both incredibly necessary. 55:53 You've got to admit, you cannot do it without Him. 55:56 But you also have to admit that the only way 55:59 it can be done is with Him. 56:02 You must be honest with yourself, 56:03 there is a battle, there's no sense pretending 56:05 that you don't have that battle, 56:06 you do have that battle. 56:08 You know who you are, Christ knows who you are. 56:10 Your success is not in you, it is in Christ Jesus. 56:13 Amen. Miss Mollie? 56:15 You know, the Apostle Paul 56:16 had struggles physically as well 56:18 and he went before the Lord, 56:19 and what did the Lord, say to him 56:21 when he asked him to remove this thing from him? 56:24 Grace is sufficient. 56:25 What the Lord said to Paul was, "My grace is sufficient." 56:29 So that's what my encouragement to all of us today, 56:31 God's grace is sufficient. 56:33 I have just a second so let me share a scripture Psalm 143:10, 56:38 "Teach me to do your will, for You are my God, 56:40 Your Spirit is good, 56:41 lead me in the land of righteousness." 56:43 Pray that daily. 56:45 Amen, What an incredible study. We thank you so much, panel. 56:48 And thank you for joining us. 56:50 We want to encourage you 56:51 to make Jesus Christ the Lord of your life, 56:53 to choose to die daily to self in sin 56:56 and live for the Lord Jesus Christ. 56:58 We'll see you next time. Bye-bye. |
Revised 2024-07-09