WAR WITHIN! The theme of the seventh chapter of Romans, as well as that of the sixth chapter, is life IN Christ. The primary consideration is not what we were, but what we ARE – not where we were. But where we ARE. Ponder the statements that have been made in these two chapters– statements that form the inspired context of the seventh chapter. -- Tomorrow:
"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" (Rom 7:23).
Devotion 16 of 23
1. We are "dead to sin" (6:2).
2. We were baptized into Christ's death (6:3).
3. We also should walk in newness of life (6:4).
4. We have been planted together in the likeness of Jesus' death (6:5).
5. Our "old man" is crucified with Christ (6:6a).
6. Henceforth we should not serve sin (6:6b).
7. He that is dead is freed from sin (6:6).
8. We are to reckon ourselves to be dead indeed unto sin (6:11a).
9. We are to reckon ourselves as alive unto God through Jesus Christ (6:11b).
10. We are not to allow sin to reign in our mortal bodies (6:12).
11. We are not to yield our members as instruments of unrighteousness (6:13a).
12. We are to yield ourselves to God as those who are alive from the dead (6:13b).
13. We are to yield our members as instruments of righteousness unto God (6:13c).
14. Sin will not have dominion over us because we are not under law, but under grace (6:14).
15. Salvation makes no provision for continuance in sin (6:15).
16. We obeyed from the heart the form of doctrine delivered to us (6:17).
17. Made free from sin, we have become servants of righteousness (6:18).
18. Now we are to yield our members as servants of righteousness (6:19).
19. We are free from sin and are servants to God (6:22).
20. We have become dead to the Law through the body of Christ (7:4a).
21. Our death to the Law is in order that we might be married to Christ (7:4b).
22. We have been delivered from the Law, becoming dead to it (7:6a).
23. Our lives are now lived in service to God in the newness of spirit, not in the oldness of letter (7:6b).
It should be apparent that the perspective being presented is that of one IN Christ, not one outside of Christ. The foundation of our acceptance in Christ is proclaimed in chapters four and five. The extended commentary on our past is found 1:20-3:20.
References to the Past
In the sixth and seventh chapters of Romans there are references to our past, but not in an extended way. A few comparisons are made to accent the glorious benefits that are realized in Christ Jesus.
1. We were the servants of sin (6:17).
2. We did yield our members as servants to iniquity and uncleanness (6:19).
3. When we were the servants of sin, we were free from righteousness (6:20).
4. We bore no fruit in our past, and are now ashamed of it (6:21).
5. When we were in the flesh, the motions, or passions, of sin, were aroused by the Law (7:5a).
6. In the flesh, our passions worked in us to bring forth fruit unto death (7:5b).
7. Under the law, sin awakened, and we died, losing any sense of acceptance before God (7:8-9).
8. The commandment of God produced death in us, not life (7:10).
9. Sin worked through the commandment of God to deceive and slay us (7:11).
10. Sin worked death in us through the good commandment of God, showing sin to be exceedingly sinful (7:13).
None of these statements are the central theme of the seventh chapter. They are all mentioned within the greater context of salvation, and what the believer experiences in Christ Jesus. The remainder of this chapter is a continuation of the Spirit's exposition of our experience in Christ. Now, some preliminary conclusions are ion order.
The fierceness of the inner struggle is directly proportionate to our perception and acceptance of the "new" order – newness of life in Christ Jesus, or living within the New Covenant. Drawing "near" to the Lord sensitizes our spirit to both good and evil (Heb. 10:22). Drawing back from Him dulls the soul, causing one to unwittingly, and even deliberately, digress to "perdition" (Heb. 10:39).
Ignoring"spiritual things" (1 Cor. 2:13) will diminish the struggle, and thus jeopardize the soul. Further, a reduction in the struggle will cause one to gravitate to the flesh, and consequently to incur Divine displeasure.
It is tragic that drawing back is the condition of many professed believers. Their failure to engage in the "good fight of faith" accounts for their general disinterest in spiritual nourishment and fellowship. If this condition is not addressed, there is no hope of them forever being with the Lord. The battle is that serious!
Let there be no doubt about the result of failing to come near to the Lord and away from the world – of drawing back from the Divine summons to draw near with a true heart. "Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul" (Heb 10:38-39). The most dangerous thing in this world is a religion that allows people to remain at a distance from God – to live out their lives without regard to the will of the Lord and involvement in His purpose. There is no way to adequately state the jeopardy in which such a soul is standing.
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, grant me grace to stay within hearing distance of Your gracious voice, and to press in as close as I can to the throne of all grace.