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Romans Chapter 7 7:1 Or do you not know, brothers and sisters > I am calling out to my dearest and closets, that you acknowledge all of my words to you, as my own family ought to have intimate knowledge with me of the truth. Because you were raised as I was, being instructed by our parents and teachers together. (for I am speaking > Listen to what I say to you, having studied and having learned all that has come to us, beseeching you to recall what we know to be true. Hear my words and acknowledge that they are true. to those > If you are Jewish, than you are the ones that need to verify to the others, the facts as I present them to you. who know the law), > As in the past we sat under those who knew the truth before we did and instructed us as to Gods detailed code of ethics that made Gods will very clear. that the law > Out of that, it became to us a solemn oath between ourselves and God, that we would be in submission to his ordinances. The law was the rule of our people and we received our identity from the law. is lord over a person > The law would have rights over our behavior, and determine the legal boundaries by which we lived. It was higher than man and superior to him, man could not rule the law or alter its state, it was unchangeable, it never died to man or went away from his presence. as long > Because the law is not incarnate in itself, it has no nature of life in itself to fall under its own decay. Rather it is incarnate in the life of the living and exist where ever there is life. It supercedes the time of man so that it never diminishes with the aging of man, as does his flesh. as he lives? > And that is the key thought that I am teaching you now, the law is for the living, not the dead. The law is in the flesh, not the Spirit, and what will gain you a future life is not in the flesh, but a life that is lived of the Spirit. 7:2 For a married woman > The law governs the way we are married, and the way we judge our women is good example of what I am teaching you. Her status under the law and how the law is enforced upon her, is relevant for teaching us, how the law is also upon mankind as a whole. is bound by law > The law is set up to make a man and a woman in bondage to each other, establishing them as being under the restrictions of the law. When you are bound by such a specific contract, the freedom to operate outside of the contract, is criminal. That means that there is now life in the law, thru the living, who are bound by its dictates in the contract. to her husband > So the woman lives her life as unto her husband, she is his soul possession in her marriage vow, and no other man can receive that same vow because she is already committed. It is not the man that has rule over her life, but the law that empowers and binds her to him that is the point of reference here. There is a lot of give and take in the marriage, but not in the law that is presiding over the marriage, it is a fixed enactment, that’s placement is not influenced by the altering ways of man. as long > The time span then of it being effectual, is not determined by mans living and changing point of view concerning his life. It is simply not a relevant modifier in the argument of the law, because it bears no weight as to the cause and effect of the law. The law operates outside the rational of mans thinking or the considerations of his heart, neither are able to alter the case for the laws power. as he lives, > And this is a life long commitment, not just a temporary arrangement so long as things go well. He has legal rights to his wife, and she has the obligation to reserve herself to her husband. It is a life long contract, that is not subject to circumstances to make the law of non-effect. But there again, it is the law that holds the power over the woman, not the man. If it were the man alone, a stronger man could take possession of her as legal owner, but that is not how the law works. The law is both an obligation those under it, but also it defender when adhered to in reverence to it. but > On the other hand, there is something that has power over the law, it is the laws modifier, that renders it canceled or obsolete, having been superseded by a greater power. It is not another law, another law is just more law, not less. What I am talking about is, what is it that does away with the law in superceding it, as being another more powerful effect and control over the law. if her husband dies, > The law only lives in the flesh, so this agreement to be in bondage to each other, is only valid so long as both are alive. If the man dies, then he is passed into the Spirit world, so the law cannot bind her to his Spirit, only to his flesh. So death is more powerful than the law, even in relation to the living, if it was a law of two. The law of union, is modified, only in the event of death, not in the events of the living. she is released > As a result, she can no longer be held in that bondage to a man who is gone and is a free woman. The power of the law of union is only valid if the union of the two is in the living life of their flesh. from the law > So where there is no law, there is no crime, because the agreement between two people was so long they both were alive. The law was nullified in the event of the husbands death and the contract, ceased to exist, thru the power of death. of the marriage. > This means her former marriage vow was fulfilled in all its details, and that contract has run its course and has now expired. The marriage is over and the life of the woman, is a free one in the area concerning her life, as one who was married. 7:3 So then, if she is joined > If she is purchased by the law in a marriage vow, then she has made a debt that must honored in the land of her body. She must submit herself to this vow, and then if she renounces that vow by her actions. Uniting her body with another man, at the same time that she is under this vow, in doing this she violates her first vow. to another man > By letting herself be vulnerable to another mans desires, so that he has rule over her body also, in that she gives her privileges to this other man after she has already made a covenant with her husband. Then the law is activated and enforced against her because she has violated her contract with her first husband, to be wed to no other but him. while her husband is alive, > Because as long as her husband is alive, she is subject to his privacy and the benefactor of her privilege. Which she vowed to be his alone in their marriage vow under the law. It was not done in a Spirit of a suggestion, it was binding under the law. she will be called > And if the law is made known and activated when she has given her vow away in disregard of the law, then it’s the law that condemns her. It is not the husband himself who condemns, he could remain silent for all practical purposes, but the law will accuse her just the same. an adulteress. > Then the crime is revealed and her motive is condemned also by those who new the law and have rule over her to enforce the law. This is the first side of the spent coin, because it was used in the purchasing, the law to obligation. But > On the other side of this, is the fulfillment of that same spent coin, which does not condemn, but commends the outcome and glorifies its objective. if her husband dies, > So what happens when the vow has been met, the time has expired as to the contracts set limits. In that, the was vow was in force so long as both parties of the marriage were alive, but now the husband has died. The objective of the law was completed and rendered the law useless for future consideration. she is free > The husband no longer being alive, the vow she had made to him is now declared fulfilled, no longer being valid. She is no longer a bondservant to her husband who is dead and the law which made her the bondservant, has served its purpose for both of them, both as an obligation and a defense. from that law, > The law that existed in the first side of the coin, would have activated against her due to that situation of adultery, was now without meaning, for the law had perished in its effect with the husbands death. Yet at the same time, the coin was spent in the other purpose it had, and that was to defend, rather than accuse. Because now, that same law defends her right to go forward in life, without accusation from that law. Because the whole coin was spent for her defense, rather than being spent first as an offense against her, which is what occurs when sin encounters the law. and if she is joined > So now in this new situation where she is a free woman, without a vow, if she would decide to become married once again in a new ceremony. Then there would be issued a new coin, with the same spending power as the first, to be used to either accuse or defend. Which at some point though, that coin will be spent also in the same manner as the first. to another man, > Then this new man is also free to receive this new vow from her because he is not receiving stolen property, so to speak. Then in this new vow, she becomes that which she was to the first man, only to this new man, so she is now bound to him with a celebration, not an accusation. she is not > Then having done this in this manner, she has obeyed the law and is not under any violation. She is innocent in every respect of the laws of union between men and women. an adulteress. > There is no crime of adultery, even though in her life she gave herself to two men. So obedience thru death of the law is the other side of the coin, that led to a new life under a new vow, which is still by way of the law, but when the law is fulfilled, there is freedom from it also. 7:4 So, my brothers and sisters, > We are members of his body who have put our faith in Christ, this is something that occurred when became active in taking up his invitation to commit to him, the saving of our souls. you also died > So we became as the woman whose first husband died, which came about when Christ was crucified and took upon himself, the bondage of our sin. Spending the latter end of the coins defense, thru the law, taking our vow to God in the law, to the cross with him. He then took the offense of the law to the grave with, he having fulfilled the law, and left it buried there, leaving only the defensive portion of the law active. to the law > So now the first law that we were bound to has perished in its ability to accuse or make claim to us and we are free to submit our bodies to another that is not of the law. Which was a prearranged marriage, but of the grace of God, which is our second marriage. Which comes to us by the grace of his invitation and his riches that are able to provide the duties of a good husband. through the body of Christ, > Which came to us from Christ having made an atonement for our sins, which also met the requirement of fully meeting all the requirements of the law. Therefore, he established the law in himself as the actual death of the first husband. While in that process, voiding the law as having a claim on us, making himself its fulfillment in his death. He bought the right of our ownership for himself, by paying our debt to it, as he went to the grave. so that > He had more than one objective in doing this, he wanted to end the first marriage that had a price of sin tied to it under the duty of being in the flesh. So that he could conducted a second marriage, free of sins nature, as it will ultimately be performed in the Spirit world, not the human world, this is only the engagement period, not the wedding. you could be joined > This now made us free from being under the obligation of our first vow to the law, which came about from our being married the our flesh in sin. Leaving us free to take Christ as our new husband, where he accepts us purified by him and for him, as our gift to us. Where the law once would have condemned us for such an action, it now has perished and remains inoperative. Yet we are alive in Christ body, due to the laws defensive or second side of the coin, being spent at Christ expense, to free us from the laws of the flesh. to another, > So it is Christ that now we have become married to and we are under a new obligation to him, but this one does not condemn us for our past but is meant to restore us to his future, where the first husband was abusive, because it beat us for our failure to please it, Christ is merciful and fulfilling in us his Holy attributes, in this new obligation to Christ we are not judged, but will become as judges with him to the one > For now we have a faithful husband in Christ, who was greater then the laws requirements and made the law subject to himself. So because he was greater then the law, he was able to judge the law and fulfill it, instead of us coming under its condemnation of its first requirement, that we had already been living under. who was raised > Then when he rose from the grave, he conquered the effects of the law that required death, when he over powered it in the grave and killed the sting of death itself. Now this new wedding will occur in the next life, after all the body of Christ has been redeemed together. from the dead, > So out of the grave came life, but left in the grave was deaths power over man in the law. Which has been stripped of all its legal authority over those for whom Christ made atonement for. Because his new body is free from the temptation of sin, there is no law that is able to accuse it, because it is a lawful body in its own existence. to bear fruit to God. > These are now made, as those who are nourished thru him and grow to make known his glory known for all of creation to take notice of. Because they are fed from Gods glory, they reflect who Christ is on earth. As opposed to death and the law that were made fat off us, by feeding on us as its power source. We are now brought to full maturity by Christ, who feeds us with his eternal holiness and Christ has severed the laws source of power in us. 7:5 For when > By closer examination, we will see the effects of sin were embellished by exposure to a unchangeable standard of the law. In other words, the more were learned about behaving properly, the quicker we tried to get away from and escape our knowledge of it, by behaving even worse than we did before. Instead of dedicating ourselves to its absolute obedience, we found it so hard to accomplish any part of the law. We dedicated ourselves to an even more rapid rate of sin. So that we could not and would not, be able to even relate to the reasoning behind such laws. Because we could not even stand to hear the giving of the law, we tried to evade that condition, by creating such a loud environment of sin, that it would shout down and drown out the steady, but sure voice of the law. Allowing us, thru the stupidity of sin, to exist as a normal state of life, without remorse, in face of the law. we were > The problem was, that our flesh fears the law and its power over it, to such a degree, that it would rather live in such a complete state of denial, that there is even any such law, that is absolute. Rather than stand face to face with it and suffer its revealing and repenting truth in them. They deny it, but if the law itself, were not from God and its purpose was not to show us our own hopelessness to sins hold on us, why can we not obey it, even in part. in the flesh, > That was and is the state of man, before we new Christ and lived according to what ruled over us, as we had not yet been set free by Christ. We were still obeying the laws of sin, rather than the laws of Gods holiness. the sinful desires, > The way that sin moved among us, became an exercise in futility as we tried to become free from the weight of their chains. Because the lies we made to cover our other lies, only led to a deeper pattern of lying. That kept us in the bondage of evil patterns and a life of deceit. It became much like a quicksand of sin, the more we struggled to get free of the law by engaging in sin, the more the power of sins pull, sucked us into its grasp. aroused by the law, > Which the law then defined in us as our guilt, it then became as a light revealing where we had been trying to hide in secret, the blackness of our sin. But the law caused it to be drawn to the front and exposed, instead of being hidden in a cloak of darkness. We not wanting to be exposed for what we really were, began lurking deeper into the shadowy lifestyles and fell even more from the stumbling that occurs, in such environments. were active > These acts then became the motivation for an even deeper bondage to sin, because sin once acted upon, spreads like a virus. The dormant layers of our lifestyle, began to inflame and show the frailty of our flesh. What was not before, so obvious, as the reason that such things were occurring. Became all of a sudden, the only reason that life was so hard to live, and you didn’t like it. in the members > You all of a sudden knew first hand, the hopeless state that you were in and it caused your healthy features to begin to fail, one after another, throughout the whole body. Because all of your sense were activated by the law, each area of your life, felt the uneasiness that it caused in the flesh. of our body > Sins infection, then weakens your self defense mechanisms, against other such assaults of sin. So before you know it, your whole body has given itself over to the work of sin. As exposure to the laws accusation of sin in this way, finally consumes all your claims of innocents, because what you did not know, as a claim of innocence, vanishes in your fully aware, complicit acts of sin. to bear fruit > The end result of that being, the misleading of every new generation, into the same web of destruction, that takes the life’s of their own children. Committing them to and even more decrepit lifestyle, that is even more worthless to have lived in, than their parents before them. Because you raised them in a house of deceit, they copied everything you did, and what you did, even in moderation, they than did in excess. Allowing every generation, to depart further and further from the laws of God. for death. > Then, you as a carrier, take your disease of sin into your community, where there you fully infect others with your sinful behavior. The result is a replication of death throughout humanity with a 100% fatality rate, absolutely no one survives in having come in contact with, the black death of sin, due to the law. 7:6 But now we have been released > The death sentence that kept us in prison, has been rescinded and the walls that kept us there have been breached. A victory from which, they are no longer able to bind you ever again. Even as the walls of Jericho are no more and never shall be ever again, because God tore them down. It being as a visual memorial to Gods absolute dominion over his creation. We are a visual reminder to the world, of Gods great victory over sin. from the law, > And that is what God has done with respect to the law, being able to have rule over us ever again, with the law, not accusing us, but excusing us in its fulfillment in Christ. Where the law is done away with, there is no crime for judgement, only for instruction, is the law there for us, not as a prosecutor in a court trial, but as a teacher in pursuit of holiness. It has now, with the power of Gods blessing, the ability to defend us in all of its entirety. because we have died > So when Christ took to himself the power of death over us, rendering the law as having been nullified. Now due to lack of evidence, not a lack of sin evidence, but of a standing law against us, which could be used to call us into question with. Because where there is no longer a law to accuse one with, one cannot say that a crime has been established under a non-existent law. So where is the evidence, of what crime, under what law. We have as our defense the death of the laws contract with us, so there is no law to charge us with, instead it defends us. to what controlled us, > But at one time, before we were one in Christ body, the law condemned us and sin bound us to live in its grasp. The more we struggled against it, the more it became like quicksand, that just pulled us in deeper into it, until death won out. So the law controlled us because of life, but when death came to Christ, who bore the law in his flesh for us on our behalf, he died our death with him, so the law completed its cycle and finished its labors. so that we may serve > But we know that one cannot fight their way out off quicksand, you need to be rescued from it or you will die in it. So God became that rescue, so that we could be free from its grip and find yourself on solid ground. Where the sands cannot pull you back down into them, but that you may labor in freedom, from what once sought to kill you, in that trap of sin. in the new life > Where in this new labor, you would find that it does not pull you under, but rather strengthens your walk upon the unfailing attributes of Gods character. All you efforts, only refresh your desire to live in the new adventure of Gods creation. Where sin pulled you under, this new life in Christ, lifts you up and strengthens you, by defending you in the fulfilled law. of the Spirit > All of which comes about in a way that is foreign to the ways of our flesh, in that, it dwells in a world that is absent of our bodies. Its power does not come from that which requires muscle and bone, or external persuasion and enforcement as our bodies do. But trust and faith in that which is internal and invisible. Except thru the actions of his church body, which is a physical organism, that represents Christ on earth, in his church you are able to see the work of his Spirit. But the rest of Gods spiritual influence in us, is invisible to us. and not under > So that which once held us in a very rigid lifestyle and kept us under the constant pressure of being accused and brought on trial. No longer speaks out, but has been silenced by Christ, who was that laws fulfillment. the old written code. > For that which was at first a law, made to accuse us in a trial against us. Has been replaced by the mercies of Christ, that are there to release us from its bondage. The law that could accuse you of sin, once you are trusting Christ, is no longer in existence. So there is nothing to accuse you with any longer, to threaten your salvation. 7:7 What shall we > In a sense, our diploma in this educational program God has taken us thru, so that our graduation came to us when we trusted in Christ. Reads us all as defense Lawyers, not prosecutors, as those who lived by the law did, prior to Christ. Because the law is now our defense and we are defended by it having been fulfilled by Christ. say then? > So now that we have had the time, analyzing all the legal ramifications that got us here, how should look at that justice system? Do we throw it out and treat it as something that tried to destroy us, or be grateful
to God for having provided us with free, paid up front education. That will now allow us
to live without the dysfunction, that would have otherwise left us wounded scared for
life, due to ignorance of the truth about sin. > Was the law itself corrupt, due to the fact that it accused us of sin? If the law is the messenger, is it the messengers fault that brought us the news that we were in trouble with God, should we then hate the messenger? It seems in life, we are always looking for someone or something else to blame, for
what inherently is always ourselves, that is the problem, as to how we react to life. > Don’t even think that way, we have to keep our wit’s about us at all times when putting things in there right perspective with God. The last thing we want to do is get it all wrong again, after we have been given all the right information to understand it with. A written code is that and no more, it has no inherent value except for that which it is founded upon, and it came from God and God is Holy! So the source and intent of the law is also Holy. Certainly, > As a matter of course, I am able to use my wisdom then to think this thru to a right conclusion. We should never assign false meanings or intentions to that which God is endeavoring in us to do. We need to look at the law in its face value and draw our conclusions from that alone. Not trying to affix blame, where God was planning for our education to lead us into eternal life, not how or why he wanted to destroy us because of sin. Look at Gods intention for us with the law, and you’ll have the right premise of how we should view the law. Was God trying to perfect us with the law or show us our need to trust in him for salvation, and that will be your answer. I > In a way it goes like this story; when I was first growing up, I had no knowledge of what others thought was, right our wrong. For me to do the things I did, to me, just seemed as a boy exploring a dark cave. I didn’t know if it was dangerous or not, I just took a chance, not knowing or even giving it much consideration as to whether there might be a real danger to myself. It took time for that to be made aware to me, but I did learn, with scares to prove it! Children have to be taught that fire is hot, before it burns them severally. would not > Had I had a teacher in life, to go with me, I would have been given instruction about how to survive in the darkness. To be able to see the warning sighs of danger, so that I could avoid them, rather than learning thru the school of hard knocks. have known sin > The same is true, when it comes to a life involving sin and the law. The law is necessary, anywhere that there is a possibility of the danger of sin occurring. It is that ounce of prevention, that is better than the pound of cure, or where God say’s that it is better to obey, than to sacrifice, to cover our sins. except through the law. > As I grew I learned to learn, by the instruction of others, that certain things can harm me, they didn’t always make sense, and it seemed most of the time, I still had to learn the hard way. But the instruction was there for me, if I was wise enough to heed it and benefit from it. For indeed > It’s true! I always thought bees we were kind of cool little bugs, they hung around together and I liked watching them work. I never bothered them and they would always just fly right by me, then one day it took a stick and was poking it around their nest. Not to be mean, just being curious, man I had no idea those things could sting you, I had welts every where, and that is how we often have to learn of the laws effects. If someone had told me beforehand that bee’s can sting you I might not have poked at them with a stick, At least, I don’t think I would have? I would not have known > But at they very least, I would not have able to blame ignorance and would have had an opportunity to act responsibly. That is what instruction does for you, it informs you, so that you have at least the opportunity, to act in wisdom, instead of foolishness. what it means > So you see having knowledge, at least gave me the chance to become wise in my actions and develop understanding. Other wise, each person has to go thru life, poking sticks at bees, only to get strung by them and learn the hard way. to desire something > So in the same course of rational and thinking, if I see something that I would like to have, because it interest me and then that develops into a passion for attaining it. I have a basis for finding a right course to find the reason for me to attain it, without doing so purely out of envy alone. Is it something that I could truly use in life and therefore a good discovery. Or am I just upset that someone else got something that I did not, and I’m just mad about that and so I want it also. belonging to someone else > The problem being in the latter situation, that someone else has possession of it and I wanted to take it from them so it would be mine. I would not have known that it would be wrong for me to take it from them, if there was nothing instructing me concerning that issue. So what would prevent me from picking it up and trying to walk away with it. Then, what would they have done as a result, they would take it back and a fight would ensue. if the law had not said, > Because it was the law that taught me though, it laid down the guide lines for me to live in harmony with my neighbors, and not get beat up when they fought back at me for taking from them without asking. "Do not covet." > Because it was the law that told me this in advance to warn me that it was wrong to lust after things that were not mine. That I would pay a penalty for that sin if I did it, that there is consequence to be had if I take what is not mine. The law was my warning sign of pending danger than. 7:8 But sin, seizing the opportunity > It took advantage of the pride in me, my pride made me want to look ok, even when I knew I was not. It had a mission against me to make itself appear weak to my strength, but my strength was a deception. So thru my strength, it told me I was brave, when in fact, I was afraid to stand up against sin, because of what people might say. So it had power and I was defenseless against it, it took me and made me its slave, in contrast to God. Who thru my true weakness, showed his strength by making me free. He doesn’t need me to do anything, he chooses to use me to do everything, and that is how sin is at odds with God, it has no options but to destroy, God can save or destroy. through the commandment, > And then what it did was this, by accusing me of my guilt thru the law and then tempting me to give into those things that were in violation of that law. I became a victim of greater sin, because the law was also now after me, working against my flesh, at the same time sin was. But what sin meant for evil, even in using Gods law, God meant for good and though the law convicted me to feel and sense my guilt. God was in the process of defining its greater use to free us from its conviction, by fulfilling it. produced in me > Which in the mean time, caused me to actually lust after those sins that were making me corrupt. I found my self wanting to make gains thru deceit rather then honest labors. I new the laws of sins behavior in a detailed way know, that I could exploit for my own benefit. Where before, I did wrong without a blueprint to guide me, I was now was acting out in precise detail, the errors of sin, that the law taught me not to do. all kinds > They occurred in me in every variety imaginable, each law was alive in me and wanting to be expressed, even if I did not necessarily want to break the laws, there was also a compulsion in me to try to make it happen. of wrong desires. > In fact sin was spread out right across the board, encompassing of all my actions, whether it was building myself up or tearing someone else down. Whether in my thoughts of lust, that others did not see, our my outward conspiracies, in which I formed leagues against others. For > What we need to arrange properly in out thinking here is how it all plays together in the end, not to hurt us, but to help us. That is the premise that brings this all together, the end game that unites man back to God, all by his hand alone, having accomplished it, at his expense. apart from the law, > Because those kinds of feelings of sins active affect on me, came after I became aware of the law. Before you knew the law, it was like this; At one time it didn’t bother me to pour whole milk on my cereal, it just tasted good. I didn’t know that the cholesterol would one day kill me, but now I know, and I feel guilty when I give into it. I’m disappointed in myself for violating my laws of health, but now, when I pour it on the cereal and take that first bite, man does it taste good. I feel like I’m on cloud nine, in fact I get more pleasure eating it now, when I know I’m not supposed to, then I did when I just ate them with my whole milk because I liked it that way. You see, that is how sin and the law works, cause now I’m excited by the sins, that before didn’t mean a thing to me. Because it once was asleep in me, but now it is wide awake and I get more pleasure out of sin, because I think I’m getting something I’m not supposed to. In fact, we even refer to this condition in jest, we call it, "Sinfully Delicious". sin is dead. > But at that point in time, before the law was given, sin was not aware of its own existence. It did create a response in us when we did something that was wrong, neither guilt or remorse. Nor did it cause outrage or heighten passions by one slyly doing something they ought not do. Whether an act of crime or an illicit relationship, sin was there, it was just not aware of itself, till the law woke it up and called it into question. Then sin got an identity and a name for itself, that gave rise to doubt in us as we now had a reason to question our actions, which is the opposite of faith, which causes death. 7:9 And I was once alive apart from the law, > So while I lived in an existence where my thoughts did not accuse me, because no standard had yet been given to me, that was but a temporary state of mind. God had not revealed the law until it was the proper time. but with the coming > Because once God determined that it was time to make the law known and mans mind was revealed to the law. All of the landscape that man lived in was changed forever. It was the timing of God giving the law, that was in the mind of God, so that he could take us in due time, from law to grace when Christ became the law for us. of the commandment > There was a repelling effect against God caused by the law, across the whole of mankind, and that was because man was assigned duties to perform and task to bear. It wounded man more then he was aware, with a mortal wound that would not heel, and the law made man, due to his knowledge of sin, rebel even more against God. sin became alive > As a result, sin was made self-aware in us and we became fatally wounded, bleeding to death from a mortal wound, without any cuts. Sin was now thriving off of us and taking us down its path. It gained a mind of its own, when the law told it what it was and the end of its destiny. Before the law came, sin was rather boring to think about, but the law made it the life of the party. Because even now, everyone wants to do what they are forbidden to do, just because of the thrill they get out of it. 7:10 and I died. So I found > Then I came upon a discovery or revelation as you might call it, it was as if I became suddenly aware of what once had confused me. I discovered the true meaning behind Gods intention for the law, and what a relief it was. that the very commandment > Because the law that told me who God was, telling me what his righteous attributes are and what were his perfect requirements for me to follow. Those things that came from God which had no flaw in them, were made known to me and the reason why they were given, was good for me, not bad. that was intended > The law had a predefined purpose in Gods plan, first to reveal the necessity of salvation so we could respond to it and the second, so that Christ could come and live the law correctly and then die while under its bondage to complete the cycle of its bondage, while at the same time suffering our punishment under the law. to bring life > So the law was capable of giving to anyone who obeyed it, and had honored the glory of God. This law would be able to sustain them for eternity, if they could obey them. brought death! > But I was too accustom to the way of this sinful flesh, the law was more than I could breath in, I was being suffocated by the law, just like a fish out of water, I mean, fish need air just like all land creatures. But with so much of it, they could not absorb it and it killed them instead. That is what the law did to me, I needed it, but my flesh was not able to absorb Gods holiness thru the law, so it killed me thru overexposure to the law. 7:11 For sin, seizing > Sin didn’t give me a second thought though, as to how it might permanently hurt me, it was out for itself and I was the fuel that it thrived on. It saw me as nothing more than prey for itself and it struck out at me, infecting me with its diseased filled venom. the opportunity > It then acting like a virus in my body, began spreading throughout my life. Affecting my actions and constantly tripping me up every time I try to do something. It always seemed to be one step ahead of me and no matter where I went or what I tried to do, it was there with me, I just couldn’t shake it loose. through the commandment, > It spread thru my life by feeding on my frailty under the law, which I needed to obey, but sin used up the law to bludgeon me with, faster then I could obey it. It was like a cancer in my body, where it was also was feeding itself thru my blood system, in which my healthy cells needed the blood supply also, but the cancer out grew the healthy cells, using up my supply of blood before I could, and then killing me from my own life supply. deceived me > That is where sin got the upper hand and took advantage of me, using my own source of energy to kill me. The more I learned to live with my sins, the more sins I learned to live with. I just kept increasing that distance between myself and God, any accepted sin only leads to greater depths of sin, and a broader variety of sins. Because the conscience becomes so seared in this process, it is even more susceptible to the delusions of sin. and through it > So that is how I got here, the more guilty I felt from the law, the more hopeless I felt in its presence. So I would tell myself, why even try? But that only increased the power of sin over me, leaving my body defenseless against
its attacking disease. Whether I was complicit, resisted or did nothing to fight it, its
quicksand of death, had its hold on me. > And that, is what has brought me to death itself, in fact it has already happened in the spiritual world. I became deceased from God, and my flesh is also in the process of dying from this world. It’s not a matter of, will sin eventually take my life, only when. 7:12 So then, the law is holy, > The Messenger is Gods written code, which is there to reveal Gods Holy attributes in relation to mans sin. So the written code is righteous because it comes from God, and that is what needs to be made clear. It is our sin responding to the laws holiness that produced even more sin. Think of it like a chemical reaction, where sin is inflamed due to the introduction of the law. Sin was inert in its ability to condemn me in my own actions, its effect was being neutralized by ignorance of the law, it that I had no absolute reference to define right or wrong. So until sin came in contact with law, sin had no definable effect that was nailed down for everyone at the same time. Until the law accused it and pointed out its exact errors, then it became active as a result of that interaction. and the commandment > This took place even in the details of the law, or the fine print of the overall agreement, it wasn’t just a big picture affect that the law had. God spells out in minuet detail, how we are to be in our actions and attitudes. God actually puts labels on sin so we now what is at the root of our actions, whether they arise from lust, greed, hate, etc.. is holy, > These laws are also part of Gods Holy attributes, demanding that we should adhere to them, for they teach us what is at the core of Gods character. We, in obeying the laws, become aware of Gods character. We befriend God in living in agreement with the laws, despite the flesh and it wars against them. righteous, > They are like a display of himself, that gives us guidepost by which we are able to measure our maturity, in living our life in the light of his righteousness. As opposed to just measuring ourselves against other humans, whose standards are fleeting and ever changing. Sometimes our behavior is better then others, sometimes worst, but always far from Gods holiness. and good. > These laws are for your health and assurance, so that you are not living wrongful led lives. But rather finding the best paths that lead you more deeply into the presence of God, he is leading you at all times, into the truth of himself. But the truth is sometimes painful for us to face, especially when were alone. But we are never alone, if we are willing to face our life along with God. 7:13 Did that which is good, > How do we then analyses what we have just learned about the effects of the law that is righteous, is there a negative to it that we should be afraid of the law and avoid it. Should we try to remain ignorant to it because the law is hard on our conscience and sometimes makes us feel miserable about our helpless position before God. then, > Did the law turn on me and make me subject to its slavery, am I now condemned even more then before, where is the benefit of the law. If the law is so right, how do I feel so wrong when I try to interact with it. become death > I should think that the law, which is in opposition to sin, would protect me, I thought that was the purpose of laws in the first place. Yet, all I find in myself, is a poorer state than I was in before, this law is killing me trying to relate to it in my life, in fact, it’s seems to be robbing me of my life in the end, or so it seems. to me? > After all, as soon as I became aware of the law, it accused me of my sin, and condemned me to death. Why should I live to the law if it is only capable of killing me in its presence? Absolutely not! > Don’t even think that way-God is far greater in his ability to rescue you, then the power of the law is to accuse you. He gave the law, as a wakeup call that you know that he is coming. So that you would know that he could also rescue you from its death sentence. So that you would be able to put into words, the holiness of Gods character, that which you may not have otherwise known without the law. Now, you will know when it is God and when it isn’t in life. But sin, > So it became necessary for God to widen the gulf of right and wrong in our eyes. Because we had no clear division of sin, because everyone was just doing what was right for them in there own eyes. so that > Man had just mixed everything together, in a way that if even we tried to do something good. We mixed it in with bad things that we should not have. God wanted no more mixing of the water and oil, they are incompatible and that is what God wanted us to know. No, more gray areas of life, no fine lines of right or wrong, it was either right with God or wrong with him. No more adding yeast to the bread dough, which would ferment and then give rise to sin, he wanted you to understand the concept of unleavened bread(bread without yeast-life without sin). it would > God wanted to reveal that we existed in a gulf of separation from him. When it came to morals, we were far away from him, not even close to where he was in are ability to know him fully. He wanted this to be a shock treatment to our system, just so we are able to perceive the seriousness of our position with him. be shown > God wanted man to have a distinct concept of what sin is according to his own attributes and standards. He wanted us to have a clear definition in our minds as to what sin is, not measuring ourselves to others, but according to him and his holiness. to be sin, > This then revealed in us our sin, in that we became conscience of a greater and higher standard then what we were using before. This did away with what people thought were the gray areas of right and wrong, which was a result of people making up rules for themselves. Because the law put a huge gulf of separation between God and man, a division so great, that man could not make a bridge across it. Life is no longer a matter of your own best judgment or lack of it, all things have to pass the muster test, against Gods standard in the law to be valid or worthwhile. produced death > As a result of that, man became deceased from God by way of condemnation under the law. It established once and for all, that I had no way of escaping death, because the law revealed that sin had already done its deadly deed in my body, I was just being informed by God, that it was a terminal disease. in me > My soul was under judgment and had to be punished eternally according to the law, and physically, death was given authority over man to kill my body. All that I was, had been acting under the influence of sin, and the law had sobered me up to that fact. Sin had me under its addiction, and God had to do an intervention in us using the law, so that we could seek his help in going straight in life. through > So it is in the truth that God demonstrated the state we were in. The law was merely a statement of the facts as they were. God didn’t write them around what we were doing, just so that he could change the rules in the middle of some sort of game, giving him an unfair advantage. These were always the way God was, from the day of our creation, he said that there would be rules to be obeyed, that governed our behavior. So the law was not new, only our clearer understanding of it was revealed to us. what is good, > This all happened through the giving of the law which represented Gods Holy attributes, and declared his glorious nature. Every part of the law had its basis in Gods holiness, therefore, the fact that it hurt me in my understanding of it, does not make it poison, it makes it a medicine of cure. Sin is the poison that is killing me, not the law, the law is that which is operating against the sin, but sin is fighting back against holiness, as is its nature to do. It is that battle that is causing the heat of its fever, that is causing you an even greater illness now. so that > So what God is intending in all this, is that there be no charades or parlor games, as to what is at the center of his disagreements with mankind. He is now demanding that we face the fire of his holiness. Either taking his side with holiness, or that we are repelled in our resistance, ever deeper into the chasm of sin and his condemnation, under his perfect justice. through the commandment > So God intentionally separated mankind from himself thru the law, he found it necessary to reveal in us the depravity that sin was in the presence of his holiness. We didn’t like it, we did not want to be accused like that, after we found out how hard it was for man to think and act as God. It was so hard, that we couldn’t do any more than show a false gesture in our obedience to it, it was nothing but a paper-chase or pretense on our part. We would put on a show that everyone would go along with, but no body ever meant it, when no one else was looking, we reverted to sins rule in us. sin would become > This put sin on the defensive in the presence of God, as he was seeking to destroy sin from his presence. But also sin went on the offensive it its attack against the flesh, in that it had authority over man in its ability to weakness from our inability to do the law. It could easily accuse us with it, it did not care about the law and was more than willing to quote it to us, to break out backs of resistance, by weighing us down with the laws heavy weight on us. utterly sinful. > So sin became fully grown in its corruption of man, invading all the areas of a mans life and rending him impotent, in his ability to overcome the power of sin. That then, established mans wickedness in the light of Gods holiness, it became clear to man what was the difference of good and evil, and that it was man who became that evil, in his sins possession of him, as the law declared it to be so. 7:14 For we know > So this is what I have learned and am now teaching you also, that we have been given insight into Gods plan to rescue us, in the very details of how it is working thru us. God has revealed himself to us, so that we could anticipate in our life, that a change was not only in the works, but necessary due to our substances being alien to the others that do exist, that are eternal in nature and therefore incompatible. that the law is spiritual- > The foundation of Gods law, is God, who is himself a Spirit, so if God is a Spirit, then so is his law a Spirit in nature. This makes the law that of a different species, so to speak, on that it lives and exist in a different atmosphere, superior than our own. It is a source that is coming to us, rather than from us, and even though we need it, we cannot take it in. In much the way that fish cannot receive oxygen from the air directly, it must receive it thru the water of its environment. The law is above us and we are not able to directly exist in its realm, which is in the full presence of God. Without it first being filtered(or the Vail before the alter) thru our environment, but which was also impossible to do and still help us. Until Christ became that mediator for us to exist in both realms at the same time, the law now came to us thru grace, thru him, internally, as opposed to its former external existence. With the end game being that we would be removed entirely from this environment one day an into his. but I > On the other hand, my state of existence, is that which is completely opposite of what is Gods. The Spirit is eternal in the nature of its existence, it requires no sustenance to stay alive and exist as an independent entity unto itself, as is the nature of God to be. But I am a human, I was created with needs from the beginning as was my design to be so. God made me dependant on him for both my physical existence and my spiritual relationship to him. Now that is only in the area of survival, it does make me as one without responsibility, but my survival was dependent on God providing it for me and it always has been. That is the source of his having taken pity on us, in that he knew he created us as to exist in him from the beginning. As opposed to spiritual demons, who are able to exist eternally in their original state, though cursed and remove of Gods fellowship. am unspiritual, > So if God and the law are Spirit and I am in the flesh, then I have no Spirit and therefore no relationship to God, I am not, as it were, a relative in his family in the spiritual world, but a foreign entity. Mine is a temporal and corporal state of living flesh, which does have in its sensory capacity, a spiritual component that is of the same design of Gods. It is more like we are positively(God) and negatively(man) charged, with opposite polar positions, that polarize and define are nature, coexisting, yet incompatible. sold > The control that determines my destiny is under another agency than myself. I may feel like it is myself who has rule over my destiny in life, but that is a delusion, I am being bartered away at the will of another’s corporate power over me. It is that corporate power that is determining my fate not me, and for the first time, I am becoming aware of its ongoing control over me. It has always had ownership rights over me, but because I was born into this condition, I thought it was normal. It is like being born poor, but never knowing you were poor, until at some later point in life, you became aware of some other higher standard of lifestyle. Only then thru comparison, do you realize, that you had been poor all along. into slavery > But my current state is that I am an outcast, who was sold into bondage by my forefathers, who traded their living Spirit with God, for this dead flesh in an act of disobedience. They pinned me to this life of poverty thru the overspending of their flesh in disobedience. Now all of mankind is in debt up to their eyebrows, with no way of buying themselves out from under its burden. So we live lives being poor to God, from our own spending habits and we are not spending less now than they we did back then. Rather we are adding to their debt of own accord, we are paying nothing down on the balance, and never have, and the interest due is compounding on us all the time. If you women for example, talk about the poverty of your relationship with your husband and its lack of worth. Is it because you have traded it for the riches of this world? The more of this world that you posses in material holdings, the less of your husband will you have and the more of your husband, the less of this world. The same goes true with our relations ship to God also, when he said you cannot serve God and money, it is because one is forfeited to obtain the other, and so it has been concerning sin and Gods holiness. to sin. > This all came about as a result of their first sin, which then was charged against me also as payment due. Once the law was given, I not only recommitted the same act of disobedience that Adam did, I increased it, as I invested myself into it a life of multiple laws that I was breaking, where Adam violated just the one law.
7:15 For I don’t understand > By looking at my own actions, one might think that I am out of control of my own life. Because there is a duality to my personality and my actions, and I am as bewildered by it as anyone. I admit it, I am confused by myself, there is simply no rationale to my actions and that is because there is a war raging in me and over me, by spiritual entities, for my loyalty to them. These powers are in a continuous battle for control over me, but I am somewhere in that mix too, making the final curtain call as to my own performance, a product of my own choosing. what I am doing. > It seems to me that when I am not bothered by the temptations in life, in that, I am able to just brush them aside without incident, I do just fine and feel like I’ve actually got my Christian life down pretty well. It’s when I am tempted and it is effective at getting thru me, that I loose the battle and begin to question if I am an authentic Christian, based on my behavior. Which can be really discouraging, because I thought that I was doing better than that, and now I have to regain my faith in my own judgement. So far as, do I really possess good judgement, in a right way, in respect to my relationship with God. Because when you have what you think are the right intentions, to labor for God on the things that are approving in his sight, and then for no apparent reason. Instead of following thru with those plans, you go off into sinful behavior. How do you believe yourself in the future, as to you own authenticity and self-respect judgement. When you come back before God in another labor for him, that begins with the same cycle of fulfilling right desires without being sidetracked again. For > In more specific terms of thinking, let’s look at the right things that I am not doing first, as opposed to the wrong that I am doing. Because we always want to focus on what is the right way to do things and how to achieve that goal, as opposed to what went wrong and trying to Band-Aid that. Because If we can accomplish the first right thing, the wrong will not occur and be irrelevant. The basic reasoning behind that is, if you want to do good, you would not seek the advice of the devil, who has failed. You would ask God who is good and has not failed, right! You want to learn how to do it right, and therefore the fix is a none issue for you. That’s good advice for marriage consulting too, don’t ask advice from someone who has failed multiple times in marriage, as to what not to do wrong in a marriage. Instead, ask a committed loving couple of many years, what they did right and apply that to your marriage. The health it will provide in your marriage, will allow for the proper healing of any unintended wounds, that come in the course of any such relationship. Intentional wounds although, need a pastors counseling, and that applies to this issue here also, of ones relationship with God. I do not do > Because what happens is this, I do have a standard of acceptable behavior that I have learned from Christ, and I really enjoy it being active in my life. But as soon as I am tempted, I abandon the good, for the evil, as if it were something foreign to me, or that it meant nothing to me, compared to my passion, to fulfill my sinful behavior. That is what I would like to avoid, the breaking of my stride in my walk with Christ, so that I am not left behind in the work, that he is progressing on in mans salvation. I don’t like this lack of consistency, between my want for Christ, and the actual actions that follow that, which involves sin. I want to be real, but sometimes I just come up a hollow shell. what I want- > And the strange thing is that I really love that which Christ has taught me much more than that of my past. I really want to live according to his precepts, because I know that they are right and better for me in every circumstance that I will come into. I know that with my new life, is a living Spirit, that dwells in me, which is made more alive, in my joys of life, thru the love of holiness. So that with its predominance, the things of the flesh will seldom occur, with less frequency in me. So what I need is a way out of this cycle, that keeps leading me back into sin. I need to find a way to stay the course when sins diversions appear in my life, as those unintended wounds, that will heal do to my stronger spiritual health, that I want dominating me. In the end, I know it has to do with where I allow my focus to be, do I dwell in the sins, both in the pleasure of doing them and the remorse after them. Or am I clearing the slate before God on my errors and refocusing on the spiritual life, disposing of that sin issue, after it has done its deed in me. I know that my goal is in my life with Christ, not death with my flesh, so that is where I want to give my attention too. instead, > But to look at me during those times that my sin is being fed thru my flesh, who would not call me a hypocrite, I do, I don’t spare myself this criticism, I have to call it what it is. It is really hard to have dignity in my Spirit before God, when I know that in my flesh, I am wanting nothing to do with my goals for Christ promotion, but rather, administering to the loathsome desires of my emotions and carnal impulses. And they win, how is that, when I know the truth and that I am not bound by them, yet they bind me anyway? I do > I need to clarify once again, that I am participating in this as an accomplice, there is a duality that lives inside of me. One is in perfect harmony with God, the other is Gods mortal enemy. They exist in me simultaneously, so long as I live in this body, and only God is able divide them precisely into, functional parts of my ministry with him. Their proximity to each other is so close, that only he is able separate out from me, good works unto himself, and disable the ill effects in me as inert in the end. So that being the case, I need to accept that he is able to do that, despite my errors, as he compensates for them in with his own body and power of holiness. what I hate. > That way, when those things occur in me that are the things that I find repugnant, I do not live in the mindset of; "What kind of person does what they hate and considers evil, and then says, I am living my life according to God". I no longer harbor anger for myself, when these things happen to me, in fact, I think the complete opposite is true. Yet, for your benefit, I acknowledge that I am like this, so you know that I struggle too, in your type of battles, and that I hate my sins that I do. 7:16 But if I do > Because the way that I do things, is so mystifying to me, that because of it, it allows me the greater joy, of not only knowing God more, but trusting in him more than I otherwise would have not known why to do so. It then also allows me to be my best own evidence in my life, of Gods hand on me. Because it is his internal testimony to myself, that renews me, that not all is lost when I lose, but rather, God is going to get gain out of me, despite myself. what I don’t want, > Here is where I want to make another point that the proves itself thru me, by that poor behavior that I have just exemplified about my true nature in my flesh. It demonstrates how sin caused me to act against the law, in full knowledge of its existence, it caused me to sin against my own desire, not to do it. It demonstrated the complete depravity of sin in my body, and God rightness in his judgment of it. if I had the power in me to live according to the law, than I might have reason to questions Gods judgment of man. But seeing as how I am unable restrain sin in my life in full accordance with what are pretty basic laws that he has given us, it pretty much confirms his right conclusions about myself and all of mankind. We’re servants of sin, not God, or else I would do the right things, especially when I really want to do them, instead of the wrong things in place of them. That is so bizarre of us to act in that manner, do you see how God is right about us and our predominance to sin having corrupted even our good thinking, to be bent to do evil. I agree > I am convinced that what I have taught you is the absolute truth, and that you should pay close attention to the law and what it says. In that, even though I was weak in doing the truth, I was able to jointly acknowledge the truth of God, with him because of its evidence in proving to me, of his judging my sin correctly. It is my formal declaration of Gods standard, being greater than I myself could ever be. Which is all that I am capable of in this body of doing, that is, responding to God in the affirmative, along with the affirmation of his righteousness. If fact, it is the law that has proven itself to be right thru me, in that, it is able to stand and I am not. So though I am condemned by the law, I am not torn down by the law, I am built up in it, even though it proves me wrong. Because of Gods intervention in using the law, thru Christ in a masterful legal maneuver, of using the law to redeem the lawless against itself, it heals what it hurts in me also. that the law is good. > Because even through the law cannot save you from your sins in your own body, as your own individual acts of holiness. Learning and finding the joy of living thru the Spirit, which does adhere to the law, brings about the prevention of sin in your life. Which in Gods judgment, is better then salvation by grace, because to obey, is better than sacrifice and God takes no pleasure in our sins that must be forgiven. He would rather that no sin to have taken place, his glory did not need to be proven by our sinfulness, for him to be shown glorious in saving us, it was a necessity for us to be saved, not for him to be shown in glory. 7:17 But now > Of course, the best and most redeeming part of this lesson, is that my sin was already put to death and I am free from its bondage, for I am now a living Spirit, which is the true fellowship that I have with God. it is no longer > As I said already, God is able to precisely separate out of me, my sin in my flesh, that exist only there in its bodily form, from my right deeds done in the Spirit thru him. Those right deeds, do not improve the flesh, that is not the motive or goal in the good that God does in me. It is the Spirits domination of the flesh, to silent its voice, in the face of Gods overpowering it with his Holy Spirit that dwells in me, that is the defining point to be recognized here. God is separating my Spirit, from my actions in the flesh and the building up the proper deeds of the Spirit, making in me, a new defining character. One that does not reside in the flesh, but in the Spirit, that only God is able to surgically divide in me. As the scripture says, "rightly dividing the word of truth", so that we know and understand what he is doing in us. It also say’s, "piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and is able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart". Because he is able to do that, we can trust wholeheartedly in what God is doing for us and in us. Even though is not within in our perceptive abilities, to envelope the whole of what he is doing. But it allows us to rest in the assurance, that God is masterful and perfect in the cuts and incisions that he performs in us. To separate us from our flesh in a timely manner, that heals and redeems our soul for himself, yet not destroying who we are in the process. . > So that man in me, that commits those sins in this body, is not me, he has already been put to death, and I have a new body, a spiritual body, which is itself Jesus Christ body, that I am a part of in the spirit. The problem is I cannot separate the thinking in my mind, from the flesh of my body, they are still both influencing my actions. My Spirit wants to go north and my body wants to go south, my body wants to drain the cup that is half empty, while my Spirit wants to fill the same cup to the brim, that it sees as half full. Yet I must be aware to my own conscious of this oxymoron in me, and realize that what pertains both to the flesh and the Spirit, are finished and complete works, in respect to what both are. That is, the flesh has been fully defeated and subjugated by Christ, in its eternal relevance to me. It has been completely put down and dealt with by Christ. When he said on the cross, "It is Finished", that was the end of Gods struggle with mans flesh, it was all put to death on the cross with Christ. It is a completed work that has been permanently shelved by God, so far as, training the flesh to obey the law. Our bodies have been benched, so to speak, never to play again, in the role of Gods efforts with man. To God, our flesh has already died and our bodies are being separated from our conscious, by him. As we learn to live in the existence of our new bodies, that we cannot yet see. But because of our bodily senses, that relate to us the presence of sin in our life. We struggle for now, until God fully divides the old presence of physical death, from the new presence and awakening to spiritual life. The old is being put into a dormant state within us, as we live in the new life of our spiritual body. but sin > Yet sin is still active in me, as long as my flesh is still alive, because it itself, is diseased and incurable. Yet there is still more to this issue before us, and that is this, that as corrupt as my flesh is, to do sinfulness in the sight and presence of God. So my Spirit dwells in greater power, in his perfect holiness, which is what has fellowship with God. Let me state that again, I have a perfect, Holy, acceptable side to my consciousness, that is currently existing and alive in me, which is in perfect harmony with God. It is ongoing, as I speak, in me, active and alive in me, even as it is with you also, who believe in Christ. That is the real and true me who now exist, not that old dead body that I am so aware of, but God has fully dismissed. Let me emphasize what I mean, my body, already, no longer exist in my relationship to God. Only insomuch as I choose to dwell in it, and drag it around as memorial of my death, constantly pointing out to God what it just did… again! Does it exist to us and interfere with our relationship to God, yes. But otherwise, God is not interested in what it is up to, in its dirty old bag of tricks. It is but an annoyance to God now, not an issue to be dealt with outside of ourselves, concerning our remorse of having to still deal with its presence. Yet God tells us mortify the deeds of our flesh, to let the body die to its needs in this life and to concern ourselves with the Spirit of life, which is the living part of God in us. that lives in me. > So my body is permanently disabled due to sin, which has control of my earthly and temporal body, but not my eternal Spirit. Yes, my body is ever present with me, but I must learn to ignore it, in light of my true life with God. Let sin that is death in my body, exist and die there, and let my new life, that exist and lives in the Spirit world, reign over me. Because this body harbors death, it is my death that it watches over, waiting for me to fail in it, it is on a death watch that sin parades over me, as a living disease in me, but no longer a real concern for me. 7:18 For I know > I really have thought about this dichotomy a lot and have struggled to come to grips with the desires that live in me, both the good and evil desires. I always walk away from having sinned, disappointed in myself, that I was not strong enough to withstand the temptation. But I also am aware of the fact that, that is what sin in me does, it has no side of virtue in it. It is absent the basic makeup of that which is capable of Godliness. Also, I nee to restate, that Christ is not currently at battle with our flesh, instead he is trying to get us to live in and for our Spirit, that has come alive in us, thru him. You see, he knows our flesh is already dead, so far as its relevance any longer, so his goal is to make the living, more alive, and that is our Spirit. So the flesh is subdued or maybe it would be better to say, shouted down, as a relative way of thinking about, though dead, is the accurate term. that nothing good > I have clearly come to the conclusion, that I have nothing to be proud of concerning my own state of mind, as is relates to who I am without Christ. It is pure evil that makes up the basis of who I am, on my own. If God had not told me, I was evil, and then demonstrated my sin with the law, which proved to me my sinfulness, I would still think I was just fine. But it is now clear to me, that my body is to corrupt to try to make it right, it must rather be controlled by the Spirit, into submission, or it will sin. lives in me, > Because it is the home that I was born in to and the character by which I was raised and trained in, as to the ways of my heart. All other ideas are foreign to me, for they don’t live any where else on earth. All the knowledge and ideals that I now possess, are not of earth, but are from another world, that I am not a nature or accustom too. that is, > Of course, the body that I live in, is something that I am not able to remove or separate myself from as long as I am alive. Sin will exist there, so long as I live in this body, so that part I have to come to terms with and not live under the weight of a guilt trip. in my flesh. > Because it is my body that harbors both me and my sins, I am not able to separate myself, from myself, in a physical sense. For this is why Christ came to our aid, and he will at his timing, separate me from my sins. But for now, the corrupt flesh of my body is present before me, the pathetic thing that it is, there it is, in me. For > Now, I need to also be direct, about the fact, that I am not just sitting around, thinking up evil things to do, and diving into them. That is not the premise that I have at all in relating my own vulnerabilities to you. The complete opposite is true concerning that which is going on with me on this issue. I want to > You all now how active I have been in establishing the church, my mind is always on the things, that I still need to do for the kingdom of God, and his church. All of my desires and challenges to myself, are to do the will of God, for his glory alone. My deepest regret in life, is that I am not a superhero, when it comes to doings that which is of Christ glory on earth. Thank God that he is, and he is doing it thru a multiple of people, not just me, or it would never get done. do the good, > So I long to do those things that are of Christ all the time, but it sometimes seems more a fantasy then a reality. Its almost like if I think about doing something good, and that is as far as I get. I somehow convince myself that having just thought about doing good, I’ve done good, without actually doing good, which is a lie I tell to myself over and over again. It’s not the same though, thinking about loving someone and then never acting on it, is only deceitfulness, and living in a fantasy world, where everything turn comes up roses, but only in your dreams. It takes action to do good, not good intentions. but > The problem is that my visions for that which I want to do, are bigger than that which by body is able to submit too, and in the long run, I do the wrong thing, instead of the right thing. It is somewhat like the, "my eye’s are bigger than my stomach - or - you bite of than you can chew", type phrases. Real life, is like that at times, it is just bigger than myself. And that is even more true, when you introduce sin into the picture, that has an inside track, as to my weaknesses. I cannot do it. > Because in the end, I am not able to live as one from another world, whose nature is to do good at all time. While I live in this world, where by nature, I want to do evil and satisfy its desires, at the expense of the spiritual world, which I know only by faith and not by touch. Sometimes, sin is more real to me, than my faith is, even though that is not how I want it to be, it is the truth. Because of that, I in my senses, will go with what I know, for that split second of thinking, open the door as Lot did to sin, and sin ceases the opportunity in me. 7:19 For I do not do > I even make public proclamations of all that I intend to do for Christ, and then fail at many of them. That’s embarrassing, and it also damages my reputation when I say I am going to live for God, but then act like the devil. But it is unfortunately, the truth of who I am in this body. the good I want, > I really want to be a better person then I am, and I even sit around and I have dreams and ambitions about the things I could do for Gods glory and how much enjoyment they would bring to God and myself. So I want you to know that having plans to do good, is not a bad thing, but in the end, if there is no follow thru, then they were meaningless thoughts. but > Because the facts speak for themselves concerning our attitudes and efforts, just as love kept to myself is not love at all. So giving into evil, shows what is our real intention, no matter what we say to ourselves leading up to the events of sin in out life. I do the very evil > In the end, they are just a fantasies, day dreams that I have about being someone I am not. Because in the end, I am spending more time in the practices of evil, to the point that I even schedule evil into my plans, so I am sure to sin as a way of life. They are a matter having bad habits in my life, certain deeds that are of such a repetitive nature in me. That I could commit these sins, without hardly a notice of them at the time I do them, till afterwards, when I realize what I have done. I do not want! > But I really would like to be rid of that bondage and only live for Christ, because that is where I know the truth is, and I am only living a lie some of the time. I know that in the end, Christ will hold me up to do some good things, despite myself. 7:20 Now if I do > So how do I deal with my conscience, in light of this acknowledgement, of the way I live, do I condemn myself for my actions in these things? Is there a self-judgment that I should be applying to myself, or a release form applied to my activities. Both are valid points of view and need to be properly set in our minds. what I do not want, > I mean seeing as it is my body that is doing them, one would think that I need to make up for the wrong that I consciously do, whether intentional or unintentional. That is how man attempts to resolve crime in the courts of law. So one might conclude that, that is also the remedy here for my body also to resolve my sins. The problem with that approach is though, that no amount of good acts in the body, makeup for the wrong that it did. To make restitution, does forgo the crime of sin in the body, so that is no answer, to what you did wrong in your body. The dilemma is still there, even after restitution is made. it is no longer > Here is the right point of view, and what I am saying does not absolve responsibility on the part the sinner. But the truth is, what this body of mine does, is no longer who I am, even if it does right instead of wrong, which is a good thing, it is still only sin in me, as a pretense of doing well. My body of flesh is no better off, for having done something right, a opposed to doing something wrong. It is still headed for the heap pile, head long for the state of sin that it is. me doing it > Because even though I live in this body, it itself is not redeemable to salvation. So this body of mine, as I have already said is a foreign object to me, set for destruction. So I do not try to save this body, only subdue it to the control of Gods Holy Spirit. My flesh has a destiny with God that is opposite that of my Spirit and where my flesh goes, I will not be going with it. but sin > Because you see, my body is evil in every way, permanently disabled by the disease of sin. There is no recourse that I have in this life, that settles out the flesh to be improved or repackaged as a good as new entity, it never will become worthwhile to me or God. that lives in me. > Sin is a living virus that feeds off of my flesh and will only die out upon the death of this body that I dwell in. So it is only my flesh, that is condemned to die, not my Spirit, which has been made perfect in the eyes of God the Father. 7:21 So, I find the law > The law is always confronting me with my sins, it is like it wants to remind me at every corner, that I am a sinner. Incapable of doing true goodness of my own accord, I want to believe that I am capable of at least one decent act, but the law finds fault in everything I do. So the perception that I have come upon for myself is, that the law is binding, in what it produces in me, due to sin. It will not allow me to live the lie, that somehow, I will attain some higher conscious state in this body, with its compliance. It just won’t happen. that when > It plays out in me like this, I imagine what it is that I am going to do, that has at its core, the will to glorify God, in what I am doing in my ministry. I map it all out, gather up all my supplies and immediately head out the door, only to forget where it is I am going, as soon as I step out the door. Then I reestablish my plans, head down the road, only to get lost along the away. Wandering the side-roads-of-life, rather than the highway-of-life, that leads to the Fathers glory thru me. I want to do good, > Even when I want to do things that are right in the eyes of God, every time I do these things, there is a motivation behind them that is not of God. My ability to recognize virtue, is not a proper assessment of who I am, because head knowledge, will always be just that to me in this body. And goodness, is more a figment of my imagination, than it is a present reality in me. Don’t let an occasional good deed that appears from the works of my hand, be an object of your desire. Because somewhere behind it, the flesh of my body, has rendered it a selfish motivation for its own purpose. Not that I am a brow beater in saying all this, I am not, I am though facing the fire of what and who I am, apart from the new living, spiritual body, that represents that which I am right to boast of, due to its glorious origins in Christ. evil is present > Evil is always waiting in the wings for me, lurking and just waiting for me to put down my guard, so that it can assault me once again. It has a say in everything I think do or say, and I am powerless to stop it. It lurks there in the bushes just waiting to take advantage of me and accuse me of sinful desires. Sin is a living breathing entity, that has its residence in my flesh. with me. > So where ever I go it comes with me, whatever I do, it has a say in my actions and a claim to my motivations. It will not be denied its essence as my fundamental nature, to destroy even the very best that I have to offer God. There exist in me, a preoccupation to do evil, against God and the very nature of who he is. I am my Gods enemy in this body, no two ways around it, only my Spirit, has a claim to God, the rest is absent his companionship with me.
7:22 For I delight in the law of God > All of his laws that accuse me, are also righteous, so they prove to me Gods righteousness and my sinfulness. In that, I can take refuge in knowing that God is right at all times, including the provision of my own salvation. His laws also no longer can wound me in my life with him, instead they heal me in this new spiritual body, that loves the law of God, as a member of its own body. in my inner being. > So there is evidence in the law that I can point to, to prove the necessity of my salvation, and that sin is a part of myself. So I don’t have to look to external evidence of my state before God. Because he has made it an internal part of me, so it has become self-evident to everyone, what their state is before God. Your need for salvation, and the power of your salvation, now coexist in that body of yours. Mortal enemies, that they may be in you, you are still your own best evidence, of Christ in you, as the power unto salvation.
> Fortunately, I am not blind to what is going on within me, God has graciously given me the insight, as to what is taking place for the dedication of my souls desires in life. I have a depth perception, that goes beyond the tactile feel of my senses of my body. This new sense that I have, is given to me as new source of comprehension, that is absent the flesh, which has its basis in the Holy Spirit of God, indwelling me as its temple. I now have a look into a thought process, that is not mine, not of this body and not human. It is God, not an angel telling me about God or instruction of him, it is God, being and thinking in me. a different law > There is a way and a reason to sins process, it has a method and a law by which it directs itself, and to itself, it is totally faithful. Unlike my spirits adherence to Gods law, my body is totality subjected to sins law. It is a strange and altered law, from that of Gods law. Instead of seeking right, it seeks wrong and instead adhering to a set of principles based in established criteria. It violates every command of God, even to its own peril, for no apparent reason. in my members > It is at work at all times, to make me its subject and never tires of completing its destructive work in me. Because it lives in my flesh, it is unavoidable to me in all things I do, I have to face the delusion of it in some way or another, everyday, for the rest of my life. Whether I am working with my hands, eye’s, mouth or a thought process, whatever is attached to my physical body, is being infected with the attributes of sin. As I perform in and exercise that which I am attempting, in whatever capacity I am working in, sin is there in the mix with me. waging war > It has a battle plan to destroy me and it engages me in battle all day, every day. It never takes a rest and is always seeking out my weak points, so that it may attack and do me as much harm as possible. There is a premeditation that is a part of it, and I am part of that premeditation, with me as its accomplice, it could do nothing of its own. That is the saddest part of my sin, now that I know Christ, sin would have no reign over me, with out my agreement with it, to act it out. against the law > This is an opposing force to Gods law of righteousness, which is Holy and able to disarm the law of sin. Gods law is an overwhelming force when coming against the law of sin. But man is not able to engage sin in battle, with the law of God directly, only God is able to war against the law of sin, thru us with his law of righteousness. of my mind > So this battle over my thoughts that rages within my soul, is ongoing in me, so long as my flesh is alive. Sin lives and feeds off the flesh of man, so without the flesh of man, sin would die out. Sin is a market place of the flesh, it thrives on the disposing of our flesh. Sin is the waste product of our evil thoughts of our minds, giving birth to sin as its accomplice in our bodies. But also, our new body, now has a new mind, that is at war with our flesh, and it is at odds with our flesh for control of our mind. and making me captive > So I am held as a prisoner in the flesh, though I have been renewed in my Spirit to God for eternity. I must still live out this life in the flesh, as a prisoner of sinful desires. Only finding relief in the joys of my new spiritual body, which is a separate entity for me to live in, with a new and different destiny with God as its center. to the law of sin > This method of sin in my life, has a course it must follow. It is an unchangeable course that it must follow, against the flesh of man. In the end, it must destroy me in this body, it has no repentance of recourse against itself, it must proceed against me at all times. that is > It will win the battle for my flesh, not that, that is of any consequence, God does not want it. It is only in its lie to us, that it is still our life and only existence, that we even care about it. in my members. > Because it lives off of my flesh, it must destroy me to survive, though in the end it will perish because of itself also. It is born of every man that their flesh exist as a consumable fuel sin, to exist for and only in the flesh, to itself. 7:24 Wretched man that I am! > It is as though, I’ve been in a accident and it has left me paralyzed from the neck down to spiritual things. Sure my mind is still working, involving me in who I am, but my body cannot respond to spiritual things. Because there is no more connection between my body and my Spiritual mind. My body for all practical reason, is a lifeless form, to which I am still attached. Yet it still functions as a part of me, keeping me from living only, in the glory of God at all times. Who > I am laying in wait, for all of this to end, I need help and I now it. I now longer wish to bear this burden of life alone, I need more than I am myself. But who can doing anything for me, when everyone on earth, is in the same dire straight’s as I am. In need of someone to pull them, from the certain peril that awaits them. will rescue me > For me to exist with God, someone has to lift me out of bed and wash me and dress me in clean cloths, or I’ll just lay there all day, in my own mess, but who would do such a thing for me. Why would anyone take pity on the town drunk, so to speak, who has given it all up, for a steady date with sin. from this body > That which I am, is in a state that God does not want, my body has no redeeming value and its destiny is not able to be made into something, that has virtue or value before God. of death? > I can never walk upright again and will never know the meaning of, the feeling of spiritual sensations in my hands or feet. My body has died to me and is longer a functional part of my life, with respect to a relationship with God, but I must live with it none the less. 7:25 Thanks be to God > Fortunately for me, God has chosen to lift me from my bed of death and to dress me and clean me. But not just that, he also causes my lifeless body to move and respond under his direction. Even though it will not respond to my own Spirit, God thru his supernatural power, becomes and un-severed spinal cord of spiritual life on my behalf. He causes me to rise up and not just walk, but to labor for his glory, a source of power to life for me, that only he can provide. God has breathed new life, into this lifeless form that I am on earth. So that I do not have to live in the life, that it lives in, but rather I live now in that new spiritual body, that has as its basis, Gods holiness. He is now the source of my gratitude and thankfulness that I live in, as it is him who I await, that make me glad. through Jesus Christ our Lord! > All of which he does thru the good work of his son Christ our Lord. Who became the un-severed cord of spiritual life, that reconnected me to life in the Father, thru Christ, who comes from the Father, to save us and be our body for us. So then, > As a consequence of this action that God took in my life, in that he raised me from this bed of death. Therefore, there is no doubt then, that my body lives in accordance to sin, with all of its passions and desires. But that is not the end of me, because, by extension, Christ has renewed in me, the ability to exist in a world apart from this one, yet in it, at the same time. I myself > I am fully aware of what is now happening to me now, I watch and perceive that which is taking place in my life. But I’m not doing it, my body performs things that I am not able to command it to not do, yet there it is happening before my eyes. I therefore concede to all that which is taking place in me, not only that it has its course in me in areas of sin, but that it is at odds with the God, whom I also now serve. My new mind in me is serving God, which the state that I choose to focus on, not the sin. serve the law of God > I hear what is right before God and I want to be apart of it, I mean, why would I want to stay in this lifeless body, when there is new life, in Gods holiness. Which is revealed thru his laws, that in obedience to Gods law, there is a connection to God himself that is spiritual, in my new spiritual body, which is the law of God. with my mind, > So this I think about doing all the time, yes, it appears to outsiders as a fantasy, because I am spiritually paralyzed from the neck down. But it has become my desire, to run with God with my life and to feel the power of my body racing towards heaven. That is what my mind wills itself to do and that is where my real life exist. Even if it appears to me as though it were in the form of a fantasy that I am having, it is the only real thing that is true. but with my flesh > Yet I am a prisoner of this paralysis, that has hold of my body, it doesn’t matter how much I try to make my flesh, do the Holy things of God. It does not respond to my mind, it simply is just wasting away and I am powerless to come against it. I serve > My body is dedicated to a life of sinful existence and apart from the relief that I receive from Gods sanctifying power in me, I am nothing of any resistance to it. the law of sin. > It is a prisoner of death, awaiting its own execution, it has an existence separate now from my own, obeying the abuses that it brings upon itself. It does one thing, and I will it to do another. It awaits death to destruction and I await its death, to the freedom of my new life, in Christ body. |
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