Romans 7:14-25 What We Can't Do Ourselves

Paul now shows us the inability of the Law -- what it cannot do.

It can't change us:  "The law cannot transform the old nature; it can only reveal how sinful that old nature is.  The believer who tries to live under law will only activate the old nature; he will not eradicate it," my commentary said.

It can't enable us to do good:  "The believer's mind, will, and body can be controlled either by the old nature or the new nature, either by the flesh or the Spirit ... The believer has two serious problems:  he cannot do the good he wants to do, and he does the evil that he does not want to do ... Paul was saying that of himself he could not obey God's law, and that even when he did, evil was still present with him.  No matter what he did, his deeds were tainted by sin."

It can't set us free:  "The believer has an old nature that wants to keep him in bondage ... Often we try to overcome our old nature with the law, and the law cannot deliver us from the old nature.  When we move under the law, we are only making the old nature stronger ... Instead of being a dynamo that gives us power to overcome, the law is a magnet that draws out of us all kinds of sin and corruption."

"The flesh will never serve the law of God because the flesh is at war with God.  But the Spirit can only obey the law of God.  Therefore, the secret of doing good is to yield to the Holy Spirit."

Father, on my own, I am nothing and I can do nothing good.  I need Your Holy Spirit to direct and guide me.  Keep Him close to me, Father, and cause me to trust and listen.

 

Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford