Romans 7 - 2.14.23

Scripture

Romans 7:6 But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.

Observation

Before Jesus, we were bound by the law, but it was a standard we could never attain. And so, we were separated from God by our sin – our inability to follow the law. Jesus came to free us. When we accept him, we have a new spirit. We are no longer slaves to the letter to of the law, but instead we become slaves to our desire to serve him, empowered not by our own strength, but by the strength of the Holy Spirit.

Understanding

In chapter 7, Paul makes it very clear that the law is not wrong. Jesus did not come to give us license to do whatever we want to do. But following the law should not be our motivation, following Jesus should be our motivation.

In Matthew 22:36-40, when asked what law is the greatest, Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

If we focus our all on following Jesus and loving others, we will far exceed the requirements of the law.

Life Application

Many times, we tend to beat ourselves up when we fail, or worse yet, give up on even trying to do what’s right. This is wrong. When we react this way, we are focusing on ourselves instead of focusing on God. When I fail, my response should not be, “What is wrong with you Debbie? Why do you continue to fail? Why can’t you get it right?” Instead, my response should be, “I love you Jesus. Show me how to follow and become more and more like you.”

- Debbie Dunn