Sermon 18

The Role Of The Law

Romans 7:7-13

Romans 7 is about the Law. In fact, the word law is found 23 times in the 25 verses this chapter. In Romans 6, Paul answered the libertines who wondered if grace was an excuse for sin.

Romans 7 speaks to the other extreme, legalism. Last time we learned that we are dead to the law and married to Christ. (7:1-6). Now someone is sure to ask, "What does that do to the law? Does the law have no purpose, no role, no ministry? Has grace made the law to be evil?" In our text for today, Romans 7:7-13, Paul asks, answers, and explains the role of the law.

The Question, v. 7a.

"What shall we say then - Is the law sin?"

Does grace somehow make the law evil? Does grace turn keeping the law into a sin? Does grace give the law no ministry or role?

The Answer, v. 7b.

"God forbid!"

This seems to be one of the apostle's favorite phrases. It is a very strong response, a very emphatic statement, the strongest possible negative response in the Greek language. "May it never be!" The very suggestion that the law is rendered useless and sinful is impermissible and impossible.

The Explanation, vs. 7c-13.

The remainder of this passage gives and explanation of the role and ministry of the law. Paul has already said what the law cannot do. It cannot save (Romans 3:20) and it cannot make us holy (Romans 6:14-15). What then can the law do for us? What is its role? The explanation is here. Admittedly, this is a difficult passage to understand. But, Paul tells us in these verses 4 purposes which the law fulfills.

The Law Identifies Sin, v. 7c. "For I had not known sin but by the law". The law reveals our sin which otherwise, apart from the law we might not know. The law of God is like a mirror (James 1:22-25). We look into it and we see ourselves ... we see our sinful selves.

Have you ever had a little black speck of food between your teeth and you didn't know about it being there until you looked in the mirror and saw it? That's embarrassing isn't it? It was there all along and others saw it, but you didn't know about it until you looked into a mirror. The mirror didn't cause the problem, the mirror revealed the problem. That's what God's law does. It reveals our sin to us.

Paul personally illustrates this. "For I had not known lust except the had said, 'Thou shalt not covet'." Of the 10 commandments, Paul purposely chooses the one commandment that does not forbid an external action but an internal attitude. The 10th commandment, "Thou shalt not covet" (Exodus20:17). Paul is saying, "I wouldn't have known that lust, that desiring something which is not yours to have, that coveting is sinful if it had not been for the law to forbid it. I can relate to Paul. Every time that I've read through Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy, I have learned new things that God clearly forbade under the Law. Once, one of the children in Children's church asked about tattoos. Richard Russell came to me and asked if I knew where the Bible gave a commandment about marking your body. I didn't. He found it in the concordance and showed it to me, Leviticus 19:28. After reading the verse, it was clear to me that under the law, tattooing would have been forbidden by God. The law reveals sin.

The Law Reveals Sin, v. 8. Again I say, these verses are not easy to understand. Please understand, though, that the villain here is sin, not the law (F.F.Bruce). This verse indicates that sin, at times, lies dormant within us. (8b - For without (apart from) the law sin was dead). However, the law arouses sin.

I Corinthians 15:56 - "The strength of sin is the law." The law aroused sin within Paul, v. 8a. There is something about being forbidden that makes our vile human nature want to sin. The law arouses dormant sin within our human nature. The law reveals our sinful nature. If you want to show someone that they are a sinner, preach the law. That's the way preaching during the Puritan days was done. First, they preached the law and in doing that revealed to the hearer that he is a sinner, condemned by the God. Then they preached grace, God's pardon and forgiveness for their sin. Much modern preaching does not start with the law. In fact, preach on sin and judgment and you will be made fun of as a "hell, fire, and brimstone" preacher. The modern message sounds like this, "Feel bad? Jesus will make you feel better!" What is omitted from the message is the law, sin, and judgment. The law reveals sin. The law arouses sin, revealing our sinful nature.

The Law Slays The Sinner, vs. 9-11. The law devastates the sinner. There was a point in Paul's life when he was "doing fine." He was content with his self-righteous life. He compared himself with others and measured up really well. But when he was exposed to the convicting power of the law, he died, in that, everything he had hoped in was shattered. He lost his sense of security and self-satisfaction. In the famous Christian allegory "Pilgrims Progress" there is a scene where John Bunyon shows how the law aggravates the sinner. The main character, Christian, is taken into a large room which clearly represents the heart. The room is full of dust, symbolizing sin. When a man with a broom , representing the law, begins to sweep the room, he stirs up so much dust that the pilgrim almost suffocates. The law does that.

The law was ordained to produce a blessed life of godliness with contentment (Proverbs 3:1-2). However, it cannot accomplish that purpose in an unsaved person. If you are a Christian and obey God in the power of the Spirit, God will bless and prosper your life. But, if you are not a Christian, God's law confronts you and shows you how evil you are and it will make you miserable. Thus, God's law slays the sinner.

The Law Reflects The Sinfulness Of Sin, vs. 12-13. Verses 12-13a, shows us the character of the law. It is holy, just, and good. There is nothing wrong with the law. If the law reveals sin, it isn't the law which is at fault. If a man is convicted of murder and sentenced to the death penalty, do you blame the law for his death? No. He wasn't guilty because of the law, he was guilty because of his murder.

Verse 13 indicates the character of sin. Sin is exceeding sinful. It is not merely a mistake, or simply a slip, actually an accident, or just a weakness. It's not just "falling shorts." Sin is exceedingly sinful. Sin brings death. And sin's true character is exposed by the law. To break one of God's laws, is not like breaking on spoke on a bicycle and then go on riding. To break the law of God is like breaking a pane of glass. The whole pane is ruined and shattered. James says that if you break one law you have broken the whole thing.

Though we are not under the law, though we are free from the law, Paul shows us that the law of God still has an important role to play. It identifies sin, it arouses sin within us and reveals our sinful nature, it smites and slays us with conviction, and it reflects the sinfulness of sin. It is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ (Galatians 3).