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OLD WAYS WON'T WORK
Romans 7:14-24
Romans 7 is traditionally
understood in a purely
psychological context, but
real issue is the superceding of Old
Testament Torah-based
covenant versus New Testament Jesus-and-Spirit
covenant living.
Complicated sermon, but enthusiastically rated by
those who like studying the Bible.
I. Inner gremlins.
A. "Y2K" problem.
1) Embedded chips will fail
without warning.
2) Power plants, banks. (Christians stockpiling ammo...)
B. People problem.
1) Something wrong inside us.
2) How messed up are you?
3) What difference can your faith
make?
II. A hidden influence on our world.
A. Romans 7 has
shaped western culture.
1) Augustine's conversion in
400's.
a) "Make me pure - but not yet,
not yet."
2) Luther's conversion in 1500's.
a) From frustrated monk to
fiery Protestant, saved by grace.
3) Modern psychology.
a) Tension between our
conscious and subconscious.
b) Individual's torment that
we are not what we want to be.
c) Americans especially are
always trying to improve
themselves.
B. "Miserable sinner"
theology came out of it.
1) A Lutheran Confession of Sin
reads:
I, poor sinful man, confess to
God, the Almighty, my
Creator and Redeemer, that
I not only have sinned
in thoughts, words and
deeds,
but also was conceived and
born in sin, and so all my
nature and being is
deserving of punishment and
condemnation
before His righteousness.
Therefore I flee to His
gratuitous mercy and seek and
beseech
His grace.
Lord, be merciful to me, a
miserable sinner.
2) Guilt, for what you've done
and HAVEN'T done, are big in
churches.
C. Passage has a long history.
1) Men dealt with it in last
Monday's Bible study.
2) In studying for this sermon, I
came to a surprise.
III. History of
interpretation.
A. Five options.
1) Paul as Non-Christian.
a) The "I" is Paul
as a non-Christian viewed from his later
Christian perspective.
2) Paul as Everyman under Adam's
system.
a) The "I" refers
to Adam, or to humanity in Adam, with
Genesis 3 being the
background.
3) Paul as Everyman under Law's
(Jewish) system.
a) The "I" is the
representative experience of all,
Christian or
non-Christian, who try to live under law.
b) (In other words, trying to
be righteous and holy by our
own
efforts).
4) Paul as an immature Christian.
a) The "I" refers
to Paul in the years immediately following
his conversion when he
still tried to live under the
Law before learning to
live by the Spirit.
b) This is often called
"the victorious Christian life" view).
5) Paul as normal Christian.
a) The "I" is
representative of Paul and any normal
Christian who is simultaneously
justified, yet still
a sinner and struggling
with the normal tension
between
living in two ages at the same time.
b) Most popular view in
modern Christendom.
Luther described it this
way:
A Christian is at the
same time a sinner and a saint;
he
is at once bad and good.
For in our own person we
are in sin, and in our own
name
we are sinners.
But Christ brings us
another name in which there is
forgiveness of sin,
so that for His sake our sin is
forgiven
and done away.
Both then are true.
There are sins - and yet
there are no sins...
you stand there for
God not in your name but in
Christ's name;
you clothe yourself
with grace and righteousness
although in your
own eyes and in your own person,
you are a miserable sinner.
IV. A new way to view the struggle.
A. Non-Christians are not in view.
1) "Law" must be law of
Moses, not natural law.
a) Torah, not general Roman
law, in view because 7:2-3
was
a debated point among Jews.
1> Torah says death
immediately severs marriage.
2> Roman law says one
year must go by to get estate.
3> Rom 7:4-6 clearly
points to Mosaic covenant.
2) How could 7:21-22
describe inner motivation of non-Christians?
B. Christians are not in view.
1) Are Christians really in
slavery to sin?
a) Romans 6 says we are freed from sin's bondage.
b)
Romans 8 states it even more forcefully.
2) Is Paul schizophrenic?
a) Can chapter 7 contradict
chapter 6 and 8?
C. Pious, believing Jews are the
focus.
1) They are committed to the old
covenant of Moses.
2) Sin's bondage not broken until
sacrifice of Jesus.
a) Obeying Law doesn't break
pull of sin.
b) And if it doesn't work for
them, they shouldn't try to
push
this system on the Gentile believers.
V. Revolution in Pauline theology.
A. A new view of first century Jews.
1) They were not entirely
legalistic.
a) They realized they needed
God's help.
b) Paul himself was
essentially satisfied with his
Jewish life.
1> Faultless. Phil 3:6
2> Advanced, and
zealous. Gal 1:14
2) They were group oriented
rather than individualistic.
B. A new view of the Roman church.
1) Tension between Gentile and
Jewish Christians just as
strong
as that between all Christians and pagans.
2) The "good news" of
Jesus intersects both cultures and yet
unites
these diverse races into one people of God.
3) The date of the writing of
Romans is significant.
a) Church in Rome began at Pentecost, when Roman Jews
at
Jerusalem
were converted by Peter, then went home.
1> They became Jews
who believed in Jesus as Messiah.
2> What do Christians
need to be holy? Torah.
b) Due to rioting, Emperor
Claudius expelled Jews from
Rome for 5 years. Acts 18:2
1> Pagan Roman
historian Suetonius says the rioting was
instigated
by "Chrestus" - agitation over Christ?
2> Since Jewish
Christians also had to leave, Gentile
believers
took over church.
A> Paul mentions
them meeting in homes of wealthy
Gentiles at end
of Romans. (16:3-16)
c) When Jews were allowed
back, may have felt pushed out.
1> Sunday vs. Saturday
worship, etc.
2> Conservative Jewish
believers may have refused to
set
foot in a Gentile house.
C. Paul sided with the Gentiles.
1) Torah doesn't make us holy.
2) Only spiritual dependence on
Jesus can do this.
a) We have a new system now.
b) Jesus breaks the power of
sin.
VI. How broken is sin's power for you?
A. Christians disappoint every day.
1) Some fall into major sin.
2) Others show little joy or love
of a Christian.
3) Is Christianity a sham?
B. A tension remains in the Christian
life.
1) We remain sinners.
2) But we can be Spirit-led
people.
VII. The new way with Jesus
A. Our struggle is not essentially
against specific sins or habits.
1) (Paul talks here not of sins
but of sin)
2) Don't get trapped by guilt of
failure.
3) We are wrestling with a warped
nature.
B. Human nature is not essentially
good. (see 7:18)
1) But when we come to Jesus, a
revolution takes place.
2) Become saints who sin, more
than miserable sinners.
C. Legal or religious codes cannot
make us holy.
1) Favored by 1st-cent. Judaism
and 20th-cent. Fundamentalism.
2) Fulfills human need for
boundaries and attainable goals.
3) Leads to hypocrisy and inner
turmoil?
D. Wanting to do what's right doesn't
make us able to do right.
1) But Jesus can help us be
moral.
2) Example of missionaries in
Mongolia.
Exciting growth where
church had never been before.
Moral problems cropped up.
Westerners hit them
over head with Bible?
Instead they had church
explore Bible, pray to Jesus,
and
decide how to handle it on their own.
Result was a vibrant,
mature church where holiness
is taken
seriously.
3) Spirit mindset.
a) Seek presence of Jesus
throughout your day.
b) Cultivate fruit of Spirit
- love, joy, peace, patience...
c) (Examples of gospel's
ability to change people.)
SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS
USED IN THIS LESSON:
"'Sinners' Who Are Forgiven Or
'Saints' Who Sin?" in Bibliotheca
Sacra, Vol. 152, Theological Journal
Library (Galaxie Software),
by Robert L. Saucy, Professor Of
Systematic Theology, #608,
October 1995, page 400.
"Insights From Postmodernism's
Emphasis On Interpretive Communities
In The Interpretation Of Romans 7,"
by Walt Russell, Associate
Professor Of New Testament At Talbot School Of Theology,
Journal Of The Evangelical Theological
Society, #374,
Theological Journal Library (Galaxie Software), December 1994,
pages 511-527.
Assorted notes from
articles:
I. Jewish-Christian tension is at core.
A. Paul's focus is not justification
by faith alone, but
the conversion of Gentiles and
how they would relate to
Jewish believers within the
church.
B. Understood by a few ancient
commentators.
C. As Jewish-oriented Christians
quickly lost influence (few
believed after devastating
Jewish revolts), this
interpretation
disappeared.
D. Paul's message was then re-shaped
by Gentiles.
II. Paul's relation with
the Jewish believers.
A. Jews thought Gentiles needed them
to understand Torah.
1) But Paul says gospel (not
Torah) is power of God.
2) He levels ground by
emphasizing doing the Law, not
just
possessing.
3) He asserted that by works of
the Law no one can be
justified.
4) Law brings wrath and increases
sin.
5) His most disturbing point: sin
was master over his
readers when they were
under Torah, but the mastery
is
broken now that they are under gospel.
6:14
B. Romans 7 clarifies role Torah
plays in restraining God's
people
from sinning.
1) Jews had ready answer to
question in 6:1 - Torah.
2) How we know Paul is addressing
Jews in chapter 7:
a) They are brothers who know
the Law. 7:1
3) His main point: Christians are
in a new covenant and
the
old one - Torah - is no longer our guide.
III. Law orientation vs.
Jesus/Grace orientation.
A. Law tells about God but gives no
personal power over sin.
B. Only Jesus gives such power.
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