Scripture Read: Romans 7:21 I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. 22 For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, 23 but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.
Application: Law - νόμος nomos “to allot,” and thus has the sense of “what is proper,” “what is assigned to someone. Paul does not see in his nature two normal modes in which certain forces operate: he sees two authorities saying to him, Do this, and the higher succumbing to the lower. [1]
This is interesting in it’s concept – if I view “law” as what is assigned to someone – this will really help me understand that in the flesh there is absolutely no way to obey God. Why? If the law of the flesh is to obey what is assigned to it – after the fall the new master is sin. Therefore it is natural for my flesh to obey it’s master which now is sin. This is why we fail so many times – we are trying to accomplish – obedience – through a system that cannot operate that way – the flesh is assigned to sin – we must accomplish this through a new law that was placed in us at regeneration. This new law assigns the Spirit of God as the new master and my inner man desires to obey. So the key is to make sure my will yields to the inner man and not the flesh. That can only be accomplished by His grace!
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