WEBVTT 00:00:13.280 --> 00:00:17.460 I read this last week about a pastor who was 00:00:17.460 --> 00:00:23.280 standing at the door. Romans chapter 7, beginning 00:00:23.280 --> 00:00:26.559 in verse 1, will be our text for today. The subject 00:00:26.559 --> 00:00:35.140 is, free from the law. Do you not know, brethren, 00:00:35.299 --> 00:00:37.679 for I am speaking to those who know the law? 00:00:38.829 --> 00:00:41.750 that the law has jurisdiction over a person as 00:00:41.750 --> 00:00:45.710 long as he lives. For the married woman is bound 00:00:45.710 --> 00:00:48.789 by the law to her husband while he is living. 00:00:49.909 --> 00:00:53.350 But if her husband dies, she is released from 00:00:53.350 --> 00:00:57.350 the law concerning the husband. So then, if, 00:00:57.429 --> 00:01:00.149 while her husband is living, she is joined to 00:01:00.149 --> 00:01:03.390 another man, she shall be called an adulteress. 00:01:04.569 --> 00:01:07.569 But if her husband dies, she is free from the 00:01:07.569 --> 00:01:11.040 law, so that she is not an adulteress, though 00:01:11.040 --> 00:01:15.939 she is joined to another man. Therefore, my brethren, 00:01:16.099 --> 00:01:20.299 you also were made to die to the law through 00:01:20.299 --> 00:01:23.620 the body of Christ, that you might be joined 00:01:23.620 --> 00:01:27.480 to another, to him who was raised from the dead, 00:01:27.659 --> 00:01:32.359 that we might bear fruit for God. For while we 00:01:32.359 --> 00:01:36.040 were in the flesh, the sinful passions which 00:01:36.040 --> 00:01:39.280 were aroused by the law, were at work in the 00:01:39.280 --> 00:01:41.920 members of our body to bear fruit for death. 00:01:42.819 --> 00:01:46.120 But now we have been released from the law, having 00:01:46.120 --> 00:01:50.040 died to that by which we were bound, so that 00:01:50.040 --> 00:01:54.060 we serve in newness of the Spirit, not in oldness 00:01:54.060 --> 00:01:59.359 of the letter. God's righteousness which saves 00:01:59.359 --> 00:02:04.939 us, and we call that justification, is also that 00:02:04.939 --> 00:02:08.479 righteousness which is experienced in our daily 00:02:08.479 --> 00:02:13.060 lives, which we call sanctification. In chapter 00:02:13.060 --> 00:02:15.680 3, verse 21, up through the end of chapter 5, 00:02:15.780 --> 00:02:18.460 the Apostle talks about God's saving righteousness. 00:02:20.520 --> 00:02:23.919 Beginning in chapter 6, on through chapter 8 00:02:23.919 --> 00:02:26.620 then, he is speaking about God's sanctifying 00:02:26.620 --> 00:02:31.580 righteousness. This righteousness God wants us 00:02:31.580 --> 00:02:35.039 to know, both in position and in experience, 00:02:36.400 --> 00:02:40.979 And we can know it because of our union with 00:02:40.979 --> 00:02:46.620 Jesus Christ, chapters 6 and 7, and our being 00:02:46.620 --> 00:02:50.560 indwelt by the Holy Spirit, chapter 8. Let me 00:02:50.560 --> 00:02:54.560 repeat that. God wants us to know and to experience 00:02:54.560 --> 00:02:59.300 His righteousness. We can because of our identity 00:02:59.300 --> 00:03:04.180 or our union with Jesus Christ, chapters 6 and 00:03:04.180 --> 00:03:08.030 7, and our being indwelt by the Holy Spirit, 00:03:08.250 --> 00:03:12.689 chapter 8. Now as Paul preached this message 00:03:12.689 --> 00:03:16.530 of salvation by grace through faith without works, 00:03:16.710 --> 00:03:21.409 and apart from the law, the Jew in particular 00:03:21.409 --> 00:03:26.370 had two problems. These questions came to his 00:03:26.370 --> 00:03:31.689 mind. They heard Paul say, where sin abounds, 00:03:31.710 --> 00:03:37.740 grace is what? Much more abounds. And so they 00:03:37.740 --> 00:03:39.860 logically figured, well, Paul, if you're saying 00:03:39.860 --> 00:03:42.159 if we sin this much that God's grace abounds 00:03:42.159 --> 00:03:46.000 that much, then shouldn't we sin this much so 00:03:46.000 --> 00:03:47.939 that God's grace will be magnified even more? 00:03:49.960 --> 00:03:53.199 That's what chapter 6, verse 1 asks. Shall we 00:03:53.199 --> 00:03:57.719 continue in sin, Paul, that grace may abound? 00:03:58.659 --> 00:04:02.969 And in chapter 6 he answers that question. As 00:04:02.969 --> 00:04:07.770 we come to chapter 7, the apostle deals with 00:04:07.770 --> 00:04:11.949 the second problem that the Jew had. What about 00:04:11.949 --> 00:04:15.110 the law, Paul? Where does it fit in? If you're 00:04:15.110 --> 00:04:17.269 saying we are saved apart from the law, then 00:04:17.269 --> 00:04:21.069 what was its purpose in the first place? Where 00:04:21.069 --> 00:04:23.370 does the law fit into God's plans? And you must 00:04:23.370 --> 00:04:25.350 remember that this was important not only to 00:04:25.350 --> 00:04:28.790 Jew but to Gentile. Because the Roman church 00:04:28.790 --> 00:04:32.699 was made up of both. And the only written revelation 00:04:32.699 --> 00:04:35.800 they had from God at that time was the Old Testament. 00:04:36.500 --> 00:04:38.879 The New Testament was still in the process of 00:04:38.879 --> 00:04:43.259 being written. And so they studied the Old Testament. 00:04:43.560 --> 00:04:46.480 The Jew knew it well. The Gentile who had been 00:04:46.480 --> 00:04:50.060 saved was learning about it. And so the apostle 00:04:50.060 --> 00:04:53.480 now wants them to see that the sanctions of that 00:04:53.480 --> 00:04:55.980 law of the Old Testament were no longer binding 00:04:55.980 --> 00:05:00.689 on their relationship to God. Now let me approach 00:05:00.689 --> 00:05:03.250 the overview of these chapters from a little 00:05:03.250 --> 00:05:06.730 different perspective. In chapter 6, he tells 00:05:06.730 --> 00:05:10.569 us the believer is free from what? From sin. 00:05:11.610 --> 00:05:14.689 In chapter 7, he tells us the believer is free 00:05:14.689 --> 00:05:18.550 from the law. So that's a way to divide these 00:05:18.550 --> 00:05:22.990 two chapters. The subject of chapter 6 is sin. 00:05:23.189 --> 00:05:25.889 For example, look in verse 1, he uses that word. 00:05:26.149 --> 00:05:29.870 Are we to continue in sin? that grace may abound, 00:05:29.889 --> 00:05:33.730 may increase. So sin is the subject of chapter 00:05:33.730 --> 00:05:38.569 6. In chapter 7, verse 1, he uses the keyword 00:05:38.569 --> 00:05:42.990 law. He says, I'm speaking to those who know 00:05:42.990 --> 00:05:48.949 the law. And so sin, the subject of chapter 6. 00:05:49.290 --> 00:05:54.040 Law, the subject of chapter 7. Now there are 00:05:54.040 --> 00:05:56.019 other parallels between the two chapters, and 00:05:56.019 --> 00:05:57.500 let me just go over them briefly, and you're 00:05:57.500 --> 00:06:00.740 going to have to really listen closely. For example, 00:06:00.740 --> 00:06:04.060 look in verse 2 of chapter 6. He says, How shall 00:06:04.060 --> 00:06:09.639 we who what? Died to sin still live in it. And 00:06:09.639 --> 00:06:13.800 so he says we died to sin. In chapter 7, verse 00:06:13.800 --> 00:06:16.819 4, in the text we read, he says that we were 00:06:16.819 --> 00:06:20.459 made to die to the law. So there's a parallel. 00:06:20.699 --> 00:06:23.480 Chapter 6, we died to sin. Chapter 7, we died 00:06:23.480 --> 00:06:26.920 to the law. Again in chapter 6, this time in 00:06:26.920 --> 00:06:31.759 verse 4, he says, we have been resurrected that 00:06:31.759 --> 00:06:35.420 we might walk in newness of life. See that? The 00:06:35.420 --> 00:06:38.319 end of the verse. We ought to walk in newness 00:06:38.319 --> 00:06:42.500 of life. In chapter 7, verse 6, he puts it this 00:06:42.500 --> 00:06:46.980 way. We serve in newness of the Spirit. So he 00:06:46.980 --> 00:06:50.269 talks about a new walk in chapter 6. A new way 00:06:50.269 --> 00:06:55.670 of serving. Chapter 7. In chapter 6, verse 7, 00:06:55.850 --> 00:07:02.910 he says, He who has died is freed from sin. So 00:07:02.910 --> 00:07:07.050 we've died and we are free from sin. In chapter 00:07:07.050 --> 00:07:12.029 7, verse 6, just the reverse, he says we have 00:07:12.029 --> 00:07:14.829 died to the law and therefore we are released 00:07:14.829 --> 00:07:17.759 from it. We are free from the law. So in chapter 00:07:17.759 --> 00:07:20.579 6, we're free from sin. Chapter 7, free from 00:07:20.579 --> 00:07:24.680 the law. And one more parallel, verse 18 of chapter 00:07:24.680 --> 00:07:28.480 6, says that we have been set free from sin. 00:07:29.500 --> 00:07:31.839 Having been freed from sin, you became slaves 00:07:31.839 --> 00:07:36.480 of righteousness. Chapter 7, verse 3, uses that 00:07:36.480 --> 00:07:40.660 same phrase, that we are free from the law, as 00:07:40.660 --> 00:07:43.019 in the illustration that he gives. And again, 00:07:43.060 --> 00:07:46.279 I point out verse 6, released. from the law, 00:07:46.360 --> 00:07:52.040 having died to it. To say it very simply, chapter 00:07:52.040 --> 00:07:57.540 6 tells us how to stop doing bad things. Chapter 00:07:57.540 --> 00:08:02.980 7 tells us how not to do good things. Chapter 00:08:02.980 --> 00:08:06.720 6 tells us how to stop sinning. There are some 00:08:06.720 --> 00:08:08.740 things we are to know, we are to consider them 00:08:08.740 --> 00:08:11.459 to be true, and we are to present ourselves to 00:08:11.459 --> 00:08:16.939 God as His servants. Chapter 7 tells us how we 00:08:16.939 --> 00:08:21.560 are not to do good things. And essentially the 00:08:21.560 --> 00:08:24.420 apostle tells us in this chapter that we are 00:08:24.420 --> 00:08:28.620 neither saved nor are we sanctified by keeping 00:08:28.620 --> 00:08:33.700 the law. When we keep law, we are doing good 00:08:33.700 --> 00:08:38.000 things the wrong way. That's kind of the subject 00:08:38.000 --> 00:08:40.100 we're going to look at this morning. The theme 00:08:40.100 --> 00:08:43.860 for our text today, verses 1 through 6, is found 00:08:43.860 --> 00:08:47.860 back in chapter 14, chapter 6 rather, verse 14, 00:08:48.120 --> 00:08:55.259 where he says, you are not under law. In other 00:08:55.259 --> 00:08:58.000 words, the apostle says, you are not under law 00:08:58.000 --> 00:09:01.799 as a means or a method of acquiring salvation 00:09:01.799 --> 00:09:06.120 or experiencing God's righteousness in your life. 00:09:06.720 --> 00:09:12.389 You are not under law. Now to enforce that truth, 00:09:12.490 --> 00:09:15.250 the apostle first gives us an illustration, verses 00:09:15.250 --> 00:09:20.490 1 through 3. And then he applies it. The illustration, 00:09:20.889 --> 00:09:24.710 very clearly, is marriage, right? He talks about 00:09:24.710 --> 00:09:28.710 marriage in verses 1 through 3. Now how does 00:09:28.710 --> 00:09:33.090 Paul use the illustration of marriage to show 00:09:33.090 --> 00:09:36.490 that we are no longer under law, that we're free 00:09:36.490 --> 00:09:40.450 from it? Well, as we look at the illustration, 00:09:40.750 --> 00:09:45.289 I want you to notice five things about it. I 00:09:45.289 --> 00:09:47.710 think five reasons why he uses this illustration. 00:09:48.350 --> 00:09:52.669 Reason number one, marriage represents a lifelong 00:09:52.669 --> 00:09:58.070 union between two parties. In the marriage vows, 00:09:58.129 --> 00:10:01.330 part of them say, so long as you both shall live. 00:10:01.990 --> 00:10:04.570 These days it's being changed by some to say, 00:10:04.629 --> 00:10:09.240 so long as you both shall love. Which cheapens 00:10:09.240 --> 00:10:12.759 the whole idea of marriage. The vow should say, 00:10:12.860 --> 00:10:15.480 so long as you both shall live. It is a lifelong 00:10:15.480 --> 00:10:18.919 commitment. And that is emphasized in verse 2 00:10:18.919 --> 00:10:22.120 when it says, the woman is bound. That word, 00:10:22.279 --> 00:10:29.000 that verb, means permanently bound. Marriage 00:10:29.000 --> 00:10:31.340 is intended by God to be a lifelong relationship, 00:10:31.700 --> 00:10:37.240 union between two parties. Reason number two 00:10:37.240 --> 00:10:40.519 for the illustration, it is a physical union 00:10:40.519 --> 00:10:47.980 which is broken by a physical cause. In the context 00:10:47.980 --> 00:10:51.980 of the illustration, it's death. He says that 00:10:51.980 --> 00:10:55.860 death breaks the physical union called marriage. 00:10:57.100 --> 00:11:01.480 Now people say, well, what about divorce? What 00:11:01.480 --> 00:11:03.600 about remarriage? Well, that is not Paul's subject 00:11:03.600 --> 00:11:08.840 here. There are those people who take this illustration 00:11:08.840 --> 00:11:12.620 and say, this is God's only law about marriage. 00:11:12.860 --> 00:11:16.360 And that is not true. What he's giving us here 00:11:16.360 --> 00:11:18.639 is the general principle that marriage is to 00:11:18.639 --> 00:11:23.399 be a lifelong relationship. But there are exceptions 00:11:23.399 --> 00:11:27.279 to that. In the beginning, marriage was not just 00:11:27.279 --> 00:11:30.620 to be lifelong, but it was to be a permanent 00:11:30.620 --> 00:11:37.039 thing, wasn't it? There was no death. But sin 00:11:37.039 --> 00:11:40.779 entered the picture. Sin ruined the ideal because 00:11:40.779 --> 00:11:45.200 death came and ended that relationship. Just 00:11:45.200 --> 00:11:49.759 as sin has marred and ruined every other aspect 00:11:49.759 --> 00:11:53.980 of God's creation, it has marred and affected 00:11:53.980 --> 00:11:59.240 marriage as well. In my ministry I teach that 00:11:59.240 --> 00:12:05.179 God does allow divorce. And the reasons are physical. 00:12:07.399 --> 00:12:10.279 It is a physical union. It is broken only by 00:12:10.279 --> 00:12:14.960 a physical cause. God allows divorce on the one 00:12:14.960 --> 00:12:18.899 hand in the case of adultery. Matthew chapter 00:12:18.899 --> 00:12:22.460 19, Jesus says that. Argued as it may be argued, 00:12:22.559 --> 00:12:26.700 and it is argued. That's what he says. And in 00:12:26.700 --> 00:12:29.860 1 Corinthians 7, he indicates that when two people 00:12:29.860 --> 00:12:31.759 are married and one of them becomes a believer 00:12:31.759 --> 00:12:34.779 and the unbeliever deserts, leaves, says, I don't 00:12:34.779 --> 00:12:36.240 want any more of you. You're a different person 00:12:36.240 --> 00:12:40.009 than I married. that that believer is free from 00:12:40.009 --> 00:12:43.190 the law of marriage. Divorce is allowable in 00:12:43.190 --> 00:12:46.409 that case. Beyond that, there is no allowance 00:12:46.409 --> 00:12:50.490 for divorce. The idea of incompatibility is outlawed. 00:12:50.590 --> 00:12:53.529 There is no such thing as that in God's word. 00:12:54.490 --> 00:12:57.370 But for those two specific physical reasons, 00:12:57.450 --> 00:13:00.789 in addition to death, there is an end to the 00:13:00.789 --> 00:13:03.690 marriage union. But in the context of the illustration, 00:13:03.970 --> 00:13:06.220 the apostle... He was simply pointing out the 00:13:06.220 --> 00:13:09.240 general principle that marriage is intended by 00:13:09.240 --> 00:13:14.720 God to be a lifelong relationship. It is broken 00:13:14.720 --> 00:13:20.620 by physical death. In heaven, the marriage relationship 00:13:20.620 --> 00:13:23.899 will not be carried on. Yes, I think we will 00:13:23.899 --> 00:13:26.639 know those who are our spouses, our children, 00:13:26.700 --> 00:13:29.940 aunts, uncles, so on in heaven. We're not going 00:13:29.940 --> 00:13:31.779 to be more ignorant there, surely, than we are 00:13:31.779 --> 00:13:35.200 here. But you see, the relationship there will 00:13:35.200 --> 00:13:37.700 be a different kind of relationship, a different 00:13:37.700 --> 00:13:41.159 basis. Will there be the redeemed, glorified 00:13:41.159 --> 00:13:45.080 children of God? Though we may remember our earthly 00:13:45.080 --> 00:13:50.399 relationships. But physical death breaks the 00:13:50.399 --> 00:13:53.960 union. Reason number three, when death breaks 00:13:53.960 --> 00:13:58.320 the union, it is broken forever. In other words, 00:13:58.360 --> 00:14:03.519 it cannot be rekindled. Once death occurs on 00:14:03.519 --> 00:14:05.980 the part of one of the parties, that marriage 00:14:05.980 --> 00:14:13.000 is ended forever. The one who has died cannot 00:14:13.000 --> 00:14:15.320 be resurrected and brought back so that the marriage 00:14:15.320 --> 00:14:20.320 could continue. Death ends it for good. And then 00:14:20.320 --> 00:14:24.240 reason number four, he uses this illustration 00:14:24.240 --> 00:14:28.350 because when marriage is broken, the possibility 00:14:28.350 --> 00:14:33.090 exists for another union. In the illustration, 00:14:33.389 --> 00:14:36.149 in other words, the survivor, in the case of 00:14:36.149 --> 00:14:39.690 the illustration, the wife, has the right for 00:14:39.690 --> 00:14:43.889 remarriage. Doesn't have to use it, but she can 00:14:43.889 --> 00:14:47.970 be joined in another union. In the Lord, of course, 00:14:48.029 --> 00:14:51.710 if she's a Christian. So when the marriage is 00:14:51.710 --> 00:14:55.070 broken, the possibility exists for a brand new 00:14:55.070 --> 00:14:59.000 union. in the blessing of God. There is no adultery 00:14:59.000 --> 00:15:02.500 involved in that kind of thing. And then in verse, 00:15:02.639 --> 00:15:05.879 in the fifth reason, why he uses this illustration 00:15:05.879 --> 00:15:08.539 is because the purpose of marriage is in part 00:15:08.539 --> 00:15:12.360 propagation. That is, we're to bear fruit. God 00:15:12.360 --> 00:15:16.080 said in the garden that man and woman were to 00:15:16.080 --> 00:15:18.820 replenish the earth, be fruitful, multiply in 00:15:18.820 --> 00:15:21.559 other words. As for the completion of the two, 00:15:21.679 --> 00:15:25.120 yes. But it's for the carrying on of the human 00:15:25.120 --> 00:15:28.000 race there is to be fruit. And I hope you wrote 00:15:28.000 --> 00:15:30.639 those five reasons down as we talk about the 00:15:30.639 --> 00:15:33.340 five reasons why he uses this illustration of 00:15:33.340 --> 00:15:35.720 marriage. Because now we're going to carry it 00:15:35.720 --> 00:15:39.240 over into the application. And I'm going to give 00:15:39.240 --> 00:15:45.039 five corresponding truths dealing with the application 00:15:45.039 --> 00:15:48.620 spiritually that we are free from the law. Truth 00:15:48.620 --> 00:15:53.480 number one. When we were unsaved, or as he says 00:15:53.480 --> 00:15:56.059 in verse 5, in the flesh, and by the way that 00:15:56.059 --> 00:15:57.980 becomes a very important term, you might want 00:15:57.980 --> 00:16:01.779 to underscore that. When we were unsaved in the 00:16:01.779 --> 00:16:05.399 flesh, we were under the law. That is, we were 00:16:05.399 --> 00:16:11.100 married to the law, united to it. It was, spiritually 00:16:11.100 --> 00:16:16.379 speaking, our spouse. Now what did the law do 00:16:16.379 --> 00:16:20.039 for us? What did our marriage partner, spiritually 00:16:20.039 --> 00:16:23.659 speaking, do for us? Three things. Number one, 00:16:23.679 --> 00:16:26.960 it aroused our sinful passions. That's what he 00:16:26.960 --> 00:16:30.480 says in verse 5. When we were in the flesh, the 00:16:30.480 --> 00:16:35.440 sinful passions were aroused by the law. God 00:16:35.440 --> 00:16:38.860 did not give the law to subdue our sinful tendencies. 00:16:39.860 --> 00:16:43.500 In fact, the law was given that transgressions 00:16:43.500 --> 00:16:47.039 might increase, that sin might really be exposed. 00:16:48.080 --> 00:16:54.179 And so our spouse, so to speak, the law, stimulated 00:16:54.179 --> 00:16:57.600 our sin. And we get more into that next week 00:16:57.600 --> 00:17:01.820 in what Paul says in that text. What else did 00:17:01.820 --> 00:17:05.420 the law do for us? Well, it bound us with its 00:17:05.420 --> 00:17:08.440 obligations that we were unable to keep. The 00:17:08.440 --> 00:17:11.000 law is able to express what we should do, but 00:17:11.000 --> 00:17:14.740 it cannot empower us to do it. It holds us down 00:17:14.740 --> 00:17:17.690 and fast. That's what it says in verse 6. That 00:17:17.690 --> 00:17:23.710 we were bound in the law. And the third thing 00:17:23.710 --> 00:17:26.630 the law does for us or did for us before we were 00:17:26.630 --> 00:17:30.910 saved is that it condemned us to death. The law 00:17:30.910 --> 00:17:33.190 said do this and you will live. We couldn't do 00:17:33.190 --> 00:17:36.730 it. Therefore the law says you shall die. That's 00:17:36.730 --> 00:17:39.569 why the apostle in 2 Corinthians 3 .9 calls it 00:17:39.569 --> 00:17:45.250 the ministry unto or of condemnation. In verse 00:17:45.250 --> 00:17:48.529 5 here, he talks about the fact that we bear 00:17:48.529 --> 00:17:52.549 fruit for death because of the law working in 00:17:52.549 --> 00:17:56.829 us. So what did the law do for us? Well, it bound 00:17:56.829 --> 00:18:01.349 us. It held us down with its obligations. It 00:18:01.349 --> 00:18:05.109 aroused our sinful tendencies and caused us to 00:18:05.109 --> 00:18:09.069 be stimulated to sin even more. And it condemned 00:18:09.069 --> 00:18:11.970 us to judgment, to death, eternal separation 00:18:11.970 --> 00:18:17.559 from God. So truth number one is that when we 00:18:17.559 --> 00:18:19.759 were unsaved, we were married to that spouse. 00:18:20.960 --> 00:18:25.599 We were united to it. Truth number two. This 00:18:25.599 --> 00:18:32.519 spiritual union with the law was broken by spiritual 00:18:32.519 --> 00:18:37.319 identification with Christ in his death. We're 00:18:37.319 --> 00:18:39.440 talking now not about a physical union, as in 00:18:39.440 --> 00:18:42.119 the illustration, but about a spiritual union. 00:18:42.890 --> 00:18:45.650 And he tells us that that spiritual union we 00:18:45.650 --> 00:18:50.710 had with the law was broken because we died with 00:18:50.710 --> 00:18:55.450 Christ. Look in verse 4. My brethren, you also 00:18:55.450 --> 00:19:01.349 were made to die to the law. How? Through the 00:19:01.349 --> 00:19:05.190 body of Christ. In other words, when Jesus Christ 00:19:05.190 --> 00:19:09.509 died on the cross, we what? We died with him. 00:19:09.569 --> 00:19:11.750 We've said that before in chapter 6, applying 00:19:11.750 --> 00:19:15.910 it there to sin. He says we died with Christ 00:19:15.910 --> 00:19:18.710 in his body when he died. And when we were saved, 00:19:18.950 --> 00:19:21.509 we were identified with him at that death. And 00:19:21.509 --> 00:19:24.269 that old marriage, that old union to the law 00:19:24.269 --> 00:19:28.849 was severed. It was broken. Actually, in the 00:19:28.849 --> 00:19:31.130 illustration that he gives, we correspond to 00:19:31.130 --> 00:19:34.109 the husband, not to the wife. Because you see, 00:19:34.150 --> 00:19:38.440 the law didn't die. We died. when we were saved. 00:19:40.119 --> 00:19:42.900 Are you following me? This is such important 00:19:42.900 --> 00:19:46.579 truth, and it really takes people who are thinking 00:19:46.579 --> 00:19:49.299 to get it. And it's a little warm in here, and 00:19:49.299 --> 00:19:51.440 you may be tempted to let your mind wander, so 00:19:51.440 --> 00:19:53.099 stick with it here and let the Spirit of God 00:19:53.099 --> 00:19:57.160 speak to you. When you and I were saved, we were 00:19:57.160 --> 00:20:00.799 identified with Jesus Christ and His death. And 00:20:00.799 --> 00:20:03.140 when we died with Christ, that old relationship 00:20:03.140 --> 00:20:08.170 to the law was severed. Truth number three. Once 00:20:08.170 --> 00:20:13.309 broken, that union was forever ended. As he says 00:20:13.309 --> 00:20:18.190 in verse 6, we have been released from the law. 00:20:18.569 --> 00:20:21.730 That is discharged from it, delivered from it. 00:20:22.369 --> 00:20:27.089 It's not that we have become anti -law. It's 00:20:27.089 --> 00:20:29.609 just that now there's no relationship with the 00:20:29.609 --> 00:20:33.690 law that once condemned us. We have nothing to 00:20:33.690 --> 00:20:37.650 do with it. There's no need for it. The law is 00:20:37.650 --> 00:20:42.690 for the unrighteous. Truth number four. A new 00:20:42.690 --> 00:20:46.450 union now exists because of our resurrection 00:20:46.450 --> 00:20:49.269 with Christ. Now this is where the illustration 00:20:49.269 --> 00:20:54.009 that he uses breaks down. Because once a husband 00:20:54.009 --> 00:20:58.950 or a wife dies, they're gone. But when you and 00:20:58.950 --> 00:21:02.049 I died with Jesus Christ, we died to that old 00:21:02.049 --> 00:21:06.109 union with the law. And then we were resurrected 00:21:06.109 --> 00:21:10.970 at the same time. So that we can have a new marriage, 00:21:11.069 --> 00:21:14.849 a new union. And he tells us in verse 4 that 00:21:14.849 --> 00:21:17.130 that union is with Jesus Christ. Look at it. 00:21:17.829 --> 00:21:21.450 You were made to die to the law through the body 00:21:21.450 --> 00:21:25.549 of Christ, that you might be joined to another, 00:21:25.789 --> 00:21:31.000 to him who was raised from the dead. If you are 00:21:31.000 --> 00:21:34.200 saved today, you are united with Jesus Christ. 00:21:34.319 --> 00:21:37.880 You are one with him in his resurrection life. 00:21:38.519 --> 00:21:41.240 And that brings us to truth number five that 00:21:41.240 --> 00:21:44.920 corresponds to the illustration. The purpose 00:21:44.920 --> 00:21:48.400 of our union with Jesus Christ is that we might 00:21:48.400 --> 00:21:52.799 bear fruit for God. Look at verse four. He says, 00:21:52.799 --> 00:21:55.380 you've been joined to him who was raised from 00:21:55.380 --> 00:22:00.289 the dead. Why? that we might bear fruit for God. 00:22:01.869 --> 00:22:04.710 That contrast to what he says in verse 5, where 00:22:04.710 --> 00:22:08.190 he says that we once bore fruit for death. That 00:22:08.190 --> 00:22:11.450 was under the law. But now being married to Jesus 00:22:11.450 --> 00:22:14.230 Christ, the purpose of that is that you and I 00:22:14.230 --> 00:22:16.950 might bear fruit for God. And he talks about 00:22:16.950 --> 00:22:23.049 this further in verse 6 by saying, we have been 00:22:23.049 --> 00:22:26.299 released from the law, having died to that, by 00:22:26.299 --> 00:22:30.359 which we were bound, so that we serve in newness 00:22:30.359 --> 00:22:35.440 of the Spirit. You see, the law was unable to 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:40.160 produce righteousness, but grace working in us 00:22:40.160 --> 00:22:44.539 does produce it. And now we serve God, not in 00:22:44.539 --> 00:22:49.539 the capabilities of our flesh, but in the power 00:22:49.539 --> 00:22:51.720 of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. That's what 00:22:51.720 --> 00:22:54.450 he means here. The word newness there doesn't 00:22:54.450 --> 00:22:58.710 mean new in time. It means new in quality. We 00:22:58.710 --> 00:23:01.529 don't serve God under that which is worn out, 00:23:01.630 --> 00:23:05.029 that is the legal obligations of the law, the 00:23:05.029 --> 00:23:09.750 letter. But we serve God a new way, the new way 00:23:09.750 --> 00:23:15.750 of the Spirit. God does not now give us an external 00:23:15.750 --> 00:23:19.869 code and say to us, live up to that and you'll 00:23:19.869 --> 00:23:23.630 be righteous. But He lives in us. He brings His 00:23:23.630 --> 00:23:26.230 own righteousness to us. The Holy Spirit lives 00:23:26.230 --> 00:23:29.369 in us. And now we serve Him not because of some 00:23:29.369 --> 00:23:34.230 external demands, but rather because of an internal 00:23:34.230 --> 00:23:40.690 power. The power of the Holy Spirit. Now we're 00:23:40.690 --> 00:23:42.269 going to be coming back over some of these things 00:23:42.269 --> 00:23:44.789 because they're kind of deep. And they're hard 00:23:44.789 --> 00:23:47.450 to grasp the first time. I pray God will give 00:23:47.450 --> 00:23:50.069 you spiritual ears to hear it. I want now to 00:23:50.069 --> 00:23:53.529 apply in two or three specific ways what I've 00:23:53.529 --> 00:23:56.289 been talking about. Let's talk about some life 00:23:56.289 --> 00:24:02.529 action. Number one, as you think about this truth 00:24:02.529 --> 00:24:05.690 that you are free from the law, that you are 00:24:05.690 --> 00:24:12.890 no longer under legal obligation to God, as you 00:24:12.890 --> 00:24:16.809 think about that truth, be careful of extremes. 00:24:17.599 --> 00:24:23.720 and seek a balance. There are extremes present 00:24:23.720 --> 00:24:27.740 in fundamentalism and evangelicalism these days, 00:24:27.940 --> 00:24:32.680 and both extremes are unscriptural. On the one 00:24:32.680 --> 00:24:36.539 hand, there is the extreme of license. These 00:24:36.539 --> 00:24:39.339 are those people who say, well, praise God, I'm 00:24:39.339 --> 00:24:41.500 free from the law, now I'm going to do what I 00:24:41.500 --> 00:24:46.140 want to do. I will do as I please. I don't have 00:24:46.140 --> 00:24:48.519 to obey any law anymore. God doesn't care how 00:24:48.519 --> 00:24:52.099 I live. And so they feel that this truth, you 00:24:52.099 --> 00:24:55.339 are no longer under the law, gives them the license 00:24:55.339 --> 00:25:00.500 to do as they will. That's wrong. That's unbalanced. 00:25:00.980 --> 00:25:03.960 And it leads to self -centered living and careless 00:25:03.960 --> 00:25:06.779 and sinful living, which does not please God. 00:25:09.500 --> 00:25:14.380 The other extreme is what we call legalism. And 00:25:14.380 --> 00:25:16.500 this perhaps is more prominent than the first, 00:25:16.640 --> 00:25:20.299 but it says basically, this person would say, 00:25:20.539 --> 00:25:26.079 I must keep rules to please God. And he goes 00:25:26.079 --> 00:25:28.359 a step further and he says, and you must keep 00:25:28.359 --> 00:25:32.740 my rules in order to please God. The legalist 00:25:32.740 --> 00:25:36.799 measures the spirituality of other people by 00:25:36.799 --> 00:25:42.319 a list of do's and don'ts that he creates. The 00:25:42.319 --> 00:25:45.619 legalist judges on the basis of outward appearance 00:25:45.619 --> 00:25:50.599 rather than on the basis of inward realities. 00:25:51.759 --> 00:25:54.619 And I'll tell you what, the legalist eventually 00:25:54.619 --> 00:25:59.400 becomes a hypocrite. And the reason for that 00:25:59.400 --> 00:26:04.140 is that he's unable to live up to the own code 00:26:04.140 --> 00:26:08.480 that he creates. And so he pretends to, he builds 00:26:08.480 --> 00:26:12.099 a shell about him. But he lives a different way. 00:26:12.099 --> 00:26:15.039 He's a hypocrite. And ultimately it can lead 00:26:15.039 --> 00:26:18.039 to a complete collapse. And I can illustrate 00:26:18.039 --> 00:26:20.480 that for you today. A people that I have known 00:26:20.480 --> 00:26:22.940 who were very legalistic in their approach to 00:26:22.940 --> 00:26:25.859 the Christian life and who down the road completely 00:26:25.859 --> 00:26:29.500 gave it up and went the other direction because 00:26:29.500 --> 00:26:35.059 of the dissatisfaction of legalism. Legalism 00:26:35.059 --> 00:26:38.720 leads to a critical, judgmental attitude. based 00:26:38.720 --> 00:26:41.059 upon personal preference, not upon what the Word 00:26:41.059 --> 00:26:45.400 of God says. And so being free from the law doesn't 00:26:45.400 --> 00:26:49.900 mean that I am free to be lawless. But it means 00:26:49.900 --> 00:26:53.220 rather that now God has put in me an inward control, 00:26:53.400 --> 00:26:58.599 so I don't need an outward restraint. God has 00:26:58.599 --> 00:27:05.089 written His law where? Upon my heart. And I want 00:27:05.089 --> 00:27:07.269 to do the right thing. And I am empowered to 00:27:07.269 --> 00:27:09.190 do the right thing because the Holy Spirit is 00:27:09.190 --> 00:27:14.430 in me. I don't always. But I want to. The power 00:27:14.430 --> 00:27:20.450 is there if I will but appropriate it. We do 00:27:20.450 --> 00:27:23.890 not please God when we either live carelessly 00:27:23.890 --> 00:27:27.630 or we live under a set of do's and don'ts that 00:27:27.630 --> 00:27:30.690 are man -made. Now there are times when we voluntarily 00:27:30.690 --> 00:27:36.819 do live under certain rules. We have to live 00:27:36.819 --> 00:27:39.559 under the rules of government. The government 00:27:39.559 --> 00:27:41.579 says you're going to pay a higher Social Security 00:27:41.579 --> 00:27:44.920 tax next year. Can you imagine writing to the 00:27:44.920 --> 00:27:47.220 director of Social Security saying, Sir, you 00:27:47.220 --> 00:27:51.480 are a legalist, and I am free from the law, and 00:27:51.480 --> 00:27:54.940 therefore I refuse to pay that tax. You know 00:27:54.940 --> 00:27:59.259 what will happen? You'll be in trouble. We live 00:27:59.259 --> 00:28:01.400 in a society in which we must keep the laws. 00:28:01.619 --> 00:28:04.339 We voluntarily submit ourselves to the laws of 00:28:04.339 --> 00:28:09.259 government for the glory of God. You go to college, 00:28:09.400 --> 00:28:11.339 your college may have certain rules. They may 00:28:11.339 --> 00:28:15.519 tell you when to be in. They may tell you the 00:28:15.519 --> 00:28:17.380 kind of clothing you can wear, the places you 00:28:17.380 --> 00:28:20.960 can go or you can't go. You're going to go to 00:28:20.960 --> 00:28:22.579 your dean of students and say, you know, dean, 00:28:22.740 --> 00:28:25.579 you're a legalist, and I am free from the law. 00:28:26.319 --> 00:28:29.029 Take your rules and shove them. I'm going to 00:28:29.029 --> 00:28:32.150 live the way I want to do. You know what's going 00:28:32.150 --> 00:28:33.809 to happen? He's going to shove you right out 00:28:33.809 --> 00:28:37.950 of school. You know why that is? Because you 00:28:37.950 --> 00:28:40.390 have voluntarily chosen to go to that college 00:28:40.390 --> 00:28:42.269 and to live under their rules, which they've 00:28:42.269 --> 00:28:44.829 established for good reasons. And for the glory 00:28:44.829 --> 00:28:50.329 of God, you should do that. Comply to the home. 00:28:51.970 --> 00:28:53.869 You say, my folks aren't going to tell me when 00:28:53.869 --> 00:28:57.559 I have to be in. I'm free from the law. I'm a 00:28:57.559 --> 00:29:01.759 Christian, and my parents are legalists. They 00:29:01.759 --> 00:29:06.180 have rules. We see once again, parents have the 00:29:06.180 --> 00:29:08.279 right to set rules. And for the glory of God, 00:29:08.319 --> 00:29:11.079 we voluntarily submit to those rules. Sometimes 00:29:11.079 --> 00:29:14.799 churches have rules, too. And we need to voluntarily 00:29:14.799 --> 00:29:20.099 submit to those rules. I know of one church in, 00:29:20.160 --> 00:29:24.160 well, I won't even name the city, where... It 00:29:24.160 --> 00:29:26.920 is unlawful for people to wear wire -rimmed glasses 00:29:26.920 --> 00:29:33.119 because that is unspiritual. You say, where do 00:29:33.119 --> 00:29:34.940 they get that? Where are they coming from? Well, 00:29:34.960 --> 00:29:36.579 I think they're coming off the wall, frankly. 00:29:37.460 --> 00:29:44.059 But that's what they say, see? If a person goes 00:29:44.059 --> 00:29:46.500 to that church, he better wear plastic glasses, 00:29:46.700 --> 00:29:51.180 I suppose. There are times where I'm saying is 00:29:51.180 --> 00:29:52.920 that we need to voluntarily live under rules. 00:29:53.559 --> 00:29:55.920 It's not that we're without rules. In fact, the 00:29:55.920 --> 00:29:57.779 apostle says, though I am not under the law, 00:29:57.839 --> 00:30:00.799 I am still under the law of Christ. 1 Corinthians 00:30:00.799 --> 00:30:04.559 9. But the blessed truth is, as far as the Old 00:30:04.559 --> 00:30:08.720 Testament obligations and the whole mental framework 00:30:08.720 --> 00:30:11.339 of trying to please God by living up to certain 00:30:11.339 --> 00:30:14.660 rules that are man -made, all of that is bunked. 00:30:17.680 --> 00:30:20.900 And we begin to understand that we are free from 00:30:20.900 --> 00:30:25.480 the law. But be careful of extremes and seek 00:30:25.480 --> 00:30:28.859 a balance in that, will you? Immaturity goes 00:30:28.859 --> 00:30:35.259 to extremes. Maturity finds the balance. Second 00:30:35.259 --> 00:30:40.619 application. Be willing to place yourself under 00:30:40.619 --> 00:30:43.880 law if the situation demands it so that you may 00:30:43.880 --> 00:30:47.839 witness effectively. In other words, be willing 00:30:47.839 --> 00:30:51.099 to give up your rights if necessary so that you 00:30:51.099 --> 00:30:54.880 can be an effective witness. That was Paul's 00:30:54.880 --> 00:30:56.960 attitude when he wrote what he did in 1 Corinthians 00:30:56.960 --> 00:30:59.720 9, verses 19 to 23. We don't have time to look 00:30:59.720 --> 00:31:03.180 at it today. Paul says there, when I am with 00:31:03.180 --> 00:31:05.579 those who are without law, then I live that way. 00:31:05.619 --> 00:31:07.299 When I'm with those who are under the law, then 00:31:07.299 --> 00:31:12.960 I submit myself to the law so that I can effectively 00:31:12.960 --> 00:31:16.380 minister to them. And he practiced that. In Acts 00:31:16.380 --> 00:31:18.400 21, when he went back to Jerusalem, you remember 00:31:18.400 --> 00:31:21.740 after his third missionary journey, There was 00:31:21.740 --> 00:31:24.039 the rumor going around that Paul was anti -Moses. 00:31:24.579 --> 00:31:28.500 He was anti -law. And it was harming his ministry 00:31:28.500 --> 00:31:32.180 among the Jews. And so Paul chose to go to the 00:31:32.180 --> 00:31:35.799 temple and to pay for the vows of some men who 00:31:35.799 --> 00:31:38.240 were believers who had taken a certain Jewish 00:31:38.240 --> 00:31:42.660 vow, the Nazarite vow. And when Paul did that, 00:31:42.680 --> 00:31:44.660 was he contradicting himself when he preached 00:31:44.660 --> 00:31:48.279 in other places free from the law? No. But so 00:31:48.279 --> 00:31:50.400 that he might minister to the Jews, he was willing 00:31:50.400 --> 00:31:56.660 to submit himself to the law in that case. Not 00:31:56.660 --> 00:32:00.579 compromising his convictions. Sometimes there 00:32:00.579 --> 00:32:04.579 are rights or freedoms that we grasp tightly 00:32:04.579 --> 00:32:08.059 to and we say, I will not do this or I will not 00:32:08.059 --> 00:32:11.240 do that. I don't care what. And maybe in that 00:32:11.240 --> 00:32:13.559 very area where God is saying, look, are you 00:32:13.559 --> 00:32:17.210 willing to submit your rights? that you might 00:32:17.210 --> 00:32:19.289 minister effectively. Let me just kind of give 00:32:19.289 --> 00:32:23.569 you an illustration of this. Last September, 00:32:23.650 --> 00:32:26.250 I was invited to preach in a church in Ohio, 00:32:26.549 --> 00:32:32.109 a very fine church, a growing church, ministering 00:32:32.109 --> 00:32:35.789 effectively, I believe. But in that church, they 00:32:35.789 --> 00:32:37.890 believe the King James Version is the one that 00:32:37.890 --> 00:32:41.970 the Apostle Paul wrote. And to use another version, 00:32:42.490 --> 00:32:45.069 in their church would be akin to committing the 00:32:45.069 --> 00:32:47.910 unpardonable sin, probably. I'm exaggerating 00:32:47.910 --> 00:32:52.470 a little there, but not much. When I went there 00:32:52.470 --> 00:32:54.309 to preach, I was preaching out of the New International 00:32:54.309 --> 00:32:57.750 Version here in this church. And you know what 00:32:57.750 --> 00:33:00.769 I was tempted to do? To march to the pulpit down 00:33:00.769 --> 00:33:02.930 there with the NIV and teach those people a thing 00:33:02.930 --> 00:33:06.849 or two about Christian freedom. There was nothing 00:33:06.849 --> 00:33:10.670 wrong with that translation, the NIV. And it's 00:33:10.670 --> 00:33:13.069 not sinful to preach out of a different version. 00:33:13.430 --> 00:33:15.130 And I'd tell them a thing or two about the king. 00:33:15.730 --> 00:33:17.490 And you know what the Spirit of God said to me? 00:33:18.089 --> 00:33:19.809 He said, Galen, if you're going to minister to 00:33:19.809 --> 00:33:21.369 those people, don't get in a fight with them. 00:33:25.029 --> 00:33:27.369 You take your New Schofield Bible down here and 00:33:27.369 --> 00:33:29.609 preach out of the King James Version. And that's 00:33:29.609 --> 00:33:33.549 what I did. Now, did I compromise? I don't think 00:33:33.549 --> 00:33:37.369 so. I don't agree with them and their position 00:33:37.369 --> 00:33:40.339 on the King James Version. But I'm willing to 00:33:40.339 --> 00:33:42.019 preach out of the King James Version if that's 00:33:42.019 --> 00:33:44.279 where they are, because I want to minister effectively 00:33:44.279 --> 00:33:47.920 to those people. How can you apply that to your 00:33:47.920 --> 00:33:52.980 life? What rights is God telling you today you 00:33:52.980 --> 00:33:54.759 need to give up in order to be a more effective 00:33:54.759 --> 00:34:00.059 Christian? Where are you off balance in your 00:34:00.059 --> 00:34:03.200 Christian life? Where are you reacting rather 00:34:03.200 --> 00:34:07.480 than being spiritual and balanced and mature? 00:34:10.280 --> 00:34:12.599 Finally, I would say, be sure that you're a genuine 00:34:12.599 --> 00:34:16.159 Christian. And I emphasize this because, folks, 00:34:16.179 --> 00:34:21.699 I am alarmed. I'm alarmed in our day that being 00:34:21.699 --> 00:34:25.840 born again has become so popular that there are 00:34:25.840 --> 00:34:27.760 people who think they are born again who are 00:34:27.760 --> 00:34:37.190 not. There are people who think that by... Doing 00:34:37.190 --> 00:34:40.889 good things or law keeping, if you please, they're 00:34:40.889 --> 00:34:44.170 going to be acceptable to God. My friend, a real 00:34:44.170 --> 00:34:46.210 Christian is one who's had a radical change. 00:34:46.389 --> 00:34:50.130 He's died. He's been resurrected. He has a new 00:34:50.130 --> 00:34:53.670 relationship to God based on grace, not doing 00:34:53.670 --> 00:34:57.110 good things. He has a new purpose to bear fruit 00:34:57.110 --> 00:34:59.489 for God. He has a new power within him, the power 00:34:59.489 --> 00:35:05.159 of the Holy Spirit. Is that you? Or are you somehow 00:35:05.159 --> 00:35:08.139 still thinking that by doing good things or keeping 00:35:08.139 --> 00:35:12.500 the law, you're going to earn your way to God? 00:35:13.960 --> 00:35:17.579 We are not saved, nor are we sanctified by the 00:35:17.579 --> 00:35:22.619 law. You are not under the law. Are you saved? 00:35:22.840 --> 00:35:26.000 Are you a Christian? Do you have that confidence 00:35:26.000 --> 00:35:30.780 with Him? Father in Heaven, I pray that you'll 00:35:30.780 --> 00:35:33.219 make the application of this truth to our lives 00:35:33.219 --> 00:35:37.139 as you see the needs. And I pray that we may 00:35:37.139 --> 00:35:40.860 begin to understand in a mature, balanced way 00:35:40.860 --> 00:35:44.139 what it means in your word when it says you are 00:35:44.139 --> 00:35:48.079 no longer under the law. There are some of my 00:35:48.079 --> 00:35:49.960 brothers and sisters here who have struggled 00:35:49.960 --> 00:35:55.389 for years under legalism. They've been discouraged 00:35:55.389 --> 00:35:57.409 because they haven't been able to live up to 00:35:57.409 --> 00:36:01.849 the rules that men have set for them. I pray 00:36:01.849 --> 00:36:03.969 that they may understand that their only law 00:36:03.969 --> 00:36:08.289 is the law of Jesus Christ. And it's a law that 00:36:08.289 --> 00:36:11.969 you've written into their hearts. Free them, 00:36:11.989 --> 00:36:16.570 I pray, from the discouragement and the obligation 00:36:16.570 --> 00:36:22.409 of rule keeping. And free others, I pray, from 00:36:22.409 --> 00:36:26.420 the equal mistake of living carelessly in sin, 00:36:26.599 --> 00:36:29.679 thinking that it makes no difference how we live. 00:36:33.239 --> 00:36:35.380 Help us to respond to you, Lord, this morning 00:36:35.380 --> 00:36:37.380 as we ought to. In Jesus' name, amen.