GRACE UNVEILED: “Death, Raised, Bound, Loosed,” #28 | Jim Hammond
Recap
Pastor Jim continued with his series on the book of Romans entitled, “Grace Unveiled.” His focus was the passage in Romans 7:13–14: “Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin.” Pastor Jim taught on the Apostle Paul’s own personal struggle with trying to live his Christianity with an Old Covenant mindset… how it was impossible to do and something that would only bring about failure. In spite of Paul’s warning, many Christians try to live their Christian lives with an Old Covenant mindset.
Dive Deeper
We left off last week at Romans 7:12 with Paul saying, “Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.”
Pastor Jim says, “Romans chapter 7 is a warning to Christians.”
The Apostle Paul is letting us know of his personal struggles regarding his mindset of being a Christian. He’s explaining how he was a Christian, “present tense,” yet operating out of the Old Covenant.
When Paul talks about the law, he’s referring to the Ten Commandments and the 613 laws of the Old Testament. However, Paul said the law was a good thing: “and the commandment holy and just and good.”
Paul is not bashing the Old Covenant, with its rules and regulations. He’s saying it’s a good thing. What he was actually saying is that the Old Testament law was designed to show Christians their complete and total helplessness without Jesus Christ.
Paul is talking about his own helplessness without Jesus Christ, understanding the gift of New Testament righteousness.
The Greek word for righteousness in the New Testament means justification. It doesn’t mean all the good or bad things you do… or how good you are or how bad you are. Many Christians don’t understand that.
Scriptures such as Romans 5:2, “…through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand” make it very clear that you access this grace (this undeserved favor) where you’re standing. And you’re standing in grace. And to get it, you access it through your belief that God will give it to you.
Many people don’t believe God will give it to them. Most people don’t even bother to ask for it. They think they have to “earn” it.
Grace, however, is unearned. Because you don’t deserve it. It’s favor you don’t deserve. It only comes to you through the cross.
Your focus should be in Jesus Christ dying for your sins and being raised from the dead. It should be receiving grace through faith… through the cross and being established in the gift of New Testament righteousness.
And once again, Greek scholar E.W. Kenyon said that whenever you see the word “righteousness” in the New Testament, all but two times, it means “the ability to stand before God without a sense of guilt or inferiority.”
Through Jesus, you have that. You don’t lose it. It was given to you as a gift. The book of Romans makes it clear that when you are saved, it’s not taken away from you.
Paul is saying, “I tried to do it in my own self-effort and I was helpless operating in and thinking in the Old Covenant (which was just obey, get it perfect, get the rules right and you’ll get blessed).” Paul said, “You’re going to be very disappointed if that’s how you operate your relationship with God.”
Galatians 3:10 says, “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.” If you’re seeking to be justified by obedience to laws and rituals, you’re going to be disappointed.
Galatians is telling Christians if you’re trying to be justified through obedience of the law, you are cursed. You’re doomed to disappointment and destruction. “For it is written in the Scriptures, Cursed (accursed, devoted to destruction, doomed to eternal punishment) be everyone who does not continue to abide (live and remain) by all the precepts and commands written in the Book of the Law and to practice them.”
If you fail to obey even one of these laws, you fail them all!
What you have in the New Covenant is completely different. If you’re a Christian trying to operate under the Old Testament law, you are operating under a curse.
Christians who live their lives like that get disappointed in their walk with God and often walk away from the faith. They walk away from Jesus Christ.
Read About It
Romans 7:12, “Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.”
Romans 5:2, “…through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand”
Galatians 3:10 says, “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.”
Discussion Questions
Paul said, “Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good” (Rom. 7:12). Why would Paul say the law is good?
The Apostle Paul himself struggled with trying to live his Christianity with an Old Covenant mindset. What exactly did he mean by that?