Warfare Within
Series: MADE NEW
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 19th June 2022
Passage: Romans 7:7-25
00:00:00 --> 00:00:09 If you've just joined us, we are working our way through the New Testament book of Romans.
00:00:09 --> 00:00:14 Romans, as I said right at the beginning, is one of the most powerful and influential
00:00:14 --> 00:00:15 pieces of literature ever written.
00:00:16 --> 00:00:24 It has been the force behind some of the most significant transformations in society, in
00:00:24 --> 00:00:26 all of history, in fact.
00:00:26 --> 00:00:31 And it's my hope as we journey through this book that we would experience something of
00:00:31 --> 00:00:35 that deep and radical change in our own lives as we journey through it.
00:00:36 --> 00:00:41 The story of Romans so far, as we have been going through over these number of weeks, is
00:00:41 --> 00:00:49 that though we deserve God's judgment, we can in fact be right with our creator God because
00:00:49 --> 00:00:56 Jesus Christ himself, God the Son, bore God's right anger for our sin in our place.
00:00:57 --> 00:01:04 True faith is trusting in God's promises in Jesus Christ and all that Jesus has achieved
00:01:04 --> 00:01:05 on our behalf.
00:01:05 --> 00:01:12 Being made right with God, just justified by Jesus Christ means that therefore that we enjoy
00:01:12 --> 00:01:18 peace with God, peace with God, access to God and even in the midst of hardship and suffering
00:01:18 --> 00:01:21 in this world, a real sense of contentment and joy.
00:01:23 --> 00:01:33 This is all because of Jesus Christ, our representative, that he himself has obeyed God's requirements
00:01:33 --> 00:01:35 on our behalf.
00:01:36 --> 00:01:38 He's done and achieved what we could not achieve.
00:01:38 --> 00:01:43 And crucially, we don't obey God to be made right with God.
00:01:44 --> 00:01:46 That's not how we get right with God.
00:01:46 --> 00:01:47 Religion does not help you.
00:01:48 --> 00:01:54 But because of who we are, it's because of who we are in Jesus and what he's achieved for
00:01:54 --> 00:01:54 us.
00:01:55 --> 00:02:00 That's really the first five chapters of Romans in a very short summary.
00:02:01 --> 00:02:06 Chapters six and seven are a hinge in the book of Romans.
00:02:06 --> 00:02:08 We started in chapter six last week.
00:02:09 --> 00:02:10 There are hinge.
00:02:10 --> 00:02:17 Paul zooms in here in these chapters to show us how God's grace to us in Jesus not only
00:02:17 --> 00:02:23 justifies us, makes us right with God, but also transforms us.
00:02:24 --> 00:02:25 It changes us.
00:02:25 --> 00:02:39 If you like, they answer the question, in view of Romans one to five, what happens now?
00:02:40 --> 00:02:41 What's next?
00:02:42 --> 00:02:44 That's what chapters six and seven do.
00:02:46 --> 00:02:49 That is, these chapters are a theology of change.
00:02:49 --> 00:02:58 God's grace is not just powerful enough to save us from sin, but also to save us to obedience.
00:03:00 --> 00:03:06 In chapter six, last week, Paul says that we are united with Jesus in the most intimate
00:03:06 --> 00:03:08 relationship possible.
00:03:08 --> 00:03:15 And we are now set free to serve God for our joy and his glory.
00:03:16 --> 00:03:21 Why would we not want to obey God after all that he's achieved for us in Jesus?
00:03:22 --> 00:03:26 Why would we not want to treasure him in all of life?
00:03:27 --> 00:03:29 Well, that brings us to chapter seven.
00:03:29 --> 00:03:30 That's where we're in now.
00:03:30 --> 00:03:38 Now, this is a chapter that you can spend five minutes on and give you a brief overview,
00:03:38 --> 00:03:40 or you can spend weeks on it.
00:03:43 --> 00:03:48 For your joy, I will be closer to the five minutes than the weeks this morning, but it
00:03:48 --> 00:03:50 is a deep, deep chapter.
00:03:50 --> 00:04:01 What this chapter tells us, in summary, is that all of life is a battle between two selves.
00:04:01 --> 00:04:02 All of life.
00:04:03 --> 00:04:12 We all have a war going on inside of us between the good and the bad in our hearts.
00:04:13 --> 00:04:13 All of us.
00:04:13 --> 00:04:21 What it's telling us is that before Jesus, we think we're winning that war.
00:04:23 --> 00:04:28 With Jesus, it feels like we're losing the war.
00:04:30 --> 00:04:33 And this is Paul bringing perspective to us here.
00:04:34 --> 00:04:39 When you become a Christian, the point is, when you become a Christian, you don't move
00:04:39 --> 00:04:40 from warfare to peace.
00:04:40 --> 00:04:43 With God you do, but not with the battle within.
00:04:44 --> 00:04:45 You don't move from warfare to peace.
00:04:45 --> 00:04:47 We move from one battle to a new battle.
00:04:48 --> 00:04:49 That's what happens.
00:04:51 --> 00:04:56 We move from a war that we cannot win to a war that we cannot lose.
00:04:58 --> 00:05:01 That's what Romans 7 is laying out for us.
00:05:01 --> 00:05:06 So the three points today, if you've got St. Paul's app, the battle before Christ, the battle
00:05:06 --> 00:05:08 in Christ, and the battle with Christ.
00:05:08 --> 00:05:10 That's how we're going to move through this text.
00:05:10 --> 00:05:18 So verses 7 to 13 is the battle that every human being has got going on inside of them.
00:05:19 --> 00:05:21 It's the battle that we have before Christ.
00:05:21 --> 00:05:28 Verse 7, Paul introduces another question on the back of his argument of the previous six
00:05:28 --> 00:05:32 verses, and in particular, verse 6 of chapter 7.
00:05:32 --> 00:05:42 But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve
00:05:42 --> 00:05:47 in the new way of the spirit and not in the old way of the written code.
00:05:48 --> 00:05:52 And so the question in verse 7 is, what shall we say then?
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 Is the law sinful?
00:05:56 --> 00:05:57 It is the Old Testament law.
00:05:57 --> 00:05:59 God's word, is it sinful?
00:05:59 --> 00:06:11 If we need to be released from the law, which is now referred to here as the old way, doesn't
00:06:11 --> 00:06:12 it mean that the law is sinful?
00:06:13 --> 00:06:13 It's evil.
00:06:15 --> 00:06:18 And of course, the short answer is, certainly not.
00:06:19 --> 00:06:22 And then the long answer comes from verses 7 to 13.
00:06:22 --> 00:06:30 The summary version is, is it sin in us that makes the law ineffective?
00:06:31 --> 00:06:36 It's not that the law is evil, but it's the sin in us that makes the law ineffective.
00:06:38 --> 00:06:42 So the question is, well, what therefore is the law for?
00:06:43 --> 00:06:46 And that's what Paul does here in these verses.
00:06:46 --> 00:06:47 What therefore does the law do?
00:06:47 --> 00:06:54 The main purpose of the law is it shows us the character of sin.
00:06:54 --> 00:06:55 Verse 7.
00:06:55 --> 00:07:02 Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law.
00:07:05 --> 00:07:10 The law does that by, firstly, it defines sin for us.
00:07:10 --> 00:07:11 Verse 7 again.
00:07:11 --> 00:07:18 For I would not have known what covening really was if the law had said, you shall not covet.
00:07:20 --> 00:07:28 That is, this means the very concept of covening is outlined by the law.
00:07:30 --> 00:07:37 That is, without that standard of the law, you shall not covet, Paul would not have known
00:07:37 --> 00:07:39 that covening was a sin.
00:07:39 --> 00:07:41 That's what he's saying.
00:07:43 --> 00:07:45 So it defines what sin is.
00:07:46 --> 00:07:48 Secondly, the law reveals sin.
00:07:48 --> 00:07:49 Verse 8.
00:07:49 --> 00:07:55 But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covening.
00:07:56 --> 00:08:00 For apart from the law, sin was dead.
00:08:00 --> 00:08:08 That is, when a commandment of God comes to us, this is what Paul's saying here.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:14 When it comes to us, it aggravates and stirs up sin in our hearts.
00:08:16 --> 00:08:23 It doesn't just show us what sin is in general, but how sin resides in us.
00:08:23 --> 00:08:28 The same idea is stated in verse 13.
00:08:28 --> 00:08:37 In order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good, that's the law, to bring
00:08:37 --> 00:08:39 about my death.
00:08:39 --> 00:08:48 So that through the commandment, sin might become utterly sinful.
00:08:48 --> 00:08:59 What Paul's saying here is the more I tried to avoid coveting, the more coveting grew in me.
00:09:01 --> 00:09:07 The law made sin in my life utterly sinful.
00:09:07 --> 00:09:14 That is, I didn't realize how sinful I was before the law.
00:09:17 --> 00:09:20 The law made sin in his life utterly sinful.
00:09:20 --> 00:09:22 That is, much worse.
00:09:22 --> 00:09:24 Totally inexcusable.
00:09:24 --> 00:09:39 So for the religious person sitting in this room or online, the Old Testament law, or let's
00:09:39 --> 00:09:45 summarize that, the Ten Commandments were never meant as a means to salvation.
00:09:47 --> 00:09:47 Never.
00:09:48 --> 00:09:52 As if you could obey them and somehow be right with God.
00:09:52 --> 00:09:59 Because, and this is Paul's point, it's because it was given to sinners.
00:10:01 --> 00:10:06 Instead, what the law does is exposes our need for salvation.
00:10:07 --> 00:10:10 It helps us to see how sinful we are.
00:10:11 --> 00:10:18 Without the law, we will consistently be in denial about the depth and the nature of our sin.
00:10:18 --> 00:10:22 So the law defines sin for us.
00:10:23 --> 00:10:25 It reveals sin in us.
00:10:25 --> 00:10:28 But thirdly, it provokes sin in us.
00:10:29 --> 00:10:34 Sin is aroused by the exposure to the law.
00:10:35 --> 00:10:44 This points us back to the early chapters of Romans and the bleak condition of every human heart.
00:10:44 --> 00:10:52 That is, what Romans 1 to 3 tells us is that there is a perversity about every human heart.
00:10:52 --> 00:10:59 Perversity being a desire to do something for no other reason than because it's wrong.
00:11:00 --> 00:11:01 That's what perversity means.
00:11:02 --> 00:11:05 It's a joy in wrongdoing for its own sake.
00:11:05 --> 00:11:13 And I had a heap of illustrations, personal illustrations, that I could bring to bear here.
00:11:14 --> 00:11:19 But because of my own children in the building, I decided not to go back into history,
00:11:20 --> 00:11:24 but instead to go way back into history and use St. Augustine instead.
00:11:25 --> 00:11:28 I think we'll throw him on the dock here rather than me.
00:11:28 --> 00:11:32 And the ones that immediately came to mind about my joy in sin.
00:11:32 --> 00:11:38 St. Augustine writes about this in his Confessions.
00:11:38 --> 00:11:42 He describes a time when he stole some pears as a boy.
00:11:43 --> 00:11:47 And then he draws some amazing insights from that experience.
00:11:48 --> 00:11:49 This is, I'll quote him.
00:11:50 --> 00:11:53 Near our vineyard was a pear tree loaded with fruit,
00:11:54 --> 00:11:58 though the fruit was not particularly attractive either in colour or taste.
00:11:58 --> 00:12:07 I and some other youths conceived the idea of shaking the pears off this tree and carrying them away.
00:12:08 --> 00:12:12 We set out late at night, stole all the fruit that we could carry,
00:12:13 --> 00:12:15 and this was not to feed ourselves.
00:12:15 --> 00:12:17 We may have tasted a few.
00:12:17 --> 00:12:19 Then we threw the rest to the pigs.
00:12:20 --> 00:12:26 Our real pleasure was simply in doing something that was not allowed.
00:12:26 --> 00:12:29 I had plenty of better pears of my own.
00:12:30 --> 00:12:34 I only took these ones in order that I might be a thief.
00:12:35 --> 00:12:38 Once I had taken them, I threw them away,
00:12:38 --> 00:12:43 and all I tasted in them was my own iniquity,
00:12:44 --> 00:12:47 which I enjoyed very much.
00:12:51 --> 00:12:53 That's every human heart.
00:12:53 --> 00:12:56 His point is,
00:12:57 --> 00:13:00 there is always a much deeper motive
00:13:00 --> 00:13:03 for the surface sins,
00:13:03 --> 00:13:05 and for every surface sin.
00:13:06 --> 00:13:11 When we lie or steal or impure or cruel,
00:13:11 --> 00:13:13 there is a superficial motive,
00:13:13 --> 00:13:14 and it might be greed,
00:13:14 --> 00:13:15 it might be anger,
00:13:15 --> 00:13:16 it might be loneliness,
00:13:16 --> 00:13:21 but there is a much deeper motive driving the superficial one.
00:13:21 --> 00:13:24 An Augustine study of the Bible,
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 and experience with the pear tree,
00:13:27 --> 00:13:31 showed him that the ultimate underlying motive
00:13:31 --> 00:13:33 for all sin
00:13:33 --> 00:13:37 is a desire to be God,
00:13:37 --> 00:13:39 to play God.
00:13:40 --> 00:13:41 We have a deep desire
00:13:41 --> 00:13:45 to be in charge of our lives,
00:13:45 --> 00:13:46 and our world,
00:13:46 --> 00:13:47 in fact,
00:13:48 --> 00:13:49 to the degree
00:13:49 --> 00:13:51 that every person exists
00:13:51 --> 00:13:53 for my glory,
00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 for your glory.
00:13:57 --> 00:13:59 And when they block my glory,
00:14:00 --> 00:14:00 anger
00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 is the result.
00:14:04 --> 00:14:06 Point out a problem with anger
00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 is what you get.
00:14:07 --> 00:14:12 We want to be sovereign.
00:14:13 --> 00:14:17 That goes right back to Genesis chapter 3.
00:14:19 --> 00:14:22 Every law God lays down in His word,
00:14:22 --> 00:14:23 Ten Commandments,
00:14:23 --> 00:14:24 everything else,
00:14:24 --> 00:14:28 every single law that He lays down
00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 is an infringement
00:14:29 --> 00:14:33 upon my perceived absolute sovereignty in life.
00:14:33 --> 00:14:35 Every one of them.
00:14:36 --> 00:14:37 Every one of them
00:14:37 --> 00:14:38 is a reminder
00:14:38 --> 00:14:40 that I am not God
00:14:40 --> 00:14:42 and prevents me
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 from living life
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 the way that I think
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 life should be lived.
00:14:48 --> 00:14:50 The essence of the very first sin
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 of the Garden of Eden
00:14:51 --> 00:14:52 was to be like God,
00:14:52 --> 00:14:54 and it's the essence of all sin
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 from that moment.
00:14:56 --> 00:14:57 So the more
00:14:57 --> 00:14:58 God's word,
00:14:59 --> 00:14:59 His law,
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 is exposed
00:15:00 --> 00:15:01 exposed
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 in me,
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 the more
00:15:04 --> 00:15:06 that that sinful force,
00:15:06 --> 00:15:07 that deep desire
00:15:07 --> 00:15:08 in me
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 will be aggravated
00:15:09 --> 00:15:11 into reaction
00:15:11 --> 00:15:12 against it.
00:15:14 --> 00:15:15 And this leads
00:15:15 --> 00:15:15 to the fourth thing
00:15:15 --> 00:15:16 that sin does.
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 It leads to an overwhelming
00:15:19 --> 00:15:21 conviction of sin.
00:15:22 --> 00:15:23 That's Paul's point
00:15:23 --> 00:15:25 in verses 9 to 11.
00:15:27 --> 00:15:28 This is what he says
00:15:28 --> 00:15:28 in verse 9.
00:15:28 --> 00:15:29 Once I was alive
00:15:29 --> 00:15:31 apart from the law,
00:15:31 --> 00:15:33 but when the commandment came,
00:15:35 --> 00:15:37 sin sprang to life
00:15:37 --> 00:15:39 and I died.
00:15:42 --> 00:15:43 Now Paul here
00:15:43 --> 00:15:43 is not referring
00:15:43 --> 00:15:46 to a previous time
00:15:46 --> 00:15:46 in his life
00:15:46 --> 00:15:48 when the law of God
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 had no bearing
00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 on his life.
00:15:51 --> 00:15:53 That is just not possible
00:15:53 --> 00:15:54 to interpret that verse
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 in that way.
00:15:55 --> 00:15:57 That's because
00:15:57 --> 00:15:59 the Apostle Paul
00:15:59 --> 00:16:00 was a devout,
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 he was a Jewish boy
00:16:01 --> 00:16:03 from a devout family.
00:16:04 --> 00:16:04 There was not
00:16:04 --> 00:16:05 a single time
00:16:05 --> 00:16:07 in his pre-Christian
00:16:07 --> 00:16:08 days
00:16:08 --> 00:16:10 when he did not
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 know the law
00:16:11 --> 00:16:12 or try to obey
00:16:12 --> 00:16:12 the law.
00:16:12 --> 00:16:14 Right from birth,
00:16:14 --> 00:16:15 that was his life.
00:16:17 --> 00:16:18 So I think
00:16:18 --> 00:16:18 he's meaning
00:16:18 --> 00:16:19 that before
00:16:19 --> 00:16:21 he was a Christian,
00:16:21 --> 00:16:23 he did not
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 know the demands
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 of the law,
00:16:26 --> 00:16:27 the true,
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 the deep demands
00:16:28 --> 00:16:28 of the law.
00:16:29 --> 00:16:30 He did not know
00:16:30 --> 00:16:31 what the law
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 truly required.
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 He saw a bunch
00:16:35 --> 00:16:35 of rules
00:16:35 --> 00:16:37 but did not
00:16:37 --> 00:16:37 understand
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 the deep thrust
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 of them all.
00:16:40 --> 00:16:42 He did not know
00:16:42 --> 00:16:43 what it truly
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 meant to love
00:16:44 --> 00:16:45 God supremely.
00:16:45 --> 00:16:47 And so when
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 he says
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 I was alive,
00:16:50 --> 00:16:51 he's writing
00:16:51 --> 00:16:52 about his own
00:16:52 --> 00:16:53 self-deception,
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 his own
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 self-perception.
00:16:58 --> 00:16:59 I'm basically
00:16:59 --> 00:16:59 a good guy.
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 Look at the rules
00:17:01 --> 00:17:01 that I keep.
00:17:04 --> 00:17:05 He thought
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 that he was
00:17:05 --> 00:17:06 morally good,
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 pleasing God.
00:17:08 --> 00:17:09 God was in fact
00:17:09 --> 00:17:11 satisfied with him.
00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 And when he writes
00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 the commandment
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 came,
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 he died,
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 he realised
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 he was
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 in fact
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 spiritually dead
00:17:21 --> 00:17:22 at that moment.
00:17:23 --> 00:17:23 He thought
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 I'm going along
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 really well spiritually
00:17:25 --> 00:17:26 compared to everyone else
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 I'm doing really well.
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 Felt
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 better than most.
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 And then
00:17:34 --> 00:17:36 the law came
00:17:36 --> 00:17:37 and he had
00:17:37 --> 00:17:38 an overwhelming
00:17:38 --> 00:17:38 sense
00:17:38 --> 00:17:40 of his failure
00:17:40 --> 00:17:42 and his condemnation.
00:17:42 --> 00:17:44 That is,
00:17:44 --> 00:17:45 if you like,
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 the commandment
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 came home
00:17:47 --> 00:17:48 to him.
00:17:50 --> 00:17:51 The reality
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 of it
00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 struck me.
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 I came
00:17:55 --> 00:17:56 under the conviction
00:17:56 --> 00:17:56 of sin.
00:18:00 --> 00:18:00 And verse
00:18:00 --> 00:18:01 eight tells us
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 that the commandment
00:18:02 --> 00:18:03 that came
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 home to him
00:18:04 --> 00:18:06 that exposed
00:18:06 --> 00:18:06 his sin
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 and his failure
00:18:07 --> 00:18:09 was the
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 tenth commandment.
00:18:10 --> 00:18:12 you shall
00:18:12 --> 00:18:12 not
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 covet.
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 Why that
00:18:16 --> 00:18:16 one?
00:18:17 --> 00:18:17 Why that
00:18:17 --> 00:18:17 one?
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 What's
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 special about
00:18:20 --> 00:18:20 it?
00:18:22 --> 00:18:22 You see,
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 as a Pharisee,
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 Paul would have
00:18:24 --> 00:18:25 thought of sin
00:18:25 --> 00:18:27 only in terms
00:18:27 --> 00:18:29 of external
00:18:29 --> 00:18:29 actions.
00:18:30 --> 00:18:30 As
00:18:30 --> 00:18:32 I go to say,
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 most people do
00:18:33 --> 00:18:33 think of sin
00:18:33 --> 00:18:34 only in terms
00:18:34 --> 00:18:35 of external
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 actions.
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 He would have
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 thought that if I
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 didn't commit
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 an evil act,
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 I was therefore
00:18:40 --> 00:18:41 not guilty of sin.
00:18:41 --> 00:18:42 You know,
00:18:42 --> 00:18:42 there's no time
00:18:42 --> 00:18:43 I've committed
00:18:43 --> 00:18:43 adultery,
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 so tick the box.
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 I've done that one.
00:18:45 --> 00:18:45 You know,
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 tick the box.
00:18:46 --> 00:18:46 I haven't
00:18:46 --> 00:18:46 murdered anyone.
00:18:47 --> 00:18:47 Tick the box,
00:18:47 --> 00:18:47 tick the box,
00:18:48 --> 00:18:48 tick the box.
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 Woohoo!
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 Gone through the
00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 first nine,
00:18:52 --> 00:18:52 tick the box,
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 tick the box,
00:18:53 --> 00:18:54 tick the box.
00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 I'm a good guy.
00:18:55 --> 00:19:01 But in the
00:19:01 --> 00:19:01 Sermon on the
00:19:01 --> 00:19:01 Mount,
00:19:02 --> 00:19:02 Jesus showed
00:19:02 --> 00:19:03 us that all
00:19:03 --> 00:19:04 the Ten
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 Commandments
00:19:05 --> 00:19:05 refer not only
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 to behaviour,
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 but to much
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 deeper level
00:19:09 --> 00:19:10 of inward
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 attitudes and
00:19:11 --> 00:19:11 motives as
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 well.
00:19:13 --> 00:19:14 And yet,
00:19:14 --> 00:19:14 you can
00:19:14 --> 00:19:15 interpret the
00:19:15 --> 00:19:16 Ten Commandments
00:19:16 --> 00:19:17 superficially as
00:19:17 --> 00:19:19 behavioural rules
00:19:19 --> 00:19:21 relatively easy
00:19:21 --> 00:19:21 to keep.
00:19:21 --> 00:19:25 as did
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 the rich
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 young ruler
00:19:27 --> 00:19:29 when he
00:19:29 --> 00:19:29 came to
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 Jesus and
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 asked Jesus,
00:19:31 --> 00:19:31 what must I
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 do to
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 inherit eternal
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 life?
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 What did
00:19:35 --> 00:19:36 Jesus do?
00:19:37 --> 00:19:38 What was
00:19:38 --> 00:19:38 Jesus'
00:19:38 --> 00:19:39 response?
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 He listed
00:19:42 --> 00:19:42 off the
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 commandments,
00:19:45 --> 00:19:45 except
00:19:45 --> 00:19:47 Jesus didn't
00:19:47 --> 00:19:47 mention
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 Commandment
00:19:48 --> 00:19:48 One,
00:19:49 --> 00:19:49 love the
00:19:49 --> 00:19:49 Lord your
00:19:49 --> 00:19:50 God with
00:19:50 --> 00:19:50 all your
00:19:50 --> 00:19:50 heart,
00:19:50 --> 00:19:50 soul and
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 mind,
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 and he
00:19:51 --> 00:19:52 didn't
00:19:52 --> 00:19:52 mention
00:19:52 --> 00:19:52 number
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 Ten,
00:19:53 --> 00:19:53 do not
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 covet.
00:19:58 --> 00:19:59 Jesus
00:19:59 --> 00:19:59 said go
00:19:59 --> 00:19:59 away and
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 do that
00:20:00 --> 00:20:00 and you
00:20:00 --> 00:20:00 live,
00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 and he
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 walked
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 away sad.
00:20:07 --> 00:20:07 You see,
00:20:07 --> 00:20:08 coveting has
00:20:08 --> 00:20:08 everything to
00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 do with
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 inner motives.
00:20:11 --> 00:20:11 It has
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 everything to
00:20:12 --> 00:20:12 do with
00:20:12 --> 00:20:13 heart issues.
00:20:14 --> 00:20:14 It's the
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 one of
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 these Ten
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 Commandments
00:20:17 --> 00:20:17 that you
00:20:17 --> 00:20:18 cannot tick
00:20:18 --> 00:20:18 the box and
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 say,
00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 I've done
00:20:20 --> 00:20:20 it practically.
00:20:21 --> 00:20:25 coveting
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 includes
00:20:26 --> 00:20:26 envy,
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 self-pitying,
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 grumbling,
00:20:30 --> 00:20:30 murmuring.
00:20:32 --> 00:20:32 Coveting is
00:20:32 --> 00:20:32 not just
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 wanting,
00:20:33 --> 00:20:34 it's an
00:20:34 --> 00:20:34 idolatrous
00:20:34 --> 00:20:35 longing for
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 more beauty,
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 for more
00:20:37 --> 00:20:37 wealth,
00:20:38 --> 00:20:38 for more
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 approval,
00:20:39 --> 00:20:40 for more
00:20:40 --> 00:20:40 popularity than
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 you have.
00:20:42 --> 00:20:43 And Paul
00:20:43 --> 00:20:43 had never
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 understood
00:20:44 --> 00:20:46 sin as a
00:20:46 --> 00:20:46 matter of
00:20:46 --> 00:20:46 inward
00:20:46 --> 00:20:47 longings and
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 idolatrous
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 drives and
00:20:49 --> 00:20:49 desires.
00:20:49 --> 00:20:50 He had
00:20:50 --> 00:20:51 never seen
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 sin as
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 essentially
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 coveting
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 against
00:20:55 --> 00:20:55 God,
00:20:57 --> 00:20:58 failing to
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 love God
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 enough to
00:21:00 --> 00:21:00 be content
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 with God.
00:21:02 --> 00:21:02 He thought
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 of sin only
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 in terms of
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 violating rules.
00:21:06 --> 00:21:06 And so when
00:21:06 --> 00:21:07 the commandment
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 came home
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 to him,
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 he first in
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 his life saw
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 the depth
00:21:14 --> 00:21:16 of his sin
00:21:16 --> 00:21:19 right to
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 the core
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 of his
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 being.
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 He saw
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 how utterly
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 evil and
00:21:23 --> 00:21:23 wicked he
00:21:23 --> 00:21:24 was.
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 And so
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 the flaw
00:21:27 --> 00:21:28 was not
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 in the
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 law.
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 Verse 12
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 indicates
00:21:32 --> 00:21:33 it's in fact
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 quite the
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 reverse.
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 The flaw
00:21:37 --> 00:21:37 was in
00:21:37 --> 00:21:39 Paul
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 and us
00:21:40 --> 00:21:42 not the
00:21:42 --> 00:21:42 law.
00:21:44 --> 00:21:44 Externally
00:21:44 --> 00:21:46 we may be
00:21:46 --> 00:21:46 very good.
00:21:47 --> 00:21:48 Internally
00:21:48 --> 00:21:49 we cannot
00:21:49 --> 00:21:50 be anything
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 other than
00:21:51 --> 00:21:51 a sinful.
00:21:52 --> 00:21:52 The law
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 is good
00:21:53 --> 00:21:55 but I
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 am evil.
00:21:58 --> 00:21:58 That's
00:21:58 --> 00:21:59 his point
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 in the
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 first bit
00:22:01 --> 00:22:01 of chapter
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 seven.
00:22:04 --> 00:22:04 He's
00:22:04 --> 00:22:05 talking about
00:22:05 --> 00:22:06 his pre-Christian
00:22:06 --> 00:22:06 days.
00:22:06 --> 00:22:08 When you
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 move to
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 verse 14
00:22:10 --> 00:22:12 there's now
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 a shift
00:22:13 --> 00:22:13 and he's
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 now referring
00:22:14 --> 00:22:14 to his
00:22:14 --> 00:22:15 battle
00:22:15 --> 00:22:16 in Christ
00:22:16 --> 00:22:18 as a
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 Christian.
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 The first
00:22:20 --> 00:22:22 half is
00:22:22 --> 00:22:22 Paul looking
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 back before
00:22:23 --> 00:22:23 he's a
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 Christian
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 now and
00:22:25 --> 00:22:25 how the
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 law calls
00:22:26 --> 00:22:26 him to
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 look beyond
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 himself to
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 Jesus for
00:22:29 --> 00:22:29 rescue.
00:22:31 --> 00:22:31 And this
00:22:31 --> 00:22:32 is now
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 Paul writing
00:22:33 --> 00:22:33 about his
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 current
00:22:34 --> 00:22:35 experience
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 battling
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 sin as
00:22:37 --> 00:22:38 a
00:22:38 --> 00:22:38 Christian.
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 This
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 is his
00:22:41 --> 00:22:41 battle
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 and that
00:22:42 --> 00:22:43 of every
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 Christian
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 in Jesus
00:22:45 --> 00:22:46 in Christ.
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 Now I
00:22:48 --> 00:22:48 need to
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 disclose here
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 that this
00:22:50 --> 00:22:50 section
00:22:50 --> 00:22:51 has been
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 debated
00:22:52 --> 00:22:53 for
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 centuries.
00:22:55 --> 00:22:56 These
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 verses here
00:22:57 --> 00:22:57 the second
00:22:57 --> 00:22:57 half of
00:22:57 --> 00:22:58 chapter seven
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 have been
00:22:59 --> 00:22:59 debated
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 for centuries.
00:23:01 --> 00:23:01 The issue
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 is whether
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 Paul is
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 still writing
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 here about
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 his
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 pre-Christian
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 experience
00:23:08 --> 00:23:08 of battling
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 sin or
00:23:09 --> 00:23:10 his
00:23:10 --> 00:23:11 current
00:23:11 --> 00:23:11 Christian
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 experience
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 of battling
00:23:13 --> 00:23:13 sin.
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 And let me
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 just say
00:23:16 --> 00:23:16 that there
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 have been
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 plenty,
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 plenty of
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 thoughtful,
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 wise,
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 godly people
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 on both
00:23:24 --> 00:23:24 sides of
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 that debate.
00:23:26 --> 00:23:27 Still are
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 on both
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 sides of
00:23:29 --> 00:23:29 that debate.
00:23:30 --> 00:23:31 For instance,
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 some find it
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 hard to
00:23:33 --> 00:23:33 reconcile
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 that a
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 Christian
00:23:35 --> 00:23:35 could
00:23:35 --> 00:23:35 write
00:23:35 --> 00:23:35 as
00:23:35 --> 00:23:36 Paul
00:23:36 --> 00:23:36 does
00:23:36 --> 00:23:36 in
00:23:36 --> 00:23:37 verse
00:23:37 --> 00:23:37 14,
00:23:38 --> 00:23:38 I am
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 unspiritual
00:23:39 --> 00:23:41 sold as
00:23:41 --> 00:23:41 a slave
00:23:41 --> 00:23:42 to sin.
00:23:43 --> 00:23:43 He also
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 confesses
00:23:44 --> 00:23:45 that he
00:23:45 --> 00:23:45 sins
00:23:45 --> 00:23:46 regularly
00:23:46 --> 00:23:46 in
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 verse 15,
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 I do
00:23:48 --> 00:23:48 not
00:23:48 --> 00:23:48 understand
00:23:48 --> 00:23:49 what I
00:23:49 --> 00:23:49 do.
00:23:49 --> 00:23:49 For
00:23:49 --> 00:23:51 what I
00:23:51 --> 00:23:51 want
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 to do
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 I do,
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 but what
00:23:54 --> 00:23:55 I hate
00:23:55 --> 00:23:55 I do.
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 And again
00:23:56 --> 00:23:56 in verse
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 18,
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 I have
00:23:58 --> 00:23:58 the desire
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 to do
00:23:59 --> 00:23:59 what is
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 good,
00:24:00 --> 00:24:00 but I
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 cannot
00:24:01 --> 00:24:01 carry it
00:24:01 --> 00:24:01 out.
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 Now,
00:24:05 --> 00:24:05 the reason
00:24:05 --> 00:24:06 I think
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 he's
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 writing
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 about
00:24:07 --> 00:24:07 his
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 current
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 Christian
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 experience
00:24:09 --> 00:24:11 of
00:24:11 --> 00:24:11 battle
00:24:11 --> 00:24:11 with
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 sin
00:24:12 --> 00:24:13 is
00:24:13 --> 00:24:13 really
00:24:13 --> 00:24:14 four
00:24:14 --> 00:24:14 reasons.
00:24:15 --> 00:24:15 Firstly,
00:24:16 --> 00:24:16 the change
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 of verb
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 tenses.
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 He moves
00:24:19 --> 00:24:19 from the
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 past in
00:24:20 --> 00:24:21 the tense
00:24:21 --> 00:24:21 of the
00:24:21 --> 00:24:21 verbs
00:24:21 --> 00:24:21 to the
00:24:21 --> 00:24:22 present
00:24:22 --> 00:24:22 tense
00:24:22 --> 00:24:23 in
00:24:23 --> 00:24:23 all
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 verbs
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 in.
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 That
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 is,
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 in 7
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 to 13,
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 the verbs
00:24:30 --> 00:24:30 are past
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 tense,
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 14
00:24:32 --> 00:24:32 onwards,
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 present
00:24:33 --> 00:24:33 tense,
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 he's
00:24:34 --> 00:24:34 talking
00:24:34 --> 00:24:34 about
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 now.
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 Secondly,
00:24:36 --> 00:24:36 there's
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 also a
00:24:37 --> 00:24:37 change
00:24:37 --> 00:24:37 of
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 situation.
00:24:38 --> 00:24:39 Verses
00:24:39 --> 00:24:39 7
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 to 13
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 is sin
00:24:41 --> 00:24:41 killing
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 him,
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 but from
00:24:43 --> 00:24:43 verses
00:24:43 --> 00:24:44 14
00:24:44 --> 00:24:44 onwards,
00:24:44 --> 00:24:44 it's
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 him
00:24:45 --> 00:24:45 wrestling
00:24:45 --> 00:24:45 with
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 sin.
00:24:47 --> 00:24:48 It's
00:24:48 --> 00:24:48 a battle
00:24:48 --> 00:24:48 that he
00:24:48 --> 00:24:49 refuses
00:24:49 --> 00:24:49 to
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 surrender
00:24:50 --> 00:24:50 to,
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 but he
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 is not
00:24:53 --> 00:24:53 dead or
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 dying or
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 losing.
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 Thirdly,
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 Paul delights
00:24:58 --> 00:24:59 in God's
00:24:59 --> 00:24:59 law in
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 verse 22,
00:25:00 --> 00:25:01 for in
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 my inner
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 being I
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 delight in
00:25:04 --> 00:25:04 God's
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 law,
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 even though
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 sin is
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 at work
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 in him.
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 Romans 8,
00:25:09 --> 00:25:09 the very next
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 chapter,
00:25:10 --> 00:25:10 Romans 8
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 verse 7
00:25:11 --> 00:25:13 tells us
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 that a sinful
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 mind that is
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 hostile to
00:25:16 --> 00:25:17 God cannot
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 delight in
00:25:18 --> 00:25:18 God's law,
00:25:20 --> 00:25:20 cannot submit
00:25:20 --> 00:25:21 to God's
00:25:21 --> 00:25:21 law.
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 A non-believer
00:25:23 --> 00:25:25 cannot delight
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 in God's
00:25:26 --> 00:25:26 law.
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 God's
00:25:27 --> 00:25:27 law.
00:25:27 --> 00:25:29 Fourthly,
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 Paul admits
00:25:30 --> 00:25:30 he's a
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 sinner in
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 verse 18,
00:25:32 --> 00:25:33 and an
00:25:33 --> 00:25:33 unbeliever
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 is unaware
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 that they
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 are so
00:25:36 --> 00:25:36 sinful that
00:25:36 --> 00:25:37 they cannot
00:25:37 --> 00:25:37 save
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 themselves.
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 They
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 cannot
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 acknowledge
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 the depth
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 of their
00:25:41 --> 00:25:41 sin.
00:25:42 --> 00:25:42 That is
00:25:42 --> 00:25:43 why I
00:25:43 --> 00:25:43 think Paul
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 is here
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 in these
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 verses
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 laying out
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 his inner
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 struggle
00:25:48 --> 00:25:50 as a
00:25:50 --> 00:25:51 Christian.
00:25:51 --> 00:25:51 Christian.
00:25:52 --> 00:25:52 It's the
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 experience of
00:25:53 --> 00:25:55 every believer
00:25:55 --> 00:25:55 in Jesus.
00:25:57 --> 00:25:57 That experience
00:25:57 --> 00:25:59 is that on
00:25:59 --> 00:25:59 the one
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 hand,
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 we now see
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 God's law
00:26:02 --> 00:26:03 as spiritual,
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 verse 14,
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 good,
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 verse 16,
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 and have a
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 desire to keep
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 it in
00:26:09 --> 00:26:11 verses 15
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 and 18.
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 Paul says
00:26:15 --> 00:26:15 that in his
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 inner being,
00:26:17 --> 00:26:18 he rejoices
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 in the law.
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 in his
00:26:20 --> 00:26:21 heart of
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 hearts,
00:26:22 --> 00:26:22 in the
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 depths of
00:26:23 --> 00:26:24 himself,
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 he loves
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 the law
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 of God.
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 But on
00:26:29 --> 00:26:29 the other
00:26:29 --> 00:26:29 hand,
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 his actions
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 are against
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 the law.
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 Sort of
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 like
00:26:37 --> 00:26:38 Robert Louis
00:26:38 --> 00:26:38 Stevenson's
00:26:38 --> 00:26:39 Dr.
00:26:39 --> 00:26:39 Jekyll and
00:26:39 --> 00:26:39 Mr.
00:26:40 --> 00:26:40 Hyde.
00:26:43 --> 00:26:43 If you've
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 never read
00:26:44 --> 00:26:44 it, it's a
00:26:44 --> 00:26:45 really helpful
00:26:45 --> 00:26:45 little read.
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 It's only
00:26:46 --> 00:26:46 really short,
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 like 80
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 pages or
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 something in
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 the original
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 form.
00:26:49 --> 00:26:49 Don't
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 watch a
00:26:50 --> 00:26:50 movie or
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 just read
00:26:51 --> 00:26:51 the book.
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 Really,
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 really helpful.
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 The premise
00:26:56 --> 00:26:56 of the book
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 is that
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 every single
00:26:58 --> 00:26:59 being has
00:26:59 --> 00:27:00 a sense
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 of two
00:27:01 --> 00:27:01 cells
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 battling.
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 Two
00:27:04 --> 00:27:05 sense of
00:27:05 --> 00:27:05 cells,
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 a sense
00:27:06 --> 00:27:06 of two
00:27:06 --> 00:27:07 cells
00:27:07 --> 00:27:07 battling.
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 The principle
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 of the book
00:27:11 --> 00:27:13 is which
00:27:13 --> 00:27:14 one am I
00:27:14 --> 00:27:14 truly?
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 Which one
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 is truly
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 me?
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 me?
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 And you
00:27:21 --> 00:27:21 don't want
00:27:21 --> 00:27:21 to end
00:27:21 --> 00:27:22 up at
00:27:22 --> 00:27:23 the, in
00:27:23 --> 00:27:24 case you
00:27:24 --> 00:27:24 never read
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 it, he
00:27:25 --> 00:27:26 kills
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 himself.
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 Because the
00:27:29 --> 00:27:30 evil one
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 became more
00:27:31 --> 00:27:31 him.
00:27:33 --> 00:27:34 That became
00:27:34 --> 00:27:35 his true
00:27:35 --> 00:27:35 sense.
00:27:36 --> 00:27:36 But that's
00:27:36 --> 00:27:37 what we
00:27:37 --> 00:27:37 wrestle with.
00:27:37 --> 00:27:37 Which one
00:27:37 --> 00:27:38 is truly
00:27:38 --> 00:27:38 me?
00:27:39 --> 00:27:39 And
00:27:39 --> 00:27:39 particularly
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 as a
00:27:40 --> 00:27:40 Christian?
00:27:40 --> 00:27:40 Am I
00:27:40 --> 00:27:41 a sinner
00:27:41 --> 00:27:41 or am I
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 a saint?
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 a saint?
00:27:45 --> 00:27:45 Before he
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 was a
00:27:46 --> 00:27:46 Christian,
00:27:46 --> 00:27:46 Paul thought
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 he was
00:27:47 --> 00:27:47 a saint.
00:27:48 --> 00:27:49 Now that
00:27:49 --> 00:27:49 he's a
00:27:49 --> 00:27:49 Christian,
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 a saint,
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 right before
00:27:52 --> 00:27:53 Jesus Christ,
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 he now
00:27:54 --> 00:27:54 wrestles
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 with am I
00:27:55 --> 00:27:55 actually a
00:27:55 --> 00:27:55 sinner?
00:27:59 --> 00:27:59 His sense
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 of his
00:28:00 --> 00:28:00 sinfulness
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 is much
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 stronger and
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 more disturbing
00:28:03 --> 00:28:03 to him
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 now.
00:28:06 --> 00:28:06 So which
00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 one is he?
00:28:08 --> 00:28:08 Which one
00:28:08 --> 00:28:09 is he?
00:28:09 --> 00:28:11 The deepest
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 desire is
00:28:12 --> 00:28:12 hard.
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 Am I a
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 sinner or
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 am I a
00:28:14 --> 00:28:14 saint?
00:28:17 --> 00:28:17 And the
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 point of
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 these verses
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 is that for
00:28:20 --> 00:28:20 the Christian
00:28:20 --> 00:28:23 that
00:28:23 --> 00:28:25 question is
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 settled.
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 It's
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 settled.
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 Even
00:28:30 --> 00:28:30 though the
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 battle continues
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 to rage,
00:28:32 --> 00:28:33 the question,
00:28:33 --> 00:28:34 the issue
00:28:34 --> 00:28:34 is settled.
00:28:36 --> 00:28:37 Verse 23,
00:28:37 --> 00:28:39 the law
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 of God
00:28:40 --> 00:28:40 is our
00:28:40 --> 00:28:41 utmost
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 delight.
00:28:43 --> 00:28:43 There is
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 still a
00:28:44 --> 00:28:44 powerful
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 force of
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 sin and
00:28:46 --> 00:28:46 rebellion
00:28:46 --> 00:28:47 within me,
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 but those
00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 desires are
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 not the
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 deepest
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 sense of
00:28:52 --> 00:28:52 who I
00:28:52 --> 00:28:52 am.
00:28:56 --> 00:28:56 As
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 verse 20
00:28:57 --> 00:28:57 says,
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 if I do
00:28:59 --> 00:28:59 what I do
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 not want
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 to do,
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 it is no
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 longer I,
00:29:04 --> 00:29:04 my deepest
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 sense who
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 does it,
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 but it
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 is sin
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 living in
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 me that
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 does it.
00:29:12 --> 00:29:12 As we
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 saw last
00:29:13 --> 00:29:13 week, a
00:29:13 --> 00:29:15 Christian has
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 had a
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 identity
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 transformation.
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 A
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 Christian
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 really seeks
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 God and
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 loves his
00:29:23 --> 00:29:23 law and
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 holiness.
00:29:25 --> 00:29:25 Even
00:29:25 --> 00:29:26 while sin
00:29:26 --> 00:29:28 remains in
00:29:28 --> 00:29:28 us with a
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 whole lot of
00:29:29 --> 00:29:29 strength,
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 whole lot of
00:29:31 --> 00:29:31 strength,
00:29:31 --> 00:29:33 it no longer
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 controls our
00:29:34 --> 00:29:36 personality and
00:29:36 --> 00:29:36 our life.
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 That is our
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 weakness, our
00:29:41 --> 00:29:42 inner conflict.
00:29:43 --> 00:29:44 The strength
00:29:44 --> 00:29:45 of the
00:29:45 --> 00:29:45 remaining
00:29:45 --> 00:29:47 corruption of
00:29:47 --> 00:29:47 our lives
00:29:47 --> 00:29:49 will still
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 lead us to
00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 disobey God.
00:29:52 --> 00:29:53 Even in
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 this, and
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 if this is
00:29:55 --> 00:29:55 you right
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 now, and
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 very conscious
00:29:57 --> 00:29:57 of your
00:29:57 --> 00:29:59 sin, the
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 strength of
00:30:00 --> 00:30:00 the remaining
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 corruption in
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 your life, the
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 sin in your
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 life, will
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 still lead
00:30:05 --> 00:30:05 you to
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 disobey God
00:30:06 --> 00:30:08 even in
00:30:08 --> 00:30:08 the same
00:30:08 --> 00:30:10 ways you
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 did prior
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 to you being
00:30:12 --> 00:30:12 a Christian.
00:30:14 --> 00:30:15 But now,
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 that
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 behaviour,
00:30:19 --> 00:30:20 that sin,
00:30:20 --> 00:30:22 goes against
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 your deepest
00:30:23 --> 00:30:25 identity in
00:30:25 --> 00:30:25 Christ.
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 Many are
00:30:30 --> 00:30:30 puzzled, that
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 I think the
00:30:31 --> 00:30:32 Paul seems
00:30:32 --> 00:30:32 to write
00:30:32 --> 00:30:33 here as
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 if he's
00:30:34 --> 00:30:34 defeated.
00:30:36 --> 00:30:36 He writes
00:30:36 --> 00:30:36 in verse
00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 14, I
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 am unspiritual,
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 sold as a
00:30:40 --> 00:30:40 slave to
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 sin.
00:30:42 --> 00:30:43 I think he
00:30:43 --> 00:30:43 is saying
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 that in
00:30:44 --> 00:30:45 ourselves,
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 even as a
00:30:47 --> 00:30:49 Christian, we
00:30:49 --> 00:30:50 are still
00:30:50 --> 00:30:51 incapable of
00:30:51 --> 00:30:52 keeping the
00:30:52 --> 00:30:54 law in
00:30:54 --> 00:30:54 ourselves.
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 Notice that
00:30:58 --> 00:30:58 he uses the
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 word I
00:30:59 --> 00:31:01 numerous times
00:31:01 --> 00:31:02 in these
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 verses.
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 He seems
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 to be saying
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 that in
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 himself,
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 left to
00:31:10 --> 00:31:10 his own
00:31:10 --> 00:31:11 devices,
00:31:12 --> 00:31:14 he is
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 unable to
00:31:15 --> 00:31:15 live as
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 he should.
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 Even
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 though there
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 is a new
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 identity in
00:31:22 --> 00:31:22 Jesus,
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 a new
00:31:24 --> 00:31:24 love,
00:31:25 --> 00:31:25 a new
00:31:25 --> 00:31:26 delight in
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 God's law,
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 a Christian
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 is still
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 incapable in
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 and of
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 themselves
00:31:33 --> 00:31:36 of keeping
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 the law
00:31:37 --> 00:31:39 in its
00:31:39 --> 00:31:39 entirety,
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 keeping the
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 law and
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 all the
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 expectations
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 of the
00:31:45 --> 00:31:45 law.
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 That's the
00:31:48 --> 00:31:48 battle of the
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 Christian life.
00:31:49 --> 00:31:49 life.
00:31:50 --> 00:31:50 And it's
00:31:50 --> 00:31:51 the battle
00:31:51 --> 00:31:51 of the
00:31:51 --> 00:31:51 Christian
00:31:51 --> 00:31:53 life that
00:31:53 --> 00:31:54 if you
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 are looking
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 just to
00:31:55 --> 00:31:56 yourself and
00:31:56 --> 00:31:57 your own
00:31:57 --> 00:31:58 actions and
00:31:58 --> 00:31:58 not to
00:31:58 --> 00:31:59 Christ at
00:31:59 --> 00:31:59 the same
00:31:59 --> 00:32:00 time,
00:32:01 --> 00:32:02 you will
00:32:02 --> 00:32:02 feel
00:32:02 --> 00:32:02 defeated.
00:32:04 --> 00:32:05 You will
00:32:05 --> 00:32:06 feel defeated.
00:32:09 --> 00:32:09 And this
00:32:09 --> 00:32:10 leads the
00:32:10 --> 00:32:11 apostle Paul
00:32:11 --> 00:32:12 and I
00:32:12 --> 00:32:12 believe the
00:32:12 --> 00:32:13 Christian to
00:32:13 --> 00:32:13 the last
00:32:13 --> 00:32:14 point, the
00:32:14 --> 00:32:14 battle cry
00:32:14 --> 00:32:16 that comes
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 with Christ.
00:32:17 --> 00:32:19 verses 24
00:32:19 --> 00:32:19 and 25.
00:32:21 --> 00:32:21 These verses
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 here are both a
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 warning and a
00:32:23 --> 00:32:23 comfort.
00:32:25 --> 00:32:25 The first
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 warning is
00:32:26 --> 00:32:27 that no one
00:32:27 --> 00:32:28 ever gets so
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 advanced in
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 the Christian
00:32:30 --> 00:32:31 life that
00:32:31 --> 00:32:32 they no longer
00:32:32 --> 00:32:33 have sin in
00:32:33 --> 00:32:34 their life.
00:32:35 --> 00:32:36 Get rid of
00:32:36 --> 00:32:36 all notions
00:32:36 --> 00:32:38 of perfectionism.
00:32:38 --> 00:32:39 No, this
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 is the, I
00:32:40 --> 00:32:40 mean, it's
00:32:40 --> 00:32:41 easy to see
00:32:41 --> 00:32:42 that in me,
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 but this is
00:32:42 --> 00:32:43 the apostle
00:32:43 --> 00:32:43 Paul speaking
00:32:43 --> 00:32:44 here.
00:32:45 --> 00:32:45 Right?
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 This is
00:32:46 --> 00:32:48 Saint Paul
00:32:48 --> 00:32:51 saying, I'm
00:32:51 --> 00:32:52 battling with
00:32:52 --> 00:32:52 sin in my
00:32:52 --> 00:32:53 life.
00:32:53 --> 00:32:54 Saint Paul,
00:32:54 --> 00:32:54 right?
00:32:55 --> 00:32:55 Not me,
00:32:56 --> 00:32:56 Saint Paul.
00:32:58 --> 00:32:59 Even he
00:32:59 --> 00:32:59 has not
00:32:59 --> 00:33:00 advanced in
00:33:00 --> 00:33:01 the Christian
00:33:01 --> 00:33:01 life that he
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 no longer has
00:33:02 --> 00:33:03 to battle with
00:33:03 --> 00:33:03 sin.
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 If we ever
00:33:05 --> 00:33:05 think that we've
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 conquered our
00:33:06 --> 00:33:07 sin and are
00:33:07 --> 00:33:07 pretty good
00:33:07 --> 00:33:09 Christians, it's
00:33:09 --> 00:33:09 the first
00:33:09 --> 00:33:10 indication of
00:33:10 --> 00:33:11 self-deception.
00:33:11 --> 00:33:14 if you ever
00:33:14 --> 00:33:15 think that you
00:33:15 --> 00:33:16 are a pretty
00:33:16 --> 00:33:17 good Christian,
00:33:17 --> 00:33:20 then that is
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 the indication
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 of self-deception.
00:33:26 --> 00:33:28 The more we
00:33:28 --> 00:33:28 grow as a
00:33:28 --> 00:33:30 Christian, the
00:33:30 --> 00:33:30 more we see
00:33:30 --> 00:33:31 our sin.
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 The more we
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 become holy,
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 the less holy
00:33:35 --> 00:33:36 we will feel.
00:33:36 --> 00:33:40 That's the
00:33:40 --> 00:33:40 battle of the
00:33:40 --> 00:33:41 Christian life.
00:33:43 --> 00:33:44 Even as we
00:33:44 --> 00:33:45 make progress
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 against many
00:33:46 --> 00:33:46 bad habits
00:33:46 --> 00:33:47 and attitudes,
00:33:48 --> 00:33:49 we will grow
00:33:49 --> 00:33:50 more aware
00:33:50 --> 00:33:51 of the
00:33:51 --> 00:33:52 rebellious,
00:33:52 --> 00:33:53 sinful,
00:33:53 --> 00:33:55 deep roots
00:33:55 --> 00:33:55 in our
00:33:55 --> 00:33:56 hearts.
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 The second
00:33:58 --> 00:33:58 warning, which
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 is linked to
00:33:59 --> 00:34:00 that, is
00:34:00 --> 00:34:00 that no one
00:34:00 --> 00:34:01 grows to a
00:34:01 --> 00:34:02 point where
00:34:02 --> 00:34:02 they no longer
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 battle in.
00:34:03 --> 00:34:06 It is
00:34:06 --> 00:34:06 quite
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 important
00:34:07 --> 00:34:09 that the
00:34:09 --> 00:34:09 Christian
00:34:09 --> 00:34:10 expects
00:34:10 --> 00:34:12 life to
00:34:12 --> 00:34:12 be an
00:34:12 --> 00:34:13 internal
00:34:13 --> 00:34:13 battle
00:34:13 --> 00:34:14 against
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 two
00:34:15 --> 00:34:16 selves.
00:34:22 --> 00:34:23 That's
00:34:23 --> 00:34:23 why this
00:34:23 --> 00:34:24 talk is
00:34:24 --> 00:34:24 called
00:34:24 --> 00:34:24 Warfare
00:34:24 --> 00:34:25 Within.
00:34:27 --> 00:34:28 In fact, if
00:34:28 --> 00:34:28 I may draw
00:34:28 --> 00:34:29 upon my
00:34:29 --> 00:34:29 past
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 experience
00:34:30 --> 00:34:30 and past
00:34:30 --> 00:34:31 profession,
00:34:31 --> 00:34:33 a wounded
00:34:33 --> 00:34:34 feral pig
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 is more
00:34:35 --> 00:34:36 dangerous
00:34:36 --> 00:34:36 than a
00:34:36 --> 00:34:37 healthy and
00:34:37 --> 00:34:37 a happy
00:34:37 --> 00:34:37 one.
00:34:39 --> 00:34:40 More
00:34:40 --> 00:34:40 dangerous
00:34:40 --> 00:34:41 than a
00:34:41 --> 00:34:41 healthy and
00:34:41 --> 00:34:42 happy one.
00:34:42 --> 00:34:43 And so
00:34:43 --> 00:34:43 it is
00:34:43 --> 00:34:44 with sin.
00:34:45 --> 00:34:45 Our new
00:34:45 --> 00:34:46 identity
00:34:46 --> 00:34:47 in Jesus
00:34:47 --> 00:34:47 Christ
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 has
00:34:48 --> 00:34:49 mortally
00:34:49 --> 00:34:50 wounded
00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 the sinful
00:34:51 --> 00:34:51 nature
00:34:51 --> 00:34:53 in us.
00:34:54 --> 00:34:55 Killed
00:34:55 --> 00:34:55 it completely
00:34:55 --> 00:34:57 but mortally
00:34:57 --> 00:34:57 wounded it
00:34:57 --> 00:34:58 within us
00:34:58 --> 00:34:59 and it
00:34:59 --> 00:35:00 is stirred
00:35:00 --> 00:35:00 up
00:35:00 --> 00:35:01 to fight
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 back.
00:35:04 --> 00:35:05 The great
00:35:05 --> 00:35:06 comfort of
00:35:06 --> 00:35:07 this passage
00:35:07 --> 00:35:08 is that the
00:35:08 --> 00:35:09 struggle
00:35:09 --> 00:35:10 itself,
00:35:11 --> 00:35:12 oh and if
00:35:12 --> 00:35:12 you're a
00:35:12 --> 00:35:13 Christian,
00:35:13 --> 00:35:13 you're hanging
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 on to Christ
00:35:14 --> 00:35:14 and you're
00:35:14 --> 00:35:15 struggling with
00:35:15 --> 00:35:15 your sin,
00:35:15 --> 00:35:16 you hear
00:35:16 --> 00:35:16 this,
00:35:18 --> 00:35:19 the struggle
00:35:19 --> 00:35:20 itself
00:35:20 --> 00:35:21 is testimony
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 to our
00:35:22 --> 00:35:23 new identity
00:35:23 --> 00:35:24 in Jesus.
00:35:24 --> 00:35:24 Jesus.
00:35:27 --> 00:35:27 When we
00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 struggle
00:35:28 --> 00:35:28 with sin,
00:35:29 --> 00:35:30 it is
00:35:30 --> 00:35:31 typical to
00:35:31 --> 00:35:31 think that
00:35:31 --> 00:35:31 we are
00:35:31 --> 00:35:32 such
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 terrible
00:35:33 --> 00:35:34 Christians
00:35:34 --> 00:35:37 and how
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 often people
00:35:38 --> 00:35:38 are quick
00:35:38 --> 00:35:39 to remind
00:35:39 --> 00:35:40 you that
00:35:40 --> 00:35:40 you're such
00:35:40 --> 00:35:41 a terrible
00:35:41 --> 00:35:42 Christian.
00:35:44 --> 00:35:44 It's one
00:35:44 --> 00:35:45 thing I think
00:35:45 --> 00:35:47 to struggle
00:35:47 --> 00:35:48 with it
00:35:48 --> 00:35:48 internally,
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 it's very,
00:35:49 --> 00:35:50 it's much
00:35:50 --> 00:35:50 harder when
00:35:50 --> 00:35:51 other people
00:35:51 --> 00:35:52 join with
00:35:52 --> 00:35:52 you and
00:35:52 --> 00:35:53 affirm your
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 internal
00:35:54 --> 00:35:54 struggle.
00:35:58 --> 00:35:59 This
00:35:59 --> 00:35:59 chapter
00:35:59 --> 00:36:00 encourages us
00:36:00 --> 00:36:01 that temptation
00:36:01 --> 00:36:02 and conflict
00:36:02 --> 00:36:02 with sin,
00:36:02 --> 00:36:04 even relapses
00:36:04 --> 00:36:05 into sin,
00:36:07 --> 00:36:07 are not
00:36:07 --> 00:36:09 inconsistent
00:36:09 --> 00:36:11 with a
00:36:11 --> 00:36:12 growing
00:36:12 --> 00:36:13 Christian.
00:36:17 --> 00:36:18 The
00:36:18 --> 00:36:19 acknowledgement
00:36:19 --> 00:36:20 and the
00:36:20 --> 00:36:21 awareness of
00:36:21 --> 00:36:21 the internal
00:36:21 --> 00:36:22 battle
00:36:22 --> 00:36:24 is
00:36:24 --> 00:36:25 consistent
00:36:25 --> 00:36:26 with a
00:36:26 --> 00:36:27 growing
00:36:27 --> 00:36:27 Christian.
00:36:28 --> 00:36:29 You see,
00:36:29 --> 00:36:29 the Christian
00:36:29 --> 00:36:30 heart cries
00:36:30 --> 00:36:31 two things
00:36:31 --> 00:36:32 at the
00:36:32 --> 00:36:32 same time.
00:36:35 --> 00:36:36 There is
00:36:36 --> 00:36:37 the desperate
00:36:37 --> 00:36:38 cry of
00:36:38 --> 00:36:38 discouragement
00:36:38 --> 00:36:40 as we look
00:36:40 --> 00:36:41 at our
00:36:41 --> 00:36:42 own efforts
00:36:42 --> 00:36:43 and our
00:36:43 --> 00:36:44 own failing
00:36:44 --> 00:36:45 and our
00:36:45 --> 00:36:46 own sin.
00:36:46 --> 00:36:47 It's the
00:36:47 --> 00:36:47 cry of the
00:36:47 --> 00:36:48 apostle Paul
00:36:48 --> 00:36:48 in verse
00:36:48 --> 00:36:49 24,
00:36:49 --> 00:36:51 what a
00:36:51 --> 00:36:51 wretched
00:36:51 --> 00:36:52 man I
00:36:52 --> 00:36:52 am.
00:36:53 --> 00:36:53 Who will
00:36:53 --> 00:36:54 rescue me
00:36:54 --> 00:36:54 from this
00:36:54 --> 00:36:55 body that
00:36:55 --> 00:36:56 is subject
00:36:56 --> 00:36:57 to death?
00:36:58 --> 00:36:59 You see,
00:36:59 --> 00:36:59 when we
00:36:59 --> 00:37:00 read God's
00:37:00 --> 00:37:01 law properly
00:37:01 --> 00:37:03 and look
00:37:03 --> 00:37:04 at our
00:37:04 --> 00:37:05 own hearts
00:37:05 --> 00:37:05 honestly,
00:37:06 --> 00:37:08 we can
00:37:08 --> 00:37:09 only conclude
00:37:09 --> 00:37:09 that we are
00:37:09 --> 00:37:10 truly wretched.
00:37:10 --> 00:37:12 God's
00:37:12 --> 00:37:13 and when we
00:37:13 --> 00:37:13 judge ourselves
00:37:13 --> 00:37:14 by God's
00:37:14 --> 00:37:14 standard
00:37:14 --> 00:37:15 rather than
00:37:15 --> 00:37:16 our own,
00:37:17 --> 00:37:18 what a
00:37:18 --> 00:37:19 wretched man
00:37:19 --> 00:37:20 I am
00:37:20 --> 00:37:20 is the
00:37:20 --> 00:37:21 only
00:37:21 --> 00:37:21 conclusion.
00:37:22 --> 00:37:23 When we
00:37:23 --> 00:37:23 stop comparing
00:37:23 --> 00:37:24 ourselves with
00:37:24 --> 00:37:24 other people
00:37:24 --> 00:37:25 and look
00:37:25 --> 00:37:26 instead to
00:37:26 --> 00:37:26 a holy
00:37:26 --> 00:37:27 God,
00:37:27 --> 00:37:27 that's the
00:37:27 --> 00:37:27 only
00:37:27 --> 00:37:28 conclusion.
00:37:30 --> 00:37:30 Without
00:37:30 --> 00:37:32 accepting God's
00:37:32 --> 00:37:32 devastating
00:37:32 --> 00:37:33 critique of
00:37:33 --> 00:37:34 human nature,
00:37:35 --> 00:37:35 our own
00:37:35 --> 00:37:36 hearts,
00:37:36 --> 00:37:36 we will
00:37:36 --> 00:37:37 never,
00:37:37 --> 00:37:38 ever grasp
00:37:38 --> 00:37:39 the glory
00:37:39 --> 00:37:40 of the
00:37:40 --> 00:37:41 gospel of
00:37:41 --> 00:37:42 Jesus Christ
00:37:42 --> 00:37:43 justification by
00:37:43 --> 00:37:44 faith alone.
00:37:45 --> 00:37:45 We will
00:37:45 --> 00:37:46 never grasp
00:37:46 --> 00:37:46 that.
00:37:47 --> 00:37:47 We will
00:37:47 --> 00:37:48 never understand
00:37:48 --> 00:37:48 it as
00:37:48 --> 00:37:49 beautiful and
00:37:49 --> 00:37:49 glorious.
00:37:50 --> 00:37:50 We will
00:37:50 --> 00:37:51 never appreciate
00:37:51 --> 00:37:52 the gospel of
00:37:52 --> 00:37:53 a received
00:37:53 --> 00:37:54 right standing
00:37:54 --> 00:37:55 with God
00:37:55 --> 00:37:57 only through
00:37:57 --> 00:37:58 Jesus Christ,
00:37:58 --> 00:37:59 only through
00:37:59 --> 00:38:00 him.
00:38:03 --> 00:38:04 It is only
00:38:04 --> 00:38:05 when our
00:38:05 --> 00:38:05 hearts truly
00:38:05 --> 00:38:06 cry out
00:38:06 --> 00:38:07 about our
00:38:07 --> 00:38:07 wretchedness,
00:38:08 --> 00:38:08 that we
00:38:08 --> 00:38:09 can know
00:38:09 --> 00:38:10 and experience
00:38:10 --> 00:38:10 the hope,
00:38:11 --> 00:38:12 the liberation
00:38:12 --> 00:38:13 of looking
00:38:13 --> 00:38:13 away from
00:38:13 --> 00:38:14 ourselves to
00:38:14 --> 00:38:15 what God
00:38:15 --> 00:38:16 has done
00:38:16 --> 00:38:16 for us in
00:38:16 --> 00:38:17 Jesus Christ.
00:38:17 --> 00:38:18 And so as
00:38:18 --> 00:38:19 Paul cries
00:38:19 --> 00:38:19 out,
00:38:20 --> 00:38:20 not just
00:38:20 --> 00:38:20 what a
00:38:20 --> 00:38:21 wretched man
00:38:21 --> 00:38:22 I am,
00:38:22 --> 00:38:22 but who's
00:38:22 --> 00:38:22 going to
00:38:22 --> 00:38:23 rescue me
00:38:23 --> 00:38:24 from this
00:38:24 --> 00:38:25 body of
00:38:25 --> 00:38:25 death?
00:38:26 --> 00:38:27 Verse 25,
00:38:27 --> 00:38:28 thanks be to
00:38:28 --> 00:38:28 God.
00:38:30 --> 00:38:30 Thanks be to
00:38:30 --> 00:38:31 God who
00:38:31 --> 00:38:31 delivers me
00:38:31 --> 00:38:32 through Jesus
00:38:32 --> 00:38:33 Christ,
00:38:33 --> 00:38:34 our Lord.
00:38:35 --> 00:38:37 God's
00:38:37 --> 00:38:38 love for
00:38:38 --> 00:38:38 us.
00:38:38 --> 00:38:39 He said,
00:38:39 --> 00:38:40 St. Paul
00:38:40 --> 00:38:42 has got no
00:38:42 --> 00:38:42 hope in
00:38:42 --> 00:38:43 himself.
00:38:44 --> 00:38:45 There is no
00:38:45 --> 00:38:46 hope in
00:38:46 --> 00:38:48 ourselves for
00:38:48 --> 00:38:48 salvation.
00:38:50 --> 00:38:51 No hope even
00:38:51 --> 00:38:52 in our present
00:38:52 --> 00:38:52 obedience.
00:38:53 --> 00:38:54 No hope in
00:38:54 --> 00:38:56 pursuit of
00:38:56 --> 00:38:58 the well-being
00:38:58 --> 00:38:58 of others.
00:38:59 --> 00:39:00 No hope in
00:39:00 --> 00:39:00 giving more
00:39:00 --> 00:39:00 money.
00:39:01 --> 00:39:01 No hope in
00:39:01 --> 00:39:02 any form of
00:39:02 --> 00:39:03 activity.
00:39:04 --> 00:39:05 Everything
00:39:05 --> 00:39:07 that we
00:39:07 --> 00:39:08 have done,
00:39:10 --> 00:39:11 everything that
00:39:11 --> 00:39:12 you have
00:39:12 --> 00:39:12 done,
00:39:12 --> 00:39:13 good and
00:39:13 --> 00:39:13 bad,
00:39:13 --> 00:39:14 everything that
00:39:14 --> 00:39:15 you are,
00:39:15 --> 00:39:17 only merits
00:39:17 --> 00:39:18 judgment.
00:39:20 --> 00:39:21 Only
00:39:21 --> 00:39:22 merits judgment.
00:39:26 --> 00:39:27 That's what
00:39:27 --> 00:39:28 Romans is
00:39:28 --> 00:39:28 telling us.
00:39:29 --> 00:39:30 Don't look at
00:39:30 --> 00:39:30 your good
00:39:30 --> 00:39:31 things and think
00:39:31 --> 00:39:32 they're good.
00:39:32 --> 00:39:33 There's a
00:39:33 --> 00:39:33 deeper motive
00:39:33 --> 00:39:34 that's going
00:39:34 --> 00:39:34 on.
00:39:34 --> 00:39:35 There's a
00:39:35 --> 00:39:35 heart issue
00:39:35 --> 00:39:36 going on
00:39:36 --> 00:39:36 here.
00:39:39 --> 00:39:40 Our only
00:39:40 --> 00:39:42 hope is to
00:39:42 --> 00:39:42 look to
00:39:42 --> 00:39:43 Jesus dying
00:39:43 --> 00:39:45 on the
00:39:45 --> 00:39:45 cross for
00:39:45 --> 00:39:46 us.
00:39:47 --> 00:39:49 Our only
00:39:49 --> 00:39:49 hope is to
00:39:49 --> 00:39:50 rest in
00:39:50 --> 00:39:51 his righteousness,
00:39:52 --> 00:39:53 his right
00:39:53 --> 00:39:54 standing before
00:39:54 --> 00:39:54 God.
00:39:56 --> 00:39:56 You see,
00:39:56 --> 00:39:58 Jesus on
00:39:58 --> 00:39:59 the cross
00:39:59 --> 00:40:00 became
00:40:00 --> 00:40:01 wretched.
00:40:04 --> 00:40:05 He took
00:40:05 --> 00:40:06 my sin,
00:40:06 --> 00:40:07 your sin,
00:40:07 --> 00:40:07 the sin of
00:40:07 --> 00:40:08 this world
00:40:08 --> 00:40:08 in the
00:40:08 --> 00:40:08 depths of
00:40:08 --> 00:40:09 his heart
00:40:09 --> 00:40:10 and became
00:40:10 --> 00:40:11 wretched
00:40:11 --> 00:40:13 so that
00:40:13 --> 00:40:14 you and
00:40:14 --> 00:40:15 I might
00:40:15 --> 00:40:16 receive his
00:40:16 --> 00:40:16 righteousness.
00:40:21 --> 00:40:22 We are
00:40:22 --> 00:40:22 wretched,
00:40:23 --> 00:40:23 but God is
00:40:23 --> 00:40:23 not.
00:40:23 --> 00:40:25 God is
00:40:25 --> 00:40:26 and he
00:40:26 --> 00:40:26 gives us
00:40:26 --> 00:40:27 his right
00:40:27 --> 00:40:28 standing
00:40:28 --> 00:40:29 through
00:40:29 --> 00:40:29 Jesus
00:40:29 --> 00:40:30 Christ.
00:40:31 --> 00:40:32 Jesus is
00:40:32 --> 00:40:32 the one
00:40:32 --> 00:40:32 who has
00:40:32 --> 00:40:33 rescued us
00:40:33 --> 00:40:35 and through
00:40:35 --> 00:40:35 the Holy
00:40:35 --> 00:40:36 Spirit he
00:40:36 --> 00:40:37 is in the
00:40:37 --> 00:40:38 process of
00:40:38 --> 00:40:38 changing
00:40:38 --> 00:40:39 us,
00:40:40 --> 00:40:41 but that's
00:40:41 --> 00:40:41 a battle
00:40:41 --> 00:40:42 that we
00:40:42 --> 00:40:43 will always
00:40:43 --> 00:40:44 wrestle with
00:40:44 --> 00:40:46 and he's
00:40:46 --> 00:40:47 changing us
00:40:47 --> 00:40:47 so that we
00:40:47 --> 00:40:48 can enjoy
00:40:48 --> 00:40:48 him
00:40:48 --> 00:40:49 forever.
00:40:49 --> 00:40:51 And that's
00:40:51 --> 00:40:52 chapter 8
00:40:52 --> 00:40:53 and that's
00:40:53 --> 00:40:53 the next
00:40:53 --> 00:40:54 couple of
00:40:54 --> 00:40:54 weeks.
00:40:54 --> 00:40:54 Thank you.