Chapter 7:1-6

COMMENTARY ON THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS

By Dr. John R. Stone

Romans 7:1-6

7 1Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? 2For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband. 3So then if, while her husband is living, she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress, though she is joined to another man. 4Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, that we might bear fruit for God. 5For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. 6But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter. (Rom. 7:1-6 NASB)

Overview:

In this new chapter the Apostle Paul continues to explain the process of sanctification whereby the believer is freed from bondage to the Law and conformed to the likeness of Christ. Living under the Law produces sin and death, but living in the freedom of Christ produces fruit for God and life for the believer. In this passage, Paul resumes his explanation of why the believer is not under law, but under grace. He illustrates the relationship between the law and the believer by describing how death terminates the marriage covenant that binds a husband and a wife. Just as death ends a marriage covenant, so also death ends the legal obligation for the believer to live under the law. The result of this new freedom is the opportunity to be joined to Christ and to produce fruit for God instead of the fruit for death which resulted from the believer’s bondage to the law.

Vss. 1-3: Death to Law Sets Us Free

Death ends the marriage covenant between a husband and a wife so that the surviving mate is free to remarry without committing adultery. This practical illustration from everyday life helps Paul communicate what he is trying to say. If his readers can understand this simple fact, then they can also understand how it is that the believer can be released from an obligation to the law, which began at birth, and be united with Christ as a new creature to produce good fruit.

Vss. 4-6: Marriage to Christ Makes Us Fruitful

Paul applies this practical illustration to the process of sanctification by saying that death has freed the new believer from the hopeless cycle of sin and death that results from being under the Law. In the marriage illustration, it was the husband who died so that the wife would be free to remarry, but in the application of this illustration from marriage, it is the believer who dies (not the Law) so that the legal connection between the believer and the Law has ended. That relationship no longer exists; it has been terminated. Then, by the miracle of grace, the believer is spiritually resurrected and joined to the Lord as a part of the bride of Christ. Death ended the former obligation to the Law, and new life through spiritual resurrection joins the believer to Christ. This new union reproduces good fruit for God.

In Romans chapter seven Paul explains how the Law and sin and the believer relate to one another. The believer is born into this world under the Law, and the Law always produces sin. God’s purpose in giving us the Law through Moses was to reveal sin and to point us to Christ. In chapter 7:1-6 Paul explains the relationship between a sinner and the Law: We are free. In verses 7-13 Paul will explain the relationship between the Law and sin: We are convicted. In these verses Paul will give his personal testimony about how God used the Law to convict him of his own sin and drove him to Christ. In verses 14-25 Paul will describe the relationship between the believer and sin: We are victorious. In this section of chapter seven he describes his own struggle with indwelling sin and gives us the secret for victory in our own struggle with indwelling sin.

Summary:

In Romans chapter seven Paul is teaching us about the doctrine of sanctification. Believers gain the victory over sin when they come to understand that salvation is a gift; it is not earned or deserved; so, the believer is free from obligation to the Law. Good works cannot save a person, and they cannot keep a person saved. Knowing that salvation is a gift and security is certain releases the sinner from obligation to earn or keep his salvation.

Joy, peace, hope, and gratitude flow from the believer who has been liberated with this truth, and just as grace brought salvation, now grace brings sanctification and Christ-likeness as well. The believer is saved by grace and sanctified by grace, and that is why Christianity is superior to and different from every other religion in the world.

—to be continued

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