Romans 7. The Duality of Man (Simul Justus et Peccator). 

1. How does Paul describe being released from the law? Verses 1-6. 

   1. Under grace we are free from the restrictions of the law. In other words, we are no longer under the condemnation the law brings. Paul uses the example of a widow being an adulteress if she sleeps with other men while her husband is alive, but if her husband has passed then she is free from that law and can remarry (which Paul encourages in 1 Corinthians 7:8-9). 

1. This point has been hammered throughout Romans and is brought again here because Paul knows believers will wonder how the law plays into their faith. We are free from its penalty, but we will grow in love for the law of God because it is a perfect reflection of His character. 

2. Why are our sinful passions aroused by the law? Verses 7-12. 

   1. It is part of our sinful nature to rebel. It gives us an opportunity to assert our own will rather than submitting to God’s. I have seen this in my own life when I’m told to do something and my immediate reaction is a desire to rebel. 

   2. Does this cause internal conflict for believers? 

      1. Absolutely. Paul delves heavily into this in the next passage. 

3. How often do you experience the inner conflict Paul speaks of? Verses 13-25. 

   1. I know I do constantly. Upon entering a state of peace with God we are constantly in a state of warfare against the forces of darkness. We do not wrestle against flesh and blood brothers, but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12). Until the day we die we will fight this battle. 

   2. It is not wrong to desire perfection in the Christian life. It is proper that we long to please God because that’s what our new hearts and the Holy Spirit both desire. However, we must understand we are not yet glorified. We are not yet made unable to sin. We still live in a broken world and are bombarded with temptations. 

   3. Do you desire to please God? Do you hate sin?

      1. Longing to please God and growing in hatred for sin are evidence of a new heart. Be assured in your salvation if this is the case. 

      2. However, if you merely choose to do things that outwardly align with God’s commands because you desire the benefits that come with doing so more than you desire the result of opposing actions then you should be terrified. For example, being respectful to get a job. 

4. Is a perfectionist view of sanctification biblical? Verses 13-25. 

   1. No, not at all. The Greek used by Paul shows he is speaking of his current condition at the writing of his letter to the church in Rome, he is not speaking of his pre-conversion condition. Also, the sentiments Paul expresses in this passage are not found in unbelievers (love for the law, desire to please God). 

   2. This perfectionist view refers to the belief that believers are made sinless after enough sanctification. This is taught by many false teachers and stems from some ideas set forth by John Wesley that are embraced by Holiness churches. 

      1. John Wesley was a Christian and served the Lord greatly, he is not able to control what those who came after him have done with his name. Wesley’s idea on this was that the Spirit does a work of grace that doesn’t render someone morally perfect but enables him to achieve a “perfect love.” This idea has clearly been tainted greatly since then. 

   3. It was the idea of a second work of grace being available to all Christians by which they can experience instantaneous holiness. The beginnings of modern Pentecostalism are tied in with this as they believed speaking in tongues was evidence of a second work of grace. Only in recent times with the advent of neo-Pentecostalism have adjustments been made to this doctrine. 

5. Why do we want to talk about this? Verses 13-25. 

   1. Because we are running a race of faith and we are told to lay aside every sin and weight that clings so closely to us so that we may run this race with endurance (Hebrews 12:1). We want to kill sin and pursue righteousness to serve the Lord!

6. So why do we continually fail in our races, despite intellectually knowing that it is the most important race of our lives? Verses 13-25. 

   1. We have a sin nature, even when we are saved we are still sinners living in a broken world. Sadly sin will continue to be a part of our lives here on earth. 

   2. “Simul justus et peccator” or “simultaneously justified and sinner.” Another way of putting this is that Christians are “simultaneously saint and sinner.” 

- Martin Luther. 

6. 3. “We’re not sinners because we sin, we sin because we’re sinners.” - RC Sproul.  

   4. “What is the only reason that sin has any power in your life? The answer is… because you love it. If the sin did not attract you, it would have no power.” - Bryan Chapell. 

7. What does it mean to mortify sin? 

   1. To mortify sin is not to rid your life of sin. 

   2. To mortify sin is to weaken it to the point where it can no longer control you. 

   3. You are made new in Christ, freed from the enslavement of sin (Romans 6). 

8. How do we mortify sin? 

   1. You must be a Christian. 

      1. Without the Holy Spirit we have no hope to weaken the grip of sin in our lives, much less even realize their presence. There is no victory apart from Christ (1 Corinthians 15:54-57). 

         1. Have you surrendered your life to Christ? 

2. You must know your enemy. 

   1. The enemy within you is indwelling sin. We naturally want to rebel against God. Let’s read Matthew 15:10-20 which tells us about our natural hearts. 

      1. Know your sins and call them what they are. Cursing in bad traffic is not a slip of the tongue, it is a sin of the tongue (James 3:1-12). Watching porn and talking to women in a lustful manner is not innocent play, it is spiritual adultery (Matthew 5:27-30). 

         1. What are some common indwelling sins in our culture? 

         2. What are some common indwelling sins in your own life? 

2. 2. The enemy hunting you is Satan. He is not passive in his attempts to consume us so we must not be passive in mortifying our sin (1 Peter 5:8)! 

      1. He is a liar, the father of lies, he doesn’t walk around with a machete, that’s not how he murders, he murders with his lies (John 8:44). Know that Satan wants you to be enslaved so deeply by your sin, to fill yourself with the pleasures of this world and forget about God and His goodness. 

      2. Satan will admit that God is powerful, but He wants us to doubt the goodness of God (Genesis 3:1-7).  

      3. Let’s read Matthew 16:22-24. Peter was not setting his mind on serving Satan, he was setting his mind on the things of man. While there is a difference between these two they are both opposed to the redemptive things of God, so much so that the things of man can serve the things of Satan. 

         1. This goes back to aligning your heart and your will with the heart and will of our God (like we talked about a couple weeks ago). Keep your mind on Christ and avoid things of this earthly temporal reality. 

         2. Do you care more about your own life, about the things of man, or living for Christ?

3. Put on your armor. 

   1. When you got saved, you entered a spiritual battle (Ephesians 6:12). In an actual battle wouldn’t you wear armor and carry a weapon? We must do the same in our spiritual battles!

   2. How do I get the armor and weapon I need? God has provided them, I just need to put it on (Ephesians 6:13-20). 

   3. A big part of this is having a daily quiet time with the Lord (ie: reading your Bible, praying, listening to him). The Bible does not describe these spiritual defenses as a castle or stronghold; it’s armor that you must put on daily, not just build once. 

      1. Does our culture help or hinder our level of patience?

      2. Are you depending on an overnight fix to your sin or are you trusting in the sanctification process? 

4. Store God’s Word in your heart and use it. 

   1. Let’s read Psalm 119:11, Hebrews 8:8-12 (from Jeremiah 31:31-34), Hebrews 4:12. 

   2. May God’s Word be written on our hearts, biblically speaking the innermost part of our being, that all else flows from. 

   3. How does Jesus combat Satan’s temptations in the wilderness? 

      1. He uses Scripture (Matthew 4:1-11)! 

         1. How do people usually combat temptations? 

         2. How do you combat temptations? Or do you…?

5.  Take responsibility. 

   1. Has anyone ever told you that they just need to be hit with a great sermon or devotional and that afterwards they’ll be able to kick their sin to the curb? Have you ever had this thought? 

   2. A major misconception about the sovereignty of God is that it excuses us from any responsibility. This is blatantly false. God is certainly working in us both to will and work for His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13). 

   3. He gives us the power to overcome temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13), but we are responsible. We are called to both godliness and obedience (Matthew 5:48), no excuses. 

   4. The best part is that while we are responsible, it is God who does the work within us through the Holy Spirit! Live by the Spirit (Romans 8:13)! 

      1. How does our society feel about taking responsibility? 

      2. How do you feel about taking responsibility? Are you willing to take responsibility for your lifestyle?

6. Lay hold of your victory in Christ. 

   1. Once again, to mortify sin is not to destroy it. That is Jesus’ job, and He has already defeated Satan, over sin, and over death. Rejoice in the victory of Christ! Rejoice in that you have been set free (John 8:36)! 

      1. Thank God for His grace and mercy (Ephesians 2:4-5)!

7. Join a local church and commit to your Christian community. 

   1. Let’s read 1 Corinthians 12:12-31, Ephesians 4:15-16, Hebrews 10:24-25. 

   2. Go deeper with your prayer requests, be vulnerable. Be honest about what you are struggling with, ask your brothers for help! 

9. Summarized practical steps: 

   1. Know Christ and be filled with the Holy Spirit. Recognize the supremacy of Christ. 

   2. Recognize the weakness of your flesh and your external enemy. 

   3. Spend time in Scripture, spend time in prayer, spend time in Christian community. 

      1. Sanctification is a process, not an overnight fix! 

   4. Confess your sins! Be vulnerable! Do not hide your sin or else it will grow! Be open to hearing your brothers confess their sins as well and be ready to admonish them in truth and love to stir them up to  good works and love. 

   5. Be more open with your prayer requests! 

   6. Fight temptations with the Word of God, have it written on your heart. 

   7. Rest in God’s grace, in the victory of Jesus over sin and death. 

   8. Get back up when you fall. Do not succumb to the sin and stay in it. 

10. So how close to the line can we get? 

    1. It isn’t about getting to the line. 

    2. Think about the question like this: How close can I get to the edge of a building? 

    3. Well, do you want to jump off? If you want to jump off then don’t even get on the elevator! Get out of the building, go nowhere near it! 

       1. For staying away from sexual sin, the line is when your body starts to prepare itself for sex. You’ve turned something on that wasn’t meant to turn off. That’s not how God designed it. 

11. So what should we do with temptations and sin?

    1. “Nip it in the bud!” 

• Barney Fife. 

2. “Be killing sin or sin will be killing you.” 

• John Owen.

Here is a section from Not Yet Married by Marshall Segal (Pages 92-93). 

Weeding God’s Garden in You 

If we want to grow the fruit of the Spirit—the fullest, ripest, most delicious fruit—we have to weed the garden. Wherever fruit is not growing (and often even where it is), sin creeps in, sprouts up quickly and quietly, and before long takes over, poisoning any existing fruit and preventing any more from developing. My wife and I have two planters in our backyard, probably 3 feet by 4 feet and filled with soil. It appears the previous owners built them to grow plants and herbs. It also appears they did not succeed in that mission. When we bought the house, they were two wooden amusement parks for weeds, the main attraction being some kind of mutant cabbage. We ignored them the first summer, just cutting the grass around the boxes. After a month or two, they stood three or four feet tall, towering over the rest of our otherwise decently manicured lawn. 

Some of us have allowed sins to grow off in the corner of our lives. We build little wooden boxes around them to keep them from spreading anymore. We make plans for what we’ll do about them next spring, or maybe the year after. We find a thousand other things to keep us busy, and we take great care of the rest of our life, mowing week after week to make sure the yard looks acceptable to guests. But sin won’t be boxed or caged in a corner. Any sin we allow to remain in our lives spreads quickly and quietly, like a virus, into every other area of our heart and relationships. With eternity at stake, and Jesus welcoming us with open arms, arms that were nailed to the cross for our sin, we cannot afford to wait another year, or month, or week to attack the root of the sins that entangle us. We have to take the planter by storm today, invading and conquering every weed with grace. 

Follow all the fruits of the Spirit down to the root of your sin, whatever your besetting sins, and find victory while you’re still single. It will prepare you to date well now, and it will serve your future marriage and ministry in ways you cannot even comprehend. Refuse to procrastinate in killing your sin, and run after the one who wants to make you new.”

Luke 16 - The Parable of the Dishonest Manager (if we took advancing the Kingdom of God as seriously as businessmen take their work then the world would look very different). 

12. Resources: 

    1. 5 Mortifying Sin and Pursuing Righteousness.pdf Samson’s Mullet.

    2. On the Mortification of Sin: A Reader’s Guide to a Christian Classic desiringGod. 

    3. How to Mortify Sin, What Does "Simul Justus et Peccator" Mean? Ligonier. 

    4. Mortification: Putting the Ax to the Root of Sin Tabletalk. 

    5. How the devil spoke through an apostle Renewal Ministries. 

    6. Romans: An Expositional Commentary Ligonier, RC Sproul.

    7. Seven Ways to Wage War Against Sin Blue Letter Bible. 

    8. The MacArthur Bible Commentary John MacArthur.  

    9. Barney Fife - Nip It The Andy Griffith Show. 

13. Podcasts: 

    1. Episode 001: Relationships Q&A - Becoming Something with Jonathan Pokluda

    2. Killing Sin | Kellen Allen  

14. Sermons: 

    1. Romans, Vol. 05 (6:11-8:11) GTY, John MacArthur.