The believer is transformed by a new husband. He has died to his old husband, the Law, and been joined to his new husband, Jesus Christ, in His resurrection glory. This new marriage gives the believer an entirely new motivation and power for living the Christian life.

Transformed By A New Husband

Romans 7:1-6

One of the most wonderful and important truths in all of Scripture is our union to Jesus Christ. We are justified and sanctified because of a vital spiritual union with Him. The Bible likens this union of the believer with Christ in many different ways. Jesus used the figure of a vine and its branches to represent this union. Peter used the analogy of living stones united together to form a temple in which Christ dwells. Paul elsewhere uses the analogy of the members of a body united to its head. Well, here in Romans 7 Paul discusses our union to Christ under a different figure – that of marriage. In marriage, the two become one flesh. This union is a physical union, a legal union, an economic union (the IRS allows the married couple to file a joint return on their 1040 form), an emotional union, a psychological union, and a spiritual union.

We have seen thus far that to become a Christian means we have a New Representative. We are no longer represented by Adam. Now we are represented by Christ.  We also have a New Master. Sin is no longer our Master. Now Christ is our Master. Furthermore, we have a New Husband. The Law is no longer our Husband. Now Christ is our Husband. You could describe our old life as association with Adam, Sin, and Law.  Our new life is all about Jesus Christ. He has become everything to us.

In Romans chapters 3-5 Paul went to great lengths to teach us that we are not justified by the Law. Here in Romans 7 he will go to great pains to teach us that we are not sanctified by the Law.  In 3:20 Paul said, “By the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight.” Now in Romans 7 Paul says in essence, “By the works of the Law no flesh will be sanctified in His sight.”

Professing Christians often swing between 2 different extremes. Either they swing towards license or legalism. By License, I’m talking about the man who knows that his justification is through faith apart from works of the law. This man says, “Since my own works to do not factor in at all to my justification, then it doesn’t matter how I live. I can continue to live in sin and God will keep showing His grace to me.” Paul recoils in horror at that idea. Paul would say, “No! You can’t continue living in sin, because you died to sin. If you continue living in sin, it only proves you have never been united to Christ.”  The Legalist, on the other hand believes that the way to become holy is to focus on obedience to God’s Law.  He measures a person’s spirituality by their performance of a list of do’s and don’ts. Romans 6 is Paul’s answer to the professing Christian who is licentious.  Romans 7 is Paul’s answer to the professing Christian who is a legalistic.

In Romans 6 Paul tells us we died to sin. In Romans 7 Paul tells us we died to the law.

Now, why is Paul going off on this tangent about our relationship to the Law? It’s because of something he said in 6:14, “we are not under law but under grace.” Paul knows that his readers may not understand what it means that we are not under law. If the reader happened to be a Jew he might be shocked and scandalized by that statement. He might say, “What do you mean, I’m not under law. I’m a Jew. I’ve lived my entire life seeking to keep the law. Of course I’m under the Law. Paul what are you talking about?!” So here Paul, after he has finished explaining that our relationship to sin has changed, goes on in chapter 7 to explain how our relationship to the law has changed.

Romans 7:1-6 is a lot like Romans 6:15-23. In 6:15-23 Paul explains our old slavery to sin, and then our new slavery to God. Here in Romans 7 Paul explains our old marriage to the Law, and our new marriage to Christ. So, this morning, we are going to consider first our Old Husband – The Law and then our New Husband – Christ.

1.  Married to The Law

The point of 7:1-3 is very simple. A husband and wife are bound to one another while they are both alive. If a woman moves in with a new boyfriend while her husband is alive she’s committing adultery. But if her husband dies, she is perfectly free to marry anyone she pleases. Death is that which annuls the union.

Now, here Paul tells us that we were married to the Law. This is an arranged marriage. We can’t remember a time when we weren’t married to the Law. Further, it’s a very formal relationship. We don’t call each other “Honey” and “Baby” and “Sweetheart.” Instead it’s “Mr. Law.” It’s also a very unhappy relationship, not because our husband is a bad man, or has ever been unfaithful to us. No, Mr. Law is not a sinner. In fact in 7:7 Paul asks “Is the Law sin?” He gives his answer in 7:12, “So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.” No, Mr. Law is anything but a sinner. He is as righteous, and exact a man as you will ever find. He’s a respectable man. He’s an impressive man. He’s meticulously faithful about fulfilling his marital obligations to you. He doesn’t have any filthy and disgusting habits as other men have. You have to admit that he’s been faithful, and he treats you exactly as you deserve to be treated.

So, what’s the problem? Why is this such an unhappy marriage? The problem in a nutshell, is that he’s a perfectionist. He’s definite and precise, and you’re casual and easy-going. He’s so picky. Nothing you’ve ever done or ever will do will fully satisfy or please him. You clean the house and think you’ve got it spic and span and he walks in the door with his white gloves and finds something you’ve missed and says, “But what about this?” Every meal you’ve ever cooked is too hot or too cold or too spicy or too bland or too something! No matter how slight your deviation from perfection, you can be sure that Mr. Law will expose it to you. He treats you like an employee. There’s no tenderness, no affection, no love. It’s like you are a hired hand in some business relationship.  And the worst thing about the whole relationship is that every night he gets out his big black book and writes down every mistake you’ve made that day. He takes note of the slightest imperfection and keeps a record. When you have an argument or squabble, he opens that black book and says, “But what about this?” He never forgets and he never forgives. You’ve spent your whole life trying to earn his approval and acceptance and affection, but it’s a hopeless case.

Then there’s the kids. Your marriage to the Law has produced lots of children. It’s been a very fruitful relationship. Notice 7:5, “For 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.” There it is. You bore fruit for death. So who are the kids. What is the fruit for death that you bore when married to Mr. Law? Well Paul gives us some of their names in Galatians 5:19 – “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, and her sister impurity, and her younger sister sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these.”  Out of your union to Mr. Law flows all these wicked offspring.

You say, “What a terrible life!” Well, not completely, for if it were not for him you would never have known what perfection was. You might have had the silly idea that you actually made it one time. But it is true that while you are married to the Law, you are trapped in a loveless, joyless, hopeless relationship. So, is there any hope for you?  That brings us to our second union.

2.  Married to Christ

You’ve got a friend named Paul who has been telling you about a new fellow. His name is Jesus. We might call Him, Mr. Love. Paul has been telling you wonderful he is, and you can’t help but think, “Oh, life would be great with a man like that!”  But how could it possibly be? You can’t even let yourself think along those lines.

But no matter how hard you try, you find yourself still thinking about this new man. Your first thought is that you can just marry Him too. No, that’ll never work – polygamy is not lawful. Your second idea is to just divorce Mr. Law to marry Mr. Love. But you can’t do that either. Paul tells us in verse 2, “For 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.” She can’t leave him and marry Mr. Love without committing adultery because Mr. Law is not dead. However, right there is a hint of a way out. If he were to die, then you could marry Mr. Love. After all in your marriage vows you did promise, “till death do us part” and “as long as they both shall live.” That seems to be the only legal way to break the covenant. But how is he going to die? Is she supposed to put poison in his coffee? No, that would be murder, and it’s unlawful too. So, what do you suggest? Are we supposed to just sit around waiting for him to die? No, because he’s never going to die. Jesus said “For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass away from the Law, until all is accomplished” (Mt.5:18). No, the Law will never pass away. Mr. Law is not going to just up and die.

Paul suggests a completely different solution to the problem. He gives it in 7:4, “Therefore, 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.” Paul’s solution is not that the Law dies. His solution is that you die! But how in the world can you die? Is Paul suggesting suicide? No, he’s suggesting a co-crucifixion. You see, in the very same way that you died to sin by being crucified with Christ, you also died to the law by being crucified with Christ.  Verse 4 says that we died to the Law through the body of Christ. You were “in Christ” when He died on the cross. So tell me, what was Jesus’s relationship to the Law while He was in this world? Gal. 4:4 says that “He was born under the Law.” Jesus lived under the Law for 33 years, and kept it perfectly. So, now that He has died and risen again, what is His relationship to the Law? He’s dead to it. He has exited the realm in which the Law holds jurisdiction. Now He is alive to God.  So too, you have died to the Law and are alive to God in Him.

Let’s say you grew up in China, but at an early age your family emigrated to the U.S.  After arriving in  America your entire family became citizens of the United States.  Then one day when you are 20 years old you hear that China has declared war on Japan and they are drafting all eligible men into the service. And one day you receive a letter in the mail telling you that you must travel to China to enlist in the Chinese army. Does that letter hold any authority over you? No! You are no longer a citizen of China. Therefore you are not under the jurisdiction of the Chinese government. They may send you a passel of letters, but you don’t have to obey them. You are no longer in China, and no longer subject to the Chinese government. My friend, that’s what has happened to us. We are no longer under the jurisdiction of the Law. We died to it.  Christ is the one who exercises jurisdiction over you!

So, how does Christ compare to Mr. Law? Well, it’s kind of like night and day. Mr. Law was always demanding, while Jesus is so giving. Mr. Law could never approve of you while Christ accepts you completely and perfectly. Mr. Law treated you as a slave, while Christ treats you as His beloved bride. Mr. Law came in with a white glove, while Jesus comes in with a mop and a bucket to help you accomplish your task. Mr. Law demanded that you be like him, while Jesus is making you like Him.

Just as there were kids from the first marriage, there are also kids from this union as well. Paul here speaks of being joined to Christ that we might bear fruit for God. Gal.5:22 gives us the names of some of those kids – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

And remember that big black book in which Mr. Law wrote down every mistake you ever made? The best thing of all is that the first thing Jesus does when He marries you is take that book down and burn it. It’s gone. It’s forgotten. It’s forgiven. Those things will never be raised against you again.

Application

So, how does our marriage to Christ change things? The answer is in verse 6, “so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.” We still serve. We didn’t die to the law so that we could be sinful, selfish and lazy. We served under the Law, and now we serve under Christ. But notice that we serve “in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.”  When we were married to the Law, we served according to the letter of the law. The Law was an external written code that was imposed on us that we had to perform. We tried to keep the law, but our heart was just not in it. It’s sort of like when you were a kid and your parents made up a chart of all the chores you had to do every week. As you completed each chore, you would check it off. Well, one of those chores was to wash the family car.  So, what did you do?  You squirted some water on it, swiped it a few times with a towel and called it good. But the years passed, and one day you got your license and your parents gave you permission to take your new girlfriend out on a date in the family car. Did anything changes? You bet!  Now you went out and spent hours washing the car, and the rims, and vacuuming out the insides. Were you serving? You bet. Were you doing it because of an external legal requirement? Nope, not at all. You were serving because of an internal heartfelt desire.

So too, when we are born again, we serve the Lord, but not because of some external Law imposed upon us that tells us we have to. We serve because it’s an internal desire of our heart. And how did that happen? The Spirit of God gave it to us. He changed our hearts. Listen to what the prophet Jeremiah says, “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them, and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people” (Jer.31:33).  The difference between those two motivations is the difference between night and day. It’s the difference between “I have to” and “I get to.” As a Christian it should always be “I get to.” Lord, you mean You’re going to let me serve You?! You’re going to let me be a part of Your work? You’re going to let me make disciples? You know that’s exactly how I feel about being a part of The Bridge. What a privilege! When I could be stuck in some mega-church filling a pew, instead I get to be on the front lines fighting Satan, making disciples, and serving the Lord making an eternal difference. I get to!!  And so do you.

Not only do we have a new desire, but we also have a new power. Under the Law the only power we had was our own power – the power of the flesh. Verse 5 says we were “in the flesh.” The flesh was the only power we had. The Law didn’t give us any help at all. There’s a story about the village idiot over in Nevada who rode his stick horse to town. When he got there they asked him how he liked the ride. He said, “well it was all right, but I’m just about as tired as if I had walked!” When were served under the Law, in the flesh, the only horsepower we had was the stick horse. But now that we are married to Christ, there is a whole new source of power. Now, we have the power of the Holy Spirit to serve with. He lives within us. Remember that we have been joined to Him who was raised from the dead. We have the resurrection power of Christ to serve in! We are not left to our own resources. Do you realize the resources you have in Christ? Are you depending on His power when you serve? Are you trusting in His almighty resources? I hope so! Saints, how are we going to bring forth fruit for God? Fruit is the product of life. An apple is the product of the life of the tree coursing into that branch. So too, spiritual fruit is the product of the life of God in our souls. The only way we can manifest the character of Jesus is to be joined to Jesus, so that He brings forth His own character in our lives. We must live in Him day by day for His character to be formed in us.

Now, let me ask you, “how do you feel about your new husband?” If you are a real Christian there’s only one answer to that question. You love Him! “And though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory” (1Pet.1:8).  He is altogether lovely! He is the fairest of ten thousand! Paul says “if anyone does not love the Lord, let him be accursed” (1Cor.16:22). Friends, never let yourself get into this trap of trying to relate to God through law-keeping. Watch out if your life becomes preoccupied with checking off a list of do’s and don’ts. We might become obsessed by trying to obey our own standard of reading 5 chapters a day, praying for 30 minutes, and having family devotions. But as soon as you place all your focus on law-keeping, your joy goes right out the window. Where should our focus be? On Christ! He’s our husband! Find your life and your all in all in Him. “If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth” (Col.3:1-2).  Be obsessed with Christ! Find everything in Him, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Let’s imagine 2 young women who are each $100,000 in debt. The first girl decides she’s going to work her way out of debt, so she gets a job and works really hard. Then she gets a second job, but her living expenses are so high, that she never seems to make any headway on her debt, but instead finds herself even more in debt. She’s like the sinner who decides she’s going to work her way into God’s favor. It will never happen! Instead of getting into God’s favor, the one who works finds in the end that she is even further away because her best works are stained with sin in the sight of God.  Well, the other girl is just as much in debt, but she decides she’s going to try a different tactic. She goes out and marries herself a millionnaire. Does she solve her problem? Yep! Through marriage to the wealthy man, his riches are put to her account, right? His riches are imputed to her. In the end, she gets out of debt, not on account of her works, but her husband’s merit. Now you’re thinking, “Wouldn’t everyone want to marry a millionnaire?  The hard part is not deciding to marry a millionnaire. The hard part is finding a millionnaire who is willing to marry you!”  And that’s the Good News! There is someone who is infinitely rich in the very thing you are bankrupt in – Righteousness! He’s rich in merit, and He’s willing to be married to the likes of you and me. Friend, you are hopelessly in debt to God because of your sin. Jesus Christ is the only hope you’ve got of getting out of debt with God. And unless you get out of debt, you’ll be paying that debt for all eternity in Hell. Oh, come to Jesus Christ! Lay hold of Him by faith today!  Wonder of wonders, He offers to marry you. Will you marry Him? Only a fool would turn down an offer like that. Be joined to Him by faith today!

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