What Good is the Law? (Pt. 2)
Romans 7:9-13
May 6 2018
A news report in Oregon a few years ago said that a middle school in Oregon had a unique problem:
A number of girls were beginning to use lipstick and would put it on in the bathroom. That was fine, but after they put on their lipstick they would press their lips to the mirror leaving dozens of little lip prints.
Finally the principal decided that something had to be done. She called all the girls to the bathroom and met them there with the custodian. She explained that all these lip prints were causing a major problem for the custodian who had to clean the mirrors every day. To demonstrate how difficult it was to clean the mirrors, she asked the custodian to clean one of the mirrors. He took out a long-handled squeegee, dipped it into the toilet and then cleaned the mirror.
Since then there have been no lip prints on the mirror.
It has similarly been said that if we could see sin for what it really is, that we would be less inclined to sin.
That premise appears to be part of Paul’s thinking as he explains the nature and function of the Law. Our problem in life is not that the Law hangs over us and demands and compels us to sin. The problem of every man is that he is born a sinner and that sin itself conspires against him to destroy him. And if we could only see just how sinful sin is then we might be less inclined to sin and more inclined to run to God for the grace in Christ.
Here is Paul’s premise about the benefit of the Law of God —
The Law is good, because through it we see the extent of our sin.
In this passage Paul reveals five benefits of the Law (we will look at the final three today):
- The Law Makes Us Know Our Sin (v. 7)
- The Law Manifests Our Heart of Sin (v. 8)
- The Law Reveals the Deadliness of Sin (vv. 9-10)
- The Law Exposes the Deceitfulness of Sin (v. 11)
- The Law is Holy and Good (When Used Lawfully) (vv. 12-13)
Our problem is not with the Law that commands and restricts our behavior; our problem is with sin.
Download the rest of this sermon on Romans 7:9-13.
The audio will be posted on the GBC website by tomorrow.
Words of Grace 