Where My Sin Problem Comes From

Passage: Romans 7:7-13

Tomorrow is an anniversary for me.  52 years ago I surrendered my life to Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord.  It might be more accurate to say I was taken captive by Christ, it was pure, underserved grace that He won my soul from being a slave to sin to being a slave to Christ.  I am eternally grateful.

I remember it being a real, noticeable change in my life, everything seemed better.  I was sixteen up at Young Life’s Malibu Club in British Colombia.  I stay on at Malibu for another three weeks with my family there and worked on the work crew.  No one prepared me for what happened a couple of weeks later.  I was blindsided by sin, by conflict with some of the other workers.

It really messed with my head.  We were all Christians, everything was supposed to be better, everyone was supposed to get along.  I thought we were over that sin stuff.  I didn’t know about Romans 7.

God didn’t let me go two weeks thinking I was sanctified or thinking I wouldn’t have real temptations and experience inner battles with the indwelling sin still in my heart.

Paul wants to protect us from getting blindsided and confused by this sin problem that doesn’t go away.  Paul spends Romans 7:7-25 helping us better understand our ongoing battle within.  If we don’t, we will mislead ourselves and others, act hypocritically, or fall into despair when we stumble and fall.  So Paul asks and answers three questions.  We will take the first one this week.