Westhill Episcopal 17 July 1994

Theme: Three Laws

 

1.   Reading
Romans 7:21 - 8:4

2.   Introduction
Eleven times Paul uses the word ‘law’ in these few verses. On first encounter trying to understand it is like trying to unravel a tangled ball of string. It doesn’t help to realise that there are still other meanings of ‘law’ that Paul doesn’t refer to: e.g. scientific law and criminal law.

      ‘Law’ means ‘principle’ or ‘rule of action’. It is a means of defining how something works. The law of the land defines in great detail precisely how a good, upright citizen behaves in all circumstances. The law of gravity describes the principle that two masses are attracted towards each other, to an extent that is proportional to the inverse square of the distance between them. Best to weigh yourself in a plane if you don’t like being overweight. But there are compensations in being overweight - other people are more attracted to you! There is a difference, of course, between laws which describe how things do work, and laws which define how things ought to work, even though they don’t. This difference only exists because of sin. To give an analogy of the devastating effects this brings about, imagine that that the law of gravity only functioned 50% of the time! ‘Catastrophe’ would be too mild a word for it. But is the effect any less catastrophic where social and moral issues are concerned? Little wonder that Paul describes the whole creation as ‘groaning’ (Rom 8:22).

      Now, in this passage Paul particularly emphasises three different laws that actually or potentially affect us. These are God’s law, the law of sin and death, and the law of the Spirit of life (7:25b - 8:2). We are going to consider these in more detail.

3.   God’s Law
God’s law describes how a standard, unblemished human being functions. God did not reveal this law in an attempt to get people to behave according to His blueprint. Rather, it is a statement of how the standard, unblemished person behaves. Standard, unblemished people don’t need to be told how to live properly - they just do it. The standard, unblemished human being always makes God’s pleasure the focus of his/her energies. Actually God revealed this law to us in order that we might realise that none of us is a standard, unblemished person; the only one is Jesus Christ. Illustration of the paperweights at the Crieff paperweight factory.

4.   The Law of Sin and Death
Rom 7:21-24 ‘Wretched’ is the word Paul uses to describe our condition, for another law has taken over, another principle defines our behaviour, and it is called ‘the law of sin and death’. The person functioning under the law of sin and death always makes his or her own pleasure the focus of his or her energies. The commonly used phrase “look out for number one” sums it up very neatly. It is like a robot being re-programmed to respond to its sensors and minimise it’s own workload.

5.   The Law of the Spirit of Life
Rom 8:2 “The law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.” Thankfully God is the Master of transformation and metamorphosis. He turns tadpoles into frogs, caterpillars into butterflies. The bug that is limited to crawling, wriggling, and eating raw cabbage is transformed into a beautiful creature able to soar into the sunlight on wings light as a feather. But we have some tadpoles that are not turning into frogs. One by one they are dying in their tadpole state. Transformation is not inevitable. How can we be transformed? The key is firstly ‘belonging to Christ’, ‘Christ in you’, ‘the Spirit of God living in you’ Rom 8:9-11, and secondly ‘submission to the Spirit of God’ Rom 8:14.

6.   Conclusion
There are three categories we come under, three responses we can make. Firstly we can respond to God’s law by trying to model our lives on it. This is legalism, is doomed to failure, and inevitably leads to hypocrisy. Trying to be a good person is no good if there is an inbuilt principle taking you in the other direction. What good is a steering wheel on a train? Secondly we can abandon ourselves to the law of sin and death. We can basically live for ourselves, maximise the comfort level and minimise the disruptions. We might call this being realistic. Some say, “after all, we’re only human.” But, like the rejected paperweights, the end of that pathway is death. Thirdly we can be transformed by the power of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.

      Which law is determining your behaviour today?