Bible Quiz: Romans Chapter 7

Paul's Illustrations and Concepts

• Paul uses marriage as an analogy to explain the connection between Christians and the written law.
• In this analogy, the wife represents believers, while the husband symbolizes the Law.

Purpose of the Christian Life

• The primary goal of a Christian is to bear fruit for God.

Old Life vs. New Life

• The old life under the Law is characterized by sinful passions and death.
• In contrast, the new life in the Spirit emphasizes bearing fruit and living in newness.

Control and Freedom

• Before belief, an individual is governed by sinful nature.
• A person is released from the law's bondage through death to the law, which occurs in Christ.

Key Terms and Definitions

• Dead (Nekros): Refers to someone lifeless, having breathed their last.
• Death (Thanatos): Signifies the physical death of the body.
• Covet (Epithumeo): Represents a forbidden desire or lust.
• Good (Kalos): Describes something excellent in nature and well-suited to its purpose.

Believers and Legal Bondage

• Those under the law are released through sharing in Christ's death.
• Post-release, believers produce fruit and engage in joyful service.

Paul's Personal Struggles

• Paul articulates his ongoing struggle with sin as a converted Israelite, using personal pronouns extensively to express struggle (47 uses of "I," 28 capitalized).

Legal and Spiritual Claims

• Only death can dissolve a legal bond.
• This legal claim is also broken spiritually through death.

The Law’s Role and Sin

• The Jew is considered dead to the law through Jesus Christ.
• The physical body holds no moral significance in the context of spiritual life.

Life in the Spirit vs. Sin

• Absence of life and the Holy Spirit’s control leads to bondage under sin.
• Paul identifies the law, which aimed to bring life, as ultimately bringing a death sentence.

Satan and the Law

• Satan manipulates what is good to serve as an instrument of death.
• The law itself is holy and good, distinct from sin.

Interpretations of Paul’s Struggle

• Paul showcases a negative self-opinion, struggles with the law, and longs for deliverance.
• Douglas Moo suggests Paul is reflecting on his past as an unregenerate person.
• Charles Cranfield believes Paul portrays a true Christian experience.
• Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones suggests Paul describes someone feeling conviction, not yet converted.

Believers' Experience

• Professor Dunn highlights the duality of believers’ experiences: existing in Adam and in Christ simultaneously.
• Stott notes three stubborn facts regarding those described in Romans 7: they have been regenerated, are not in a mature state, and know little of the Holy Spirit.

Old Testament Believers

• The "I" in Romans can reflect the Old Testament believer who loved the law but lacked the indwelling Spirit.

Pre-Pentecost Believers

• Pre-Pentecost believers had a deep love for the law but were not empowered by the Spirit.

Applying Romans 7

• Misapplication of these passages could lead believers to view struggles as normal rather than recognize the potential for being stuck in an immature faith state.

Chapter 6 Themes

• Key themes from Chapter 6 include the goodness of the law, personal wretchedness, the marriage illustration, and Paul's own struggle as expressed through "I."