PRAISE PURE MINISTRY

Apostle Pauls
Understanding of the Law
in Romans
BY


Lola Richey





The author acknowledges that a significant portion of this paper was derived from a Romans seminary
course taught by Professor Loyd Melton, Ph.D. of Erskine Theological Seminary, Columbia, SC Campus.
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Praise Pure Ministry
PO Box 10916
Greenville, SC 29603
Phone 864.467.0503
Fax 864.467.0646

For more devotional reading, please visit www.praisepure.org


Copyright August 27, 2014 by
Lola Richey
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED


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There is only one God, and He makes people right with Himself only by faith,
whether they are Jews or Gentiles. Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this
mean that we can forget about the Law? Of course not! In fact, only when we
have faith do we truly fulfill the law.
1

INTRODUCTION
Many Christians have called the book of Romans a masterpiece. It is
commonly agreed that the book of Romans is one of the greatest Christian
writings.
2
Interestingly, this New Testament book of the apostle Paul is
structured as a great legal argument. The apostle Paul states that the good
news of the Gospel is the power of God at work, saving everyone who
believesthe Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God
makes us right in His sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith.
3

The apostle Paul proclaims that the Gospel is the power of God to bring about
salvation to everyone who believes from start to finish. This is belief without
anything morenot circumcision and not the law. The only requirement is
faith and faith alone! Furthermore, the Gospel is a declaration of Gods
righteousness. One aspect of Gods righteousness is Gods justice and mercy.
The basic meaning of righteousness is moral uprightnessdoing good deeds
from a pure heart and pure motives, which is only possible through faith. So

1
Rom. 3:3031 (New Living Translation).
2
Leon Morris, Epistle to the Romans (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2012), 1.
3
Rom. 1:1617.
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from start to finish, the Christian life is a matter of faith. The power of the
Gospel is faith based upon the faithfulness of God.
As quoted above, Apostle Paul declares that all peoplethe Jew first and
also the Gentileare declared righteous (justified) before God by faith alone,
not the Old Testament law. Concerned Jewish Christians wondered if their
faith in Jesus Christ wiped out Judaism (the Old Testament scriptures) and if
God was no longer working through the Jews.
4
In Romans, the apostle Paul
portrays Jews without faith in Jesus Christ as seeking their own righteousness
through observance of the law.
5
Further, the apostle Paul contrasts the law
with the grace of Jesus Christ.
6
But the most baffling aspect of the apostle
Pauls message is his portrayal of the law as requiring full and perfect
obedience, with no means of atonement for human sins, making it impossible
for sinful humans to fulfill.
7

Many of the apostle Pauls critics accused him of preaching a cheap
gospel, because his teaching appears to eliminate the Old Testament law of
God and circumcision. These critics maintained that the Old Testament law
and circumcision were important and that the apostle Pauls Gospel provided
no incentive for people to live a moral and righteous life. The apostle Paul said,
Absolutely not!
8
When we understand the way of salvation through faith, we

4
Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005).
5
Rom. 9:3010:4.
6
Rom. 10:513.
7
James Ware, Law, Christ, and Covenant: Pauls Theology of the Law in Romans 3:1920, Journal of Theological
Studies 62, Part 2 (October 2011): 514.
8
Ibid.
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understand the Jewish religion better as well as the disciplinary aspect of
salvation.
9

HEART OF THE GOSPEL
The apostle Paul responds to these charges that he has disregarded the
law, beginning in Romans 1:18. First, Apostle Paul reveals that all people (Jews
and Gentiles) are separated from God because of the disease of sin.
10
God had
revealed Himself to the Gentiles in the natural world, yet the Gentiles rejected
Gods revelation and worshipped the created world instead of the creatorthe
true and living God.
11
In Romans 2:1 through Romans 3:20, the apostle Paul
says the Jews are also as equally condemned as the Gentiles, even though the
Jews possessed the law of God. The apostle Paul provided a series of Old
Testament quotes in Romans 3 revealing the Jews failure to keep the law.
12

According to the apostle Paul, possession of the law does not declare
anyone righteousness before God. Only obedience to the law makes a person
righteous.
13
Even the Old Testament prophets repeatedly taught that God has
always wanted our obedience to law revealed as love, justice (fairness), mercy,
forgiveness, and a humble walk with God. This is the whole intention of the
law. If we keep the law, we will walk humbly, justly, and with mercy with

9
Ibid; see also Tit. 2:11-12.
10
Rom. 1:183:20.
11
Rom. 1:1831.
12
Rom. 3:10-18.
13
See 1 Sam. 15:22-23; Isa. 1:11-15; Jer. 7:21-23; Am. 5:21-24; Mic. 6:6-8.
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God.
14
True prophets of God proclaimed repeatedly that God wanted our
genuine and wholehearted love, alliance, and devotion to Him and not the
peoples empty, dishonest, and half-hearted worship.
15
Even more, God wants
our good deeds of love, kindness, patience, forgiveness, and mercy towards
others because these are the very qualities of God Himself. God is
compassionate and gracious . . . slow to anger, abounding in love and
faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness,
rebellion, and sin.
16
Jesus Christ said In the same way, let your good deeds
shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
17

The apostle Paul goes on to explain that a real Jew (one who pleases God)
is not someone who has been circumcised (a Jew outwardly) but someone
whose heart is right with God and who wholeheartedly obeys Him (a Jew
inwardly).
18
The apostle Paul makes it clear that membership into Gods
family is based on internal heart qualities and not external. All whose hearts
are right with God are real Jewsthat is, part of Gods family.
19
God desires
our wholehearted love, faithfulness and obedience to Him as the true and
living.
20


14
See Mic. 6:68.
15
See Isa. 1:10-20; Isa. 66:3; Jer. 4:4; Jer. 6:20; Jer. 7:22-23; Hos. 6:6.
16
Ex. 34:6-7 (New International Version).
17
Matt. 5:16 (New Living Translation).
18
See Rom. 2:2529 (Life Application Study Bible).
19
See Gal. 3:7 (LASB).
20
See Deut. 10:16, Jer. 4:4, Jer. 6:10, Jer. 9:26, Cor. 7:19, Col. 2:11 (Zondervan NIV Study Bible).
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The apostle Paul therefore made this assessment of ALL PEOPLE: For all
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
21
In other words, all people
(Jews and Gentiles) are separated from God and can do nothing to bridge the
separation between themselves and God because of their sinful disease. The
apostle Pauls conclusion is sobering and hopeless, yet it is a realistic picture.
Humanitys hopelessness is a universal condition, and there is no human cure
and no self-help book for this deadly sinful disease, which affects all humanity.
In Romans 3:21 through Romans 4:25, the apostle Paul provides a
solution to humanitys sinful disease, and this is called the Good News! Paul
explains how, first of all, God provided healing for human sin by sending His
Son Jesus Christ as the final sacrifice.
22
The apostle Paul declares that Jesus
Christ has paid for the sins of all humanity through Gods salvation, made
possible through Jesus Christs life, death, and resurrection.
23
The apostle Paul
does not explain the mystery of Gods solution through Jesus Christ but simply
states that God has provided a cure for the sinful disease that is present in all
humans.
God has not only provided a cure for the dreadful disease that infects
Jews and Gentiles, but He has also made this gracious cure available to all
people through FAITH ALONE. The apostle Paul uses Father Abraham as an

21
Rom. 3:23 (New International Version).
22
Rom. 3:2130.
23
See Rom. 1:1617.
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example of genuine faith.
24
Abraham is the father of Judaism and the one with
whom God started His redemptive work in Genesis 12. The apostle Paul quotes
Genesis 15:6s declaration that Abraham was made righteous (justified) by God
through his faith. Abraham believed and trusted God; he did not trust in
himself but in God and Gods works alone. The apostle Paul points out that
Abraham was not declared righteous through the law, because the law had not
yet been given. Many Jews believed that the privileges they enjoyed came from
their adherence to the Mosaic law. Yet, the promises given to Abraham
occurred 430 years before the law was given to Moses. God gave His promises
to Abraham, who lived long before Moses ever received the law; therefore
Abraham could not possibly have depended on the law. Instead, Abraham
depended on God this is faith. Faith in Jesus Christ, not anyones set of rules
or laws opens the door to acceptance by God.
25
Gods promises reached full
fulfillment in Jesus Christ, whom the apostle Paul calls Abraham Seed.
26
The
law was never intended to make possible a way to God.
27
Rather, the law was
given to lead us to Christ that people may be declared righteous (justified) by
faith and by convincing us o the impossibility of gaining Gods acceptance on
our own.
28

Also, Abrahams righteousness preceded his circumcision; thus his
righteousness did not depend on this circumcision practice. Genesis 12:13

24
Rom. 4:125.
25
Gal. 2:16; New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
26
Gal.3:16; New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
27
Gal. 3:11, 21.
28
Gal. 3:24; New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
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tells of Gods call to Abraham when he was seventy-five years old, and the
circumcision ceremony was introduced when Abraham was ninety-nine.
29
This
was more than fourteen years after the events in Genesis 12. The conclusion is
obvious: circumcision had nothing to do with his justification (righteousness).
30

The apostle Paul stated that Abraham was made righteous before God through
his faith (trust) alone in God and Gods promises. Even more, the apostle Paul
declares that Abrahams true descendants are those made righteous by faith
alone, and that faith is in Jesus Christs saving actions.
31
For the apostle Paul,
belief in Jesus Christ means trusting in Jesus Christ to reconcile us to God
not trusting in ourselves or our morality or our rituals. So, Abraham is the
spiritual father of those who have faith but have not been circumcised. They
are counted as righteous because of their faith. And Abraham is also the
spiritual father of those who have been circumcised, but only if they have the
same kind of faith Abraham had before he was circumcised.
32
Abraham is the
father of the Jewish nation physically, but he also is the father of all believers
spiritually.
33

Therefore, all people need healing from sin and cannot help themselves.
God has sent a cure through Jesus Christ, whose sacrificial death was the final
payment for human sins. Miraculously, this lifesaving work of Jesus Christ is
accessible (available) to ALL people through faith alone. The reception of Jesus

29
Gen. 17:114, 2327 (Life Application Study Bible).
30
Wiersbe, Bible Exposition Commentary.
31
Rom. 4:1112.
32
Ibid.
33
Rom. 4:1617. See also Matt. 3:79.
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Christs life-saving work is not based on wealth, ethnicity, intelligence, gender,
or status but only on faith alone. Therefore, all people can experience Gods
gracious cure for sin without exclusion, as the only requirement is faith in
Gods salvation provided through Jesus Christs life, death, and resurrection.
The apostle Paul goes on to describe in Romans chapters five through
eight what happens when a person has been made righteous through faith in
Jesus Christ. First, the apostle Paul states that through faith in Jesus Christs
life, death, and resurrection, God removes the penalty of sin from a persons
life and also equally frees that same person from the power of sin. Therefore,
one is not only declared righteous (justified) by God through faith; one is also
given a new life for Gods glory and honora fresh start and a new heart.
34

Even more, a believer has access to God, lives a new life characterized by hope,
and receives reconciliation with the true and living God.
35
Through faith in
Jesus Christs life, death, and resurrection, a believer is united or reconciled
with Jesus Christ. In other words, believers are in Christ.
36
True believers
have died with Jesus Christ and have been raised to a new life in union with
him.
37
Furthermore, through our faith in Jesus Christ, a believer receives the
person of the Spirit, which comes to live within the believers heart. However,
the apostle Paul also states that a believer in Jesus Christ continues to
struggle with their sinful nature (the flesh). The apostle Paul states even he

34
See 2 Cor. 5:17.
35
Rom. 5:111. See also Rom. 8:1923, Eph. 2:810.
36
Rom. 6:11. See also Gal. 5:24, Eph. 1:1, Phil. 2:1.
37
Rom. 6:710, 7:6. See also Gal. 2:20.
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struggled with sin within his natural body.
38
Therefore, even though a believer
has a new nature through faith alone in Jesus Christ, a believers former self is
still present. Essentially, the apostle Paul provides the bad news of the
Gospel: Christian faith is also a life of struggle. Nevertheless, as the apostle
Paul states in Romans 8, the believer now has the Holy Spirit living inside the
believers heart, which enables and empowers all genuine believers to live out
this new life in Jesus Christ with victory! So now there is no condemnation for
those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to Him, the power
of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to
death.
39
We are more than conquerors through Christ Jesus.
40

CONTINUED NEED FOR THE LAW
Now that believers have faith and depend upon Jesus Christs finished
work to make them righteous (justified) before God, why do people need the
Ten Commandments and the Mosaic law? What is the function of the law, and
what is the role of the law for believers in Jesus Christ?
As mentioned earlier, the apostle Pauls preaching aroused enemies who
accused him of preaching a cheap gospel. Through his message, the apostle
Paul affirms that humans are not declared righteous and reconciled to God by
obedience to the law. In fact, the apostle Paul states that the law was no longer
essential to reconciliation with God or to salvation. So, many Jews and Jewish

38
Rom. 7:725.
39
Rom. 8:1-2 (New Living Translation).
40
Rom. 8:37.
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Christians had a dim view of the apostle Paul. According to the apostle Pauls
enemies, a person can believe in Jesus Christ and not have to obey the law.
These enemies believed the apostle Pauls gospel placed no moral demand on
people.
For the Jewish nation, the law was the greatest good and the mark of
Gods kindness to His people.
41
God had given only the Jews the law of Moses.
As such, to the Jewish people, the law was not restrictive or negative but a gift
or privilege from God.
42
They studied the law with the greatest diligence,
regarding even the minutest detail as important.
43
Even in Psalm 119, the law
is celebrated and rejoiced, because these were specific commandments with
which the Jews could worship God. God holy law is the only guaranteed guide
for living a pure life. So, the Jewish nation believed that God had made the
Jews into a special people and that God had given them the law to show their
specialness and to honor Him.
Sadly, the Jewish people tried to be made righteous with God by obeying
the law, not through faith in God alone. In order to be saved by the law, the
apostle Paul stated a person would have to live a perfect life, not sinning
once.
44
Rather than living by faith in God, the Jews established many customs
and traditions in addition to Gods law to try to make themselves righteous in

41
Morris, 269.
42
Rom. 9:4.
43
Morris, 269.
44
Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005).
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Gods sight.
45
But human effort can never substitute the righteousness God
offers everyone graciously by faith.
46

To respond to his many Jewish critics, the apostle Paul notes that the
law is the perfect standard of God. The law reveals the righteousness of God,
because the law is holy and just and good.
47
God is righteous, and the law is
an expression of Gods righteousness and is intrinsically good.
48
Sin, not the
law, produced death. The law shows us humans that we are helplessly under
the control of sin and points us to Jesus Christ, the only One who can help
us.
49
In addition, the law acts as a mirror that makes people conscious of their
sins and their need for Gods salvation through Jesus Christs life, death, and
resurrection.
50
The apostle Paul asserts, For no one can ever be made right
with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how
sinful we are.
51
In other words, the purpose of the law was to bring conviction
and prove guilt, not human justification (righteousness). The law never justified
anyone.
52
Most important, the law gives witness to Jesus Christ. The Old
Testaments sacrifices, prophecies, and the great Gospel Scriptures (such as
Isaiah 53) all bore witness to this truth of Jesus Christs salvation.

45
Ibid. Rom. 10:35.
46
Ibid. Rom 4:125.
47
Rom. 7:12.
48
King James Version Study Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997).
49
Ibid.; Rom. 3:20.
50
Warren Wiersbe, With the Word Bible Commentary (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Pub., 1997).
51
Rom. 3:20 (NLT).
52
King James Version Study Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997).
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According to the apostle Paul, the law excites passions and increased
sin.
53
There are four ways to interpret this statement. First, the law created evil
forbidden fruits, or the forbidden fruit syndrome. In other words, the law
made people want to sin. Second, the law gave people a false sense of security
via giving them a checklist for righteousness. That is, people believed they were
made right with God because they had checked all the boxes of the law. This
understanding could have been used by the Pharisees in apostle Pauls day.
The law became a means of false security. Third, the law brought a new
understanding to sin. As mentioned earlier, the law acted as a mirror exposing
Gods requirements and peoples sins, making people realize they did not meet
Gods righteous standards. Fourth, the law intensified the seriousness of sin.
The law revealed that sin is outright rebellion against God.
In essence, the apostle Paul concludes that the law does not make people
better but makes people worse. Yet, sin and not the law were to blame. Gods
law is holy but the law simply does not have the power to make people
righteous before God.
54
The law cannot deliver a person who is struggling
against sin. While the law can enlighten a persons conscience, the law is
powerless to produce holiness of life.
55
The fault is not with the law of God
because the law of God is spiritual
56
. The fault is with the law of sin in human
fleshthe indwelling corruption and wickedness of human nature which rebels

53
Rom. 5:20-21.
54
Rom. 7:7; Spirit Filled Life Study Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991).
55
Rom. 7:7-25; Ibid.
56
Rom. 7:14.
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against Gods laws.
57
Throughout the Christian life, a conflict goes on between
the new nature and the old nature. But there is a way to victory: Jesus Christ
frees us to live in the controlling power of the Holy Spirit, who is life-giving.
58

DEFINITION OF THE LAW
Next, the apostle Pauls discussion of law raises a real interpretative
issue about the definition of law. There is no single definition of law according
to the apostle Paul, as revealed in his many New Testament letters. The apostle
Paul never defines law in his many letters and he uses the word law in
several different ways in Romans. Sometimes, the apostle Paul refers to the law
of Moses (e.g., Romans 3:21), the Old Testament as a whole (e.g., Romans 3:19)
while at other times he refers to the principle of sin (e.g., Romans 3:27;
Romans 5:13), but he is still using law.
Particularly in Romans, the apostle Paul declares that the principle or
law of sin was at work in the world even before the law of Moses. Since the law
of Moses exposed the sins of humankind, we know people did not start sinning
when the law of Moses was delivered. The condition of sinfulness goes back to
Adam and Eve, when they both broke Gods single commandment and rebelled
against God by becoming their own gods.
59
In fact, selfishness was the essence
of Adam and Eves sin, because they wanted to be their own gods and be in

57
See Rom. 7: 14, 17, 18, 20, 21, 23.
58
Rom. 7:25-8:11.
59
Gen. 2:1517. See also Gen. 3:16.
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control of their lives without God.
60
Nevertheless, when the law came along, it
made human sin even worse, because the holy law makes humans aware of
their utter sinfulness.
The interpretive issue centers on whether the apostle Paul confines the
law to the written law of Moses. Obviously, the Old Testament law is the law of
Moses as stated in the first five books of the Old Testament, the Ten
Commandments, and the covenant law. But in the first century, the Pharisees
definition of law additionally included its oral interpretation, also called the
traditions of the elders or oral Torah. These interpretations were clarifications
of the law made by the elders in specific situations. Thus, an entire work on
the interpretation of the law developedoral interpretations. So, the law in
the first century was both the oral Torah and the written Torah (the law of
Moses). Jesus Christ never violated the written law, but Jesus did violate the
oral interpretations of the Law (the traditions of the elders).
THE ROLE OF THE LAW
Regardless of how the apostle Paul defines law, what role does the law
have in Gods redemptive plan for all humanity? At Romans 6:14, the apostle
Paul states: Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the
requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of Gods grace.
61

Sadly, some believed that no matter how great our sin, Gods grace is greater

60
Gen. 3:1-7.
61
Rom. 6:14 (New Living Translation).
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than all our sins. In fact, the apostle Pauls enemies argued people can sin
boldly and continually because Gods grace will always be available, despite
their sinful and wicked lifestyle. The apostle Paul was horror-struck and
disgusted at the mere suggestion of continuing in sin and wickedness once we
have experienced Gods grace through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.
62
The
apostle Paul strongly rejects that believers can now throw morality and
goodness to the wind and live lives without moral restraint and ethics. To the
contrary, believers exchange sin for righteousness as their master.
63
According
to the apostle Paul, believers are free from your slavery to sin, and become
slaves to righteous living.
64
Slavery to God produces holiness and eternal life.
65

True believers are set apart from the practice of sin and set apart to the
practice of righteousness.
66

In Romans 7:16, the apostle Paul further clarifies the role of the law in
the lives of believers in Jesus Christ. The law only rules over a person while
that person is alive. So, the law is a temporary fix or a bandage solution. The
apostle Paul uses the analogy of marriage to illustrate our relationship to the
law: a woman is bound to her husband as long as her husband is alive. Once a
wifes spouse dies, she is no longer bound by that marriage. Only death breaks
the marital union.
67
So the apostle Paul is making the point that the law in and

62
Rom. 6:1-2.
63
Rom. 6:15-23.
64
Rom. 6:18.
65
Rom. 6:22.
66
King James Version Study Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997).
67
Ibid.
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of itself is and has always been only a temporary measure, just as in the case
of marriage.
In Romans 7:4, the apostle Paul declares that believers in Jesus Christs
finished work have been raised to new life. Through a persons genuine faith in
Jesus Christ, a believer is now freed from the law,
68
but joined to Jesus Christ
to bear fruit unto God.
69
Believers in Jesus Christ died with Christ in order
that they may bear fruit to God. Thus, the apostle Pauls has changed living by
the law to bearing holy fruit for God (e.g., love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against
these things!).
70

Fruit is the natural result of a tree that is alive because dead trees do not
bear fruit. In fact, we know a trees health and life by looking at the trees fruit.
Every tree that is alive will produce fruit! As Jesus Christ explained on the
Sermon on the Mount, a good tree produces good fruit while a bad tree
produces bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree
cannot produce good fruit.
71

In Romans 7, the apostle Paul discusses the natural lifestyle that bears
fruit versus a life lived by the law. According to the apostle Paul, a believers
new life in Jesus Christ is like a living tree that continually offers good fruit to
God (e.g., love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

68
Rom. 6:15.
69
King James Version Study Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997).
70
Gal. 5:22-23 (New Living Translation).
71
Matt. 7:17-20 (New Living Translation).
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gentleness, and self-control). Therefore, the apostle Paul is not preaching a
cheap gospel. According to the apostle Paul, we are saved from condemnation
and judgment so we can become a new person that bears good and holy fruit to
God. Thus, the apostle Pauls Gospel does not lead to an immoral and sinful
lifestyle but a life oriented toward God and holy fruit.
In Romans 7, the apostle Paul explains the metaphor of fruit as the
natural extension of the life of a vine or tree. Once a believer gives up all
attempts to become righteous before God by keeping the law (which is what the
Jews did in the first century) and wholeheartedly depends on Jesus Christ,
Gods Holy Spirit does something amazing in the believers life. A believers total
dependence on Gods salvation through Jesus Christs life, death, and
resurrection reconciles us to God, and Gods Holy Spirit comes to live within a
believers life. The apostle Paul makes it unmistakably clear that the Spirit of
God lives in every true believer.
72
Believers are indwelt by the life-giving Spirit
as a result of their righteous.
73
Through Gods Holy Spirit, a believer naturally
begins to live up to the requirements of the law. In other words, Gods Holy
Spirit empowers and lives within the believer not only to live up to the letter of
the law but more importantly to fulfill the intention and purpose of law. God
requires people to be good and loving, as the law stipulates, and the Holy Spirit
gives believers the internal power to meet Gods intentions of the law.

72
Zondervan NIV Study Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008).
73
Ibid.
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According to apostle Paul through our genuine faith in Jesus Christ, God
sends true believers the Holy Spirit
74
. The moment one believes from the heart
that Jesus is the Messiah (Christ); one also receives the Holy Spirit. The
indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the unmistakable evidence of true salvation.
75

The apostle Paul clearly taught in both Romans and Galatians that one
receives the Holy Spirit by faith in Jesus Christ.
76
The Holy Spirit is the Author
of a believers new birth.
77
The Holy Spirit marks the new beginning of a
believers life. Believers cannot belong to Jesus Christ without His Spirit
78
;
cannot be united to Jesus Christ without His Spirit
79
; cannot be adopted as
Gods children without the Holy Spirit
80
; and cannot be in the body of Jesus
Christ except by baptism in the Spirit.
81
The apostle Paul stressed that just as
one begins the Christian life in the power of the Holy Spirit, so one must grow
by the Holy Spirit's power. The Holy Spirit is the indwelling power of a believers
new and righteous lives because the Holy Spirit strengthens believers to live
righteous lives and convicts the believer of sin.
82
Even more, the Holy Spirit is
the fresh air of heaven living within the lives of believers in Jesus Christ.
83
In
fact, the Holy Spirit begins a lifelong process of change as believers become

74
Gal. 3:2, 5; see also Acts 2:1-4.
75
See Rom. 8:9; I Cor. 3:16; I Cor. 6:1920.
76
See Rom. 5:5; Rom. 8; Gal. 3:2, 5.
77
See John 3:5; see also 2 Cor. 5:17.
78
Rom. 8:9.
79
1 Cor. 6:17.
80
Rom. 8:14-17; Gal. 4:6-7.
81
1 Cor. 12:13; see also Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005).
82
John 16:8.
83
New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
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more like Jesus Christ
84
. Gods Holy Spirit gives genuine believers in Jesus
Christ the power and strength to live for God and this power comes through
our faith in Gods salvation in Jesus Christs life, death and resurrection.
85
The
Holy Spirit is the power of God!
Amazingly during His earthly life and ministry, Jesus Christ still
recognized His dependence upon the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
86
So intimate
was the relationship between Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit that in the New
Testament He is viewed as endued with the power of the Holy Spirit. For
example, the New Testament recognizes the ministry of the Holy Spirit in Jesus
Christs miraculous birth
87
, physical growth,
88
baptism,
89
wilderness
temptation,
90
ministry,
91
miracles,
92
death,
93
resurrection,
94
and glorification.
95

Jesus Christ recognized His need to have such an intimate and personal
relationship with the Holy Spirit, which in turn emphasizes the believers
continual need to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
96

Although Jesus Christ Himself departed from earth, God becomes
present in every true believer, making His activity in the world more

84
Gal. 3:3; Phil. 1:6; see also Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005).
85
Rom. 1:16-17.
86
King James Version Study Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997).
87
Matt. 1:18.
88
Luke 2:40, 52
89
Luke 3:21-22.
90
Matt. 4:12; Mark 1:14; Luke 4:14.
91
Luke 4:18-19.
92
Matt. 12:28.
93
Heb. 9:14.
94
Rom. 8:11.
95
John 16:14.
96
Eph. 5:18; see also John 16:8.
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widespread.
97
Throughout the Holy Bible, the Holy Spirit was no vague mist
but a living Person, who spoke, guided in decisions, and fueled true believers
with the energy of faith.
98
Therefore, holy fruit is always the natural result of
God living within a believer through His Holy Spirit. The law can change our
external actions but not our hearts! The Holy Spirit empowers believers to live
by the letter and the spirit of the law. In other words, believers now do good
deeds because they have an internal heart desire to do so through Gods Holy
Spirit living within their hearts giving the believer power to live righteous and
moral lives.
Because believers have died with Jesus Christ, the law can no longer
condemn them. True believers in Jesus Christ are dead to sin and crucified
with Christ.
99
But believers are not only dead to sin; they are also alive and
united in Jesus Christ as a new person to produce good fruit.
100
Believers rose
again when Jesus Christ was resurrected, and, as new people, believers
belong to Jesus Christ.
101
Even more through this death, a new life begins
within a believer with a new mind-set now centered on pleasing God and not
ones own personal (selfish) gratification. Now, God is at the center of a
believers life as a believer is empowered by the Holy Spirit to live holy,
righteous lives and the intention of the law.
102
A believer serves God, not in the

97
New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
98
Ibid.
99
See Rom. 6:2-7, Gal. 2:20.
100
See Rom. 6:5; 2 Cor. 5:17; Tit 2:14; 1 Pet. 2:9.
101
Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005).
102
Ibid.
22 | P a g e

old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Holy
Spirit and producing good fruit.
103
The Holy Spirit enables believers to produce
good fruit for God. Believers now serve God not by obeying a set of rules, but
out of renewed hearts and minds that overflow with wholehearted love for
God.
104

Sadly, the problem with the law was that people continually looked for
ways to get around the laws intention. In other words, they would live by the
letter of the law but not according to the laws true and good intention. Jesus
Christ gave an example of this lifestyle in Mark 7:913, describing how people
would sidestep Gods law of providing for their elderly parents in order to hold
onto their own selfish traditions.
105
In fact, Jesus Christ also used the same
image of fruit on the Sermon on the Mount while discussing false prophets.
106

These false prophets were motivated by personal money, fame, or power while
minimizing Jesus Christ and His glory.
107

Amazingly, genuine faith in the redemptive work of Jesus Christs life,
death, and resurrection touches the heart, which the law can never do. In the
book of Romans, the apostle Paul reveals that the law is powerless to save
people. All people are condemned by the law and no one can live up to the
righteous standards of the law without help from Gods Holy Spirit. No matter
who we are, only faith in Jesus Christ can set us free from condemnation and

103
Rom 7:6.
104
Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005).
105
Exod. 20:12, the Fifth Commandment.
106
See Matt. 7:1520.
107
Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005).
23 | P a g e

give new life and empowerment to live righteous lives. According to the apostle
Paul, sin used the law, which led to our pride. However, the apostle Paul
declares, believers are enabled to follow the law through their wholehearted
faith in God and the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ. As believers live by
faith, believers naturally live according to the lawa process called
sanctification. Sanctification is the process of becoming a saint. Through the
Holy Spirit living within a believers heart, believers can become righteous as a
natural progression of the presence of the Holy Spirit.
The apostle Paul explains in Romans 7:16 that the spirit of the law of
God is eternal and not temporary. Like Jesus Christs Sermon on the Mount,
the apostle Paul elevates the law to a level that even the Pharisees could not
live up to. Instead of attempting righteousness by living the law to the letter, a
person can achieve reconciliation to God through genuine faith. Now, a believer
naturally starts to live according to the intention of the law. Jesus Christ
taught the whole body of law (613 laws) can be reduced two commandments:
love God and love your neighbor.
108
In that sense, Jesus Christs two
commandments are the eternal purpose of the entire Old Testament law as
outlined in Micah 6:6-8. Love is the heart and summary of the entire Holy Bible
Old Testament and New Testament.
109
Jesus Christs teaching in Matthew 23
illustrates this principle perfectly. What sorrow awaits you teachers of
religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even

108
Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27; cf. Deut. 6:4-6; Lev. 19:18.
109
See also Rom. 13:9; Gal 5:14; Jam 2:8.
24 | P a g e

the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important
aspects of the lawjustice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not
neglect the more important things.
110
Genuine love is patient and kind. . . .
not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is
not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about
injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never
loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
111

In the book of Romans, the apostle Paul uses the word servant in
referring to believers, which is a synonym for slave (doulus). The apostle Paul
sets clear demands for his Christian readers.
112
Nevertheless, there is tension
in the apostle Pauls phrase, slaves of righteousness as well as the phrase,
slaves of sins that the apostle Paul references in Romans 6:18. There is a
sense that righteous living is responding to a demand that is made upon
believers, but Christian living is also a natural outgrowth of living that God has
given to us. For the apostle Paul, to be a slave of righteousness is both a heart
matter and legal matter. Righteousness is a byproduct of the life
wholeheartedly devoted to God. Believers genuine faith in Gods salvation
through Jesus Christ allows them to become slaves of righteousness.
113

Humanly speaking, slaves of righteousness is a contradiction of terms.
However, a believers servitude to God through the spirit of the law leads the

110
Matt. 23:23 (New Living Translation).
111
1 Cor. 13:4-7 (New Living Translation).
112
Rom. 6:12.
113
Rom. 6:15, 18.
25 | P a g e

believer to live up naturally to the laws intentions. According to the apostle
Paul, genuine faith produces a new orientation. In other words, genuine faith
creates a new set of values with a heart, desire, and love to please God and no
requirement to please God according to the law.
114
The true and living God
becomes a believers master.
115
In essence, the apostle Paul denies that
Christian faith causes one to live carelessly and selfishly; rather, faith gives one
the heart and desire to live a moral and good life for Gods glory.
116

In summary, Romans 7 is the apostle Pauls explanation of the laws role
in a believers life. Through faith in God, a believer is reconciled to God,
allowing Gods Holy Spirit to live within a believers heart, which gives the
believer a natural inclination to fulfill the intention and spirit of the law. Keep
in mind that the key statement occurs in Romans 7:14, for we know that the
law is spiritual. No human can obey the law entirely, because all humans
Jews and Gentilesare sinners.
117
Jesus Christ uses Corban in in the New
Testament as a way people used to get around the Law.
The Apostle Paul never stated that the law is sin. However, as previously
discussed, a believer would not have knowledge of sin without Gods law. The
law acts as a mirror revealing a persons sinfulness and the seriousness of sin.
To illustrate this point, the apostle Paul explains how coveting, as a sin of the
heart, can only be revealed through the law. The apostle Paul uses the phrase

114
See Deut. 6:5, Matt. 22:37, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:27.
115
Rom. 6:1618. See also Matt. 6:24.
116
See Rom. 1215.
117
See Rom. 1:183:20.
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home base to describe sin in Romans 7:8, showing how sin makes an internal
base of operations to create all kinds of lust. Apart from the law, which exposes
our lusts and other sins, we would never know our deepest hearts desires as
well as our actions. As stated earlier, the law does not give a person the
capacity to live up to Gods expectationsonly the Holy Spirit can do that. The
law, therefore, is holy, righteous, and good in its expression of Gods intentions.
In essence, Romans 7 is the apostle Pauls version of Jesus Christs
Sermon on the Mount and expands on Jesus Christs relationship to the law.
The apostle Paul takes Jesus Christs teachings and applies them to
congregational living, particularly in regards to reconciliation to God and
reconciliation with one another. The apostle Paul reveals how Jesus Christ
came not to abandon the law but to make the law more demanding,
concluding, Therefore, there is no condemnation to those in Christ Jesus.
118

In other words, a believer no longer lives a life of self-condemnation, which
faith in Gods salvation (through Jesus Christ) makes possible.
119

In Romans 10, the apostle Paul states, Christ is the end of the law so
that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.
120
This statement
is simple but ambiguous. How is Jesus Christ the end of the law?
Some scholars argue that apostle Paul means that in Jesus Christ we see
the perfect fulfillment of the law, because Jesus Christ lived up to the purpose

118
Rom. 8:1.
119
See Rom. 8:111.
120
Rom. 10:4 (NIV).
27 | P a g e

and goal of the law perfectly.
121
Jesus Christ says, Do not think that I have
come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but
to fulfill them.
122
In this respect, Jesus Christ came to fulfill the law and thus
gives the law validity.
123
Other scholars argue that while the Jews tried to earn
their righteousness only by keeping the law to letter, Jesus Christ also obeyed
the spirit of the law. Therefore, Jesus Christ is the end of the law in the sense
that He has fulfilled the law.
124
On the other hand, some scholars argue that
Jesus Christ brought an end to the law because Jesus Christs advent or
arrival to earth brought the law to humans, and the law has no more validity
after Jesus Christ arrived. This interpretation is not likely accurate, because
the apostle Paul continued to follow the law of God even after his Damascus
Road experience with the risen Jesus Christ. So, it is highly unlikely that the
apostle Paul interpreted the law this way.
The Greek word telos can mean termination and cessation as well as
goal, culmination, and fulfillment. The apostle Pauls use of this term in
Romans 4 is therefore ambiguous, as it conveys the dual meaning that Jesus
Christ is both the goal/fulfillment of the law and the laws termination.
125
Most
scholars believe that Jesus Christ is the goal, culmination, and fulfillment of
the law.
126
I concur that Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the law in the sense

121
Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005). See also Matt. 5:17.
122
Matt. 5:17 (NIV).
123
KJV Bible Commentary (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1994).
124
Life Application Study Bible (Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005).
125
Ira Jolivet, Christ the TELOS in Romans 10:4 as Both Fulfillment and Termination of the Law, Restoration
Quarterly 51, no. 1 (January 2009): 30.
126
Zondervan NIV Study Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008).
28 | P a g e

that He brought the law to completion by obeying its demands and fulfilling its
prophecies.
127
Furthermore, Jesus Christ fulfilled the law in the sense that He
revealed the laws true meaning,
128
as He emphasized the spirit of the law and
not the mere, external acknowledgement of and obedience to the law.
129

The spirit of the law is love.
130
Love captures the ENTIRE law.
131

According to apostle Paul, love fulfills Gods righteous requirements.
132
If you
love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of Gods law. For the
commandments say, You must not commit adultery. You must not murder.
You must not steal. You must not covet. Theseand other such
commandmentsare summed up in this one commandment: Love your
neighbor as yourself. Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the
requirements of Gods law.
133
To maintain a close personal relationship with
God, one needs true love.
134
The Old Testament repeatedly speaks of Gods love
for His people.
135
God loves us with no strings attached. In return, God asks for
obedience based on love, not on a sense of duty.
136
The Old Testament
prophets told the people to love God and cling to Him.
137
God wants not just an

127
Ibid. See also Matt. 5:17.
128
Ibid.
129
Ibid.
130
New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
131
E.g., see Deut. 6:4-5; Lev. 19:18; Matt. 22:34-40; Mark 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-28; John 13:34-35; John 15:12; Gal.
5:13-14; 1 Pet. 1:22; 1 John 4:7-8.
132
See Rom. 13:8-14.
133
Romans 13:8-10 (New Living Translation).
134
New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
135
E.g., see Deut. 4:37; Deut. 7:7-8; Deut. 10:15; Deut. 23:5.
136
New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
137
E.g., see Isa. 58:6-9; Ezek. 18; Micah 6:6-8; Hos. 6:6; Amos 2:4; Amos 5:21-24
29 | P a g e

outward conformity, but an obedience that comes from the heart.
138

Importantly, living a life a love loving God and loving our neighbors leads to
a life of happiness. The prophet Moses stated: Be careful to obey all my
commands, so that all will go well with you and your children after you,
because you will be doing what is good and pleasing to the Lord your God.
139

Moreover, the prophet Moses stated: And the Lord our God commanded us to
obey all these decrees and to fear Him so He can continue to bless us and
preserve our lives . . . . For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all
the commands the Lord our God has given us.
140
In other words, the laws
were given for our own good and for our blessings.
141

When considering the entire teachings of the book of Romans, the
apostle Paul probably means that, because of the coming of Jesus Christ,
people do not have to make themselves righteous through the law.
142
The
coming (advent) of Jesus Christ brought attempts to do so to a close.
143
The
apostle Paul probably does not mean in Romans 10:4 that Jesus Christs
arrival abolished the law.
144
Indeed, the apostle Paul states throughout the
book of Romans that he is establishing the law and that the law has value for
all people.
145
According to the apostle Paul, the law has value because it reveals
the mind of God and the intentions of God. In addition, the apostle Paul never

138
E.g., see Jer. 4:4; see also Isa. 1:10-20; Isa. 66:3; Jer. 6:20; Jer. 7:22-23; Hos. 6:6; Amos 5:21; Micah 6:6-8
139
Deut. 12:28 (New Living Translation).
140
Deut. 6:24-25 (New Living Translation).
141
Psalm 119:97-106; New Student Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992).
142
See Rom. 6:14, Rom. 7:4, Eph. 2:15.
143
Morris, 381.
144
See Rom. 7:7.
145
See Rom. 5:2021, Rom. 8:34, Rom. 13:910, Gal. 3:2429, 1 Tim. 1:8.
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preaches in the book of Romans that there is no validity to the law. Instead, the
apostle Paul reveals that justification (righteousness) comes to everyone who
believes in Jesus Christ, which he repeats throughout Romans.
146

According to the apostle Paul, faith obtains righteousness and
salvation.
147
God requires us to wholeheartedly seek and love Him as the true
and living God.
148
Sadly, some Jews had established many rituals, customs,
and traditions in addition to Gods law to try to make themselves righteous in
Gods sight. But human works, no matter how sincere, can never be a
substitute for the righteousness God freely gives to everyone by faith alone.
Through the power of the Holy Spirit living within a believer, the righteousness
of the law is fulfilled.
149
Gods Holy Spirit gives believers the power and
strength to live for God. This power is derived by our faith in Gods salvation,
which is made possible through Jesus Christs life, death, and resurrection.
150

In summary, the apostle Paul teaches the importance of faith. The
Gospel from start to finish is a matter of faith! The Christian life is not started
by human effort and the Christian life is not continued by human effort.
Through faith in Gods salvation through Jesus Christs life, death, and
resurrection, a person is declared righteous and reconciled to God. Amazingly,
a person begins to naturally live by both the letter of the law and the true

146
Rom. 1:1617, 3:214:25.
147
Morris, 381.
148
Rom. 10:13, Joel 2:32, Acts 2:21.
149
Wiersbe, Bible Exposition Commentary. See Rom. 8:4.
150
Rom. 1:1617.
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intentions (spirit) of the law as Jesus Christ displayed during His public
ministry.
32 | P a g e

References
KJV Bible Commentary. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Pub., 1994.
Life Application Study Bible. Carol Streams: Tyndale House Pub., 2005.
New Student Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992.
Spirit Filled Life Study Bible. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991).
Zondervan NIV Study Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008.
Jolivet, Ira. Christ the TELOS in Romans 10:4 as Both Fulfillment and
Termination of the Law. Restoration Quar. 51, no. 1 (January 2009): 30.
Loyd, Melton, New Testament 750. Course, Erskine Theological Seminary,
Columbia, SC, 2014.
Morris, Leon. The Epistle to the Romans. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing
Co., 2012.
Ware, James. Law, Christ, and Covenant: Pauls Theology of the Law in
Romans 3:1920. Journal of Theological Studies 62, October 2011): 514.
Wiersbe, Warren W. Bible Exposition Commentary. Victor Books, 1989.
Wiersbe, Warren W. With the Word Bible Commentary. Nashville: Thomas
Nelson Pub., 1997.