September 12, 2026
RELATIONSHIP TO THE LAW
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
“Now, dear brothers and sisters—you who are familiar with the law—don’t you know that the law applies only while a person is living? For example, when a woman marries, the law binds her to her husband as long as he is alive. But if he dies, the laws of marriage no longer apply to her. So while her husband is alive, she would be committing adultery if she married another man. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law and does not commit adultery when she remarries.
So, my dear brothers and sisters, this is the point: You died to the power of the law when you died with Christ. And now you are united with the one who was raised from the dead. As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God. When we were controlled by our old nature, sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death. But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit….
The trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin.”
Romans 7:1–4, 6, 14 NLT
TODAY’S THOUGHT
Paul will tackle a complex topic in this chapter: our relationship to God’s Law.
Human nature naturally swings between two dangerous extremes when it comes to rules and spirituality. Paul dismantles both extremes to show us how to walk in genuine spiritual life.
The Two Dangerous Extremes
Legalism: This is the false belief that we become holy and earn God’s favor by meticulously obeying a list of rules. Legalism measures spirituality by external performative "do’s and don’ts." Its fatal flaw is that it focuses on outward sins rather than the root problem: our internal sin nature. Legalism judges outward actions while ignoring inward motivation.
License ("Cheap Grace"): The opposite extreme is using grace as a free pass to live carelessly. People who embrace license claim, "Since I’m covered by grace, it doesn't matter how I live." But true grace never excuses sin; it transforms our desires so that we want to live in a way that honors God.
Why Did God Give Us the Law?
If the Law cannot save us, why did God give it to us in the first place? Paul outlines four vital functions of the Law:
The Law Reveals Sin: Like a mirror, the Law shows us our dirty faces. It proves that we cannot live righteously through sheer willpower or human intellect alone.
The Law Arouses Sin: Paul notes in 1 Corinthians 15:56 that "the sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law." There is a stubborn streak in human nature that inherently rebels against boundaries:
Tell a child not to go near the water, and they suddenly feel drawn to the bank.
Put up a sign that says, "Don’t Touch: Wet Paint," and our immediate impulse is to tap it with a finger to see if it’s really wet!
The Law Kills: Paul admitted that as a Pharisee, he was educated to believe that keeping the Law was the path to life. But experience taught him that the Law only exposed his guilt and brought spiritual condemnation. There is no life-giving power inside a rulebook.
The Law Shows the Sinfulness of Sin: The Law strips away our excuses. Sin isn't just a minor misstep, a bad habit, or a harmless mistake, it is a cosmic violation of our relationship with a holy Creator.
The Good News: We Have Died to the Law
Here is the glorious liberation of Romans 7: In Christ, you have died to the Law!
Paul uses a marriage analogy to explain this: when a spouse dies, the living partner is legally released from the marriage covenant and free to remarry.
When you died with Christ on the cross, your legal obligation to try to earn righteousness through the Law was buried. You were raised from the dead to be united with Jesus!
You don't abandon the moral holiness of God; rather, you step into a brand-new way of serving Him. You no longer serve out of cold, legalistic duty to the letter of the Law, but in the vibrant, new way of living in the Spirit.
Reflection & Application
Are you slipping into legalism? Are you measuring your standing before God by your performance on a personal checklist, or are you resting in what Christ accomplished for you?
Are you slipping into license? Are there areas in your life where you have treated sin casually under the guise of "grace"?
Are you walking in the Spirit daily? How can you yield your motivations, thoughts, and actions to the Holy Spirit today so that He produces a harvest of good deeds in your life?
TODAY’S PRAYER
Holy Spirit, I need Your constant guidance in my life. Deliver me from the trap of legalism that tries to earn God's favor through human effort and guard my heart against the trap of cheap grace that treats sin lightly.
Thank You that I have died to the old way of rule-keeping and have been raised to walk in newness of life with Jesus. Transform my heart from the inside out so that my desires align with Yours.
Teach me to live daily by the power of Your Spirit—producing a rich harvest of love, holiness, and good deeds for the glory of God. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“Scroll down to share what you feel God is saying based on today’s reading.”
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