[ FOUNDATIONS OF OUR FAITH INDUCTIVE LESSON NINE ABOVE ALL, GRACE Romans 7:1 12 Reflecting We have already observed the straightforward approach Paul takes as he teaches, informs, and exhorts the three-fold audience he is addressing in this letter. The Roman Christian, to be sure, is Paul s main audience but Paul is also addressing the Jew and to some extent the unbeliever. Once again, Paul continues to teach on the subject of sin and righteousness in chapter six, focusing on slavery and how it fits into the day-to-day life of a believer. At the time of this letter reaching the capital of Rome, roughly one-third to one-half of its citizens were slaves. Interestingly, the slaves were not visually apparent for reasons obvious to the citizens and government of Rome. If in some way the slave population had been branded by a physical mark or by different clothing, their sheer numbers would be evident and alarming to the slave owners, because the slaves might be emboldened to rise up against their captors and eventually the Roman Empire. In addition, it is estimated that another third of the population had been slaves at one time. This section of Paul s letter points out an important part of successful Bible study: Paul understood the culture in which the citizens of Rome lived. As students of the Bible, we must look into the culture of those whom God was attempting to reach at that particular time in history. Your Bible handbook and maps are very helpful in the area of your study called the Tool Box. Slavery was a key component in this passage of Paul s writing because of its familiarity to his readers. Paul himself was a Roman citizen and had used this theme of slavery in other letters he wrote to the various church bodies throughout the Middle East. In fact, Paul described himself as a bondservant to the Lord in the first verse of this letter to the Romans. If God were writing to the Christian church in our nation today, what would connect the reader with the subject matter in order to have the most impact? Could it be our political affiliations, or our taxation, or our system of government? The point is this: connect as many people through one aspect of life most commonly shared and you will have an interested reader no matter what side of the issue he is on. As mentioned earlier, slaves were not visibly seen as such but their actions revealed who they were in the eyes of society. The character of many of the Roman slaves who were Christians reflected the mind, heart, and character of Christ as they served not only their masters but more importantly God. The same is true for Christians today we are not branded or clothed as Christians in any particular way, but our actions should reveal to others who we are as we serve God and those within our sphere of influence. Through the sanctification process the content of our character is revealed, reflecting the mind, heart and character of Christ. 1
The big picture Paul was painting is that each man serves as slave, whether serving sin with its alluring lies and inescapable condemnation or as slave to the Righteous One who has rightfully purchased us with His blood on Mt. Calvary. Paul s question to the Romans and to us is: whose slave are you? Memory Verse: Psalm 40: 8 I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart." NKJV Day One Romans 7:1 12 Text: Begin this week s lesson by reading the assigned passage several times. Day Two Inductively Speaking: Webster s College Dictionary defines the word acquisitive this way: Tending or seeking to acquire and own, often greedily. This word is an adjective describing the act of acquiring something for yourself, making it your possession. In this week s reading, look for a short passage that you can acquire, making it your personal possession. An excellent place to start is with the memory verse provided in each week s study. Expand this principal of acquisitively reading by paraphrasing God s Word into your own words, spending time doing a biographical study of a character that interests you in the story, and matching up your own experience with the experience of the character in the passage under study. Romans 7:1 3 (Today s highlighted passage of study) 1 Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? 2 For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. I. Observation: Finding the literal facts or most obvious details of the passage. Hint: Begin observation by asking the questions who, what, where, when, why, and how. Verses 1 3 2
Inductively Speaking: In Biblical times God did not use masses of people to effect His will on mankind but instead used individuals who were shaped by those cultures to further His will. Today, the masses of people who live in China, the Sudan and countless other regions of the world are just that, masses it is the faithful individual in those various cultures who is being used by God to bring the salvation message of the gospel to a dying world. Where are we as individuals in our culture? Are we willing to step out in faith and obedience, to be used as individuals to effect His will on our culture? Remember, in any culture, in times past and in the present, it is the responsibility of each individual believer to influence the culture he lives in by preaching the good news of Jesus Christ. II. Interpretation: Discovering the lessons or meaning of God's instruction to His people. Hint: Try to place yourself with these people, in their circumstances, at this time of Bible history. Verses 1 3 Inductively Speaking: Whatever your pace in God s sanctification process is, it is by grace that He leads and sustains you to your heavenly home. All Christians should consider four things that are beneficial to us on this journey. First, the faith we have in Him motivates us each step of our way towards home. Second, His grace guards our every step. Third, His light shines upon our path as we trust in Him. Finally, His truth cleanses us in His Word. These four things are what we need in our sanctification process as God, His Son and the Holy Spirit guides us to our heavenly home. III. Application: Apply the lesson or lessons you found in the interpretation section in the form of a question you ask yourself. Verses 1 3 Day Three Romans 7: 4 6 (Today s highlighted passage of study) 4 Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. 6 But now we have 3
been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter. I. Observation: Finding the literal facts or most obvious details of the passage. Hint: Begin observation by asking the questions who, what, where, when, why, and how. Verses 4 6 II. Interpretation: Discovering the lessons or meaning of God's instruction to His people. Hint: Try to place yourself with these people, in their circumstances, at this time of Bible history. Verses 4 6 III. Application: Applying the lessons and meaning of God's instructions to His people. Hint: Apply the lesson or lessons you found in the interpretation section in the form of a question. Verses 4 6 Day Four Romans 7:7 12 (Today s highlighted passage of study) 7 What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, "You shall not covet." 8 But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. 9 I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. 11 For sin, taking occasion 4
by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. 12 Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good. I. Observation: Finding the literal facts or most obvious details of the passage. Hint: Begin observation by asking the questions who, what, where, when, why, and how. Verses 7 12 II. Interpretation: Discovering the lessons or meaning of God's instruction to His people. Hint: Try to place yourself with these people, in their circumstances, at this time of Bible history. Verses 7 12 III. Application: Applying the lessons and meaning of God's instructions to His people. Hint: Apply the lesson or lessons you found in the interpretation section in the form of a question. Verses 7 12 Day Five Word Studies: In this portion of the lesson we will take a closer look at one or two key words in the chapter. You will need to have your tools or resources at hand, such as more than one Bible translation, a dictionary or Bible dictionary, concordance, atlas, and 5
encyclopedia. If you don t have all of these, simply use what you do have to enrich your learning. To do some digging on your own, start with your dictionary (or Bible dictionary) and then look up the references to add to your understanding. If you have additional resources, you may want to keep digging. Record these additional notes in the Tool Box section of your study. After you ve completed the investigative process, write a definition in your own words. Your investigation in today s lesson will lay the groundwork for deeper discoveries in subsequent lessons, so be as thorough as you can. Dominion: Romans 7:1 Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? Dictionary definition: What does the Bible have to say? Nehemiah 9:28 Psalm 19:13 1 Peter 4:11 Write your own definition: Memory Verse: Psalm 40:8 I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart." Day Six Summation Sentence: A simple personal statement about what God has shown you from this passage. Toolbox: Use your toolbox or secondary helps to reinforce your observational findings. Study Bible: 6
Bible Concordance: Bible Dictionary: Bible Handbooks: Bible Atlas: Bible Commentary: 2007 Craig L. Thomas. All rights reserved. Express permission granted for use and reproduction by Harvest Christian Fellowship, Riverside, CA. Unless otherwise noted, Scripture are from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. www.harvest.org Prayer Requests: 7
Lecture Notes: 8