‘For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do’ Romans 7:15 (NKJV)
This is such a vivid description of the fight against sin in the life of the believer. Paul goes on to say, ‘If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good’ (v.16). This person has a good heart; he agrees with the law of Yehovah. But this good-hearted believer has a behaviour problem. He knows what he should be doing but, for some reason, he can’t do it. He agrees with Yehovah but ends up doing the very things he hates. Verse 17 uncovers the reason for this behaviour problem: ‘but now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me’. Don?’be confused and think that you actually are sin – you are not! Do these verses say that you are no good, or evil? Absolutely not. You are not sin and you are not a sinner. You are simply a saint struggling with sin, which can cause you to do what you don’t want to do. Thankfully, the story doesn’t end there! Romans 8 goes on to talk about how you have freedom to walk free of sin, through Yeshua’s death on the cross. You are not under condemnation, and you are able to walk in the Ruach, which brings life and Shalom. Remember that you are not a slave to sin – in contrast, the same power, by which Yeshua rose from the dead, now lives in you! Ask Yehovah to help you to understand the magnitude of that truth. You have access to the same power that defeated death, so what needs to change in your life?