1) Study Romans 7:1-13. What does the term "Law" mean? What does the Law
encompass?
The Mosaic Law is an extensive set of regulations that come directly from God, which is the unique feature of this
law. Through Moses, God taught the Jews that they were to be holy people and set apart from pagan immorality and idolatry. These laws
can be viewed as having three sections: a) commandments that refer to moral laws, b) judgments that refer to social laws, and c)
ordinances that refer to the Tabernacle and worship laws.
2) In Romans 7:1-13, list the verses / phrases associated with the "Law." How do
you reconcile the contradictions? How should Christians view the Law?
(v.1) …, that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives?
(v.4) …, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, that you might be joined to another, to Him
who was raised from the dead,…
(v.5) For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members
of our body to bear fruit for death.
(v.6) But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound,…
(v.7) …Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law:…
(v.12) So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.
The Mosaic Law was not sin, instead the Law taught man what sin was, human behavior that was innately unbecoming for
holiness. When Christ died for man's sins, these moral principles remain as God intended; however, Christians were no longer obligated to
live by the Mosaic Law to atone for their sins.
3) What is the purpose of the Law? Was it meant for salvation? How is this reconciled with Matthew 5:17-18?
The Mosaic Law was for the Jews before Christ. It had two purposes: 1) the Law taught holiness by identifying sin
which by its standard, deterred and condemned. The Law was, in essence, God's code of conduct, and if one had a genuine faith in God and
abided His word, they would be His people (Ex 19:4-6). 2) The Law provided the means by
which one may acceptably atone their sins. This ultimately revealed that man's sinful nature could never, on his own effort, comply with
God's standard. Each sin had to be atoned for over and over with each occurrence. With Christ, God provided the means for a single
everlasting atonement for the complete forgiveness of sin. Jesus Christ brought a new perspective, in lieu of life by the Law, a new life
by the Spirit.
TIP: When reading the Epistles, study one paragraph at a time!
The key to the proper interpretation of the Epistles, within context, is to identify the church problem(s) that Paul is responding to.
However, Paul's letter to the Christian church at Rome is one of the few that is not written in response to a problem in the church.
Romans is a special letter; of all the Epistles, it is most like a theological paper with elaborate and systematic discussion on Christian
doctrine. It is worth noting that Paul's audience is the congregation of Gentile Christians who did not wholeheartedly accept their
minority Jewish Christian members. His letter, with apostolic authority, presents the basic system of salvation and explains the
relationship of Jews and Gentiles in God's plan. Romans, of the literary genre logic, is well known for its doctrinal clarity on
sin, salvation, grace, faith, righteousness, justification, sanctification, redemption, death, and resurrection. If you are interested in
Christian doctrine, this is the one book to study!