The book of Romans part 299;The Mosaic Law
In our study of Romans we are between chapters 7 and 8 where we have taken up some topical studies about the subjects Paul is discussing. Last time we almost finished the doctrine of the Mosaic Law.
When we stopped last time we were noting the Mosaic Law in the Dispensation of the Hypostatic Union.
The Mosaic Law describes the doctrine of the impeccability of Jesus Christ that includes the fact that Jesus was born under the Law, and the fact that He kept the Law perfectly and one of His missions was to fulfill the Law. He had perfect integrity and perfect righteousness without sin. Therefore, He fulfilled the Law in every point so He became the end of the Law for righteousness for all who believe in Him when He died on the cross.
Jesus Christ condemned the legalistic distortions of the Law and the Pharisees who sponsored them in Matt 23.
Jesus Christ fulfilled the Law, Matt 5:17. He fulfilled the spiritual part of the Law by being sinless. He also observed every ritual. Codex one was fulfilled by His impeccability, codex two by the cross, and codex three by His patriotism, Matt 22:21.
Rom 10:4; tells us that Jesus Christ is the end of the Law for all who believe because of His sacrifice on the cross.
In the Gospels, Jesus Christ presents Himself to Israel as their Messiah, the son of David, the legitimate king of Israel. Rom 1:2,4, "Which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures,
v3 concerning His Son , who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh,
v4 who was declared to be the Son of God in an act of power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord."
The first advent of Christ was designed to fulfill the unconditional covenants to Israel but they were not fulfilled because most of the Jewish people rejected Jesus Christ as their Messiah and for the most part they continue in their rejection of Him at the present time.
God's policy for Jesus' earthly kingdom was stated as an amplification of the Mosaic Law where He said his policies described in the Sermon on the Mount would be superior to the Mosaic Law. But when Jesus as the Jew's Messiah was rejected, the Sermon on the Mount is postponed until the Millennium after His second advent.
Some of the mandates that are stated in the Mosaic Law are restated in the epistles to the Church so they are part of God's protocol plan for the Church. Unless a principle of the Sermon on the Mount is specifically restated in the epistles, it is not a part of the Christian way of life during the Church Age.
This brings us to our next topical study, the Doctrine of the Sin Nature.
Biblical documentation of the sin nature is found in Rom 5:12. "Therefore, just as through one man (Adam), sin (the sin nature) entered into the world, and (spiritual) death through (the) sin (nature), so (spiritual) death spread to the entire human race because all sinned (when Adam sinned).
The characteristics of spiritual death include: The status quo of dichotomy in the human race, having only a body and soul but no human spirit at physical birth. Without a human spirit a person is spiritually brain dead so it is impossible for them to have a relationship with God, 1Cor 2:13-24;
Total depravity involves both moral and immoral degeneracy, depending upon the functional trends of a person's sin nature at the time. If a believer's fragmentation from becoming arrogant and staying that way is perpetuated, the believer becomes morally or immorally degenerate just like the unbeliever is.
Total depravity is separation from God in a status of total helplessness to perform any works, sacrifice, or any change of life that can be the basis of establishing a relationship with God.
The only way a person can enter into a relationship with God is to accept the work God has done for the human race and that means that a person must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ to have a relationship with God.
The essence of the old sin nature includes an area of weakness that produces personal sins that eventuate in evil in the form of moral or immoral degeneration, Heb 12:1b;
The sin nature has an area of strength that produces human good that produces moral degeneracy, Isa 64:6; Rom 8:8 and a lust pattern that motivates sin and evil, and lasciviousness that produces immoral degeneracy, Eph 2:3.
After the fall in the Garden of Eden the old sin nature immediately became the source of Adam's trends because after Adam sinned he had spiritual death and with it different tendencies. Gen 3:8,10;
When Adam chose to eat the fruit of the tree instead of obeying God, he surrendered to satan and by default chose satan's policy that immediately established satan as the ruler of the world.
Man's fall resulted in many changes. Man was forced out of the Garden, satan became the ruler of this world, the old sin nature became the ruler of man's body, mankind became spiritually dead, and as a result mankind came under condemnation from God's justice that became mankind's point of reference to God.
The new trend toward sin produced personal sins in the three categories of mental, verbal and overt. A new trend toward human good and evil reproduced satans policy of establishing a new pseudo-millennium on the earth to mitigate its fallen state.
God's judicial imputation of all personal sins to Jesus Christ on the cross, removed personal sins as an issue for mankind except in rebound but the trend toward good and evil remains an issue.
Adam took a perfect soul and, with his negative volition, he revolted against God's authority and thereby created the old sin nature. Adam's volition was perfect; but since he was free he could reject God's authority.
We all have this template. While the soul is not occupied by the sin nature, the soul becomes the battlefield that the sin nature attacks and is often tactically successful.
The influence of the old sin nature on the soul is seen in mental attitude sins and motivations. The condition and status of the body often affects how a person thinks. There is no question that the body affects the soul and the mentality, just as the soul affects the body.
This phenomenon of not only the immaterial influencing the material but also the material influencing the immaterial is noted in the "heart" passages of Jer 17:9; Matt 12:34-35; Matt 15:19; Mark 7:21-23.
In the Bible the old sin nature is described by several different words the most common is the singular of the Greek word "hamartia" that generally refers to the old sin nature, Rom 5:12, 7:14; 1Cor 15:56; 1 John 1:8; but can also refer to Adam's original sin.
When referring to the old sin nature the singular use of "hamartia" is usually preceded with the generic use of the definite article "ho," making it monadic so it specifically describes the principle source of personal sin. The plural of "hamartia" generally refers to personal sins.
Rom 5:12; "Therefore, just as through one man (Adam), sin (the sin nature) entered into the world, and (spiritual) death through sin (the sin nature), so (spiritual) death spread to the entire human race because all sinned (when Adam sinned)."
Rom 7:14; "Certainly, we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of (belonging to the realm of) the flesh (sin nature), sold in bondage to sin (sin nature)." The Mosaic Law is spiritual because it came from God. It is God's establishment mandate for the entire human race.
Another word that is used to describe the old sin nature is "flesh" translated from the Greek word "sarxz." The Greek word "sarxz" means "flesh," and it emphasizes the location of the old sin nature in the genetic cell structure of the biological body. Because the sin nature is related to the biological life, it is called the flesh.
We are sold into bondage to "the flesh" at physical birth, when Adam's original sin is imputed to the old sin nature that was genetically formed at conception.
Gal 5:16, "But I say, walk by means of the Spirit and you will not execute the lusts of the flesh." Eph 2:3; 1 John 2:16; Rom 6:6, 7:14; also mentions the lusts of the flesh;
Another word for the old sin nature is "The old man" translated from "palaios anthropos." This reference to the old sin nature emphasizes the origin of the old sin nature: Adam's original sin is propagated and perpetuated through the twenty-three male chromosomes that fertilize the female ovum at conception. That is why every human being is born spiritually dead with an old sin nature and condemned by God.
Eph 4:22, "With reference to your former lifestyle (self- fragmentation through post-salvation sinning), you yourselves lay aside (through rebound) the old man (sin nature), you who are becoming degenerate on the basis of the lusts of deceit."
Col 3:9."You who are becoming degenerate" refers to being corrupted in polarized fragmentation from the polarized trends of the sin nature. The "lusts of deceit" include power lust, money lust, approbation lust, sexual lust, chemical lust, and emotional lust (fear, worry, anger).
The word "carnal" is translated from the Greek word "sarkinos" that means "fleshly," "of the flesh," or "belonging to the flesh." This refers to the believer under the control of his old sin nature and therefore out of fellowship with God through personal sin that results in being in satan's cosmic system
Rom 7:14; "Certainly, we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of (belonging to the realm of) the flesh (sin nature), sold in bondage to sin (sin nature)."
1Cor 3:1-3; "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual persons (spirit filled believers), but as to belonging to the sin nature believers controlled by the sin nature), as to babes in Christ (childish believers).
v2 I gave you milk, and not solid food (advanced doctrine), for you were not able to receive it; in fact, you are not yet able.
v3 For you are still belonging to the sin nature. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not belonging to the sin nature, and keep walking in conformity with men?"
The Corinthians believers were not able to advance in God's Word of truth because they were under the control of the old sin nature and the sin nature limits the spiritual information that you can properly understand.
The fact that they are still carnal means they don't use rebound to recover fellowship with God through the filling ministry of God the Holy Spirit.
Paul mentions jealousy that is one of the mental attitude sins of arrogance as an example of carnality. The Corinthian believers are therefore "of the sin nature" that means they are carnal, and walking as unbelievers.
Another reference to the sin nature is "our body of sin" in Rom 6:6 emphasizes where the old sin nature resides in the cell structure of the body. Its genetic home is in the biological chromosomes of the cells.
"Corruptible man" refers to the sin nature in Rom 1:23. Corruption refers to the old sin nature and the results of the old sin nature. Man is corrupted physically, spiritually, and therefore morally. "Corruptible seed" in 1Pet 1:23; refers to the transmission of the old sin nature.
There are passages that describe sin, good or evil as coming from the "heart." The heart, or right lobe of the soul is not part of the old sin nature but the old sin nature often gets influence over man's soul by attacking the heart of the soul.
This is the old sin nature influencing thought so that sin, human good and evil are motivated in the thinking by being programmed into the brain. Jer 17:9; Matt 12:34-35; Matt 15:19; Mark 7:21-23.
There are three references to the old sin nature in Rom 6:6. "Knowing this, that our old man (old sin nature) was crucified with Him (retroactive positional truth), that our body of sin (old sin nature) might be rendered powerless, in order that we should no longer be slaves to sin (the old sin nature)."
This verse tells us that we are in slavery to the old sin nature from physical birth until God identifies us with Jesus in retroactive positional truth when we believe in Jesus and are born again.
When the old sin nature gains control of the soul, the heart is often described as "desperately wicked." Jer 17:9, "The heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked."
The Hebrew word "leb" is used for the right lobe of the soul, but here it refers to the right lobe when it is under the influence of the old sin nature's temptations. The sin nature's temptations are directed into the soul and its functions through the heart.
The heart, the right lobe of the soul is the place where sin is defined before volition grabs it and runs with it. All sin originates from your own volition, but temptation is projected into the soul from the sin nature.
This explains Jer 17:9 that relates the right lobe to the old sin nature.
Matt 12:34-35 and 15:19 says the heart is the source of certain sins. This doesn't specifically refer to the right lobe of the soul but as it is related to the old sin nature.
In other words, the sin nature comes from the cell structure of the body and presents a temptation that goes into the right lobe where it is defined in terms of language or emotion.
Once the source, the old sin nature, gains entry to the soul, then the temptation is defined. At this point, you know you are being tempted according the language of your own soul.
Then you face a decision regarding that temptation. Negative volition means you will commit the sin you are tempted with, whether you know it's a sin or not.
Positive volition means you say no to committing that sin, so that the temptation remains a temptation. A temptation can never become a sin until your volition is involved. This is true of all people, normal or abnormal because God holds every person responsible for their sins
Rom 7:14 has two references to the old sin nature. "For we know that the law is spiritual (comes from God who is spiritual, but I am of the flesh (the old sin nature in the physical body), having been sold into bondage to sin (slavery to old sin nature)."