If Dependence Is the Goal, Weakness Is an Advantage

June 1, 2018

If Dependence Is the Goal, Weakness Is an Advantage

Romans 7:9-18

Wesley Mercer

Central Truth

Sin is a cunning enemy, but God is an all-powerful ally! Freedom and victory come only through submission and surrender to Him.

9 I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. 10 The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. 11 For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. 12 So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.

13 Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure. 14 For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. 15 For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 17 So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.

Throughout my 20s, I remember constantly wrestling with the tension that seems to be expressed in these verses. For me, it was not a question of knowing right and wrong or even desiring to do right. Time and time again, I remember making the decision to get and stay sober and then ultimately giving in to a stronger urge to get drunk and high. It was a very frustrating and confusing experience.

This was not a season of complete and deliberate rebellion from God. I was regularly attending church and even praying and reading my Bible. I often had Christian friends and family around me who loved me and wanted to see me experience the abundant life that God had waiting for me. But I was powerless over my addictions and compulsive behaviors. James 1:14-15 says, "But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death."

Our culture tells us that our own efforts are enough to achieve an acceptable standard of excellence in basically anything, including morality. For over a decade, I bought this lie and would continually make and then break promises to myself and others with respect to my drinking and drug habits. Jesus tells us something very different from what our culture advises when He says, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Matthew 19:26) By God's grace alone, I have been rescued and redeemed from that darkness, and my life bears fruit when I'm connected to the Source. This truth found in the Scripture is Jesus' words, "I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:5)

Stay vigilant, church! Remain steadfast! There is hope in the Cross and power in Jesus to overcome sin and death. God is good, and His Word can be trusted!

This month's memory verse

16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?

– Romans 6:16

1. What sin struggles or temptations do you find yourself frequently giving in to despite your best efforts to resist?

2. What would it look like to fully surrender those strongholds to Christ and give Him complete control?

3. What steps or measures can you take or put in place today that might remove access to those vices?

4. Is there something positive or productive you can add to your life in place of the habit you need to remove that would honor God and honor others?