Sin Revealed By the Law
A Sermon on Romans 7:9
Originally preached Oct. 16, 1959
Scripture
9For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.
Sermon Description
Was there ever a time that Paul was without the law? In the sermon on Romans 7:9 titled “Sin Revealed by the Law,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains that Paul is referring to the time in Paul’s life when he was not aware of the law. Before a person knows the law, they are unconscious about their sin. Without the resistance of the law, they would have never understood the power of sin. Paul says “sin sprang to life” and now he has a full understanding of his sinfulness and sin is all the more evident. Previously, a person without the law believes they are alive and free, but with the law they lack old self-assurance and self-reliance. Now with the law, a Christian feels death as they mourn their sin. Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that once again Paul has confirmed that the law can never sanctify or deliver. With the law, there is a complete view of morals and ethics and since God gave the law, Christians now know sin and are without excuse. Those who say that they have no sin are clearly deceiving themselves. Dr. Lloyd-Jones warns that there is no more hopeless statement than for someone to say that they are not a sinner.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle is continuing his argument from the previous verses about the law.
- He is explaining and analyzing the facts he has stated.
- His statement is a personal one about what was once true for him.
- His terminology needs to be carefully analyzed to understand his meaning.
- Without understanding the context, we could draw the wrong conclusions.
- The apostle is showing the difference the coming of the law made to him.
- Before the law came, sin was dead to him and he was alive.
- After the law came, sin revived and he died.
- "Without the law" means apart from the law or in the absence of the law.
- There has never been a time without law, so this is a relative statement.
- As far as his experience, the law was not doing its work in him.
- He felt as if there was no law.
- "When the commandment came" also means in a relative sense. The law had always been there, but it had never come to him in power.
- Though he knew the law, he never understood the spirit of the law.
- The law had never found him, spoken to him, or come with force.
- Before the law came, sin was dead to him. This is a relative statement.
- Sin has always been present, but it seemed dead to him. He was unaware of its power.
- Sin was dormant and he was unaware of it.
- An illustration of a powerful but quiet engine helps understand this. The power is there but unnoticed until acceleration.
- He felt alive without awareness of the power of sin. He was self-satisfied and confident in himself.
- When the commandment came, sin revived and he died.
- Sin sprang to life and became active. It woke up.
- This seems surprising since we would expect the law to slay sin. But it reveals the nature and power of sin.
- The law irritated and aroused sin by prohibition. It put its foot on the accelerator.
- Resistance brings out power. The law provided resistance to bring out the power of sin.
- He realized his weakness, helplessness, and hopelessness. The self-confident man felt dead.
- He became poor in spirit, the opposite of alive. He mourned over his sin.
- He saw he could do nothing in himself. He was weak, helpless, and without strength.
- The law can never justify or sanctify. Only freedom from the law can lead to sanctification.
- The law kills by revealing our hopeless state.
Sermon Q&A
How Does the Law Reveal Sin According to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones?
What is Dr. Lloyd-Jones' main text in this sermon?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the main text for this sermon is Romans 7:8b-9: "For without the law sin was dead. For I was alive without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died."
What state was Paul in before "the commandment came" according to Lloyd-Jones?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that Paul was in a state of self-satisfaction and spiritual blindness before the commandment came. He says, "He was self-satisfied. He was confident. He congratulated himself on the wonderful way in which he was keeping the law. He was full of life and vigor and confidence and self-assurance and power. He was proud of himself." In this state, Paul thought sin was dead and he was alive - he felt morally strong and self-righteous.
How does Lloyd-Jones explain what Paul means by "sin was dead"?
Lloyd-Jones explains that Paul is using a relative statement. Sin wasn't literally dead, as sin has been active in all humanity since the Fall. Rather, sin was "comparatively dead" or dormant in Paul's awareness. Lloyd-Jones illustrates this with the analogy of a powerful car engine running quietly: "Think of a very powerful engine in a motor car... when you're not using it, you can be sitting in a car with a very powerful engine which is going. It's running and you can scarcely hear a sound." Sin was present but not obviously active until the law stirred it up.
What happened when "the commandment came" according to the sermon?
When the commandment came, two things happened: "Sin revived and I died." The law awakened sin to full activity - it "sprang to life" - revealing its true power and nature. Lloyd-Jones explains that the law irritated sin, disturbed it, and by its prohibitions aroused it. At the same time, Paul "died" in the sense that his self-confidence was shattered. He realized his weakness, helplessness, and hopelessness. His self-satisfaction disappeared and he became "poor in spirit."
Why does Lloyd-Jones say the law cannot sanctify us?
Lloyd-Jones explains that the law cannot sanctify us because its effect is actually to stimulate sin rather than eliminate it. He states that "the law can never justify a man, still less sanctify him." Instead of making us holy, the law actually reveals the power of sin within us and our inability to overcome it. The apostle is "setting out to prove that a man can never be sanctified by means of the law." The law makes us aware of our sinfulness and kills our self-righteousness, but cannot deliver us from sin.
What does Lloyd-Jones identify as the most dangerous spiritual state?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones identifies the most dangerous spiritual state as "to feel that we are not sinners and that there is no sin in us." He warns about people who say, "I don't really feel that I'm a sinner. I've always lived a good life and a respectable life." This state is dangerous because it shows that "the commandment hasn't come to you" - the person remains in spiritual blindness, unaware of their true condition before God, like the Pharisees who thought they were righteous.
What does Lloyd-Jones identify as the first sign of spiritual life?
The first sign of spiritual life, according to Lloyd-Jones, is "to feel that you're dead." He states, "Is there somebody feeling utterly hopeless about himself or herself in a spiritual sense here tonight? If you are my dear friend, take it from me, you are spiritually alive because you're aware of your spiritual death and deadness." This paradox shows that true spiritual awakening begins with an awareness of one's spiritual deadness and inability to save oneself.
How does Lloyd-Jones refute the idea that "obligation implies ability"?
Lloyd-Jones refutes the common notion that "obligation implies ability" (the idea that God would never command something we couldn't do) by pointing to Paul's experience. Rather than the law's demands proving we can fulfill them, Paul found the opposite: "It is the very law that came to Paul and said, 'Thou shalt not covet'... that's the very thing... that proved to him that he couldn't do it." The function of the law is "not to enable a man to justify himself, but to show him that he can't do it."
The Book of Romans
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.