Most people I know find it difficult to understand that Christ in us, the Believer, enables us not to sin although we do. However, we do not live in sin. Most church members will say, “I am going to sin every day.” We all sin because we CHOOSE to sin. Because the Holy Spirit lives in the life of the Believer, is He not strong enough to empower us NOT to sin? 

My questions now are: 

1.” Is He inferior to the power of Satan?” 

2. “Jesus is Savior and Lord or He is not?” 

Now comes the difficult part. The Apostle Paul’s statement found in Romans 7:14-20 is understood by most as his statement after his conversion. However, if read in the context of chapters 5 and 6 everything changes. And if read within the context of every other letter Paul writes the same holds true. 

Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  NASB.

Romans 5:10-11, “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.” 

Romans 5:17, “For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.”

Romans 5:19, “For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.”

Romans 6:1-2,, “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?” 

Romans 6:5-7, “For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin.”

Romans 6:10-11, “For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 6:16-18, “Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” 

Romans 6:22-23, “But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”                                       

In 1 Timothy 1:12-15, the Apostle states, “I am the worst of sinners.” Again, look at the context, “I was a blasphemer and a prosector.” The context of this statement is that Paul, indeed, imprisoned many of the early Christians and observed the stoning of Stephen. No doubt, in that context he was the worst of all sinners. THAT was BEFORE the Damascus Road event. And he never addresses Believers in any of his letters to any church as being ‘sinners.’ Just a thought. 

Jesus is Lord.