Romans Chapter 7 Vs. 5

 

Released from the Law

For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. Rom 7:5

For when we... When we were in the flesh and carnal program of the law (Heb. 9:10), the passions of sin worked in our members by the law and produced sins that the law had to condemn to death. This is explained fully in Rom. 7:7-25.

in the flesh... Meaning living in sin (Rom. 8:8-9).

the motions of... Greek: pathema. Translated "suffering" (Rom. 8:18; 2Cor. 1:5-7; Phlp. 3:10; Col. 1:24; Heb. 2:9-10; 1Pet. 1:11; 4:13; 5:1); "affliction" (2Tim. 3:11; Heb. 10:32; 1Pet. 5:9); "affections" (Gal. 5:24); and "motions" (Rom. 7:5). This is referring to the overwhelming impulses to think and do evil, which characterize those who are “in the flesh”.

by the law,... The motions of sins acted contrary to the law and were made exceedingly sinful by the law and that condemned them (Rom. 7:13). The law was the means of disclosing how sinful we were.

Scripture uses the word “flesh” in a non-moral sense to describe man’s physical being, and in a moral evil sense to describe man’s unredeemed humanness, that remnant of the old man which will remain with each believer until each receives his or her glorified body.

Flesh here describes a person who is able to operate only in the sphere of fallen mankind.

The sinful passions at work in an unbeliever produce a harvest of eternal death.

The apostle continued, For when we were controlled by the sinful nature (lit., “For when we were in the flesh”; sarx often means sin nature; cf. Rom. 7:18, 7:25) the sinful passions aroused by the Law were at work in our bodies. This describes a believer before he was saved (cf. Rom. 6:19). The Law by its prohibitions aroused sinful passions, as explained in Rom. 7:7-13. In that sense unsaved Gentiles were “under” the Law. Consequently their progeny was not “fruit to God” (Rom. 7:4) but fruit for death. Sin, Paul repeatedly affirmed, leads to death (Rom. 5:15, 5:17, 5:21; 6:16, 6:21, 6:23; 7:10-11, 7:13; 8:2, 8:6, 8:10, 8:13).