“A most desperate struggle”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Quiet Time – Wednesday, July 3, 2024
Romans 7: 13-25 (Forward, p. 66) CEV p. 1178
Years ago, I wrote a university paper for a psychology class about the moral struggles of two Diaspora Jews, Sigmond Freud and Paul of Tarsus. Both tried to come up with a way to explain human behaviour. Freud came up with such concepts as ego, id and super-ego as his way of explaining things, whereas Paul spoke of the Law, sin and ‘the flesh’. And whether one uses Freud’s terminology or Paul’s the result was the same, a most desperate struggle.
To Paul, the Law was good, was righteous in its intent, but like so many good things, could be misused or perverted. The Law set a standard for moral behaviour and told us what was right and wrong. Unfortunately, though, it became an occasion for sin, for we humans tend to rebel against strictures, inhabitations, in our lives. We don’t like rules. We, like Frank Sinatra, want to do it ‘our way’, which is sin. And so, sin is setting up our wills over against the will of God, putting our wills, our desires, first. This inclination to rebellion, this perversity, is the root of all sin.
But there is more to this desperate struggle than just this. There is also something, often misunderstood and misidentified, that Paul calls ‘the flesh’. Contrary to much popular opinion, ‘the flesh’ has to do with much more than just our bodily, fleshly desires. It has to do with all the things that we passionately want deep inside, and so it also covers things like ambition and pride and selfishness, and much else. Covetousness, and irritability when you don’t get your own way, are just as much sins of ‘the flesh’ as lust and such like.
The problem with the ‘flesh’ is not just that it is there, but that it is pervasive and doesn’t give up very easily. That is why there is such a struggle of wills. But there is one other factor that makes it even more deadly and threatening. The so-called ‘flesh’ has wormed its way into our very beings, so as to become part of us. And, furthermore, it is like an enemy agent, a saboteur that works stealthily and secretly against our best interests. In fact, it works to ‘undo’ what are our best intentions. And so, when we try to do what is right, it prompts us in exactly the opposite direction. And so, as the apostle Paul so rightly points out, sin has an ‘in’, an ally, on the inside, one which we often feel powerless to resist or overcome. But thanks be to God that we don’t have to depend upon our own strength or wisdom in this desperate struggle. Christ, by His death and resurrection, has defeated sin and ‘the world, the flesh and the devil’. In Him, we can, and do, have the victory. Thanks be to God.
Forward notes: “For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do” (verse 19).
“My parish is named for Paul. I have a tattoo of a boat that reminds me to spread God’s love wherever I am, just as Paul did when he was shipwrecked on Malta. Paul was single-minded in his devotion to sharing and living this message. He traveled to spread the Good News across the known world, enduring incarceration, suffering, and even death. When I read these words in Romans, I wonder: if even Paul couldn’t keep himself from failing to live the life God called him to, what hope is there for me?
“My son used to worry and ask me whether he was a ‘good person.’ I would half-jokingly reassure him, ‘Don’t worry. We are all tied for last place.’ Feeling like we can never do enough or be good enough is discouraging. But the truth is, we will never be good enough. And we are also already good enough! We are human. We fail to do good. We hurt others and ourselves. But God is perfect goodness and love itself. That love frees us from being stuck in evil, hatred, and hurt.”
Moving Forward: “Today, do good for the sheer joy of sharing love!”
A concluding note: today’s author is close to the mark, but not quite. We are indeed ‘good enough’, but only because Christ has done for us what we could never do for ourselves, much less hope to do. By His grace, His totally unearned, unmerited favour, He frees us, forgives us, and welcomes us home as His redeemed and restored brothers and sisters. Glory to His name. Amen.