Romans 7:1 NLT
Now, dear brothers and sisters*—you who are familiar with the law—don’t you know that the law applies only while a person is living?
Romans 7:1–3 NLT
Now, dear brothers and sisters*—you who are familiar with the law—don’t you know that the law applies only while a person is living? For example, when a woman marries, the law binds her to her husband as long as he is alive. But if he dies, the laws of marriage no longer apply to her. So while her husband is alive, she would be committing adultery if she married another man. But if her husband dies, she is free from that law and does not commit adultery when she remarries.
A survey conducted by the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University found that American adults today increasingly adopt a “salvation-can-be-earned” perspective.
48% of adults surveyed believe that if a person is generally good, or does enough good things during their life, they will “earn” a place in heaven.
Only 35% disagree.
This article goes on to say:
While about 65% of American adults describe themselves as Christians, only about half 54% believe they will experience heaven after they die. Only one-third of adults 33% believe they will go to heaven solely because of confessing their sins and embracing Jesus as their savior. Another one-in-five expecting to experience heaven are counting on earning their way in or because they embrace universalism (i.e., that God will let all people into heaven).
Among those with other views,
• 15% Don’t know what will happen after death
• 13% Said there is no life after death
• 8% expect to be reincarnated
• 2% believe they will go to hell
Matthew 7:21–23 ESV
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
Romans 7:4–6 NLT
So, my dear brothers and sisters, this is the point: You died to the power of the law when you died with Christ. And now you are united with the one who was raised from the dead. As a result, we can produce a harvest of good deeds for God. When we were controlled by our old nature,* sinful desires were at work within us, and the law aroused these evil desires that produced a harvest of sinful deeds, resulting in death. But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.
Romans 7:12 NLT
But still, the law itself is holy, and its commands are holy and right and good.
Romans 7:13 NLT
But how can that be? Did the law, which is good, cause my death? Of course not! Sin used what was good to bring about my condemnation to death. So we can see how terrible sin really is. It uses God’s good commands for its own evil purposes.
Galatians 5:16 NLT
So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.
Galatians 5:22–25 NLT
But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.
