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desire." A law that extends to the most secret desires of the heart, demands something
more than a Pharisee's obedience. By its prohibition, it reveals the presence of
unsuspected sin. And the presence of this sin demands an explanation. The explanation
is given in verse 14: "But I am carnal, having been sold under sin."
It is important to adhere strictly to the tense of the verb here:--
"I am carnal (present), having been sold" (perfect).
This is true of all men, saved and unsaved; it goes back to Adam and the fall. The
question as to whether this particular verse refers to the saved or the unsaved will be
discussed after the whole passage has been surveyed.
The carnal state which is the result of having been sold as a slave is manifested by the
service that is rendered:--
"For that which I work out, I know not; for that which I will not, I practice; but that
which I hate, that do 1: If then I do that which I do not will, I consent unto the law that it
is good" (Rom. 7: 15, 16).
Whether the state of affairs here be taken as true of the believer, or of the unbeliever
(see Rom. 2: 14, 15) it is important to see that, in spite of its failure as a means of
righteousness and life, the law itself is recognized as "good". This is one of the points
the apostle intends to made clear:--
"Now then it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me" (Rom. 7: 17).
Here we begin to meet another great problem, the problem of the ego ("I"). One
cannot read the statements made by the apostle in these verses without arriving at the
conclusion that the man under consideration has two egos. Too many opposing
statements are made for the "I" to be considered as always conveying the same meaning.
In verse 18 we read:--
"For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing."
Here the word "me" is identified with "the flesh". Yet we also read in verse 22:--
"I delight in the law of God after the inward man."
To delight in the law of God is a characteristic of the new man, not of the old. We
must, therefore, recognize the presence of two natures in the one person. There are seven
references in this section to the "will", and every reference shews it to be on the side of
good and against evil. This is a factor in the evidence as to whether the person here
considered is a believer or not.