Fruit for God, Not for Sin

 

“Dead to the Law – Alive to Christ” – Romans 7:1-6

Dear Friends, in Romans 7, the Apostle Paul continues his deep explanation of how the believer is no longer under the law but under grace. Using the familiar illustration of marriage, he shows us a vital spiritual truth.

“Or do you not know, brothers — for I am speaking to those who know the law — that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives?” (Romans 7:1 ESV)

Paul explains that a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives, but if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is free to marry another. Then he makes the powerful application:

“Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God.” (Romans 7:4 ESV)

Through Christ’s death, we have died to the law. Its power to condemn us has ended. We are no longer bound to it as a means of earning righteousness. Instead, we are now united to the risen Christ, like a widow who is free to marry a new husband. This new union is meant to produce fruit for God — a life of holiness and obedience that flows from love and the power of the Holy Spirit, not from the pressure of the law.

Paul contrasts the old way (bearing fruit for death while in the flesh under the law) with the new way (serving in the newness of the Spirit). The law is good and holy, but it cannot give life or change the heart. Only Christ can do that.

This is wonderfully freeing. We are not under the law’s condemnation, nor do we live by its rules as a way to earn favour with God. We now live in a loving relationship with the risen Saviour, empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Pause & Pray: Take a quiet moment now. Thank the Lord Jesus that you have died to the law through His body and now belong to Him. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you live in the freedom and joy of this new relationship. Pray that your life would bear good fruit for God — not out of duty or fear, but out of love for the One who died and rose for you.

Verse to Remember: “Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God.” (Romans 7:4 ESV)

Question to Consider: Do you sometimes slip back into trying to earn God’s favour through rule-keeping or good works? How would your daily Christian life look different if you fully embraced the truth that you have died to the law and now belong to the risen Christ?

Article written by Shaun Fereday, Leader @SFGH Church