How does Romans 7:1 relate to the concept of being "under the law"? Canonical Context Romans 7:1 : “Do you not know, brothers—for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law has authority over someone only as long as he lives?” Paul writes midway through a tightly knit argument that began in Romans 5:12–21 and stretches into Romans 8. Having proven that justification is “apart from works of the law” (3:28), he now addresses why the believer is no longer “under law but under grace” (6:14). Chapter 7 supplies the legal basis for that assertion. Definition of “Under the Law” “Under the law” denotes (1) jurisdiction—obligation to obey the Mosaic code as a covenantal means of righteousness, (2) condemnation—the law’s penalty for transgression, and (3) powerlessness—the inability of fallen flesh to fulfill the law’s demands (3:20; 8:3). It is not merely living in the Old Testament era; it is being bound to the law’s covenantal authority and curse. The Legal Maxim of Romans 7:1 Paul appeals to a universal legal maxim recognizable to “those who know the law” (Jewish readers acquainted with Torah, and Gentiles familiar with Roman statute): law binds only the living. Death severs jurisdiction. The principle is self-evident—no court fines a dead man; no widow keeps her deceased husband’s tax liabilities. Paul will apply this maxim to the believer’s union with Christ. Illustration: Marriage Statute (7:2–3) Just as the death of a husband releases a wife from marital law, so the believer—through co-crucifixion with Christ (6:6)—dies to the law. The illustration establishes two facts: 1. Release is legitimate, not lawbreaking. 2. Release is permanent; the law cannot reclaim a corpse. Historical-Redemptive Fulfillment The Mosaic covenant anticipated its own terminus. Jeremiah 31:31-34 foresaw a “new covenant,” and Daniel 9:27 limited sacrifices temporally. Christ declared at Passover, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood” (Luke 22:20). His death, therefore, enacted the covenantal shift predicted by the prophets, satisfying the law’s demands and inaugurating grace. Union with Christ: The Mode of Transfer Romans 6:3-5 established that believers are “baptized into His death.” That forensic death fulfills the legal requirement for release. Resurrection unites believers to the risen Christ “in order that we might bear fruit to God” (7:4). Thus, under grace they serve “in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code” (7:6). Not Antinomianism but New Covenant Obedience Freedom from the law’s jurisdiction is not freedom from morality. The moral character of God expressed in the law is now internalized by the Spirit (8:4; Ezekiel 36:26-27). The locus of authority has shifted from external tablets to an indwelling Person. Synthesis with Galatians and Hebrews Galatians 3:24 calls the law a παιδαγωγός (“guardian”) until Christ; Hebrews 7:12 states, “When the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed as well.” Both epistles echo Romans 7: believers have transitioned from the law’s temporary guardianship into Christ’s permanent priesthood. Pastoral Implications 1. Assurance: Condemnation cannot return; jurisdiction is broken (8:1). 2. Motivation: Gratitude, not fear, drives obedience (12:1). 3. Identity: Believers are covenant-partners with Christ, not probationers under Sinai. Common Misconceptions Addressed • “Under the law” equals “keeping commandments”: No. Jesus affirmed moral commandments (Matthew 5:17-48) but abolished the covenant’s jurisdiction through His death (Ephesians 2:15). • Release applies only to ceremonial law: Paul’s argument is legal-covenantal, not merely cultic; the whole Mosaic corpus is in view. Eschatological Horizon Because covenantal authority ends at death, the final resurrection will publicly vindicate those already freed in Christ. The “law of sin and death” (8:2) will find no claim on bodies raised incorruptible. Summary Romans 7:1 grounds the believer’s freedom from being “under the law” in an unassailable legal principle: death terminates jurisdiction. Through union with Christ’s death, Christians have been released from the Mosaic covenant’s authority, condemnation, and impotence, and transferred into the new covenant of grace empowered by the Holy Spirit. |
    |