Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, writer of thirteen books of the New Testament, and a former persecutor of Christians, was human. He had emotions, cares, and most importantly the same trait of sin that runs through all of our beings. In Romans 7:24 we hear him crying out as a wretched man that he knows he is. But by grace he didn’t stop there. He wrote in verse 25, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.”
Paul, being directed by the Holy Spirit, allowed us to see his real self. The Spirit within that warred against his flesh. The human that cried out in verse 24 was also the same that gave thanks to God for paying his pardon thus freeing his soul from death and Hell. He also told us his own mind served the law of God but his flesh the law of sin. It is comforting to know that Paul had the same battles I face in this day-to-day Christian life. Those spiritual battles are given to God as I cannot win alone.
But by grace he didn’t stop there. In chapter 8 Paul writes of being led by the Holy Spirit. Romans 8:14, “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”
Currently, with God’s help I continue to fight in 7:25. By the grace of God, 8:14 is where I live.
Grace and peace, James
*Scripture from ESV, Crossway Publishing, 2001