Introduction: Rom. 7:13-24 (Paul describes his frustration of the war between the flesh and spirit. His mind is willing to follow God, but his flesh desires sin. The things he knows he shouldn't do he does. And the things he knows he should do he doesn't do. We are free in Christ, but with such problems we wonder, free from what?)
I. Christ Offers Freedom: Lk. 4:16-19 (This quotation of Isa. 61:1-2 shows that Christ offers freedom to the world.)
II Pet. 2:19 (Sin offers counterfeit freedom. It actually brings bondage.)
II. What Christ Frees Us From: Jn. 8:32-36 (The Jews asked what kind of freedom Christ offered. He said he offers freedom from sin which lets you remain in God's family.)
1. Guilt Of Sin: Rom. 6:3-7 (By contacting the blood and death of Christ, you can become completely free from the guilt of sin.) Rom. 6:20 (In contrast, the sinner is completely void of innocence.) Ps. 51:7, Isa. 1:18. Eph. 5:26-27 (This is total cleansing. No remnant of guilt is left.)
2. Guilty Conscience: Heb. 9:13-14 (If the insufficient blood of animals [Heb. 10:1-4] could temporarily satisfy God, how much more should the blood of Christ free our conscience from guilty feelings?!)
3. Unrelenting Sin: Rom. 6:22 (One aspect of your freedom from sin is the practice of righteousness, producing good fruit. Though you will still make mistakes, you don't have to live an unbridled life.)
4. Moses' Law: Gal. 5:1-3 (Christ also freed Israel from the hard requirements of Moses' law.) Acts 15:10 (Israel couldn't keep the law.) Gal. 3:10 (This is a curse. It even applies to us who are not of Israel. We cannot keep God's moral requirements. Christ provides an opportunity for us to be free from that and actually be counted righteous.) Rom. 8:4 (Now, in Christ, we can fulfill what Moses' law required. Not by living perfectly, but through the perfection of Christ.)
5. Physical Body: Rom. 8:19-23, II Cor. 5:1-3 (We desire to be liberated from this sinful flesh.) Rom. 8:11 (Christ offers us that opportunity through his resurrection.)
III. How Christ Frees Us: Rom. 8:2 (This passage speaks of us being freed from the law of sin and death. How does Christ bring about this freedom?)
1. His Own Sacrifice: Rom. 8:3 (His death on the cross resolves our guilt.)
2. His Law: Rom. 8:4-6 (By following the law of Christ, we can overcome the life of repeated, unrestrained sin.) Jas. 1:25, II Cor. 3:17-18 (By looking faithfully into Christ's law we are changed into a person that is more like him. In this way, he liberates us from incessant sin.)
IV. Application: Rom. 7:25 (Paul resolves his own problem. He is trapped in a flesh that desires sin, but Christ offers freedom. The application of this lesson is to help the sinner or the erring child see that the way to God is not impossible, and to help the Christian realize their freedom and strive to live a better life without expecting too much.)
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