Therefore, Paul makes a statement, that he, as with us all, is a wretched man. The word wretched, refers to a miserable person, or one who is under a continual trial of duress and pressure and strain and stress, and so forth.
This condition exists the entire duration of an individual’s life in this world.
As we’ve already seen, the cause of this wretchedness, is the sin nature that resides within each one of us, within our physical bodies.
Note, that the sin nature does not reside within your soul, but the sin nature does influence and put pressure on your thoughts and decisions.
And within the essence of ourselves, there is no means whatsoever, to defend ourselves, or to fight the sin nature, or to free ourselves from the sin nature.
Therefore, the question, who will deliver us from the sin nature?
And of course in the next verse Paul reveals that who, who is Jesus Christ.
So one of the important principles to learn from this passage, is that apart from Jesus Christ there is no way, and no method, and nothing that can separate us from the sin nature and its destructive influence.
Therefore, all of the good intentions, all of the invented methods and philosophies of exercise or diet or even positive thinking, none of these will help to eliminate or even stabilize the function of the sin nature within us.
There is only one source of that stability, and one source of that freedom, and that source is Jesus Christ.
And you gain access to that source, when you believe in Christ, which we call salvation. But, you gain function of that source when you grow up in Christ, which we call spiritual growth, and that comes by means of learning Bible doctrine on a daily basis.
Study [by instruction],
to show thyself approved [spiritually mature]
unto God,
a workman [student]
that need not be ashamed [ignorant],
rightly dividing [learning, understanding, discerning]
the word of truth [Bible doctrine].
If you can dream and not make dreams your master,
If you can think and not let thoughts narrow your views,
If you can meet triumph with disaster equally,
If you can learn and see your full meaning and purpose in life,
Then you can believe in Christ, learn Bible doctrine, and grow far beyond the potential that God has prepared for you.
