This week, Paul brings in another analogy to explain our relationship to God and sin: marriage. Let’s study how Paul connects these things. 

Read Romans 7:1-6 and journal through the following questions this week: 

• What stops a marriage from being binding? 

• In verse 1, Paul says that the law is binding on a person only as long as he lives. Then, in verse 4, he says we have died to the law. If you’re reading this though, you’re obviously still alive, so what kind of death is Paul talking about? 

• In the marriage analogy, spiritually, what is the old “husband” that died? (v. 4)

• Who do we belong to / who is the second marriage to? (v. 4) See 2 Corinthians 11:2

• What did being married to the law result in? (v. 5)

• To be a Christian is to enter into a legal yet personal relationship as marriage. No part of your life gets unaffected. List out the parallels between marriage between a man and a woman, and our marriage to Christ. 

• Based on these parallels, if we are “the wife” of Christ in this second marriage, then how does this change the way we should live? How does this impact our relationship with sin? 

• When you get married, you lose a certain degree of freedom and independence. The same happens when we commit our lives to Jesus. But why should this bring us joy instead of being seen as a burden? See 2 Corinthians 3:17, Galatians 5:13, and 1 Peter 3:18

• What kind of fruit did we bear when living in the flesh? See Galatians 5:19-21 

• What is the “new way of the Spirit”? What kind of fruit is evident from someone living in this new way? (v. 6) See Galatians 5:16-25, Galatians 2:20, John 14:26 and Ephesians 5:8

• How do we bear fruit for God (v. 4)? See John 15:1-27 and Colossians 1:10

Reflect & Respond

• What does this passage teach me about God?

• How does this change the way I live? 

Scripture to memorize

“Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready.” - Revelations 19:7

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Yelena is the founder and editor in chief Tirzah. Yelena works as an attorney in tax and in her spare time, she is working on her first book for unmarried twenty-something women in extended waiting seasons and running Tirzah. She has a passion for pointing young women to Christ, and enjoys reading, writing, traveling, and spending time with her family.