6But now we have died to those laws that bound us. God has broken their effect on us so that we are serving in a new spiritual way, not in an old way dictated by written words.
7What should we say, then? Are Moses' laws sinful? That's unthinkable! In fact, I wouldn't have recognized sin if those laws hadn't shown it to me. For example, I wouldn't have known that some desires are sinful if Moses' Teachings hadn't said, "Never have wrong desires." 8But sin took the opportunity provided by this commandment and made me have all kinds of wrong desires. Clearly, without laws sin is dead. 9At one time I was alive without any laws. But when this commandment came, sin became alive 10and I died. I found that the commandment which was intended to bring me life actually brought me death. 11Sin, taking the opportunity provided by this commandment, deceived me and then killed me. 12So Moses' Teachings are holy, and the commandment is holy, right, and good.
13Now, did something good cause my death? That's unthinkable! Rather, my death was caused by sin so that sin would be recognized for what it is. Through a commandment sin became more sinful than ever.
14I know that God's standards are spiritual, but I have a corrupt nature, sold as a slave to sin. 15I don't realize what I'm doing. I don't do what I want to do. Instead, I do what I hate. 16I don't do what I want to do, but I agree that God's standards are good. 17So I am no longer the one who is doing the things I hate, but sin that lives in me is doing them. 18I know that nothing good lives in me; that is, nothing good lives in my corrupt nature. Although I have the desire to do what is right, I don't do it. 19I don't do the good I want to do. Instead, I do the evil that I don't want to do. 20Now, when I do what I don't want to do, I am no longer the one who is doing it. Sin that lives in me is doing it.
21So I've discovered this truth: Evil is present with me even when I want to do what God's standards say is good. 22I take pleasure in God's standards in my inner being. 23However, I see a different standard [at work] throughout my body. It is at war with the standards my mind sets and tries to take me captive to sin's standards which still exist throughout my body. 24What a miserable person I am! Who will rescue me from my dying body? 25I thank God that our Lord Jesus Christ rescues me! So I am obedient to God's standards with my mind, but I am obedient to sin's standards with my corrupt nature.
