Romans 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh
‘What the law could not do’ – There are many things that the Law of Moses COULD NOT DO: Justify one (Acts 13:38-39; Gal. 2:16); free one from sin and death (Rom. 8:2); free one from condemnation (Rom. 8:1-4); redeem (Rom. 3:24-31; Gal. 3:13-14); give inheritance (Rom. 4:13-14); bring righteousness (Rom. 8:4); impart the Holy Spirit (Gal. 3:2); perform miracles (Gal. 3:5); free one from the curse (Gal. 3:10-14); impart faith (Gal. 3:12); impart grace (Gal. 5:4); make one perfect (Heb. 7:19); control sin in man (Rom. 7:7-23; 8:2); keep man from sin (Rom. 7:7-23; 8:7); enable a man to obey (Heb. 7:18).
‘Weak’ [Greek: astheneo] weak or impotent. The law was powerless to control the flesh, for sin already had control of it before the law came (5:20; Gal. 3:19). Sin would not permit the flesh to obey the law (7:7-23).
‘God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh’ God had to undertake man’s deliverance from sin so that the flesh could be liberated to fulfil the righteousness that the law demanded (8:3-4).
‘Likeness of sinful flesh’ the reasons Christ had sinless flesh: Christ had no fall and was therefore sinless. Christ did not submit to satan and to his spirit and sinful nature (Eph. 2:2; John 8:44; 1Jn. 3:8). He came from the woman but was not of the seed of man (Gen. 3:15; Isa. 7:14; 9:6-7; Matt. 1:18-23; Luke 1:32-35; Rom. 8:3; Gal. 4:4; Php. 2:5-11; John 1:14; 1Tim. 3:16; Heb. 2:9-18). Man is recognized as the head of the race in all Scripture (Gen. 2:20-22; 2Cor. 11:3; Rom. 5:12-21). The iniquity of man, not woman, was passed as a curse upon children (Ex. 20:5; Num. 14:18; Deut. 5:9; Jer. 31:29-30; Ezek. 18:2-4). Mary was merely the means of God in bringing His own Son into a human body. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, not by man who could not produce sinless offspring. God is holy and cannot produce sinful offspring. This is according to the law of reproduction in Genesis 1:22-28. Thus by means of a woman God could send Christ in the likeness of the flesh controlled by sin, and yet not of sinful flesh controlled by sin and satan (1Pet. 2:22)
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