Verse 3
The Mosaic Law cannot set us free from sin and death (Romans 8:2; cf. ch. 7) because its only appeal is to the basic nature of man. It urges us intellectually to obey God, but it does not provide sufficient power for obedience. Fortunately God sent His own Son, out of the depths of His love, to deal effectively with sin.
Paul referred to both the person and work of Christ in this verse. Jesus Christ came "in the likeness of sinful flesh" (cf. Philippians 2:7), not "in sinful flesh" or "in the likeness of flesh." He was both sinless and a real person.
"For sin," the literal Greek rendering, has a wider connotation than "as an offering for sin" or "a sin offering" and is the better translation. The Law could not deal with sin. Consequently God sent His own Son to do so. That is the point of the verse.
"The battle was joined and the triumph secured in that same flesh which in us is the seat and agent of sin." [Note: John Murray, The Epistle to the Romans , 1:282.]
"The ’law of double jeopardy’ states that a man cannot be tried twice for the same crime. Since Jesus Christ paid the penalty for your sins, and since you are ’in Christ,’ God will not condemn you." [Note: Wiersbe, 1:539.]
"The law of double jeopardy" is a universally recognized principle of justice.
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