Four key terms characterize those who are not in Christ.

四个关键词描绘出谁不属乎基督。

In our fallen, cursed world, disasters are commonplace. Fires, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, tornadoes, and other natural disasters happen somewhere every day. Added to those natural disasters are the man-made ones, such as war, acts of terrorism, plane crashes, train wrecks, etc.

在我们这个堕落受咒诅的世界，天灾人祸司空见惯。火灾、洪水、地震、火山爆发、飓风、龙卷风，以及其他自然灾害每日都在发生。再加上自然灾害之外各样人为的灾难，例如战争、恐怖主义行为、飞机坠毁、火车失事，等等。

But far greater than any of those disasters, and the one from which they all stem, was the entrance of sin into the human race. Sin renders fallen men spiritually dead, cuts them off from fellowship with God, and consigns them to eternal punishment in Hell.

然而远比上述灾祸更大，且所有这些灾祸皆溯源其上的，却是人类内在罪的大门。罪让堕落的人类灵性死亡，切断他们与神之间的关系，并将他们交付于地狱永恒的刑罚。

In today’s verse Paul introduces four words that describe man’s unregenerate state: flesh, sin,law, and death. Those four words are interconnected: the flesh produces sin, which is stimulated by the law, resulting in death. Let’s consider each one individually.

在今天的经文中，保罗引入了四个词，描绘出人类不悔改的状态：肉体，罪恶，律法以及死亡。这四个词是相互关联的：肉体生出罪，罪受律法刺激，结出死亡。让我们来逐个思考每一个词。

The term flesh is used two ways in Scripture. It is sometimes used in a physical sense to speak of human existence. John used it to describe Christ’s incarnation in John 1:14 and 1 John 4:2. But in its moral sense, “flesh” represents the believer’s unredeemed body (Gal. 5:13; Eph. 2:3). While believers are no longer “in the flesh” (Rom. 8:9) as are unbelievers, the flesh is still in us. It is the seat of temptation, the beachhead from which Satan launches his attacks.

“肉体”一词在圣经中用于两种方式。有时用于物理意义上谈论人类存在。在约翰福音1：14以及约翰一书4：2，约翰用它描述基督的道成肉身。而在道德意义上，“肉体”代表着信徒尚未得赎的身体（加5：13；弗2：3）。尽管不像那些不信的人，信徒不再“属乎肉体”（罗8：9），肉体却仍在我们里面。它成了诱惑的宝座，成了撒但发起攻击的滩头堡。

Sin (or “sinful passions”) energizes the flesh, which in turn produces further sin. Those “sinful passions,” Paul says, “were aroused by the Law”; they are exposed by the law because fallen man’s rebellious nature makes him desire to do what is forbidden. The end result of this downward spiral is “death”—both physical and spiritual.

罪（或“恶欲”）强化肉体，肉体从而衍生更多的罪。那些“恶欲”/罪，保罗说是：“因律法而生”；律法将罪显露出来，因为堕落的人其叛逆的天性使他渴望做那被禁止的事情。这种螺旋式下行的结局就是“死亡”—身体和灵性两方面的。

What a merciful God we serve, who “even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ” (Eph. 2:5).

我们所事奉的是位何等仁慈的神，祂“当我们死在过犯中的时候，便叫我们与基督一同活过来”（弗2：5）。

Pray for the unbelievers in your life, that God would open their hearts to respond to the gospel (Acts 16:14).

为你生命中不信的人代祷，求神开他们的心眼来回应福音（使徒行传16：14）。

• What do the following      passages teach about the Christian’s relationship to the law—Romans      8:2-4; 10:4; Galatians      3:13; 5:18; Philippians      3:9

• Does that mean      believers can live as they please? (See 1 Cor.      9:21.)

• 关于基督徒与律法的关系，下列段落教导了些什么—罗马书8：2-4；10：4；加拉太书3：13；5：18；腓立比书3：9？

• 那意味着信徒能照自己喜好生活吗？（见林前9：21）