Rescued Again

Pastor Hilton preaches from Romans 7:24, where Paul cries out, 'O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?' The Greek word for 'deliver' means 'to rescue,' implying complete helplessness—a person cannot rescue themselves if they have any power to save themselves. Paul describes the internal war between the desire to do good and the law of sin that imprisons the flesh, making us prisoners in our own bodies. Only Jesus Christ, who understood human limitations and was Himself afflicted, can rescue us from this body of death. Pastor Hilton contrasts Paul's cry for deliverance with Lot's story. Lot pitched his tent toward Sodom, then dwelt in Sodom, and eventually sat in the gate as a judge, becoming comfortable with wickedness. He needed rescue multiple times—first by Abram, then by angels—yet still negotiated with God, asking to stay in the plains near Sodom rather than fleeing to the mountains. The sermon underscores that God knows how to deliver the godly, but believers must fully surrender their will and orient themselves toward God's law, not the law of sin. The spiritual purpose is to inspire total dependence on Christ as the rescuer, urging listeners to abandon self-reliance and submit completely to God's deliverance.