Romans - God's Judgment of Sin - Part 3

God’s Judgment of Sin - Part 3

Romans 2:12-16 _NLT

 

“12 When the Gentiles sin, they will be destroyed, even though they never had God’s written law. And the Jews, who do have God’s law, will be judged by that law when they fail to obey it. 13 For merely listening to the law doesn’t make us right with God. It is obeying the law that makes us right in his sight. 14 Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. 15 They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right. 16 And this is the message I proclaim—that the day is coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone’s secret life.”

            In Chapter 2 Paul continues to break down the punishment due for living not only in violation of the Mosaic Law (Jews), but the moral and ethical code that is generally accepted by men (Gentile).

Jews have an odd belief that if they mostly obey the Law and have the best intentions they will be alright when they pass on from this world, but perfection / sinlessness is required, and no man is perfect. The OT Law was set up by God to shine a light on the sinfulness of man. They were not suggestions, but rather requirements for living.

      The Jews have a written document to follow, while the Gentiles are born with an inherent understanding of right and wrong / good and bad. They have a sense of what is moral and ethical in their heart. The Jews see themselves as superior to non-Jews because they are God’s chosen people. They thought they were a cut above the rest because they had and have Laws to follow that were given to them thru Moses by Almighty God Himself. However, all of creation speaks of a creator...that things didn’t just happen but were put in place by God.  

To expand slightly on that thought of creation in relation to man’s Big Bang Theory, some Christian scientists came up with the plausible idea that there actually WAS a Big Bang, however, the burst of light was when God said, “Let there be light!!”

Paul states that merely listening to the Law isn’t what saves you, but by following the written Law. This applies to all who know the Mosaic Law, which typically and almost always applies to Jews.

To simplify the rule(s) the Gentiles are to follow...they are punished for what they don’t know or aren’t aware of, but rather by not doing

that which they know to be true, moral, ethical, and right. We all have an inner realization of the difference of right and wrong. 

      There is a supposed fact that whatever you do on the internet is always there...even if you scrub your system to get rid of it the information still exists somewhere on the hard drive. I liken this to how nothing is ever forgotten or goes unnoticed by God. No matter what we’ve thought, said, or done, God knows about it. There are no secrets from the Almighty One. This thought is validated by Paul in verse 16 when Paul says, “And this is the message I proclaim—that the day is coming when God, through Christ Jesus, will judge everyone’s secret life.” Scary thought. Whether you know and serve Christ or not, there are no excuses. All will be judged at a pre-ordained time. 

      The purpose of this portion of scripture is to show the Jewish people that thru Christ ALL can come to God and enter into His heaven. This is a thing that the Jews will have to get used to. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His name & for His glory,

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Resources: The Life Application Study Bible; Expositor's Bible Commentary: New Testament.