Book of Romans
12-21-2011 Vol. 6 Part 7
Psalms 54:1-7 NKJV To the Chief Musician. With Stringed Instruments. A Contemplation of David When the Ziphites Went and Said to Saul, "Is David Not Hiding with Us?" Save me, O God, by Your name, And vindicate me by Your strength. Hear my prayer, O God; Give ear to the words of my mouth. For strangers have risen up against me, And oppressors have sought after my life; They have not set God before them. Behold, God is my helper; The Lord is with those who uphold my life. He will repay my enemies for their evil. Cut them off in Your truth. I will freely sacrifice to You; I will praise Your name, O LORD, for it is good. For He has delivered me out of all trouble; And my eye has seen its desire upon my enemies. Father we praise you, we give you all the glory. Father I ask that you keep everyone safe this Christmas Season as they travel, and comfort those that have lost loved ones this past year. Father I pray that all keep you in sight this Christmas season and give you praise and thanks for sending your Son to us as our Saviour. In the name of Jesus of we pray! Amen!
Romans 2:1-16
Romans 2:1-16 NKJV Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. 2 But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things. 3 And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? 5 But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, 6 who "WILL RENDER TO EACH ONE ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS": 7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; 8 but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, 9 tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; 10 but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 11 For there is no partiality with God. 12 For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law 13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; 14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, 15 who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) 16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.
Wow! Paul really laid it out for us in chapter one. He not only told us what sin is, but also told us we have no excuse for not knowing who God is and right from wrong. The knowledge of right and wrong is deep within us and it is up to us to determine what path to take in life. We can take the path of our own human nature and end up in Hell for eternity or the path of salvation that God has provided for us through the blood of Jesus Christ and spend eternity in Heaven. Starting out in chapter two we will learn of God’s judgment and that He shows no partiality, He’s righteously just, gives us warning, and that He hasn’t changed from the beginning of time. Paul points out the Jewish and Gentile people are equal in God’s eyes when it comes to judgment, even though the Jewish people of that time believed their salvation was guaranteed being a Jew. It is the same today that some denominations believe they are the true religion and guaranteed passage into Heaven. As I have stated in the past, there is only one way into Heaven and that is by Spiritual Birth, being Born Again. No religion on planet earth can guarantee a ticket to Heaven. It is only through believing in what Jesus did on the Cross, admitting you’re a sinner, confessing our sins to Jesus and asking forgiveness, repenting by making a commitment to sin no more, ask Jesus to come and live in our heart, and take control of our life. In the first 16 verses of chapter 2, Paul points out six principles that provides the foundation of judgment for the religious moralizers and hypocrites who consider themselves above judgment.
Verse 1: Point one being “reality”; What verse one boils down to is that we are quick to see the wrong in our neighbors, but yet we do the same thing and don’t realize it. It is that double standard we often times have. Do as I say and not as I do. For those of us that have raise children, we have all fallen victim to hypocrisy. For instance, who has allowed a teenager to go out and as they are walking out the door tell them no drinking or smoking, but yet we may have that vise. This is what the Pharisees were doing. They thought they were better than the Gentiles being of a Jewish heritage and would have favor with God, but Paul is telling them and us we are all judged by one standard, that being, God’s standard not man’s.
Verses 2 & 3: Point two being “integrity”; God expects us to view others as He does, with integrity and a truthful standard. If we view others based on mans rules and regulations we are only kidding ourselves. What truth lies in mans doctrine and what purpose does it serve? For example; a person uses God’s name in vain. Modern society doesn’t think anything about it anymore. It is an accepted way of life. I ask this question then, at some point in time, who’s standard will that person be judged by, man’s or God’s? What truth lies in man’s standard? God’s word is very clear on who’s standard will be used when we stand before Him. 1 Corinthians 4:5 NKJV Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God. Romans 3:4; Psalm 9:7,8.
Verses 4 & 5: Point three being “opportunity”; Paul is speaking of God’s kindness and patience toward us, but our stiff necks and hard hearts keeps us at a distance from God. We need to recognize what goes on in our lives is not because of what we think and do, it is because of the will of God. In his kindness, God holds back his judgment, giving us time to turn from our sin. It is easy to mistake God's patience for approval of the wrong way we are living. Self-evaluation is difficult, and it is even more difficult to bring ourselves to God and let him tell us where we need to change. Unfortunately, we are more likely to be amazed at God's patience with others than humbled at his patience with us. Although God does not usually punish us immediately for sin, his eventual judgment is certain. We don't know exactly when it will happen, but we know that no one will escape that final encounter with the Creator. John 12:48; Revelation 20:11-15. We need to take the opportunity repent and turn to him.
Verses 6-10: Point four being “morality”; God will render to every man just judgment according to his deeds. His deeds meaning his character, his inner being, what is truly in our hearts that is displayed by our words, thoughts, and actions. The things we hold as secrets in our minds, the things we do when no one else is around, the things we fantasize about, the things we think about other people, but never say, the grudges we hold, the unforgiveness we can’t let go of. God sees all of these things. We can hide these things from humans, but not from God and it will all be revealed at some point in time. God’s wrath will be poured out on those that are self seeking and deny the truth.
Eternal life will be given to those who patiently preserver in seeking God to do His will, to give Him glory and honor by putting on immorality and keeping His law because of what is in their heart. It is living God’s word and not just knowing it. It is obeying God and wanting to do good to please God, and not doing something because you feel you should. It is being Christ like and the love for God and mankind, that drives your thoughts and actions from deep within your heart.
Verses 11-15: Point five being “impartiality”; Verse 11 “For there is no partiality with God,” should strike fear in all. God is just and judges us on a balanced scale, his scale. It doesn’t matter what sin we commit in God’s eyes, sin is sin. There is no such thing as big or little sin in God’s eyes. Only we humans have the standard of big and little sins. That is how we justify our actions. God will not be won or awed by a person’s rank or function; by their wealth or endowments; by their numbers, their power, or their robes of royalty and splendor. This thought alone should cause man to seek a refuge in the Saviour without delay. 1 John 2:1-2 NKJV My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
People are condemned not for what they don't know, but for what they do with what they do know. James 1:22 NKJV But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Those who know God's written Word and his law will be judged by them. Those who have never seen a Bible still know right from wrong, and they will be judged because they violated those standards that their own consciences dictated. God's moral law is within them, it is part of their DNA. For example, all cultures prohibit murder, and yet in all societies that law has been broken. We belong to a stubborn, sinful race. We know what is right, but we insist on doing what is wrong. It is not enough to know what is right; we must also do it. So it doesn’t matter, if you know the Bible or have never picked one up to read, God’s law is within us and we will be judge by his laws. We as human beings are incapable of living our lives in sinless perfection, only Jesus was capable of doing that because He is the Son of God. This is why we need a Saviour and admitting to yourself and to God that you frequently fail to live up to your own standards, much less to God's standards, is the first step to forgiveness and healing.
Verses 11-15: Point 6 being, “certainty”; In verse 16 Paul tells us we will be judged by Jesus according to his Gospel, and all our secrets will be displayed. How will our sinful secrets be displayed? Could it be like this? We are all seated in an enormous theater, the screen is so big you can’t even imagine one that big. Then someone is called forward and their name is announced for all to hear. The lights go dim and the movie begins. All of your sinful deeds flash before all to see. Then there is a sigh from all that are watching, because they all know what the verdict will be in Jesus eyes, “GUILTY”, and he will point to the gates of Hell.
It is because of our sinful nature that God made it possible for His Son to take on human flesh and be born for all. This is why we celebrate Christmas. Without Jesus birth and Him dying on the cross for us we would all go to Hell. Jesus is our Saviour and our only hope of going to Heaven. You have to confess your sins to Jesus, repent of your sins, and ask Jesus into your heart in order to defeat sin and be justified. If you haven’t asked Jesus to come into your heart yet, do it today, it is the season.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,
for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes,
Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Unless you are Born Again, you cannot enter into Heaven, the Kingdom of God."
Bill
Last Week’s Trivia: Where does Frankincense come from?
Answer: Frankincense is a vegetable resin, brittle, glittering, and of a bitter taste, used for the purpose of sacrificial fumigation. (Exodus 30:34-36 NKJV And the LORD said to Moses: "Take sweet spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum, and pure frankincense with these sweet spices; there shall be equal amounts of each. 35 You shall make of these an incense, a compound according to the art of the perfumer, salted, pure, and holy. 36 And you shall beat some of it very fine, and put some of it before the Testimony in the tabernacle of meeting where I will meet with you. It shall be most holy to you.) It was called frank because of the freeness with which, when burned, it gives forth its odor. It burns for a long time, with a steady flame. It is obtained by successive incisions in the bark of a tree called Arbor thuris. The first incision yields the purest and whitest resin, while the product of the after incisions is spotted with yellow, and loses its whiteness altogether as it becomes old.
This week’s Trivia: What is myrrh and where does it come from?
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