|
At first glance the opening of Romans 2 may seem redundant, but Paul is actually dramatizing a point. The point is that people never seem able to admit fully their wrongdoing and never tire of making excuses for their behavior. In chapter 1 Paul showed that the human race has turned from God in order to pursue its own way and that the horrible things we see about us are the result. In chapter 2:1-4 Paul describes people who pass judgment on others. However, they are also under the wrath of God. He also shows the depths to which our rebellion against God has led us. This is such a dreadful denunciation that, at this point, you and I or perhaps everyone, reacts by saying, "He must not be speaking to me." But Paul argues that the one who objects to what is going on in chapter 1 is guilty of the very same things. We "pass judgment on someone else" in declaring others' actions bad, as distinct from our own, which we perceive as being good. Yet this does not mean that we are innocent. How can this be? Let's look at our moral code. The most widely acknowledged standard of morality in the western world is the Ten Commandments. (Exodus 20:1-17) Much civil law is based on it, and there are many people who consider themselves superior moral beings because they believe they "keep the Ten Commandments. "But does anybody? Let's look at the fifth commandment, which requires us to honor our father and mother. Have you never dishonored your parents by speaking in a dishonoring way? Have you always been properly thankful, respectful and obedient to them? We might appeal to the sixth commandment, which forbids murder, and you feel good about this one because you have never actually murdered anybody. But have you forgotten that God looks on the heart and judges by thoughts and wishes as well as by actions? Jesus says in Matthew 5:21-22 that even speaking a defamatory word against a brother is enough to incur God's wrath for breaking this commandment. The seventh commandment forbids adultery, but many have done this, and others have desired it or contemplated it. Jesus says we are guilty even if we only lust after another person. (Matthew 5:28) Have you never stolen? Never shaded the figures on your income tax in order to pay less than you actually owed? Have you never lied? Never misrepresented the truth? What about the tenth commandment which says that we must not covet? To covet means to want something that someone else has just because he or she has it and we do not. There is no one who is innocent of this. And what of the first four commandments, those that deal with God and our responsibility to worship and honor Him? Who can say that he has never had another god before God? Who has never made an idol of something? Who has not misused God's name? Who has remembered every Sabbath day by "keeping it holy"? If you say, "My standard is the Ten Commandments," you are condemned by that standard. Some might argue that that was another age and a particularly difficult set of moral codes to live by. Your standard might be the Sermon on the Mount. (Matthew 5-7) If anybody thinks this way, his thinking proves how little he really understands Christ's teaching. The Sermon on the Mount does not weaken the Old Testament standards. It strengthens them, saying that they have to do not only with outward acts but also with attitudes of the heart. Do you seek to justify yourself on the keeping of the Golden Rule: "In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you"? (Matthew 7:12) Have you always treated others exactly as you have wanted them to treat you? Have you never been impatient with them, never gotten angry unjustly? We can see that by whatever standard our holy and sinless God judges our actions we will be proven guilty. Then, you might ask, "Are we not to judge others, or at least their actions, in any measure?" Some people have taken this teaching to mean that we should not in any way look upon others critically. It is true that none of us is qualified or equipped to pronounce judgment on another person. God is the only one who can judge perfectly; He alone is the righteous judge. Indeed, Jesus told the people in the Sermon on the Mount that they should not judge others or they would be judged by the same measure. (Matthew 7:1-2) Are we then to accept and approve all behavior? No. We are to distinguish between right and wrong. In our government the courts of law use guidelines to evaluate the behavior of people. The courts are given the responsibility by the people, and by God, to judge the behavior of people and to punish lawbreakers. We should evaluate actions, words, and attitudes of ourselves and others, but we are not to judge a person's heart. We cannot bring final judgment on people. All people, even the worst criminals, are made in the image of God and, therefore, are to be respected for who they are, though they may be condemned for what they have done. (Romans 2:2) Do not dwell on the 'what if' questions concerning God's judgments. We can trust that His judgment will be holy and just. While we cannot judge another's heart, we are responsible for our own response to Christ's love for us. Many people find Romans 2:6-16 difficult, because it seems to say that salvation is by good work. That is not what it is saying. No one is saved except through faith in the work of Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 2:8-9) Nevertheless, it is significant that Paul does speak of two paths, and he does not encourage us to suppose that a person can reach the goal of eternal life without actually being on the path of righteousness. (Romans 2:7) The questions the verses raise are: Are you on the path that leads to salvation and eternal life? What do you do if your actions show you are on the wrong path? The path of a Christian is
chosen and pursued by the power of God who sends the Holy Spirit to
turn us from sin to faith in Jesus Christ and joins us to Him. What do
you do to get on the right path? Firstly, agree with God that you are
on the wrong path and cannot save yourself from your sin and its
consequences. Secondly, knowing that Jesus Christ died for your sins
taking the punishment you deserve, ask God to forgive you your sins.
Thank God for the forgiveness He gives to you through Jesus Christ and
the new life of the Holy Spirit within. Thirdly, commit your life to
learning about and following Jesus. This is the meaning of faith.
|