Romans lesson 9 Chapter 2 Part 4 Chapter 2:16-24
Romans 2:11 For there is no respect of persons with God.
2:12 For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and
as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;
2:16 In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.
*This is true for the Jew and the Gentile
*John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
**The rapture of the church the separation of the not condemned and the condemned already
*The deeds of those who have have believed on Jesus Christ shall be judged at the judgment seat of Christ
*The deeds of those who have not believed on Jesus Christ will be judged at the great white throne
Verses 2:17-29: The truth the Jews missed and are not seeing today: There is a difference between the physical Jew and the spiritual Jew
In V9-11 Paul stated For there is no respect of persons with God. "The Jew first and also the Gentile" (Vs9-10) : what is true for the Jew is also true for the Gentile.
V17-20 What the Jews boasted of more more excellent than the Gentiles because:
*Their boast of God: "I AM that I AM" was the God of the Jews
*Their boast knowing what is excellent
*Their boast of knowing the will of God
*Their boast of having the knowledge based upon the truth of the law gave them authority to be guides and instructors to those without the law (the Gentiles)
*Their boasting was valid because they "restest in the law":
*A lawyer after, the evidence is submitted, will say, "I rest my case".
*The Jews felt their boasting was valid because they said "We have the law, we rest our case".
Vs21-22 See V1- Paul's four questions address the hypocrisy of the Jews; claiming the law as the evidence of their right to God yet not keeping the law. Remember the letter to the Romans was written to Christians in Rome both Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians. The Jews claimed to know what is excellent and the truth of the law. The Jews had a do as we say don't do as we do attitude. The Jewish Christians presented themselves as being better in God's eyes than the Gentile Christians.
These Christian Jews probably did not steal or commit adultery (physically) but the last question "thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege?" is really the heart of the matter. Were they boasting in themselves of boasting in God?
Vs23-24 Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonourest thou God? 24 For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written.
Ezekiel 36:20 And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land.
Isaiah 52:5 Now therefore, what have I here, saith the LORD, that my people is taken away for nought? they that rule over them make them to howl, saith the LORD; and my name continually every day is blasphemed.
Could it be there were Gentiles who rejected the gospel delivered by Paul because they were told by Jewish Christians to do what we say not what we do? Could the Gentiles be saying "We do not want a God that loves the Jews more than me and overlooks your sin but will not overlook mine. he is not the God we want or need"
Who is the Jesus we declare the world needs?
Next lesson as Paul Harvey would say, Now the rest of the story
These Jews and these Gentiles most likely never killed or stolen.
Question, "What is the only part of the law that the Jews would never break and the Gentiles would never keep ?"
What is this law that the Jews could demand the Gentile Christians start keeping?
John
1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of
God, even to them that believe on his name:
13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will
of man, but of God.
We are circumcised the Gentiles are not!
Matthew 5:27-28: Job 31:1; Pr 6:25