Have you ever heard that where sin is great God's grace is even greater? Does this mean that the more we sin the more glory God receives? There was a train of thought in Paul's time that said the more evil that is done the more good God is doing. Do you believe there are trains of thought that are similar to this today? If this were the case would God be justified to judge the sinner and the world since he would actually benefit from sin. Give this some thought as you read Romans 3: 5-8.
John
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Romans 3:1-4
1 What advantage then,is there in being a Jew,or what value is there in circumcision? 2 Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God. 3 What if some did not have faith? Will there lack of faith nullify God,s faithfulness? 4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar. As it is written: So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge. Romans 3:1-4 NIV.
What identifies you as a Christian? Do you have a fish symbol on the back of your car? Years ago maybe you had a WWJD bracelet or a cross on a chain. Would you say that I am a member of Pioneer Baptist Church or that you have a baptism certificate to prove you are a Christian?
Of course there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of these things but do you believe that any of them will justify you before God?What actually was the value of circumcision? Did the circumcision itself make the Jews righteous? Did the blood of a goat or a bull really have saving power? Of course not. Jews found salvation through faith. The faith they had in obeying and relying on God looked forward towards the Cross just as our faith in Jesus looks back to it. Either way we are both justified by faith in Christ. In verses 3 and 4 Paul asked what if the Jews were unfaithful? Does this mean God will not fulfill his promises to Abraham? No! God is faithful and will keep his word regardless of ones faith. God is faithful and will keep his promises regardless of our actions.
While we are on the subject, how do others know that we are followers of Christ? Should the world expect us to look different? One of my least favorite sayings is " Christians aren't perfect, just forgiven. This is true but it seems every time I hear that phrase it is used for the pursuit of license instead of liberty. Jesus said in Matthew that a good tree bears good fruit. We've talked a little about judging lately and I don't think any of us want to be judged by the world but shouldn't we at least expect them to be fruit inspectors.
John
What identifies you as a Christian? Do you have a fish symbol on the back of your car? Years ago maybe you had a WWJD bracelet or a cross on a chain. Would you say that I am a member of Pioneer Baptist Church or that you have a baptism certificate to prove you are a Christian?
Of course there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of these things but do you believe that any of them will justify you before God?What actually was the value of circumcision? Did the circumcision itself make the Jews righteous? Did the blood of a goat or a bull really have saving power? Of course not. Jews found salvation through faith. The faith they had in obeying and relying on God looked forward towards the Cross just as our faith in Jesus looks back to it. Either way we are both justified by faith in Christ. In verses 3 and 4 Paul asked what if the Jews were unfaithful? Does this mean God will not fulfill his promises to Abraham? No! God is faithful and will keep his word regardless of ones faith. God is faithful and will keep his promises regardless of our actions.
While we are on the subject, how do others know that we are followers of Christ? Should the world expect us to look different? One of my least favorite sayings is " Christians aren't perfect, just forgiven. This is true but it seems every time I hear that phrase it is used for the pursuit of license instead of liberty. Jesus said in Matthew that a good tree bears good fruit. We've talked a little about judging lately and I don't think any of us want to be judged by the world but shouldn't we at least expect them to be fruit inspectors.
John
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Romans Chapter 2
For those of you who could not be in Sunday School this Sunday I will begin in Romans Chapter 2. I will try to make this as concise as possible but I can't promise anything.
Let me begin by saying if you are reading the book of Romans or any of Paul's writings you may want to read it more than once. Sometimes it isn't enough to just read, many times it will take real study to help you understand what Paul is saying. Before you begin you may want to stop and pray that the spirit will reveal to you what God is trying to say through Paul. Remember that all scripture should be read under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and without him nothing will be revealed to you. I am going to let you read the scriptures in your bible to save space and time.
Read Romans 2:1-4
Remember as you study scripture it helps you to know: 1. Who wrote the book, 2. Who was the book written to ,and 3 what is the context in which the book is being written. Paul is writing to the church in Rome. He, at this point, has not been to Rome but hopes to get there soon. Many credit Paul with starting the church in Rome through those who had heard his teaching and had moved back to Rome . Under the Emperor Claudius many Jews and Christians were forced to leave Rome but returned after Nero had taken the throne. Nero of course began awful persecutions later in his reign about 64 a.d. As Christians returned they began to set up the church in Rome with some of the teachings they had gotten elsewhere. Some credit Peter with starting the church in Rome but I tend to lean toward Paul. Paul himself says that he doesn't like to follow into an area that has already been evangelized later in this book, if I'm not mistaken.
After reading the scripture you have to ask your self who is Paul talking to. Remember at this point in the churches history many false doctrines are coming into the church. Many Jews are teaching that salvation is not just belief in Christ but parts of the Law must be followed as well. There are also Gentile moralizers who are judging the sins of others but are doing the same things themselves. These are the people Paul is talking to. It is not necessarily the judging that Paul is condemning, it is the sin that the moralizers are performing. If you are in a position to know what sin is, so much so that you can judge others, you are certainly responsible for the sins you commit that you judge others for. We should not confuse this by thinking Paul is telling Christians that judging sin in another believer is prohibited. However, judging in this way should be to restore the believer to a right relationship with God and the Church. Read 1 Corinthians 5. The church cannot allow its witness to be one of acceptance of sinful behavior. Christ laid down certain rules to follow in the event you need to admonish a fellow believer. First you should go to your brother and confront him in a spirit of love. If he will not listen take another believer with you for a second try. If none of this works your brother should be brought before the church. All of these steps are to help the brother not to condemn him.
Paul is saying in these verses that unbelievers who are judging other unbelievers for there sin are condemning themselves because they are committing the same sins. Who are they to judge when they are mere men. They do not have the facts and are setting themselves in the position of God who does judge with all the facts and all the truth. Paul asks these moralizers, Do you not realize God has shown patience and kindness giving these unbelievers an opportunity to come to Christ? No because they themselves do not know Christ and would prefer to live by the law,even though they cannot keep it.
Read Romans 2:7- 11
Is Paul saying that salvation can be earned? No! He is giving us a hypothetical. What he is saying is if someone could be persistent in keeping God's Law he could be saved. So far the only person to be able to keep the Law perfectly is Jesus so salvation cannot be earned through doing good. Of course those who reject the truth will not find salvation. Understanding these verses becomes more understandable with the following verses and even more so as we go through chapter 3.
Read Romans 2:12- 16
Here Paul is saying all who sin apart from the law will perish and all who have the law and sin will perish. So what hope does man have to escape the wrath of God. In verse 16 it says God will judge men's secrets through Christ. Remember men's secrets are the sins that may have only been thought and not acted upon. Jesus said if you lust or hate in your heart you have sinned already. Nothing will be hidden from him. Can anyone avoid sinning in their mind. I think the answer would be a big No!!
Read Romans 17-29
As you read the rest of Romans 2 it is starting to become more apparent that Paul is setting up the hopelessness of a life under law or not under law without a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Whether Jew or Gentile, circumsised or not, the only way to the Father and eternal life with him is through the belief in Jesus and his sacrifice for your sin on the Cross. All else will fall short of meeting God's requirement for payment of sin. In verse 29 Paul begins to make it clear when he says that a man is a Jew ( which is another way of saying God is pleased ) when his circumcision is a circumcision of the heart by the spirit and not by the law.
As I have tried to make this concise I have probably left out a lot. I hope it makes sense when you read it. As we go forward I will try to break the chapters up by verses and give you some questions to think about as we go through the week. Some things to think about for discussion:
Do you believe we should pass judgment on unbelievers for their sins?
Is God unjust for expecting people to meet his standards ?
If one does not believe in God where does the moral code that they live by come from.
Do you believe people who form their morals apart from God judge others?
Please give me some feed back whether here on the blog or on Facebook. Hope this is helpful to you for your own study.
John
Let me begin by saying if you are reading the book of Romans or any of Paul's writings you may want to read it more than once. Sometimes it isn't enough to just read, many times it will take real study to help you understand what Paul is saying. Before you begin you may want to stop and pray that the spirit will reveal to you what God is trying to say through Paul. Remember that all scripture should be read under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and without him nothing will be revealed to you. I am going to let you read the scriptures in your bible to save space and time.
Read Romans 2:1-4
Remember as you study scripture it helps you to know: 1. Who wrote the book, 2. Who was the book written to ,and 3 what is the context in which the book is being written. Paul is writing to the church in Rome. He, at this point, has not been to Rome but hopes to get there soon. Many credit Paul with starting the church in Rome through those who had heard his teaching and had moved back to Rome . Under the Emperor Claudius many Jews and Christians were forced to leave Rome but returned after Nero had taken the throne. Nero of course began awful persecutions later in his reign about 64 a.d. As Christians returned they began to set up the church in Rome with some of the teachings they had gotten elsewhere. Some credit Peter with starting the church in Rome but I tend to lean toward Paul. Paul himself says that he doesn't like to follow into an area that has already been evangelized later in this book, if I'm not mistaken.
After reading the scripture you have to ask your self who is Paul talking to. Remember at this point in the churches history many false doctrines are coming into the church. Many Jews are teaching that salvation is not just belief in Christ but parts of the Law must be followed as well. There are also Gentile moralizers who are judging the sins of others but are doing the same things themselves. These are the people Paul is talking to. It is not necessarily the judging that Paul is condemning, it is the sin that the moralizers are performing. If you are in a position to know what sin is, so much so that you can judge others, you are certainly responsible for the sins you commit that you judge others for. We should not confuse this by thinking Paul is telling Christians that judging sin in another believer is prohibited. However, judging in this way should be to restore the believer to a right relationship with God and the Church. Read 1 Corinthians 5. The church cannot allow its witness to be one of acceptance of sinful behavior. Christ laid down certain rules to follow in the event you need to admonish a fellow believer. First you should go to your brother and confront him in a spirit of love. If he will not listen take another believer with you for a second try. If none of this works your brother should be brought before the church. All of these steps are to help the brother not to condemn him.
Paul is saying in these verses that unbelievers who are judging other unbelievers for there sin are condemning themselves because they are committing the same sins. Who are they to judge when they are mere men. They do not have the facts and are setting themselves in the position of God who does judge with all the facts and all the truth. Paul asks these moralizers, Do you not realize God has shown patience and kindness giving these unbelievers an opportunity to come to Christ? No because they themselves do not know Christ and would prefer to live by the law,even though they cannot keep it.
Read Romans 2:7- 11
Is Paul saying that salvation can be earned? No! He is giving us a hypothetical. What he is saying is if someone could be persistent in keeping God's Law he could be saved. So far the only person to be able to keep the Law perfectly is Jesus so salvation cannot be earned through doing good. Of course those who reject the truth will not find salvation. Understanding these verses becomes more understandable with the following verses and even more so as we go through chapter 3.
Read Romans 2:12- 16
Here Paul is saying all who sin apart from the law will perish and all who have the law and sin will perish. So what hope does man have to escape the wrath of God. In verse 16 it says God will judge men's secrets through Christ. Remember men's secrets are the sins that may have only been thought and not acted upon. Jesus said if you lust or hate in your heart you have sinned already. Nothing will be hidden from him. Can anyone avoid sinning in their mind. I think the answer would be a big No!!
Read Romans 17-29
As you read the rest of Romans 2 it is starting to become more apparent that Paul is setting up the hopelessness of a life under law or not under law without a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Whether Jew or Gentile, circumsised or not, the only way to the Father and eternal life with him is through the belief in Jesus and his sacrifice for your sin on the Cross. All else will fall short of meeting God's requirement for payment of sin. In verse 29 Paul begins to make it clear when he says that a man is a Jew ( which is another way of saying God is pleased ) when his circumcision is a circumcision of the heart by the spirit and not by the law.
As I have tried to make this concise I have probably left out a lot. I hope it makes sense when you read it. As we go forward I will try to break the chapters up by verses and give you some questions to think about as we go through the week. Some things to think about for discussion:
Do you believe we should pass judgment on unbelievers for their sins?
Is God unjust for expecting people to meet his standards ?
If one does not believe in God where does the moral code that they live by come from.
Do you believe people who form their morals apart from God judge others?
Please give me some feed back whether here on the blog or on Facebook. Hope this is helpful to you for your own study.
John
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