Romans 2

Introduction

Religion has a way of making us feel we are more accepted by God than we truly are. The truth is, when we are missing a biblical relationship with God, we can easily and naturally become more dark than we’d imagine. When this darkness permeates a society or a people group, a fallen creation is the result.

Last week we began our journey into the dynamics of God’s wrath and anger. Essentially, God’s anger is caused by man’s failure to steward His creation responsibly. Irresponsible stewardship always leads to a painful living experience. The word abandon or exile is the result of such rebellion. And essentially, we are experiencing the world in exile as a result of our foolish living.

This theme continues to run through Romans 3 until Paul seeks to demonstrate God’s response and plan through Abraham in Romans 4. However, Paul uses Romans 2 to demonstrate the common guilt and sinful status of every human being, not just Gentiles.

Here is the premise: All human beings are equally sinful before God.

This means:

Sin and immorality is not a result of geography.

Sin and immorality is not a result of race.

Sin and immortality is not a result of culture.

Sin and immorality is not a result of gender.

We will see later, sin is the result of one man’s decision (Romans 5). Surely, we could read the book of Romans and see the evidence of universal guilt. However, Paul wants to make this point in the face of common ideas that suggest Israel is somehow innocent. The larger matter is the right to covenantal inheritance.

Take for instance this passage in Psalm 37:29 “The godly will possess the land and will live there forever.” Here we have typical hope and expectation of any Jew. This expectation was established the moment God delivered the nation of Israel from Egypt. Their understanding of covenant faithfulness, salvation, and presence has everything to do with occupying and owning a particular land. The understanding is God gives the land to those who are godly or righteous. In other words, God gives to those who are righteous [in covenant relationship through circumcision, Torah and Temple].

This concept was most prominent during the times of Paul, due to the influence of extrabiblical, Second-Temple Judaic, or Apocryphal writings. By this time, the entire framework and mindset of the Jew had been adjusted to comprehend God’s promises as being completely related to the inheritance they would share as God’s righteous. Tonight, our challenge is understanding how this understanding led to a very large misunderstanding concerning God’s overall plan for creation. It will also help us understand the complications the church in Rome around diversity and unity.

Essentially, we are experiencing a very similar dilemma in our country. There are assumptions that certain cultures, races, and political views are more sinful than others. We assume that our Christian responsibility is to preserve Christian values by excusing the pagan activity of others, by any means necessary. This is why the church is not sure how to deal with police brutality, border control, women’s rights, and a slew of other things. Our religious superiority has caused us to place a different value on human beings that does not align with the kingdom of God.

The first century Romans dealt with the same sort of issues. They saw a clear delineation between the Jewish and Gentile way of thinking, which by the way was very much an identity influenced by culture and tradition. And for the Jews, they were superior, which impacted their view on who could be saved, what one should do to be saved, and how one would lived after they were saved.

Jews and Gentiles could not get along because they had a different view of who could be saved.

Jews and Gentiles could not get along because they had a different view of what one should do to become saved.

Jews and Gentiles could not get along because they had a different view of how they should live together after they are saved.

However, Paul’s conclusion will demonstrate when we take such positions we are assuming no one can be saved except us, and if anyone else is capable of being saved, we hold the monopoly on such salvation. Paul’s letter grants the church in Rome answers to these lingering concerns, which are intended to clarify their understanding of faith and how to live in harmony with one another.

Who Are The Righteous? Romans 2:1-27

It seems the entire audience has shifted at the beginning of Romans 2. In Romans 1:18-32, Paul seems to be addressing the paganism of the entire world. His words are a general explanation of how all creation has gone wrong. However, perhaps no Jew up until this point would have believed Paul was including the Jews into this description.

It is similar to how the church talks about the sins of the “world” as if we are an isolated and innocent bunch who gets it right every time. We exclude ourselves from the common evils of our society, even if the very same sins can be found within the community of believers. However, Paul will take a drastic turn in the opposite direction of the common understanding of what it means to be righteous, and he will conclude not only are Gentiles pagan, but so are the Jews.

This position countered all of the existing literature of what it meant to be a Jew. Take for instance what we read earlier in Psalm 37. However, when Paul addresses this issue, he has a specific passage in mind—a passage that is not found in the Bible, but is very well known in Paul’s world—the Wisdom of Solomon.

The Wisdom of Solomon was written between 200 BC- 50 AD. Therefore, it preceded the apostles or was written during the times of the apostles. The latest possible date it was written was 70 AD. It is very likely that this book was written just before the times of Paul or shortly after. However, the important thing is that the ideas in the book seem to align perfectly with the concerns of Paul. Yet, rather than reaching the same conclusions, Paul comes to grossly different conclusions because of the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Paul seems to agree with nearly everything in Wisdom of Solomon. He agrees the world has been given an opportunity to know God (Romans 1: 18-23). However, he disagrees with a major premise in Wisdom of Solomon 15:1-4. The claim is that all of humanity has forsaken God, except Israel.

Wisdom of Solomon 15:1–4 NRSV

But you, our God, are kind and true, patient, and ruling all things in mercy. For even if we sin we are yours, knowing your power; but we will not sin, because we know that you acknowledge us as yours. For to know you is complete righteousness, and to know your power is the root of immortality. For neither has the evil intent of human art misled us, nor the fruitless toil of painters, a figure stained with varied colors,

Here is where Paul disagrees vehemently. This verse asserts the following:

Israel possesses a special relationship with God.

Israel’s [possible] sins are overlooked because of this relationship.

However, Israel will not sin, because they are Israel.

Israel’s superior knowledge of God and relationship with God makes them superior to other nations.

Imagine, Paul is sharing the gospel to a crowd that thinks like this. This would cause all sorts of friction between the Jews and Gentiles. Furthermore, it prevents any possible understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Therefore, Paul’s mission is now to provide a clear understanding of how God sees all humans—both Jew and Gentile, alike. He exposes two underlying characteristics of an religious superiority: judgement and hypocrisy (Romans 2:1-3).

What does God have in mind when the idea of judgment is invoked? It is the act of placing condemnation on someone. The word κρινω means to evaluate a person as to select or pass judgment upon them.

Placing judgement on a person is inappropriate, because Paul concludes we are all guilty of the same things we judge others for and to judge others for things we are guilty of is simply hypocrisy of the highest order. Rather, we should all see ourselves as guilty before God. Paul outlines this by demonstrating all humans are guilty because all humans are immoral, and immorality is a by-product of idolatry.

Paul made it abundantly clear—judgment is coming (Romans 1:18; 2:5-11). The entire creation is being prepared for the judgment that is to come for all unrighteousness. However, Paul informs both Jews and Gentiles that their respective religious or nonreligious positions will be unable to save them in that coming day. Therefore, Paul reaches the following two conclusions,

In the case of the Gentile, ignorance is no excuse for sin (Romans 1:18-32).

In the case of the Jew, religion is no excuse for sin (Romans 2:1-29).

Conclusion: Hidden Jews Romans 2:28-29

Perhaps, Paul’s greatest dagger in this overall argument is the conclusion he reaches in Romans 1:28-29. He supposes, real Jews are not those that are so outwardly (that is Torah, temple, and circumcision) or ἐν τῷ φανερῷ; that is, in the visible. Rather, the true is he that is ἐν τῷ κρυπτῷ or in the kryptos [hidden]. This is such a fascinating idea. The Jew is the one who is such in his secret place.

The idea here is not to assume that one has no responsibility towards any sort of fruit in their life. Rather, the point is that one cannot judge another by the fruit that they only see with their visible eye. Salvation is a matter of what has happened and is happening outside of the human site.

This means, individuals may have all of the visible signs of a believer. However, their true sign is that which is not seen—it is the change of the heart.

To emphasize this secret transformation that is to occur, Paul uses visible term for an inward act. He uses the word circumcision to describe the change in the heart. What does Paul have in mind when he uses this term. Obviously, there are a few things he has in mind that correlates with the the physical act of circumcision.

There is a cutting away.

This is a symbol of being a true Jew.

This is mandatory for the people of God.

When Paul refers to circumcision as an inward procedure, he is referring to the cutting away of the sinful nature.

Colossians 2:11 NLT

When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature.*

Essentially, Paul is introducing a new way to live in covenant with God, and it does not rely on the faithfulness of legalism. The key indicator of this reality is the last part of Romans 2:29, “…a changed hearth seeks praise from God, not from people.” Again, this does not mean we are not to be praiseworthy before men, but rather our motivation has changed. We are not seeking to merely satisfy human standards. We are looking to satisfy God.

This is what God wanted from the very beginning from Israel. Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 30:6 ““The Lord your God will change your heart* and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live!” The missing link to what God always wanted and what is currently available was the Holy Spirit.

Brothers and sisters, as we conclude this reading and study of Romans 2, I want to impress upon your heart how important it is to build your life on a relationship that is led by the Holy Spirit. While we emphasize with great vibrato the negligence of any believer who relies on the praises of men through works of the flesh or some legal method, we emphasize the importance of a life filled with and led by the Holy Spirit.

I fear many have gone too far to the left when discerning their obligation towards those things that are within the standards of God. Perhaps, it is our fear of becoming religious. However, caution you not from religion, but the sort of religion that would cause you to not have a pure and authentic move of the Holy Spirit.

As such, if your religion has no spiritual fruit born from it, how can it be that you are living a life that is led by the Spirit? If our lives are filled with malice, hatred, envy, and jealousy—how can this be a work of the spirit. So, my warning is that we be not so fearful of becoming legalists that we become evil with every other work of unrighteousness.

Remember, there’s two ways to sin: as a religious person and as a pagan. Neither is justified before God because they fail to do what the other does. Rather, they are both guilty before almighty God. The only way to circumvent the transgressions of both parties is to live a life that is led by the Holy Spirit.