Romans 10:3-13

In verse 3 we see that their ignorance led them far away from the truth.

The original language would say, “For not understanding the righteousness of God, and while seeking to establish their own, they did not submit themselves to the righteousness of God.”

They did not know the righteousness of God. What did they believe brought them righteousness?

Romans 2 teaches they believed their actions brought them life

Romans 4 teaches they believed their heritage and the law brought them life

Romans 7 teaches they believed the law brought them righteousness

Romans 9 shows they believed being from the line of Abraham was what would bring them into the promise.

It is clear that they believed the law brought them life. They did not know or understand the righteousness of God. This references their spiritual blindness. They did not know or understand what the standard was, so they passionately pursued their own passions.

They set up vessels in their life to promote their own righteousness.

Today Jews follow more laws than what God gave. They have a so many new inventions so they can follow the Sabbath laws.

They turned to their own doing and did not understand the need for a messiah. They did what they wanted and did not understand the picture of Jesus.

When Jesus came, they were more concerned with the law than they were with the picture of fulfilment.

In church today, we can be more concerned with everything surrounding Jesus than we are with Jesus.

The worship better be great. The preaching better be exciting. The people better be welcoming. The weather better be nice. The coffee better be hot. The breakfast better be hot. And it’s okay if Jesus is there too.

If our picture of Church is not centered on Jesus and seeing others come to Jesus than we have failed. We have not just messed up, we have truly failed.

People today believe that righteousness is living right, but they forget their sins. People today believe that righteousness is far-right conservative politics, family rights, fighting for the unborn, and keeping our country free, rather than seeing our country saved.

Today, the fight is to be righteous in our own eyes. If we take hold of our own righteousness then we deny the riches that Christ offers. Seeking your own righteousness is doing what seems to please God, but really brings yourself glory.

You see, the problem with your own righteousness is that it misses the picture of Christ all together. Thinking of examples of your own righteousness means that you do thinks that will profit you for salvation. Seeking your own righteousness is actively applying weight to your shoulders thinking that it will help you someday in the race.

The American Dream will teach you to do what you want and all will be profitable when you work hard. German Philosophers will say, “Christianity is a crutch for the weak” in a dark way. Cultures around the world teach that you can reach enlightenment on your own. But in our hearts we believe that more than we think. The American culture has conditioned us to do it ourselves by the “American Dream” and the “do it yourself” tendencies.

The heinous act of pursuing your own righteousness is what Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden. This man made idea of righteousness is what we are all stuck on today. Adam and Eve stepped on the treadmill of self righteousness and now have to take themselves off. The Jews are on that treadmill using the law as their fuel to keep the pace moving. The American Culture teaches that the treadmill must stay running. Keep going faster, keep moving higher. Just when we think we reach the end, we find that we have made no distance in the race for God. Confused we stand off the treadmill knowing that the journey that Christ calls us to is different than the one we are on. Getting off the treadmill of self righteousness is actively putting yourself in the grave to let Christ rule in every step of your life.

In verse 4, we see who is central to righteousness: Christ.

Christ is the one calling us to step off the treadmill and set aside the law that we have found ourselves on.

Paul writing this to Jews is a life changing thing. Saying that the code that you lived according to for your whole life is monumental. Imagine your whole worldview changing from one thing to another.

This would be the equivalent of me telling you to vote democrat if you’re conservative and visa versa.

There is no need to keep running on the treadmill of self righteousness when Christ calls you.

In the end, we are all ignorant and blind in our own eyes. We need to ask if our salvation accounts include Christ in them. Without Christ, our flesh is bound by the law that we have constructed ourselves, slaves to the treadmill that we find ourselves on. We need to step off this treadmill.

In my life, I enjoy playing this game called dunkball. It is when we lower the goals to play the game. It makes us feel good when we are able to dunk the ball on the short goal. When we lower the standard we feel great. If dunking the basketball is the indication of success, then we should work to what the standard is and we shouldn’t lower the goals. Don’t lower the goals in your life.

When we see what Christ has done, do not lower the standard of how we are supposed to live just because it is hard. I don’t want anyone to lower the goals in my life when it comes to my life with Christ. As a Christ follower, I do not want to lower the standard that Christ has set just because it will be easier for me.

Then, as we transition into verse 5, we see that Paul starts to change the direction of his message. We see that Paul compares the righteousness that is based on the law.

The argument here is that if you want to be righteous, then live by the law. But, is that the whole message? I do not believe that is completely what Paul is saying.

I believe that Paul is saying that their concept of righteousness is based on the law. Not only on the law, but how they follow the law. I do not think that we can blame the Jews though, they were given the law and they followed it, but they did not understand what righteousness was.

Their way of finding righteousness was based in the law, but it was not the complete source of righteousness. When we look at the picture of righteousness, it is NOT following the law and it IS following Jesus in faith.

The problem that the Jews had was that they excluded faith and included the law.

I love what one author says about this verse. He says, “Although law points us in the right direction, it provides no power to achieve its demands.” The law was never meant to be something that won favor from God, rather it was meant as a way to show our faith in God.

The jews are naturally seeking righteousness from the law. Righteousness from the law is meant to be apposed to the righteousness from God. Remember chapter 7 when we see that sin attaches itself to the law? This is where it worked it’s way in.

The question to consider is, “What is righteousness? Where do we get righteousness from?”

Jumping into verse 6 we see that because of what Christ has done in his coming that righteousness has been made available for all who have faith.