God is Judge

What is judgement

King City Scandal. Many officers and a Chief of police conspire to pull hispanic people over and when they don’t have a license they tow their cars. They were pulling people over with a purpose. The Chiefs brother owned a towing company and would set prices high so that unlicensed people could not retrieve their car and in result keep their car to sell. These officials were all caught and were judged by the same law that we are all judged.

There was a judge who gathered all the evidence, witnesses, and attorneys to determine if these officials had broken the law. This judge passed judgement on them. Some did time in federal prison and some are still doing time. Some are on home arrest and neither will ever be allowed to work as a police officer.

In our culture we have a sense of law and judgement. We can easily relate to what Paul is saying. But Paul is referring to a different law. A moral law, a ceremonial law, and ritualistic law.

In a similar way Some Christian Jews who came from the lineage of Abraham and who were born Jewish believed they were like the enforcers of the law. In some cases because of their status they thought to be higher than the law. They even believed the law was part of their salvation. “Because I know of God and I know his law and I do the law, I will be saved.”

But this was a grave mistake even for the Jews. Paul now is going to stop jews from pointing fingers at gentiles who were not born in the law, did not know God, or did not follow his commandments. But Paul also will stop gentiles from pointing fingers at the Jews. This judgement passing is for all believers.

Hypocrisy and Judging Others

Romans 2:1–5 ESV

1 Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. 2 We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. 3 Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? 4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 5 But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

Paul is speaking of hypocrisy and judging others when you yourself do them.

Things that cause us to judge others and be hypocritical :

Pride - We think too highly of ourselves, so we put others down.

Insecurity - We think too lowly of ourselves , Lacking self worth so we bring others down.

Jealousy - We envy what they have so we put them down.

Anger - We are angry at life and other things that happen to us so we wish bad on others.

Vertical and Horizontal

Matthew 7:1–2 ESV

1 “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.

This judgement that Jesus speaks about is the one Paul is referring to in Romans 2. But the next verses we will see Jesus obligating us to judge others based on their fruits.

Matthew 7:16–20 ESV

16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

We are all judges by nature. From the moment you are born we become judge. When a baby tries a piece of broccoli he instantly judges if he likes it or not. Most babies will spit it out and make a face of dislike.

God has not called us to judge others vertically. God will judge everyone on the day of wrath. He will be the ultimate judge and the one who sits on the throne. But horizontally we must judge others. This is not a judgement to condemn but to point others to Christ with love and compassion. Just like when you judge an apple if it is good or bad. We are called to observe and judge if someone is in sin or is of God. This is a sort of discernment.

We must still confront sin, as scripture commands us in many passages, but it must be done out of love.

Eternal Life or Eternal Punishment

Romans 2:6–11 ESV

6 He will render to each one according to his works: 7 to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; 8 but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. 9 There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, 10 but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. 11 For God shows no partiality.

Paul here is saying that the Jew and the Greek both have a choice to make. We must obey God or we must obey sin. Those who obey God and his commandments will have eternal life, but those who obey their flesh and sin and commit evil and disobey the law will be under God’s wrath.

Those who practice these things in Romans 1 will be children of wrath.

Romans 1:29–30 ESV

29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,

Those who worship idols Romans 1:24.

Those who practice sexual immorality Romans 1:26-27.

How can we be obedient to God’s word and his law? The law is broken down into two rules.

Matthew 22:37–40 ESV

37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

We must love God vertically and we must love others horizontally.

This is true because if you love God you will not worship other idols.

If you love your neighbor you will not murder them, lie to them, or steal from them.

Jesus breaks down the law into those two commandments.

But we understand that we can only obey God’s law when we are in Christ. This is something that Paul will touch on in later chapters of Romans. But for now we must understand the concept of the law and judgement.

Moral Law Giver

Romans 2:12–16 ESV

12 For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. 13 For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. 14 For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15 They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them 16 on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.

Here we see another law in gentiles or greeks who were not given the law of Moses. This law is a moral law. Even an atheist will struggle with this. When you ask an atheist of his beliefs they believe we are all like animals and there is really no right and wrong. Because if they admit there is right and wrong then they admit there is a judge who will judge their actions.

But when you ask them if their mother was murdered in cold blood and the suspect was caught, would you say its okay since they did what they thought was right in their own eyes? Will you say that was right or wrong?

There’s a saying that people say today and for a very long time: Do what’s right in your own eyes. This is true to a certain extent because many people will do what is right and many do good things that even align with scripture and God’s law.

This is because God has created us and has given all of us a moral law in our hearts. We can judge what is good and bad. Right or wrong. This was purposefully given to us by God.

But even yet this moral law only shows us that there is a right and wrong, it doesn’t make our wrongs right

A Call to Holiness

Romans 2:17–24 ESV

17 But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God 18 and know his will and approve what is excellent, because you are instructed from the law; 19 and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. 24 For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

Paul is now addressing the Jews here for this split second and is rebuking those who claim to be teachers of light and the law of God but themselves break the law.

This applies to us because if we are beacons of light we must also practice the light we are preaching. We must look like Christ, sound like Christ and Act like Christ. If not we have become like the Jews who only externally worship God to be seen by others but internally are far from God.

We need to be different and walk in the light not like others.

Internal Not External Righteousness

Romans 2:25–29 ESV

25 For circumcision indeed is of value if you obey the law, but if you break the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision. 26 So, if a man who is uncircumcised keeps the precepts of the law, will not his uncircumcision be regarded as circumcision? 27 Then he who is physically uncircumcised but keeps the law will condemn you who have the written code and circumcision but break the law. 28 For no one is a Jew who is merely one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward and physical. 29 But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God.

Paul uses circumcision as an example of someone who outwardly claims to be a Jew or of God or of His law but when he breaks the law, what good is it to say you are circumcised? But a greek who obeys God’s law and keeps them but is not circumcised, he is more righteous than one who externally identifies with God.

We need to be careful as Christians not to only externally clothe ourselves with righteousness and judge others when we ourselves do the things the world does. Every thought, word and action inside of our hearts must be submitted to Christ and we must love God truly and internally to be true believers. WE must keep God’s commandments and not just preach them to others. WE must walk in light not just act like we are a beacon of light to others.

Luke 18:9–14 ESV

9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”