The Jews and the Law

Ch 2: 17-29; Ch 3: 1-20

-Paul is going to spend these next 32 versus dismantling the Jewish mans reliance on the law.

-They were very religious and strictly relied on there relationship to the law to make themselves right with God, so it is necessary for Paul to destroy this relationship before offering grace.

-Grace and the law cannot coexist. (spend some time here freedom in Christ V bondage to the law)

17 You who call yourselves Jews are relying on God’s law, and you boast about your special relationship with him.

- You who call yourselves Jews are relying on God’s law, Every “boast” of the Jewish man in this passage concerns the possession of law. The Jewish people of Paul’s day were extremely proud and confident in the fact that God gave His holy law to them as a nation. They believed this confirmed their status as a specially chosen people, and thus insured their salvation.

18 You know what he wants; you know what is right because you have been taught his law.

19 You are convinced that you are a guide for the blind and a light for people who are lost in darkness.

20 You think you can instruct the ignorant and teach children the ways of God. For you are certain that God’s law gives you complete knowledge and truth.

- 20For you are certain that God’s law gives you complete knowledge and truth. Although the Jew should gratefully receive the law as a gift from God, Paul will show how mere possession of the law justifies no one.

21 Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? You tell others not to steal, but do you steal?

-Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? It comes down to this principle: “You have the law, do you keep it? You can see how others break the law, do you see how you break it also?”

- Much of the rabbinic Judaism of Paul’s day interpreted the law so that they thought they were completely justified by the law. Jesus spent much of his ministry exposing this error

-God applies His law to both our actions and our attitudes. Sometimes we only want our attitudes evaluated, and sometimes only our actions. God will hold us accountable for both motives and actions.

-We cant live our lives in legalistic pursuits of “works” thinking that it makes us right with God, (our righteousness is found in Christ and Christ alone)

22 You say it is wrong to commit adultery, but do you commit adultery? You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples?

-You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples? Morris speaks to the idea of robbing temples. “Clearly some people held that a Jew might well make profits from dishonest practices connected with idolatry, and Paul may well have had this in mind.”

23 You are so proud of knowing the law, but you dishonor God by breaking it.

24 No wonder the Scriptures say, “The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.”

-“The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.”  Paul reminds the Jew that God said in the Old Testament (Isiah) that the failure of the Jew to obey the law causes Gentiles to blaspheme God.

25 The Jewish ceremony of circumcision has value only if you obey God’s law. But if you don’t obey God’s law, you are no better off than an uncircumcised Gentile.

-The Jewish ceremony of circumcision has value only if you obey God’s law. Paul recognizes that a Jew may protest and say that his salvation is based on the fact that he is a descendant of Abraham, proven by circumcision. Paul rightly answers that this is irrelevant in regard to justification.

-In Paul’s day, some Rabbis taught that Abraham sat at the entrance of hell and made certain that none of his circumcised descendants went there.

-Circumcision and baptism do about the same thing that a label on a can does. If the outer label doesn’t match with what is on the inside, something is wrong! 

-Jesus said “you must be born again”(the bible says Repent, new life, new creation, regeneration, dying and rising with Christ) this is something that happens in the Heart.

-We only many times like Romans 10: 9-10 confess Jesus as lord and believe in our heart and we will be saved! Aren't we just like the Jews?!

-Going under the water proclaims it for the rest of the world. There is no saving power in Baptisim (children and baptism)

-Also remember Jesus does command us to be baptized

26 And if the Gentiles obey God’s law, won’t God declare them to be his own people?

27 In fact, uncircumcised Gentiles who keep God’s law will condemn you Jews who are circumcised and possess God’s law but don’t obey it.

28 For you are not a true Jew just because you were born of Jewish parents or because you have gone through the ceremony of circumcision.

29 No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people.

-And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by the Spirit, Of course, this is not a new thought. The Law of Moses itself teaches this principle: Therefore circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and be stiff-necked no longer (Deuteronomy 10:16).

God Remains Faithful

1 Then what’s the advantage of being a Jew? Is there any value in the ceremony of circumcision?

2 Yes, there are great benefits! First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the whole revelation of God.

-Paul has carefully explained in Romans 2 that the possession of the law or circumcision will not save a Jewish person. If this is the case, then what is the advantage of being “God’s chosen nation”?

-Paul knows there are many advantages God gave to the Jewish people. In particular, He entrusted them with “whole revelation of God”. which speaks of God’s written revelation before the time of Jesus. He gave the Jewish people His Word, and that is an indescribable gift.

-“This was their prime privilege, that they were God’s library-keepers, that this heavenly treasure was imparted to them.”

-Later Paul will expand on the advantage of the Jewish people in Romans 9:4, explaining that Israel also had the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises.

3 True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful?

-True, some of them were unfaithful; The fact that the Jewish people as a whole to that point had rejected the gospel did not mean that God’s faithfulness to them was in vain. It did not mean that God’s work was futile or without effect.

4 Of course not! Even if everyone else is a liar, God is true. As the Scriptures say about him, “You will be proved right in what you say, and you will win your case in court.”

-Even if everyone else is a liar, God is true. ‘Spurgeon’ “It is a strange, strong expression; but it is none too strong. If God says one thing, and every man in the world says another, God is true, and all men are false. God speaks the truth, and cannot lie. God cannot change; his word, like himself, is immutable. We are to believe God’s truth if nobody else believes it. The general consensus of opinion is nothing to a Christian. He believes God’s word, and he thinks more of that than of the universal opinion of men.”

5 “But,” some might say, “our sinfulness serves a good purpose, for it helps people see how righteous God is. Isn’t it unfair, then, for him to punish us?” (This is merely a human point of view.)

“But,” some might say, “our sinfulness serves a good purpose, for it helps people see how righteous God is. Paul is bringing the counter-argument of an opponent: “If my unrighteousness will demonstrate God’s righteousness, how can God judge me? My sin ultimately serves to bring Him more glory, and that is good!”

-Isn’t it unfair, then, for him to punish us?” Paul was familiar with the line of thinking that says, “God is in control of everything. Even my evil will ultimately demonstrate His righteousness. Therefore God is unjust if He inflicts His wrath on me, because I’m just a pawn in His hand.”

-In theory, the most dramatic example of someone who might ask this question is Judas. Can you hear Judas make his case? “Lord, I know that I betrayed Jesus, but You used it for good. In fact, if I hadn’t done what I did, Jesus wouldn’t have gone to the cross at all. What I did even fulfilled the Scriptures. How can You judge me at all?” The answer to Judas might go like this: “Yes, God used your wickedness but it was still your wickedness. There was no good or pure motive in your heart at all. It is no credit to you that God brought good out of your evil. You stand guilty before God.”

6 Of course not! If God were not entirely fair, how would he be qualified to judge the world?

-It is true that God will use even the unrighteousness of man to accomplish His work and bring praise to His name – Judas’ betrayal of Jesus is a perfect example. Nevertheless, part of the way God glorifies Himself in man’s sin is by righteously judging that unrighteousness.

7 “But,” someone might still argue, “how can God condemn me as a sinner if my dishonesty highlights his truthfulness and brings him more glory?”

-Paul re-states the objection of an imaginary questioner: “If God will glorify Himself through my lie, how can He judge me, since I seem to indirectly increase His glory?”

8 And some people even slander us by claiming that we say, “The more we sin, the better it is!” Those who say such things deserve to be condemned

- “The more we sin, the better it is!” This was a perversion of Paul’s doctrine of justification by faith, and an extension of the objection of his imaginary questioner. If you take the thinking of Paul’s adversary far enough, you end up saying, “Let’s sin as much as we can so God can be glorified even more.” This shows us that one way to examine a teaching is to extend its meaning and consequences and see where you end up.

-Of course, “The more we sin, the better it is!” was not Paul’s teaching. He was slanderously reported to teach this. Still, it is possible to see how this accusation came as Paul freely preached forgiveness and salvation by grace through faith in Jesus, not works.

-Those who say such things deserve to be condemned: Paul will not even answer such an absurd twisting of his gospel. He simply says of those who would teach such things or accuse Paul of teaching them, Those who say such things deserve to be condemned. God rightly condemns anyone who teaches or believes such a thing.

All People are Sinners

9 Well then, should we conclude that we Jews are better than others? No, not at all, for we have already shown that all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under the power of sin.

-Well then, should we conclude that we Jews are better than others? No, not at all: Since Paul was Jewish by birth and heritage (Philippians 3:4-6), when he says “we” he means “we Jews.” The point is that by nature, the Jewish person is no more right with God than the pagan or the moralist. Paul demonstrates that the pagan, the moralist, and the Jew are all are under the power of sin and under condemnation.

-under the power of sin: This is a powerful phrase. It speaks of our slavery to sin, literally meaning “sold under sin.” By nature every person knows what it is like to be a slave to sin, both Jews and Greeks.

10 As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous— not even one.

11 No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God.

12 All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.”

13 “Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are filled with lies.” “Snake venom drips from their lips.”

14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”

15 “They rush to commit murder.

16 Destruction and misery always follow them.

17 They don’t know where to find peace.”

18 “They have no fear of God at all.”

- “No one is righteous— not even one: These quotations from the Psalms (Psalms 14:1-3; 5:9, 140:3, 10:7 and 36:1) and from Isaiah 59:7-8 all support this opening statement.

- Paul looks at the human condition from top to bottom. He begins with the head and moves down to the feet. Warren Wiersbe calls this passage “An X-ray study of the lost sinner, from head to foot.”

- This look at the human condition is depressing. What’s the point? The Apostle Paul wants us to understand our complete inability to save ourselves. The fall touches every part of man’s being, and the inventory of body parts corrupted by the fall demonstrates this.

-There is a lot that can be said about these passages, but we will sum it up with a quote from John Calvin on the fear of God: “In short, as it is a bridle to restrain our wickedness, so when it is wanting, we feel at liberty to indulge every kind of licentiousness.”

19 Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God.

-Paul is finally settling it then, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses,

He seems to shift from singling out the Jew alone and declares that the entire world is guilty before God

20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

-I believe this last verse really is self explanatory. The law was simply meant to be the standard, a mirror if you will. somewhere along the way they got it twisted.

-Today we still get things twisted. The life of faith is not about religion or accomplishing some religious tasks. It’s about relationship. The God of the universe wants a relationship with you and I.

-All of this talk of Jewish law can sound so strange to us in these modern times, and there can be a temptation to say to ourselves “why do I need to know this?”, but to really understand the Bible it is important to understand the Jewish law.

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-21 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago.

-22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.