Good Morning Beloved,
Heavenly Father,
Let us prepare our hearts today
we have the sense that we are in Your Holy presence
Lord, we thank You for these truths You have provided us
help us, help us to hear Your message for each of us today
Give us today, as we hear today's Word, Your wisdom, Your knowledge
Teach us to understand, to truly understand, the consequences
of our actions, and what it means to be a follower of Christ
through Your Word
Father, we thank You
we thank Your for all You have already done for us
and if You never do another thing, You deserve our worship and praise
Lord, we pray that now
In Jesus' name
Amen
"Therefore, any one of you who judges is without excuse. For when you judge another, you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the same things. We know that God’s judgment on those who do such things is based on the truth. Do you really think—anyone of you who judges those who do such things yet do the same—that you will escape God’s judgment? Or do you despise the riches of His kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance? But because of your hardness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment is revealed. He will repay each one according to his works: eternal life to those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality; but wrath and indignation to those who are self-seeking and disobey the truth but are obeying unrighteousness; affliction and distress for every human being who does evil, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek; but glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does what is good, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek. There is no favoritism with God.
All those who sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all those who sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For the hearers of the law are not righteous before God, but the doers of the law will be declared righteous. So, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, instinctively do what the law demands, they are a law to themselves even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts. Their consciences confirm this. Their competing thoughts will either accuse or excuse them on the day when God judges what people have kept secret, according to my gospel through Christ Jesus."
Romans 2:1-16
Today we're going to look at the Word of God, together in the Book of Romans.
In specific, we're going to be examining chapter 2. Romans chapter 2, verses 1 through 16. The topic we'll be discussing, is the Principles of Judgment. The Principles of Judgement, according to God, as they appear in Romans 2.
We all know that the Bible says the wages of sin is Death. And, we know Scripture teaches Jesus died for our sins. He satisfied His love, He died in our place; He satisfied His law, He died for sin. And if you come to Christ, if you accept Christs' sacrifice, the judgment you deserve, Christ has taken it on your behalf. Wow, what a gift. What a gift.
I have been asked, more times than I can recall, "If God is fair, how then can He send people to hell? What about those who have never heard the gospel, how is that fair?"
Those of us who are living on earth, have a distorted view of justice. Traditionally, we tend to hold the view justice as in the picture of the blindfolded statue with the scales in hand, trying to weigh out equity without being influenced by the outward appearance of anyone. This idea behind this concept, is that justice is blind. That simply means that justice does not take into account one’s physical appearance, their looks or one’s position in life. Justice doesn't look at anything at all, other than the truth. The truth itself.
Today, in our culture, justice is actually almost an unattainable goal, justice is, rather elusive in our society. And although we well know about injustice, do we know about justice? And what it means according to God. I know we've likely read it, chances are we've even heard some preacher somewhere talk about it, in a sermon, but have we allowed it to settle in our hearts?
Many years ago, I met a man who just released from prison, he had just finished serving over 20 years in prison, for a crime he did not commit. When he had been sentenced, DNA technology hadn't yet been developed. Thankfully, it was discovered some years later, and was able to be used to retry his case. They finally allowed him to go free and started the trial of real criminal. Walter, however, lost over 20 years of his life, for a crime, he did not commit. We are often hard at work on achieving justice, but the problem with justice and our pursuit of it, is sometimes there is an infinite price to pay.
Hundreds of years ago in ancient times, justice was pictured not only with eyes that were blindfolded but with no hands, so that justice could not see and justice could not receive. It could not choose on the basis of appearance and justice could take no bribes. It could not be bought.
This might actually be a good picture of the future of justice, and how it will be someday with God, who offers Himself as a loving father, but someday the father will be lost in the judge. And God’s justice is even more inexorable. God always does what is just. He demands justice.
In Deuteronomy 16 and verses 19 and 20, it says, "Do not deny justice or show partiality to anyone. Do not accept a bribe, for it blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous. Pursue justice and justice alone, so that you will live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you."
God is absolutely just. And because God is just, He hates injustice because it is such a deviation from His own character.
We all talk about the fate of those who have not accepted Christ, an eternal separation from God, an eternity in Hell. But what about the moral people, the people who aren’t murderers, who aren’t liars and thieves and fornicators and adulterers, those who are not, what society considers to be bad people? What about the basically good, moral people, who are faithful, who willingly help others, and are not idolaters, who have not, abandoned all sense of right, wrong and morality? What about the people who do not outwardly commit all of these various sins? So where do they fit?
And we know, there are in the world and throughout its history some who are basically moral people.
There are in the world people who do not appear to be morally corrupt. Many of whom, may even identify with that religion which is true. In Jesus' day, they would be the Jews. However, in our day, it would be the "self-professing Christians," who want to outwardly uphold the moral standard of the Scripture. But because they are not true believers in God, though they want to uphold, the outward appearance, of a moral virtue value, though they cannot maintain it in their own lives because they cannot restrain their own sinful lusts and desires. Their sinfulness, has a hold on their inward self. So they cover a really darkened, devious heart with a cloak of light.
The day is quickly approaching, when Christ will rightly judge without favoritism. And on that day, those who would think themselves to be sons and daughters, will find that the father is lost in the judge, for He will be just no matter who you are. Today, this is the theme of our text.
The apostle Paul, in chapter 2, sets about to expose those moralist, to expose the Jew, if you will, who is saying, "We have not become idolatrous, we have not sunk to this level. We agree with your condemnation; therefore, we are different than they are. We stand un-condemned." They would have a false sense of security. If you look at chapter 3 verse 19, which is right at the end of this whole section which indicts man, you will see that Paul has a purpose in mind. He says, "Now we know that whatever the law says speaks to those who are subject to the law, so that every mouth may be shut and the whole world may become subject to God’s judgment."
Stop there. The whole basis of the Christian gospel is only understood insofar as people understand that they are guilty before God, whether they are the immoral man of chapter I or the moral man of chapter II, whether they are the Gentile or the Jew. Paul, in chapter 2, I believe, may have had the heathen moralist in mind, like Seneca, the man who believes he’s moral and wants to uphold a moral - ethical code. But moreover, he had the Jew in mind. The Jew would have hurriedly agreed with Paul’s condemnation of the Gentile world, and the Jew would then state that he himself knew that he was exempt from any such judgment, as they really believed that they were exempt.
Traditionally, the Jews believed that God was going to blast the heathen out of existence because of their sin. As in the case of Jonah, He would wipe out the Ninevehs of the world, unless they repented. He also believed that no Jew would ever experience that kind of condemnation with the pagans. They believed that because they were Jewish, born into the line of Abraham, because they were circumcised and because they kept the trappings of the Jewish religion, that they were exempt from any judgment.
They actually had some pretty interesting sayings. One in particular was, "God loves Israel alone of all the nations." And here's another one: "God will judge the Gentiles with one measure and the Jews with another." Yes, they actually said this: "Abraham sits beside the gates of hell and does not permit any wicked Israelite to go through." They believed Abraham will keep out of hell, any wicked Israelite.
"What then? Are we any better? Not at all! For we have previously charged that both Jews and Gentiles are all under sin, as it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one. There is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God."
Romans 3:9-11
Many people today, including many professing Christians, tend to downplay their own sin, while condemning the sin of others, much like the Jews in Jesus' day. Many sins carry inter-generational consequences. When we hear this, we most often think of physical and sexual abuse, alcoholism, and other sins of personal assault, violations of the image of God in the human being.
Honoring God with our bodies must be the pursuit of every believer. In I Corinthians 6:19-20, the apostle Paul asserts, "Don’t you know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body."
There are millions of Bibles published each year in hundreds of languages. The gospel message is advancing rapidly, through the technology of the internet, into even the remotest parts of the earth. Yet despite that great progress, many people do not seem to know what Scripture teaches about sin. While others, twist the doctrine to suit their own personal situations, claiming to be exempt under grace. Does that then, give us a license to willingly continue to sin, after all, all we need do, is ask for forgiveness, right?
When Justin Martyr, who was given the surname martyr, as he had given his life for the "true philosophy," held a disputation with the Jew, The Dialogue of Trypho, The Jew said. "They who are the seed of Abraham according to the flesh shall in any case, even if they be sinners and unbelieving and disobedient toward God, still share in the eternal kingdom." That is what they believed. They believed they were exempt from judgment. They did not believe they would be condemned with the world, condemned with the pagans, because they were self-righteous and they were attached to the nation of Israel.
Now, you can see they believed in a salvation by works.They believed in what we would call legalism, salvation by works. They thought that because they were in the nation and because they kept the traditions and because of their physical identification and their religious identification together, they were exempt from condemnation. They were the chosen people. They expected to be regarded and treated not as individuals, but to be dealt with as far as the whole nation was concerned, and they thought God was obligated to the whole nation, so they as a part of it were exempt from judgment. Therefore, there was no consequence to their personal sin, because they were under a sort of a national salvation.
Further, they believed not only in salvation by their works, but salvation by their covenant. They not only believed in legalism, but they believed in what we would today call sacramentalism. Because they were circumcised on the eighth day, because they went through that sacramental situation, that ritual, they, therefore, were in the covenant. That is essentially, what is being believed in many churches today. That if a child is baptized as an infant, that is some sacramental act by which that child enters into the covenant. The child enters into the covenant as an infant, that entering into the covenant is confirmed when the child reaches the age of 12, and therefore, by sacramentalism that child is guaranteed a place in God’s kingdom and will not be condemned with the world.
That covenant theology that we see today is basically an adaptation of the false securities given through the Jews, their teachers who had entirely missed the whole point. And so they believed that by keeping the traditions outwardly and by being sacramentally attached, they were exempt, because of the covenant.
Beloved, I am sadden to say, there are numbers of Christians like that today. They’ve been baptized, they go to church, they belong to a church, they keep the rules, and they act on a moral basis outwardly. They’re self-righteous, they try to do what’s right, and they just don’t think they’re going to be judged. They really don’t. That’s basically true. As one theologian said, "There is some kind of a still little voice in everybody that constantly convinces them that in the end, it’s going to be okay." And that’s why you hear so very often people say, "God would never do that to me. I mean I’ve been a good person." And quite frankly, in my experience, the so called moral, self-righteous people, are the most difficult of all people to reach. They’re much more difficult to teach than the reprobates, who have hit rock bottom and have no other option, because they already know it all.
And so, Paul goes from the reprobates in chapter 1 to the moral people in chapter 2, and I might add, he goes with great force and great clarity. He points out that even the most ethical, moral person, yes, even the Jew, is going to one day find himself in the same hell as the Gentile pagan idolater if he continues to go the way he’s going. In fact, he takes it one step further, and says that if the heathen is without excuse, then the Jew is even more without excuse. Because he has more information and more knowledge, he has even less of an excuse.
So when it comes to the religious person who has not become an idolater but who has identified with either Judaism or in today’s terms with Christianity outwardly, Paul wants him to know that he’s going to be judged too, if it is only an outward religion.
In total, there are six principles of judgment within these first sixteen verses, of Romans chapter two.
The first three principles of judgement are, knowledge, truth, and guilt. Now, if you're taking notes, go ahead and write those down. Knowledge, truth, and guilt. Then I'll give you the last three principles of judgement. Which are deeds, impartiality, and motive. Deeds, impartiality, and motive.
These are the six principles of judgement.
Let's go ahead and get started and we'll see just how far we can get in covering these today.
God judges on the basis of knowledge, truth, guilt, deeds, impartiality, and motive. God judges on these six things. He judges men on the basis of their knowledge, He judges them on the basis of the truth, He judges them on the basis of their guilt, He judges them on the basis of their deeds, He judges them with impartiality, and He judges men by their motives.
The first one in verse one, knowledge. "Therefore, any one of you who judges is without excuse. For when you judge another, you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the same things." So take a closer look and see what this is really saying. It's actually a fascinating verse. It begins with "therefore." What does that mean? The "therefore" takes us backwards to the previous chapter? Doesn't it? Some people have been confused by the word "therefore" but there’s really no reason to be, if we just listen closely to what he's saying. What he's saying is, because what was true of those in Romans 1:18-32 is also true of you, "therefore," you are also without excuse. That’s the connection he's making here.
And, if we'll quickly turn back to Romans 1:18-19, "For God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth, since what can be known about God is evident among them, because God has shown it to them." And now verse 20, "For His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse." In other words, what he is saying, is that because they know the truth, they are "therefore," without excuse. To put it another way, "because you know the truth, you have no excuse." Why is that? Implication! Because you also know the truth. And you know how you prove that you know the truth? You prove it because you are judging others, and if you have a criterion by which to judge others, you now prove that you must know the truth. So you’re actions, are just as inexcusable.
They knew the truth. Very obviously, they in fact, knew the truth. It was clear that all men knew the truth from chapter 1, and what was true of those people is also true of the Jew in chapter 2. They knew not only from external natural revelation, they knew from conscience. Let's take a look at chapter 2 verse 14. Verse 14. "So, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, instinctively do what the law demands, they are a law to themselves even though they do not have the law."
The point here is, if the Gentiles do by nature the things contained in the law, and if it’s the nature of a Gentile, if conscience is a part of him, then conscience is a part of a Jew as well. And if conscience is in an immoral man, conscience is, therefore, also in a moral man. So they also knew by natural revelation, they also knew by conscience, but more than that, the Jew, the moral man, the one who attaches himself to the worship of the true God, knows from the very law of God itself. That is what Paul is saying here.
Now, then, let turn to chapter 3 verse 1. Verse 1, chapter 3. "So what advantage does the Jew have? Or what is the benefit of circumcision?" Then, verse 2, "Considerable in every way. First, they were entrusted with the spoken words of God." So, what Paul is saying, is they are just as inexcusable if not more inexcusable, for they not only have the light of nature, they have the light of conscience, and they have the light of the revealed Word of God itself. They knew.
Then, Paul reinforces the same concept in Romans 9:4, "They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the temple service, and the promises."
So in other words, they have all the benefits, all the revelation.
Then let's look at verse 3, "For I could almost wish to be cursed and cut off from the Messiah for the benefit of my brothers, my own flesh and blood." That means anybody, and that really gives us not only the Jew but beyond to any moralist who thinks he’s exempt from judgment because he has not sunk to idolatry, he has not sunk to sexual immorality, he has not sunk to the reprobation of the former passage. Any moralist in view who is saying, "Hey, look, I’m not in that same category," he says to him, "You are also inexcusable." Now, that little phrase is just a very general reference. "You’re inexcusable." "Why?" Because you know what's right, because you have the knowledge. In fact, you actually have a more complete knowledge than most, so you’re even more inexcusable.
And let me just point this out, you might want to know, that the Jews who would be exposed to this chapter would even have known of Jesus Christ, therefore, that would have even put them at the very top of the "inexcusable list", now wouldn’t it? Well, according to Scripture, God sees it the same way. You have access to the Word, you have knowledge, you have conscience, you know Jesus, you have it all. "You are inexcusable." We might not like to hear it, but isn't it true, that every one here today, also have these same advantages today? So, what then will be an acceptable excuse, when the Father is lost in the judge?
The people of Hebrews 10, those who would receive a much more severe punishment because they had counted the blood of the covenant an unholy thing and trampled underfoot the blood of Christ. So, do you see it, they're at the top of the inexcusable list because they know God’s standards. How do we know? Just look at chapter 2 verse 1, I'll read this time from King James edition: "O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judges another, thou condemnest thyself." See it? Paul is saying, "You betray that you know God’s standards when you apply them to somebody else. Anyone who sits in the seat of moral judgment, anyone who sits in the seat of condemning others for their sin, proves that he himself is inexcusable. If he can judge the sin in others, then it bears evidence that he, in indeed, knows the standard."
Now look this, this is interesting, look at verse 32 at the end of chapter 1. "Although they know full well God’s just sentence—that those who practice such things deserve to die—they not only do them, but even applaud others who practice them." Its saying, that even the pagans know the judgment of God, that they who commit such things are worthy of death. Even the pagans know what is right and wrong. Even the pagans can apply God’s standard to their own life if they chose, much more you who have received His revelation, and you who sit in judgment on the pagans give evidence that you know. This would be like a judge who condemns a criminal by applying the law. He, therefore, makes himself responsible, obviously, to keep that same law if he’s going to sit in judgment on somebody else.
Then in the next verse, chapter 2, verse 1, he makes this statement, this is powerful, he goes on to say,
"Therefore, any one of you who judges is without excuse. For when you judge another, you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the same things." I love that! "Hey, when you show the law of God as applied to somebody else, then you prove that you know that law, and in knowing that law you've just condemned yourself." I think that is an incredibly powerful, powerful statement. By doing that, you just condemned yourself.
Think about it, isn't this is really what Jesus said? Just look at Matthew 7:1-2, you can totally see exactly where Paul got his whole statement from: By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He was really just reiterating what Jesus said in Matthew 7 verses 1 and 2, "Do not judge, so that you won’t be judged. For with the judgment you use, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." WOW. That literally means stop criticizing, stop being condemning and censorious, stop being critical and stop being fault-finding and self-righteous. So stop playing God.
Because, if you show that you are able to judge everybody else, then you also show that you deserve to be judged by that same standard. If you know the standard so well that you can apply it to other people, you better make sure it isn’t going to be applied to you! That's what James was talking about, in James 3:1, "Not many should become teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive a stricter judgment." Why is a teacher’s condemnation greater? Because the more he knows, the more he therefore condemns himself. That's why Jesus goes on to say in chapter 7:3-5, to talk about before you even think about getting a splinter out of someone else’s eye, why don’t you go and get that tree trunk of out of your own? Isn't that a fatal tendency, for most everyone? Don't we tend to exaggerate the faults of other people and downplay our own? Christians included?
That classic line, that our Lord said of the Jew who sat in judgment of everybody and he thought he himself was exempt, and God says, "Hey, just because you think you're exempt, you’re not exempt. And not only are you not exempt, you’re even more inexcusable, and you prove it because you are applying the law to somebody else, that proves you know it, and so guess what, it’s going to be used to condemn you, too!" And then He says, "Don’t give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them with their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces." Here what is being said here, "You're doing the same things, that you're judging someone else for," Now, I know some will say, "Wait, I do not do any of those things. I am not committing even one of those sins. I am moral. I keep the law of God." That's the disillusion most people have regarding themselves. You know, "Anything I do, doesn't begin to compare to what THAT person has just done! What wrong I've done, is so insignificant, so small, that it doesn't even matter. So small it cannot even be judged by any man, I don't even judge myself for it. But that guy, man, just look at what he's done. That's absolutely horrible."
Jesus really just zero's in this, back in Matthew 5:21-22, "You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder, and whoever murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Fool!’ will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But whoever says, ‘You moron!’ will be subject to hellfire." What our Lord, is saying is this, "No, you don’t kill outwardly, but you do kill with your heart, and sure you are able to restrain from the actual act of murder, only because you’re seeking to appear so self-righteous and that's only because you want everyone to look up to you, but inside, Oh on the inside, which is not apparent to others, you are just the same, you are also a murderer."
Because, you see, that is all that false religion can do. It cannot actually restrain the sin in the heart, although it can mask it with a false self-righteousness. You ask yourself how come certain people in the cults like Catholics and Mormons and a whole host of others can appear to be so goody goody. Because they are restrained by the desire to belong, they are restrained by the desire to gain heaven by their works, they are restrained by the desire to be thought of as righteous when the truth is, inside they cannot control any of those things. Inside, where it counts, they are morally corrupt. God knows whats inside as well as done outwardly. He knows it all. You might put up a facade, but He sees right through that, its useless. And Jesus really drives this point home, and hard, in verses 27 and 28, "You have heard that it was said, Do not commit adultery. But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Would you look at that. You might not have done the act but you're committed the same sin in your heart, and so you are no better than they are.
He goes on to say, in verses 31-32, "It was also said, Whoever divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce. But I tell you, everyone who divorces his wife, except in a case of sexual immorality, causes her to commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery." So, do you know what they did? When they wanted to commit adultery, they didn’t just go commit adultery, they divorced their wife and married the one they wanted to commit adultery with and so they legalized it, and that’s why our Lord is saying when He says when you’re putting away all your wives, you’re proliferating adultery all over everyplace. You think that you’re technically getting around adultery, but you’re divorcing your wife to do it and that is also a sin. So, again, I tell you, that you are no better than they are. That's an in your face moment, isn't it? Then wait, He's not done yet, "Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord." Do you know why He said that? Because they had all these different kinds of oaths, and they’d say, "I swear by this and by that" and "I swear by such and such"
and as long as they swore by something other than God, they thought it didn’t count, and anytime you said "I promise and I swear by heaven that I’ll keep this oath and I’ll honor my debt, then you don’t pay your debt, you could say, "Ha, I fooled you! I only swore by heaven, not God, so doesn’t count." So then you’re going right along and you’re trying to perform your oaths, you’re doing everything to the letter of the law on the outside, but you’re a filthy liar on the inside.
Now, that sounds pretty bad, right? Guess what, Jesus didn't even stop there either. In verse 38, "You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth," In other words, "You go ahead, seek your vengeance, that statement was for the law courts, not for personal activities. I tell you, if someone hits you on the cheek, turn the other cheek in personal relationships. Don't you see, that you yourself, have missed the whole point. God's law encompasses not only the outside, but the inside too. You’re vengeful sinners, so go ahead and get your revenge. And God will have His too." All the way through chapter 5, Jesus let them have it. And when they said, we cross our fingers, when we promise, so our promises don't mean anything. So, we are innocent, we're only doing what the Scripture says, "an eye for an eye.." Jesus tells them, "You're only kidding yourselves. Your
conscience that makes you aware of wrong in others, you fool, you're only signing your own death certificate."
The next principle of judgment, is the principle of truth. Verses 2 and 3, "We know that God’s judgment on those who do such things is based on the truth. Do you really think—anyone of you who judges those who do such things yet do the same—that you will escape God’s judgment?" The same things that are in verse 1, which are the same things that are in chapter 1. We are sure, we know and the word here, oidamen, the Greek word for know means to know something that is commonly known, that is patently obvious, that is known by external facts. I mean it is an obvious, basic principle that judgment of God is going to be according to truth. Why? Because God cannot Lie. And God is of truth, that is His nature. Shall not the judge of all the earth, says the Pentateuch, do right? We’ll be judged according to the truth. Scripture teaches us that God’s judgment is upon those who do such things is based on the truth.
So Paul hits them with some truth, "Absolutely not! God must be true, even if everyone is a liar," God is truth, it is His nature. And as such, He will judge everything with truth. God never does anything that isn't right, He can't.
I really love the way the end of Psalm 96, says essentially the same thing, "Then all the trees of the forest will shout for joy before the Lord, for He is coming—for He is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with His faithfulness."
In Closing...
Beloved, we can all be assured of this truth: There may be distortion in our perception, but there is not distortion in God's perception!
"The Lord is righteous in all His ways and gracious in all His acts." - Psalm 145:17
We are so used to having God's mercy that we rely upon it. When it comes to sin, "the wages of sin, is death," so we've become so comfortable with our sin, we think to ourselves, "God hasn't killed me when I sin yet. So obviously, what I've done is not unacceptable before God."
But what we really need to be thinking, is "For every time I have sinned, I am so thankful, that God hasn't taken my life, for what I've done.. And since, He hasn't, I'm going to repent, and never repeat it again!"
So, I'll make one last point here: We're so used to abusing God's mercy and forgiveness toward us, yet in return, we refuse to extend them to others.
Allow me to make something clear, the distortion in perception is within us, it's not within God.
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
Many people today, including many professing Christians, tend to downplay their own sin, while condemning the sin of others, much like the Jews in Jesus' day. Many sins carry inter-generational consequences. When we hear this, we most often think of physical and sexual abuse, alcoholism, and other sins of personal assault, violations of the image of God in the human being.
Honoring God with our bodies must be the pursuit of every believer. In I Corinthians 6:19-20, the apostle Paul asserts, "Don’t you know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body."
There are millions of Bibles published each year in hundreds of languages. The gospel message is advancing rapidly, through the technology of the internet, into even the remotest parts of the earth. Yet despite that great progress, many people do not seem to know what Scripture teaches about sin. While others, twist the doctrine to suit their own personal situations, claiming to be exempt under grace. Does that then, give us a license to willingly continue to sin, after all, all we need do, is ask for forgiveness, right?
When Justin Martyr, who was given the surname martyr, as he had given his life for the "true philosophy," held a disputation with the Jew, The Dialogue of Trypho, The Jew said. "They who are the seed of Abraham according to the flesh shall in any case, even if they be sinners and unbelieving and disobedient toward God, still share in the eternal kingdom." That is what they believed. They believed they were exempt from judgment. They did not believe they would be condemned with the world, condemned with the pagans, because they were self-righteous and they were attached to the nation of Israel.
Now, you can see they believed in a salvation by works.They believed in what we would call legalism, salvation by works. They thought that because they were in the nation and because they kept the traditions and because of their physical identification and their religious identification together, they were exempt from condemnation. They were the chosen people. They expected to be regarded and treated not as individuals, but to be dealt with as far as the whole nation was concerned, and they thought God was obligated to the whole nation, so they as a part of it were exempt from judgment. Therefore, there was no consequence to their personal sin, because they were under a sort of a national salvation.
Further, they believed not only in salvation by their works, but salvation by their covenant. They not only believed in legalism, but they believed in what we would today call sacramentalism. Because they were circumcised on the eighth day, because they went through that sacramental situation, that ritual, they, therefore, were in the covenant. That is essentially, what is being believed in many churches today. That if a child is baptized as an infant, that is some sacramental act by which that child enters into the covenant. The child enters into the covenant as an infant, that entering into the covenant is confirmed when the child reaches the age of 12, and therefore, by sacramentalism that child is guaranteed a place in God’s kingdom and will not be condemned with the world.
That covenant theology that we see today is basically an adaptation of the false securities given through the Jews, their teachers who had entirely missed the whole point. And so they believed that by keeping the traditions outwardly and by being sacramentally attached, they were exempt, because of the covenant.
Beloved, I am sadden to say, there are numbers of Christians like that today. They’ve been baptized, they go to church, they belong to a church, they keep the rules, and they act on a moral basis outwardly. They’re self-righteous, they try to do what’s right, and they just don’t think they’re going to be judged. They really don’t. That’s basically true. As one theologian said, "There is some kind of a still little voice in everybody that constantly convinces them that in the end, it’s going to be okay." And that’s why you hear so very often people say, "God would never do that to me. I mean I’ve been a good person." And quite frankly, in my experience, the so called moral, self-righteous people, are the most difficult of all people to reach. They’re much more difficult to teach than the reprobates, who have hit rock bottom and have no other option, because they already know it all.
And so, Paul goes from the reprobates in chapter 1 to the moral people in chapter 2, and I might add, he goes with great force and great clarity. He points out that even the most ethical, moral person, yes, even the Jew, is going to one day find himself in the same hell as the Gentile pagan idolater if he continues to go the way he’s going. In fact, he takes it one step further, and says that if the heathen is without excuse, then the Jew is even more without excuse. Because he has more information and more knowledge, he has even less of an excuse.
So when it comes to the religious person who has not become an idolater but who has identified with either Judaism or in today’s terms with Christianity outwardly, Paul wants him to know that he’s going to be judged too, if it is only an outward religion.
In total, there are six principles of judgment within these first sixteen verses, of Romans chapter two.
The first three principles of judgement are, knowledge, truth, and guilt. Now, if you're taking notes, go ahead and write those down. Knowledge, truth, and guilt. Then I'll give you the last three principles of judgement. Which are deeds, impartiality, and motive. Deeds, impartiality, and motive.
These are the six principles of judgement.
Let's go ahead and get started and we'll see just how far we can get in covering these today.
God judges on the basis of knowledge, truth, guilt, deeds, impartiality, and motive. God judges on these six things. He judges men on the basis of their knowledge, He judges them on the basis of the truth, He judges them on the basis of their guilt, He judges them on the basis of their deeds, He judges them with impartiality, and He judges men by their motives.
The first one in verse one, knowledge. "Therefore, any one of you who judges is without excuse. For when you judge another, you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the same things." So take a closer look and see what this is really saying. It's actually a fascinating verse. It begins with "therefore." What does that mean? The "therefore" takes us backwards to the previous chapter? Doesn't it? Some people have been confused by the word "therefore" but there’s really no reason to be, if we just listen closely to what he's saying. What he's saying is, because what was true of those in Romans 1:18-32 is also true of you, "therefore," you are also without excuse. That’s the connection he's making here.
And, if we'll quickly turn back to Romans 1:18-19, "For God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth, since what can be known about God is evident among them, because God has shown it to them." And now verse 20, "For His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse." In other words, what he is saying, is that because they know the truth, they are "therefore," without excuse. To put it another way, "because you know the truth, you have no excuse." Why is that? Implication! Because you also know the truth. And you know how you prove that you know the truth? You prove it because you are judging others, and if you have a criterion by which to judge others, you now prove that you must know the truth. So you’re actions, are just as inexcusable.
They knew the truth. Very obviously, they in fact, knew the truth. It was clear that all men knew the truth from chapter 1, and what was true of those people is also true of the Jew in chapter 2. They knew not only from external natural revelation, they knew from conscience. Let's take a look at chapter 2 verse 14. Verse 14. "So, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, instinctively do what the law demands, they are a law to themselves even though they do not have the law."
The point here is, if the Gentiles do by nature the things contained in the law, and if it’s the nature of a Gentile, if conscience is a part of him, then conscience is a part of a Jew as well. And if conscience is in an immoral man, conscience is, therefore, also in a moral man. So they also knew by natural revelation, they also knew by conscience, but more than that, the Jew, the moral man, the one who attaches himself to the worship of the true God, knows from the very law of God itself. That is what Paul is saying here.
Now, then, let turn to chapter 3 verse 1. Verse 1, chapter 3. "So what advantage does the Jew have? Or what is the benefit of circumcision?" Then, verse 2, "Considerable in every way. First, they were entrusted with the spoken words of God." So, what Paul is saying, is they are just as inexcusable if not more inexcusable, for they not only have the light of nature, they have the light of conscience, and they have the light of the revealed Word of God itself. They knew.
Then, Paul reinforces the same concept in Romans 9:4, "They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the temple service, and the promises."
So in other words, they have all the benefits, all the revelation.
Then let's look at verse 3, "For I could almost wish to be cursed and cut off from the Messiah for the benefit of my brothers, my own flesh and blood." That means anybody, and that really gives us not only the Jew but beyond to any moralist who thinks he’s exempt from judgment because he has not sunk to idolatry, he has not sunk to sexual immorality, he has not sunk to the reprobation of the former passage. Any moralist in view who is saying, "Hey, look, I’m not in that same category," he says to him, "You are also inexcusable." Now, that little phrase is just a very general reference. "You’re inexcusable." "Why?" Because you know what's right, because you have the knowledge. In fact, you actually have a more complete knowledge than most, so you’re even more inexcusable.
And let me just point this out, you might want to know, that the Jews who would be exposed to this chapter would even have known of Jesus Christ, therefore, that would have even put them at the very top of the "inexcusable list", now wouldn’t it? Well, according to Scripture, God sees it the same way. You have access to the Word, you have knowledge, you have conscience, you know Jesus, you have it all. "You are inexcusable." We might not like to hear it, but isn't it true, that every one here today, also have these same advantages today? So, what then will be an acceptable excuse, when the Father is lost in the judge?
The people of Hebrews 10, those who would receive a much more severe punishment because they had counted the blood of the covenant an unholy thing and trampled underfoot the blood of Christ. So, do you see it, they're at the top of the inexcusable list because they know God’s standards. How do we know? Just look at chapter 2 verse 1, I'll read this time from King James edition: "O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judges another, thou condemnest thyself." See it? Paul is saying, "You betray that you know God’s standards when you apply them to somebody else. Anyone who sits in the seat of moral judgment, anyone who sits in the seat of condemning others for their sin, proves that he himself is inexcusable. If he can judge the sin in others, then it bears evidence that he, in indeed, knows the standard."
Now look this, this is interesting, look at verse 32 at the end of chapter 1. "Although they know full well God’s just sentence—that those who practice such things deserve to die—they not only do them, but even applaud others who practice them." Its saying, that even the pagans know the judgment of God, that they who commit such things are worthy of death. Even the pagans know what is right and wrong. Even the pagans can apply God’s standard to their own life if they chose, much more you who have received His revelation, and you who sit in judgment on the pagans give evidence that you know. This would be like a judge who condemns a criminal by applying the law. He, therefore, makes himself responsible, obviously, to keep that same law if he’s going to sit in judgment on somebody else.
Then in the next verse, chapter 2, verse 1, he makes this statement, this is powerful, he goes on to say,
"Therefore, any one of you who judges is without excuse. For when you judge another, you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the same things." I love that! "Hey, when you show the law of God as applied to somebody else, then you prove that you know that law, and in knowing that law you've just condemned yourself." I think that is an incredibly powerful, powerful statement. By doing that, you just condemned yourself.
Think about it, isn't this is really what Jesus said? Just look at Matthew 7:1-2, you can totally see exactly where Paul got his whole statement from: By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He was really just reiterating what Jesus said in Matthew 7 verses 1 and 2, "Do not judge, so that you won’t be judged. For with the judgment you use, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." WOW. That literally means stop criticizing, stop being condemning and censorious, stop being critical and stop being fault-finding and self-righteous. So stop playing God.
Because, if you show that you are able to judge everybody else, then you also show that you deserve to be judged by that same standard. If you know the standard so well that you can apply it to other people, you better make sure it isn’t going to be applied to you! That's what James was talking about, in James 3:1, "Not many should become teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive a stricter judgment." Why is a teacher’s condemnation greater? Because the more he knows, the more he therefore condemns himself. That's why Jesus goes on to say in chapter 7:3-5, to talk about before you even think about getting a splinter out of someone else’s eye, why don’t you go and get that tree trunk of out of your own? Isn't that a fatal tendency, for most everyone? Don't we tend to exaggerate the faults of other people and downplay our own? Christians included?
That classic line, that our Lord said of the Jew who sat in judgment of everybody and he thought he himself was exempt, and God says, "Hey, just because you think you're exempt, you’re not exempt. And not only are you not exempt, you’re even more inexcusable, and you prove it because you are applying the law to somebody else, that proves you know it, and so guess what, it’s going to be used to condemn you, too!" And then He says, "Don’t give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them with their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces." Here what is being said here, "You're doing the same things, that you're judging someone else for," Now, I know some will say, "Wait, I do not do any of those things. I am not committing even one of those sins. I am moral. I keep the law of God." That's the disillusion most people have regarding themselves. You know, "Anything I do, doesn't begin to compare to what THAT person has just done! What wrong I've done, is so insignificant, so small, that it doesn't even matter. So small it cannot even be judged by any man, I don't even judge myself for it. But that guy, man, just look at what he's done. That's absolutely horrible."
Jesus really just zero's in this, back in Matthew 5:21-22, "You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder, and whoever murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Fool!’ will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But whoever says, ‘You moron!’ will be subject to hellfire." What our Lord, is saying is this, "No, you don’t kill outwardly, but you do kill with your heart, and sure you are able to restrain from the actual act of murder, only because you’re seeking to appear so self-righteous and that's only because you want everyone to look up to you, but inside, Oh on the inside, which is not apparent to others, you are just the same, you are also a murderer."
Because, you see, that is all that false religion can do. It cannot actually restrain the sin in the heart, although it can mask it with a false self-righteousness. You ask yourself how come certain people in the cults like Catholics and Mormons and a whole host of others can appear to be so goody goody. Because they are restrained by the desire to belong, they are restrained by the desire to gain heaven by their works, they are restrained by the desire to be thought of as righteous when the truth is, inside they cannot control any of those things. Inside, where it counts, they are morally corrupt. God knows whats inside as well as done outwardly. He knows it all. You might put up a facade, but He sees right through that, its useless. And Jesus really drives this point home, and hard, in verses 27 and 28, "You have heard that it was said, Do not commit adultery. But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Would you look at that. You might not have done the act but you're committed the same sin in your heart, and so you are no better than they are.
He goes on to say, in verses 31-32, "It was also said, Whoever divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce. But I tell you, everyone who divorces his wife, except in a case of sexual immorality, causes her to commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery." So, do you know what they did? When they wanted to commit adultery, they didn’t just go commit adultery, they divorced their wife and married the one they wanted to commit adultery with and so they legalized it, and that’s why our Lord is saying when He says when you’re putting away all your wives, you’re proliferating adultery all over everyplace. You think that you’re technically getting around adultery, but you’re divorcing your wife to do it and that is also a sin. So, again, I tell you, that you are no better than they are. That's an in your face moment, isn't it? Then wait, He's not done yet, "Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord." Do you know why He said that? Because they had all these different kinds of oaths, and they’d say, "I swear by this and by that" and "I swear by such and such"
and as long as they swore by something other than God, they thought it didn’t count, and anytime you said "I promise and I swear by heaven that I’ll keep this oath and I’ll honor my debt, then you don’t pay your debt, you could say, "Ha, I fooled you! I only swore by heaven, not God, so doesn’t count." So then you’re going right along and you’re trying to perform your oaths, you’re doing everything to the letter of the law on the outside, but you’re a filthy liar on the inside.
Now, that sounds pretty bad, right? Guess what, Jesus didn't even stop there either. In verse 38, "You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth," In other words, "You go ahead, seek your vengeance, that statement was for the law courts, not for personal activities. I tell you, if someone hits you on the cheek, turn the other cheek in personal relationships. Don't you see, that you yourself, have missed the whole point. God's law encompasses not only the outside, but the inside too. You’re vengeful sinners, so go ahead and get your revenge. And God will have His too." All the way through chapter 5, Jesus let them have it. And when they said, we cross our fingers, when we promise, so our promises don't mean anything. So, we are innocent, we're only doing what the Scripture says, "an eye for an eye.." Jesus tells them, "You're only kidding yourselves. Your
conscience that makes you aware of wrong in others, you fool, you're only signing your own death certificate."
The next principle of judgment, is the principle of truth. Verses 2 and 3, "We know that God’s judgment on those who do such things is based on the truth. Do you really think—anyone of you who judges those who do such things yet do the same—that you will escape God’s judgment?" The same things that are in verse 1, which are the same things that are in chapter 1. We are sure, we know and the word here, oidamen, the Greek word for know means to know something that is commonly known, that is patently obvious, that is known by external facts. I mean it is an obvious, basic principle that judgment of God is going to be according to truth. Why? Because God cannot Lie. And God is of truth, that is His nature. Shall not the judge of all the earth, says the Pentateuch, do right? We’ll be judged according to the truth. Scripture teaches us that God’s judgment is upon those who do such things is based on the truth.
So Paul hits them with some truth, "Absolutely not! God must be true, even if everyone is a liar," God is truth, it is His nature. And as such, He will judge everything with truth. God never does anything that isn't right, He can't.
I really love the way the end of Psalm 96, says essentially the same thing, "Then all the trees of the forest will shout for joy before the Lord, for He is coming—for He is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with His faithfulness."
In Closing...
Beloved, we can all be assured of this truth: There may be distortion in our perception, but there is not distortion in God's perception!
"The Lord is righteous in all His ways and gracious in all His acts." - Psalm 145:17
We are so used to having God's mercy that we rely upon it. When it comes to sin, "the wages of sin, is death," so we've become so comfortable with our sin, we think to ourselves, "God hasn't killed me when I sin yet. So obviously, what I've done is not unacceptable before God."
But what we really need to be thinking, is "For every time I have sinned, I am so thankful, that God hasn't taken my life, for what I've done.. And since, He hasn't, I'm going to repent, and never repeat it again!"
So, I'll make one last point here: We're so used to abusing God's mercy and forgiveness toward us, yet in return, we refuse to extend them to others.
Allow me to make something clear, the distortion in perception is within us, it's not within God.
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
Brian Monzon Ministries