Romans 2

Reflection

Paul doesn't give his audience much room to breathe when he jumps into chapter 2. He spends much of the first chapter condemning the people who ignore the truth of God and exchange it for the foolishness of the world. As I read chapter one, I could almost hear his audience cheering him on as he smites the people who commit the laundry list of sin he offers up in verses 29 and 30.

But Paul doesn't just stop there. It's almost like he hesitates for a moment between chapters 1 and 2, then says "hey, you remember all those people I condemned in chapter 1? Yeah...that's you. You do all those things." The room goes quiet as Paul questions his audience in verse 3: "So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God's judgment?"

It seems to me that Paul seems to be setting the table to talk about the universal need for the gospel of Jesus. In the book of Acts, it's revealed to be Paul's custom to first present the gospel message to the Jews in the synagogue before engaging the Gentiles. That seems to be what he's doing here. All of chapter 1 is spent condemning the world and those who practice idolatry and immoral behaviors, but then almost all of chapter 2 is spent condemning those who claim to have the law and still do the things that invite God's wrath.

From verse 17 to the end, Paul discusses these very people. He targets the Jews in his writing, but I think it's also appropriate for Christians today. As modern Christians we know (or rather, claim to know) the truth about the world and what needs to be done to save it. But we still sin, often willingly. How many times have we seen televangelists deposed because of their scandals and flings with their secretaries or some comparable indiscretion? Clearly, we can't just be Christians in name only. Our outward actions must be consistent with what we claim to possess on the inside. As Paul says in verse 29, "a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God."


The whole chapter reminds me of a quote I heard in a song. DC Talk begins their song What If I Stumble with the following quote: "The greatest single cause of atheism in the world is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips then walk out the door and deny him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable." Paul's condemnation of Jews in name only is even more hard on Christians. The very name "Christian" means "little Christ." We need to be like Jesus in everything we do, not just what we say.

Favorite Verses

Verse 1 - "You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because who who pass judgment do the same things."

Verse 13 - "For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but those who obey the law who will be declared righteous."

Questions

• What areas do I judge people and also fall short?
• How can I be more aware of the unfair criticism and judgment I put on people?

Romans 1

Reflection

Paul doesn’t waste much time getting into the hard and heavy issues of Romans. After a pretty standard introduction, he hops right into “the wrath of God.” So much for the cheery welcome of the first 17 verses.

Although the verses from 18-32 are less happy and exhorting than the first 17, Paul doesn’t seem to be condemning his audience, but rather warning them against the sort of things they will come to fight against. This passage is a clear condemnation of many issues even contemporary audiences will wrestle with.

I love the logical progression of Paul’s thinking. He first clearly states that “what may be known about God is plain to [the men who suppress truth] because God has made it plain to them (vs. 19).” Paul is crystal clear that what can be known about God has been revealed through his creation, and that man has no excuse for not knowing God (verses 20).

Sometimes I’ve wondered what God would say to people who died without ever being exposed to the truth of Jesus. Romans 1:20 doesn’t leave much of a loophole for those people. The Holy Spirit says through Paul that God’s qualities, though invisible to the naked eye, can be seen through creation. This reminds me of the central idea behind the Intelligent Design movement (i.e. – the irreducible complexity of creation and the unlikelihood that such complexity would result from a work of chance).

What I don’t understand is how the qualities we can see in creation would lead to an understanding of who God is and why we need him. Obviously, I can’t fully relate to this situation, because I have access to the Bible and can learn about God through other ways. But what about people who don’t have access to the Word of God? Are they held responsible to the same degree? Can they know about things like sin and redemption? Or are they expected to simply believe in the existence of God and worship him as the creator of the universe?

Paul is pretty harsh on people of the world through the rest of the chapter. He says that people knew God, but willingly exchanged the truth he provided for lies of man’s creation. Verse 22 and 23 very striking: “Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.”

How awesomely sad. What a heartbreaking passage. What an image. Exchanging the everlasting glory of the Creator of the universe for images of humans and animals. It’s not without consequences either. Paul says that God basically said “alright, if that’s how you want it” when men rejected him. God gave them what they desired. And what, exactly, did humans choose instead of “the glory of the immortal God”? “Shameful lusts,” “perversion,” “indecent acts,” “depraved minds,” “every kind of evil.” Wow.

Not only that, but verse 32 says that the people who participate in these sorts of things not only know that they’re doing wrong, but continue to do these things and “approve of those who practice them.” It’s hard, but I can think of times where I’ve given approval to bad things. Not necessarily things that are bad on the surface, but certainly things that are born of the evil mind that Paul mentions.

Favorite Verses

Verse 16 – “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.”

Verse 20 – “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

Questions

• What sort of spiritual gift would Paul have given the Roman church? (verse 11)

• What does it mean when it talks about how clearly people knew God (verses 19-23)? It seems as though people had a clear understanding of who God was and what he expected them to do in a way that most people wouldn’t today. Is Paul referring to ancient times, like the many times when the Israelites turned to foreign Gods? Or is he referring to the times at present, when people like the Pharisees almost worshiped the law rather than the Lord?