Romans 2: 1-11
Verse 1: Ok. I’m going to be really honest here. Judging can be very hard to avoid. Especially when I go to school with all girls! It is definitely not an easy task to “look for the good in everyone” when that “everyone” is looking you up and down, listening to the words you say, and even the one’s that you don’t and any other way you can communicate a message about yourself or your view on things. They are always making an assumption about you whether it be true or false. Or when someone is venting about another person it is very easy to make a judgment about the person being talked about behind her back. It is definitely a lipstick jungle here!
Now granted, Paul here is talking about judging people based on the sin that they have committed. In which, like he states, we should not do it because at some point in our lives we have done the same thing that the next person has done. That is why we have no right to judge them because we are just as sinful as they are and God loves us all the same. God is the only one who has the right to judge because HE is the ONLY HOLY one in the picture. Many self-righteous people make two mistakes in their life: 1. They underestimate God’s standard of righteousness (inner & outer) and 2. They underestimate the depth of their own sin. Too often people characterize themselves as being “good people”. NO! *buzzard noise* WRONG! According to scripture no one is a “good person” not when you really look at how someone is on the inside and go inside their brain and heart and see the deep, dark secret thoughts and desires that the person has. Once you get that kind of dirt, you won’t think of that person as a good person anymore. This is a very serious concept to grasp. And until a person understands just how sinful he/she is, then the person will never be able to fully realize his/her need for Christ and how gracious God is to love such sinners as us! So the point of this verse is to not pass any judgment on someone because you’re in the same boat as the next person.
Verse 2: Like I stated before, God is the only one who has the right to do any form of judging. Paul says that God’s judgment is done rightly. And it is! God made the law. God’s law has been passed down to us through Scripture. We are held accountable to His law through His Holy Spirit. Therefore, we know what God wants and expects of us. So when we don’t obey Him, He is going to rightly judge us with His law that we were already aware about. God’s law is the truth that Paul is talking about here. The reason why God’s judgment is the only judgment seen as right is because there is always a distortion in human perception, meaning that in the depths of every man is the false understanding that everything is going to be alright and that in our own minds we seek to justify our own sin and shame, when the reality is that we can’t because we don’t completely understand the stain it has left on our souls. Another reason why God’ judgment is best is because man’s judgment never completely squares with the truth because mankind never knows the whole truth. That is why we think it is ok to judge people when we are doing the same things they are doing and because we wish that God would judge us the way we judge others: based on the outside. Long story short, God has the right to judge us because He wrote the law and because He is holy and will make the righteous decisions.
Verse 3: basically in this verse paul is asking the romans if they believe that God will not judge them if they judge others. And the answer to his question is that when someone passes judgement on someone else, God is going to judge them. Especially when both parties have committed the same sin!
Verse 4: this verse is saying that we should not assume that when God is not punishing us then we are right with Him. This verse is also saying that because we shouldn’t assume that we need to realize that the only way we can become right with God is through His grace that leads us to pursue an intimate relationship with Him through His Son. Too often I think that people think that because when they commit what they know is a sin and is not immediately struck down by lightening then everything is going good with God. When in reality God may punish you right then, or He could wait it out and handle it later on down the road when you are tempted to do the sin again and He’ll bring out his belt and discipline you so that you don’t forsake Him again. This is a lesson that many of the Jews had to learn the hard way.
Verse 5: OK This verse should come with a warning label or something because it is very honest, bold, blunt, and in your face! It definitely catches my attention and will catch the attention of any reader who’s eyes catch this verse. Christians are very stubborn. Paul points that out in this verse. He basically tells us that we need to be very repentant and sincere when we go to God and that we need to go to Him when we’ve sinned against Him so that we can be made right and have restored fellowship with Him. And if we do not go to God to repent the judgment day is going to be awful because our sin will continue to stack up against us. And our relationship with God will continue to get more and more distant in our lives. This is a very bad spot to be in because not being in communion with God sucks and life is not complete and your joy is not there. Many things can provide happiness, but only Christ can provide joy. And when the joy is not there, the reason for living does not seem to be there either. God wants us to strive to conform to the image of His Son. That is all He asks of us.
Verse 6: pretty simple point Paul makes here. God is not going to give anyone any brownie points or hall passes through judgment day. He is going to be real and honest when dealing with every human being and the life that he/she lived, whether it was pleasing and honoring to Him or not. I remember the skit from Tuesday night of 2010. The prisoner did not get what he deserved. He deserved life or the death penalty but all he had to pay was a fine and he was free to go. God is not like that. He is just and fair. But thankfully, when judgment day comes, if you’re a believer, after God tells you all you have done wrong and what you deserve, he’s going to take your slate that has your whole life written on it and wipe it clean with the blood of Christ. What an amazing act of love and mercy.
Verse 7: to me, this verse is discussing perseverance in the life of a believer. A believer is passionately pursuing what God would have him/her to do. He/she is always seeking to please God by doing deeds that bring glory and honor to Him NOT his/herself. Paul says here that those who pursue God’s will, will have the blessing of being able to live eternally in the presence of God.
Verses 8-9: these verses are the bad news for mankind, where as the previous verse was more of good news. The bad news is that those who disobey God and do not seek Him out and do not pursue a relationship with Him will basically be sent hell and judgment day is not going to be pretty for those people. In fact, it’s going to be like an introduction to what kind of eternity they are about to step into once their court date has been completed. I think it is interesting, not necessarily funny or hilarious when people think that hell is going to be some big party. Scripture makes it very clear that it will be anything but a party. It will be anger and wrath from a holy and just God who doesn’t take any junk from anybody. I know from reading Sodom and Gomorrah that I do not want God’s wrath coming down on me because it isn’t fun and the outcome is not pretty. It’s not like the wizard of Oz when you get caught up in the “wrath” of a tornado and wind up in the Land of Oz where everything is colorful and bright. It’s more like you’re chilling in Hawaii on a nice Sunday morning and then BOOM some Japanese planes are bombing your nice tropical getaway up. That is how many secular people view hell and God’s judgment, like the Land of Oz. Or that no planes ever come and blow their tropical getaway up.
Verse 10: Good news and butterflies again. Those that seek Christ will be given peace, honor and glory in Christ when they enter into heaven after judgment day.
Verse 11: Like I said before, God doesn’t give brownie points. God is the same with everyone, I guess you could say He is kind of neutral? I’m not sure if that would be the right synonym but He is not going to give Bob and easy way out and John the hard way. He is going to give each of them what they deserve. And He will back up His decision based on the law that He gave us in His word; The law to love Him above everything else and to love our neighbor as our self.
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