Romans 2: 1-15

(Romans 2: 1-15)

Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?  But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; Who will render to every man according to his deeds:  To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,  Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:  For there is no respect of persons with God.  For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;  (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.  For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:  Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)

 

In Chapter 1, Paul explored God's deep and subtle work of salvation and the tragedy of mankind. The tragedy of man contains very animal needs, metaphysical appearance. 2:1-15 exposes two other forms of sin: “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. 』 First of all, the apostle Paul speaks of metaphysical sin. Metaphysical sins are revealed at once, but metaphysical sins are secret and easy to cover up. Sin is not only manifested, but also internalized that is not revealed. Jesus declared, "To hate is murder, and to be lustful is to commit adultery." Therefore, the saints must deal with the secret inner sins well. The will that Jesus left as he ascended to heaven was to reach the ends of the earth and become a witness of the Lord.

 

The Bible says that only judgment and judgment are the will of God. “Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 』God saves life through judgment. Human judgment simply blames and destroys because we have no ability to love to the end. God is the perfect love, the Judge, and the only Savior. God is still waiting for sinners to return today. God waits again for sinners to return to the Lord's bosom and enjoy the grace of the cross.

 

Verses 7, 10, and 13 emphasize the law and the works of good. Saints are saved through the event of the cross. However, the simple scheme of being saved by faith greatly undermined the Gospel. Works cannot be a condition of salvation, but they are evidence of salvation. A young man diligently obeying the law came to Jesus and asked him how he could obtain eternal life. He replied that he lived that way to Jesus who commanded him to keep the law. Jesus commands, "Sell what you have, give it to the poor, and follow me", but the rich young man left in distress (Matthew 19:16-22). It is very important to know the definition of good. But more importantly, do good.

 

The second sin that the apostle Paul exposes is believing in the power of conscience. Before the law came, everyone had a conscience but did not prevent sin. Cain, mankind's first murderer, killed his younger brother and concealed it. In response to God's accusation and judgment, Cain made a shameful request to prevent others from harming him by giving him a mark. He had a conscience but could not overcome sin. Except for Noah, the righteous man of the day, they had a conscience when they destroyed all mankind from this earth. But conscience did not save them. Saints are those who know that there is nothing good within them. So they live based on the Word and the Gospel. 『In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. 』

 

The Apostle Paul expressed the gospel of the Lord he preached as "my gospel." In his Gospel, there is not the Lord who blesses and makes prosperous, but the Lord who reveals and judges the secrets of everyone. Paul was not ashamed or uncomfortable with this. This is because there is no longer any shame in oneself who lives face to face with the Lord. Paul regarded everything as excrement in order to obtain Jesus Christ (Phil. 3:8). Paul met and enjoyed the most precious thing, so he was able to confess the gospel of the Lord as "my gospel." Thus, without worrying about the prophecy that various hardships awaited him, he was able to walk the Mediterranean coast, carrying his Gospel to Rome, and enter with confidence.