Romans 4: 16-17

"(16) Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham's offspring - not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. (17) As it is written: "I have made you a father of many nations." He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed - the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were."

Going through Romans I think I might have needed to start with Genesis because Paul refers back to Abraham a lot in this fourth chapter. So a little background if you're not all that familiar with the story of Abraham. God told Abraham to leave his country and go to the land that He would show him and that He would make him the father of a great nation. Abraham did has he was told and through his children, a great nation was indeed created. Jesus was a direct descendant of Abraham and through Jesus we all become part of this nation. In my last post we found out the Abraham became saved through his faith in God. The law (think ten commandments) hadn't even been given, but Abraham's faith saved him just as our faith saves us.

Now, I just wanted to throw this out there today because it was on my mind. Some people might be wondering if I REALLY believe what I'm writing and I want you to all know that I do. I do believe that God reveals himself through his creation and that we're only saved through our belief in Jesus Christ. Symbols of our faith are fine, but if it's not in your heart, then it's worthless. By making these statements I'm not trying to be all high and mighty. I fail multiple times every single day and I frequently fail to live up to what God wants of me, but I'm trying, which is all that God can ask.

Romans 4: 9-15

"(9) Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham's faith was credited to him as righeousness. (10) Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before! (11) And he received the sign of the circumcision, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. (12) And he is also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised. (13) It was not through law that Abraham and his offfspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but thorugh the righeousness that comes by faith. (14) For if those who live by law are heirs, faith has no value and the promise is worthless, (15) because law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression."

Paul continues chapter 4 by continuing to discuss Abraham. Abraham was the hero of ancient Jews and the founder of the Jewish race/religion. It was through him that God made a covenant for him to be the father of a great nation. Paul points out, though, that Abraham was made right with God through his faith, not the outward symbol of circumcision. I think sometimes as Christians we put too much emphasis on outward symbols of faith. But God doesn't care about the outward symbol as much as he cares about the inner faith. We can be baptised before an entire church, but if our heart isn't change and faith isn't there, then it's meaningless. In fact Abraham hadn't even conducted the outward symbol of circumcision before God blessed him because of his faith. If the outward symbol was more important, then faith would have no meaning and that's not what God is all about. The emphasis is on faith.

Romans 4: 1-8

"(1) What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather, discovered in this matter? (2) If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about - but not before God. (3) What does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righeousness." (4) Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligaiton. (5) However, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righeousness. (6) David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: "(7) Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whos sins are covered. (8) Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him." "

Sorry for being a slacker lately. It's easy to get caught up in laziness when I don't really have anything to do because it's constantly snowing. Back to Romans! Okay, so I was really confused by this passage. I didn't really understand the wording and even the footnotes in my Bible didn't help much. Thankfully there are other translations and these translations can be found online. What follows is New International Readers Version for this section. It makes SOOO much more sense!

"1 What should we say about those things? What did our father Abraham discover about being right with God? 2 Did he become right with God because of something he did? If so, he could brag about it. But he couldn't brag to God. 3 What do we find in Scripture? It says, "Abraham believed God. God accepted Abraham's faith, and so his faith made him right with God."—(Genesis 15:6)
4 When a man works, his pay is not considered a gift. It is owed to him. 5 But things are different with God. He makes evil people right with himself. If people trust in him, their faith is accepted even though they do not work. Their faith makes them right with God.

6 King David says the same thing. He tells us how blessed some people are. God makes those people right with himself. But they don't have to do anything in return. David says,

7 "Blessed are those
whose lawless acts are forgiven.
Blessed are those
whose sins are taken away.
8 Blessed is the man
whose sin the Lord never counts against him." —(Psalm 32:1,2)"

Here's the bottom line: You cannot be right with God through the things you do, you can only be right with God through your faith. Even Abraham, who was the ultimate hero for the Jewish faith, couldn't get to heaven through his awesome works, it had to be by faith! Faith makes you right with God!

Romans 3:27-31

"(27) Where, then is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. (28) For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law. (29) Is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. (31) Do we, then nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law."

I like these verses because it makes me feel better about my sinful humanity. Thank goodness that we are not saved by following the law. Sure we should TRY to follow the law, but we know we'll fail. I'll feel road rage as I'm driving behind a car going 5 below the speed limit and I might mutter under my breath. You'll say something out of anger, jealousy or frustration. So if we're not saved by following the law or doing good works, then how are we saved? By faith. Faith in God, faith in Jesus Christ and faith in the holy spirit. Sometimes I wonder why God chose faith to be how we are saved, but I guess it makes sense. If faith is how we are redeemed, then their isn't a single thing we can do on earth that gets us saved. Those that spread the word in Africa aren't better than those that donate canned goods to the local food bank because if both have faith, they are saved. This forces us to take a look at our relationship with God and not focus on selfish glory. Paul tells the ancient Jews that Jews and Gentiles are both saved through faith, but the laws are still there to be upheld by believers. Just because you have faith doesn't mean you can not uphold the law. If you have faith in God, your goal should becoming more like him, which means following the laws with God's help.

Romans 3: 21-26

"(21) But now a righeousness from God, apart from the law, has been made known, to which the Law and Prophets testify. (22) This righeousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, (23) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (24) and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (25) God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished - (26) he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus."

So yesterday I wrote about how none of us were righteous because we've turned away from God and our ways are full of ruin and misery. I love how Paul says it in verse 23, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." But thank goodness that God loves us enough to give us a way out this desperate situation - Jesus Christ. If we have faith in Jesus Christ we become righteous in the sight of God. God no longer sees us through the clear glasses that show all of our sins, but through the blood of Christ who died for our sins. Could you imagine bearing the burden of all human sin and then dying for all of humanity? Jesus died utterly alone because the sins he bore cut him off from God. In today's world most of us wouldn't take the blame for something to save a person we love muchless complete strangers. Is it any wonder we find characters in movies who sacrifice themselves so compelling? It's because we wouldn't do it. Jesus was the first. And he was a real man who really was tortured and crucified. If we believe in him and his resurrection, then we can be redeemed in the eyes of God. Praise God!

Romans 3:9-20

"(9) What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. (10) As it is written:

"There is no one righteous, not even one;
(11) there is no one who understands,
no one who seeks God.
(12) ALl have turned away,
they have together become worthless
there is no one who does good,
not even one."
(13) "There throats are open graves;
their tongues practice deciet."
"The poison of vipers is on their lips."
(14) "Theri mothes ar full of curisng and bitterness."
(15) Their feet are swift to shed blood;
(16) ruin and misery mark their ways,
(17) and the way of peace they do not know."
(18) "There is no fear of God before their eyes."

(19) Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. (20) Therefore no one will be decliared righteous in his sight by observing the law, rather, throug hthe law we become conscieous of sin."

Paul spent a lot of time in chapter 2 talking about the law - he talked about how God will judge us based on the law and he talked about a more sinsiter aspect of the law such as judging others by it, but not holding yourself to the same standards. In this section Paul tells us the function of the law. But before he does that, he makes it very clear that no one on the face of the planet is better than another because we all sin. The middle section of these verses are all verses from the Old Testament where everyone is tossed into the same category - sinners. Read back over those verses...no one is righteous, we have all turned away from God and our ways are full of ruin and misery. Wow. We all have a serious problem don't we? So what is the law there for? If we follow the law can we become righteous and go to heaven when we die? Nope. In verse 20 Paul says that the laws are only there so that we can know what sin is and have that in our minds as we go through our days. Stay tuned tos see how we make it to heaven and become righteous :-)

Romans 3: 1-8

"(1) What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? (2) Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God. (3) What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness? (4) Not at all! Let God be true and every man a liar. As it is written: "So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge." (5) But if our unrighteousness brings out God's righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human arguement) (6) Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? (7) Someone might argue, "If my falsehood enhances God's truthfulness and so increases his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?" (8) Why not say - as we are bing sladerously reported as saying and as some claim that we say - "Let us do evil that good may result"? Their condemnation is deserved."

In chapter 2 not many people are exempt from Paul's criticism. First he says don't judge others - we all fail there - then he talks about not being a hypocrite - we all fail there too. He starts chapter 3 by asking what's the point in being Jewish? Ancient Jews knew that they were God's chosen people, but with the death and ressurection of Jesus, everyone gained access to God. It probably made Jews feel like there wasn't any point in being Jewish, but Paul points out that Jews had one major advantage - they had the word of God since the beginning of time thus they were more familiar with it than the average Gentile. Paul continues by saying that even if some Jews didn't have faith, God is still faithful to them. I don't really get the rest of verse 4 so I'm going to skip ahead to verse 5. In verses 5-8, Paul talks about some arguments for not following God's law. Here's the reasons that other people have thrown out there:

1. God can't judge us because our unrighteousness makes God look better (verse 5)
2. God can't judge us because or lies make him appear more truthful (verse 7)
3. God can't judge us because our evil brings good to others (verse 8)

Wrong, wrong, wrong. It may be true that our sin makes the contrast between man and God all the more sharp, but what we need to remember is we'll be judged in the end. If we do evil in some misguided attempt to make people understand the nature of God, God will make no distinction between that sin and the sin of someone who didn't have God on their mind. No excuses people!

Romans 2:25-29

"(25) Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not be circumcised. (26) If those who are not circumcised keep the law's requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? (27) The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will codemn you who, even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker. (28) A man is not a Jew if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. (29) No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God."

If you were like me when you read these verses you were like "whoa!" At first glance it seemed like Paul was talking about circumcision out of nowhere. He's talking about hypocrisy in previous verses and now this? What's the connection? Well when I read the notes in my Bible I realized that for ancient Jews (and maybe modern Jews?) circumcision was an outward sign of submitting to God. But what Paul is trying to say is that your outward sign doesn't mean anything if you continue to disobey God's law. In fact, those that don't make an outward sign like circumcision, but obey God's law will be set above those who just make the outward sign. So let's apply this to Christianity, shall we. At my church a lot of people like to raise their arms during praise and worship which is all fine and good. But if you do this as a sign of your righteousness and you don't follow God's law in your heart, then you're a hypocrite, which we know from previous verses is not godly and turns others away from God. This also speaks to one key misconception people have about God and eternal life. Most people think that if they do good works in life, they'll have eternal life, but Paul clearly says there has to be a change in your heart made by the Holy Spirit. If you're doing good works great, but please make sure there's also been a heart and Spirit change so I can see you after death.

Romans 2:17-24

"(17) Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and brag about your relationship to God; (18)if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; (19) if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, (20) an instructor of the foolish, a teachers of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowldge and truth -(21) you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? (22) You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? (23) You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? (24) As it is written: "God's name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.""

It may seem like we can disregard this set of verses because Paul is talking to Jews, but there is an important lesson here. Paul is talking to the religious elite of his day, the Jews. If we were going to make a comparison to today, Paul would be talking to Christians. Both groups, ancient Jews and modern Christians, know who God is and they know what the laws are. Paul talks about how outwardly these two groups of people may know the law and teach it to others or use it to look down at others, but they don't apply the laws to themselves. Paul suggests that maybe one should start with themselves and their law-following abilities before they try to instruct others on the law. Here's an example: Before you instruct others on tithing, maybe you should be tithing yourself.

I think verse 24 tells modern Christians exactly why we need to apply the law to ourselves before we instruct others - if a Christian is viewed as a hypocrite, then God's name will be slandered by non-Christians. Example: Pretty much all of chapter 2 of Romans talks about not judging people because only God can judge us. Not too long ago Pat Robertson made some pretty judgmental comments about Haiti and many saw those comments as being hypocritical. God's word says not to judge so I'm sure some people saw Pat Robertson as a hypocrite and decided that they didn't want to worship the God of a hypocrite. Now Pat Robertson has done a lot of great and godly things in his life, but this is a simple example of how actions and words can cause people to turn away from God. I ask God every day to make my actions reflect Him and his Word. I fail. One thing Paul has been clear about is that we all fail, but there are so many people making an effort. Are you?