Theology for Everybody: RomansSample

Paul says then there are three great threats to God’s gift of righteousness. The first he dealt with in Romans 1:18– 32—is the belief that you can just live in a state of unrighteousness. “God is fine with me, so there’s no need to change. I’m good enough.” Then in Romans 2:1–11, Paul talks about the second threat: secular religion. People who ascribe to this belief might say, “I’m a good person because I do the right thing, I have a moral cause, and I’m a good person doing good things. I’m good without God.”

The third enemy of gift righteousness through Jesus Christ is religion. These people are conservative, traditional, and “right”—they grew up in church, know right from wrong, and live decent lives. This enemy of Jesus’ gospel is about what we do, not what God does. If it’s about what I earn, not the gift that He gives, then I am the center. My performance, not His performance, is the focus.

Paul was once the most religious of all. Referring to himself, he writes in Philippians 3:6, “As to righteousness under the law, blameless.” Paul had religion, and that was his problem. He thought he was making himself righteous through his religion. He didn’t know that Jesus would make him righteous through a relationship. Of the three possible enemies of the health and well-being of the Church, this one is the most lethal. Our biggest issues aren’t out “there” in the world; they’re in “here” in the church. The biggest problems aren’t the people who don’t know the Bible; they’re the people who think they know the Bible but really don’t. If we learn anything from the ministry of Jesus and the betrayal of Judas, the real problem is always on the inside.

Paul addresses five religious traps. The first is information, not transformation. Romans 2:12-13 says, “For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified.”

Everyone sins, but we are much more aware of their sin than ours. It’s popular to confess other people’s sins, and we even have protests and movements telling the world what others did. Before protesting all the wrongdoing in the world, you should start by protesting yourself. Everyone does evil, but we like to talk about the evil of others, not our evil, which is the heart of self-righteousness.

Paul says that the more you know, the more responsible you are. His distinction between those who have versus those who do not have the law refers to the first five books of the Old Testament—the Pentateuch, or ‘the book in five parts.’ The Pentateuch has 613 laws. The more you know, the more you are responsible for. Therefore, just listening to Bible teaching without heeding the Bible's truth only increases judgment. Like vitamins, verses only help if they get in you.

So, the question is, what does it mean to be a doer of the Word of God? That’s the big issue. Religious people make a very long list and think that is their job description. They don’t realize that was Jesus’ job description. These are the things you and I have failed to do. These are the things Jesus intentionally did, and as a result, He fulfilled the law for us. When we have a relationship with Him, He begins to teach us and help us become more like Him.

The Christian life is not a life lived for God, but rather God living through you. The Holy Spirit changes us at the deepest levels of our being and continually cultivates the character of Christ. Later in Romans, Paul speaks at length to life in the Spirit. Still, here he introduces this theme of living as doers of the Word, which is only possible by the Spirit who inspired the Word to be written, illuminates our understanding of the Word, and empowers our obedience to the Word. It’s all about relationship with God and not religion for God.

Today’s Reflection

Do your words and actions display a spirit of love or a spirit of religion?