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Pentecost 92 Judgment
Pentecost 92 Judgment Romans 1:18-3:20
In this very long passage Paul has been inspired to hold nothing back. The opening of his letter is a blanket statement of the truth of the Gospel of God in Jesus the Christ, its inclusiveness of all humanity and the Roman Christians’ part in it. But there is an urgency in his message. They and all others who will receive this letter must understand the plight of the world, as they know it. It is doomed to destruction by the deliberate sin and evil that has brought it into its present condition and is in direct opposition to God’s nature.
As Paul launches into his exposure of God’s wrath he specifies the attitude and behavior that has brought it to bear on the world. You can sense his compulsion in every word. It was absolutely necessary to expose it because of what will inevitably come as a result, God’s judgment, the finality that occurs if there is no change in mind and heart. God has concluded and stated ahead of time, for our sake, there will be a day of judgment (Matt.12:36) when He will judge men’s secrets (1Cor.2:16). Jesus makes this very clear in Matt.25:31-46 where He uses the Parable of the Sheep and Goats to picture the event. Further He says, “Besides, in all these matters there is a huge chasm set between us so that no one can go from us to you even if he wanted to, nor can anyone cross over from you to us (Lk.16:26 Message Bible).” His words have to be applied and now.
Paul is only forcefully stating what Jesus has already proclaimed. There is such a vast gap between God’s Kingdom and the world that the devil has captured and shaped. So, Mt.12:36But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. 37For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned." Jn:12:48He that rejecteth Me and receiveth not My words, hath One that judgeth him; the Word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the Last Day.”
The hinge verses for this entire section, Romans 1:18-3:20, are 1:18-19 and 2:28:29.
“But God's angry displeasure erupts as acts of human mistrust and wrongdoing and lying accumulate, as people try to put a shroud over truth. But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can't see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. What happened was this: People knew God perfectly well, but when they didn't treat him like God, refusing to worship him, they trivialized themselves into silliness and confusion so that there was neither sense nor direction left in their lives. They pretended to know it all, but were illiterate regarding life. They traded the glory of God who holds the whole world in his hands for cheap figurines you can buy at any roadside stand (Message Bible).”
“A man is not a Jew [believer] if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew [believer] 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 (NIV).”
In between these two passages lies the laundry list of attitudes and behaviors that guarantee final separation between God and humanity and person from person. What is it that has influenced Paul so deeply? Note the words ‘attitude’ and ‘behavior.’ One is directed vertically and the other horizontally. Ch.1:18-32 centers on behavior and Ch.2 centers on attitude. Behavior is derived from attitude. This is the Cross Jesus bore, the wrath of God carried to its ultimate and irreversible judgment, death. This is why Paul told the Corinthians that he would know nothing among them except Christ and Him crucified (1Cor.2:2). He does the exact same in his letter to Rome. The Cross casts its shadow over all Paul’s writings.
Thus Paul’s warning that a day of reckoning, a day of judgment, a day that finally separates God and His people from the dark abyss that awaits the ones who want to have the final say about who they are and what they do with what they have been given in mind, heart, body and spirit.
Self-assessment is the value Paul is teaching here in Chapters 1-3:20. Ps.26:2 “Examine me, GOD, from head to foot, order your battery of tests. Make sure I'm fit inside and out (Message Bible).” There is an attitudinal and behavioral position to be examined before God. Conviction is part of God’s grace.
1Corinthians11:28
A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.
2Corinthians13:5
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?
Judgment is an ability of God given to us as His images. Separated from Him it does great damage. What validates judgment is its authority. Is it God and His Word or I? When do we pull back and let God judge? When are we legitimate when we speak in judgment for Him? The prophets sent to proclaim His judgment. When are we to be prophetic?
Negative judgment---judgment based on personal human evaluation outside the Word. Based on fear, insecurity, using the Word as a weapon, to prove a point, win an argument, gain recognition at the expense of others.
Positive judgment---allowing God and His Word to be the judge. Attitude---Begins with self-judgment. Am I guilty of the same thing I criticize in others? If I see a control issue am I guilty of the same thing in myself? Stay tuned……..
In this very long passage Paul has been inspired to hold nothing back. The opening of his letter is a blanket statement of the truth of the Gospel of God in Jesus the Christ, its inclusiveness of all humanity and the Roman Christians’ part in it. But there is an urgency in his message. They and all others who will receive this letter must understand the plight of the world, as they know it. It is doomed to destruction by the deliberate sin and evil that has brought it into its present condition and is in direct opposition to God’s nature.
As Paul launches into his exposure of God’s wrath he specifies the attitude and behavior that has brought it to bear on the world. You can sense his compulsion in every word. It was absolutely necessary to expose it because of what will inevitably come as a result, God’s judgment, the finality that occurs if there is no change in mind and heart. God has concluded and stated ahead of time, for our sake, there will be a day of judgment (Matt.12:36) when He will judge men’s secrets (1Cor.2:16). Jesus makes this very clear in Matt.25:31-46 where He uses the Parable of the Sheep and Goats to picture the event. Further He says, “Besides, in all these matters there is a huge chasm set between us so that no one can go from us to you even if he wanted to, nor can anyone cross over from you to us (Lk.16:26 Message Bible).” His words have to be applied and now.
Paul is only forcefully stating what Jesus has already proclaimed. There is such a vast gap between God’s Kingdom and the world that the devil has captured and shaped. So, Mt.12:36But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. 37For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned." Jn:12:48He that rejecteth Me and receiveth not My words, hath One that judgeth him; the Word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the Last Day.”
The hinge verses for this entire section, Romans 1:18-3:20, are 1:18-19 and 2:28:29.
“But God's angry displeasure erupts as acts of human mistrust and wrongdoing and lying accumulate, as people try to put a shroud over truth. But the basic reality of God is plain enough. Open your eyes and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can't see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse. What happened was this: People knew God perfectly well, but when they didn't treat him like God, refusing to worship him, they trivialized themselves into silliness and confusion so that there was neither sense nor direction left in their lives. They pretended to know it all, but were illiterate regarding life. They traded the glory of God who holds the whole world in his hands for cheap figurines you can buy at any roadside stand (Message Bible).”
“A man is not a Jew [believer] if he is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew [believer] 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 (NIV).”
In between these two passages lies the laundry list of attitudes and behaviors that guarantee final separation between God and humanity and person from person. What is it that has influenced Paul so deeply? Note the words ‘attitude’ and ‘behavior.’ One is directed vertically and the other horizontally. Ch.1:18-32 centers on behavior and Ch.2 centers on attitude. Behavior is derived from attitude. This is the Cross Jesus bore, the wrath of God carried to its ultimate and irreversible judgment, death. This is why Paul told the Corinthians that he would know nothing among them except Christ and Him crucified (1Cor.2:2). He does the exact same in his letter to Rome. The Cross casts its shadow over all Paul’s writings.
Thus Paul’s warning that a day of reckoning, a day of judgment, a day that finally separates God and His people from the dark abyss that awaits the ones who want to have the final say about who they are and what they do with what they have been given in mind, heart, body and spirit.
Self-assessment is the value Paul is teaching here in Chapters 1-3:20. Ps.26:2 “Examine me, GOD, from head to foot, order your battery of tests. Make sure I'm fit inside and out (Message Bible).” There is an attitudinal and behavioral position to be examined before God. Conviction is part of God’s grace.
1Corinthians11:28
A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.
2Corinthians13:5
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?
Judgment is an ability of God given to us as His images. Separated from Him it does great damage. What validates judgment is its authority. Is it God and His Word or I? When do we pull back and let God judge? When are we legitimate when we speak in judgment for Him? The prophets sent to proclaim His judgment. When are we to be prophetic?
Negative judgment---judgment based on personal human evaluation outside the Word. Based on fear, insecurity, using the Word as a weapon, to prove a point, win an argument, gain recognition at the expense of others.
Positive judgment---allowing God and His Word to be the judge. Attitude---Begins with self-judgment. Am I guilty of the same thing I criticize in others? If I see a control issue am I guilty of the same thing in myself? Stay tuned……..
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