In chapter 1, Paul wrote that the Gentiles were without excuse and under the condemnation and judgment of God because: ‘for although they knew God they did not honor Him as God or give thinks to Him’ [1:21].
In chapter 2, Paul wrote that the Jews were also without excuse and under the condemnation and judgment of God because of their judgment against the Gentiles but who were practicing the very same sins themselves [2:2].
Romans 3 begins with a question-and-answer session with an imaginary opponent…Paul is anticipating what questions he thought the Jews might ask him in their opposition to his comments in Romans chapter 2.
This imaginary opponent asks what advantage is there then in being a Jew…this opponent is going to try to argue his way out of God’s judgment by stating that
the Jews should be exempt from God’s judgment based on the fact that:
1) They were entrusted with God’s laws [Ex.19:20 / Deut. 4:8]
2) They were the race through whom the Messiah would come [Isaiah 11:1]
3) They were above all nations privileged to hear the voice of God [Deut.4:5 / Exodus 19:20]
4) They believed the covenant God established with Abraham guaranteed them their entry into Heaven (John 8:39)
The Jews had a flawed view of God’s grace…they thought that because they enjoyed so many temporal blessings from God that it must mean God was actually pleased with them…Paul tells them that’s a serious misunderstanding of God’s grace.
The Jews were saying….if we’re condemned with the rest of the world, then what profit is there in being a Jew? …if having the law and being circumcised… if being a child of Abraham does me no good, then what advantage is there in being a Jew if we are under God’s judgment just like the Gentiles?
SO…why did God choose Israel as His special people (3:1)? …Paul replies that God chose them so that through them He could make Himself known to the whole world…their assessment that God favored them despite their continued sinful lifestyle was wrong….Paul made it clear in chapter 2 that:
1) Having the law doesn’t do a person any good (2:13).
2) Being circumcised doesn’t do a person any good (2:25).
3) Being a child of Abraham doesn’t do you any good (2:28-29).
Nothing new…we find the very same argument today…when people are presented with the gospel and their need for Christ, they often begin raising objections and throwing out arguments to try to get themselves out from under the judgment of God.
Wanting to convince you and themselves that they are really better than you might be giving them credit for.
Most people view themselves as basically good…they have a long list of excuses to distract from their true character…they say:
…“I know I’m not perfect. I’ve got my share of faults but I’m not a murderer.”
…“I’m a decent person….yes, I’m a sinner, but I’m a good sinner.”
…”What about the heathen, I’m surely not that bad?”
…”How can a loving God send anyone to hell?”
…“It’s not fair for God to judge me for disobeying a law I knew nothing about.” …“I’ve lived my life the best that I could, what more does God want?”
…“God’s not fair.”
Paul has already pointed out…that being physical descendants of Abraham did not qualify them as his spiritual descendants…Paul was focusing on a deeper truth contrary to the thinking of most Jews…salvation was never offered by God on the basis of heritage…ceremony…good works…or any basis other than faith.
Here’s the KEY with respect to how God deals with every person…God will impartially judge everyone against what they know to be right.
TWO Important Aspects about God’s Judgment:
FIRST…God’s impartial judgment of people will be according to their response to the light they were given…everybody doesn’t receive the same amount of light… everybody doesn’t have the same knowledge of who God is.
Those without access to God’s special revelation will not be judged by what they don’t know…God’s fair…they will be judged by what they do know…they will be judged by the revelation of God in nature and their conscience.
SECONDLY…not everyone is given a blanket sentence or judged the same…some like to categorize everyone by the statement…“well, all unbelievers go to hell” …that’s not true…I’m opposed to those who make such a generic statement…that is not a scriptural statement.
There are degrees of ‘punishment’ based on the amount of light that a person has rejected.
Those who witnessed Jesus’s miracles and refused to believe will be judged more harshly…again, the importance of knowing the Bible and especially the three Parables Jesus gives pertaining to…salvation…rewards…and judgment.
The Parable of the Landowner [Matt. 10] deals with salvation…a parable that demonstrates exactly how salvation works…that regardless of the time spent in this life as a Christian…whether your whole life or just for one day before you die …you both received the same wage…eternal life.
Then the Parable of the Talents [Mat. 25] refers to the Judgment Seat of Christ where God rewards Christians based on what you have done with the talents and gifts He loaned you during your stay in this life…some a lot…some very little.
NOW…when it comes to judgment…it goes back to the statement ‘God will impartially judge everyone against what they know to be right’ ….Jesus Himself describes how that works [Matt. 11:20].
Jesus mentions three towns in which He had performed miracles [Matt. 11:21]. These people should have responded to Jesus in repentance; instead, they chose rejection… they did not repent…and for one town specifically…Capernaum, He tells the residents of that town…it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you [Matt. 11:24].
Jesus says that if the same miracles that were performed by Him in Capernaum had been done for the people of Sodom, God would never have destroyed it.
The people of Capernaum had received a great light…they had witnessed personally the miracles of Jesus but rejected Him…people will be judged based on the amount of light…the information or knowledge they know regarding who Jesus is…Jesus Himself explains how this works: [Luke 12:47-48]
47The servant who knows the master’s will and does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. 48a But the one who does not know and does things deserving
punishment will be beaten with few blows.
This saying is not addressed to Christians…it is directed at those who had knowledge about who Christ was and ignored it…the person who receives such a rebuke from the Lord is really not a Christian.
BUT…Look what Jesus says that is directed at us who are Christians:
From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
He’s essentially saying the same thing but with a different twist…Jesus says that on that day He will expect more from those believers who knew more.
On the matter of Christian living, I can’t think of any more sobering words.
Jesus makes a point here…those who have more knowledge of what Christ expects…have a greater responsibility to act upon those things…to share those things…there has never been ever in the history of the church a group of Christians with more knowledge of what the Bible teaches than those of us who have been exposed to expository preaching.
Expository preaching involves the comprehensive explanation of Scripture that presents the meaning and intent of a biblical text to make the passage clear and understandable…the expository preacher’s goal is simply to expose the meaning of the Bible, verse by verse.
We meet people all the time who know that they have eternal life through faith alone…but who have never been exposed to sound exegesis on Scripture that deal with those topics…they have never heard about a Judgment Seat of Christ and the rewards involved at that Judgment.
But many of us do have that knowledge…as a result…we are the ones “to whom much has been given.” …Our eternal destiny is not in question…what the Lord will say to us when He returns is something we should seriously pray about… what have I done with the knowledge I have?
If you have a picture in your mind of Jesus as being all-loving and never being judgmental…then you have the wrong picture of Jesus…it has nothing to do with favoritism…or because of a preferred status with God based on heritage.
The common belief is that people go to heaven and hell based on the kind of earthly lives we live…good people go to heaven as a deserved reward for a virtuous life, and bad people go to hell as a just punishment for an immoral life.
That’s not entirely true…it has everything to do with what you did with the knowledge…the amount of light…you had about who Jesus was…it involves your belief and acceptance of Jesus as Lord and Savior in addition to how you lived your life…not a deserved reward for living a virtuous life.
Paul…in his imaginary conversation asks the question regarding that very thought…how you live your life…the erroneous belief that living an unrighteous life actually shows how righteous God is…the New Living Translation paraphrases the answer in Romans 3:5, 6;
“But” some might say, “our sinfulness serves a good purpose, for it helps people see how righteous God is. Isn’t it unfair, then, for Him to punish us?”
Put another way…‘let us do evil that good may come’ …if our being bad makes God look good, why is God angry with us? …if people’s unrighteousness is an occasion for God to show His righteousness…then isn’t it unfair for God to execute wrath on us because we’re actually doing God a favor?
Said another way [6:1] “Shall we go on sinning that grace may increase?”
If our unrighteousness causes the righteousness of God to shine more
gloriously…then when we sin we are actually revealing how great the grace of God is because when I sin His grace towards me actually increases.
SO…based on this line of thinking…Paul then sums up the hypothetical argument with what he believes would be the Jews’ response:
it’s unjust for God to bring His wrath on us [5]
let us do evil that good may result” [8]
It’s important to remember that the book of Romans represents a Roman court room scene…a scenario Paul commonly uses throughout his writings…it’s something the people could relate to.
In this court room scene…Paul begins by first addressing the universality of sin and God’s wrath against sin…the unbeliever is judged …symbolizing the Great White Throne of Judgment…where he is found guilty and is condemned…by the testimony of two witnesses: …”How can a loving God send anyone to hell?”
1) Creation [Rom. 1:20] –“since the creation of the world…His invisible attributes…eternal power…divine nature have been clearly seen.
2) Conscience [Rom. 2:15]. Those who do not know God’s laws still have an inner sense of right and wrong that condemns them when they violate that law.
In the following verse it’s as if Paul shouts out in the court room ‘Objection’ [6].
…how do you figure doing evil so good may result… some translators wanting to show how emphatic Paul is in rejecting the idea that ‘evil helps people see how righteous God is’…translates Paul’s response as “God forbid” [6] …in the Greek it does not contain the name of “God” …and should not be translated so.
Paul’s response in the Greek reveals how forceful he is in answering the assumption that our sinfulness serves a good purpose…Paul responds with the strongest negative Greek expression possible… “may it never be”. A statement Paul uses frequently in Romans to denote a horrified rejection to an unbiblical concept. (Lk. 1:38; 20:16; Ro 3:4, 6, 31; 6:2 , 15; 7:7, 13; 9:14; 11:1, 11; 1Co 6:15; Gal 2:17; 3:21; 6:14.)
So, to argue that mankind’s sin serves a good purpose? Is ridiculous!
Starting in verse 9 Paul lays out the charge…the indictment…and the verdict:
THE CHARGE (Romans 3:9) — All are under sin.
THE INDICTMENT (Romans 3:10-18) — The whole world is accountable to God…An indictment is a formal written statement framed by a prosecuting authority (in this case, GOD HIMSELF)
THE VERDICT (Romans 3:19) — GUILTY!!!
Watching the Word Network or DayStar you won’t hear a whole lot about sin… a lot about money….not much about sin…what they offer is not what Christ accomplished on the Cross…but some book or DVD deal telling you how good you are…Well, you’re not.
Paul presents the ultimate testimony…the testimony from Scripture… beginning in verse 10….Paul introduces an 11-count indictment against man… using the testimony of God’s own Word as revealed in the Old Testament.
The character of man
Verse 10b –“There is none righteous, not even one” – UNIVERSALLY EVIL
Verse 11a –“There is none who understands – SPIRITUALLY IGNORANT
Verse 11b –“There is none who seeks for God – REBELLIOUS
Verse 12a –“All have turned aside – NATURALLY WAYWARD
Verse 12b –“There is none who does good – SPIRITIUALLY USELESS
Verse 13b –“With their tongues they keep deceiving” – DECEITFUL
Verse 14a –“mouth is full of cursing and bitterness” – EMOTIONAL HOSTILITY
Verse 15a –“Feet are swift to shed blood…” – MURDEROUS
Verse 16a –“Destruction and misery are in their paths” – WANTON DESTRUCTION
Verse 17a –“path of peace they have not known.” – PEACELESS
Verse 18a –“no fear of God before their eyes.” – GODLESSNESS
Then in verses 19, 20, and 23 Paul sums up two and a half chapters:
Verse 19 – “…so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.” …Paul has declared “every man a liar”. The entire world stands silent and guilty before God.
Verse 20 – “For no flesh will be justified in His sight….”
From Romans 1:18 to 3:20 Paul has expressed and exposed man’s condition as a helpless sinner…under wrath…under judgment…unjustified…guilty…and condemned.
Verse 23 – “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”.
All people without distinction are equally deserving of God’s wrath.
For two and a half chapters Paul has delivered the bad news about the sinful and helpless condition man is living in under God’s condemnation…Paul has showed that there is no salvation through the keeping of God’s laws…because sinful man is utterly incapable of…or…inclined to obey God.
If Romans stopped with verse 23 there would be no hope…however there is a verse 24! …Paul now begins to give the good news of forgiveness of sin that is …not through the Law…or by man’s good works.
Verse 21 – “But now…God’s righteousness has been revealed…”
Verse 24 – all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.
FINALLY, SOME GOOD NEWS…Paul has demonstrated with reason and proven with Scripture that we’re all a bunch of guilty sinners who deserve only God’s wrath…what could possibly give us hope???
Paul says “But now…” there is hope….Paul shows what God does about the whole….sick…pitiful condition of man…having shown that man cannot be right before God by works…nor…by the Law.
It is true that human sin does provide God the opportunity to show the truth about His character…specifically His great mercy and lovingkindness (Lk 18:13, He 2:17) because in response to man’s sin God does not obliterate mankind but provides the way of salvation.