1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God 2 (which he had promised afore, by his prophets in the Holy Scriptures), 3 concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead; 5 by whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name; 6 among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ: 7 to all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
A Bond Servant. Paul, a servant of Jesus.
It is thus that the apostle introduces himself to the Romans. In several other epistles the same expression is used. Some people would be ashamed to acknowledge themselves servants; the apostles were not.
It makes a vast difference whom one serves. The servant derives his importance from the dignity of the one served. Paul served the Lord Jesus Christ. Everybody may serve the same Master. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey?
Rom. 6:16. Even the ordinary house servant who yields to the Lord is the servant of the Lord, and not of man. Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God; and whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance; for ye serve the Lord Jesus Christ.
Col. 3:22-24. Such a consideration as this can not fail to glorify the most menial drudgery.
Our version does not give us the full force of the term which the apostle uses when he calls himself a servant. It is really bond servant.
He used the ordinary Greek word for slave. If we are really the Lord's servants, we are servants bound to him for life. It is a bondage that is itself freedom, for he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord's freeman; likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ's servant.
1 Cor. 7:22.
Separated. The apostle Paul was separated unto the gospel.
So is every one who is really the servant of the Lord. No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye can not serve God and mammon.
Matt. 6:24. No man can serve the Lord and have other service besides that.
Do you mean to say that a merchant or other business man can not be a Christian?
By no means. What I said was that a man can not serve the Lord and at the same time have other service. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.
Col. 3:17. If the man is not serving the Lord in his business, then he is not serving the Lord at all. The true servant of Christ is truly separated.
But this does not mean that he separates himself from personal contact with the world. The Bible gives no countenance to monkery. The most hopeless sinner is he who thinks himself too good to associate with sinners. How then are we to be separated unto the gospel? By the presence of God in the heart. Moses said to the Lord: If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up thence. For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? Is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth.
Ex. 33:15,16.
But the one who is separated to the public ministry of the gospel as the apostle Paul was, is separated in a special sense in that he may not engage in any other business for personal gain. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
2 Tim. 2:4. He can not take any position, however high under earthly governments. To do so is to dishonor his Master, and to belittle his service. The minister of the gospel is the ambassador of Christ, and there is no other position that can approach it in honor.
The Gospel of God. The apostle declared that he was separated unto the gospel of God.
It is the gospel of God concerning his Son Jesus Christ.
Christ is God and therefore the gospel of God, of which the apostle speaks in the first verse of the chapter, is identical with the gospel of Christ
of which he speaks in the sixteenth verse.
Too many people separate the Father and the Son in the work of the gospel. Many do so unconsciously. God, the Father, as well as the Son, is our Saviour. God so loved the world, that He gave his only-begotten son.
John 3:16. God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself.
2 Cor. 5:19. The council of peace
is between them both.
Zech. 6:13. Christ came to the earth only as the representative of the Father. Whoever saw Christ, saw the Father also. John 14:9. The works which Christ did, were the works of the Father, who dwelt in him. Vs. 10.
Even the words which he spoke, were the words of the Father. Vs. 24. When we hear Christ saying, Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,
we are listening to the gracious invitation of God the Father. When we see Christ taking the little children up in his arms, and blessing them, we are witnessing the tenderness of the Father. When we see Christ receiving sinners, mingling with them, and eating with them, forgiving their sins, and cleansing the hideous lepers with a touch, we are looking upon the condescension and compassion of the Father. Even when we see our Lord upon the cross, with the blood streaming from his side, that blood by which we are reconciled to God, we must not forget that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself,
so that the apostle Paul said, the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
Acts 20:28.
The Gospel in the Old Testament. The gospel of God to which the apostle Paul declared himself to be separated, was the gospel which he had promised afore by his prophets in the Holy Scriptures
(Rom. 1:2); literally, the gospel which he had before announced or preached. This shows us that the Old Testament contains the gospel, and also that the gospel in the Old Testament is the same gospel that is in the New. It is the only gospel that the apostle preached. That being the case, it should not be thought strange for people to believe the Old Testament, and to refer to it as of equal authority with the New Testament.
We read that God preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.
Gal. 3:8. The gospel preached to the people when Paul lived was the same gospel that was preached unto the ancient Israelites. See Hebrews 4:2. Moses wrote of Christ, and so much of the gospel is to be found in his writings that a man who does not believe what Moses wrote, can not believe in Christ. John 5:46, 47. To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
Acts 10:43.
Paul had only the Old Testament when he went to Thessalonica, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures, opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead.
Acts 17:2, 3.
Timothy had nothing in his childhood and youth but the Old Testament writings, and the apostle wrote to him: Continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; and that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
2 Tim. 3:14, 15.
Then go to the Old Testament with the expectation of finding Christ and his righteousness there, and you will be made wiser unto salvation. Do not discriminate between Moses and Paul, between David and Peter, between Jeremiah and James, between Isaiah and John.
The Seed of David. The gospel of God is concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh.
Rom. 1:3. Read the history of David, and of the kings who descended from him, and who became the ancestors of Jesus, and you will see that on the human side the Lord was handicapped by his ancestry as badly as anybody can ever be. Many of them were licentious and cruel idolaters. Although Jesus was thus compassed with infirmity, he did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth.
1 Pet. 2:22. This is to give courage to men in the lowest condition of life. It is to show that the power of the gospel of the grace of God can triumph over heredity.
The fact that Jesus was made of the seed of David means that he is heir to the throne of David. Of David's throne the Lord said, Thine house and thy kingdom shall be established forever before thee; thy throne shall be established forever.
2 Sam. 7:16. David's kingdom is therefore coextensive with the inheritance promised to Abraham, which is the whole world. See Romans 4:13.
The angel said of Jesus, The Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David; and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
Luke 1:32, 33. But all this involved his bearing the curse of the inheritance, and suffering death. For the joy that was set before him
He endured the cross, despising the shame.
Heb. 12:2. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name.
Phil. 2:9.
As with Christ, so with us; it is through much tribulation that we enter the kingdom. He who fears reproach, or who makes his lowly birth, or his inherited traits, an excuse for his shortcomings, will fail of the kingdom of heaven. Jesus Christ went to the lowest depths of humiliation in order that all who are in those depths might, if they would, ascend with him to the utmost heights of exaltation.
Power by the Resurrection. Although Jesus Christ was of lowly birth, he was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
Rom. 1:4. Was he not the Son of God before the resurrection? and was he not so declared to be? Certainly; and the power of the resurrection was manifested in all his life. To speak of nothing else, the power of the resurrection was shown in his raising the dead, which he did by the power dwelling in him. But it was the resurrection from the dead that settled the matter beyond all doubt for men.
After his resurrection he met the disciples, and said unto them, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Matt. 28:18. The death of Christ shattered all the hopes that they had centered in him; but when he showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days
(Acts 1:3), they had ample proof of his power.
Their sole work thenceforth was to be witnesses of his resurrection and of its power. The power of the resurrection is according to the Spirit of holiness, for it was by the Spirit that he was raised. The power given to make men holy is the power that raised Jesus from the dead. His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain to life and godliness.
The Obedience of Faith. Paul said that through Christ he had received grace and apostleship for the obedience of faith among all nations. True faith is obedience. This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom He hath sent.
John 6:29. Christ said, Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Luke 6:46. That is, a profession of faith in Christ which is not accompanied by obedience, is worthless. Faith, if it hath not works, is dead.
James 2:17. For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Vs. 26.
A man does not breathe in order to show that he lives, but because he is alive. He lives by breathing. His breath is his life. So a man can not do good works in order to demonstrate that he has faith, but he does good works because the works are the necessary result of faith. Even Abraham was justified by works, because faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect. And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness.
Beloved of God.
That was a most comforting assurance that was given to all that are in Rome.
How many people have wished that they could hear an angel direct from glory say to them what Gabriel said to Daniel, Thou art greatly beloved
! The apostle Paul wrote by direct inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and so the message of love came as directly from heaven to the Romans as it did to Daniel. The Lord did not single out a few favorites by name, but declared that all in Rome were beloved of God.
Well, there is no respect of persons with God, and that message of love to the Romans is ours as well. They were beloved of God
simply because God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:16. The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love; therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee.
Jer. 31:3. And this everlasting love to men is not shaken, although they forget it; for to those who have turned away, and fallen by their iniquity, he says, I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely.
Hosea 14:43. If we believe not, yet He abideth faithful; He can not deny Himself.
Called Saints.
The reader will notice that the words to be
in Romans 1:7 are indicated as supplied, so that instead of called to be saints,
we may read literally, called saints.
God calls all men to be saints, but all those who accept him he calls saints. That is their title. When God calls people saints, they are saints.
These words were addressed to the church in Rome, and not to the Church of Rome. The Church of Rome has always been apostate and pagan. It has abused the word saint
until in its calendar it is almost a term of reproach. No greater sin has ever been committed by Rome than the distinction it has made between saints
and ordinary Christians, making practically two standards of goodness. It has led people to think that laboring men and housewives were not and could not be saints, and has thus discounted true, everyday piety, and has put a premium on pious laziness and self-righteous deeds.
But God has not two standards of piety, and all the faithful people in Rome, poor and unknown as many of them were, he called saints. It is the same to-day with God, although men may reckon differently.
The first seven verses of the first chapter of Romans are the salutation. No uninspired letter ever embraced so much in its greeting as this one. The apostle was so overflowing with the love of God that he could not write a letter without covering almost the whole gospel in the salutation. The next eight verses may well be summarized in the words debtor to all,
for they show the completeness of the apostle's devotedness to others. Let us read them carefully, and not be content with one reading:
8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. 9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers; 10 making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you. 11 For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established; 12 that is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. 13 Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let [hindered] hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles. 14 I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. 15 So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.
A Great Contrast. -In the days of the apostle Paul the faith of the church in Rome was spoken of throughout all the world. Faith means obedience; for faith is counted for righteousness, and God never counts a thing so unless it is so. Faith worketh by love.
Gal. 5:6. And this work is a work of faith.
1 Thess. 1:3. Faith also means humility, as is shown by the words of the prophet, Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him; but the just shall live by his faith.
Hab. 2:4. The upright man is the just man; the man whose soul is lifted up is not upright or just; but the just man is such because of his faith; therefore only the man whose soul is not lifted up has faith. The Roman brethren, therefore, in the days of Paul, were humble.
But it is far different now. An instance is given by the Catholic Times of June 15, 1894. The pope had said, We gave authority to the bishops of the Syrian rite to meet in synod at Mossul,
and had commended the very faithful submission
of those bishops and had ratified the election of the patriarch by Our Apostolic authority.
An Anglican paper had expressed surprise, saying, Is this a free union of equal churches, or is it submission to one supreme and monarchical head?
To which the Catholic Times replies: It is not a free union of equal churches, but it is submission to one supreme and monarchical head. . . . To our Anglican pleader we say, You are not really surprised. You know well what Rome claims and always will claim, obedience. That claim is now, if it ever was, before the world.
But that claim was not before the world in the days of Paul. In those days it was the church in Rome; now it is the Church of Rome. The church in Rome was famous for its humility, and its obedience to God. The Church of Rome is famous for its haughty assumption of the power of God, and for its demand for obedience to itself.
Praying without Ceasing. -The apostle exhorted the Thessalonians to pray without ceasing.
1 Thess. 5:17. He did not exhort others to do that which he did not do himself, for he told the Romans that without ceasing he made mention of them always in his prayers. It is not to be supposed that the apostle had the brethren at Rome on his mind every waking hour of the day, for in that case he could not have thought of anything else. No man can be consciously in prayer every moment, but all can continue instant in prayer,
or, as Young translates it, in the prayer persevering.
Rom. 12:12.
This is in harmony with what the Saviour said, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint,
or grow weary. Luke 18:1. In the parable that follows, the unjust judge complains of the continual coming
of the poor widow. That is an illustration of praying without ceasing. It is not that we are to be every moment in conscious prayer, for then important duties would be neglected, but it is that we should not grow weary of praying.
A Man of Prayer. This is what Paul was. He made mention of the Romans in all his prayers. To the Corinthians he wrote, I thank my God always on your behalf.
1 Cor. 1:4. To the Colossians, We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.
Col. 1:3. Still more emphatically he wrote to the Philippians, I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy.
Phil. 1:3, 4. Again to the Thessalonians, We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; remembering without ceasing your work of faith,
etc., 1 Thess. 1:2, 3. And further, Night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith.
1 Thess. 3:10. To his beloved son in the faith he wrote, I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day.
2 Tim. 1:3.
Rejoice Evermore.
The secret of this is to pray without ceasing.
See 1 Thessalonians 5:16, 17. The apostle Paul prayed for others so much that he had no time to worry about himself. He had never seen the Romans, yet he prayed for them as earnestly as for the churches that he had raised up. Recounting his labors and sufferings, he adds that they are beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.
2 Cor. 11:28.
As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.
He fulfilled the law of Christ by bearing the burdens of others. Thus it was that he was able to glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ suffered on the cross for others, but it was for the joy that was set before him.
They who are wholly devoted to others, share the joy of their Lord, and can rejoice in him.
A Prosperous Journey.
-Paul prayed earnestly that he might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to visit Rome. Read the twenty-seventh chapter of Acts, and you will learn just what kind of journey he had. Most people would say that it was not a prosperous journey. Yet we do not hear any complaint from Paul; and who can say that he did not have a prosperous trip? All things work together for good to them that love God,
Therefore it must have been prosperous. It is well for us to consider these things.
We are apt to look at matters from a wrong side. When we learn to look at them as God looks at them, we shall find that things that we regard as disastrous are prosperous. How much mourning we might save if we always remembered that God knows much better than we do how our prayers should be answered!
Spiritual Gifts. When Christ ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
Eph. 4:8. These gifts were the gifts of the Spirit, for he said, It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
John 16:7. And Peter said on the day of Pentecost: This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.
Acts 2:32.
These gifts are thus described: Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues; but all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
1 Cor. 12:4-11.
Established by Spiritual Gifts. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
What is the profit? For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ; till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
Eph. 4:12, 13.
The gifts of the Spirit must accompany the Spirit. As soon as the early disciples received the Spirit in accordance with the promise, they received the gifts. One of the gifts, speaking with new tongues, was manifested that very day. It follows, therefore, that the absence of the gifts of the Spirit in any marked degree in the church, is evidence of the absence of the Spirit, not entirely, of course, but to the extent that God has promised it.
The Spirit was to abide with the disciples forever, and therefore the gifts of the Spirit must be manifest in the true church until the second coming of the Lord. As before stated, the absence of any very marked manifestation of the gifts of the Spirit is evidence of the absence of the fullness of the Spirit; and that is the secret of the weakness of the church, and the great divisions that exist. Spiritual gifts establish the church; therefore the church that does not have those gifts can not be established.
Who May Have the Spirit? Whoever asks for it with earnest desire. See Luke 11:13. The Spirit has already been poured out, and God has never withdrawn the gift; it only needs that Christians should ask and accept.
I Am Debtor.
That was the keynote of Paul's life, and it was the secret of his success. Nowadays we hear of men saying, The world owes me a living.
But Paul considered that he owed himself to the world. And yet he received nothing from the world but stripes and abuse. Even that which he had received before Christ found him was a total loss. But Christ had found him, and given himself to him, so that he could say, I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Gal. 2:20.
As Christ's life was his life, and Christ gave himself for the world, Paul necessarily became a debtor to the whole world. This has been the case of every man who has been a servant of the Lord. David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep.
Acts 13:36. Whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant; even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
Personal Labor. There is a foolish notion prevalent that ordinary labor is degrading, especially to a minister of the gospel. It is not all the fault of the ministers themselves, but largely the fault of the foolish people about them. They think that a minister must always be faultlessly attired, and that he must never soil his hands with ordinary manual labor. Such ideas were never gained from the Bible. Christ himself was a carpenter, yet many professed followers of him would be shocked if they should see their minister sawing and planing boards, or digging in the ground, or carrying parcels.
There is a false dignity altogether too prevalent, which is utterly opposed to the spirit of the gospel. Paul was not ashamed nor afraid to labor. And this he did not merely occasionally, but day after day while he was engaged in preaching. See Acts 18:3, 4. He said, These hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me.
Acts 20:34. He was speaking to the leaders of the church when he said, I have showed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Vs. 35.
Slandering Paul. At the second international convention of the Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign Missions, the main address for one evening was on the subject of Paul, the Great Missionary.
The speaker said that Paul had a faculty for dividing up the work so that he undertook very little of it himself.
It was a foolish and wicked idea to present before young volunteers for missionary service, because it was an utter falsehood, and it was anything but a compliment to the apostle.
In addition to what has been cited above, read the following: Neither did we eat any man's bread for naught; but wrought with labor and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you.
2 Thess. 3:8. I will very gladly spend and be spent for you.
2 Cor. 12:15. Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent.
2 Cor. 11:23. But by the grace of God I am what I am; and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all; yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
1 Cor. 15:10.
The grace of God is manifest in service for others. The grace of Christ led him to give himself for us, and to take upon himself the form and condition of a servant. Therefore he who has the most of the grace of Christ will labor the most. He will not shun work, even though it be the most menial service. Christ went to the lowest depths for the sake of man; therefore he who thinks that any service is beneath him, is altogether too high for association with Christ.
Gospel Liberty. Gospel liberty is the liberty that God gives men through the gospel. It expresses His idea of freedom. It is the freedom seen in nature and in all the works of His hands. It is the freedom of the winds, blowing where they list; it is the freedom of the flowers, scattered everywhere through wood and meadow; it is the freedom of the birds, soaring unrestrained through the heavens; the freedom of the sunbeam, shooting from its parent orb and playing on cloud and mountain top; the freedom of the celestial orbs, sweeping ceaselessly on through infinite space. This is the freedom which flows out from the great Creator through all his works.
Tasting Freedom Now. It is sin that has produced what is narrow and contracted and circumscribed, that has erected boundary lines, and made men stingy and niggardly. But sin is to be removed, and then perfect liberty will be realized once more in every part of creation. Even now this freedom may be tasted, by having sin removed from the heart. To enjoy this freedom through eternity is the glorious privilege now offered in the gospel to all men. Who that claims to love liberty can let this opportunity pass unimproved?
We have covered the introduction to the main body of the epistle. The first seven verses are the salutation; the next eight treat of personal matters concerning the apostle and the brethren in Rome, the fifteenth verse being the link which unites the introduction to the directly doctrinal portion of the epistle.
Let the reader note carefully the verses referred to, and he will readily see that this is not an arbitrary division, but that it plainly appears. If in reading any chapter, one will note the different topics touched upon, and the change from one subject to another, he will be surprised to find how much easier it is to grasp the contents of the chapter, and to hold them in mind. The reason why so many people find it difficult to recall what they read in the Bible, is that they try to remember it in bulk, without giving special thought to the details.
In expressing his desire to meet with the Roman brethren, the apostle declared himself to be debtor to both Greeks and barbarians, both to the wise and to the unwise, and therefore ready to preach the gospel even in Rome, the capital of the world. The fifteenth verse, and the expression, preach the gospel,
give the keynote to the whole of the epistle, for the apostle glides from this naturally into his theme. Accordingly, we have next
The Gospel Defined Romans 1:16,17 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
Not Ashamed.
There is no reason why any man should be ashamed of the gospel; nevertheless, many men have been and are ashamed of it. Many people are so ashamed of it that they could not think of lowering themselves so much as to make a profession of it; and many who do make a profession of it are ashamed to let it be known. What is the cause of all this shame? It is that they do not know what the gospel is. No man who really knows what the gospel is. No man who really knows what the gospel is, will be ashamed of it, or of any part of it.
Desire for Power. There is nothing that men desire so much as power. It is a desire that God himself has planted in man. Unfortunately, the devil has deceived the most of mankind, so that they seek for power in the wrong way. They think that it can be found in the possession of wealth or political position, and so they rush to secure those things. But these do not supply the power for which God has created the desire. This is shown by the fact that they do not satisfy.
No man was ever yet satisfied with the power that he obtained by wealth or position. However much they have, they desire more. No man finds in them just what he thought he would; and so he grasps after more, thinking that he will find his heart's desire farther on; but all in vain. Christ is the desire of all nations
(Hag. 2:7), the only Source of complete satisfaction, because he is the embodiment of all the real power there is in the universe the power of God Christ the power of God
(l Cor. 1:24).
Power and Knowledge. It is commonly said that knowledge is power. That depends. If we take the statement of the poet, that the proper study of mankind is man,
then certainly knowledge is anything but power. Man is nothing but weakness and sin. All men know that they are sinners, that they do things that are not right, but that knowledge gives them no power to change their course. You may tell a man all his faults, and if you tell him nothing more, you have weakened rather that strengthened him.
But he who with the apostle Paul determines to know nothing save Jesus Christ and him crucified,
has knowledge that is power. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
John 17:3. To know Christ is to know the power of his endless life. It is for lack of this knowledge that men are destroyed. Hosea 4:6. But since Christ is the power of God, it is quite correct to say that power is the one thing that men need; and the only real power, the power of God, is revealed in the gospel.
The Glory of Power. All men honor power. Wherever power is manifested, there will always be found men to admire. There is no one who does not admire and applaud power in some form. Powerful muscles are admired and boasted of, whether they be those of man or of beast. A mighty engine that moves vast weights with ease always attracts attention, and men honor the one who constructed it. The man of wealth, whose money can command the service of thousands, always has admirers, no matter how his money is obtained. The man of noble birth and position, or the monarch of a great nation, has multitudes of followers who applaud his power. Men desire to be connected with such an one, because they derive a certain dignity from the connection, although the power is not transferable.
But all the power of earth is frail and but for a moment, while the power of God is eternal. The gospel is the power, and if men would but recognize it for what it is, there would not be any who would be ashamed of it. Paul said, God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Gal. 6:14. The reason for this was that the cross is the power of God. 1 Cor. 1:18. The power of God, in whatever form manifested, is glory, and not for shame.
Christ not Ashamed. Concerning Christ we read, For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one; for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren.
Heb. 2:11. God is not ashamed to be called their God; for he hath prepared for them a city.
Heb. 11:16. Surely if the Lord is not ashamed to be called the brother of poor, weak, sinful mortals, man has no reason to be ashamed of him. Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God.
1 John 3:1. Ashamed of the gospel of Christ! Could there possibly be a worse case of the exaltation of self above God? For to be ashamed of the gospel of Christ, which is the power of God, is an evidence that the man who feels thus ashamed really thinks himself superior to God, and that it is a lowering of his dignity to be associated with the Lord.
Ashamed of Jesus! sooner far
Let evening blush to own a star;
He sheds the beams of light divine
O'er this benighted soul of mine.
Ashamed of Jesus! just as soon
Let midnight be ashamed of noon;
'Twas midnight with my soul till he,
Bright Morning Star, bade darkness flee.
Saved by Faith. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes. By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.
Eph. 2:8. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.
Mark 16:16. As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.
John 1:12. With the heart man believeth unto righteousness.
Rom. 10:10. This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.
John 6:29. Faith works.
Time would fail to tell of those who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, . . . out of weakness were made strong,
etc. Heb. 11:33, 34. Men may say, I can not see how it is possible for one to be made righteous simply by believing.
It makes no difference what you can see; you are not saved by sight, but by faith. You do not need to see how it is done, because it is the Lord who does the work of saving. Christ dwells in the heart by faith (Eph. 3:17), and because he is our righteousness, he also is become my salvation
(Isa. 12:2). We shall have salvation by faith illustrated more fully as we proceed in our study, because the book of Romans is devoted wholly to this one thing.
To the Jew First.
When Peter, at the request of Cornelius, the Roman centurion, and the command of the Lord, went to Caesarea to preach the gospel to the Gentiles, his first words when he heard the story of Cornelius were, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons; but in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
Acts 10:34, 35.
This was the first time that Peter had ever perceived that truth, but it was not the first time that that thing was true. It had been a truth as long as God had existed. God never chose anybody to the exclusion of anybody else. The wisdom that comes from above is without partiality.
James 3:17. It is true that the Jews as a nation were wonderfully favored by the Lord: but they lost all their privileges simply because they assumed that God loved them better than he did anybody else, and were exclusive. All through their history God was trying to make them see that what he offered them was for the whole world, and that they were to pass on to others the light and privileges which they shared.
The cases of Naaman, the Syrian, and of the Ninevites to whom Jonah was sent, are among the many instances by which God sought to show the Jews that he was no respecter of persons.
Then why was the gospel preached to the Jew first
? Simply because the Jews were nearest. Christ was crucified at Jerusalem. It was from there that he commissioned his disciples to preach the gospel. At his ascension he said, Ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
Acts 1:8. It was most natural that they should begin to preach the gospel in the place and to the people nearest them. This is the secret of all missionary work. He who does not labor in the gospel in his home, will not do any gospel work although he goes to a foreign country.
The Righteousness of God. The Lord says: Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath; for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment; and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner; but my salvation shall be forever and my righteousness shall not be abolished. Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law.
Isa. 51:6, 7. My tongue shall speak of thy work; for all thy commandments are righteousness.
Ps. 119:172.
The righteousness of God, therefore, is his law. Let this not be forgotten. The term the righteousness of God
occurs frequently in the book of Romans, and much confusion has resulted from giving it arbitrary and varying definitions. If we accept the definition given in the Bible, and do not abandon it in any instance, it will simplify matters very much. The righteousness of God is his perfect law.
Righteousness and Life. But the ten commandments, whether engraved on tables of stone or written in a book, are only the statement of the righteousness of God. Righteousness means right doing. It is active. The righteousness of God is God's right doing, his way. And since all his ways are right, it follows that the righteousness of God is nothing less than the life of God. The written law is not action, but is only a description of the action, but is only a description of the action. It is a picture of the character of God.
The very life and character of God are seen in Jesus Christ, in whose heart was the law of God. There can be no righteousness without action. And as there is none good but God, it follows that there is no righteousness except in the life of God. Righteousness and the life of God are one and the same thing.
Righteousness in the Gospel. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed.
Wherein? In the gospel. Bear in mind that the righteousness of God is his perfect law, a statement of which is found in the Ten Commandments. There is no such thing as a conflict between the law and the gospel. Indeed, there are not in reality two such things as the law and the gospel. The true law of God is the gospel; for the law is the life of God, and we are saved by his life.
The gospel reveals the righteous law of God, because the gospel has the law in itself. There can be no gospel without law. Whoever ignores or rejects the law of God, has no knowledge whatever of the gospel.
The First View. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit should convince the world of sin and of righteousness. John 16:8. This is the revelation of the righteousness of God in the gospel. Where no law is, there is no transgression.
Rom. 4:15. Sin can not be known except by the law. Rom. 7:7. Therefore it follows that the Spirit convicts of sin by making known the law of God. The first view of the righteousness of God has the effect of making a man feel his sinfulness, just as we feel our littleness when gazing upon a lofty mountain. And as the grandeur of the great mountains grows upon us, so God's righteousness which is like the great mountains
(Ps. 36:6) appears greater the more we look at it. Therefore he who looks continually at the righteousness of God, must continually acknowledge his own sinfulness.
The Second, Deeper View. Jesus Christ is the righteousness of God. And God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
John 3:17. God does not reveal his righteousness in the gospel in order to cause us to cower before him because of our unrighteousness, but that we may take it and live by it. We are unrighteous, and God wishes us to realize it, in order that we may be willing to receive his perfect righteousness. It is a revelation of love; for his righteousness is his law, and his law is love. 1 John 5:3.
So if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9. If when the preaching of the gospel reveals to us the law of God, we reject it and find fault with it because it condemns our course, we are simply saying that we do not desire that God should put his own righteousness upon us.
Living by Faith. As it is written, The just shall live by faith.
Christ is our life.
Col. 3:4. We are saved by his life.
Rom. 5:10. It is by faith that we receive Christ Jesus, for he dwells in our hearts by faith. Eph. 3:17. Dwelling in our hearts, he is life, for out of the heart are the issues of life. Prov. 4:23.
Now the word comes, As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him; rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith.
Col. 2:6,7. As we receive him by faith, and we walk in him as we have received him, we shall walk by faith, and not by sight.
From Faith to Faith.
This seemingly difficult expression, which has been the subject of so much controversy, is very simple when we allow the Scripture to explain itself. In the gospel the righteousness of God
is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
Note that from faith to faith
is said to be parallel with the just shall live by faith.
Just means righteous.
The reader has noticed that some versions have righteous
in 1 John 1:9 where the KJV has just.
Both are the same. God's life is righteousness; he desires that our lives shall be righteousness also, and therefore he offers to us his own life. This life becomes ours by faith. That is, just as we live naturally by breathing, so we are to live spiritually by faith, and our whole life is to be spiritual. Faith is the breath of life to the Christian. So just as we naturally live from breath to breath, we are to live spiritually from faith to faith.
We can live but one breath at a time; so we can not live spiritually except by present faith. If we live a life of conscious dependence upon God, his righteousness will be ours, for we shall breathe it in continually. Faith gives us strength, for those who have exercised it out of weakness were made strong.
Heb. 11:34.
So of those who accept the revelation of God's righteousness from faith to faith,
it is said, They go from strength to strength; every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
Ps. 84:7.
Let us not forget that it is from the very words of the Bible that one is to learn. All the real help that any teacher can be to any one in the study of the Bible is to show him how to fix his mind more clearly upon the exact words of the sacred text. Therefore, first of all, read the text over many times. Do not do this hastily, but carefully, paying particular attention to every statement. Do not waste one moment in speculating as to the possible meaning of the text. There is nothing worse than guessing the meaning of a text of Scripture, unless it is the acceptance of somebody else's guess. Nobody can know any more of the Bible than the Bible itself tells; and the Bible is just as ready to tell its story to one person as to another.
Question the text closely. Probe it again and again, always in a reverent, prayerful spirit, to make it reveal itself. Do not be discouraged if you do not at once see all that there is in the text. Remember that it is the word of God, and that it is infinite in its depth, and that you can never exhaust it. When you come across a difficult statement, go back and consider it in connection with what precedes. Do not think that you can ever get at the full meaning of any text apart from its connection. By constant application to the words of the text, in order to be sure that you know exactly what it says, you will soon have them constantly in your mind; and it is then that you will begin to reap some of the rich fruits of Bible study; for at unexpected times new light will flash from them, and through them from other scriptures as you read.
The Justice of Judgment Romans 1:18-20 18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his external power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.
How Men Lost Knowledge Romans 1:21-23 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
Result of Ignoring God Romans 1:24-32 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleaness, through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves; who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections; for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature; and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one towards another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful,proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful; who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
All Unrighteousness Condemned. The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. All unrighteousness is sin.
1 John 5:17. But sin is not imputed when there is no law.
Rom. 5:13. Therefore enough of the law of God is known in all the world to deprive all people of any excuse for sin. The statement in this verse is equal to that in the next chapter, that there is no respect of persons with God.
His wrath is manifested against all unrighteousness. No person in the world is so great that he can sin with impunity, and no person is so insignificant that his sin will be overlooked. There is strict impartiality with God. He without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work.
1 Pet. 1:17.
Restraining the Truth. The statement is that men hold down the truth in unrighteousness.
Some people have superficially read Romans 1:18 as though it said that men may possess the truth while they themselves are unrighteous. It does not say so. Sufficient evidence that such a thing is not meant is found in the fact that the apostle is speaking in this chapter especially of those who did not possess the truth, but had exchanged it for a lie. Although they had lost all knowledge of the truth, they were in condemnation for their sin.
The statement is that people restrain the truth by unrighteousness. We might note the fact that when Jesus went into his own country he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.
Matt. 13:58. But the apostle in the text before us means much more than this. He means, as the context plainly shows, that people by their perverseness restrain the working of the truth of God in their own souls. But for their resistance of the truth, it would sanctify them. And herein is seen the result:
Righteousness of God's Wrath. The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, and justly, too, because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shown it unto them.
Note particularly the statement that that which may be know of God is manifest in them.
Although in the common version the margin gives to them
as an alternative reading, the Greek gives no warrant for any such rendering. No matter how blindly men may sin, the fact remains that they are sinning against great light, because that which may be known of God is manifest in them.
With such knowledge not only before their eyes, but actually within them, it is easy to see the justice of God's wrath against all sin, no matter in whom it is found.
Even though it should not be perfectly clear to us how the knowledge of God is really placed in every man, we may accept the apostle's statement of the fact. In the wonderful description of the foolishness of idolatry, given in Isaiah, we are told that the man who makes an idol lies against the truth which he himself possesses. He feedeth on ashes; a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he can not deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?
Isa. 44:20.
Seeing the Invisible. It is said of Moses that he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.
Heb. 11:27. This was not a privilege peculiar to Moses. Every other man may do the same thing. How? Because the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made.
There has not been a time since the world was created when all men did not have the knowledge of God within their grasp.
Lord, how thy wonders are displayed
Where'er I turn my eye!
If I survey the ground I tread,
Or gaze upon the sky.
There's not a plant or flower below
But makes thy glories known.
Eternal Power and Divinity. The invisible things of God that are known by the things that are made are his everlasting power and divinity. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork.
Ps. 19:1. Jesus Christ is the power of God.
1 Cor. 1:24. For in him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through him, and unto him; and he is before all things, and in him all things consist.
Col. 1:16,17. He spake, and it was.
Ps. 33:9. He is the firstborn of all creation.
Col. 1:15. He is the source, or beginning, of the creation of God. Rev. 3:14.
That is to say, all creation springs from Christ Jesus, who is the power of God. He spoke the worlds into existence from his own being. Therefore the external power and divinity of God are impressed upon everything that has been made. We can not open our eyes, we can not even feel the breeze upon our face, without having a clear revelation to us of the power of God.
We are His Offspring.
When Paul upon Mars' Hill rebuked the Athenians for their idolatry he said that God is not far from every one of us, for in him we live, and move, and have our being.
The men to whom he was speaking were heathen, yet it was just as true of them as it is of us. Then he quoted one of their own poets, who had said, For we are also his offspring,
and placed upon it the stamp of truth, by saying, Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.
Acts 17:27-29.
Every movement of men, and every breath, is the working of the external power of God. Thus the eternal power and divinity of God are manifest to every man. Not that man is in any sense divine, or that he has any power in himself. Quite the contrary. Man is like the grass. Every man at his best state is altogether vanity.
Ps. 39:5. The fact that man is nothing in himself, and even less than nothing, and vanity,
is evidence of the power of God manifested in him.
God's Power in the Grass. Look at the tiny blade of grass just pushing its way through the hard ground to the sunlight. It is a very frail thing. Pull it up, and you will see that it has not power to stand alone. Even scrape the soil away from it as it stands in the earth, and it will at once lose its upright position. It depends upon the soil to hold it up, and yet it is pushing its way to the surface through that very hard soil. Dissect it as carefully as you please, and you will find nothing to indicate the possession of power. Rub it between your fingers, and you will see that there is scarcely any substance to it. It is about as frail a thing as there is in nature, and yet it will often remove quite large stones that are in the way of its growth.
Whence comes this power? It is not inherent in the grass, but is nothing less than the power of the life of God, working according to his word, which in the beginning said, Let the earth bring forth grass.
The Gospel in Creation. We have seen that in every created thing the power of God is manifested. And we also learned from the scripture studied last week that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation.
God's power is ever the same, for the text before us speaks of his eternal power.
The power, therefore, which is manifested in the things which God has made is the same power that works in the hearts of men to save them from sin and death. Therefore we may be assured that God has constituted every portion of his universe a preacher of the gospel. So then men may not only know the fact of God's existence from the things which he has made, but they may know his eternal power to save them. The twentieth verse of the first chapter of Romans is an expansion of the sixteenth. It tells us how we may know the power of the gospel.
The Stars as Preachers. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard [or,
without these their voice is heard]. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.
Ps. 19:1-4.
Now read Romans 10:13-18: Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.
In this text all the objections which men raise against the punishment of the heathen are answered. As stated in the first chapter, they are without excuse. The gospel has been made known to every creature under heaven. It is admitted that men can not call on one in whom they have not believed, and that they can not believe in one of whom they have not heard, and that they can not hear without a preacher. And that which they ought to hear, and which they have not obeyed, is the gospel.
Having stated this, the apostle asks, Have they not heard?
and at once answers his own question by repeating the words of the nineteenth psalm, Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.
Thus we learn that the speech which the heavens utter from day unto day is the gospel; and the knowledge which they show from night unto night is the knowledge of God.
The Heavens Reveal Righteousness. With the knowledge that that which the heavens declare is the gospel of Christ, which is the power of God unto salvation, we can easily follow the nineteenth psalm through. It seems to the casual reader that there is a break in the continuity of this psalm. From talking about the heavens, the writer suddenly begins to speak of the perfection of the law of God, and its converting power. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
Vs. 7. But there is no break at all. The law of God is the righteousness of God, and the gospel reveals the righteousness of God, and the heavens declare the gospel; therefore it follows that the heavens reveal the righteousness of God. The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.
Ps. 97.6.
The glory of God is his goodness, because we are told that it is through sin that men come short of his glory. Rom. 3:23. Therefore we may know that whoever looks upon the heavens with reverence, seeing in them the power of the Creator, and will yield himself to that power, will be led to the saving righteousness of God. Even the sun, moon, and stars, whose light is but a part of the glory of the Lord, will shine that glory into his soul.
Without Excuse. How evident it is, therefore, that men are without excuse for their idolatrous practices. When the true God reveals himself in everything, and with his power makes known his love, what excuse can men have for not knowing and worshiping him?
But is it true that God makes known his love to all men? Yes, it is just as true as that he makes himself known, for God is love.
Whoever knows the Lord must know his love. This being the case with regard to the heathen, how utterly without excuse are people who live in lands where the gospel is preached with an audible voice from his written word.
The Cause of Idolatry. How is it that if God has so clearly revealed himself and his truth, there are so many who are in utter ignorance of him? The answer is given, Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful.
There is one thing which God has given as the seal and sign of his divinity, and that is the sabbath. Speaking of men, he says, Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them.
Eze. 20:12. This is in keeping with what we have learned in Romans; for our text tells us that God's power and divinity are perceived by thoughtful people through the things that he has made; and the sabbath is the great memorial of creation. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work; . . . for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Ex. 20:8-11. If people had always kept the sabbath as it was given, there would never have been any idolatry; for the sabbath reveals the power of the word of the Lord to create and to work righteousness.
Vain Imaginations. Men became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Gibbon says of the speculations of the ancient philosophers that their reason had often been guided by their imagination, and their imagination had been prompted by their vanity.
The course of their fall was the same as that of the angel who became Satan. How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High.
Isa. 14:12-14.
What was the cause of this self-exaltation and fall? Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness.
Eze. 27:17. Dependent entirely upon God for all the wisdom and glory that he had, he did not glorify God, but assumed that all his talents sprang from himself; and so, as he disconnected himself in his pride from the Source of light, he became the prince of darkness. Even thus it was with man.
Changing the Truth into a Lie. There is no power but of God.
In nature we see the manifestation of mighty power, but it is the working of God. All the different forms of force which philosophers name, and which they declare to be inherent in matter, are but the working of the life of God in the things that he has made. Christ is before all things, and by him all things consist,
or hold together. Col. 1:17. Cohesion therefore is but the direct power of the life of Christ. Gravitation also is the same power, as we read of the heavenly bodies, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.
Isa. 40:26. But men looked upon all the operations of nature, and, instead of seeing the power of the one supreme God in them, they attributed divinity to the things themselves.
So, as they looked upon themselves; and saw what great things they could achieve, instead of honoring God as the giver and upholder of all things, the One in whom they lived and moved and had their being, they assumed that they themselves were by nature divine. Thus they changed the truth of God into a lie.
The truth is that the life and power of God are manifested in everything that he has made; the lie is that the force which is manifest in all things is inherent in the things themselves. So men put the creature in the place of the Creator.
Looking Within. Marcus Aurelius, who is accounted the best of the heathen philosophers, said: Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble up, if thou wilt ever dig.
That expresses the spirit of all heathenism. Self was the supreme thing. But that spirit is not peculiar to what is know as heathenism, for it is very common in these days; nevertheless, it is nothing but the spirit of heathenism. It is a part of the worship of the creature instead of the Creator. It is but natural that they should put themselves in his place; and when they do that, it is a necessary consequence that they look to themselves, and not to God, for goodness.
When men look within, what is the only thing that they can see? Evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.
Mark 6:21, 22. Even the apostle Paul said, I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing.
Rom. 7:18. Now, when a man looks at all this evil which is in him by nature, and thinks that it is good, and that he can get good out of himself, the result can be plainly seen: the vilest wickedness must be the result. He virtually says, Evil, be thou my good.
The Wisdom of this World. The world by wisdom knew not God.
Keenness of intellect is not faith, nor is it a substitute for faith. A man may be a brilliant scholar, and still be the basest of men. Several years ago a man charged with half a score or more brutal murders was hanged, and yet he was a scholar and a scientist, and had held a high position in society. Learning is not Christianity, although a Christian may be a learned man. Modern inventions will never save men from perdition. Some modern philosopher has said that idolatry can not live by the side of the highest art and culture that the world has ever known.
But at the same time men were sunk in such wickedness as referred to by the apostle in the last part of the first chapter of Romans. Even the reputed wise men were such as are there described. It was the natural result of their looking at themselves for righteousness.
In the Last Days. Read the last verses of the first chapter of Romans if you wish to have a picture of the world in the last days. The one who believes in a millennium of peace and righteousness before the coming of the Lord will doubtless be shocked; but he needs to be. Read that list of sins carefully, and then see how exactly it tallies with the following:
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lover of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.
2 Tim. 3:1 5. This all springs from self, the very source of the evil with which Paul charged the heathen. Those things are the works of the flesh. See Gal. 5:19-21. They are the natural result of trusting in self.
In spite of the declaration of the apostle, there are very few who will believe that this state of things will ever be general, and especially among those who profess godliness. But the seed which produces such a crop is already sown broadcast. The Papacy, that man of sin,
the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped,
is the strongest force in professed Christendom, and its power is daily increasing. And how is it increasing? Not so much by the direct accessions as by the blind acceptance of its principles by professed Protestants. It has placed itself above God in thinking to change his law. Dan. 7:25. It boldly adopted the heathen sun festival day, Sunday, in the place of the sabbath of the Lord, the memorial of creation, and defiantly points to it as its badge of authority. And the majority of Protestants follow in its train, accepting a custom which stands for the exaltation of man above God, the symbol of justification by works instead of by faith.
When professed Christians cling to a human ordinance in spite of the express command of the Lord, and support their custom by appeals to the Fathers, men who were learned in the philosophy of heathenism, the road to any evil which their hearts may choose is but a down grade. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
Ps. 1:1, 2.
My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; so that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord giveth wisdom; out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
Prov. 2:1-6.
Here we have the secret of the understanding of the Bible: study and meditation, coupled with an earnest desire to know the will of God in order to do it. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine.
John 7:17. Repetition_review_is one of the prime essentials to knowledge of the Bible. Not that any amount of study will compensate for lack of the Holy Spirit's guidance, but that the Holy Spirit witnesses through the word.
In this study of Romans we wish to carry along with us as much as possible of what we learn. We will therefore take a view of the first chapter as a whole. We have found that it is naturally divided somewhat as follows:
Vss. 1-7, the salutation, containing an epitome of the whole gospel.
Vss. 8-15, Paul's personal interest in the Romans, and his sense of obligation to them and to all mankind.
Vss. 16,17, what the gospel is, and what it contains.
Vss. 21-23, the corruption of wisdom.
Vss. 24-32, the result of unthankfulness and of forgetting God.
A careful reading of the chapter shows that the main thought is that God has made himself known to every soul in his creation, and that even the most degraded heathen know that they are guilty and are worthy of death for their wickedness. Who, knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
Vs. 32. So they are without excuse.
This leading thought of the first chapter should be well in mind before beginning the second chapter, for the second is a continuation of the first, and dependent upon it.
1 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. 2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. 3 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? 4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and long-suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 5 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; 6 who will render to every man according to his deeds; 7 to them who by patient continuance in welldoing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life; 8 but unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9 tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil; of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile; 10 but glory, honor, and peace to every man that worketh good; to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile; 11 for there is no respect of persons with God.
Acknowledging their Guilt. The truth of the apostle's statement is easy of demonstration concerning the heathen and their deeds, that they know that they are worthy of death. When Adam and Eve had eaten the forbidden fruit, they were afraid to meet God, and hid themselves. Fear is a necessary accompaniment of guilt, and a proof of it. Fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.
1 John 4:18. The wicked flee when no man pursueth; but the righteous are bold as a lion.
Prov. 28:1. But the fearful . . . shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire.
Rev. 21:8. If the heathen did not know that they were guilty, they would not expect punishment for murdering or stealing, and would not arm themselves for defense.
An Unanswerable Charge. There is wonderful shrewdness in the way that the apostle works up the charge made in the first verse. The first chapter is confined to the heathen. All will agree with the apostle's statement that they are guilty of most abominable wickedness. They ought to know better,
is the almost involuntary exclamation. They do know better,
is the apostle's reply, or, at least, they have a chance to know better, and they do know that they are not doing right. They are without excuse.
Whatever men may think about the responsibility of the heathen, all agree that their practices are to be condemned.
Then comes the crushing rejoinder: 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.
We are caught, and can not escape. If we know enough to condemn the unrighteous deeds of the heathen, we by that very judgment acknowledge ourselves to be without excuse for our own misdeeds.
All Alike are Guilty. Thou that judgest doest the same things.
It is clear enough that anybody who knows enough to condemn evil in another is without excuse for his own sins; but all will not at once see that the one who judges another does the same things. Read, therefore the last verses of the first chapter again, and compare the list of sins with that found in Galatians 5:19-21, and it will be seen that the things which the heathen do, and for which we can readily see that they are guilty, are but the works of the flesh. They are the sins that come from within, out of the heart of men.
Mark 7:21-23. Whoever is included in the term man
is subject to just such things. The Lord looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men. From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth. He fashioneth their hearts alike; he considereth all their works.
Ps. 33:13-15.
All Are Self-condemned.Therefore, since all men are alike sharers in one common human nature, it is evident that whosoever in the world condemns another for any misdeed thereby condemns himself; for the truth is that all have the same evil in them, more or less fully developed; and the fact that they know enough to judge that a thing is wrong, is a declaration that they themselves are worthy of the punishment which they see that the other one deserves.
Sympathy, Not Condemnation.The robber often cries out, Stop thief!
after some other man, in order to direct pursuit away from himself. So people condemn sin in others, in order that it may not be suspected that they are guilty of the same things. Often, too, people Compound for sins they are inclined to by damning those they have no mind to,
but of which they are actually guilty by reason of their human nature.
Since all flesh of man is the same, we ought to be filled with humiliation, instead of contempt, when we hear of a gross sin that is committed; for it is really a picture of what is in our own hearts. Instead of saying, God, I thank thee that I am not as other men,
we should bear the burden of the erring, considering ourselves lest we also be tempted. Very often the man whose weakness we feel inclined to condemn, has not failed so badly as we should have done if we had been tempted in the same way, and to the same degree.
Outcry Against Sin. In Pilgrim's Progress when Talkative left Faithful to decide upon the subject of their conversation, Faithful proposed this question: How doth the saving grace of God discover itself when it is in the heart of man?
And then Bunyan proceeds thus:
Talk. I perceive then that our talk must be about the power of things. Well, it is a very good question, and I shall be willing to answer you; and take my answer in brief thus: First, where the grace of God is in the heart, it causeth there a great outcry against sin. Secondly
Talk. Why, what difference is there between crying out against and abhorring sin?
Faith. O, a great deal! A man may cry out against a sin, of policy; but he can not abhor it but by virtue of a godly antipathy against it. I have heard many cry out against sin in the pulpit, who can yet abide it well enough in the heart, house, and conversation. Joseph's mistress cried out with a loud voice, as if she had been very chaste; but she would willingly, notwithstanding that, have committed uncleanness with him.
A keen perception of right and wrong, and a vigorous denunciation of sin, will never justify any man. On the contrary, they only deepen his condemnation. It is a sad fact that too many of the so-called reformers of the present day seem to think that gospel work consists largely in the denunciation of evil practices. A detective is not a minister of the gospel.
Judgment According to Truth. But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.
Hold,
says one, I am not sure of that.
Well, you may very easily assure yourself of it:
1.God exists. We are agreed as to that.
2.He is the source whence every created thing comes.
3.Every creature is absolutely dependent upon him. In him we live, and move, and have our being.
4.Since all life depends on him, it is evident that the continuation of man's life depends upon his agreement and union with God.
5.Therefore God's own character must be the standard of judgment.
6.But God himself is truth. There is no unrighteousness in him.
7.But he has made a revelation of himself and his righteousness to all men. His righteousness hath he openly showed in the sight of the heathen.
Ps. 97:2.
8.Therefore all men, from the least to the greatest, are without excuse for their sin.
9.Then it is plain enough that when God judges all men, without exception, his judgment is according to truth. And earth will be constrained to join with heaven in saying, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus.
Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
Rev. 16: 5,7.
No Escape. No one need think that he can escape the righteous judgment of God. It is usually the most enlightened who flatter themselves that they shall escape. It is so easy for us to think that our great knowledge of right and wrong will be counted for righteousness, to persuade ourselves that our condemnation of the sins of others will make the Lord believe that we could never be guilty of such things. But that only makes our condemnation the more clear.
The first chapter of Romans knocks all the props from under every man. If the lowest are justly held guilty, there is no escape for the higher classes.
God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
Eccl. 12:14.
God's Goodness Leads to Repentance. Despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and long-suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance.
God is the perfection of purity and holiness; man is altogether sinful. God knows every sin, yet he does not despise the sinner. God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
John 3:17. Christ said, If any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not.
John 12:47.
In everything that he said and did, he was simply representing the Father. God is long-suffering to usward;
and the long-suffering of our God is salvation.
2 Pet. 3:9,15. Now it is impossible that one should consider the goodness and long-suffering of God without being humbled and moved to repentance. When we consider how tenderly God bears with us, it is not possible that we should deal harshly with our fellow-men. And if we do not judge, we shall not be judged. Luke 6:37.
Repentance Is a Gift. By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.
Eph. 2:8. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Acts 5:30, 31. But it was not to Israel alone that God gave repentance through Christ. To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
Acts 10:43. And so plainly did God make this appear that even the exclusive Jews were forced to exclaim, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.
Acts 11:18.
Incentives to Repentance. The goodness of God leads men to repentance. Therefore the whole earth is full of incentives to repentance, for the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
Ps. 33:5. The earth, O Lord, is full of thy mercy.
Ps. 119:64. God may be known through his works, and God is love.
All creation reveals the love and mercy of God.
And we need not try to improve on the Scriptures, and say that the goodness of God tends to lead men to repentance. The Bible says that it does lead them to repentance, and we may be sure that it is so. Every man is being led toward repentance as surely as God is good. But not all repent. Why? Because they despise the riches of the goodness and forbearance and long-suffering of God, and break away from the merciful leading of the Lord. But whoever does not resist the Lord, will surely be brought to repentance and salvation.
Treasuring up Wrath. In the first chapter we learned that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.
Therefore all who sin are treasuring up for themselves wrath. It should be noted that in the judgment God is clear. Men receive only what they have worked for. God is not arbitrary. He has not fixed arbitrary decrees, and declared that whoever violates them shall be visited with vengeance. The punishment that will come upon the wicked is the necessary result of their own choice. God is the only source of life.
His life is peace. Now when men reject him, the only alternative for them is wrath and death. For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord; they would none of my counsel; they despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.
Prov. 1:29-32. Trouble and death are bound up in sin; they are what men choose when they refuse the Lord.
According to his Deeds.
Unbelievers often say that it is not just for God to condemn a man simply because he does not believe a certain thing. But he does not do so. Not a word can be found in the Bible about judging a man according to his belief. Everywhere it is said that all will be judged according to their works. For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.
Matt. 16:27. Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
Rev. 22:12. He judgeth according to every man's work.
1 Pet. 1:17.
The man who says that his work is all right, sets himself up as judge in the place of God, who says that every man is all wrong. God is Judge alone, and he judges strictly according to a man's work, but a man's work is decided by his faith. This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.
John 6:29. It is not for any man to judge himself, and say that his work is all right. It is for him simply to trust the goodness and mercy of the Lord, that his work may be wrought in God.
Immortality and Eternal Life. God will render eternal life to them who seek for glory and honor and immortality. Christ hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
2 Tim. 1:10. Life and immortality are two different things. Whoever believes on the Son of God has eternal life. This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
John 17:3.
We have eternal life as soon as we know the Lord; but we can not have immortality until the Lord comes, at the last day. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1 Cor. 15:51-53.
We are to seek for immortality; that of itself is proof that no man has it now. Since Christ has brought it to light through the gospel, it is evident that immortality can be found in no other way than through the gospel. Therefore those who do not accept the gospel will never have immortality.
Tribulation and Anguish.Those who sin are the children of wrath. Eph. 2:3. Indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, are sure to come upon evil doers. But tribulation and anguish will have an end. The fact that none receive immortality except the ones who are Christ's at his coming, shows that all others will eventually cease to exist. There will be torment in connection with the punishment of the wicked, but the torment, however long it may continue, will come to an end in the utter destruction of the wicked. God's indignation will come to an end. For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction.
Isa. 10:25.
The call is: Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee; hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the Lord cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity.
Isa. 16:20,21. He will not always chide; neither will he keep his anger forever.
Ps. 103:9. His anger will cease, not because he will become reconciled to iniquity, but because iniquity will come to an end with its workers.
To Every Soul.
Tribulation and anguish will come upon every soul of man that doeth evil,
and glory, honor, and peace to every man that worketh good.
None will be left out. There is not a soul so poor and ignorant that he will be passed by, nor one so wealthy and learned that he will be allowed to escape. Wealth and position will have no influence in that court. God has made the revelation of himself so plain that every man has had an opportunity of knowing him. The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who hold down the truth in unrighteousness.
Note well that his wrath is revealed against sin. Only those persons will suffer who cling to sin, and will not allow God to take it from them. In the final blotting out of sin, they are necessarily blotted out with it.
To the Jew First.This statement is sufficient to show that God is no respecter of persons. Indeed, the apostle states as a necessary conclusion that there is no respect of persons with God.
First
does not always refer to time. We speak of a man as being the first man in the country, not because there were no men before him, but because he is the chief man. In school a certain one is the first one in his class because he is the best scholar. The Jew is the one who has had the greatest revelation made to him, and therefore it is just that he should be chief in the judgment.
The text shows, however, that God has no special favor to the Jew over other men. If glory, honor, and peace come to the Jew first, so also do indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish. The question is not, What is the man's nationality?
but, What has he done?
God will render to every man according to his deeds, for there is no respect of persons with God.
A few words may suffice to bring to mind what we have already studied. The first chapter of Romans may be briefly summed up as setting forth the condition of those who know not God, and the way in which they lost their knowledge, together with the fact that they are wholly without excuse. Then, just as we are ready to hold up our hands in horror at their wickedness, and to launch forth severe condemnation upon them, the apostle turns to us, and shuts our mouths with the stinging words, 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.
And so the second chapter proceeds to show that all will be subjects of God's righteous judgment, for there is no respect of persons with God.
Thus we are brought to a confirmation of the fact that God is impartial, by a comparison of the two classes in the Judgment.
12 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 13 (for not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified. 14 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; 15 which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another); 16 in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.
Without Law, and in the Law.Although it is quite certain that when the Lord comes the second time there will be no people on the earth who have not heard the preaching of the word, it is a fact that thousands and millions have died without ever having seen or heard of the Bible. They are the ones to whom the apostle refers as without law.
Yet it is plainly set forth that they are not absolutely without law, but only without the written law. The fact that they have some knowledge of the law is stated in the verses following, and is proved by the fact that they are counted sinners; but sin is not imputed where there is no law.
Rom. 5:13.
All Sin Punished.Whether we have had the written law or not, all are alike counted sinners. The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.
Rom. 1:18. The heathen are declared to be without excuse; and if they who have not the written law are without excuse, they who have the law in their hands are of course far more inexcusable. God is just. We know that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.
Yet all who sin, whether in the law or without the law, are to be punished.
This is sufficient to show that without law
does not mean without any knowledge of God. The first chapter settles that. The trouble with too many who read this statement that all shall be punished, and who think that it does not seem just, is that they forget, or are ignorant of, what is contained in the first chapter. It is a great mistake to take any single verse of the Bible and separate it from its connection.
They Shall Perish.That is declared to be the fate of the wicked. The apostle Peter tells us that the world is reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
2 Peter 3:7. What is meant by perish?
It means just the opposite of living forever. On one occasion some people told Jesus of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices, and Jesus replied, Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.
Luke 13:1-3. Again we read, The wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat of lambs; they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.
Ps. 37:20. Therefore the statement that those who sin shall perish means that they shall die, that they shall be utterly extinct, that they shall be as though they had not been.
Obad. 16.
Strict Impartiality.That means strict justice. Sinners will be punished, whether they live in heathen lands or in so-called Christian lands. But no one will be judged by that of which he knew nothing. God does not punish men for violation of a law of which they knew nothing, nor does he hold them accountable for light that they have not had. It is very plain that those who have the law must know many things that are not known to those who do not have it in written form. All men have light enough to know that they are sinners; but the written word gives those who have it a knowledge of many particulars of which those are ignorant who do not have it.
Therefore God in his justice does not hold the latter accountable for many things for which the former will be judged. 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.
The man who has rejected light, whether it be little or much, is obviously guilty.
The Root of Sin.To some it seems unjust that those who have had but comparatively little light should suffer death for their sins, the same as those who have sinned against the greatest light. Their difficulty arises from the fact that they do not consider what sin really is. God alone is good. Luke 18:19. He is the source of goodness. Whatever goodness ever appears in man is only the working of God in him.
But he is also the source of life. With him is the fountain of life. Ps. 36:9. God's life is righteousness; therefore there can be no righteousness apart from the life of God. Now it is evident that if a man rejects God, he effectually cuts himself off from life. It matters not that he has had but comparatively little knowledge of God, if he rejects that light he rejects God, and thus rejects life. And by rejecting the little that he has seen of God, he shows that he would reject God in any case. Sin is simply separation from or rejection of God; and that means death.
Thou Art the Man
Romans 2:17-24
17 Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, 18 and knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law; 19 and art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law. 21 Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal? 22 Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? Thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege? 23 Thou that makest they boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonorest thou God? 24 For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written.
A Professed Jew. Are professed Christians to throw away this portion of the book of Romans as not applicable to them, since it is addressed to a professed Jew? By no means. Professed Christians are the very ones who are meant by the apostle. Read the description: Thou restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, and knowest his will, and approvest the things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the law; and art confident that thou thyself art a guide of the blind, a light of them which are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which hast the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law.
Whom does he address? Every one who professes to know the Lord, no matter by what name he is called; every one who thinks himself fully qualified to instruct others in the way of the Lord.
Called a Jew.
It should not be overlooked as a trifling matter that the apostle does not say, Behold, thou art a Jew,
but, Behold, thou art called a Jew.
People are not always what they are called, nor what they call themselves. Beginning with the seventeenth verse the apostle settles the question of who are Jews. Before we have finished the chapter it will seem that by using the word called
he meant to intimate that the one addressed and described in the following verses is not really a Jew, and is not considered so by the Lord.
VClaiming to Be Jews. In Revelation 2:9 we read, I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.
And again, Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
Rev. 3:9. From this we see that to be a Jew indeed is so high an honor that many will falsely claim it. Yet the people called Jews have been held in contempt by the greater part of the world, for many hundred years.
At no time and in no part of the world, since the New Testament was written, has it ever been an object for anybody to claim that he was a Jew, in the common acceptation of the term. The Jews as a class have never been in such honor that it would benefit one's prospects to be called one. But it has been and is very often an advantage for a man to be known as a Christian, and very many have falsely made the claim, in order to better their business prospects.
Jew and Christian. It is not straining the text at all to say that when Jew
is used in these verses, it means what is now known as Christian.
This will be apparent if we consider what a real Jew is. We may quote enough to show that from the beginning a true Jew was one who believed in Christ. Of the head of the race the Lord Jesus said, Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day; and he saw it, and was glad.
John 8:56. He believed in the Lord, and it was counted to him for righteousness; but righteousness comes only through the Lord Jesus. Moses, the leader of the Jews, esteemed the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt.
Heb. 11:26 The rebellious Jews in the wilderness tempted and rejected Christ. 1 Cor. 10:9. When Christ came in the flesh, it was his own
that received him not. John 1:11. And to crown all, Christ said that no one could believe the writings of Moses unless he believed on him. John 5:46, 47. Therefore it is evident that no one is or ever has been a real Jew unless he believes in Christ. He who is not a Jew indeed is of the synagogue of Satan.
Salvation Is of the Jews.
Jesus said to the woman of Samaria at the well of Jacob, Ye worship ye know not what; we know what we worship; for salvation is of the Jews.
John 4:22. Christ himself was made of the seed of David according to the flesh,
and was therefore a Jew; and there is no other name than his under heaven . . . whereby we must be saved.
No other people on earth, besides the Jews, have ever had so high a name. No other people have been so highly favored of God. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
Deut. 4:7,8.
Resting in the Law. As stated in the verse last quoted, the Jews had committed to them the most perfect law in the universe, God's own. It was called the testimony,
because it was for a witness against them. They were not taught that they could get righteousness out of it, although it was perfect, but the contrary. Because it was so perfect, and they were sinners, it could have nothing but condemnation for them. It was designed only to drive them to Christ, in whom alone they could find the perfect righteousness that the law requires. The law worketh wrath
(Rom. 4:15), and Christ alone saves from wrath. But they rested in the law,
and therefore rested in sin. They trusted in themselves that they were righteous.
Luke 18:9. They found no righteousness, because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law.
Rom. 9:31, 32.
Boasting of God. This is something different from making one's boast in the Lord. Ps. 34:2. Instead of rejoicing in the Lord's salvation, the Jews boasted over their superior knowledge of God. They did indeed have more than others, but they had nothing that they had not received, yet they boasted as though they had not received it. They glorified themselves, rather than God, for the knowledge that they had; and therefore they put themselves in the condition of the heathen who when they knew God, glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations.
Whatever reader is inclined to censure the ancient Jews for their vain boasting, let him remember how he himself has often felt on comparing himself with the inhabitants of heathen countries, and with the lowest class
in his own land.
God's Will His Law. The apostle says that the Jew knows the will of God, because he is instructed out of the law. This is sufficient to show that the law of God is his will. Indeed, no argument should be needed on this point. The will of any government is expressed in its law. Where there is an absolute ruler, his will is always law. God is an absolute ruler, although not an arbitrary one, and as his will is the sole rule of right, it follows that his will is law. But his law is summed up in the Ten Commandments; therefore the Ten Commandments contain a summary statement of the will of God.
The Form of Knowledge and Truth. Although the Ten Commandments contain a statement of the will of God, which is the perfection of wisdom and truth, they are only a statement, and not the thing itself, just the same as a picture of a house is not a house, although it may be a perfect picture. Mere words written in a book or graven in stone have no life; but we know that the law of God is life everlasting. Only in Christ can the living law be found, since he is the only manifestation of the Godhead.
Whoever has the life of Christ dwelling in him, has the perfect law of God manifest in his life. But he who has only the letter of the law, and not Christ, has only the form of knowledge and of truth. Thus, the law is often rightly said to be a photograph of the character of God. But a photograph or other picture is only the shadow of the reality; it is not the very substance. He who has Christ has both the form and the substance, since one can not have a thing without also possessing its form. But he who has only the statement of the truth, without Christ who alone is the Truth has the form of godliness without the power thereof.
Hard Questions. In verses 21-23 the apostle asks some hard questions. Let each soul that has been wont to pride himself upon the correctness of his life answer these questions for himself. It is easy and natural for a man to pride himself upon his morality.
Men who are not Christians comfort themselves with the thought that they live moral
lives, and that therefore they are as well off as though they were Christians. Let all such know that there is no morality except conformity to the law of God. Everything that is in any respect below the standard of that law is immorality. Knowing this, let them see if they have perfectly kept that law.
Dost Thou Steal?
Most people will say, No; I am honest in all my dealing.
Very well, but let us not decide the case offhand. Let us examine the Scripture. It says, The law is spiritual.
Rom. 7:14. The word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Heb. 4:12. No matter how correct we are in our outward acts, if in spirit or thought we have transgressed, we are guilty. The Lord looks at the heart, instead of the outward appearance. 1 Sam. 16:7.
Again, it is just as wrong to steal from God as to steal from man; have you given God his due? Have you dealt in a perfectly honest way with him? Hear what he says: Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse; for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
Mal. 3:8, 9. Does this mean you? Have you rendered to God that which is his due in tithes and offerings? If not, what will you answer when the word of inspiration asks, Thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal?
The Law Is Spiritual.
In the fifth chapter of Matthew the Saviour has set forth the spirituality of the law. He says that unless our righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, we can not enter the kingdom of heaven. What was their righteousness? He said to them, Ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
Matt. 23:28.
Therefore, unless we are righteous inwardly, we are nothing. God desires truth in the inward parts.
Ps. 51:6. Following on in the fifth chapter of Matthew, the Saviour shows that one may break the sixth commandment, which says, Thou shalt not kill,
by the utterance of a single word. He also shows that we may break the seventh commandment which says, Thou shalt not commit adultery,
by a look and a thought. The same principle of course obtains with all the commandments. This being the case, it becomes one to be very careful about saying that he has perfectly kept the law.
Some have said that the Ten Commandments are a very low standard, and that a man might keep them all and still not be worthy of admission into respectable society. Such know nothing about the law. As a matter of fact, a man may break all the commandments, and still figure as a shining light in the best society.
The Name of God Blasphemed. The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you, as it is written.
Who has done this? The one who teaches the law, and who says that one who teaches the law and who says that one should not take the name of the Lord in vain. When David sinned in the case of Uriah's wife, God said to him, By this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme.
2 Sam. 12:14. That is, he was a professed follower of the Lord, and by his violation of the law of the Lord he had given unbelievers a chance to say, There, that is a specimen of Christianity.
Who is there that can say that as a professed follower of the Lord he has always correctly represented the truth? Who is there that must not admit to himself and God that either by his words or actions he has very often misrepresented the truth which he professed? Who is there that has not by his failures, either in teaching or acting, given people a miserably inadequate idea of what true godliness is?
In short, who is there that must not say yes to the apostle's question, Through breaking the law, dishonorest thou God?
And since thus the name of God is blasphemed through professed Christians, who is there that can declare himself guiltless before God's law?
In these verses we have had some sharp questions to those who are called Jews,
that is, who profess to be followers of the Lord. Mere form and profession do not constitute one a proper teacher of the truth of God. He who does not exhibit in his life the power of that which he professes, is only a detriment to the cause. In the verses now before us we have a brief but explicit statement concerning
Circumcision and Uncircumcision Romans 2:25-29.
25 For circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law; but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision. 26 Therefore, if the uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? 27 And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfill the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the law? 28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: 29 but he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Definition of Terms.The two terms circumcision
and uncircumcision
are here used not only to indicate the rite and the absence of it, but also to designate two classes of people. The uncircumcision
evidently refers to those who were called Gentiles,those who worshiped other gods. This use of the terms is very plain in the following passage: When they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter (for he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles); and when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.
Gal. 2:7-9. Here we find that the terms uncircumcision,
Gentiles,
and heathen,
all refer to the same people.
Just what was the profit of circumcision, we are not told in this chapter. The statement of the fact was enough for this place, for the only point in the mind of the writer was to show what circumcision is, and who are the really circumcised. A great deal depends upon these few verses. They should be studied carefully, because upon them depends the proper understanding of a large portion of the prophecies of the Old Testament.
If these verses had received the consideration that they ought to have by professed Bible students, there would never have been any Anglo-Israel
theory, and the unprofitable and misleading suppositions about the return of the Jews to Jerusalem before the coming of the Lord would never have been made.
What Is Circumcision? This question is answered in plain language in Romans 4:11, where the apostle, speaking of Abraham, the first one who was circumcised, says: And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised.
To the question, What is circumcision?
the answer must therefore be, The sign of circumcision is a seal of righteousness by faith.
When Circumcision Is Made Uncircumcision. This being the case, it is evident that where there was no righteousness, the sign of circumcision was worthless. So the apostle says, If thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision.
As in the previous verses we learned that the form without the fact amounts to nothing, so here we are told that the sign without the substance is of no account. It is very easy for a poor man to put out a sign advertising boots and shoes; but to fill the shop with goods requires capital. If he has the sign, but has no boots and shoes, he is worse off than if he had no sign.
The Mistake of the Jews. The Jews made a mistake of supposing that the sign was sufficient. They finally came to hold the idea that the sign would bring the reality, just as many professed Christians in these days suppose that the performance of certain rites will make them members of the body of Christ. But circumcision of the flesh alone could represent no righteousness, but sin. See Galatians 5:19-21. As a matter of fact, many of those whom they despised as uncircumcised
were thus in reality circumcised,
while they themselves were not.
Circumcision of the Heart. Real circumcision is a matter of the heart, that is, of the inner life, and not at all of the flesh. The apostle plainly declares that what is outward in the flesh is not circumcision, that is, which consists only in outward form; but circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter.
This is stated as a general truth.
This was not a new departure in the days of Paul, but was the case from the beginning. In Deuteronomy 30:6 we read the words of Moses to the children of Israel: And the Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.
All true Jews recognized that true circumcision was only of the heart, for Stephen addressed those who rejected the truth as stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears.
Acts 7:51.
Righteousness in the Heart. The psalmist says, Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts.
Ps. 2:6. Mere outward righteousness is nothing. See Matthew 5:20; 23:27, 28. It is with the heart that man believeth unto righteousness. Rom. 10:10. When Moses, at the command of the Lord, rehearsed the law to Israel, he said: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart.
Deut. 6:5,6. There can be no righteousness that is not the real life. Therefore, since circumcision is but a sign of righteousness, it is evident that there can be no real circumcision except circumcision of the heart.
Circumcised by the Spirit. For we know that the law is spiritual.
Rom. 7:14. That is, it is the nature of the Holy Spirit, for the word of God is the sword of the Spirit of God that can put the law of God into the heart of man. Therefore true circumcision is the work of the Holy Spirit. Stephen called the wicked Jews uncircumcised, because, said he, Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost.
Acts 7:51. It seems evident, therefore, that, although the word spirit
in Romans 2:29 is not spelled with a capital S,
it refers to the Holy Spirit and not merely to the spirit of man. (Of course in the Greek there is nothing to indicate any difference, just as in English the word is spelled the same whether it refers to the Spirit of God or the spirit of man).
If we remember that circumcision was given as the seal of righteousness by faith, and that the inheritance promised to Abraham and his seed was through the righteousness of the law (Romans 4:11,13), we shall see that circumcision was the pledge of the inheritance. The apostle also says that we obtain the inheritance in Christ in whom also, after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession.
Eph. 1:10-13. The possession promised to Abraham and to his seed was assured only through the Spirit of righteousness; therefore, from the very beginning there was no real circumcision that was not of the Spirit.
Circumcision through Christ. Ye are complete in [Christ], which is the head of all principality and power; in whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ.
Col. 2:8-11. Circumcision must have meant as much when first given as it ever did. Therefore from the very beginning it meant righteousness through Christ alone. This is sufficiently shown in the fact that circumcision was given to Abraham as the seal of the righteousness which he had by faith, and that he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.
Gen. 15:6.
Who Are the Circumcision
? This question is answered in Philippians 3:3: For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
And this is but saying in other words what we have in our text, Circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Nobody therefore was ever really circumcised who did not believe and rejoice in Christ Jesus. That is the reason why Stephen called the unbelieving Jews uncircumcised.
The Meaning of Circumcision. We have not space to go into this question in detail, but the above texts put us on the track. A careful study of the chapters in Genesis which speak of God's covenant with Abraham will also help to clear up the matter.
We learn in Genesis 15 that God made a covenant with Abraham on the basis of his faith. The sixteenth chapter tells how Abraham listened to the voice of his wife instead of the voice of the Lord, and sought to work out the promise of God through the flesh and made a failure. His son was to be born of the Spirit, and not after the flesh. See Galatians 4:22, 23, 28, 29.
Then the seventeenth chapter shows the revival of Abraham's faith, and the renewal of the covenant, with circumcision as the seal. A portion of flesh was cut off to indicate that he was to have no confidence in the flesh, but was to expect righteousness and the inheritance only through the Spirit of God. The descendants of Abraham would thus have a continual reminder of his mistake and would be admonished to trust the Lord and not themselves.
But they perverted this sign. They regarded it as indicating that they were better than other people, instead of looking upon it as an evidence that the flesh profiteth nothing.
But the fact that the Jews perverted and misunderstood the sign does not destroy its original meaning.
Who Are Jews? We have seen in a quotation from the second chapter of Galatians that the term uncircumcised
refers to those who do not know the Lord, or who are without God in the world.
See Ephesians 2:11, 12. The Jews are <