Romans 3:1-8 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Romans 3:1-8. Let’s go!
Romans 3:1-4 (NIV)
1 What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision?
2 Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.
3 What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness?
4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.”
On verses 1-4: Just prior to this, in Romans 2:25-29, Paul said that a person’s circumcision means very little if that person’s heart is not set on living for God. But here Paul clarifies that this does not mean that the concept of Jewish circumcision itself has no value, or that being Jewish has no value. What can we learn from this?
– Just because one particular person does not value their circumcision does not mean that circumcision itself is a worthless idea (v2).
– Just because one person responds immaturely or ungratefully to God’s blessings doesn’t mean that God Himself is unfaithful (v3) or that God’s blessings are not valuable.
– Just because you invest in someone and that person does not appreciate your investment or takes it for granted, that doesn’t mean your investment was worthless. Your investment is still worth something to God.
– When God’s blessings are not appreciated or used to the max, that is not God’s fault but ours. As verse 4 says, “Let God be true, and every man a liar”.
Also, in verses 1 and 2, Paul briefly addresses this question: if a person’s circumcision means very little if that person’s heart is not set on living for God (Romans 2:25-29), what advantage is there in being Jewish or being circumcised? Paul says that there is “much” advantage “in every way” (v2); that is, it is a great blessing to be Jewish. Paul says that there are many reasons why the Jews are especially blessed, but one reason is that God entrusted the Jews with His very words (v2), the Scriptures.
What can we learn from this? When you have access to the Word of God, you are extremely blessed because God’s Word is precious. Whether or not you obey God’s Word is another story, but your obedience or lack of obedience doesn’t take away from how precious God’s Word is. This past October and November 2020, as part of our Bibles for Kenya campaign, you all at Thrive Church generously gave to provide approximately 900 Bibles to some of the poorest villages in Kenya. Praise God! We do this because God’s Word in and of itself is precious. Since there are many people in the world who don’t even have access to a Bible, thank God that you do. Don’t take that the treasure of God’s Word for granted.
Since we too have been entrusted with the treasure of God’s Word, may we be faithful trustees of God’s Word and use God’s Word to bring even greater blessing to this world. That way when we give an account to God one day, He will find that His investment in us didn’t return empty.
Also, it follows logically that just because a person claims to be a follower of Jesus but does not live up to Jesus’ teachings, that doesn’t mean that there’s something wrong with Jesus or with His teachings, for the problem is not with Jesus but with the person following Him. So if you’re exploring Christianity and are hindered by the fact that the Christians around you seem to be hypocrites, remember: Just because a guy claims to know math but gets a question wrong, that’s not a reason to say that math doesn’t exist or that math doesn’t work. The problem is not with math but with the guy trying to do the math. Likewise, don’t judge the merits of Christianity based on its fallible, imperfect leaders but based on its founder, Jesus Himself.
In fact, Paul is suggesting in verse 4 that when we fail to live up to Christian standards, that doesn’t mean that Jesus is wrong or Christianity is wrong. In fact, our failure to live up to Christian standards shows that Jesus is right and that an important doctrine of Christianity is true: that we are sinners who desperately need a Saviour. As Paul says in verse 4, citing Psalm 51:4, “[s]o that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge”.
Romans 3:5-8 (NIV)
5 But if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.)
6 Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world?
7 Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?”
8 Why not say–as we are being slanderously reported as saying and as some claim that we say–“Let us do evil that good may result”? Their condemnation is deserved.
On verses 5-8: It appears that in times when Paul would talk about the points in verses 1-4, he would hear his critics bring this objection: “If our sinfulness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, then isn’t God unjust for bringing his wrath on us? Shouldn’t we just go on sinning to show that God is truly right?” (v5, see also verse 7 which states the same question in a different way). Paul doesn’t bother to respond to that objection except to say: “Their condemnation is deserved” (v8). In other words, if that’s how we think – if we say that we’re going to sin more so that God’s glory can be magnified – then that shows that our hearts toward God are cold, that our thinking about God is warped, and that we deserve to be condemned.
May these verses remind us to keep a soft spirit and humble attitude toward God, lest we become cold in our heart and warped in our thinking.
Father, You are the source of every good thing we know. Thank You for entrusting us with the treasure of Your Word. I pray that we would be faithful trustees of Your Word, that we would not take it for granted, but we would cherish it and use it well to bless others so that Your investment in us would not return empty. May we always keep a soft heart toward You and Your Word. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
