The Center of all Things
Let God be true though everyone were a liar, as it is written:
“That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged."
“That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged."
It is common for an individual to judge things from the vantage point of his own understanding and experience; indeed, it may be impossible to do otherwise. That a person should gravitate toward an egocentric or ethnocentric worldview is not surprising. Self-justification, self-determination (self-help), self-exaltation, self-pity, indeed, every form of self-focus is about as natural as breathing. The Jews with whom Paul interacted were just like everyone else; they believed Israel was the apple of God’s eye (Zechariah 2.8). They believed that as the covenant people of God they were objects of his special redemptive pleasure. Such an understanding of God’s salvific purposes is not theocentric. In this short paragraph (Romans 3.1-8), Paul answers a question from his imaginary dialog partner that refocuses the righteousness of God’s salvation and the righteousness of God’s judgment back on the glory of God’s person. In the preceding section Paul seemingly set forth an argument that nullified any advantage to being a Jew, because he reasoned that a Gentile who had an innate appreciation and understanding of God’s law and was constrained to obey that law would ultimately be approved by God. If that were so, then one might reasonably ask, “What advantage is there to being a Jew?” Though this is a logical question stemming from Paul’s line of reasoning, he does not answer it fully at this point (he will address the question more completely in chapters 9.4-5), but he does give a summary response in verse 2. At the heart of Paul’s reply is a worldview in which God is the center of all creation (cf. Elihu’s response to Job and the Lord’s answer to Job: Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Job 38.2).
THE ADVANTAGE OF SCRIPTURE (Romans 3.1-4)
The opening question of this section, Then what advantage has the Jew?, is a natural one; however, the answer is unexpected. Paul’s demonstration that God is truly impartial in his judgments would lead one to expect that he would answer his hypothetical Jewish interlocutor with a resounding negative: there is no advantage to being an ethnic Jew. If being a true Jew is a matter of the heart and not a matter of physical circumcision, then what possible saving advantage is there to being a Jew? Paul replies, much in every way. For Paul to say otherwise would be to negate the importance of the Old Testament as the revealed Word of God. Old Testament Scripture attests to the election of Israel as a unique people of God. There are many promises in it that their future salvation will be secured by God’s intervention. Moreover, they are the means whereby the gospel is to be propagated throughout the world. Though Paul suggests that there are many reasons why it is beneficial to be a Jew, he mentions only one at this point in his letter – namely, they were entrusted with the oracles of God. Being stewards of God’s Word is the most important thing. There is much more to say but Paul saves that for later commentary in Romans 9-11, They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ who is God over all, blessed forever (Romans 9.4-5).
There is a future salvation for Israel, to be sure, but Paul’s immediate concern is the present unfaithfulness of Israel. He gives a ringing affirmation to the words of Moses: For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today? (Deuteronomy 4.7-8). The reality, however, is that, for the most part, Israel is unfaithful (this is what Paul means by some were unfaithful). That is, they are unfaithful in that they fail to keep the law and they fail to acknowledge Christ as the Messiah.
Thomas Schreiner highlights the dramatic contrast between the righteousness of God and the unrighteousness of Israel. In verses 3, 4, 5 and 7 we find that there are three terms to denote the faithlessness of Israel and four terms to mark the faithfulness of God. In verse 3 Israel’s unfaithfulness to the covenant is contrasted with God’s faithfulness. Verse 4depicts the truthfulness of God in opposition to the deception of men. In verse 5 Jewish unrighteousness is compared to the righteousness of God. Similarly, in verse 7 the lies of men are contrasted with God’s truth. The Jews failed to keep the law and worse yet they fail to put their hope in Christ who is the fulfillment of the Old Testament covenantal promise. Jesus is the only means whereby they might be saved and they rejected him.
"The incapacity of the Jews to practice the law and the ability of Gentiles to do so indicates that the old covenant was deficient because of human weakness, while the new covenant is superior because of the gift of the Spirit. The Jews have failed to believe in the very fulfillment of the covenant that the Old Testament promised, and the inadequacy of the old covenant is signaled by inability to obey its prescriptions" (Schreiner, Romans, p. 150).
The fact that the Jews failed to follow the covenant does not nullify God’s faithfulness. Paul emphatically dismisses such a charge: may it never be! It is God who is true even though everyone else proves to be a liar. Even though many Jews have not turned to Christ, God is faithful to himself and will fulfill his covenant promise (Paul anticipates here the more detailed argument that will follow in chapters 9-11; cp. Romans 11.26.) Paul has a truly theocentric worldview and he accentuates it by his contrast between the behavior of the Jews (it is the Jews Paul has in mind when he refers to everyone) and the behavior of God. “The anthropological pessimism of Paul, which informs all of 1:18-3:20, surfaces here. The only explanation of any Jews being included in the covenant is God remaining true to his promises despite the sin that plagues the Jews” (Schreiner, p. 151).
Paul supports his statement, Let God be true though everyone were a liar, with a reference to Psalm 51.4, That you may be justified in your words, and blameless in your judgment. As you may recall, Psalm 51 is an account of David’s confession of his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba. The context of the Psalm describes the righteousness of God’s judgment, not the righteousness of God’s salvation. David affirms the rightness of any judgment God might bring against him for a sin that was committed against God alone, Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight. God’s faithfulness in keeping his covenant is not confined merely to God’s faithfulness in bringing about the eschatological salvation of Israel, but it also includes his intrinsic faithfulness to himself that brings about his promise of judgment on those who violate the covenant (cp. Deuteronomy 30.11-20).
GOD'S RIGHTEOUSNESS IN SALVATION & JUDGMENT (Romans 3.5-8)
No doubt Paul’s preaching of the gospel of grace evoked frequent and heated protestations among his Jewish listeners. He cites their common objections in his own words: But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? Such an assumption is emphatically dismissed (By no means!). Some went so far as to suggest that Paul was encouraging his listeners to do evil things in order that God would bring good out if it. By spreading a rumor that Paul was advocating evil practices Paul’s opponents may have been attempting to discredit him. It is not likely that his accusers were antinomian (opposition to the law of Moses was rarely the case for Jews), but they might accuse Paul of antinomianism. Through salacious rumormongering they may have hoped sufficiently to discredit Paul’s character, thus undermining the gospel. Once again Schreiner’s comments are helpful.
"These Jews probably argued that entrance into the covenant was by God’s grace, but it was maintained by keeping the law. Jews who responded appropriately to God’s grace through law keeping would be saved. The Pauline view was both similar and different. Paul also maintained that entrance into the covenant was by grace, but he insisted that the decisive reason for one’s entrance into the church was God’s unconditional election. Paul agreed that law keeping was necessary to be saved, but he emphasized that obedience to the law was the result of the Holy Spirit’s powerful work in believers."
Paul’s adversaries argued that Paul’s soteriology excused the Jews from their moral culpability. If Paul was right, some Jews would be recipients of God’s grace while others would be excluded. If an individual was to be excluded from cooperating in the process of his own salvation, then by increasing his sinful behavior he demonstrates the greater grace of God; and if this be the case, is not God unjust to punish the sinner? Though Paul raises the question he does not, at this point, answer it (that is forthcoming in chapters 9-11), but he does dismiss the objection as unwarranted and that their condemnation is just.
On the face of it the accusation that God is unrighteous to judge unrighteousness is patently foolish and inherently incongruous. What is of significance is Paul’s appreciation that human beings are not able to obey God’s law. The Jews have the Torah but they are unable to obey its precepts faithfully.
"Some Jews believed that people were granted the ability to obey the law when God gave them free will. … What Paul implies in Rom. 1-3 and makes explicit elsewhere is that human beings are unable to keep God’s law (cf. 8:5- 8) and God’s electing grace is their only hope for salvation (Rom. 9-11). This theme is adumbrated in what Paul says about every human being a liar and God being true in 3:4. The Jewish objection to Paul’s gospel, then was as follows (cf. Raisanen 1986: 198): “Paul, your gospel teaches that the unrighteousness of Jews has a good end, in that it highlights God’s righteousness and justice in judging sinners. But the flaw in your theology is that the corruption of the Jews is so radical that the only way God can fulfill his saving promises to them is by a sovereign divine choice (cf. Rom. 9-11). If Jews can do nothing to contribute to their own salvation and are fundamentally corrupt, then is not God ‘unrighteous” (adikos) to inflict his wrath on them?” Raisanen (1986: 198) says the justice of divine judgment in view of human inability was the real issue that informs the question in verse 5." (Schreiner, p. 156)
Within evangelical circles the practice of pragmatic universalism is common. Not many openly articulate a doctrine of universal salvation, but in practice they default to an inherently inconsistent soteriological (salvation) system that supports such a belief. Paul’s contemporaries would find such a thought repulsive. For their part, they assumed God would judge the world – particularly those outside the protection of the covenant. But it is Paul’s contention that both Gentiles and Jews are subject to God’s decisive and impartial judgment. The old covenant is subsumed under the new covenant that is established by the blood atonement of Christ’s sacrifice. Jews and Gentiles alike are saved through his intercession. God has not reneged on his promises. He bestows mercy on Israel through his Son. The righteousness of his salvation is revealed through the person and work of Christ. The righteousness of his judgment is evidenced in his willingness to punish sin. Whether that sin be the violation of the Torah or the rejection of Jesus as the Christ of God. The greatness of God’s righteousness will become more evident in Romans 3.21-26: But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it (v. 21). For now we may say that God’s faithfulness to himself is a frightening thought in light of my sinfulness, but his faithfulness is a comforting thought in light of Christ’s atonement.
ALL HAVE SINNED
Every man, woman and child on the planet is afflicted with a life-threatening disease call sin. Paul’s pessimism about the human condition is extremely bleak: For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under the power of sin. Sin is the dominant force in the life of every person. Its rule is so pervasive that no one can escape its grasp (Ephesians 2.1-3; cp. Romans 8.6-8). Not a single person, save Christ, can rightfully claim to be free of its influence. Though created in the image of God, Adam and Eve were corrupted by sin and all their progeny have been ensnared by the power of that sin. In addition to the effect of original sin, every person willfully participates in sinful behavior. The unbeliever’s moral conscience is corrupted by his willful ignorance of God: You must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity (Ephesians 4.17-18). Not only is a person subject to his own predilections towards sin, but he is unfavorably prejudiced to sin by the spiritual forces of sin’s power (cp. Romans 8.38; Ephesians 6.10-12; Colossians 2.15).
ARE THE JEWS ANY BETTER OFF? (Romans 3.9)
Paul concludes that though the Jews have a decisive historical advantage - having been recipients of the immutable promises of God - they enjoy no salvific benefit. With respect to judgment, God is totally impartial; every human being is judged according to his or her deeds. Paul claims that everyone, Jews and Greeks (Gentiles), are influenced by the power of sin; there are no exceptions to this rule. So neither the Jews (including Paul himself) nor the Gentiles have any advantage of a superior standing with God. The entire human race, being subject to the power of sin, stands condemned before God.
Though we are here addressing the universality of sin’s power, thankfully sin’s power is not the final word. There is something more. Scripture promises that evil will not ultimately triumph over good. God’s mercy is greater than mankind’s sin. Nonetheless what the Bible says is true, there is none righteous, no not one. That is not to say there is no way to be in a right relationship with God. To the contrary, the Bible declares that God’s free gift of grace is sufficient to restore the broken relationship between man and his creator (Romans 3.21-26). We will come to that great truth shortly, but for now we observe that in Romans 1.18-3.20 Paul demonstrates the utter futility of moral self-confidence. There are all sorts of reasons a person becomes involved in sin: it may be ignorance, neglect, inattention to the things of God, another person, or an evil spirit; regardless of the source, it is the foolish and disobedient who stray from the path that leads to eternal life (Matthew 7.13-14). It does not matter what the cause of a person’s sin might be. The bottom line is that everyone is in bondage to sin.
POWER OF SIN (Romans 3.10-18)
Paul supports his thesis that all are under the power of sin with a variety of references to the Old Testament:
None is righteous, no, not one; (Ecclesiastes 7.20)
No one understands; No one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless No one does good, not even one.” (Psalm 14.1-3; 53.1-3)
Their throat is an open grave; They use their tongues to deceive. (Psalm 5.9)
The venom of asps is under their lips. (Psalm 140.3)
Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. (Psalm 10.7)
Their feet are swift to shed blood; In their paths are ruin and misery, And the way of peace they have not known. (Psalm Proverbs 1.16; Isaiah 59.7)
“There is no fear of God before their eyes. (Psalm 36.1)
Just as there is no distinction between classes of people with respect to salvation (Galatians 3.28), so too there is no class distinction in judgment. What Paul seeks to make emphatically clear is that everyone without exception is a condemned sinner. This is nothing new. Paul says: there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue (Psalm 5.9). Of course, Paul indicts himself as well as his reader. One needs to be careful not to misread Paul at this point. He is not saying no one in the Old Testament enjoyed God’s favor. Clearly, this is not the case. If one reads all of Psalm 5 he will find the words: For you bless the righteous, O LORD; you cover him with favor as with a shield. However, we must point out that those who are blessed by God are those who have taken refuge in his mercy: But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you (Psalm 5.11). So we conclude that Paul is not creating a double standard; rather, he is saying that Jews and Gentiles alike have always been sinners and salvation has always depended on the mercy of God. Paul abolishes the distinction between the righteous and the wicked (the Jew and the Gentile) in that he overturns the Jewish concept of covenantal protection. “The sin of the Jews places them in the same situation as the Gentiles: guilty before God. The indictment of ‘all’ as sinners is confirmed by the remarkable emphasis on universality noted earlier. … Thus we can be assured that Paul intends to say that all without exception, including the Jews, are sinners and guilty before God” (Thomas Schreiner, Romans, p. 168).
We may note that sin may be defined as anything which does not express the will and glory of God; anything that one does which is knowingly or unwittingly contrary to the holy nature of God; any failure to conform to the will and character of God. There are a variety of biblical terms used to describe the nature of sin. The most common is a word which means to miss the mark; in Hebrew it is chata, in Greek hamartano. The wicked man invariably misses the mark of righteousness because he chooses to aim at something else; that is, he knows right from wrong and chooses to do what is wrong. The Bible never suggests there might be a question of his innocence. A person does not fail to be righteous because he has given it his best effort and simply falls short of the Divine standard. No, though he may (and should)) pursue holiness, he does not have it in him to successfully attain personal righteousness (perfection). Sin is also defined as being impious or irreverent. There are many cognates for the basic word (adikos) that describes an individual who is opposed to the kingdom of God (cp. 1 Corinthians 6.9; Colossians 3.25). An irreverent person (Romans 2.12; 1 Corinthians 9.21), whether a Jew or a Gentile, is a lawbreaker (cp. 2 Peter 2.8; 2 Thessalonians 2.8). The Gentiles possess a God given inward understanding of right and wrong that they constantly violate; the Jews have a codified law, which they break. In doing so they are both irreverent. There are numerous other biblical terms that emphasize the depth and character of sin. Transgression, iniquity (lack of integrity), rebellion, treachery, perversion and abomination are among the more common words. What is a common theme among them all is a disobedience to the law of God, whether Sinaic or an inner sense of right and wrong. Fundamentally, sin is a failure to acknowledge God as God.
FEAR OF GOD (Romans 3.13-18)
Sin’s power distorts a person’s thinking as well as his behavior; he is incapable of giving God the honor that is due him. Paul says that no one seeks for God. It is reasonable to assume that if God is absolutely sovereign, then the person who claims to be subservient to him would acknowledge him as Lord. Jesus’ closing comments to his disciples included the statement: If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Fathers’ who sent me (John 14.23-24). The consequence of loving Jesus is obedience to his commands. The converse, namely, that obedience effects love, is not necessary true. Indeed, it is impossible because the God requires an obedience that has its birth in a devotion to himself. This is the problem of law and grace. Paul says that there is no fear of God in their eyes. That means the relationship with God is stunted. If the relationship with God is thwarted, then relationships with other men and women will be frustrated as well; thus, I love my wife best when I love Christ more. The person who remains under the power of sin cannot give God first place in his life.
Those who live under the power of sin inevitably fail to treat others in a proper manner. This is not to say that common grace never restrains waywardness, it does. Indeed, the common grace of God is the universal constraint of society. But interpersonal relationships can never reach its full potential when one fails to acknowledge the sovereignty of God. The misuse of the tongue illustrates the destructive power of a self-focused rather than God-focused individual (Romans 3.13-14). In the epistle of James we read: And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison (3.6-8). Of course, it is not only deception, bitterness, cursing, envy, and other abuses of lying lips that destroys relationships, it is the action that accompanies these words. When restraints are removed, those who live under the power of sin will find a way to exercise their wicked desires.They are quick to shed blood; misery and ruin follow in their wake. There would be no need for martial law when natural disasters struck if people were not living under the power of sin. Those under the power of sin follow a path to ruin and misery. They will not know peace because they have no fear of God.
SUMMARY (Romans 3.19-20)
There is a courtroom image to Paul’s summary statement. Every pretense at self-justification will fail before the strict demands of the law. No one will have any defense and everyone will be held accountable before God. At that time, the only escape from eternal judgment will an appeal to the unmerited favor of grace that comes from faith in God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Though it is not within the scope of our text for today, I would be remiss to leave you without Paul’s transition to his concluding declaration of the mercy of God that brings about salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it – the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his prayers at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus (Romans 3.21-26). Martin Luther said that Romans 3.21-26 was the fulcrum or center point of the entire Bible, both the Old Testament and the New Testament. This is the beginning of his reasoning of justification by faith alone and it comes to a glorious conclusion in 8.28-39:
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
THE ADVANTAGE OF SCRIPTURE (Romans 3.1-4)
The opening question of this section, Then what advantage has the Jew?, is a natural one; however, the answer is unexpected. Paul’s demonstration that God is truly impartial in his judgments would lead one to expect that he would answer his hypothetical Jewish interlocutor with a resounding negative: there is no advantage to being an ethnic Jew. If being a true Jew is a matter of the heart and not a matter of physical circumcision, then what possible saving advantage is there to being a Jew? Paul replies, much in every way. For Paul to say otherwise would be to negate the importance of the Old Testament as the revealed Word of God. Old Testament Scripture attests to the election of Israel as a unique people of God. There are many promises in it that their future salvation will be secured by God’s intervention. Moreover, they are the means whereby the gospel is to be propagated throughout the world. Though Paul suggests that there are many reasons why it is beneficial to be a Jew, he mentions only one at this point in his letter – namely, they were entrusted with the oracles of God. Being stewards of God’s Word is the most important thing. There is much more to say but Paul saves that for later commentary in Romans 9-11, They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ who is God over all, blessed forever (Romans 9.4-5).
There is a future salvation for Israel, to be sure, but Paul’s immediate concern is the present unfaithfulness of Israel. He gives a ringing affirmation to the words of Moses: For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today? (Deuteronomy 4.7-8). The reality, however, is that, for the most part, Israel is unfaithful (this is what Paul means by some were unfaithful). That is, they are unfaithful in that they fail to keep the law and they fail to acknowledge Christ as the Messiah.
Thomas Schreiner highlights the dramatic contrast between the righteousness of God and the unrighteousness of Israel. In verses 3, 4, 5 and 7 we find that there are three terms to denote the faithlessness of Israel and four terms to mark the faithfulness of God. In verse 3 Israel’s unfaithfulness to the covenant is contrasted with God’s faithfulness. Verse 4depicts the truthfulness of God in opposition to the deception of men. In verse 5 Jewish unrighteousness is compared to the righteousness of God. Similarly, in verse 7 the lies of men are contrasted with God’s truth. The Jews failed to keep the law and worse yet they fail to put their hope in Christ who is the fulfillment of the Old Testament covenantal promise. Jesus is the only means whereby they might be saved and they rejected him.
"The incapacity of the Jews to practice the law and the ability of Gentiles to do so indicates that the old covenant was deficient because of human weakness, while the new covenant is superior because of the gift of the Spirit. The Jews have failed to believe in the very fulfillment of the covenant that the Old Testament promised, and the inadequacy of the old covenant is signaled by inability to obey its prescriptions" (Schreiner, Romans, p. 150).
The fact that the Jews failed to follow the covenant does not nullify God’s faithfulness. Paul emphatically dismisses such a charge: may it never be! It is God who is true even though everyone else proves to be a liar. Even though many Jews have not turned to Christ, God is faithful to himself and will fulfill his covenant promise (Paul anticipates here the more detailed argument that will follow in chapters 9-11; cp. Romans 11.26.) Paul has a truly theocentric worldview and he accentuates it by his contrast between the behavior of the Jews (it is the Jews Paul has in mind when he refers to everyone) and the behavior of God. “The anthropological pessimism of Paul, which informs all of 1:18-3:20, surfaces here. The only explanation of any Jews being included in the covenant is God remaining true to his promises despite the sin that plagues the Jews” (Schreiner, p. 151).
Paul supports his statement, Let God be true though everyone were a liar, with a reference to Psalm 51.4, That you may be justified in your words, and blameless in your judgment. As you may recall, Psalm 51 is an account of David’s confession of his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba. The context of the Psalm describes the righteousness of God’s judgment, not the righteousness of God’s salvation. David affirms the rightness of any judgment God might bring against him for a sin that was committed against God alone, Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight. God’s faithfulness in keeping his covenant is not confined merely to God’s faithfulness in bringing about the eschatological salvation of Israel, but it also includes his intrinsic faithfulness to himself that brings about his promise of judgment on those who violate the covenant (cp. Deuteronomy 30.11-20).
GOD'S RIGHTEOUSNESS IN SALVATION & JUDGMENT (Romans 3.5-8)
No doubt Paul’s preaching of the gospel of grace evoked frequent and heated protestations among his Jewish listeners. He cites their common objections in his own words: But if our unrighteousness serves to show the righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath on us? Such an assumption is emphatically dismissed (By no means!). Some went so far as to suggest that Paul was encouraging his listeners to do evil things in order that God would bring good out if it. By spreading a rumor that Paul was advocating evil practices Paul’s opponents may have been attempting to discredit him. It is not likely that his accusers were antinomian (opposition to the law of Moses was rarely the case for Jews), but they might accuse Paul of antinomianism. Through salacious rumormongering they may have hoped sufficiently to discredit Paul’s character, thus undermining the gospel. Once again Schreiner’s comments are helpful.
"These Jews probably argued that entrance into the covenant was by God’s grace, but it was maintained by keeping the law. Jews who responded appropriately to God’s grace through law keeping would be saved. The Pauline view was both similar and different. Paul also maintained that entrance into the covenant was by grace, but he insisted that the decisive reason for one’s entrance into the church was God’s unconditional election. Paul agreed that law keeping was necessary to be saved, but he emphasized that obedience to the law was the result of the Holy Spirit’s powerful work in believers."
Paul’s adversaries argued that Paul’s soteriology excused the Jews from their moral culpability. If Paul was right, some Jews would be recipients of God’s grace while others would be excluded. If an individual was to be excluded from cooperating in the process of his own salvation, then by increasing his sinful behavior he demonstrates the greater grace of God; and if this be the case, is not God unjust to punish the sinner? Though Paul raises the question he does not, at this point, answer it (that is forthcoming in chapters 9-11), but he does dismiss the objection as unwarranted and that their condemnation is just.
On the face of it the accusation that God is unrighteous to judge unrighteousness is patently foolish and inherently incongruous. What is of significance is Paul’s appreciation that human beings are not able to obey God’s law. The Jews have the Torah but they are unable to obey its precepts faithfully.
"Some Jews believed that people were granted the ability to obey the law when God gave them free will. … What Paul implies in Rom. 1-3 and makes explicit elsewhere is that human beings are unable to keep God’s law (cf. 8:5- 8) and God’s electing grace is their only hope for salvation (Rom. 9-11). This theme is adumbrated in what Paul says about every human being a liar and God being true in 3:4. The Jewish objection to Paul’s gospel, then was as follows (cf. Raisanen 1986: 198): “Paul, your gospel teaches that the unrighteousness of Jews has a good end, in that it highlights God’s righteousness and justice in judging sinners. But the flaw in your theology is that the corruption of the Jews is so radical that the only way God can fulfill his saving promises to them is by a sovereign divine choice (cf. Rom. 9-11). If Jews can do nothing to contribute to their own salvation and are fundamentally corrupt, then is not God ‘unrighteous” (adikos) to inflict his wrath on them?” Raisanen (1986: 198) says the justice of divine judgment in view of human inability was the real issue that informs the question in verse 5." (Schreiner, p. 156)
Within evangelical circles the practice of pragmatic universalism is common. Not many openly articulate a doctrine of universal salvation, but in practice they default to an inherently inconsistent soteriological (salvation) system that supports such a belief. Paul’s contemporaries would find such a thought repulsive. For their part, they assumed God would judge the world – particularly those outside the protection of the covenant. But it is Paul’s contention that both Gentiles and Jews are subject to God’s decisive and impartial judgment. The old covenant is subsumed under the new covenant that is established by the blood atonement of Christ’s sacrifice. Jews and Gentiles alike are saved through his intercession. God has not reneged on his promises. He bestows mercy on Israel through his Son. The righteousness of his salvation is revealed through the person and work of Christ. The righteousness of his judgment is evidenced in his willingness to punish sin. Whether that sin be the violation of the Torah or the rejection of Jesus as the Christ of God. The greatness of God’s righteousness will become more evident in Romans 3.21-26: But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it (v. 21). For now we may say that God’s faithfulness to himself is a frightening thought in light of my sinfulness, but his faithfulness is a comforting thought in light of Christ’s atonement.
ALL HAVE SINNED
Every man, woman and child on the planet is afflicted with a life-threatening disease call sin. Paul’s pessimism about the human condition is extremely bleak: For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under the power of sin. Sin is the dominant force in the life of every person. Its rule is so pervasive that no one can escape its grasp (Ephesians 2.1-3; cp. Romans 8.6-8). Not a single person, save Christ, can rightfully claim to be free of its influence. Though created in the image of God, Adam and Eve were corrupted by sin and all their progeny have been ensnared by the power of that sin. In addition to the effect of original sin, every person willfully participates in sinful behavior. The unbeliever’s moral conscience is corrupted by his willful ignorance of God: You must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity (Ephesians 4.17-18). Not only is a person subject to his own predilections towards sin, but he is unfavorably prejudiced to sin by the spiritual forces of sin’s power (cp. Romans 8.38; Ephesians 6.10-12; Colossians 2.15).
ARE THE JEWS ANY BETTER OFF? (Romans 3.9)
Paul concludes that though the Jews have a decisive historical advantage - having been recipients of the immutable promises of God - they enjoy no salvific benefit. With respect to judgment, God is totally impartial; every human being is judged according to his or her deeds. Paul claims that everyone, Jews and Greeks (Gentiles), are influenced by the power of sin; there are no exceptions to this rule. So neither the Jews (including Paul himself) nor the Gentiles have any advantage of a superior standing with God. The entire human race, being subject to the power of sin, stands condemned before God.
Though we are here addressing the universality of sin’s power, thankfully sin’s power is not the final word. There is something more. Scripture promises that evil will not ultimately triumph over good. God’s mercy is greater than mankind’s sin. Nonetheless what the Bible says is true, there is none righteous, no not one. That is not to say there is no way to be in a right relationship with God. To the contrary, the Bible declares that God’s free gift of grace is sufficient to restore the broken relationship between man and his creator (Romans 3.21-26). We will come to that great truth shortly, but for now we observe that in Romans 1.18-3.20 Paul demonstrates the utter futility of moral self-confidence. There are all sorts of reasons a person becomes involved in sin: it may be ignorance, neglect, inattention to the things of God, another person, or an evil spirit; regardless of the source, it is the foolish and disobedient who stray from the path that leads to eternal life (Matthew 7.13-14). It does not matter what the cause of a person’s sin might be. The bottom line is that everyone is in bondage to sin.
POWER OF SIN (Romans 3.10-18)
Paul supports his thesis that all are under the power of sin with a variety of references to the Old Testament:
None is righteous, no, not one; (Ecclesiastes 7.20)
No one understands; No one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless No one does good, not even one.” (Psalm 14.1-3; 53.1-3)
Their throat is an open grave; They use their tongues to deceive. (Psalm 5.9)
The venom of asps is under their lips. (Psalm 140.3)
Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness. (Psalm 10.7)
Their feet are swift to shed blood; In their paths are ruin and misery, And the way of peace they have not known. (Psalm Proverbs 1.16; Isaiah 59.7)
“There is no fear of God before their eyes. (Psalm 36.1)
Just as there is no distinction between classes of people with respect to salvation (Galatians 3.28), so too there is no class distinction in judgment. What Paul seeks to make emphatically clear is that everyone without exception is a condemned sinner. This is nothing new. Paul says: there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue (Psalm 5.9). Of course, Paul indicts himself as well as his reader. One needs to be careful not to misread Paul at this point. He is not saying no one in the Old Testament enjoyed God’s favor. Clearly, this is not the case. If one reads all of Psalm 5 he will find the words: For you bless the righteous, O LORD; you cover him with favor as with a shield. However, we must point out that those who are blessed by God are those who have taken refuge in his mercy: But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you (Psalm 5.11). So we conclude that Paul is not creating a double standard; rather, he is saying that Jews and Gentiles alike have always been sinners and salvation has always depended on the mercy of God. Paul abolishes the distinction between the righteous and the wicked (the Jew and the Gentile) in that he overturns the Jewish concept of covenantal protection. “The sin of the Jews places them in the same situation as the Gentiles: guilty before God. The indictment of ‘all’ as sinners is confirmed by the remarkable emphasis on universality noted earlier. … Thus we can be assured that Paul intends to say that all without exception, including the Jews, are sinners and guilty before God” (Thomas Schreiner, Romans, p. 168).
We may note that sin may be defined as anything which does not express the will and glory of God; anything that one does which is knowingly or unwittingly contrary to the holy nature of God; any failure to conform to the will and character of God. There are a variety of biblical terms used to describe the nature of sin. The most common is a word which means to miss the mark; in Hebrew it is chata, in Greek hamartano. The wicked man invariably misses the mark of righteousness because he chooses to aim at something else; that is, he knows right from wrong and chooses to do what is wrong. The Bible never suggests there might be a question of his innocence. A person does not fail to be righteous because he has given it his best effort and simply falls short of the Divine standard. No, though he may (and should)) pursue holiness, he does not have it in him to successfully attain personal righteousness (perfection). Sin is also defined as being impious or irreverent. There are many cognates for the basic word (adikos) that describes an individual who is opposed to the kingdom of God (cp. 1 Corinthians 6.9; Colossians 3.25). An irreverent person (Romans 2.12; 1 Corinthians 9.21), whether a Jew or a Gentile, is a lawbreaker (cp. 2 Peter 2.8; 2 Thessalonians 2.8). The Gentiles possess a God given inward understanding of right and wrong that they constantly violate; the Jews have a codified law, which they break. In doing so they are both irreverent. There are numerous other biblical terms that emphasize the depth and character of sin. Transgression, iniquity (lack of integrity), rebellion, treachery, perversion and abomination are among the more common words. What is a common theme among them all is a disobedience to the law of God, whether Sinaic or an inner sense of right and wrong. Fundamentally, sin is a failure to acknowledge God as God.
FEAR OF GOD (Romans 3.13-18)
Sin’s power distorts a person’s thinking as well as his behavior; he is incapable of giving God the honor that is due him. Paul says that no one seeks for God. It is reasonable to assume that if God is absolutely sovereign, then the person who claims to be subservient to him would acknowledge him as Lord. Jesus’ closing comments to his disciples included the statement: If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Fathers’ who sent me (John 14.23-24). The consequence of loving Jesus is obedience to his commands. The converse, namely, that obedience effects love, is not necessary true. Indeed, it is impossible because the God requires an obedience that has its birth in a devotion to himself. This is the problem of law and grace. Paul says that there is no fear of God in their eyes. That means the relationship with God is stunted. If the relationship with God is thwarted, then relationships with other men and women will be frustrated as well; thus, I love my wife best when I love Christ more. The person who remains under the power of sin cannot give God first place in his life.
Those who live under the power of sin inevitably fail to treat others in a proper manner. This is not to say that common grace never restrains waywardness, it does. Indeed, the common grace of God is the universal constraint of society. But interpersonal relationships can never reach its full potential when one fails to acknowledge the sovereignty of God. The misuse of the tongue illustrates the destructive power of a self-focused rather than God-focused individual (Romans 3.13-14). In the epistle of James we read: And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison (3.6-8). Of course, it is not only deception, bitterness, cursing, envy, and other abuses of lying lips that destroys relationships, it is the action that accompanies these words. When restraints are removed, those who live under the power of sin will find a way to exercise their wicked desires.They are quick to shed blood; misery and ruin follow in their wake. There would be no need for martial law when natural disasters struck if people were not living under the power of sin. Those under the power of sin follow a path to ruin and misery. They will not know peace because they have no fear of God.
SUMMARY (Romans 3.19-20)
There is a courtroom image to Paul’s summary statement. Every pretense at self-justification will fail before the strict demands of the law. No one will have any defense and everyone will be held accountable before God. At that time, the only escape from eternal judgment will an appeal to the unmerited favor of grace that comes from faith in God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Though it is not within the scope of our text for today, I would be remiss to leave you without Paul’s transition to his concluding declaration of the mercy of God that brings about salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it – the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his prayers at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus (Romans 3.21-26). Martin Luther said that Romans 3.21-26 was the fulcrum or center point of the entire Bible, both the Old Testament and the New Testament. This is the beginning of his reasoning of justification by faith alone and it comes to a glorious conclusion in 8.28-39:
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.