THE REALITY OF UNIVERSAL SIN

Romans 3:1-20

Then what’s the advantage of being a Jew? Is there any value in the ceremony of circumcision? 2 Yes, there are great benefits! First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the whole revelation of God.

3 True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful? 4 Of course not! Even if everyone else is a liar, God is true. As the Scriptures say about him,

“You will be proved right in what you say, and you will win your case in court.”

5 “But,” some might say, “our sinfulness serves a good purpose, for it helps people see how righteous God is. Isn’t it unfair, then, for him to punish us?” (This is merely a human point of view.) 6 Of course not! If God were not entirely fair, how would he be qualified to judge the world?7 “But,” someone might still argue, “how can God condemn me as a sinner if my dishonesty highlights his truthfulness and brings him more glory?” 8 And some people even slander us by claiming that we say, “The more we sin, the better it is!” Those who say such things deserve to be condemned. (Romans 3:1-8 - New Living Translation)

In the opening verses of chapter 3 Paul seems to have a debate with an imaginary adversary which follows on from the discourse over circumcision and the language and train of thought becomes a somewhat complicated and difficult to follow. He has shown that circumcision, when it is merely an outward sign, has little value; but it is still the symbol of great promises. Though Paul has had no mercy on a false reliance on externals, he has not thereby repudiated the whole spiritual legacy which Judaism enshrined. —Interpreter's Bible, The – Exposition

It needs to be noted that this spiritual legacy has to do with responsibility rather than privilege. To the Jewish people God has given his law, not as a personal privilege for them, but rather as a responsibility for them to share with the whole world. When God enlightens and inspires a person through his Holy Spirit, they become partners with the Creator God. They are given a gift or gifts, for which they can never rightly claim ownership. However, along with the gifts comes a responsibility for their deployment. They are to be channels through which God’s grace and mercy flow freely. Paul possessed a very clear vision about gifts granted by God, and the manner in which they needed to operate. To Paul, the reality is that if a person has the opportunity to right, and prefers to do wrong, the greater will be their condemnation.

To the end of the day he believed the Jews to be in a special position in regard to God. That, in fact, is what they believed themselves. The difference was that Paul believed that their special position was one of special responsibility; the Jew believed it to be one of special privilege. (William Barclay – Romans)

When writing to the Christians at Ephesus Paul makes it crystal clear that when God bestows a gift or gifts on Christians it carries with it responsibility rather than privilege:  11 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-12- NLT) Over recent years there has been a tendency to discover spiritual gifts for mainly personal gratification, rather than the crucial mission of building up the whole body of Christ, the church. This was the stumbling block on which the Jewish people had fallen; they saw the gift of the law as pertaining to their own personal satisfaction, rather than in partnership with God, fulfilling his desire that through them all nations would be blessed. (See Galatians 3:8)

Paul’s adversary seems to argue that sin helps people see how righteous God is. His argument is: that if good has come out of the evil he has done, that must be a good thing. In other words: the end justifies the means. In the eyes of God, sin is still sin, regardless of the end result. Humanity always has a way of justifying and rationalising sin and wrong behaviour. The argument here is when a person sins it gives God a chance to demonstrate his justice and mercy, and that, therefore, is a good thing.  In the end, his augment seems to make little sense and Paul responds with: Those who say such things deserve to be condemned.

All People Are Sinners

9 Well then, should we conclude that we Jews are better than others? No, not at all, for we have already shown that all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under the power of sin. 10 As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous— not even one. 11 No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. 12 All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.” 13 “Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are filled with lies.” “Snake venom drips from their lips.” 14 “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” 15 “They rush to commit murder. 16 Destruction and misery always follow them. 17 They don’t know where to find peace.” 18 “They have no fear of God at all.” 19 Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God. 20 For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. (Romans 3:9-20 - NLT)

Paul now needs to find some basis to present his great doctrine of justification by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and to do this he has to set a level playing field; all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under the power of sin. In the sight of God, all people are equal in spite of their race or heritage; they are all, without exception, sinners. In verses 12-18 he goes to great lengths to outline the wickedness of humanity in the most graphic manner. He points out that the law was given to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God.

He then goes on to enunciate a fact that must have chilled the hearts of Jewish people: For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. To the dedicated and religious Jew the keeping of the law with all its various amendments which men had appended, was the apex of their existence. To be told that no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands must have come as a blow to their religious pride and their lifestyle. However, Paul is convinced that there is a place for the law; it simply shows us how sinful we are.

Often the struggle of humanity in being right with God is an inner sense that somehow we must significantly contribute to our own redemption, that in some way my right standing before God depends on what I can achieve and/or contribute.

The natural reaction of decent people is to try and put right that which they have done wrong. We look for a process that will enable us to personally rectify the wrong we have done. Such inclinations are a natural human reaction for decent individuals. The same carries through to our standing with God. We want to rectify and make amends for the sins we commit. The reality is that there is nothing we can humanly do to absolve our sin. However, that doesn’t stop us trying to find human processes that will make us feel that somehow, we can put it all right. In the final analysis, our first step is confronting our own sin and sinful attitudes.

The stark reality is that those who cannot acknowledge and confront their sinfulness will find it extremely difficult to embrace and integrate Paul’s doctrine of justification by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, which he is about the present. He is about the show his Roman Christians a way to be right with God that moves beyond the law and human effort.