Romans 3:1-31

What did God declare? Did He come to declare the law of Moses? Friends, according to Paul God came to declare His righteousness the which later on we will see that His righteousness became the righteousness of the whole world. When Adam sinned ALL were declared unrighteous. When Christ died for the sin of Adam, the which was re-enforced by the law of Moses, sin was crucified in the body of Christ and we were all risen to newness of life in Him. 2 Cor. 5:21.

The whole world has been declared righteous in Christ Jesus. "Therefore as by the offense of one (Adam) judgment came upon ALL men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one (Jesus) the free gift came upon ALL men unto justification of life." Romans 5:18. Friends, it all ties in together. The entire letter of Paul to the Romans had one message and one message only: "This is your brain under the law and this is your brain under the grace of God- any questions? God came to declare His righteousness in Christ and Christ rose from the dead to declare us righteous before God.

Look here, you call yourself an Evangelical Christian, and you continue to trust in your own performance in order to get God to respond to you, and you also boast about your own righteousness; well tell me something: "Where is boasting then? Isn't it excluded? If it is excluded, and it doesn't come through the law of works, but by the faith of Christ Jesus, then what is there left to boast about? Therefore, we CONCLUDE (look up this word and see what it means) that a man is justified by faith (the faith of Christ) without the dead works of the law of Moses." Romans 3:27-28. EN version.

Now, get ready for the big whopper because verse 29 through 31 really brings out the righteousness of God, and shows us how we really been justified freely by God's grace through the redemption that came through Christ Jesus. There are times when I want to take these verses and put them out to the Evangelical Legalist's like this: "Hey chump, let me ask you something. Is God the God of the Christian's only or is He also the God of those you call the sinner, the bad and the ugly? Have you ever read the verse in Romans chapter 3 where Paul called the Jews on the carpet and asked them this very question I am asking you?" "Is God the God of the Jews only?"

Friends, I don't think Paul asked these questions and many of his other questions in all of his letters with a passive attitude. Paul wasn't like the "3 Amigos" who went around compromising and shaking in their boots for fear of what the Jews might say and do as he told them the upfront truth. I like the ending part to verse 29 "Yes! -- like it or not, believe it or not, God is not only the God of you self-righteous bastards, but He is also the God of those Gentiles (every other single nationality on the face of the earth) who you constantly judge, not realizing that you have a two by four in your own eye."

Paul continues to say: "I want you to see that God is the Father of ALL, and this one God has justified those who have not cut their private parts as much as He has justified those on the short end." Paul was basically taking some of these self-righteous, holier than thou Jews back to chapter 2 and verse 25 "For circumcision will profit you "IF" you keep the law (entire law James 2:10) but "IF" you break the law of Moses at any given point, then you aren't really circumcised." Friends, this is the message that the Evangelical Church needs to hear.

Religious people do not have an advantage over those who don't believe like them. Paul's message here in these chapters is about: "You are just as guilty of sin as those that you accuse of sin." In other words, you ought to be glad that God came to declare His righteousness in Christ apart from the law of Moses, because if God had not decided to do such a thing out of love, mercy and grace, both Jews and Gentiles would be barbecued in the same pit. In verse 31 Paul said that he is not saying that the law is cast to the side, but rather that the law is established by the faith of Christ.

To be continued....

Grace N Peace

Eddie Narvaez