Jew and Gentile-Equally Guilty
All have sinned
Romans 2
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 shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while 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
Paul begins to teach those who sin "apart from the law" and those who sin "under the law. We make difference in them.
In context Paul is comparing two sets of two things.
He contrasts the evil with the good and he contrasts the Jews with the Gentiles
We must understand, whether we are under the law, or those apart from the law, their sin is still sin and still is today as all through history.
Go back to the garden of Eden, to man’s sin, all the way to Moses, there was no law instituted upon a people as a whole. (Romans 5 Verse 13)
Romans 5 makes an interesting truth.
12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
These writings cover the entirety of man. Roman 5:12 said it, “all have sinned”.
There is no other category for man to fall under.
Sinners without the law of Moses to follow—the Gentiles—will die and be judged by God without the law, because their sin is still sin.
Sinners under the law—Jewish people who adhere to the rituals and sacraments of the law of Moses—will be judged by God according the law of Moses when they die.
Each person is held to the standards of their own knowledge (The given knowledge of God, that will guide every person regardless of any outside spiritual influences and that is even a possible lack of any spiritual knowledge whatsoever), and as Paul points out, God has given every person enough knowledge to be without excuse (Romans 1:18–20). A knowledge that the individual will be held accountable before God with no lack of knowing God for believing upon Him.
Paul shows that God will impartially judge everyone for sinning against the light that they were given.
His line of reasoning goes like this:
The Gentile sinned without the Law, so he will perish without the Law and the Jew sinned under the Law and so he will be judged by the Law (2:12).
As God states in verse 6, God “will render to each person according to his deeds.” Hearing the Law isn’t good enough so you must be a doer of the Law (2:13).
Although the Gentiles did not have God’s Law, they all have an inner sense of right and wrong (2:14).
So they all have sinned against what they know to be right at times, even though their consciences and thoughts convict them of their guilt (2:15).
A good illustration is found in John 8:1-11.
The Jewish leaders have been disturbed by the way Jesus taught and acted in ways that seemed contrary to their understanding and teaching of the law.
Jesus is confronted with a situation in which the verdict would seem to be self-evident. The woman was caught in the act of committing adultery, and the law clearly says that the punishment for adultery is death (Leviticus 20:10).
So the Jewish leaders want to see whether Jesus will uphold and respond to the law in this case.
The woman was caught in the act, which means that the man also must have been present, and the law is quite clear that in a case of adultery both people are to be put to death--the man as well as the woman (Leviticus 20:10).
The accusers are guilty of ignoring the clear statutes in the law that they seek to trick Jesus with.
When Jesus asks the person who is without sin to cast the first stone, no one responds.
They have violated the law by condemning the woman's sin while letting the other guilty party go free.
As further told, they all left in verse 9, as their own conscience convicted them.
Remember this, conscience is in men’s hearts, even to those who have never heard. God considers this conscience valid enough to put it in man to be a spiritual guide in the absence of anything else that points to right and wrong.
I will also declare that yes, the conscience needs to be cultivated with the word of God, refined with the Holy Spirit, but even without those influences, the conscience given in men by God, will be enough to guide the religious, the pagan, the tribesman in the most secluded lands of the world....no excuse.
The day is coming when God will judge not only outward deeds, but also the secrets of men through Jesus Christ, in accordance with the gospel (2:16).
We see how Paul teaches this matter, how does Jesus treat the subject.
Matthew 11:20-24
20 Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not:
21 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
22 But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.
23 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
24 But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.
Jesus knew that these would repent, if they had seen the miracles He had already done.
He already had angels there in the city to do the miracles for them to see.
Their rejection of righteousness did not allow the demonstration. Man can get too far from God.
Sodom refused to repent and was judged on the basis of the light that they had been shown. How many were destroyed in that judgement and That judgement will be their just sentence.
But the word declares that their judgment will be lighter than that of the people of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum, who witnessed Jesus’ miracles, but still rejected Him.
How much light has our generation seen?
What Judgement will our generation seen?
The greatest question to you, How much light have you seen and heard?
To this point Paul’s argument and mine is thus far God is not partial to the Jews by giving them the Law, because He will judge everyone based on the light and knowledge that they were given (2:12); and, hearing the Law which does not justify anyone; we must be doers of the Law (2:13). Just a note here, do not consider this a works Salvation. There is a “service required of man to God relationships.
Salvation is faith plus nothing.
And those who have not the law of God, still have that light that declares to them right or wrong and that light will condemn them as they violate that light. Read these two verses.
Romans 2:14-15
Verse 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: then in verse 15.
Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)
Verse 12 that states “all who sin without law will also perish without the law” and is brought back again to verse 14 and 15, shows the work written in their heart, their conscience bearing witness,gives the inner sense of right and wrong.
How often do they and we ignore or flat disobey?
This will bring a guilty verdict one day soon at our judgement.
Paul is bringing out that even Pagans who have never heard sermons or been in any spiritual arenas, who declare no sense of right or wrong, will not be excused from that judgement, as in
Romans 1:
17.
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.
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 shewed 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 eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
From the chiefest of sinners, men wrapped in sin, even the religious but unsaved church person, has been shown the light of God.
My point and I believe Paul’s point is that every culture and creed has standards of right and wrong that often coincide with God’s Law.
Why?
God created man to follow Him anyhow, so a law is inherit to them.
And every person has a conscience that condemns him when he violates what he knows to be wrong.
Whether a person had God’s Law or not, he will stand guilty before God on that day because that person knows and has seen light. They choose to reject the witness and the light.
There will be a certain day of judgment. God has fixed the day .
(Acts 17:31).
31 Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.
A side note to this and one we will study soon,
The law "written in their hearts" should not be confused with the law written on the hearts of believers promised by the New Covenant.
(The New covenant is promised to the Jews)
Jer 31:31
It is my understanding of the scriptures that In the parallel passages, the parties involved are always the Lord and the nation of Israel.
Some blessings relate to the Gentile nations, but even these are “spill-over” blessings from Israel.
I call it the ..”crumbs that fall from the masters table”.
See also Hebrews 8:8-13 and Romans 15:8.
We gentiles are not part of that covenant, as it is written in Ephesians 2:12.
The same people that got the Old Covenant will get the New Covenant
To conclude all of this, it makes no difference if you are Jew or Gentile, one who claims to have never heard the gospel, or the most vile sinner that ever lived or the highest member of a church:
Romans 2:11 says, “For there is no respect of persons with God.”
When it comes to judging sin, God does not treat any one nation or ethnic group or religious nor sinner any different. No one whether individual or nation escapes because He judges them all in the end.
I heard a minister say that at the “foot of the cross, the ground is level”
Jesus died for all. Believe on Him today as in 1 Corinthians 15: verses 1-4.
No one will have the excuse that they did not know or had never heard.
