“Together
in the Same Boat”
Romans
3:1-20 (Message #7)
February 28,
2016 (Sligo, Ireland)
INTRODUCTION:
RMS Titanic was a British passenger
liner that sank in the North Atlantic Ocean in the early morning of 15 April
1912 after colliding with an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton,
England to New York City. The sinking resulted in the loss of more than 1,500
passengers and crew, making it one of the deadliest commercial peacetime
maritime disasters in modern history. The RMS Titanic, the largest ship afloat
at the time was built by the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast and was
operated by the White Star Line. On her maiden voyage, she carried 2,224
passengers and crew.
Under the command of Captain Edward
Smith, the ship’s passengers included some of the world’s wealthiest people, as
well as some of her poorest, mostly emigrants from Great Britain, Ireland, and Scandinavia
seeking a new life in North America. Although Titanic had advanced safety
features such as watertight compartments and remotely activated watertight
doors, there were not enough lifeboats to accommodate all of those aboard due
to outdated maritime safety regulations and the belief that Titanic was
unsinkable. In fact, Titanic only carried enough lifeboats for slightly more than
half of the number of people on board.
After leaving Southampton on 10 April
1912, Titanic touched port at Cherbourg in France and Cobh in Ireland before
heading west to New York. On 14 April 1912, four days into the crossing and
about 600 km south of Newfoundland, she hit an iceberg at 11:40 PM ship’s time.
The collision caused the ship’s hull plates to buckle inwards along her
starboard side and opened five of her sixteen watertight compartments to the
sea; the ship gradually filled with water. Meanwhile, passengers and some crewmembers
were evacuated in lifeboats, many of which were launched only partly loaded. By 2:20 AM, she broke apart and foundered,
with well over 1,000 people still aboard. Just less than two hours after
Titanic disappeared into the sea, the Cunard liner, RMS Carpathia, arrived on
the scene where she brought aboard an estimated 710 survivors. In all, 68% of
the Titanic’s passengers and crew were lost.
TRANSITION:
In Romans
chapters 1-2 Paul explains that all men are sailing on the SS Unrighteousness.
Traveling through the Sea of Life it has already hit the iceberg and is going
down. It doesn’t matter if you are a first-class passenger or a lowly steerage
stowaway; we are all together in the same sinking boat.
Paul’s Jewish friends found this
concept extremely hard to swallow in that they saw themselves as God’s Chosen
People and therefore not governed by the same rules as the heathen
Gentiles. They laboured under the misconception that they were each the “apple
of God’s eye,”—in a sense, “Teacher’s pet.” They recognized and agreed that the
other end of the boat was
sinking but felt that their
end of the ship would never sink because they were too good and too
righteous and too beloved of God for Him to let that happen. Paul quickly bursts
this bubble by showing from Scripture that Jewish sin is just as damning as
Gentile sin in the eyes of God.
When we come to Chapter 3, Paul
anticipates the logical question: “Then what’s the point of even being a Jew,
of following the Law, or of being circumcised?” Let’s see what he has
to say about those things in today’s text.
MAIN BODY:
Verse 1: “Then what advantage
has the Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision?”
·
Naturally,
Paul’s Jewish hearers would ask this question because at first glance based on
Paul’s statements leading up to chapter 3 they would conclude that he is saying
that being Jewish means nothing to God. But that is not what Paul is teaching.
In this whole passage he makes a clear distinction between advantages in regard
to personal salvation versus the national advantages of the Jewish people. In
terms of getting to Heaven, being Jewish means nothing, in the
same way that being Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, American, Filipino, male,
female, or intelligent and talented means nothing. Every person has to come to
God in the same way, on the same terms. Yet, Israel as a nation had and still
has great advantages. Look at the next verse.
Verse 2: “Much in every way.
To begin with, the Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God.”
·
In
chapter 2 Paul attacked the two great Pillars of Judaism: the Mosaic Law,
and the rite of Circumcision, which was the sign of Israel’s covenant
relationship to God. However, he was not saying that these are worthless,
but rather, powerless to SAVE a person from eternal damnation! There is
a great difference!
·
Paul himself was a Jew and considered himself
blessed to be one. Here in verse two, Paul is focusing on the fact that God
Himself established Judaism. We, as Gentile Christians should never forget
this fact. Israel was the world’s first and only theocracy and God was their
King and Christ will one day rule on David’s throne. And God is still not done
with Israel. Her national covenants with Him were unconditional. God will fulfill
every promise He ever made to them. We, the Church, have not replaced them and
thus inherited all those promises for ourselves, despite the claims of some.
·
I
know there are many who teach this but it cannot be supported from Scripture.
Many Christians have the idea that Judaism merely prepared the way for
something better, i.e. the Church. However, the Scriptures tell us that we were
“grafted into the trunk” of Israel by God’s grace. We did not take their place
and God has not turned His back on them. God made precious personal promises to
Israel, which were not made to any other peoples, including the Church. Later
on in chapters 9-11 Paul deals more fully with the Jew’s place in God’s plans,
but here he simply has to make his case that Jews are just as sinful as
Gentiles and just as spiritually bankrupt before God as far as salvation is
concerned.
·
By
saying “the
Jews were entrusted with the oracles of God” Paul of course
refers to the OT Scriptures. The word “oracles” means the utterances from God.
God gave His Law to the nation of Israel through Moses and the prophets,
instructing them, in turn, to proclaim the Good News to the whole world. They
were to be “a light unto the Gentiles.” [N.B. For the word “entrusted” see
Paul’s repeated use of the word in I & II Timothy, starting with I Tim.
1:11.]
Verse 3: “What if some were unfaithful? Does their
faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God?”
- The fact that some Jews were unfaithful and did not believe God’s promises could not change God’s mind or cause Him to revoke His sincere promises to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David. In fact, Abraham himself was unfaithful, but God kept His promise in regard to giving him a physical son, Isaac. Also, in Moses’ time Israel was unfaithful, but God later on brought them into the Promised Land. In Jeremiah’s time infidelity was nearly total but God did not revoke His promise on that account. Likewise, spiritual infidelity and rejection at the time of Christ did not nullify God’s promises to Abraham’s seed to send the Messiah.
Verse 4: “By no means! 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.’”
·
“By no means!” In this verse,
to make his point, Paul quotes from the Greek version of Psalm 51:4 and he uses
the strongest negative construction that exists in the Greek language. It can also
be translated, “Not at all!” or, “God forbid!” He leaves no door open
to even consider for a moment that God could possibly ever be unfaithful
because it is totally foreign to His character.
·
Paul
defends God’s faithfulness because it is inseparably linked to His righteousness.
God cannot lie and His Word must be regarded as true, even if you have to call
every man a liar. [Notice the interchange between “some” in verse 3 and “everyone”
here in verse 4.] This is true in regard to the Bible and science, psychology,
philosophy, ethics, or any other subject on which the Bible speaks. Human
knowledge is at best incomplete, and is often totally off base, and it behooves
us to give God the benefit of any doubt, for His Word is Truth and He has
proved it countless times. Christian students in secular classrooms are often
confronted with ridicule because they choose to believe God’s Word rather than
the “theory du jour” being promoted on any given day. Yet time and experience
have proven over and over again that God’s Word is indeed trustworthy.
Verse 5: “But if our unrighteousness serves to show the
righteousness of God, what shall we say? That God is unrighteous to inflict wrath
on us? (I speak in a human way.)”
·
It
is true that the ugliness of man’s unrighteousness clearly reveals, by
contrast, the glorious beauty of God’s righteousness, but that fact in no way justifies
man’s sin. God is not manipulating men into sin in order to use them as an
object lesson. However, apparently some were saying just that and claiming that
therefore God is unjust to punish us.
Verse 6: “By no means! For then how could God judge the world?”
·
Here
once again Paul uses that same strong Greek negative he used up in verse 4. “By
no means!” “Certainly not!” “In no way!” “God forbid!” God can never be
accused of unrighteousness just because He judges sin and sinners. God must
always deal righteously because it is His character to do so.
Verse 7: “[Someone might argue] But if through my lie God’s
truth abounds to His glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner?”
·
Paul
here anticipates the Jews’ argument, which goes something like this: “Our rejection has ultimately brought God
glory, hasn’t it? So why then should He take vengeance on us? We’re actually
doing Him a favor by sinning!” So Paul refutes the idea that Israel should
be exonerated on the grounds that her rejection of Christ ultimately brought
salvation to the entire world. It is a specious argument.
Verse 8: “And why not do evil that good may come?—as some people
slanderously charge us with saying. Their condemnation is just.”
·
Paul
has to deal with this same basic idea again later on in 6:1 where he confronts
the question: “Why not continue to sin that grace may much more abound?” The
fact that God is able to bring good out of evil does not justify evil itself.
Karl Barth, a famous Neo-orthodox German theologian, tried to use this argument
to suggest that Judas Iscariot was justified in his betrayal of Jesus and that
likewise, all sinners will one day be justified before God. He, along with
Paul’s Jewish friends, totally misunderstood the Bible’s teaching on grace. In
essence they were saying that we should sin abundantly and frequently so that
more grace will have to be showered down, thus doing God a favor by providing
Him with yet another opportunity to reveal His amazing grace and mercy. Paul
absolutely denies this, maintaining God’s righteousness to be pure and
disassociated with evil. Evil does not contribute toward anyone’s salvation, in
any way, shape or form.
Verse 9: “What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at
all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are
under [penalty of] sin,”
·
Here
Paul returns to his argument of 2:1, that all sinners are without excuse
before God, whether they be heathen Gentile idolaters, or self-righteous Jewish
Law-keepers. Before God, all men are equally sinful, equally depraved, and
equally lost.
[N.B.
At this point, in order to make his case, Paul begins to string together some
selected verses from the Septuagint Scriptures, the ancient Greek translation
of the OT.]
Verses 10-12: “As it is written [Quoting Psalm 14:1-3; 53:1-3]: ‘None
is righteous, no, not one; 11 no
one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have
turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one
does good, not even one.’”
·
Notice
this word “worthless” in verse 12. Literally it means rotten or putrid. Man’s sinfulness is not something that God can
simply overlook or ignore. It stinks up the whole universe! These verses,
10-12, reveal the character of man,
what he is like at the core. Verses 13-17 describe the conduct of man, his actions, which reveal his
rottenness.
Verses
13-14:
(Paul
quotes Ps. 5:9) “Their throat is an open grave; they
use their tongues to
deceive.” (Quotes Ps. 140:3) “The venom of asps is under their lips.” (Quotes Ps. 10:7) 14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.”
·
You
can’t fail to notice that verses 13-14 are about men’s speech, which is corrupt. Observe also, the anatomical
progression from inner to outward—i.e. throat, tongue, lips, and mouth, the
venom spewing outward.
[In the
following three verses Scripture’s spotlight focuses on men’s actions, which are destructive and
murderous.]
Verses 15-17: (Quoting Isaiah 59:7-8) “Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16 in their paths are ruin and misery, 17 and the way of
peace they have not known.”
·
It means they run to do evil, showing no
hesitation or second-guessing.
Verse 18: (Quoting Ps. 36:1) “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
·
This
verse reveals man’s attitude, which
is one of godlessness, and is the cause
of man’s sin in the first place. In a way, this last verse is the most
basic of them all. It reminds me of Proverbs 9:10 that says: “The fear of the Lord is the
beginning of wisdom.”
·
So
to review, we see:
o
The
Character of man revealed (vs. 10-12) = rotten and worthless to
the core
o
The
Conduct of man described (vs. 13-17) = corrupt in speech and
murderous in actions
o
The
Cause of man’s sin explained (v. 18) = godless in attitude
Verses 19-20: “Now we know that whatever the Law says it speaks to
those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole
world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the Law no human being will
be justified in His sight, since through the Law comes knowledge of sin.”
·
The
primary purpose of the Law was to convict and convince men of sin. It served as
a mirror to reveal their imperfections against the backdrop of God’s absolute
perfection. If Israel had covenant relations with Jehovah, it also had the Law
to remind them that they were sinners. The Law was never intended to justify,
and indeed, was incapable of doing so. It was not a “life-saver,” but more of a
moral millstone around the neck. If one would sink without this millstone, how
much more with it? Therefore, if the Gentiles perish without the weight of
the Law, how much more will the Jews perish with it? Thus Paul has clarified
the true purpose of the Law—it is a mirror to reveal our sin; it is a straightedge
to show how crooked we are; it is a snapshot to show what real holiness
looks like; and it is a tutor to bring us to God Himself.
·
Any
religion that fails to convict of sin has failed in its basic function. The
very word “religion” means to “bind back” to God. A true religion must first
show us where we are, in relation to where we should be, if it is to point us
to the path of restoration so that we can get reconnected to God. One cannot be
saved of he does not know that he is lost!
CONCLUSION:
Faith is futile without genuine
repentance, or rather, it is counterfeit! To be saved one must turn from his
sin as well as turn to Christ. The mistake of the rich young ruler
of Matthew 19 was that he sought to follow Christ without turning from his
idols, which in his case was his great wealth and abundance of possessions. For
other people it may be something else, but everyone has their idols.
Many religions today (including some
so-called “Christian” groups) point to a glory without a cross, a receiving of
Christ without a renunciation of sin. However, Christ insisted that man cannot
have two gods, God and mammon, meaning material things. One of the conditions
of salvation according to Romans 10:9 is confessing “Jesus as Lord.” A wise
person once said, “If He is not Lord of All, then He is not lord at all!”
Repentance from sin is the common denominator for everyone who wants eternal
salvation, regardless of who you are, of how you have lived your life,
of what religious group you belong to, or of what star you were born under.
The Mosaic Law was given by God as one
of the first elements of written revelation to emphasize for man his hopeless,
sinful condition so that he might seek after a gracious God who can and will
save to the uttermost all who come to Him in humble faith and repentance. No
one, not even the Jews, could by-pass this essential step on the road to
salvation.
Have you truly repented of your sin and
turned to Christ to be your Saviour? If not, why not take that step today?
Paul says in Romans 10:8ff: “The Word is
near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the Word of Faith that we
proclaim); 9 because,
if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that
God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the
heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is
saved. 11 For
the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in Him will not be put to
shame.” 12 For
there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of
all, bestowing His riches on all who call on Him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the
Lord will be saved.”
FEEDBACK:
Any comments, questions, or
observations about what I’ve presented?
